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Farage remains the favourite to be the next PM – politicalbetting.com

SystemSystem Posts: 12,212
edited December 17 in General
imageFarage remains the favourite to be the next PM – politicalbetting.com

On Betfair Nigel Farage remains the favourite to succeed Sir Keir Starmer as our next Prime Minister.

Read the full story here

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Comments

  • OnlyLivingBoyOnlyLivingBoy Posts: 15,896
    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?
  • OnlyLivingBoyOnlyLivingBoy Posts: 15,896
    Ooh and first!
  • Morris_DancerMorris_Dancer Posts: 61,945
    I wonder if this is more or less strange than Norris being favourite for the 2025 title... on Ladbrokes, anyway. Last I checked, Verstappen had shorter odds on Betfair.
  • StuartinromfordStuartinromford Posts: 17,441
    edited December 12

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    As long as the winning post is in the low-to-mid thirties percent, quite possibly. A determined minority outshouts and outvotes a diffuse majority.
  • FF43FF43 Posts: 17,236
    Your reasons are sound. I would say it's also difficult for Farage to be the prime minister after the next election unless the Conservative and Reform parties effectively merge with him as leader. Same applies perhaps to a lesser extent with Badenoch or whoever replaces her.
  • Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas
  • FF43FF43 Posts: 17,236

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
  • FF43 said:

    Your reasons are sound. I would say it's also difficult for Farage to be the prime minister after the next election unless the Conservative and Reform parties effectively merge with him as leader. Same applies perhaps to a lesser extent with Badenoch or whoever replaces her.

    And even if a lot of Conservative wets would respond wetly to that development, at least some current Conservative voters would consider a deal with Farage a step too far.
  • IanB2IanB2 Posts: 50,144
    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    And the worst of the trade impediments hasn't even been implemented, yet...
  • Shecorns88Shecorns88 Posts: 270
    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    SKS knows any loosening of Brexit conditions would have been jumped upon in any GE Campaign by MSM.

    He also knows that there is REAL APPETITE now to begin to reduild and reopen bridges and that he is ALREADY DOING.

    If the great cooperation over Migration and Immigration starts to bear the sort of low hanging fruits we've seen in the past few months with well publicised arrests in Germany, The Balkans etc, it opens up more avenues economically and travel wise.

    The is potentially plenty of low hanging fruit for him to gradually pick over the next 3-4 years.

    (1) HOLIDAY TRAVEL- anything that improves transit to and through EU airports in holiday season where SKS has actually moved the dial in favour of the UK Voter = MASSIVE VOTE WINNER

    (2) EASIER EMPLOYMENT / Study On fixed term Visas EU Nationals - a BIG vote winner with the key Younger Voters

    (3) Easing of RED TAPE and PAPERWORK - may even placate the majority of Framers who are not Farage supporting bone heads

    -----

    Drip feed this slowly sr=teadily, gain PUBLIC APPROVAL and then in 2028 or 2029 go the the Country with a stark WARNING...

    You can gradually enjoy the benefits of a NEW EU relationship that loosely ties us to the benefits..

    or

    Vote for Farage or whoever the then Tory Leader is and go back to the "little englander" dark ages....and if that also ensures we DON'T become the 51st or 52nd State as Farage wants...even BETTER!



  • OnlyLivingBoyOnlyLivingBoy Posts: 15,896

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    As long as the winning post is in the low-to-mid thirties percent, quite possibly. A determined minority outshouts and outvotes a diffuse majority.
    I suspect Farage will motivate an equally determined set of voters to block him. But the election is a long time away.
  • FffsFffs Posts: 76

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    SKS knows any loosening of Brexit conditions would have been jumped upon in any GE Campaign by MSM.

    He also knows that there is REAL APPETITE now to begin to reduild and reopen bridges and that he is ALREADY DOING.

    If the great cooperation over Migration and Immigration starts to bear the sort of low hanging fruits we've seen in the past few months with well publicised arrests in Germany, The Balkans etc, it opens up more avenues economically and travel wise.

    The is potentially plenty of low hanging fruit for him to gradually pick over the next 3-4 years.

    (1) HOLIDAY TRAVEL- anything that improves transit to and through EU airports in holiday season where SKS has actually moved the dial in favour of the UK Voter = MASSIVE VOTE WINNER

    (2) EASIER EMPLOYMENT / Study On fixed term Visas EU Nationals - a BIG vote winner with the key Younger Voters

    (3) Easing of RED TAPE and PAPERWORK - may even placate the majority of Framers who are not Farage supporting bone heads

    -----

    Drip feed this slowly sr=teadily, gain PUBLIC APPROVAL and then in 2028 or 2029 go the the Country with a stark WARNING...

    You can gradually enjoy the benefits of a NEW EU relationship that loosely ties us to the benefits..

    or

    Vote for Farage or whoever the then Tory Leader is and go back to the "little englander" dark ages....and if that also ensures we DON'T become the 51st or 52nd State as Farage wants...even BETTER!



    I think there is likely some truth to this, although your habit of bursting into all caps every couple of sentences makes your writing a lot less compelling than it would otherwise be.
  • RogerRoger Posts: 19,970

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    It's Starmer and Labour's 'get out of jail free' card if things start going badly.

    Not that It feels likely at the moment. After a few teething troubles his government seems to be shaping up to be one the most competent and creative we've had for a while
  • Beibheirli_CBeibheirli_C Posts: 8,186
    Roger said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    It's Starmer and Labour's 'get out of jail free' card if things start going badly.

    Not that It feels likely at the moment. After a few teething troubles his government seems to be shaping up to be one the most competent and creative we've had for a while
    I think you are having a left-leaning HYFUD moment @Roger :smile: We are not even 6 month in and the start has not exactly been smooth.

    By 2028 a lot of the more vocal pro-Brexit pro-Farage types will be in their graves and that will reduce his support even further and may be the only saving grace if SKS continues to dazzle at his current performance level...
  • IanB2IanB2 Posts: 50,144
    Roger said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    It's Starmer and Labour's 'get out of jail free' card if things start going badly.

    Not that It feels likely at the moment. After a few teething troubles his government seems to be shaping up to be one the most competent and creative we've had for a while
    And interesting question now is whether, if Labour does do something significantly positive on Europe, any counter-reaction might drive Tory-leaning voters toward Reform, and thus actually weaken their main opponents?
  • RogerRoger Posts: 19,970

    Roger said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    It's Starmer and Labour's 'get out of jail free' card if things start going badly.

    Not that It feels likely at the moment. After a few teething troubles his government seems to be shaping up to be one the most competent and creative we've had for a while
    I think you are having a left-leaning HYFUD moment @Roger :smile: We are not even 6 month in and the start has not exactly been smooth.

    By 2028 a lot of the more vocal pro-Brexit pro-Farage types will be in their graves and that will reduce his support even further and may be the only saving grace if SKS continues to dazzle at his current performance level...
    I quite like the faltering start. A decent government takes a while to bed in. I know it's only six months but that feels like a lifetime for a PM not to pull a pint or be seen in a high viz jacket.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 43,325
    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    It does also depend what the Usonians do. Tariffs on all sides could be the lasting achievement of Mr B. Johnson et al.
  • SandpitSandpit Posts: 54,967
    Carnyx said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    It does also depend what the Usonians do. Tariffs on all sides could be the lasting achievement of Mr B. Johnson et al.
    With a bit of diplomatic effort, the UK could get away without involvement in tariffs placed on the EU.

    UK and US trade is mostly in services, and UK good sold to the US are mostly cars and F&B which rely on British identity. American’s aren’t going to buy Macallan and McLaren from elsewhere.
  • MexicanpeteMexicanpete Posts: 28,886
    Fffs said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    SKS knows any loosening of Brexit conditions would have been jumped upon in any GE Campaign by MSM.

    He also knows that there is REAL APPETITE now to begin to reduild and reopen bridges and that he is ALREADY DOING.

    If the great cooperation over Migration and Immigration starts to bear the sort of low hanging fruits we've seen in the past few months with well publicised arrests in Germany, The Balkans etc, it opens up more avenues economically and travel wise.

    The is potentially plenty of low hanging fruit for him to gradually pick over the next 3-4 years.

    (1) HOLIDAY TRAVEL- anything that improves transit to and through EU airports in holiday season where SKS has actually moved the dial in favour of the UK Voter = MASSIVE VOTE WINNER

    (2) EASIER EMPLOYMENT / Study On fixed term Visas EU Nationals - a BIG vote winner with the key Younger Voters

    (3) Easing of RED TAPE and PAPERWORK - may even placate the majority of Framers who are not Farage supporting bone heads

    -----

    Drip feed this slowly sr=teadily, gain PUBLIC APPROVAL and then in 2028 or 2029 go the the Country with a stark WARNING...

    You can gradually enjoy the benefits of a NEW EU relationship that loosely ties us to the benefits..

    or

    Vote for Farage or whoever the then Tory Leader is and go back to the "little englander" dark ages....and if that also ensures we DON'T become the 51st or 52nd State as Farage wants...even BETTER!



    I think there is likely some truth to this, although your habit of bursting into all caps every couple of sentences makes your writing a lot less compelling than it would otherwise be.
    We seldom complain at Leon's "habit of bursting into caps every couple of sentences".
  • RogerRoger Posts: 19,970
    IanB2 said:

    Roger said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    It's Starmer and Labour's 'get out of jail free' card if things start going badly.

    Not that It feels likely at the moment. After a few teething troubles his government seems to be shaping up to be one the most competent and creative we've had for a while
    And interesting question now is whether, if Labour does do something significantly positive on Europe, any counter-reaction might drive Tory-leaning voters toward Reform, and thus actually weaken their main opponents?
    The two right wing parties seem completely screwed at the moment. I just cant see a way to a happy ending. The only way the Tories can prosper is for Reform to implode. It feels like the centre/centre left has all the cards. Not something which would be obvious to Telegraph or PB readers
  • OnlyLivingBoyOnlyLivingBoy Posts: 15,896

    Fffs said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    SKS knows any loosening of Brexit conditions would have been jumped upon in any GE Campaign by MSM.

    He also knows that there is REAL APPETITE now to begin to reduild and reopen bridges and that he is ALREADY DOING.

    If the great cooperation over Migration and Immigration starts to bear the sort of low hanging fruits we've seen in the past few months with well publicised arrests in Germany, The Balkans etc, it opens up more avenues economically and travel wise.

    The is potentially plenty of low hanging fruit for him to gradually pick over the next 3-4 years.

    (1) HOLIDAY TRAVEL- anything that improves transit to and through EU airports in holiday season where SKS has actually moved the dial in favour of the UK Voter = MASSIVE VOTE WINNER

    (2) EASIER EMPLOYMENT / Study On fixed term Visas EU Nationals - a BIG vote winner with the key Younger Voters

    (3) Easing of RED TAPE and PAPERWORK - may even placate the majority of Framers who are not Farage supporting bone heads

    -----

    Drip feed this slowly sr=teadily, gain PUBLIC APPROVAL and then in 2028 or 2029 go the the Country with a stark WARNING...

    You can gradually enjoy the benefits of a NEW EU relationship that loosely ties us to the benefits..

    or

    Vote for Farage or whoever the then Tory Leader is and go back to the "little englander" dark ages....and if that also ensures we DON'T become the 51st or 52nd State as Farage wants...even BETTER!



    I think there is likely some truth to this, although your habit of bursting into all caps every couple of sentences makes your writing a lot less compelling than it would otherwise be.
    We seldom complain at Leon's "habit of bursting into caps every couple of sentences".
    There's so much more to complain about with Leon.
  • TimSTimS Posts: 13,212
    Sandpit said:

    Carnyx said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    It does also depend what the Usonians do. Tariffs on all sides could be the lasting achievement of Mr B. Johnson et al.
    With a bit of diplomatic effort, the UK could get away without involvement in tariffs placed on the EU.

    UK and US trade is mostly in services, and UK good sold to the US are mostly cars and F&B which rely on British identity. American’s aren’t going to buy Macallan and McLaren from elsewhere.
    It would severely complicate UK-EU trade in any goods with partial US origin though, assuming EU retaliation against Trump. I’m not sure what the amounts look like but given the US is one of our larger trade partners in goods it wouldn’t be immaterial.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,403
    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.
  • RogerRoger Posts: 19,970

    Fffs said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    SKS knows any loosening of Brexit conditions would have been jumped upon in any GE Campaign by MSM.

    He also knows that there is REAL APPETITE now to begin to reduild and reopen bridges and that he is ALREADY DOING.

    If the great cooperation over Migration and Immigration starts to bear the sort of low hanging fruits we've seen in the past few months with well publicised arrests in Germany, The Balkans etc, it opens up more avenues economically and travel wise.

    The is potentially plenty of low hanging fruit for him to gradually pick over the next 3-4 years.

    (1) HOLIDAY TRAVEL- anything that improves transit to and through EU airports in holiday season where SKS has actually moved the dial in favour of the UK Voter = MASSIVE VOTE WINNER

    (2) EASIER EMPLOYMENT / Study On fixed term Visas EU Nationals - a BIG vote winner with the key Younger Voters

    (3) Easing of RED TAPE and PAPERWORK - may even placate the majority of Framers who are not Farage supporting bone heads

    -----

    Drip feed this slowly sr=teadily, gain PUBLIC APPROVAL and then in 2028 or 2029 go the the Country with a stark WARNING...

    You can gradually enjoy the benefits of a NEW EU relationship that loosely ties us to the benefits..

    or

    Vote for Farage or whoever the then Tory Leader is and go back to the "little englander" dark ages....and if that also ensures we DON'T become the 51st or 52nd State as Farage wants...even BETTER!



    I think there is likely some truth to this, although your habit of bursting into all caps every couple of sentences makes your writing a lot less compelling than it would otherwise be.
    We seldom complain at Leon's "habit of bursting into caps every couple of sentences".
    There's so much more to complain about with Leon.
    "I'm Dreaming of A white baby.....
    Just like the ones I used to know...."

  • DavidLDavidL Posts: 54,004
    It is almost certain that the ECB will cut interest rates again today. The growing differential in interest rates is driving Sterling upwards against the Euro to levels not seen for some years. The BoE should be paying more attention to the risks this poses to both growth and exports although the downward pressure on imported goods may be welcome.

    Our government is anxious to reset relations with the EU and, as a Brexit voter, I have no problem with that although we should be aware that the cost of this is a continuation of our massive trade deficit with them. The challenge is going to be getting any intelligent response from the EU when both its more important governments are now caretakers after their governments' collapse. My expectation is that the UK will be frustrated by the incoherence of the EU position.
  • RattersRatters Posts: 1,110
    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    He'll be a bit old by the one after, by UK political standards... He's already 60.
  • IanB2 said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    And the worst of the trade impediments hasn't even been implemented, yet...
    And in order to prove we can be trusted to stick to our side of any future negotiations, the EU will insist they are implemented.
  • Dura_AceDura_Ace Posts: 13,760
    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    Farage is, by some margin, the most naturally gifted politician of the next PM contenders. However, he can't wait for the Fukkers to break the FPTP glass ceiling with their greasy poles on their own. First, it'll take too long and, second, the party's trait of attracting mainly malignant lunatics as candidates and supporters militates against such an eventuality. So, his strategy of destroying the tory party with 'death by a thousand defections' and controlling their quivering corpses like the fungus in The Last of Us is sound and might well work.
  • Dura_AceDura_Ace Posts: 13,760
    Not only, but also... as well as being the most gifted politician, he'll probably have the most money going into the next GE and the illicit support of the Russians and Chinese.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,403
    DavidL said:

    It is almost certain that the ECB will cut interest rates again today. The growing differential in interest rates is driving Sterling upwards against the Euro to levels not seen for some years. The BoE should be paying more attention to the risks this poses to both growth and exports although the downward pressure on imported goods may be welcome.

    Our government is anxious to reset relations with the EU and, as a Brexit voter, I have no problem with that although we should be aware that the cost of this is a continuation of our massive trade deficit with them. The challenge is going to be getting any intelligent response from the EU when both its more important governments are now caretakers after their governments' collapse. My expectation is that the UK will be frustrated by the incoherence of the EU position.

    Could they not lol, could do with a bit of euro strength for professional reasons.
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 42,141
    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    It's not so much she's weird (aren't we all) but that Kemi appears to think letting everyone know about it is a good thing. I think the appetite for this sort of thing is pretty limted outside the gamier end of Spectatoriat.
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 52,256
    DavidL said:

    It is almost certain that the ECB will cut interest rates again today. The growing differential in interest rates is driving Sterling upwards against the Euro to levels not seen for some years. The BoE should be paying more attention to the risks this poses to both growth and exports although the downward pressure on imported goods may be welcome.

    Our government is anxious to reset relations with the EU and, as a Brexit voter, I have no problem with that although we should be aware that the cost of this is a continuation of our massive trade deficit with them. The challenge is going to be getting any intelligent response from the EU when both its more important governments are now caretakers after their governments' collapse. My expectation is that the UK will be frustrated by the incoherence of the EU position.

    We could counteract the cheap Euro by applying tariffs. Maybe it was a mistake to lock ourselves into an FTA.
  • Dura_Ace said:

    Not only, but also... as well as being the most gifted politician, he'll probably have the most money going into the next GE and the illicit support of the Russians and Chinese.

    Possibly the Americans too.
  • OnlyLivingBoyOnlyLivingBoy Posts: 15,896
    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Oh wow, this is properly nuts. Tories, what have you done?

    Mind you, her terrible speech the other day makes a lot more sense now. I'm picturing her writing it with one hand over lunch while trying to eat some steak and a slice of very dry bread with the other.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 49,112
    DavidL said:

    It is almost certain that the ECB will cut interest rates again today. The growing differential in interest rates is driving Sterling upwards against the Euro to levels not seen for some years. The BoE should be paying more attention to the risks this poses to both growth and exports although the downward pressure on imported goods may be welcome.

    Our government is anxious to reset relations with the EU and, as a Brexit voter, I have no problem with that although we should be aware that the cost of this is a continuation of our massive trade deficit with them. The challenge is going to be getting any intelligent response from the EU when both its more important governments are now caretakers after their governments' collapse. My expectation is that the UK will be frustrated by the incoherence of the EU position.

    The trade deficit with the EU has worsened with Brexit I think, as we have inhibited our exports and not bothered to implement controls on imports.

    It's almost as if Brexit was a bad idea.
  • Shecorns88Shecorns88 Posts: 270

    Dura_Ace said:

    Not only, but also... as well as being the most gifted politician, he'll probably have the most money going into the next GE and the illicit support of the Russians and Chinese.

    Possibly the Americans too.
    He's not gifted.

    He merely appeals to the intelectually challenged as all extremists of left and right do

    He cannot stand an iota of scruting as evidenced this week. That may appeal to 15% of the population but under GE Campaign scruting he'd just create a tsunami of "stop Farage"
  • TazTaz Posts: 14,956
    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    As others have said, this is a screaming lay, same with Badenoch.

    I just cannot see a Reform PM, I think they are too marmite as a party.
  • ChrisChris Posts: 11,776

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Oh wow, this is properly nuts. Tories, what have you done?

    Mind you, her terrible speech the other day makes a lot more sense now. I'm picturing her writing it with one hand over lunch while trying to eat some steak and a slice of very dry bread with the other.
    Have a heart. She may have been frightened by a slice of moist bread as a child.
  • TimSTimS Posts: 13,212

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Oh wow, this is properly nuts. Tories, what have you done?

    Mind you, her terrible speech the other day makes a lot more sense now. I'm picturing her writing it with one hand over lunch while trying to eat some steak and a slice of very dry bread with the other.
    Sandwiches are what you have for breakfast. I’ve been doing breakfasts wrong all these years.
  • Shecorns88Shecorns88 Posts: 270
    Fishing said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    SKS knows any loosening of Brexit conditions would have been jumped upon in any GE Campaign by MSM.

    He also knows that there is REAL APPETITE now to begin to reduild and reopen bridges and that he is ALREADY DOING.

    If the great cooperation over Migration and Immigration starts to bear the sort of low hanging fruits we've seen in the past few months with well publicised arrests in Germany, The Balkans etc, it opens up more avenues economically and travel wise.

    The is potentially plenty of low hanging fruit for him to gradually pick over the next 3-4 years.

    (1) HOLIDAY TRAVEL- anything that improves transit to and through EU airports in holiday season where SKS has actually moved the dial in favour of the UK Voter = MASSIVE VOTE WINNER

    (2) EASIER EMPLOYMENT / Study On fixed term Visas EU Nationals - a BIG vote winner with the key Younger Voters

    (3) Easing of RED TAPE and PAPERWORK - may even placate the majority of Framers who are not Farage supporting bone heads

    -----

    Drip feed this slowly sr=teadily, gain PUBLIC APPROVAL and then in 2028 or 2029 go the the Country with a stark WARNING...

    I'm afraid you simply don't understand what the EU does or how it negotiates. Nothing with the EU is low-hanging fruit. I have spent too many years of my career trying to make headway in Brussels.

    Anything we want, they will oppose, simply because they regard it as cherry-picking. Doesn't matter if it's perfectly reasonable or marginally beneficial to them or even if they proposed it in the first place. And they will demand huge and unacceptable concessions simply because they think they have the upper hand.

    The only way to get results from the EU, as Margaret Thatcher showed with the rebate, is to be even more determined, single-minded and inflexible than they are. Then maybe you'll get a fraction of what you want.

    Even the Americans, who are by no means a pushover, are more rational and easier to deal with than the EU. They may be excruciatingly legalistic and utterly insular and ignorant of foreign countries, but at least they don't constantly shift their ground and aren't quite as insecure about their rationale for existence.
    Here we go.

    Classic "can't do" ...aka "won't do"

    The landscape has changed.

    Things will happen!
  • TazTaz Posts: 14,956
    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Okay, lunch is for wimps is pure Del Boy, but what is wrong with the rest of it. It is a personal preference.

    It is not the norm but so what.

    Plenty of things to critique her for politically but her choice of food so what.

    People I work with have food brought in. They order a Greggs via Uber Eats. No one bats an eyelid.
  • MattWMattW Posts: 23,869

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    Good morning everyone,

    That's comment is a signpost to a rabbit hole.

    Which film or other script represents the current opposition?

    I don't know my film scripts well enough, but I'm inclined to reach for something centred on a different planet such as an alien civilisation visited by Star Trek, or The Clangers.
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 52,256
    Taz said:

    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    As others have said, this is a screaming lay, same with Badenoch.

    I just cannot see a Reform PM, I think they are too marmite as a party.
    “Reform Scum” isn’t a catchphrase yet so they’re not as marmite as some parties.
  • ChrisChris Posts: 11,776
    Dura_Ace said:

    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    Farage is, by some margin, the most naturally gifted politician of the next PM contenders. However, he can't wait for the Fukkers to break the FPTP glass ceiling with their greasy poles on their own. First, it'll take too long and, second, the party's trait of attracting mainly malignant lunatics as candidates and supporters militates against such an eventuality. So, his strategy of destroying the tory party with 'death by a thousand defections' and controlling their quivering corpses like the fungus in The Last of Us is sound and might well work.
    Or it might keep anti-Tory parties in government for a generation.
  • MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 52,934
    Ratters said:

    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    He'll be a bit old by the one after, by UK political standards... He's already 60.
    ...and might have the liver of an 80 year old.
  • TazTaz Posts: 14,956

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    It's not so much she's weird (aren't we all) but that Kemi appears to think letting everyone know about it is a good thing. I think the appetite for this sort of thing is pretty limted outside the gamier end of Spectatoriat.
    Perhaps she thinks giving us an insight into this sort of crap humanises her to people, breaks down some boundaries. As you say it is of very limited interest and the risk is people seize on it and it can open her up to some ridicule.
  • Wiki is giving the final US House popular vote ** as GOP 50.5% Dem 47.9%.

    Which wold mean that for all three of Trump's election contests the House GOP did better than he did.

    It also confirms that the cumulative gerrymandering and vote rigging now benefits the Dems in the House.

    ** Note that some House seats are unopposed.
  • Dura_Ace said:

    Not only, but also... as well as being the most gifted politician, he'll probably have the most money going into the next GE and the illicit support of the Russians and Chinese.

    Possibly the Americans too.
    He's not gifted.

    He merely appeals to the intelectually challenged as all extremists of left and right do

    He cannot stand an iota of scruting as evidenced this week. That may appeal to 15% of the population but under GE Campaign scruting he'd just create a tsunami of "stop Farage"
    Like the tsunamis of Stop Trump, Never Trump and not forgetting Republicans Against Trump?
  • FF43FF43 Posts: 17,236
    Ratters said:

    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    He'll be a bit old by the one after, by UK political standards... He's already 60.
    Also if Farage is the prime minister after next he probably has to get rid of the Conservative Party first or merge Reform into the Conservatives and become leader of both.
  • TazTaz Posts: 14,956
    MattW said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    Good morning everyone,

    That's comment is a signpost to a rabbit hole.

    Which film or other script represents the current opposition?

    I don't know my film scripts well enough, but I'm inclined to reach for something centred on a different planet such as an alien civilisation visited by Star Trek, or The Clangers.
    "Tell me about this strange earth custom known only as "kissing", Cpt Kirk", says a voluptuous, scantily clad, blonde haired green skinned alien woman in her early twenties.

  • TazTaz Posts: 14,956

    Wiki is giving the final US House popular vote ** as GOP 50.5% Dem 47.9%.

    Which wold mean that for all three of Trump's election contests the House GOP did better than he did.

    It also confirms that the cumulative gerrymandering and vote rigging now benefits the Dems in the House.

    ** Note that some House seats are unopposed.

    But it is okay when the Democrats do it, as they are the good guys.

    It is only bad when the GOP do it.

    I think that's how it works.
  • Dura_AceDura_Ace Posts: 13,760

    FPT - very disturbing conversation last night. Murder is never an answer to justice, under any circumstances.

    If we go down that road we will get a free for all and there will be someone who finds some reason to gun for you too. Literally.

    "I would give the devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake."

    Woke and/or virtue signalling.
  • FoxyFoxy Posts: 49,112
    edited December 12
    MattW said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    Good morning everyone,

    That's comment is a signpost to a rabbit hole.

    Which film or other script represents the current opposition?

    I don't know my film scripts well enough, but I'm inclined to reach for something centred on a different planet such as an alien civilisation visited by Star Trek, or The Clangers.
    Could I suggest "Alien - On Stage"?

    https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/dec/12/alien-on-stage-documentary-theatre-amateurs-horror-film
  • JosiasJessopJosiasJessop Posts: 43,423

    Taz said:

    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    As others have said, this is a screaming lay, same with Badenoch.

    I just cannot see a Reform PM, I think they are too marmite as a party.
    “Reform Scum” isn’t a catchphrase yet so they’re not as marmite as some parties.
    Perhaps because it's pointless, as it's impossible to reform Reform? ;)
  • MarqueeMarkMarqueeMark Posts: 52,934

    FPT - very disturbing conversation last night. Murder is never an answer to justice, under any circumstances.

    If we go down that road we will get a free for all and there will be someone who finds some reason to gun for you too. Literally.

    "I would give the devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake."

    Agreed. But it is very telling that there is now a groundswell not only in the US but also here of "the fuckers deserve everything that's coming to them".

    It will likely first manifest itself in finding it impossible to get a jury that will unanimously convict. The Gorgeous Assassin will then operate in another world of alternative laws.

    Until somebody guns him down.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 43,325
    Taz said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Okay, lunch is for wimps is pure Del Boy, but what is wrong with the rest of it. It is a personal preference.

    It is not the norm but so what.

    Plenty of things to critique her for politically but her choice of food so what.

    People I work with have food brought in. They order a Greggs via Uber Eats. No one bats an eyelid.
    That's because the spectators can't tell if the sausage rolls are vegan or not.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 123,864
    Unless Reform start to come first in a lot of polls there is no chance of Farage becoming PM even in a hung parliament. As TSE states the value would be in Labour having a new PM before the next GE such as Streeting or Rayner
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 42,141
    Chris said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Oh wow, this is properly nuts. Tories, what have you done?

    Mind you, her terrible speech the other day makes a lot more sense now. I'm picturing her writing it with one hand over lunch while trying to eat some steak and a slice of very dry bread with the other.
    Have a heart. She may have been frightened by a slice of moist bread as a child.
    It's the kids identifying as moist slices of bread that keep her awake at night.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 43,325
    Chris said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Oh wow, this is properly nuts. Tories, what have you done?

    Mind you, her terrible speech the other day makes a lot more sense now. I'm picturing her writing it with one hand over lunch while trying to eat some steak and a slice of very dry bread with the other.
    Have a heart. She may have been frightened by a slice of moist bread as a child.
    M ore like moist Tories.

    Note: no cereal, so no worries on that count re liquidity.
  • FF43FF43 Posts: 17,236

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    It's not so much she's weird (aren't we all) but that Kemi appears to think letting everyone know about it is a good thing. I think the appetite for this sort of thing is pretty limted outside the gamier end of Spectatoriat.
    With most people you would think that's amusing. Then you remember Badenoch has no sense of humour and you think, WTF?
  • algarkirkalgarkirk Posts: 12,857
    Foxy said:

    DavidL said:

    It is almost certain that the ECB will cut interest rates again today. The growing differential in interest rates is driving Sterling upwards against the Euro to levels not seen for some years. The BoE should be paying more attention to the risks this poses to both growth and exports although the downward pressure on imported goods may be welcome.

    Our government is anxious to reset relations with the EU and, as a Brexit voter, I have no problem with that although we should be aware that the cost of this is a continuation of our massive trade deficit with them. The challenge is going to be getting any intelligent response from the EU when both its more important governments are now caretakers after their governments' collapse. My expectation is that the UK will be frustrated by the incoherence of the EU position.

    The trade deficit with the EU has worsened with Brexit I think, as we have inhibited our exports and not bothered to implement controls on imports.

    It's almost as if Brexit was a bad idea.
    Too simple sadly. It is very likely that 52% of voters voted for leaving an 'ever closer' political union of the EU, and most probably are still on balance against it. As has always been the case, the best solution is the Norway one, EEA/EFTA.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 123,864
    FF43 said:

    Ratters said:

    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    He'll be a bit old by the one after, by UK political standards... He's already 60.
    Also if Farage is the prime minister after next he probably has to get rid of the Conservative Party first or merge Reform into the Conservatives and become leader of both.
    Not necessarily, he could be PM if Reform largest party with Tory confidence and supply
  • MalmesburyMalmesbury Posts: 51,073
    Fishing said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    SKS knows any loosening of Brexit conditions would have been jumped upon in any GE Campaign by MSM.

    He also knows that there is REAL APPETITE now to begin to reduild and reopen bridges and that he is ALREADY DOING.

    If the great cooperation over Migration and Immigration starts to bear the sort of low hanging fruits we've seen in the past few months with well publicised arrests in Germany, The Balkans etc, it opens up more avenues economically and travel wise.

    The is potentially plenty of low hanging fruit for him to gradually pick over the next 3-4 years.

    (1) HOLIDAY TRAVEL- anything that improves transit to and through EU airports in holiday season where SKS has actually moved the dial in favour of the UK Voter = MASSIVE VOTE WINNER

    (2) EASIER EMPLOYMENT / Study On fixed term Visas EU Nationals - a BIG vote winner with the key Younger Voters

    (3) Easing of RED TAPE and PAPERWORK - may even placate the majority of Framers who are not Farage supporting bone heads

    -----

    Drip feed this slowly sr=teadily, gain PUBLIC APPROVAL and then in 2028 or 2029 go the the Country with a stark WARNING...

    I'm afraid you simply don't understand what the EU does or how it negotiates. Nothing with the EU is low-hanging fruit. I have spent too many years of my career trying to make headway in Brussels.

    Anything we want, they will oppose, simply because they regard it as cherry-picking. Doesn't matter if it's perfectly reasonable or marginally beneficial to them or even if they proposed it in the first place. And they will demand huge and unacceptable concessions simply because they think they have the upper hand.

    The only way to get results from the EU, as Margaret Thatcher showed with the rebate, is to be even more determined, single-minded and inflexible than they are. Then maybe you'll get a fraction of what you want.

    Even the Americans, who are by no means a pushover, are more rational and easier to deal with than the EU. They may be excruciatingly legalistic and utterly insular and ignorant of foreign countries, but at least they don't constantly shift their ground and aren't quite as insecure about their rationale for existence.
    It’s more, I think, that with the US, negotiations are with the President and (in effect) the Senate for ratification. The temperature of the Senate is taken before hand, and the various things the senators want is well established for the negotiators.

    So sitting there, the US negotiators know what will pass and what will not.

    For the EU, the layers of nations and politics mean that the ground is continually shifting under their feet.
  • RogerRoger Posts: 19,970
    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    That would explain her performance at PMQs yesterday. She had wind
  • OnlyLivingBoyOnlyLivingBoy Posts: 15,896
    Taz said:

    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    As others have said, this is a screaming lay, same with Badenoch.

    I just cannot see a Reform PM, I think they are too marmite as a party.
    More Bovril than Marmite.
  • mwadamsmwadams Posts: 3,668
    edited December 12
    Taz said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Okay, lunch is for wimps is pure Del Boy, but what is wrong with the rest of it. It is a personal preference.

    It is not the norm but so what.

    Plenty of things to critique her for politically but her choice of food so what.

    People I work with have food brought in. They order a Greggs via Uber Eats. No one bats an eyelid.
    Choice of food, sure; she should eat what she likes, when she likes!

    I am intrigued to know how you manage to eat a steak at your desk while working. Unless what you are actually doing is eating while having a work-related conversation with someone. That is how a lot of people spend their lunch "break" and not something I'd be bringing out for a journo as something distinctively "me" yet relatable.

    And then there's the "sandwiches are what you have for breakfast" comment. That is also a bit peculiar. Yes, I guess "a bacon sandwich" is an occasional breakfast item, but judging by the lorryloads of sandwiches sold for lunch every day in Britain, "sandwiches are what you have for breakfast" does not exactly resonate with the wider public.

    ETA: I take this back. Sandwiches are one of the most common breakfast foods in Nigeria. It is the lack of this context that makes it sound odd, and that's on me.

    It's nothing really significant, and would completely fly by if it was some celeb puff piece. But it leans into the developing narrative that Badenoch is just a bit odd, and speaks without properly engaging her brain.
  • Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Its possible some of that comes from her Nigerian upbringing.

    But the 'lunch is for wimps, you should be eating while you work' stuff is not what any employee wants to hear.
  • TazTaz Posts: 14,956
    Carnyx said:

    Taz said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Okay, lunch is for wimps is pure Del Boy, but what is wrong with the rest of it. It is a personal preference.

    It is not the norm but so what.

    Plenty of things to critique her for politically but her choice of food so what.

    People I work with have food brought in. They order a Greggs via Uber Eats. No one bats an eyelid.
    That's because the spectators can't tell if the sausage rolls are vegan or not.
    I am not a great fan of Greggs stuff, I prefer my local Farm shop (Holmside) for Sausage rolls. However the Vegan sausage roll Greggs do is really quite decent.

    They should try one, they might like it.
  • noneoftheabovenoneoftheabove Posts: 23,140
    Carnyx said:

    Taz said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Okay, lunch is for wimps is pure Del Boy, but what is wrong with the rest of it. It is a personal preference.

    It is not the norm but so what.

    Plenty of things to critique her for politically but her choice of food so what.

    People I work with have food brought in. They order a Greggs via Uber Eats. No one bats an eyelid.
    That's because the spectators can't tell if the sausage rolls are vegan or not.
    Check the price, if the sausages are deer, then probably vegan.
  • LostPasswordLostPassword Posts: 18,891
    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Irony being that the sandwich was invented precisely as a way to eat steak at the same time as doing something else (most likely playing cards rather than working, but still).
  • Casino_RoyaleCasino_Royale Posts: 60,668
    .

    FPT - very disturbing conversation last night. Murder is never an answer to justice, under any circumstances.

    If we go down that road we will get a free for all and there will be someone who finds some reason to gun for you too. Literally.

    "I would give the devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake."

    Agreed. But it is very telling that there is now a groundswell not only in the US but also here of "the fuckers deserve everything that's coming to them".

    It will likely first manifest itself in finding it impossible to get a jury that will unanimously convict. The Gorgeous Assassin will then operate in another world of alternative laws.

    Until somebody guns him down.
    He didn't deserve to be killed.

    He did deserve to be prosecuted.
  • FishingFishing Posts: 5,125
    Roger said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    It's Starmer and Labour's 'get out of jail free' card if things start going badly.

    Not that It feels likely at the moment. After a few teething troubles his government seems to be shaping up to be one the most competent and creative we've had for a while
    So that's why its approval rating has collapsed and they are third in the polls, despite the last government being pretty rubbish?

    I was confused for a while, thinking it meant they were utterly shite and out of their depths.

    Thanks for clarifying.
  • TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 42,141
    edited December 12
    TimS said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Oh wow, this is properly nuts. Tories, what have you done?

    Mind you, her terrible speech the other day makes a lot more sense now. I'm picturing her writing it with one hand over lunch while trying to eat some steak and a slice of very dry bread with the other.
    Sandwiches are what you have for breakfast. I’ve been doing breakfasts wrong all these years.
    Do well fired rolls and sausage/black pudding/egg/bacon/tattie scone and any combo thereof count as sandwiches? Cos they make a might fine breakfast, though not too frequently for longevity's sake.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 123,864
    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Sandwiches were of course invented by the Earl of Sandwich in the 18th century precisely because it meant he could eat roast beef between slices of bread and still gamble
  • mwadamsmwadams Posts: 3,668

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Its possible some of that comes from her Nigerian upbringing.

    But the 'lunch is for wimps, you should be eating while you work' stuff is not what any employee wants to hear.
    I've edited my previous comment - you are quite right; sandwiches are a very common breakfast choice in Nigeria.
  • Casino_RoyaleCasino_Royale Posts: 60,668
    .
    Dura_Ace said:

    FPT - very disturbing conversation last night. Murder is never an answer to justice, under any circumstances.

    If we go down that road we will get a free for all and there will be someone who finds some reason to gun for you too. Literally.

    "I would give the devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake."

    Woke and/or virtue signalling.
    A fundamental principle of law stretching back, ooh, about 800 years at least.

    People can vent and emote, I get that, but the problem with social media is that it can, and does, cross over into real action.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 123,864
    Roger said:

    IanB2 said:

    Roger said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    It's Starmer and Labour's 'get out of jail free' card if things start going badly.

    Not that It feels likely at the moment. After a few teething troubles his government seems to be shaping up to be one the most competent and creative we've had for a while
    And interesting question now is whether, if Labour does do something significantly positive on Europe, any counter-reaction might drive Tory-leaning voters toward Reform, and thus actually weaken their main opponents?
    The two right wing parties seem completely screwed at the moment. I just cant see a way to a happy ending. The only way the Tories can prosper is for Reform to implode. It feels like the centre/centre left has all the cards. Not something which would be obvious to Telegraph or PB readers
    At the moment Reform is taking more Labour 2024 voters than Tory 2024 voters actually
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 43,325

    TimS said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Oh wow, this is properly nuts. Tories, what have you done?

    Mind you, her terrible speech the other day makes a lot more sense now. I'm picturing her writing it with one hand over lunch while trying to eat some steak and a slice of very dry bread with the other.
    Sandwiches are what you have for breakfast. I’ve been doing breakfasts wrong all these years.
    Do weel fired rolls and sausage/black pudding/egg/bacon/tattie scone and any combo thereof count as sandwiches? Cos they make a might fine breakfast, though not too frequently for longevity's sake.
    Also an excellent lunch. Had Stornoway with egg and a little mushroom and tomato on Monday.
  • Taz said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Okay, lunch is for wimps is pure Del Boy, but what is wrong with the rest of it. It is a personal preference.

    It is not the norm but so what.

    Plenty of things to critique her for politically but her choice of food so what.

    People I work with have food brought in. They order a Greggs via Uber Eats. No one bats an eyelid.
    Del Boy? Del Boy? Lunch is for wimps was coined by Gordon Gekko in Wall Street. We had a company outing to see our product placement in action.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WsOzrnBTHA
  • Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Its possible some of that comes from her Nigerian upbringing.

    But the 'lunch is for wimps, you should be eating while you work' stuff is not what any employee wants to hear.
    Confirmed: sandwiches for breakfast are a thing in Nigeria:

    Here are 10 common Nigerian breakfast dishes.

    1) Bread Sandwich with a hot beverage

    This is the most common breakfast dish in Nigeria. The ever-present Bread and ‘tea’. In most homes, this is the go-to breakfast dish. It is loved by both adults and children, it is quick and easy to throw together. Bread and ‘tea’ can be accompanied by boiled egg, omelette, sausage, bacon, canned sardines, corned beef, mackerel in tomato sauce (geisha) etc. A lot of kids call any hot beverage ‘tea’.


    https://www.thepretendchef.com/nigerian-breakfast-dishes/

    1. Bread Sandwich with a Hot Beverage

    Nigerian breakfast Bread Sandwich and Tea

    This is one of the simplest and most satisfying Nigerian breakfasts. All you need is some bread, some fillings, and a hot drink of your choice. You can toast the bread or eat it as it is. You can fill it with eggs, sardines, corned beef, bacon, or anything else you like. You can also add some butter, jam, cheese, or peanut butter for extra flavor. For the hot drink, you can choose from tea, coffee, or cocoa. This breakfast is perfect for busy mornings when you need something quick and easy.


    https://mysasun.com/blogs/bloglearning-bytes/top-13-traditional-nigerian-breakfast-dishes-you-need-to-try?srsltid=AfmBOorY2hN3TjV0tpKyEdz0BxwveByDYfRz2lK14zsrVCGXETn5p0HU
  • TazTaz Posts: 14,956
    mwadams said:

    Taz said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Okay, lunch is for wimps is pure Del Boy, but what is wrong with the rest of it. It is a personal preference.

    It is not the norm but so what.

    Plenty of things to critique her for politically but her choice of food so what.

    People I work with have food brought in. They order a Greggs via Uber Eats. No one bats an eyelid.
    Choice of food, sure; she should eat what she likes, when she likes!

    I am intrigued to know how you manage to eat a steak at your desk while working. Unless what you are actually doing is eating while having a work-related conversation with someone. That is how a lot of people spend their lunch "break" and not something I'd be bringing out for a journo as something distinctively "me" yet relatable.

    And then there's the "sandwiches are what you have for breakfast" comment. That is also a bit peculiar. Yes, I guess "a bacon sandwich" is an occasional breakfast item, but judging by the lorryloads of sandwiches sold for lunch every day in Britain, "sandwiches are what you have for breakfast" does not exactly resonate with the wider public.

    ETA: I take this back. Sandwiches are one of the most common breakfast foods in Nigeria. It is the lack of this context that makes it sound odd, and that's on me.

    It's nothing really significant, and would completely fly by if it was some celeb puff piece. But it leans into the developing narrative that Badenoch is just a bit odd, and speaks without properly engaging her brain.
    That is always the problem with these sort of things. They either come off as a bit odd, as you say, or insincere if they try to be relatable and normal.
  • RogerRoger Posts: 19,970
    Fishing said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    SKS knows any loosening of Brexit conditions would have been jumped upon in any GE Campaign by MSM.

    He also knows that there is REAL APPETITE now to begin to reduild and reopen bridges and that he is ALREADY DOING.

    If the great cooperation over Migration and Immigration starts to bear the sort of low hanging fruits we've seen in the past few months with well publicised arrests in Germany, The Balkans etc, it opens up more avenues economically and travel wise.

    The is potentially plenty of low hanging fruit for him to gradually pick over the next 3-4 years.

    (1) HOLIDAY TRAVEL- anything that improves transit to and through EU airports in holiday season where SKS has actually moved the dial in favour of the UK Voter = MASSIVE VOTE WINNER

    (2) EASIER EMPLOYMENT / Study On fixed term Visas EU Nationals - a BIG vote winner with the key Younger Voters

    (3) Easing of RED TAPE and PAPERWORK - may even placate the majority of Framers who are not Farage supporting bone heads

    -----

    Drip feed this slowly sr=teadily, gain PUBLIC APPROVAL and then in 2028 or 2029 go the the Country with a stark WARNING...

    I'm afraid you simply don't understand what the EU does or how it negotiates. Nothing with the EU is low-hanging fruit. I have spent too many years of my career trying to make headway in Brussels.

    Anything we want, they will oppose, simply because they regard it as cherry-picking. Doesn't matter if it's perfectly reasonable or marginally beneficial to them or even if they proposed it in the first place. And they will demand huge and unacceptable concessions simply because they think they have the upper hand.

    The only way to get results from the EU, as Margaret Thatcher showed with the rebate, is to be even more determined, single-minded and inflexible than they are. Then maybe you'll get a fraction of what you want.

    Even the Americans, who are by no means a pushover, are more rational and easier to deal with than the EU. They may be excruciatingly legalistic and utterly insular and ignorant of foreign countries, but at least they don't constantly shift their ground and aren't quite as insecure about their rationale for existence.
    The same has been said of our own civil service by every government I can remember.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 123,864
    Carnyx said:

    FF43 said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    Clear consensus Brexit was a mistake. We're at last moving onto the And This Means... stage.
    It does also depend what the Usonians do. Tariffs on all sides could be the lasting achievement of Mr B. Johnson et al.
    Tariffs on Chinese, EU and Mexican imports is Trump's first priority, the UK is lower down the list, not least as he is still dangling a trade deal
  • NigelbNigelb Posts: 72,166
    edited December 12
    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    At least she doesn't eat salad with a comb.

    Politicians bring weird about food is a rich category.
  • CarnyxCarnyx Posts: 43,325
    HYUFD said:

    Roger said:

    IanB2 said:

    Roger said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    It's Starmer and Labour's 'get out of jail free' card if things start going badly.

    Not that It feels likely at the moment. After a few teething troubles his government seems to be shaping up to be one the most competent and creative we've had for a while
    And interesting question now is whether, if Labour does do something significantly positive on Europe, any counter-reaction might drive Tory-leaning voters toward Reform, and thus actually weaken their main opponents?
    The two right wing parties seem completely screwed at the moment. I just cant see a way to a happy ending. The only way the Tories can prosper is for Reform to implode. It feels like the centre/centre left has all the cards. Not something which would be obvious to Telegraph or PB readers
    At the moment Reform is taking more Labour 2024 voters than Tory 2024 voters actually
    Doesn't prove anything. There are more of the former, who also tended often to be Tory pre-2024 voters ...
  • Kemi Badenoch decided to attack Starmer on immigration.

    What is she doing?
  • FF43FF43 Posts: 17,236
    HYUFD said:

    FF43 said:

    Ratters said:

    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    He'll be a bit old by the one after, by UK political standards... He's already 60.
    Also if Farage is the prime minister after next he probably has to get rid of the Conservative Party first or merge Reform into the Conservatives and become leader of both.
    Not necessarily, he could be PM if Reform largest party with Tory confidence and supply
    Conservatives and Reform are polling mostly the same set of voters. It's not easy to get a result where both parties significantly increase their seats. Farage would do better if the Conservatives go backwards from their disastrous 2024 result. I presume the Conservatives don't want to do that?
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 123,864
    Carnyx said:

    HYUFD said:

    Roger said:

    IanB2 said:

    Roger said:

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    It's Starmer and Labour's 'get out of jail free' card if things start going badly.

    Not that It feels likely at the moment. After a few teething troubles his government seems to be shaping up to be one the most competent and creative we've had for a while
    And interesting question now is whether, if Labour does do something significantly positive on Europe, any counter-reaction might drive Tory-leaning voters toward Reform, and thus actually weaken their main opponents?
    The two right wing parties seem completely screwed at the moment. I just cant see a way to a happy ending. The only way the Tories can prosper is for Reform to implode. It feels like the centre/centre left has all the cards. Not something which would be obvious to Telegraph or PB readers
    At the moment Reform is taking more Labour 2024 voters than Tory 2024 voters actually
    Doesn't prove anything. There are more of the former, who also tended often to be Tory pre-2024 voters ...
    Only in 2019, hence most polls now have Labour losing its majority as Labour are down 7% on the GE with Reform the main beneficiaries and the Tories also slightly up
  • Dura_AceDura_Ace Posts: 13,760

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Its possible some of that comes from her Nigerian upbringing.
    My dad was posted to Nigeria when I was a teenager. I don't recall getting served sandwiches for breakfast on my visits. My recollection is of caustically spicy eggs and fried plantain. A dish that caused simultaneous constipation and diarrhea according to my dad.
  • williamglennwilliamglenn Posts: 52,256

    Kemi Badenoch decided to attack Starmer on immigration.

    What is she doing?

    The significant thing is that Starmer isn’t afraid to lean into nativism to attack ethnic minority politicians.
  • rottenboroughrottenborough Posts: 63,102

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Its possible some of that comes from her Nigerian upbringing.

    But the 'lunch is for wimps, you should be eating while you work' stuff is not what any employee wants to hear.
    Confirmed: sandwiches for breakfast are a thing in Nigeria:

    Here are 10 common Nigerian breakfast dishes.

    1) Bread Sandwich with a hot beverage

    This is the most common breakfast dish in Nigeria. The ever-present Bread and ‘tea’. In most homes, this is the go-to breakfast dish. It is loved by both adults and children, it is quick and easy to throw together. Bread and ‘tea’ can be accompanied by boiled egg, omelette, sausage, bacon, canned sardines, corned beef, mackerel in tomato sauce (geisha) etc. A lot of kids call any hot beverage ‘tea’.


    https://www.thepretendchef.com/nigerian-breakfast-dishes/

    1. Bread Sandwich with a Hot Beverage

    Nigerian breakfast Bread Sandwich and Tea

    This is one of the simplest and most satisfying Nigerian breakfasts. All you need is some bread, some fillings, and a hot drink of your choice. You can toast the bread or eat it as it is. You can fill it with eggs, sardines, corned beef, bacon, or anything else you like. You can also add some butter, jam, cheese, or peanut butter for extra flavor. For the hot drink, you can choose from tea, coffee, or cocoa. This breakfast is perfect for busy mornings when you need something quick and easy.


    https://mysasun.com/blogs/bloglearning-bytes/top-13-traditional-nigerian-breakfast-dishes-you-need-to-try?srsltid=AfmBOorY2hN3TjV0tpKyEdz0BxwveByDYfRz2lK14zsrVCGXETn5p0HU
    Sardines and peanut butter. Yah!! Might give that one a go.
  • HYUFDHYUFD Posts: 123,864

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/dec/12/majority-of-brexit-voters-would-accept-free-movement-to-access-single-market-uk-eu

    Poll suggesting majority of Leave voters support return of freedom of movement. Is this really Farage's moment?

    May be Davey's moment, most polls make him Kingmaker at the next GE in a hung parliament not Farage.

    Davey would likely demand Starmer returns to the EEA with free movement while also scrapping the tractor tax and restoring winter fuel allowance for pensioners as the price for his support
  • TazTaz Posts: 14,956
    Dura_Ace said:

    Foxy said:

    Good morning

    Apparently Kemi Badenoch prefers watching Die Hard at Christmas

    It's even more bonkers than that:



    So much to unpack there:

    Lunch is for wimps.

    "I have food brought in"

    Desk steaks?

    Sandwiches are for breakfast?

    How dry does bread have to be?
    Its possible some of that comes from her Nigerian upbringing.
    My dad was posted to Nigeria when I was a teenager. I don't recall getting served sandwiches for breakfast on my visits. My recollection is of caustically spicy eggs and fried plantain. A dish that caused simultaneous constipation and diarrhea according to my dad.
    There's a streetfood vendor local to us, Trinidadian, does the most amazing fried plantain. Neither has it bunged me up or loosened me out. That's a plus.
  • Kemi Badenoch decided to attack Starmer on immigration.

    What is she doing?

    SOP for new leaders. Boris ran against Cameron's austerity and police cuts. Starmer ran against Corbyn who ran against New Labour.
  • mwadamsmwadams Posts: 3,668
    FF43 said:

    HYUFD said:

    FF43 said:

    Ratters said:

    Pulpstar said:

    I'm going to bite on this one. He might end up PM one day but probably not the next one.

    He'll be a bit old by the one after, by UK political standards... He's already 60.
    Also if Farage is the prime minister after next he probably has to get rid of the Conservative Party first or merge Reform into the Conservatives and become leader of both.
    Not necessarily, he could be PM if Reform largest party with Tory confidence and supply
    Conservatives and Reform are polling mostly the same set of voters. It's not easy to get a result where both parties significantly increase their seats. Farage would do better if the Conservatives go backwards from their disastrous 2024 result. I presume the Conservatives don't want to do that?
    Though at the moment a lot of Reform's gains come from drawing in a disproportionate share of the more loosely coupled Labour voters from GE2024. That doesn't do the Tories any good, and will reduce Labour's majority significantly at the next GE - but who doesn't expect that from Labour's ridiculously efficient starting point?
This discussion has been closed.