I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You’re accusing another poster of hyping and ramping? 😂😂😂
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You're the biggest Sunak ramper on here lol and you accuse me of hubris and hype, ROFL!
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You’re accusing another poster of hyping and ramping? 😂😂😂
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
ok BigG - how many seats do you think the filthy Tories will win in your beloved Wales at GE24?
I predict zero as the Welsh people in general have more sense that you - thank God!
What line did Davie imagine he was drawing ? He surely can’t expect everyone who ever appears on the BBC to refrain from political comment in a private capacity ? If that’s not the case, then WTF is “the line” ?
It sure as hell hasn’t been made public.
The line is "Don't say anything that upsets the Tory government"
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Strarmer who was in Paris this week
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You’re accusing another poster of hyping and ramping? 😂😂😂
I am crying mate lol
It’s the predictability I find amusing. I swear there is a calendar somewhere with “ramp Rishi” circled on it at regular intervals.
The chairman of the BBC is under growing pressure to resign with a predecessor criticising him for failing to be open about his links to Boris Johnson and staying silent on the Gary Lineker crisis.
Richard Sharp has faced scrutiny since The Sunday Times revealed he helped facilitate a loan of up to £800,000 for Johnson, then prime minister, who weeks later appointed him to his role at the broadcaster. A committee of MPs found Sharp made “significant errors of judgment” by failing to disclose the potential conflict of interest. It said he should consider the effect that had on trust in him, the BBC and the public appointments process.
Sharp, 67, remains under investigation by the Whitehall appointments watchdog. His future could be resolved sooner because of the crisis engulfing the broadcaster.
Genius stuff from the Tories to bring Sharp to the public's attention again. And as I said earlier, this drama hasn't done much good for the prospects of a Boris comeback.
Ooh dear. An English humiliation as profound as Hastings?
Hastings was technically Viking v Saxon really, most on the Norman side including William the Conqueror were descended from Vikings led by Rollo who raided and settled the area and were granted it ultimately by the King of France
No they weren’t HYUFD. Read “The Normans and Their Myth” by Ralph Davis. The idea of shared Viking ancestry was made up in the 12th Century.
That doesn't really dispute the point William the Conqueror was descended from Rollo the Viking not the Kings of France
He was 50% French!
He was 100% French.
Rollo swore fealty to Charles the Simple, so he and his descendants were from that day forwards French.
The idea that a descendent over 150 years later wasn't French because their ancestor wasn't born a nationality a century and a half earlier is the most bizarre blood and soil racism. Like saying Abraham Lincoln wasn't really American.
Excellent, that is very helpful. Ta muchly. (And I did correct my slip. But this is useful to know too.)
PS: if Hastings was really Viking vs Saxon, then why aren't we speaking posh Danish when it comes to talking about beef and pork and mutton?
Indeed. Obviously in case my post wasn't clear, it wasn't you that I was suggesting was engaging in blood and soil nonsense.
Incidentally though, I think we should go back to the olden tradition of naming monarchs with a nickname that describes them. I wonder if our current monarch would even earn a name like "the Simple".
Along the lines of Eric Bluetooth, what about Charles Fatfinger ?
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You tell him Big G!
Other than Jack W you've probably seen more political leaders, Prime Ministers and political shenanigans than anyone else on here.
I don't like the governments policy on small boats or its disregard for international law, but the one thing that irritates me more is people who peddle slogans like 'migrants welcome'. How many? 1 billion? 2 billion? Would they want to make any assessment of their claim to come to the UK, or just let everyone in? ... to which they have no answer.
It seems to me that, even though these people are often the most vocal on this issue, and also fall within the category of people that like to 'cancel' opposing opinions they don't like, their position is ultimately hopelessly flawed, and this is obvious to everyone that doesn't share their view on the subject.
Do they really have "no answer" to it?
Their first point would surely be that the figures you've suggested are plainly ludicrous - that the level of demand simply isn't that high as evidenced by numbers applying.
The second point most (but not all) would make is yes, they would want to assess the claims of those seeking to come in.
It seems to me you're (accidentally) falling into the trap of accepting the false dichotomy that a few people (on both extremes) present that you can either be aggressively hostile to all migrants, or apply absolutely no threshold at all, with no ground in between.
The reason why people don't apply or try and get here is because, if you have no legal route in to the UK, then it is extremely dangerous. If it was just a case of boarding a flight or a ferry then the numbers would obviously rise dramatically.
Most people wanting to get here would also have some kind of reasonable claim, be this some kind of family connection, or fleeing some kind of difficult situation. That's the problem. The moral dilemma never ends.
I'm sure it's true that creating legal routes makes it easier to apply, and making it easier to apply increases applications.
But the issue is one of scale. Your original post asked if those who say "migrants welcome" would welcome one or two billion. That's simply absurd, and isn't suggestive of a "moral dilemma" - instead it suggests hysteria.
I think the scale issue is perfectly reasonable to debate, but it really needs to be had on a realistic basis, accepting the cons and pros of migration for the destination country.
It isn't hysteria at all. People don't want to contemplate the fact that there are an essentially endless amount of people who would like to come to the UK; and that any policy on immigration is going to be an intractible moral dilemma. They want some kind of easy answer to this problem, which is what proponents of open borders provide.
The numbers are absolutely staggering, even in the existing 'heavily restricted' environment - it is leading us to a very difficult place.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Strarmer who was in Paris this week
I welcome all the above.
I still think Rishi is a nob, and I disdain and despise his willingness to foist Braverman upon the nation.
And his record everywhere else (HS2 etc) is also shite.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Strarmer who was in Paris this week
But it isn't going to do anything, how can you not see that
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
ok BigG - how many seats do you think the filthy Tories will win in your beloved Wales at GE24?
I predict zero as the Welsh people in general have more sense that you - thank God!
Personal post. On 18 December I lost my 16 3/4 year old dog, Archy, my best friend. I was very stoic about it, he’d had an excellent innings, I had an essay to finish for my MA over Christmas and I’d just been promoted at work, so I held it together.
This morning I took the ancient, and likely flea infested, IKEA armchair Archy monopolised next to my desk to the dump. As I tipped it into the garbage I suddenly completely and utterly lost it and the council guys had to come and see if I was okay.
Grief’s a funny thing. Sorry if I was tetchy this AM.
Ooh dear. An English humiliation as profound as Hastings?
Hastings was technically Viking v Saxon really, most on the Norman side including William the Conqueror were descended from Vikings led by Rollo who raided and settled the area and were granted it ultimately by the King of France
No they weren’t HYUFD. Read “The Normans and Their Myth” by Ralph Davis. The idea of shared Viking ancestry was made up in the 12th Century.
That doesn't really dispute the point William the Conqueror was descended from Rollo the Viking not the Kings of France
He was 50% French!
He was 100% French.
Rollo swore fealty to Charles the Simple, so he and his descendants were from that day forwards French.
The idea that a descendent over 150 years later wasn't French because their ancestor wasn't born a nationality a century and a half earlier is the most bizarre blood and soil racism. Like saying Abraham Lincoln wasn't really American.
Sorry Bart but that’s bullshit. Normandy and Normans did not regard themselves as “French” at that time. Nor did the Bretons or multiple other areas of what is now France. They might have had to pledge fealty to the French king but they were distinct and culturally separate.
You only need to look at maps of France and their evolution to know that being French has not been a given for many areas - Savoie for example - until relatively recently.
Your point would be like saying that William Wallace was British because Scotland is no Part of Great Britain.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Strarmer who was in Paris this week
What closer relationship? I still don’t see what, in concrete terms, has happened.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
Well said BigG, don't forget May was heading for a landslide in 2017 and Cameron for a landslide in 2010 in polls before the campaign began. Kinnock was also heading for a majority in 1992 in many polls before Major got his soapbox out. Rishi will do better than Starmer in the campaign in my view as he is more charismatic and could get a bounce from the debates as Clegg did in 2010
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You tell him Big G!
Other than Jack W you've probably seen more political leaders, Prime Ministers and political shenanigans than anyone else on here.
No he hasn’t! My first political memories are of the 1945 election.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
ok BigG - how many seats do you think the filthy Tories will win in your beloved Wales at GE24?
I predict zero as the Welsh people in general have more sense that you - thank God!
Wales may yet surprise in late 24
So tell me how many seats will the Tories win in Wales? 1 possibly 2?
Exactly, the thing that sticks out from that statement is the 45000 per year bit. That is the same as the population of Lancaster, coming in every year on dinghies.
Net migration is at 500,000, that is the population of Manchester or Bristol.
Net additional housing units per year is at 232,280.
We control migration now thanks to Brexit IIRC so if there is 500k net immigration then presumably the government thinks that's the right amount so we should be happy? Natural population growth is negative and more than one person lives in a house usually (there are six in ours) so the housing supply number sounds about in line with what we need, doesn't it?
I expect most people will still back the government's policy of sending migrants boats back to France and working with the French government to detain them there rather than Lineker's view. At the same time they will think Lineker probably should stay at MOTD as he is not a political journalist on the BBC so does not need to be neutral in his tweeting
I can't see any way back for Lineker. The BBC and the Gov't dropped a bollock, but they can't row that back. He will be made an example of.
If Lineker doesn't back down - and he shows no sign of doing so - either the BBC will have to take him back without any apology or they will be liable for broken contract running to millions. It will be more expensive to not have him present MoTD than to keep him on. Not clear to me getting rid of him is the less embarrassing option.
Personal post. On 18 December I lost my 16 3/4 year old dog, Archy, my best friend. I was very stoic about it, he’d had an excellent innings, I had an essay to finish for my MA over Christmas and I’d just been promoted at work, so I held it together.
This morning I took the ancient, and likely flea infested, IKEA armchair Archy monopolised next to my desk to the dump. As I tipped it into the garbage I suddenly completely and utterly lost it and the council guys had to come and see if I was okay.
Grief’s a funny thing. Sorry if I was tetchy this AM.
It is. My old dog died 4 Yr ago but my son had me choked up when he brought him up in conversation the other day.
I expect most people will still back the government's policy of sending migrants boats back to France and working with the French government to detain them there rather than Lineker's view. At the same time they will think Lineker probably should stay at MOTD as he is not a political journalist on the BBC so does not need to be neutral in his tweeting
I can't see any way back for Lineker. The BBC and the Gov't dropped a bollock, but they can't row that back. He will be made an example of.
If Lineker doesn't back down - and he shows no sign of doing so - either the BBC will have to take him back without any apology or they will be liable for broken contract running to millions. It will be more expensive to not have him present MoTD than to keep him on. Not clear to me getting rid of him is the less embarrassing option.
Unless they can argue gross misconduct
I don’t think they can at this point. They haven’t acted in the breach and some of their statements probably affirmed the contract.
18 years since the Frogs won at Twickenham. That clock looks like it will reset itself tonight. This England side haven’t turned up at all.
This is going to be the biggest humiliation against the French since Sunak had to bribe the French to deal with the boats.
Sunak and the UK were mugged. There is not a single Tory on this site who can tell us what we will get for that half a billion.
Congrats to Liverpool keeping it to just one today, btw.
Big G was deliriously pleased with Sunak's Macron deal last evening, but not so much with Rochdale and his "lubed up" comment.
I saw that. It’s Big G I feel most sorry for, he bigged up these weeks on achieving the impossible on North Sea border and Channel crossings being sorted by cooperation across the channel, yet here we are, mugged.
Big G nor HY cannot tell us what we are getting for that half billion, as France can’t detain anyone for long who haven’t committed a crime, no more than UK could get away with it. It would be embarrassing to hear anyone we like say that’s is the agreement and it will happen. 😞
Good evening and seems right time to log on
I listened to the whole of the news conference between Macron and Sunak and summarised it yesterday
So far the UK-France agreements have achieved the following
33,000 channel crossings stopped in 2022
More than 500 arrests and 59 organised crime groups dismantled since the start of tye joint agreement in 2000
Over 3,700 crossings attempts stopped so far in 2023
And to help you understand the allocation of the funds over the next 3 years here is the detail
And on returns from UK and to the EU Macron announces that the UK and EU have agreed to cooperate across the EU as all are facing similar issues
Where’s the beef? What are we actually getting? Norther government can lock people up who committed no crime. You going on record saying half a million for the French to lock them up? You saying that’s definitely going to happen?
I saw the press conference too. Macron looked smug and full of himself, Sunak seemed bruised and a touch tetchy.
Half a *billion* - or, for clarity, more than 500m poounds sterling.
Or just one "fast-track, friends and family" PPE Covid contract.
… …
What's fascinating about this is how many of her detractors are obsessed with this photo.
One wonders if they all have it saved onto their desktop for a closer look during private "quiet time".
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
I have said all along the Conservatives will do whatever they need to do to win the next GE. They need to win because if they do not their not insubstantial corruption will be blown open by an incoming non-Conservative Government. The gravy train needs to stay on the tracks or people will likely as not go to jail over PPE contract fraud. Questions will be asked about Johnson's connections to Russian Oligarchs whilst FS. They need to do whatever they can to ensure they remain in power
I hoped Sunak was a grown up, but his smear of Starmer at PMQs on Wednesday was Johnsonian. He is not the man you believe he is, which is a shame.
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
They aren't, most posters are ideologically New Labour or LD with a fair sprinkling of Scottish Nationalists. Even we remaining PB Tories are not all pro Rishi eg LuckyGuy.
Horse to be fair to him was a rare Labour loyalist on here even when Corbyn led them and remains loyal to Starmer even when BJO, a fellow Labour supporter under Corbyn, has left Labour
Personal post. On 18 December I lost my 16 3/4 year old dog, Archy, my best friend. I was very stoic about it, he’d had an excellent innings, I had an essay to finish for my MA over Christmas and I’d just been promoted at work, so I held it together.
This morning I took the ancient, and likely flea infested, IKEA armchair Archy monopolised next to my desk to the dump. As I tipped it into the garbage I suddenly completely and utterly lost it and the council guys had to come and see if I was okay.
Grief’s a funny thing. Sorry if I was tetchy this AM.
I am so sorry to hear that as all my family adore all animals especially dogs and cats
My wife used to foster and keep cats and over decades we lost many
Our two sons and daughter have dogs and my daughter a cat as well
If you have not loved a dog or cat or indeed any animal, then maybe you do not understand the real grief in losing such a companion
Be kind to yourself and retain all the happy memories you have of Archy and that you gave him a loving home
My father used to say the more you see of people the more you love your dog
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
I have said all along the Conservatives will do whatever they need to do to win the next GE. They need to win because if they do not their not insubstantial corruption will be blown open by an incoming non-Conservative Government. The gravy train needs to stay on the tracks or people will likely as not go to jail over PPE contract fraud. Questions will be asked about Johnson's connections to Russian Oligarchs whilst FS. They need to do whatever they can to ensure they remain in power
I hoped Sunak was a grown up, but his smear of Starmer at PMQs on Wednesday was Johnsonian. He is not the man you believe he is, which is a shame.
I am fully expecting the Tories to pretty much focus on immigration and border control as a near single issue campaign next time round.
Personal post. On 18 December I lost my 16 3/4 year old dog, Archy, my best friend. I was very stoic about it, he’d had an excellent innings, I had an essay to finish for my MA over Christmas and I’d just been promoted at work, so I held it together.
This morning I took the ancient, and likely flea infested, IKEA armchair Archy monopolised next to my desk to the dump. As I tipped it into the garbage I suddenly completely and utterly lost it and the council guys had to come and see if I was okay.
Grief’s a funny thing. Sorry if I was tetchy this AM.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You tell him Big G!
Other than Jack W you've probably seen more political leaders, Prime Ministers and political shenanigans than anyone else on here.
No he hasn’t! My first political memories are of the 1945 election.
I've lived under 18 UK Prime ministers, the first being Churchill, then Attlee, then Churchill again.
The BBC have screwed up quite royally. It appears neither contract nor guidelines discourage Lineker’s political tweeting.
Personally I think his comments were unwise, although only in order to avoid situations like this one. As a pure political point, I take no issue with them.
Personal post. On 18 December I lost my 16 3/4 year old dog, Archy, my best friend. I was very stoic about it, he’d had an excellent innings, I had an essay to finish for my MA over Christmas and I’d just been promoted at work, so I held it together.
This morning I took the ancient, and likely flea infested, IKEA armchair Archy monopolised next to my desk to the dump. As I tipped it into the garbage I suddenly completely and utterly lost it and the council guys had to come and see if I was okay.
Grief’s a funny thing. Sorry if I was tetchy this AM.
Thank you for sharing such a heartfelt post . Sometimes it’s those small things that remind you of that loss that can be so emotional . Bless you.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Starmer who was in Paris this week
How much confidence do you have that the deal will show significant results, Big_G ?
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You tell him Big G!
Other than Jack W you've probably seen more political leaders, Prime Ministers and political shenanigans than anyone else on here.
Probably and Churchill, Thatcher and Blair the best
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
They aren't, most posters are ideologically New Labour or LD with a fair sprinkling of Scottish Nationalists. Even we remaining PB Tories are not all pro Rishi eg LuckyGuy.
Horse to be fair to him was a rare Labour loyalist on here even when Corbyn led them and remains loyal to Starmer even when BJO, a fellow Labour supporter under Corbyn, has left Labour
The site has moved leftwards since Brexit it think - it was for many years quite a Cameroony place. It has moved to a more pro-Labour membership of late partly because of the pendulum swinging and partly because Labour are now probably more centre-ground than the Tories.
I expect most people will still back the government's policy of sending migrants boats back to France and working with the French government to detain them there rather than Lineker's view. At the same time they will think Lineker probably should stay at MOTD as he is not a political journalist on the BBC so does not need to be neutral in his tweeting
I can't see any way back for Lineker. The BBC and the Gov't dropped a bollock, but they can't row that back. He will be made an example of.
If Lineker doesn't back down - and he shows no sign of doing so - either the BBC will have to take him back without any apology or they will be liable for broken contract running to millions. It will be more expensive to not have him present MoTD than to keep him on. Not clear to me getting rid of him is the less embarrassing option.
Unless they can argue gross misconduct
On what basis ? From what’s so far been discussed, that seems extraordinarily unlikely.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
I have said all along the Conservatives will do whatever they need to do to win the next GE. They need to win because if they do not their not insubstantial corruption will be blown open by an incoming non-Conservative Government. The gravy train needs to stay on the tracks or people will likely as not go to jail over PPE contract fraud. Questions will be asked about Johnson's connections to Russian Oligarchs whilst FS. They need to do whatever they can to ensure they remain in power
I hoped Sunak was a grown up, but his smear of Starmer at PMQs on Wednesday was Johnsonian. He is not the man you believe he is, which is a shame.
I am fully expecting the Tories to pretty much focus on immigration and border control as a near single issue campaign next time round.
It won’t be pleasant.
Rishi had an opportunity to drag the Tories out of the sewer. I don’t believe “playing to the base” or whatever was/is the only strategy open to him.
He is squandering that opportunity, although I note his attempt to call for calm tonight.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Strarmer who was in Paris this week
The love-in would not be needed if the likes of Sunak had not joined in on the lies that won the referendum for Leave.
You and HYUFD have morphed into each other, "Sunak is pro-EU whilst Sunak is pro-Brexit". Of course it's nonsense.
I expect most people will still back the government's policy of sending migrants boats back to France and working with the French government to detain them there rather than Lineker's view. At the same time they will think Lineker probably should stay at MOTD as he is not a political journalist on the BBC so does not need to be neutral in his tweeting
I can't see any way back for Lineker. The BBC and the Gov't dropped a bollock, but they can't row that back. He will be made an example of.
If Lineker doesn't back down - and he shows no sign of doing so - either the BBC will have to take him back without any apology or they will be liable for broken contract running to millions. It will be more expensive to not have him present MoTD than to keep him on. Not clear to me getting rid of him is the less embarrassing option.
Unless they can argue gross misconduct
When the announcement of his new contract was made, it specifically included mention of his social media use.
While we obviously don’t know what’s in the contract, it could well be that calling the government a bunch of Nazis would be grounds for it being cancelled.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Strarmer who was in Paris this week
But it isn't going to do anything, how can you not see that
I think they can, and not hoodwinked by gimmicky flimsy policy. There are Tory posters here smarter than the government and their advisors. I feel sorry for them all PB Tories, but what can they do? it’s obvious how it’s going to turn out, posting these “hostage to fortune” posts supporting “hostage to fortune” over promised policy.
The governing party they support doesn’t have have much experience or maturity in the room hence all the over promising that’s just asking for trouble over the next 18 months of failed delivery.
But then why not go down arguing and talking things up? There’s a bit of respect and character to doing that.
Like yourself for example horse, took a long time to admit Starmer’s own gimmicky “white knight” appointment of Sue Gray was blowing up in his face. You have to stand by your man even when others are posting “can you not see the truth of this, lolz”.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Strarmer who was in Paris this week
But it isn't going to do anything, how can you not see that
It is precisely what Starmer has promised not least closer cooperation with France over the boats
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
They aren't, most posters are ideologically New Labour or LD with a fair sprinkling of Scottish Nationalists. Even we remaining PB Tories are not all pro Rishi eg LuckyGuy.
Horse to be fair to him was a rare Labour loyalist on here even when Corbyn led them and remains loyal to Starmer even when BJO, a fellow Labour supporter under Corbyn, has left Labour
The site has moved leftwards since Brexit it think - it was for many years quite a Cameroony place. It has moved to a more pro-Labour membership of late partly because of the pendulum swinging and partly because Labour are now probably more centre-ground than the Tories.
And also because the Tories have placed themselves beyond the moral pale, so that only true bottom feeders would consider voting for them or supporting them on here.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
I have said all along the Conservatives will do whatever they need to do to win the next GE. They need to win because if they do not their not insubstantial corruption will be blown open by an incoming non-Conservative Government. The gravy train needs to stay on the tracks or people will likely as not go to jail over PPE contract fraud. Questions will be asked about Johnson's connections to Russian Oligarchs whilst FS. They need to do whatever they can to ensure they remain in power
I hoped Sunak was a grown up, but his smear of Starmer at PMQs on Wednesday was Johnsonian. He is not the man you believe he is, which is a shame.
I am fully expecting the Tories to pretty much focus on immigration and border control as a near single issue campaign next time round.
It won’t be pleasant.
Yes, the guy on Question Time on Thursday was bang on the money and has had 2.5 million views:
Personal post. On 18 December I lost my 16 3/4 year old dog, Archy, my best friend. I was very stoic about it, he’d had an excellent innings, I had an essay to finish for my MA over Christmas and I’d just been promoted at work, so I held it together.
This morning I took the ancient, and likely flea infested, IKEA armchair Archy monopolised next to my desk to the dump. As I tipped it into the garbage I suddenly completely and utterly lost it and the council guys had to come and see if I was okay.
Grief’s a funny thing. Sorry if I was tetchy this AM.
Sorry to hear that Doug. Stay strong my friend and remember PB is here for you.
18 years since the Frogs won at Twickenham. That clock looks like it will reset itself tonight. This England side haven’t turned up at all.
This is going to be the biggest humiliation against the French since Sunak had to bribe the French to deal with the boats.
Sunak and the UK were mugged. There is not a single Tory on this site who can tell us what we will get for that half a billion.
Congrats to Liverpool keeping it to just one today, btw.
Big G was deliriously pleased with Sunak's Macron deal last evening, but not so much with Rochdale and his "lubed up" comment.
I saw that. It’s Big G I feel most sorry for, he bigged up these weeks on achieving the impossible on North Sea border and Channel crossings being sorted by cooperation across the channel, yet here we are, mugged.
Big G nor HY cannot tell us what we are getting for that half billion, as France can’t detain anyone for long who haven’t committed a crime, no more than UK could get away with it. It would be embarrassing to hear anyone we like say that’s is the agreement and it will happen. 😞
Good evening and seems right time to log on
I listened to the whole of the news conference between Macron and Sunak and summarised it yesterday
So far the UK-France agreements have achieved the following
33,000 channel crossings stopped in 2022
More than 500 arrests and 59 organised crime groups dismantled since the start of tye joint agreement in 2000
Over 3,700 crossings attempts stopped so far in 2023
And to help you understand the allocation of the funds over the next 3 years here is the detail
And on returns from UK and to the EU Macron announces that the UK and EU have agreed to cooperate across the EU as all are facing similar issues
Where’s the beef? What are we actually getting? Norther government can lock people up who committed no crime. You going on record saying half a million for the French to lock them up? You saying that’s definitely going to happen?
I saw the press conference too. Macron looked smug and full of himself, Sunak seemed bruised and a touch tetchy.
Half a *billion* - or, for clarity, more than 500m poounds sterling.
Or just one "fast-track, friends and family" PPE Covid contract.
… …
What's fascinating about this is how many of her detractors are obsessed with this photo.
One wonders if they all have it saved onto their desktop for a closer look during private "quiet time".
One picture IS worth a thousand words.
In this case, pic of the perfect Poster Crony for what's passing these days for the Tory Party.
I expect most people will still back the government's policy of sending migrants boats back to France and working with the French government to detain them there rather than Lineker's view. At the same time they will think Lineker probably should stay at MOTD as he is not a political journalist on the BBC so does not need to be neutral in his tweeting
I can't see any way back for Lineker. The BBC and the Gov't dropped a bollock, but they can't row that back. He will be made an example of.
If Lineker doesn't back down - and he shows no sign of doing so - either the BBC will have to take him back without any apology or they will be liable for broken contract running to millions. It will be more expensive to not have him present MoTD than to keep him on. Not clear to me getting rid of him is the less embarrassing option.
Unless they can argue gross misconduct
Lineker is not an employee, and we would need to see his contract to understand the conditions under which the BBC could sever it.
With that said, the bar for "gross misconduct" is a pretty high one. I doubt something done outside the office, in a personal capacity, and which is not illegal would pass it.
There is almost certainly a clause about bringing the BBC into disrepute, but (again) the bar is likely to be a high one.
Anyone any idea how big of a problem this might be for UK tech startups ?
UK government rightly wants Britain to be one of the world’s great tech ecosystems. First priority: ensuring that thousands of UK startups make payroll this month.
One can't just bail out all corporate depositors beyond £85k, because then they would know they can bank with the biggest risktakers and the taxpayer will pay up. A lot of the corporate depositors in SVB were tech firms arranging funding deals through the bank. That's not an activity requiring subsidy or bailout. Of course, they should have prompt access to their insured deposits.
The business is worth something - the brand and Leerink are both good franchises. (I have a lot of friends who were part of the team that sold Leerink to SVB).
But I don’t think the UK business has huge brand value - I’d expect one of the US majors to pick it up for the value of the deposits plus a snickers bar (tm Matt Levine)
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
I don't really agree with this. The reason is that I have got pretty mixed political opinions and, over the past couple of years, I always find that I get credit and 'likes' for those expressing traditionally 'left/liberal' points of view, ie expressing concern about public sector workers, wealth inequality, or about the government revoking the citizenship rights of immigrants. If on the other hand I am expressing concern about the 'woke' or levels of immigration, the response is generally much more negative. In the end I don't mind, but there is a danger in a situation where one perspective becomes overly dominant.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You tell him Big G!
Other than Jack W you've probably seen more political leaders, Prime Ministers and political shenanigans than anyone else on here.
No he hasn’t! My first political memories are of the 1945 election.
I've lived under 18 UK Prime ministers, the first being Churchill, then Attlee, then Churchill again.
Snap! I recall my mother telling her sister in 1945 that “Ray (my father, away in the Forces) wants me to vote for Captain (Ray) Gunter but I don’t want to vote Labour!” Gunter won SE Essex, where we lived, for Labour, the only time until 1979 that any part of the then constituency was won by Labour.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Starmer who was in Paris this week
How much confidence do you have that the deal will show significant results, Big_G ?
I am hopeful but it is a 3 year deal and of course as Macron said himself, migration into and across Europe is a serious issues and the answer lies in cooperation across Europe and the UK
Notwithstanding all of this the new pro Europe stance by Sunak is such a welcome change from Johnson and Truss
Still a better national anthem than the dirge that is God Save The King.
Can't recall many composers offering variations on La Marseillaise, or other nations using it for themselves. Whereas God Save The King appears in works by Haydn, Beethoven. GSTK used as a Prussian Royal Anthem up to August 1914.
The tune of GSTK is the same as "Oben am jungen Rhein" the national anthem of Liechtenstein:
And of course is the same tune as 'My Country Tis of Thee' from your side of the pond.
And the anthem of Le Havre football club
It was founded by Brits living there in the late 19C, some from both Oxford and Cambridge Unis. Their colours are Cambridge and Oxford blues; or as they call it: Sky and Navy (Les Ciel et Marine)
I expect most people will still back the government's policy of sending migrants boats back to France and working with the French government to detain them there rather than Lineker's view. At the same time they will think Lineker probably should stay at MOTD as he is not a political journalist on the BBC so does not need to be neutral in his tweeting
I can't see any way back for Lineker. The BBC and the Gov't dropped a bollock, but they can't row that back. He will be made an example of.
If Lineker doesn't back down - and he shows no sign of doing so - either the BBC will have to take him back without any apology or they will be liable for broken contract running to millions. It will be more expensive to not have him present MoTD than to keep him on. Not clear to me getting rid of him is the less embarrassing option.
Unless they can argue gross misconduct
Gross misconduct really isn't going to be on the table here.
The view he's expressed could potentially be in breach of policy and that may or may not be reflected in their contractual position, although all sorts of arguments over whether the policy is sufficiently clear and whether it is reasonable to apply a high standard of impartiality to a sports broadcaster making a comment outside the work context.
But gross misconduct is of an altogether higher level along the lines of theft or of doing something so egregiously offensive that it brought the organisation into serious disrepute. Lineker's comments weren't at that level at all - you can disagree with them and many do, but ultimately they are critical of Government policy in the way many people are.
I think they may negotiate an early end to the contract... but it would cost them rather a lot as they are unlikely to have anything like an open and shut case and it'd be negotiating over price.
18 years since the Frogs won at Twickenham. That clock looks like it will reset itself tonight. This England side haven’t turned up at all.
This is going to be the biggest humiliation against the French since Sunak had to bribe the French to deal with the boats.
Sunak and the UK were mugged. There is not a single Tory on this site who can tell us what we will get for that half a billion.
Congrats to Liverpool keeping it to just one today, btw.
Big G was deliriously pleased with Sunak's Macron deal last evening, but not so much with Rochdale and his "lubed up" comment.
I saw that. It’s Big G I feel most sorry for, he bigged up these weeks on achieving the impossible on North Sea border and Channel crossings being sorted by cooperation across the channel, yet here we are, mugged.
Big G nor HY cannot tell us what we are getting for that half billion, as France can’t detain anyone for long who haven’t committed a crime, no more than UK could get away with it. It would be embarrassing to hear anyone we like say that’s is the agreement and it will happen. 😞
Good evening and seems right time to log on
I listened to the whole of the news conference between Macron and Sunak and summarised it yesterday
So far the UK-France agreements have achieved the following
33,000 channel crossings stopped in 2022
More than 500 arrests and 59 organised crime groups dismantled since the start of tye joint agreement in 2000
Over 3,700 crossings attempts stopped so far in 2023
And to help you understand the allocation of the funds over the next 3 years here is the detail
And on returns from UK and to the EU Macron announces that the UK and EU have agreed to cooperate across the EU as all are facing similar issues
Where’s the beef? What are we actually getting? Norther government can lock people up who committed no crime. You going on record saying half a million for the French to lock them up? You saying that’s definitely going to happen?
I saw the press conference too. Macron looked smug and full of himself, Sunak seemed bruised and a touch tetchy.
Half a *billion* - or, for clarity, more than 500m poounds sterling.
Or just one "fast-track, friends and family" PPE Covid contract.
… …
What's fascinating about this is how many of her detractors are obsessed with this photo.
One wonders if they all have it saved onto their desktop for a closer look during private "quiet time".
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
They aren't, most posters are ideologically New Labour or LD with a fair sprinkling of Scottish Nationalists. Even we remaining PB Tories are not all pro Rishi eg LuckyGuy.
Horse to be fair to him was a rare Labour loyalist on here even when Corbyn led them and remains loyal to Starmer even when BJO, a fellow Labour supporter under Corbyn, has left Labour
The site has moved leftwards since Brexit it think - it was for many years quite a Cameroony place. It has moved to a more pro-Labour membership of late partly because of the pendulum swinging and partly because Labour are now probably more centre-ground than the Tories.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
Predicable silly response but adds nothing to genuine debate
Why not address the issues in a mature manner
The issue is that the Tories are playing you like a fiddle. Bereft of any achievement whatsoever, they hope to claw back support in the form of a bleating about the boats and a French bung.
You should welcome the new closer relationship with Europe, the WF, and joint action with Macron on the boats but then it wasn't Strarmer who was in Paris this week
I welcome all the above.
I still think Rishi is a nob, and I disdain and despise his willingness to foist Braverman upon the nation.
And his record everywhere else (HS2 etc) is also shite.
Rishi is playing excellently off a very difficult wicket.
I have no complaints whatsoever. He's restored fiscal sanity, despatched Sturgeon, resolved NI, and is now tackling the boat issue with Macron and clearing the asylum backlog. Inflation is starting to come down. And the public services settlements are starting to come through.
Yes, he'll still lose - because of cost of living, mortgage payments continuing to soar, and general exhaustion of the Conservatives (much of which is entirely their own fault) - but it's one heck of an honourable and determined rearguard action that commands my full respect.
I have renewed my Conservative membership and will definitely be voting for him next year.
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
I don't really agree with this. The reason is that I have got pretty mixed political opinions and, over the past couple of years, I always find that I get credit and 'likes' for those expressing traditionally 'left/liberal' points of view, ie expressing concern about public sector workers, wealth inequality, or about the government revoking the citizenship rights of immigrants. If on the other hand I am expressing concern about the 'woke' or levels of immigration, the response is generally much more negative. In the end I don't mind, but there is a danger in a situation where one perspective becomes overly dominant.
Left liberal readers just know how to use the “like” button. Tory-herders are enfeebled by chronic self abuse.
I expect most people will still back the government's policy of sending migrants boats back to France and working with the French government to detain them there rather than Lineker's view. At the same time they will think Lineker probably should stay at MOTD as he is not a political journalist on the BBC so does not need to be neutral in his tweeting
I can't see any way back for Lineker. The BBC and the Gov't dropped a bollock, but they can't row that back. He will be made an example of.
If Lineker doesn't back down - and he shows no sign of doing so - either the BBC will have to take him back without any apology or they will be liable for broken contract running to millions. It will be more expensive to not have him present MoTD than to keep him on. Not clear to me getting rid of him is the less embarrassing option.
Unless they can argue gross misconduct
Lineker is not an employee, and we would need to see his contract to understand the conditions under which the BBC could sever it.
With that said, the bar for "gross misconduct" is a pretty high one. I doubt something done outside the office, in a personal capacity, and which is not illegal would pass it.
There is almost certainly a clause about bringing the BBC into disrepute, but (again) the bar is likely to be a high one.
In this case, GL's lawyers could well argue, that it was BBC "management" bringing the BBC into disrepute, along with the "Conservative" "government".
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
I don't really agree with this. The reason is that I have got pretty mixed political opinions and, over the past couple of years, I always find that I get credit and 'likes' for those expressing traditionally 'left/liberal' points of view, ie expressing concern about public sector workers, wealth inequality, or about the government revoking the citizenship rights of immigrants. If on the other hand I am expressing concern about the 'woke' or levels of immigration, the response is generally much more negative. In the end I don't mind, but there is a danger in a situation where one perspective becomes overly dominant.
Left liberal readers just know how to use the “like” button. Tory-herders are enfeebled by chronic self abuse.
Bit like how Left liberal readers chronically self abuse themselves five times a day over Michelle Mone.
18 years since the Frogs won at Twickenham. That clock looks like it will reset itself tonight. This England side haven’t turned up at all.
This is going to be the biggest humiliation against the French since Sunak had to bribe the French to deal with the boats.
Sunak and the UK were mugged. There is not a single Tory on this site who can tell us what we will get for that half a billion.
Congrats to Liverpool keeping it to just one today, btw.
Big G was deliriously pleased with Sunak's Macron deal last evening, but not so much with Rochdale and his "lubed up" comment.
I saw that. It’s Big G I feel most sorry for, he bigged up these weeks on achieving the impossible on North Sea border and Channel crossings being sorted by cooperation across the channel, yet here we are, mugged.
Big G nor HY cannot tell us what we are getting for that half billion, as France can’t detain anyone for long who haven’t committed a crime, no more than UK could get away with it. It would be embarrassing to hear anyone we like say that’s is the agreement and it will happen. 😞
Good evening and seems right time to log on
I listened to the whole of the news conference between Macron and Sunak and summarised it yesterday
So far the UK-France agreements have achieved the following
33,000 channel crossings stopped in 2022
More than 500 arrests and 59 organised crime groups dismantled since the start of tye joint agreement in 2000
Over 3,700 crossings attempts stopped so far in 2023
And to help you understand the allocation of the funds over the next 3 years here is the detail
And on returns from UK and to the EU Macron announces that the UK and EU have agreed to cooperate across the EU as all are facing similar issues
Where’s the beef? What are we actually getting? Norther government can lock people up who committed no crime. You going on record saying half a million for the French to lock them up? You saying that’s definitely going to happen?
I saw the press conference too. Macron looked smug and full of himself, Sunak seemed bruised and a touch tetchy.
Half a *billion* - or, for clarity, more than 500m poounds sterling.
Or just one "fast-track, friends and family" PPE Covid contract.
… …
What's fascinating about this is how many of her detractors are obsessed with this photo.
One wonders if they all have it saved onto their desktop for a closer look during private "quiet time".
Who is this lady ? Certainly very shapely.
Michelle Mone, founder of Ultimo lingerie and now a Tory peer. There was criticism of her for supplying PPE to the NHS during the pandemic.
18 years since the Frogs won at Twickenham. That clock looks like it will reset itself tonight. This England side haven’t turned up at all.
This is going to be the biggest humiliation against the French since Sunak had to bribe the French to deal with the boats.
Sunak and the UK were mugged. There is not a single Tory on this site who can tell us what we will get for that half a billion.
Congrats to Liverpool keeping it to just one today, btw.
Big G was deliriously pleased with Sunak's Macron deal last evening, but not so much with Rochdale and his "lubed up" comment.
I saw that. It’s Big G I feel most sorry for, he bigged up these weeks on achieving the impossible on North Sea border and Channel crossings being sorted by cooperation across the channel, yet here we are, mugged.
Big G nor HY cannot tell us what we are getting for that half billion, as France can’t detain anyone for long who haven’t committed a crime, no more than UK could get away with it. It would be embarrassing to hear anyone we like say that’s is the agreement and it will happen. 😞
Good evening and seems right time to log on
I listened to the whole of the news conference between Macron and Sunak and summarised it yesterday
So far the UK-France agreements have achieved the following
33,000 channel crossings stopped in 2022
More than 500 arrests and 59 organised crime groups dismantled since the start of tye joint agreement in 2000
Over 3,700 crossings attempts stopped so far in 2023
And to help you understand the allocation of the funds over the next 3 years here is the detail
And on returns from UK and to the EU Macron announces that the UK and EU have agreed to cooperate across the EU as all are facing similar issues
Where’s the beef? What are we actually getting? Norther government can lock people up who committed no crime. You going on record saying half a million for the French to lock them up? You saying that’s definitely going to happen?
I saw the press conference too. Macron looked smug and full of himself, Sunak seemed bruised and a touch tetchy.
Half a *billion* - or, for clarity, more than 500m poounds sterling.
Or just one "fast-track, friends and family" PPE Covid contract.
… …
What's fascinating about this is how many of her detractors are obsessed with this photo.
One wonders if they all have it saved onto their desktop for a closer look during private "quiet time".
Who is this lady ? Certainly very shapely.
Michelle Mone, founder of Ultimo lingerie and now a Tory peer. There was criticism of her for supplying PPE to the NHS during the pandemic.
Ah yes, I noticed her being attractive before. It seems she's appealing all over.
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
I don't really agree with this. The reason is that I have got pretty mixed political opinions and, over the past couple of years, I always find that I get credit and 'likes' for those expressing traditionally 'left/liberal' points of view, ie expressing concern about public sector workers, wealth inequality, or about the government revoking the citizenship rights of immigrants. If on the other hand I am expressing concern about the 'woke' or levels of immigration, the response is generally much more negative. In the end I don't mind, but there is a danger in a situation where one perspective becomes overly dominant.
That's true, you express nuanced views and are able to think for yourself. @LostPassword and @Gardenwalker are similar. There are several others. If I don't mention them all at once that's just a failing of my memory.
Herders (particularly the ones who layer personal abuse on top) command absolutely zero respect from me, and deserve nothing but invective.
It seems to be a common occurrence that highly paid people have contracts which lead to them getting big payoffs.
While the workers in those organisations get nothing more than statutory requirements.
Example:
A disgraced former chief constable who admitted gross misconduct for helping a relative get a job has walked away from the force with a £250,000 golden goodbye, it emerged yesterday.
Grahame Maxwell, 51, narrowly escaped the sack over the claims of nepotism and was given a final written warning at a secret disciplinary hearing last May.
But after the police authority refused to extend his £133,000-a-year contract a controversial clause legally entitling Mr Maxwell to £247,636 in compensation was activated.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You’re accusing another poster of hyping and ramping? 😂😂😂
I am crying mate lol
You are noone's mate, however hard you try to suck up to them.
Anyone any idea how big of a problem this might be for UK tech startups ?
UK government rightly wants Britain to be one of the world’s great tech ecosystems. First priority: ensuring that thousands of UK startups make payroll this month.
One can't just bail out all corporate depositors beyond £85k, because then they would know they can bank with the biggest risktakers and the taxpayer will pay up. A lot of the corporate depositors in SVB were tech firms arranging funding deals through the bank. That's not an activity requiring subsidy or bailout. Of course, they should have prompt access to their insured deposits.
The business is worth something - the brand and Leerink are both good franchises. (I have a lot of friends who were part of the team that sold Leerink to SVB).
But I don’t think the UK business has huge brand value - I’d expect one of the US majors to pick it up for the value of the deposits plus a snickers bar (tm Matt Levine)
When the assets are eventually liquidated, the depositors will - I'm sure - find themselves with more more than 90 cents in the Dollar. There were only $74bn of loans, and in many cases the borrowers will have had their money actually deposited at SVB. Those recipients of SVB venture debt - and that's a lot of startups - are going to find themselves in serious trouble as effectively their loans are pulled directly out their deposits.
That will be pretty horrible, and I'd expect a lot of marginal start-ups to shutter in the next three or four months.
For the rest - i.e corporates with deposuits at SVB - the issue is one of timing. If you are a depositor and you need money to meet payroll, you will want some help from a bank / shareholders willing to support you.
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
They aren't, most posters are ideologically New Labour or LD with a fair sprinkling of Scottish Nationalists. Even we remaining PB Tories are not all pro Rishi eg LuckyGuy.
Horse to be fair to him was a rare Labour loyalist on here even when Corbyn led them and remains loyal to Starmer even when BJO, a fellow Labour supporter under Corbyn, has left Labour
The site has moved leftwards since Brexit it think - it was for many years quite a Cameroony place. It has moved to a more pro-Labour membership of late partly because of the pendulum swinging and partly because Labour are now probably more centre-ground than the Tories.
On the whole as it seems to me people think about the same objectively, but two things have shifted in the scenery: Tories are morally holed below the water line and have shifted from centrist + populist to populist only. (This is a vast mistake). And Labour have moved to centrist for now.
Most people have similar views to the past but many have shifted vote.
Also Brexit has moved from an issue where In/Out fixes your vote, to post-Brexit competence fixes your vote.
I see Big G is back astroturfing for Sunak. The Betws-y-Coed Conservative Club petty cash box is one helluva drug.
"I might vote Labour" ROFL
I voted Blair twice but sadly Starmer is no Blair
That's nice but you're advocating a terrible PM with a terrible policy, so I'll take Starmer any day of the week.
Presumably when it goes downhill you will proclaim something new.
You say I have a Damascene conversion but you've had so many conversions I'm dizzy. For Johnson, against, for again then against, for Truss then against, then for again, then against Sunak then for again.
Are you some some rudimentary AI?
Sunak is a grown up politician who I have supported long before Truss, and he is going to give Starmer a run for his money despite your hyping, ramping and hubristic postings
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
You’re accusing another poster of hyping and ramping? 😂😂😂
I am crying mate lol
You are noone's mate, however hard you try to suck up to them.
You are my mate!
Gardenwalker has been there for me in times of need, I do consider him a mate yes.
Really tired of the Herd bullying on here of Conservative posters like @Big_G_NorthWales or @HYUFD
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
The vast majority of posters on here are Tory or Tory adjacent. Chill.
They aren't, most posters are ideologically New Labour or LD with a fair sprinkling of Scottish Nationalists. Even we remaining PB Tories are not all pro Rishi eg LuckyGuy.
Horse to be fair to him was a rare Labour loyalist on here even when Corbyn led them and remains loyal to Starmer even when BJO, a fellow Labour supporter under Corbyn, has left Labour
The site has moved leftwards since Brexit it think - it was for many years quite a Cameroony place. It has moved to a more pro-Labour membership of late partly because of the pendulum swinging and partly because Labour are now probably more centre-ground than the Tories.
And also because the Tories have placed themselves beyond the moral pale, so that only true bottom feeders would consider voting for them or supporting them on here.
I have a list of about 60 regulars on here (all still lurking and only very very occasionally active) all of whom don't really bother posting on here anymore.
You're the bloke who think everyone agrees with you because you see three LD yellow diamonds in your street.
Comments
He will mitigate GE24 for the conservatives and you need to hope Scotland does not stay with the SNP
I am crying with laughter! Thanks!
I predict zero as the Welsh people in general have more sense that you - thank God!
https://twitter.com/martintheirish/status/1634550549184954370
Lineker is Freelance but here's the BBC reply to a complaint about Chris Packham, also Freelance
What’s the ‘line’ with regard to Sugar ?
Does he have his own personal salient in the line?
I swear there is a calendar somewhere with “ramp Rishi” circled on it at regular intervals.
Other than Jack W you've probably seen more political leaders, Prime Ministers and political shenanigans than anyone else on here.
The numbers are absolutely staggering, even in the existing 'heavily restricted' environment - it is leading us to a very difficult place.
I still think Rishi is a nob, and I disdain and despise his willingness to foist Braverman upon the nation.
And his record everywhere else (HS2 etc) is also shite.
The guy is not stupid.
Betting tip: Leicester for relegation at 4/1 at present. Great value as Rogers's teams always fade in the run in. We are going down.
This morning I took the ancient, and likely flea infested, IKEA armchair Archy monopolised next to my desk to the dump. As I tipped it into the garbage I suddenly completely and utterly lost it and the council guys had to come and see if I was okay.
Grief’s a funny thing. Sorry if I was tetchy this AM.
You only need to look at maps of France and their evolution to know that being French has not been a given for many areas - Savoie for example - until relatively recently.
Your point would be like saying that William Wallace was British because Scotland is no Part of Great Britain.
Your arguments might be more persuasive if you were able to handle an alternative point of view.
If all you have is ad-hominem then that suggests to neutral bystanders that you can't.
My first political memories are of the 1945 election.
Natural population growth is negative and more than one person lives in a house usually (there are six in ours) so the housing supply number sounds about in line with what we need, doesn't it?
The most obvious next step is for Sharp to resign
They would therefore need to spend MILLIONS to sack him and would "likely lose any legal claim"
https://twitter.com/PolitlcsUK/status/1634629394693079047
One wonders if they all have it saved onto their desktop for a closer look during private "quiet time".
I hoped Sunak was a grown up, but his smear of Starmer at PMQs on Wednesday was Johnsonian. He is not the man you believe he is, which is a shame.
Horse to be fair to him was a rare Labour loyalist on here even when Corbyn led them and remains loyal to Starmer even when BJO, a fellow Labour supporter under Corbyn, has left Labour
My wife used to foster and keep cats and over decades we lost many
Our two sons and daughter have dogs and my daughter a cat as well
If you have not loved a dog or cat or indeed any animal, then maybe you do not understand the real grief in losing such a companion
Be kind to yourself and retain all the happy memories you have of Archy and that you gave him a loving home
My father used to say the more you see of people the more you love your dog
All the best
It won’t be pleasant.
Hope you're ok.
It appears neither contract nor guidelines discourage Lineker’s political tweeting.
Personally I think his comments were unwise, although only in order to avoid situations like this one. As a pure political point, I take no issue with them.
Sharp must now resign, urgently.
While the workers in those organisations get nothing more than statutory requirements.
At least before with the Tory herd we had an intelligent Labour critique on here rather than the loud donkey supporters in the stands we have today.
From what’s so far been discussed, that seems extraordinarily unlikely.
He is squandering that opportunity, although I note his attempt to call for calm tonight.
I've noticed it in outdoor heating at pubs and swimming pools.
If this is happening everywhere would it be businesses now benefitting from the fall in energy prices of recent months ?
You and HYUFD have morphed into each other, "Sunak is pro-EU whilst Sunak is pro-Brexit". Of course it's nonsense.
The misapprehension that far too many are labouring under is that the whole country is standing lockstep behind him, as one.
That is not the case.
While we obviously don’t know what’s in the contract, it could well be that calling the government a bunch of Nazis would be grounds for it being cancelled.
The governing party they support doesn’t have have much experience or maturity in the room hence all the over promising that’s just asking for trouble over the next 18 months of failed delivery.
But then why not go down arguing and talking things up? There’s a bit of respect and character to doing that.
Like yourself for example horse, took a long time to admit Starmer’s own gimmicky “white knight” appointment of Sue Gray was blowing up in his face. You have to stand by your man even when others are posting “can you not see the truth of this, lolz”.
They are though.
I've done the analysis.
https://twitter.com/EddieBurfi/status/1633931450410991619?t=NwGyxeHxfVAMtv2nTiUQkw&s=19
Vote left.
Remember to touch your cap as they pass…
In this case, pic of the perfect Poster Crony for what's passing these days for the Tory Party.
With that said, the bar for "gross misconduct" is a pretty high one. I doubt something done outside the office, in a personal capacity, and which is not illegal would pass it.
There is almost certainly a clause about bringing the BBC into disrepute, but (again) the bar is likely to be a high one.
But I don’t think the UK business has huge brand value - I’d expect one of the US majors to pick it up for the value of the deposits plus a snickers bar (tm Matt Levine)
Gunter won SE Essex, where we lived, for Labour, the only time until 1979 that any part of the then constituency was won by Labour.
Notwithstanding all of this the new pro Europe stance by Sunak is such a welcome change from Johnson and Truss
It was founded by Brits living there in the late 19C, some from both Oxford and Cambridge Unis. Their colours are Cambridge and Oxford blues; or as they call it: Sky and Navy (Les Ciel et Marine)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9-ptGwzc-s
The view he's expressed could potentially be in breach of policy and that may or may not be reflected in their contractual position, although all sorts of arguments over whether the policy is sufficiently clear and whether it is reasonable to apply a high standard of impartiality to a sports broadcaster making a comment outside the work context.
But gross misconduct is of an altogether higher level along the lines of theft or of doing something so egregiously offensive that it brought the organisation into serious disrepute. Lineker's comments weren't at that level at all - you can disagree with them and many do, but ultimately they are critical of Government policy in the way many people are.
I think they may negotiate an early end to the contract... but it would cost them rather a lot as they are unlikely to have anything like an open and shut case and it'd be negotiating over price.
I have no complaints whatsoever. He's restored fiscal sanity, despatched Sturgeon, resolved NI, and is now tackling the boat issue with Macron and clearing the asylum backlog. Inflation is starting to come down. And the public services settlements are starting to come through.
Yes, he'll still lose - because of cost of living, mortgage payments continuing to soar, and general exhaustion of the Conservatives (much of which is entirely their own fault) - but it's one heck of an honourable and determined rearguard action that commands my full respect.
I have renewed my Conservative membership and will definitely be voting for him next year.
Herders (particularly the ones who layer personal abuse on top) command absolutely zero respect from me, and deserve nothing but invective.
A disgraced former chief constable who admitted gross misconduct for helping a relative get a job has walked away from the force with a £250,000 golden goodbye, it emerged yesterday.
Grahame Maxwell, 51, narrowly escaped the sack over the claims of nepotism and was given a final written warning at a secret disciplinary hearing last May.
But after the police authority refused to extend his £133,000-a-year contract a controversial clause legally entitling Mr Maxwell to £247,636 in compensation was activated.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2145807/Disgraced-chief-constable-Graham-Maxwell-gets--250-000-golden-goodbye.html
The bailed out banks provided a few other examples IIRC.
Odd.
That will be pretty horrible, and I'd expect a lot of marginal start-ups to shutter in the next three or four months.
For the rest - i.e corporates with deposuits at SVB - the issue is one of timing. If you are a depositor and you need money to meet payroll, you will want some help from a bank / shareholders willing to support you.
Most people have similar views to the past but many have shifted vote.
Also Brexit has moved from an issue where In/Out fixes your vote, to post-Brexit competence fixes your vote.
Gardenwalker has been there for me in times of need, I do consider him a mate yes.
You're the bloke who think everyone agrees with you because you see three LD yellow diamonds in your street.