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politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » Local By-Election Preview: June 19th 2014

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  • RobDRobD Posts: 60,031

    England only win World Cups under LAB Governments FACT.

    England only win world cups in years divisible by 983 FACT.
  • SquareRootSquareRoot Posts: 7,095

    Richard Negus ‏@TrooperSnooks 4m

    Its about time we had a GB football team. We'd get Gareth Bale and really piss off the SNP. Double win.

    GB football team would fare no better for the same reasons...
  • bigjohnowlsbigjohnowls Posts: 22,736

    Tonight YG LAB 347 CON 259 LD 18 Other 26 (UKPR)

    Ed is crap is PM Less than 47 weeks to go

    If you want to grasp at YouGov polls and believe Ed will win, good luck. He is competing with Michael Foot to be the least successful Labour leader of the past 4 decades.
    Every poll this month ICM,MORI,POPULUS,YG show Ed is crap is PM (UKPR) Less than 11 months to go.
  • SocratesSocrates Posts: 10,322

    Socrates said:

    Two mediocre sides, one world class player.

    England have been crap for years. At least Hodgson tried to get them playing. Does anyone really care? Club football is what stirs the passions here these days. We all gave up on the national team a long time ago.

    Of course we care. Some of us are patriots that always want our countrymen to win regardless of the sport. And football is our national sport.

    Everyone wanted England to win. But I doubt many people are that bothered by losing. Most expected what has happened. We're not very good. Blame the clubs, not the FA. It's the clubs that do the vast majority of the coaching and which trawl the world for talent rather than focusing on home grown. And that happens because supporters care more about their clubs. If they put country first they would not accept what the clubs do.

    Yes, but it's the FA that's supposed to regulate the clubs. It's like watching the global financial crisis and blaming the banks, without any focus on the regulatory system that allowed them to get away with it.

    The FA is just a terrible organisation that can't do a good job at any level. Just look at when they employed Adam Crozier. He ran into brick wall after brick wall, and then was forced out because he ruffled too many feathers in the old boy's network.
  • RobDRobD Posts: 60,031

    Richard Negus ‏@TrooperSnooks 4m

    Its about time we had a GB football team. We'd get Gareth Bale and really piss off the SNP. Double win.

    GB football team would fare no better for the same reasons...
    What we need is a commonwealth team. That'd open up a lot more talent for the squad!
  • FlightpathFlightpath Posts: 4,012
    Lots of football navel gazing going on. Ultimately only one team will be going home happy - for all the rest it will emnd in tears.
    In a tournament which by definition cointains teams that are mostly all closely matched then to be confident of a win a team needs to be significantly above that. England are not bad, they are ordinary which means on their day with a bit of luck they could get a result. But that day is less rather than more likely. So far in this tournament they have not had any luck and so have lost rather than drawn.
    To me England's weakness which is a drag on their ordinary status is an exeptionally ordinary central defence and no real bite in midfield.

    Luck cuts both ways. England now badly need luck. There is not much the manager can now do to rebuild his central defence and midfield. If we want to criticise Hodgeson then people have to suggest who is at home who should be in the team. Its not the England manager's job to teach his players the skills needed to play football, they should know that.
  • ToryJimToryJim Posts: 4,189

    ToryJim said:

    I wonder if the English players are being crowded out of the premiership. It's great that we have the most followed league in the works but to the casual observer it seems as if there are tons of foreign players in out league but our players don't really seem to go abroad too often.

    The problem your countrymen face is that while the English Premiership is widely regarded as the best domestic league in the world, the reason it is so is because most of its stars like Suarez are not English but foreigners, drawn by the obscene wage levels paid.

    The other night I heard some of the commentators starting the usual crap about English players being expected to play too many league matches etc always forgetting that most of the players in the leading teams at the World Cup e.g. RVP happen to play in precisely the same league matches.
    That's why I think the PL is a problem in that so many foreign players make the league interesting but English talent doesn't get the big stage experience enough possibly. I dunno I don't really follow things closely but it does seem bordering on insane if we are sacrificing the chance to develop home grown talent in our own league for wagon loads of filthy lucre
  • bigjohnowlsbigjohnowls Posts: 22,736
    What do the Football Association know FA.

    Just like PB Tories really!!!
  • TykejohnnoTykejohnno Posts: 7,362

    Lots of football navel gazing going on. Ultimately only one team will be going home happy - for all the rest it will emnd in tears.
    In a tournament which by definition cointains teams that are mostly all closely matched then to be confident of a win a team needs to be significantly above that. England are not bad, they are ordinary which means on their day with a bit of luck they could get a result. But that day is less rather than more likely. So far in this tournament they have not had any luck and so have lost rather than drawn.
    To me England's weakness which is a drag on their ordinary status is an exeptionally ordinary central defence and no real bite in midfield.

    Luck cuts both ways. England now badly need luck. There is not much the manager can now do to rebuild his central defence and midfield. If we want to criticise Hodgeson then people have to suggest who is at home who should be in the team. Its not the England manager's job to teach his players the skills needed to play football, they should know that.

    I know who should have been in the England team for this world cup and it's the England managers job to pick the right players and right tactics in this world cup.

  • SquareRootSquareRoot Posts: 7,095
    edited June 2014
    RobD said:

    Richard Negus ‏@TrooperSnooks 4m

    Its about time we had a GB football team. We'd get Gareth Bale and really piss off the SNP. Double win.

    GB football team would fare no better for the same reasons...
    What we need is a commonwealth team. That'd open up a lot more talent for the squad!
    Err, I think there would be too many arguments about team selection !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    In 2003 I KNEW England were 50/50 to win the Rugby World Cup.

    For this Football World Cup they were prob 16/1 , if not why not ? Hodgson is a great Manager, but you can't make bricks with overpaid lacking in talent primadonnas.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,406

    RobD said:

    Richard Negus ‏@TrooperSnooks 4m

    Its about time we had a GB football team. We'd get Gareth Bale and really piss off the SNP. Double win.

    GB football team would fare no better for the same reasons...
    What we need is a commonwealth team. That'd open up a lot more talent for the squad!
    Err, I think there would be too many arguments about team selection.

    In 2003 I KNEW England were 50/50 to win the Rugby World Cup.

    For this World Cup they were prob 16/1 , if not why not ? Hodgson is a great Manager, but you cant make bricks with overpaid primadonnas.
    We were never 16-1...
  • bigjohnowlsbigjohnowls Posts: 22,736
    BNP view too many black players in England team to blame
    UKIP Tory view too many foreigners in PL to blame
    LD/LAB view we were beaten by better signs overpaid players npt good enough
    BJO view England only win world cups under LAB Govts FACT

    Who is right you decide
  • bigjohnowlsbigjohnowls Posts: 22,736

    BNP view too many black players in England team to blame
    UKIP Tory view too many foreigners in PL to blame
    LD/LAB view we were beaten by better side overpaid players not good enough
    BJO view England only win world cups under LAB Govts FACT

    Who is right you decide

  • MonikerDiCanioMonikerDiCanio Posts: 5,792

    BNP view too many black players in England team to blame
    UKIP Tory view too many foreigners in PL to blame
    LD/LAB view we were beaten by better signs overpaid players npt good enough
    BJO view England only win world cups under LAB Govts FACT

    Who is right you decide

    You made all of that up out of your revolting race baiting mind. Piss off, Woolasite.
  • ToryJimToryJim Posts: 4,189

    Lots of football navel gazing going on. Ultimately only one team will be going home happy - for all the rest it will emnd in tears.
    In a tournament which by definition cointains teams that are mostly all closely matched then to be confident of a win a team needs to be significantly above that. England are not bad, they are ordinary which means on their day with a bit of luck they could get a result. But that day is less rather than more likely. So far in this tournament they have not had any luck and so have lost rather than drawn.
    To me England's weakness which is a drag on their ordinary status is an exeptionally ordinary central defence and no real bite in midfield.

    Luck cuts both ways. England now badly need luck. There is not much the manager can now do to rebuild his central defence and midfield. If we want to criticise Hodgeson then people have to suggest who is at home who should be in the team. Its not the England manager's job to teach his players the skills needed to play football, they should know that.

    I don't believe in luck, I go with the maxim that the harder you work the luckier you get. Was Suarez lucky or was he paying more attention? Were we unlucky or just failing to concentrate? Obviously you aren't going to be 100% perfect all the time but to me it seems that the teams that have been better so far are those where the players have been more aware of what's going on. The England team seemed too often to get caught not being aware of what was going to happen next, or not planning what should happen next. The best teams so far have seemed to have players that know where the ball needs to go and make sure they are there, England and Spain just didn't seem to have that. Of course I speak as a person who doesn't really follow football but that's what I've spotted.
  • The best thing that can now happen is for England to lose to Costa Rica. Then there is no excuse for the FA not to be reformed.
  • ToryJimToryJim Posts: 4,189

    The best thing that can now happen is for England to lose to Costa Rica. Then there is no excuse for the FA not to be reformed.

    Y'think. They're already going with the young squad, lots of positives for the future stuff.
  • Those generous folk at Wm. Hill are offering all of 4/1 against England qualifying from their group.
    Thanks fellas, but no thanks!
  • bigjohnowlsbigjohnowls Posts: 22,736

    BNP view too many black players in England team to blame
    UKIP Tory view too many foreigners in PL to blame
    LD/LAB view we were beaten by better signs overpaid players npt good enough
    BJO view England only win world cups under LAB Govts FACT

    Who is right you decide

    You made all of that up out of your revolting race baiting mind. Piss off, Woolasite.
    OK I might have made some of it up a bit except the FACT bit about only winning WC under LAB Gov'ts which is 100% true. Chances much better in 2018 under Ed is Crap.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,406
    Hold on a minute, I'm looking back at the replays... Suarez looks a yard offside to me for the second goal.
  • RobDRobD Posts: 60,031
    Pulpstar said:

    Hold on a minute, I'm looking back at the replays... Suarez looks a yard offside to me for the second goal.

    He looked quite far ahead, but was he when the ball was kicked?
  • TheScreamingEaglesTheScreamingEagles Posts: 119,959
    Pulpstar said:

    Hold on a minute, I'm looking back at the replays... Suarez looks a yard offside to me for the second goal.

    But the pass came from Gerrard, so he can't be offside?
  • RobDRobD Posts: 60,031

    Pulpstar said:

    Hold on a minute, I'm looking back at the replays... Suarez looks a yard offside to me for the second goal.

    But the pass came from Gerrard, so he can't be offside?
    Damn, my attempt to look knowledgable at the rules of football have been exposed. :(
  • Pulpstar said:

    Hold on a minute, I'm looking back at the replays... Suarez looks a yard offside to me for the second goal.

    Funny you should mention that - I was convinced that one of the "saves" Hart made early in the second half had crossed the goal line.

    The computer said otherwise however, so it must have been my imagination.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,406

    Pulpstar said:

    Hold on a minute, I'm looking back at the replays... Suarez looks a yard offside to me for the second goal.

    But the pass came from Gerrard, so he can't be offside?
    "Helped on by Cavani" the commentator is saying... - Did Gerrard head it straight to Suarez, bit hard to tell from the angle...
  • ToryJimToryJim Posts: 4,189
    In other news Fay Wray's stunt double from the 1933 King Kong film has died. She was 103

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2662856/Pauline-Wagner-Fay-Wrays-stunt-double-King-Kong-dies-age-103.html
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,406
    Ah hmm Yes it has come off Gerrard's head. That was as good as an own goal in the circumstances.
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 52,121
    England = LibDems?

    :(
  • RobDRobD Posts: 60,031

    England = LibDems?

    :(

    It's very bad. England have fewer points than LD have MEPs.
  • fitalassfitalass Posts: 4,320
    Twitter
    #BritainElects ‏@britainelects 46s
    Southam (Stratford-on-Avon) result: CON - 42.9% (+2.0) LAB - 34.6% (+11.7) UKIP - 22.5% (-7.0)
  • AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    "Fury as minister tells thousands of passport delay victims to 'staycation' - but she is in Brazil for a free trip to watch England play Uruguay"

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2662909/Tourism-minister-fire-says-Britons-caught-passport-chaos-consider-staycation-enjoys-trip-World-Cup-watch-England.html
  • Sunil_PrasannanSunil_Prasannan Posts: 52,121
    RobD said:

    England only win World Cups under LAB Governments FACT.

    England only win world cups in years divisible by 983 FACT.
    Since our glorious win in 1966, England have only reached the semis at World Cup and Euro championships under the Tories ('90 and '96).
  • ToryJimToryJim Posts: 4,189
    fitalass said:

    Twitter
    #BritainElects ‏@britainelects 46s
    Southam (Stratford-on-Avon) result: CON - 42.9% (+2.0) LAB - 34.6% (+11.7) UKIP - 22.5% (-7.0)

    That looks a decent result.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,406
    fitalass said:

    Twitter
    #BritainElects ‏@britainelects 46s
    Southam (Stratford-on-Avon) result: CON - 42.9% (+2.0) LAB - 34.6% (+11.7) UKIP - 22.5% (-7.0)

    Broken, sleazy UKIP on the slide.
  • ToryJimToryJim Posts: 4,189

    RobD said:

    England only win World Cups under LAB Governments FACT.

    England only win world cups in years divisible by 983 FACT.
    Since our glorious win in 1966, England have only reached the semis at World Cup and Euro championships under the Tories ('90 and '96).
    Let's hope the Tories win next year as we might have a chance in 2 years then ;)
  • AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    How much are the England players being paid per match in the World Cup?
  • MarkSeniorMarkSenior Posts: 4,699
    No figures but Conservatives have won Soham South
  • foxinsoxukfoxinsoxuk Posts: 23,548
    Interesting anti kipper swing. Have the kippers been misbehaving on the council there?
    Pulpstar said:

    fitalass said:

    Twitter
    #BritainElects ‏@britainelects 46s
    Southam (Stratford-on-Avon) result: CON - 42.9% (+2.0) LAB - 34.6% (+11.7) UKIP - 22.5% (-7.0)

    Broken, sleazy UKIP on the slide.
  • RobDRobD Posts: 60,031
    AndyJS said:

    How much are the England players being paid per match in the World Cup?

    I thought players weren't paid to play in the World Cup. Could be wrong.
  • MarkSeniorMarkSenior Posts: 4,699
    Here they are

    Con 363 UKIP 201 Lib Dem 191 Ind Woollard 148 Ind Hobbs 80 Labour 71
  • QuincelQuincel Posts: 4,042
    If anyone is feeling unpatriotic, Paddy Power's 1/12 that England don't qualify from Group D is actually good value, based on the rough probabilities of all three required results.
  • AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    edited June 2014
    A good job interview test would be to give the applicant a Betfair account with £100 and tell them to at least double it over the course of the World Cup.
  • JonathanDJonathanD Posts: 2,400
    edited June 2014
    AndyJS said:

    "Fury as minister tells thousands of passport delay victims to 'staycation' - but she is in Brazil for a free trip to watch England play Uruguay"

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2662909/Tourism-minister-fire-says-Britons-caught-passport-chaos-consider-staycation-enjoys-trip-World-Cup-watch-England.html


    Or people could just follow the Passport Agency guidance and not book a holiday until they have renewed their passport. People desperately looking for a reason to be offended I think.
  • SocratesSocrates Posts: 10,322
    AndyJS said:

    "Fury as minister tells thousands of passport delay victims to 'staycation' - but she is in Brazil for a free trip to watch England play Uruguay"

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2662909/Tourism-minister-fire-says-Britons-caught-passport-chaos-consider-staycation-enjoys-trip-World-Cup-watch-England.html

    How unbelievably crass. I don't think the elite know how much normal people struggle for most of the year, and how valuable their one yearly trip abroad is to them.
  • AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    Greece player is sent off for second yellow.
  • fitalassfitalass Posts: 4,320
    edited June 2014
    I know a lot of England fans are gutted at how things have gone so far, but I bet that young England team are even more gutted at this second loss. If I have one bug bear about the English media and some fans, its the way that they turn on their England team or individual players every time when it goes badly in a World Cup. Still think the way that Beckam was treated years ago was a disgrace, no one can say this professional footballer didn't always give it his all on the pitch for club team and country.

    England were the only British team to make it to this World Cup, and that is a friggin achievement in itself when you consider the way the game has gone truly global. Its so much tougher to even qualify nowadays! The fat lady hasn't finished singing yet, even if the chances of hitting the high notes in the right order seems almost impossible tonight. But this is the time to get behind the team, and definitely not the time to start writing the World Cup exit obituaries!

    Absolutely delighted that Wayne Rooney's lads got to see their Dad score a goal in a World Cup.

    RobD said:

    England only win World Cups under LAB Governments FACT.

    England only win world cups in years divisible by 983 FACT.
    Since our glorious win in 1966, England have only reached the semis at World Cup and Euro championships under the Tories ('90 and '96).
  • MarkSeniorMarkSenior Posts: 4,699

    Interesting anti kipper swing. Have the kippers been misbehaving on the council there?

    Pulpstar said:

    fitalass said:

    Twitter
    #BritainElects ‏@britainelects 46s
    Southam (Stratford-on-Avon) result: CON - 42.9% (+2.0) LAB - 34.6% (+11.7) UKIP - 22.5% (-7.0)

    Broken, sleazy UKIP on the slide.
    UKIP have noone on the local council
  • SocratesSocrates Posts: 10,322
    JonathanD said:

    AndyJS said:

    "Fury as minister tells thousands of passport delay victims to 'staycation' - but she is in Brazil for a free trip to watch England play Uruguay"

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2662909/Tourism-minister-fire-says-Britons-caught-passport-chaos-consider-staycation-enjoys-trip-World-Cup-watch-England.html


    Or people could just follow the Passport Agency guidance and not book a holiday until they have renewed their passport. People desperately looking for a reason to be offended I think.
    It's not unreasonable to send your passport in months in advance of your planned summer holiday and expect to get it back in time. If you waited to book until you got it back you often have to pay through the nose for tickets.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,406
    We've been narrowly beaten by a superior side (Italy), and a side who were about the same level as us but with one top world class player (Suarez).

    It's no disgrace.
  • ToryJimToryJim Posts: 4,189
    Interesting from the Vatican, of course they wouldn't admit if there were concerns but 77 isn't young etc

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/the-pope/10912189/Vatican-says-no-cause-for-alarm-as-Pope-Francis-to-miss-procession.html
  • JonathanDJonathanD Posts: 2,400
    Socrates said:

    JonathanD said:

    AndyJS said:

    "Fury as minister tells thousands of passport delay victims to 'staycation' - but she is in Brazil for a free trip to watch England play Uruguay"

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2662909/Tourism-minister-fire-says-Britons-caught-passport-chaos-consider-staycation-enjoys-trip-World-Cup-watch-England.html


    Or people could just follow the Passport Agency guidance and not book a holiday until they have renewed their passport. People desperately looking for a reason to be offended I think.
    It's not unreasonable to send your passport in months in advance of your planned summer holiday and expect to get it back in time. If you waited to book until you got it back you often have to pay through the nose for tickets.

    I'd be interested in seeing how many cases there are where someone sent their passport in 'months in advance' but still didn't get it back in time. That Mail article had one case where the person sent it in 4 weeks before their holiday and still got it back before they had to travel - yet still decided to moan about it in a newspaper

    If people can't take responsibility for themselves then I don't see why the rest of us taxpayers should pay to fund over-staffing of the passport agency.
  • fitalassfitalass Posts: 4,320
    Well said.
    Pulpstar said:

    We've been narrowly beaten by a superior side (Italy), and a side who were about the same level as us but with one top world class player (Suarez).

    It's no disgrace.

  • RobDRobD Posts: 60,031
    JonathanD said:

    Socrates said:

    JonathanD said:

    AndyJS said:

    "Fury as minister tells thousands of passport delay victims to 'staycation' - but she is in Brazil for a free trip to watch England play Uruguay"

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2662909/Tourism-minister-fire-says-Britons-caught-passport-chaos-consider-staycation-enjoys-trip-World-Cup-watch-England.html


    Or people could just follow the Passport Agency guidance and not book a holiday until they have renewed their passport. People desperately looking for a reason to be offended I think.
    It's not unreasonable to send your passport in months in advance of your planned summer holiday and expect to get it back in time. If you waited to book until you got it back you often have to pay through the nose for tickets.

    I'd be interested in seeing how many cases there are where someone sent their passport in 'months in advance' but still didn't get it back in time. That Mail article had one case where the person sent it in 4 weeks before their holiday and still got it back before they had to travel - yet still decided to moan about it in a newspaper

    If people can't take responsibility for themselves then I don't see why the rest of us taxpayers should pay to fund over-staffing of the passport agency.
    Quite. The passport has an expiry date in it, and you know TEN YEARS in advance when it is going to expire. Not hard to plan things on those timescales.
  • BobaFettBobaFett Posts: 2,789
    I've been looking at this and I don't even think Italy are quite through even if they win tomorrow. If Uruguay beat them and Costa beat us they could go out on goal difference. So Italy's last match is not a meaningless game for them. We can go through if we win and Italy win both their games.
  • foxinsoxukfoxinsoxuk Posts: 23,548
    Uruguay made the semis in 2010. We are a long way behind them in class.
    Pulpstar said:

    We've been narrowly beaten by a superior side (Italy), and a side who were about the same level as us but with one top world class player (Suarez).

    It's no disgrace.

  • RobDRobD Posts: 60,031
    edited June 2014
    BobaFett said:

    I've been looking at this and I don't even think Italy are quite through even if they win tomorrow. If Uruguay beat them and Costa beat us they could go out on goal difference. So Italy's last match is not a meaningless game for them. We can go through if we win and Italy win both their games.

    There is also a goal difference element for us, I believe.
  • kle4kle4 Posts: 96,578
    edited June 2014
    Socrates said:

    AndyJS said:

    "Fury as minister tells thousands of passport delay victims to 'staycation' - but she is in Brazil for a free trip to watch England play Uruguay"

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2662909/Tourism-minister-fire-says-Britons-caught-passport-chaos-consider-staycation-enjoys-trip-World-Cup-watch-England.html

    How unbelievably crass. I don't think the elite know how much normal people struggle for most of the year, and how valuable their one yearly trip abroad is to them.
    Do normal people value a once yearly trip abroad so much? I've not been abroad in 9 years, and I always thought going abroad was an every couple of years sort of thing for most people, not annual. I think the point is valid, though I would have thought normal people value just getting enough time off for an extended break, and if they can go abroad during it all the better.
  • AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    The Killing's Sofie Gråbøl on This Week.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,406
    Italy - Uruguay will be interesting. Probably a draw though.

    So for England to win we need

    Italy to win against Costa Rica. 1.55/1.56
    England to win against Costa Rica. 1.66/1.67
    Italy to win against Uruguay. 2.82/2.94

    Goal Difference Minimums for above results.

    Uruguay GD -2
    England GD -1
    Costa Rica 0

    7.25

    Italy -1 is 2.84, and although there are other ways to do it is the only proxy we can currently scrutinize on betfair.

    That yields 13.29 so yes the 1-12 is value...
  • foxinsoxukfoxinsoxuk Posts: 23,548
    So just the kiper eurovote fading then.

    Interesting anti kipper swing. Have the kippers been misbehaving on the council there?

    Pulpstar said:

    fitalass said:

    Twitter
    #BritainElects ‏@britainelects 46s
    Southam (Stratford-on-Avon) result: CON - 42.9% (+2.0) LAB - 34.6% (+11.7) UKIP - 22.5% (-7.0)

    Broken, sleazy UKIP on the slide.
    UKIP have noone on the local council
  • AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    "• A time for trust and forbearance among the Greens. Party leader Natalie Bennett has raised hackles by backing a new school in north London. It is planned as a free school. The Green party doesn't approve of free schools. So Bennett returned from holiday this week to discover much disgruntled activity on the party's social media and a requirement that she explain herself. Accepting the Diary as the highest authority, she explained her thinking to us. It may be planned as a free school now, said Bennett, but it won't happen before the next election – and with Michael Gove gone, it probably won't emerge as a free school at all. Well, she convinced us. But that's the easy bit."

    http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/jun/19/hugh-muir-diary-boris-bikes-paxman
  • NinoinozNinoinoz Posts: 1,312

    RobD said:

    England only win World Cups under LAB Governments FACT.

    England only win world cups in years divisible by 983 FACT.
    Since our glorious win in 1966, England have only reached the semis at World Cup and Euro championships under the Tories ('90 and '96).
    Forgetting, of course, that England reached the Euro semis in 1968 - under a Labour Government.
  • justin124justin124 Posts: 11,527

    Tonight YG LAB 347 CON 259 LD 18 Other 26 (UKPR)

    Ed is crap is PM Less than 47 weeks to go

    If you want to grasp at YouGov polls and believe Ed will win, good luck. He is competing with Michael Foot to be the least successful Labour leader of the past 4 decades.
    You are entitled to your view , but should perhaps be reminded that Labour under Miliband are better placed in the polls than the Tories were under Thatcher in June 1978.
  • Bond_James_BondBond_James_Bond Posts: 1,939
    edited June 2014
    So part of me was thinking I would have been right to take that 33:1 on England losing all three matches. My reasoning (when I heard about it) was that England can't beat any of those teams, least of all Italy and Uruguay; therefore this is in effect an odds offer of 33:1 on Costa Rica to beat England, which is far too high.

    Following the dictum that England always disappoint, what result will follow against CR? My guess would be that they'll now draw or win, probably the latter, and still won't qualify. That would be the typical England result, in that they either lose, or if they win, they do so only when it doesn't matter.
  • edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,708
    RobD said:

    JonathanD said:

    Socrates said:

    JonathanD said:

    AndyJS said:

    "Fury as minister tells thousands of passport delay victims to 'staycation' - but she is in Brazil for a free trip to watch England play Uruguay"

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2662909/Tourism-minister-fire-says-Britons-caught-passport-chaos-consider-staycation-enjoys-trip-World-Cup-watch-England.html


    Or people could just follow the Passport Agency guidance and not book a holiday until they have renewed their passport. People desperately looking for a reason to be offended I think.
    It's not unreasonable to send your passport in months in advance of your planned summer holiday and expect to get it back in time. If you waited to book until you got it back you often have to pay through the nose for tickets.

    I'd be interested in seeing how many cases there are where someone sent their passport in 'months in advance' but still didn't get it back in time. That Mail article had one case where the person sent it in 4 weeks before their holiday and still got it back before they had to travel - yet still decided to moan about it in a newspaper

    If people can't take responsibility for themselves then I don't see why the rest of us taxpayers should pay to fund over-staffing of the passport agency.
    Quite. The passport has an expiry date in it, and you know TEN YEARS in advance when it is going to expire. Not hard to plan things on those timescales.
    What I wonder about this is why do you have to send in an existing passport to get a new one? The old one has a number so they can track it and an expiration date on it so it won't be valid once the new one starts. In this day and age, why can't you always have a passport?
  • NeilNeil Posts: 7,983
    AndyJS said:

    "• A time for trust and forbearance among the Greens. Party leader Natalie Bennett has raised hackles by backing a new school in north London. It is planned as a free school. The Green party doesn't approve of free schools. So Bennett returned from holiday this week to discover much disgruntled activity on the party's social media and a requirement that she explain herself. Accepting the Diary as the highest authority, she explained her thinking to us. It may be planned as a free school now, said Bennett, but it won't happen before the next election – and with Michael Gove gone, it probably won't emerge as a free school at all. Well, she convinced us. But that's the easy bit."

    http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/jun/19/hugh-muir-diary-boris-bikes-paxman

    Can I just say that the emails I've seen on this subject have been hilarious. But not as hilarious as England's performance tonight.
  • edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,708
    Also, everyone needs a passport so it would be more efficient to take the fee out of general taxation instead of charging individually. The process should be: Friend the Passport Office on Facebook so they can have a guy in Manila pick out a nice photo that meets their requirements, every 10 years they automatically send you a new passport.
  • edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,708
    PS If you think this is bad, I know a couple of people in Japan who have renounced their US citizenship. It requires multiple interviews, and the US embassy in Tokyo said the next time they could schedule the first one would be in a month and a half. Like they have a queue.
  • AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    Japan have a full 60 minutes to score against a 10 men Greece. And fail to do so.
  • dugarbandierdugarbandier Posts: 2,596

    Also, everyone needs a passport so it would be more efficient to take the fee out of general taxation instead of charging individually. The process should be: Friend the Passport Office on Facebook so they can have a guy in Manila pick out a nice photo that meets their requirements, every 10 years they automatically send you a new passport.

    you could just give everyone an identity card....
  • edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,708
    edited June 2014

    Also, everyone needs a passport so it would be more efficient to take the fee out of general taxation instead of charging individually. The process should be: Friend the Passport Office on Facebook so they can have a guy in Manila pick out a nice photo that meets their requirements, every 10 years they automatically send you a new passport.

    you could just give everyone an identity card....
    A passport is an identity card, just a rather inconveniently shaped one that won't fix in your wallet. You'd have the same issues with a regular identity card if you self-inflicted the same moronic process for renewing it.
  • PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 78,406
    AndyJS said:
    Lets see who wins the toss. If Lanka win it, and bat the England price will be good for an initial lay.

    The fire and forget move is to lay the draw. But it could well come in from 3.95
  • dugarbandierdugarbandier Posts: 2,596

    Also, everyone needs a passport so it would be more efficient to take the fee out of general taxation instead of charging individually. The process should be: Friend the Passport Office on Facebook so they can have a guy in Manila pick out a nice photo that meets their requirements, every 10 years they automatically send you a new passport.

    you could just give everyone an identity card....
    A passport is an identity card, just a rather inconveniently shaped one that won't fix in your wallet. You'd have the same issues with a regular identity card if you self-inflicted the same moronic process for renewing it.

    oof, suffered a momentary panic about whereabouts of said passport and visa I have to renew next month... now located!

    Yeah, actually I'm not so against id cards I suppose, having carried one around with me the last 8 years...

    moronic system indeed. It would be probably more efficient to have every passport personally approved by Keith Vaz. It would keep him out of trouble too.

    (and cheaper. not sure how the rates compare internationally, but the UK system looks a like a rip-off as well as being rubbish)
  • dr_spyndr_spyn Posts: 11,300
    Link from Guido to article in Mirror about an adviser to Ed jumping ship to join the LDs.

    http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/top-ed-miliband-adviser-defects-3726156#.U6Nbq3xhdag.twitter
  • How will England's imminent exit from the World Cup and the resulting "feel bad" factor affect the polls?

    I'm expecting the Tories to slip a couple of points over the coming days and probably for it to take them a number of weeks to recover their hitherto share of the vote, depending on other British sporting achievements or absence thereof over the summer months.
  • weejonnieweejonnie Posts: 3,820
    dr_spyn said:

    Link from Guido to article in Mirror about an adviser to Ed jumping ship to join the LDs.

    http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/top-ed-miliband-adviser-defects-3726156#.U6Nbq3xhdag.twitter

    It usual for rats to leave the sinking ship, not jump onto one that only has its mast above the water.
  • weejonnieweejonnie Posts: 3,820
    justin124 said:

    Tonight YG LAB 347 CON 259 LD 18 Other 26 (UKPR)

    Ed is crap is PM Less than 47 weeks to go

    If you want to grasp at YouGov polls and believe Ed will win, good luck. He is competing with Michael Foot to be the least successful Labour leader of the past 4 decades.
    You are entitled to your view , but should perhaps be reminded that Labour under Miliband are better placed in the polls than the Tories were under Thatcher in June 1978.
    "Now is the winter of our discontent, made glorious summer by this sun of York ". Very unlikely to be one this year with a recovering economy and record levels of employment. Even a major terrorist attack in the UK (probably evens) would be spun as a result of Labour multiculturalism.
This discussion has been closed.