I know that Sunak can vet candidates, but would he be so bold as to veto Johnson's candidature himself in a real life scenario? It would look appalling. Better to let Boris stand, if he fails, good; if he wins, take the win and welcome him back into the fold.
The problem is that you need a by-election in an exceptionally safe seat. (Which means an existing MP would need to fall on their sword, giving up their exceptionally safe seat.) And then you need the local party to choose Boris. Him not to be vetoed by Central Office. And him to win the by-election.
That's a non trivial number of steps, and he could fall at any one.
Not even that- it would need to be safe against a White Suit candidate. There might be seats that would be safe enough, somewhere in Essex or Linconshire perhaps, but even then it would be a gamble.
And Boris doesn't gamble with his reputation as a winner. Not like that, anyway. (2016 wasn't a gamble, because he personally won whatever the outcome of the referendum.)
Do we all have to say this now in order to allay all suspicion?
Deleted, too grainy, but it was a carrot!
Sure it was
And cherry tomatoes. We had to make our own fun in those days.
If you were making your own fun surely it should be cheery tomatoes.
Once received a willy warmer in secret santa but didnt model it as it was too small
Not the warmer
I remember a Christmas Jumper day at school a few years ago. Mine had 2 snowmen with carrots and coal etc. Caused a lot of mirth with the sixth formers and staff. It was only when I got home that I realised the second snowman's carrot was below the waste!!
I was a Grindr user for many years and have probably sent my share of 'intimate photos' to various randos. I'd be mildly embarrassed if someone suddenly threatened to broadcast them (who knows they may already have in some dark recess of the internet) but nowhere near enough to give in to blackmail. William Wragg is an openly gay man so it can't be that shocking that he has an active sex life. It's not like his cock is suddenly going to appear on the front of the Daily Mirror or anything.
I have no problem at all with Wragg Schlong being sent to people on Grindr when asked for.
The problem is that - having decided he was being blackmailed - he dobbed in other MPs to also be stung. OK so they are utterly deranged to then send photos of their old chap, but even so...
Is that a photo of a plaster cast, or a plaster cast of your penis?
Recently I sent my sister and a dear female friend a picture of me wearing my new trisuit. It does not (ahem) leave much to the imagination...
(Reading this back, I realise that I should add that sending the photo was Mrs J's idea. My mum also took a photo to show to all her friends in her bridge club...)
I was a Grindr user for many years and have probably sent my share of 'intimate photos' to various randos. I'd be mildly embarrassed if someone suddenly threatened to broadcast them (who knows they may already have in some dark recess of the internet) but nowhere near enough to give in to blackmail. William Wragg is an openly gay man so it can't be that shocking that he has an active sex life. It's not like his cock is suddenly going to appear on the front of the Daily Mirror or anything.
I have no problem at all with Wragg Schlong being sent to people on Grindr when asked for.
The problem is that - having decided he was being blackmailed - he dobbed in other MPs to also be stung. OK so they are utterly deranged to then send photos of their old chap, but even so...
I am surprised he didn't go down the "don't you know who I am! " route, claiming to know the best KCs in the land, and threaten to sue the would-be blackmailer for every penny he had.
On topic - I'm in the 'never sent anyone a photo of my penis' camp. I don't see why you would? Well, presumably it's a tactic to increase the likelihood of later inserting it into the recipient, but I can't see why that course of action woukd make it more likely. From what I know of women - at the risk of generalising wildly - they are more interested in the qualities of the wielder of the tool than the beauty of the tool itself. And I know even less about gay men, but generalising from what I know of men as a whole, again, a simple suggestion that the other party might be interested in a little light fucking is likely to be enough, surely? And then you don't risk images of your member circulating uncontrolled around the internet. I'm aware this may all sound hopelessly old-fashioned.
> > Hi! If I send you a picture of a penis (nominally mine) - will you give me the contact details of other gay politicians?
> Sure!
Then spun as 'honeytrap!', 'cunning trickster!', 'sophisticated plot!'. If the level of sophistication it takes to dupe a 'senior' MP is a picture of a penis, then god help us.
> > Hi! If I send you a picture of a penis (nominally mine) - will you give me the contact details of other gay politicians?
> Sure!
Then spun as 'honeytrap!', 'cunning trickster!', 'sophisticated plot!'. If the level of sophistication it takes to dupe a 'senior' MP is a picture of a penis, then god help us.
Indeed. And again, I am talking well outside my area of expertise - but I would assume the product on offer - a picture of a penis - is not particularly difficult to get nowadays. The image that comes to mind is of a Father Dougal-like character being simple-mindedly eager to help out.
Does anybody really believe Reform will get 16% in a FPTP general election? That is LDs 1997 levels and well over even UKIP 2015 levels.
Yes they will get some protest votes against Rishi but the Reform ramping by Godwin is becoming absurd and he and Yougov have Reform far higher than other polls, mainly at Tory expense
I don't, and looking at polling before other General Elections generally we see Referendum/UKIP/BXP fade in the last months as the campaign proper starts.
I think single figures % myself and no seats.
I'm not sure what their actual ambitions are - or rather whether the leadership's ambitions might be different than those of people who are being swept up in grand visions of beating the Tories. I suspect the leadership are content to help add to Tory woes, since that itself will add to the pressure for any Tory revitalisation attempt to be as close to Reform as possible anyway.
Yes, the Referendum, UKIP and Brexit Party all had a single issue to unite and motivate them, but post Brexit there is no similar policy.
Destroying the Conservative party is now the cause that unites liberals and 'reformers'.
No it doesn't, I'm no Tory although I'd like to see the Conservatives take a spanking, regroup and come back as a sensible one nation party.
I wish nothing but ill will on the latest and next Farage vehicles.
> > Hi! If I send you a picture of a penis (nominally mine) - will you give me the contact details of other gay politicians?
> Sure!
Then spun as 'honeytrap!', 'cunning trickster!', 'sophisticated plot!'. If the level of sophistication it takes to dupe a 'senior' MP is a picture of a penis, then god help us.
Indeed. And again, I am talking well outside my area of expertise - but I would assume the product on offer - a picture of a penis - is not particularly difficult to get nowadays. The image that comes to mind is of a Father Dougal-like character being simple-mindedly eager to help out.
On topic - I'm in the 'never sent anyone a photo of my penis' camp. I don't see why you would? Well, presumably it's a tactic to increase the likelihood of later inserting it into the recipient, but I can't see why that course of action woukd make it more likely. From what I know of women - at the risk of generalising wildly - they are more interested in the qualities of the wielder of the tool than the beauty of the tool itself. And I know even less about gay men, but generalising from what I know of men as a whole, again, a simple suggestion that the other party might be interested in a little light fucking is likely to be enough, surely? And then you don't risk images of your member circulating uncontrolled around the internet. I'm aware this may all sound hopelessly old-fashioned.
As an old man, I quite agree. If I remember correctly young women were much more concerned with the feel of the thing, not the look. But as I say, that was all a long, long time ago. Sadly.
Our (Blue Wall) District returning officer has just published the nominations for the May 2 local elections.
In just about every seat, we've four candidates: LibDem, Labour, Green and "Local Conservative". As if - in a District that had a solid Tory Parliamentary majority from its invention to 2019 - the Tory's got nothing to do with Sunak, Gove, Rees-Mogg or the other plonkers. And as if - in a District with extraordinarily high political sophistication - anyone's going to be taken in.
Is this surreal re-branding a national phenomenon? Or is it even more evidence that what was, till Johnson, the world's strongest political brand is in the process of self-destruction?
Just your local equivalent of the "Independent" in Scotland, or the Ruth Davidson Says No to Indy party, only she was actually a Tory.
Where is the money coming from, I wonder? The EC does have rules about that.
Isn't "local conservative" an agreed label for the conservatives? I think the electoral commission agree similar names?
I *think* the only permitted example is the use of the word "Scottish" in the sense that "Scottosh Labour Party" is allowed to be a trading name (so to speak) of what is called the Labour Party, although it is all one organization financially (the SCons and SLDs are more in tune with the spirit of the law there and don't need that, I think, Blairite fiddle in the legislation).
But IANAE when it comes to local elections and they might well be different.
A party is allowed to register a number of different descriptors with the Electoral Commission as part of their registration. "Local Conservatives" is one of the descriptors they is part of the registration for the Conservative and Unionist Party, as is "Conservative Candidate – More Police, Safer Streets". There are ten in total.
> > Hi! If I send you a picture of a penis (nominally mine) - will you give me the contact details of other gay politicians?
> Sure!
Then spun as 'honeytrap!', 'cunning trickster!', 'sophisticated plot!'. If the level of sophistication it takes to dupe a 'senior' MP is a picture of a penis, then god help us.
Indeed. And again, I am talking well outside my area of expertise - but I would assume the product on offer - a picture of a penis - is not particularly difficult to get nowadays. The image that comes to mind is of a Father Dougal-like character being simple-mindedly eager to help out.
You don't get to be vice-chair of the 1922 Committee if you are of complicated mind, it seems.
Does anybody really believe Reform will get 16% in a FPTP general election? That is LDs 1997 levels and well over even UKIP 2015 levels.
Yes they will get some protest votes against Rishi but the Reform ramping by Godwin is becoming absurd and he and Yougov have Reform far higher than other polls, mainly at Tory expense
I don't, and looking at polling before other General Elections generally we see Referendum/UKIP/BXP fade in the last months as the campaign proper starts.
I think single figures % myself and no seats.
I'm not sure what their actual ambitions are - or rather whether the leadership's ambitions might be different than those of people who are being swept up in grand visions of beating the Tories. I suspect the leadership are content to help add to Tory woes, since that itself will add to the pressure for any Tory revitalisation attempt to be as close to Reform as possible anyway.
Yes, the Referendum, UKIP and Brexit Party all had a single issue to unite and motivate them, but post Brexit there is no similar policy.
Destroying the Conservative party is now the cause that unites liberals and 'reformers'.
No it doesn't, I'm no Tory although I'd like to see the Conservatives take a spanking, regroup and come back as a sensible one nation party.
I wish nothing but ill will on the latest and next Farage vehicles.
On that we are on the same page
And whilst the present conversation is not one I find edyfing, our AWB is on a shout in the Irish Sea saving lives at sea as storm Kathleen hoves into view leaving us to pray for the safe return of our crew
Telegraph reporting right wing prospective conservative candidates being blocked by Sunak as he seeks one nation candidates so they can move the party towards the centre.
Lord Frost and Campbell Bannerman are amongst those being blocked but to be fair Reform are where they belong anyway
Does anybody really believe Reform will get 16% in a FPTP general election? That is LDs 1997 levels and well over even UKIP 2015 levels.
Yes they will get some protest votes against Rishi but the Reform ramping by Godwin is becoming absurd and he and Yougov have Reform far higher than other polls, mainly at Tory expense
I don't, and looking at polling before other General Elections generally we see Referendum/UKIP/BXP fade in the last months as the campaign proper starts.
I think single figures % myself and no seats.
I'm not sure what their actual ambitions are - or rather whether the leadership's ambitions might be different than those of people who are being swept up in grand visions of beating the Tories. I suspect the leadership are content to help add to Tory woes, since that itself will add to the pressure for any Tory revitalisation attempt to be as close to Reform as possible anyway.
Yes, the Referendum, UKIP and Brexit Party all had a single issue to unite and motivate them, but post Brexit there is no similar policy.
Destroying the Conservative party is now the cause that unites liberals and 'reformers'.
No it doesn't, I'm no Tory although I'd like to see the Conservatives take a spanking, regroup and come back as a sensible one nation party.
I wish nothing but ill will on the latest and next Farage vehicles.
I’m not sure using the word “spanking” was well advised, given the other sub-thread
TSE on 4 April: "I AM NOT WRITING A THREAD ON THAT "
TSE on 5 April: "As a regular user of the Grindr app of many years I didn’t think anything could shock me when it came to that app but the behaviour of William Wragg, the Tory MP for Hazel Grove, has managed to leave me shocked and speechless. [click bait follows]"
When I reflected on the story overnight I realised there were some betting implications so was obliged to cover the story.
Unfortunately you forgot to mention the betting implications in your header.
Don't get me wrong. I think the antics of our betters are always interesting and entertaining to discuss. In this case, as he was an openly gay man, apparently single, not even planning to stand for election to Parliament again, it's interesting to speculate what he could have done that was so bad as to force him to deliver up his friends into the hands of these blackmailers and possible enemy agents.
The @Cleitophon Criterion "A PB header should have a betting implication"
It's met less often than you'd think.
Hahaha have I got a criterion named after me 😃😃😃 I love it.
I'll remind you of that one day
That would require me to do a bit for the page I guess 😅 not beyond my skill set.
I’ve never understood the appeal of dick pics. I mean they’re really not very attractive things are they.
As for catastrophic Tory defeat, we’re not quite there yet. Need a few months of treading water on current polling levels but we also need to see a small recovery in Lab and LD vote share as the inevitable Reform unwind happens.
Let’s say Ref are on around 12%, and will fall back to a still-healthy but less exciting 5-7% at the election. There is a big difference between a Ref unwind that sees Tories recover to 31% or so with Labour and LD still around 41 and 10%, and one that gets Con up to 28 with the other parties picking up a percentage or two.
Then there’s Green and their likely unwind. I would say to maximise Conservative seat losses we need LD up a couple of points and Green down a couple. The green vote is very inefficient, the Lib Dem one could be pretty efficient this time round if it’s geographically concentrated.
Does anybody really believe Reform will get 16% in a FPTP general election? That is LDs 1997 levels and well over even UKIP 2015 levels.
Yes they will get some protest votes against Rishi but the Reform ramping by Godwin is becoming absurd and he and Yougov have Reform far higher than other polls, mainly at Tory expense
I don't, and looking at polling before other General Elections generally we see Referendum/UKIP/BXP fade in the last months as the campaign proper starts.
I think single figures % myself and no seats.
I'm not sure what their actual ambitions are - or rather whether the leadership's ambitions might be different than those of people who are being swept up in grand visions of beating the Tories. I suspect the leadership are content to help add to Tory woes, since that itself will add to the pressure for any Tory revitalisation attempt to be as close to Reform as possible anyway.
Yes, the Referendum, UKIP and Brexit Party all had a single issue to unite and motivate them, but post Brexit there is no similar policy.
Destroying the Conservative party is now the cause that unites liberals and 'reformers'.
No it doesn't, I'm no Tory although I'd like to see the Conservatives take a spanking, regroup and come back as a sensible one nation party.
I wish nothing but ill will on the latest and next Farage vehicles.
I’m not sure using the word “spanking” was well advised, given the other sub-thread
I see the Labour Candidate for Dover is called Mike Tapp
I think he is wasted in politics, should have been a sound engineer
Showing my age here. But weren't the characters on Radio 4's Radio Active so named? ISTR Mike Flex, Anna Daptor, Mike Stand, Mike Channel. Oh and Mike Hunt.
Telegraph reporting right wing prospective conservative candidates being blocked by Sunak as he seeks one nation candidates so they can move the party towards the centre.
Lord Frost and Campbell Bannerman are amongst those being blocked but to be fair Reform are where they belong anyway
I have sent many photos of my penis. For the record.
"Now suck my cock! Just kidding!"
They're dicks...
"This isn't about sex, Gary. This is about trust!"
I think he blew it.
"Gary, if for some reason your cover is blown, and the terrorists take you prisoner, well, you'll probably want to take your own life. Here, you'd better have this." [hands Gary a hammer]
Telegraph reporting right wing prospective conservative candidates being blocked by Sunak as he seeks one nation candidates so they can move the party towards the centre.
Lord Frost and Campbell Bannerman are amongst those being blocked but to be fair Reform are where they belong anyway
Apparently "CCHQ is obsessed with diversity". Presumably they'll be recruiting those with a functioning IQ who could be trusted to not start an argument in an empty room then.
I see the Labour Candidate for Dover is called Mike Tapp
I think he is wasted in politics, should have been a sound engineer
Showing my age here. But weren't the characters on Radio 4's Radio Active so named? ISTR Mike Flex, Anna Daptor, Mike Stand, Mike Channel. Oh and Mike Hunt.
Telegraph reporting right wing prospective conservative candidates being blocked by Sunak as he seeks one nation candidates so they can move the party towards the centre.
Lord Frost and Campbell Bannerman are amongst those being blocked but to be fair Reform are where they belong anyway
Apparently "CCHQ is obsessed with diversity". Presumably they'll be recruiting those with a functioning IQ who could be trusted to not start an argument in an empty room then.
Hopefully and now there is Reform for the right under the Trump loving Farage
I see the Labour Candidate for Dover is called Mike Tapp
I think he is wasted in politics, should have been a sound engineer
Showing my age here. But weren't the characters on Radio 4's Radio Active so named? ISTR Mike Flex, Anna Daptor, Mike Stand, Mike Channel. Oh and Mike Hunt.
Telegraph reporting right wing prospective conservative candidates being blocked by Sunak as he seeks one nation candidates so they can move the party towards the centre.
Lord Frost and Campbell Bannerman are amongst those being blocked but to be fair Reform are where they belong anyway
Apparently "CCHQ is obsessed with diversity". Presumably they'll be recruiting those with a functioning IQ who could be trusted to not start an argument in an empty room then.
So is Rishi Sunak now too woke or not woke enough, I'm lost.
Telegraph reporting right wing prospective conservative candidates being blocked by Sunak as he seeks one nation candidates so they can move the party towards the centre.
Lord Frost and Campbell Bannerman are amongst those being blocked but to be fair Reform are where they belong anyway
Apparently "CCHQ is obsessed with diversity". Presumably they'll be recruiting those with a functioning IQ who could be trusted to not start an argument in an empty room then.
The dance troupe?
Ashley Banjo for PM. He couldn't be worse than the last three.
I see the Labour Candidate for Dover is called Mike Tapp
I think he is wasted in politics, should have been a sound engineer
Showing my age here. But weren't the characters on Radio 4's Radio Active so named? ISTR Mike Flex, Anna Daptor, Mike Stand, Mike Channel. Oh and Mike Hunt.
And Martin Brown.
Yes! Spot on. Wasn't he the total incompetent?
He tried I suppose, quite enthusiastic, but useless. I wonder who takes after him....
I dont think its just a male thing though I have a folder full of girls that have sent me intimate pictures and not random people
Of what sort? I'd be appreciative if a ladyfriend sent me a picture of herself clad scantily or not at all. But I'd be nonplussed if she sent me a closeup of her growler. Encouraged, but a bit surprised.
I see the Labour Candidate for Dover is called Mike Tapp
I think he is wasted in politics, should have been a sound engineer
Showing my age here. But weren't the characters on Radio 4's Radio Active so named? ISTR Mike Flex, Anna Daptor, Mike Stand, Mike Channel. Oh and Mike Hunt.
And Martin Brown.
And Oivind "on wid de muzik" Vinstra.
Geoffrey Perkins (who also brought Mornington Crescent into the world) was a blooming genius.
On topic - I'm in the 'never sent anyone a photo of my penis' camp. I don't see why you would? Well, presumably it's a tactic to increase the likelihood of later inserting it into the recipient, but I can't see why that course of action woukd make it more likely. From what I know of women - at the risk of generalising wildly - they are more interested in the qualities of the wielder of the tool than the beauty of the tool itself. And I know even less about gay men, but generalising from what I know of men as a whole, again, a simple suggestion that the other party might be interested in a little light fucking is likely to be enough, surely? And then you don't risk images of your member circulating uncontrolled around the internet. I'm aware this may all sound hopelessly old-fashioned.
As an old man, I quite agree. If I remember correctly young women were much more concerned with the feel of the thing, not the look. But as I say, that was all a long, long time ago. Sadly.
When I were a lad women were more likely to be impressed by the size of your parents' house.
Telegraph reporting right wing prospective conservative candidates being blocked by Sunak as he seeks one nation candidates so they can move the party towards the centre.
Lord Frost and Campbell Bannerman are amongst those being blocked but to be fair Reform are where they belong anyway
Apparently "CCHQ is obsessed with diversity". Presumably they'll be recruiting those with a functioning IQ who could be trusted to not start an argument in an empty room then.
So is Rishi Sunak now too woke or not woke enough, I'm lost.
Far too wet and woke for the Telegraph and Frosty.
That tells us more about how far down the rabbit hole the Telegraph have gone than it tells us about Rishi.
Allison Pearson @AllisonPearson · 1h A scandal to offend every Tory voter. CCHQ is “rejecting Thatcherite candidates in favour of Wets”. The same geniuses who are driving the Conservatives to a historic defeat want to ensure they continue to control the party!
===
This term 'Thatcherite' just has no meaning anymore. Can these commentators even remember a thing she did or stood for other than a vague feeling she was 'true blue'? Most of them were still at primary school or early teenagers when she was in office.
Allison Pearson @AllisonPearson · 1h A scandal to offend every Tory voter. CCHQ is “rejecting Thatcherite candidates in favour of Wets”. The same geniuses who are driving the Conservatives to a historic defeat want to ensure they continue to control the party!
===
This term 'Thatcherite' just has no meaning anymore. Can these commentators even remember a thing she did or stood for other than a vague feeling she was 'true blue'? Most of them were still at primary school or early teenagers when she was in office.
It is desperate.
It doesn't offend this one and more power to Sunak's elbow
Telegraph reporting right wing prospective conservative candidates being blocked by Sunak as he seeks one nation candidates so they can move the party towards the centre.
Lord Frost and Campbell Bannerman are amongst those being blocked but to be fair Reform are where they belong anyway
Apparently "CCHQ is obsessed with diversity". Presumably they'll be recruiting those with a functioning IQ who could be trusted to not start an argument in an empty room then.
So is Rishi Sunak now too woke or not woke enough, I'm lost.
Woke’ism and AntiWoke’ism are both ideologies with many variations and branches.
Think religion.
And there is nothing so common as damning people from your own side as a heretic. In fact they are the most popular kind of heretics.
During the Reformation, it was not uncommon to be blasted as Papist on one side, while excommunicated by Rome on the other.
IIRC Henry VIII had Martin Luther hammering away, while the pope was lobbing Bulls at him.
I know that Sunak can vet candidates, but would he be so bold as to veto Johnson's candidature himself in a real life scenario? It would look appalling. Better to let Boris stand, if he fails, good; if he wins, take the win and welcome him back into the fold.
The problem is that you need a by-election in an exceptionally safe seat. (Which means an existing MP would need to fall on their sword, giving up their exceptionally safe seat.) And then you need the local party to choose Boris. Him not to be vetoed by Central Office. And him to win the by-election.
That's a non trivial number of steps, and he could fall at any one.
I was surmising that the affair of big Willy Wragg could result in a recall byelection. Not sure whether the local party would be keen, but the chances seem high.
Okay folks, Owen Jones is definitely down the rabbit hole. It started with Corbyn and he's gone deeper and deeper.
I think he could be less provocative but... the German state is being quite illiberal to citizens who comment on the Israel/Gaza mess. To say that this stems from the Holocaust is over reaching.
The rent freeze has just ended in Scotland and it's just horrific what landlords are doing. Going to be a very unstable market for a while with lots of evictions.
The number of dwellings in Scotland has increased by 15% in the last 20 years, while the population has increased by only 8%. Supply is not the issue.
On topic - I'm in the 'never sent anyone a photo of my penis' camp. I don't see why you would? Well, presumably it's a tactic to increase the likelihood of later inserting it into the recipient, but I can't see why that course of action woukd make it more likely. From what I know of women - at the risk of generalising wildly - they are more interested in the qualities of the wielder of the tool than the beauty of the tool itself. And I know even less about gay men, but generalising from what I know of men as a whole, again, a simple suggestion that the other party might be interested in a little light fucking is likely to be enough, surely? And then you don't risk images of your member circulating uncontrolled around the internet. I'm aware this may all sound hopelessly old-fashioned.
Also in the same bemused category. Over 30 years since I was in the dating game and the exchanging of pictures of private parts wasn't on the agenda, possibly because in those days the local chemist had to print the pictures and that would have been embarrassing.
The rent freeze has just ended in Scotland and it's just horrific what landlords are doing. Going to be a very unstable market for a while with lots of evictions.
The number of dwellings in Scotland has increased by 15% in the last 20 years, while the population has increased by only 8%. Supply is not the issue.
The whole rent freeze policy was a farce. Basically you could increase the rent on a new tenancy so what it did was increase the turnover in tenants and the determination of the landlord to bring each tenancy to an end so the new one could be at a higher rent, even if it was with 1 or more of the same people. Yet another really stupid policy by people incapable of seeing the next step, no matter how obvious.
I know that Sunak can vet candidates, but would he be so bold as to veto Johnson's candidature himself in a real life scenario? It would look appalling. Better to let Boris stand, if he fails, good; if he wins, take the win and welcome him back into the fold.
The problem is that you need a by-election in an exceptionally safe seat. (Which means an existing MP would need to fall on their sword, giving up their exceptionally safe seat.) And then you need the local party to choose Boris. Him not to be vetoed by Central Office. And him to win the by-election.
That's a non trivial number of steps, and he could fall at any one.
I was surmising that the affair of big Willy Wragg could result in a recall byelection. Not sure whether the local party would be keen, but the chances seem high.
Hazel Grove would easily fall to the LDs on current polling.
The rent freeze has just ended in Scotland and it's just horrific what landlords are doing. Going to be a very unstable market for a while with lots of evictions.
The number of dwellings in Scotland has increased by 15% in the last 20 years, while the population has increased by only 8%. Supply is not the issue.
Population increase is not the only factor. Household composition matters too. If families are smaller, and there are more divorces, then the same size of population will require more dwellings.
And, obviously, there is not one housing market across the whole of Scotland. There might be a growing surplus of dwellings in one area, while an ever more acute shortage elsewhere.
And then there is also the impact of short-term rentals on the market. The growing demand for tourist accommodation reduces the supply of housing for long-term occupation. You could change the law and restrict accommodation for tourists, but that would have negative consequences for those businesses who benefit from tourist visitors.
Comments
And Boris doesn't gamble with his reputation as a winner. Not like that, anyway. (2016 wasn't a gamble, because he personally won whatever the outcome of the referendum.)
The problem is that - having decided he was being blackmailed - he dobbed in other MPs to also be stung. OK so they are utterly deranged to then send photos of their old chap, but even so...
I'm aware this may all sound hopelessly old-fashioned.
(sorry BCH!)
'Joey, do you like movies about Gladiators?'
Indeed. And again, I am talking well outside my area of expertise - but I would assume the product on offer - a picture of a penis - is not particularly difficult to get nowadays. The image that comes to mind is of a Father Dougal-like character being simple-mindedly eager to help out.
I wish nothing but ill will on the latest and next Farage vehicles.
But as I say, that was all a long, long time ago.
Sadly.
See the registration at: https://search.electoralcommission.org.uk/English/Registrations/PP52
I think he is wasted in politics, should have been a sound engineer
Penis - brexit!
Penis - not brexit!
Penis - HS2 ftw!
Penis - HS2 gfy!
... repeat until catastrophic electoral defeat.
https://youtu.be/Rws_7mLTqj8?si=bZHbVTkFlUcFjLwC
And whilst the present conversation is not one I find edyfing, our AWB is on a shout in the Irish Sea saving lives at sea as storm Kathleen hoves into view leaving us to pray for the safe return of our crew
Lord Frost and Campbell Bannerman are amongst those being blocked but to be fair Reform are where they belong anyway
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/04/05/true-blue-tories-banned-standing-general-election/
As for catastrophic Tory defeat, we’re not quite there yet. Need a few months of treading water on current polling levels but we also need to see a small recovery in Lab and LD vote share as the inevitable Reform unwind happens.
Let’s say Ref are on around 12%, and will fall back to a still-healthy but less exciting 5-7% at the election. There is a big difference between a Ref unwind that sees Tories recover to 31% or so with Labour and LD still around 41 and 10%, and one that gets Con up to 28 with the other parties picking up a percentage or two.
Then there’s Green and their likely unwind. I would say to maximise Conservative seat losses we need LD up a couple of points and Green down a couple. The green vote is very inefficient, the Lib Dem one could be pretty efficient this time round if it’s geographically concentrated.
But weren't the characters on Radio 4's Radio Active so named?
ISTR Mike Flex, Anna Daptor, Mike Stand, Mike Channel.
Oh and Mike Hunt.
https://www.bondsuits.com/
[hands Gary a hammer]
Presumably they'll be recruiting those with a functioning IQ who could be trusted to not start an argument in an empty room then.
Sweden 1
65 mins
Ashley Banjo for PM. He couldn't be worse than the last three.
Geoffrey Perkins (who also brought Mornington Crescent into the world) was a blooming genius.
That tells us more about how far down the rabbit hole the Telegraph have gone than it tells us about Rishi.
@AllisonPearson
·
1h
A scandal to offend every Tory voter.
CCHQ is “rejecting Thatcherite candidates in favour of Wets”.
The same geniuses who are driving the Conservatives to a historic defeat want to ensure they continue to control the party!
===
This term 'Thatcherite' just has no meaning anymore. Can these commentators even remember a thing she did or stood for other than a vague feeling she was 'true blue'? Most of them were still at primary school or early teenagers when she was in office.
It is desperate.
https://twitter.com/dieworkwear
Some excellent style advice.
Think religion.
And there is nothing so common as damning people from your own side as a heretic. In fact they are the most popular kind of heretics.
During the Reformation, it was not uncommon to be blasted as Papist on one side, while excommunicated by Rome on the other.
IIRC Henry VIII had Martin Luther hammering away, while the pope was lobbing Bulls at him.
https://twitter.com/SaulStaniforth/status/1775998988451201486
https://www.972mag.com/germany-israel-palestine-solidarity-repression/
The number of dwellings in Scotland has increased by 15% in the last 20 years, while the population has increased by only 8%. Supply is not the issue.
And, obviously, there is not one housing market across the whole of Scotland. There might be a growing surplus of dwellings in one area, while an ever more acute shortage elsewhere.
And then there is also the impact of short-term rentals on the market. The growing demand for tourist accommodation reduces the supply of housing for long-term occupation. You could change the law and restrict accommodation for tourists, but that would have negative consequences for those businesses who benefit from tourist visitors.
https://twitter.com/bindelj/status/1724796415791292877