Mr. Pauly, obviously that was an extremely subtle jest on my part
You know what it's like. Any post commenting on typos is likelier to contain one. And I did check my coursework/exam essays more closely than a post on the interweb
Mr. Abroad, I could, but as I'm dipping in here between writing bits and pieces I'm not going to spend the time doing so. You'll just have to imaginate ungood English.
1 - How many of the "entryists" come from the SNP? I don't think that has been mentioned. They were willing to tell all those economic lies to their own supporters, so I can't see principles the SNP hasn't got stopping them. Will any data be published by Labour after the fact?
2 - What happens to "supporters" after the Corbyngasm. Are they just names on an email list with new politico-callers, or is it gouing to be turned into a continuing affiliation?
3 - How long do these new members stick around? I can recall Green palpitations about a loss of new members after 3 years when authorisation for auto-payments had to be renewed.
The only way to stick around is to become a full Labour member.
SO No is still narrowly ahead in indyref2 polls and outside London the other area Corbyn polls well is Scotland
Corbyn may win Labour a few more votes in Scotland, but that won't stop the Tories getting 40% in England in 2020 and, therefore, an overall majority. The SNP will use the 2021 Scottish election to get a direct mandate for IndyRef2, they'll receive it, Osborne will have to agree and Scotland will be independent by 2025.
I doubt another Islington muppet will make much inroads in Scotland, it has not stopped yet. Every result we see now has SNP rising, the Tory leader has scuttled off to Edinburgh and stolen someone's place to giver her a chance of a losers consolation seat just to stay in charge. As you say it is only a matter of time now, a one way street.
Morning all! Is this just a big and weird dream, or is Jeremy Corbyn actually going to be leader of the Labour Party in four weeks' time..?
==================== Too true ...if you had fallen asleep Rip Van Winkle style and then awakened after 2 months it would simply be unbelievable ...these events are best viewed through the lens of a quasi religion than politics ; something like the'' independence mania'' that gripped much of Scotland exactly one year ago ..the voters in England who have abandoned critical thinking skills and are walking lockstep like a crowd of zombies behind the saintly Corbyn are the same folks who followed Sturgeon in Scotland last August ..just political munchkins on the yellow brick road to Independence/ utopia .and let's face it , Sturgeon and Corbyn are the single most over rated politicians in Britain today ; but now it's all too late , they have tuned out any rational criticism and are now flying on autopilot
We Brits cannot be too smug about the failures of the Greeks when in Corbyn /Sturgeon we have are own version of Syriza ...simply gormless beyond belief !
Turnip of the day award for this half witted drivel.
1 - How many of the "entryists" come from the SNP? I don't think that has been mentioned. They were willing to tell all those economic lies to their own supporters, so I can't see principles the SNP hasn't got stopping them. Will any data be published by Labour after the fact?
2 - What happens to "supporters" after the Corbyngasm. Are they just names on an email list with new politico-callers, or is it gouing to be turned into a continuing affiliation?
3 - How long do these new members stick around? I can recall Green palpitations about a loss of new members after 3 years when authorisation for auto-payments had to be renewed.
Another paranoid half wit. Why would the SNP care what donkey leads labour in London.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
Interesting - TSE promised us a full on review of Ashcroft's polling but I don't think we've seen it yet. You were always stressing the importance of naming candidates, do you think that in the end incumbency didn't help the Lib Dems at all, or that it did help them but just didn't make enough of a difference?
'Almost' as in 'around'. I thought about 'almost a hundred and two ' years ago but it lacked bite!
Not content with mauling maths, you're now having a go at redefining English as she is spoken. Not a bad mornings work...!
Not quite related, but have you ever read the legendary English as She Is Spoke, which begins with the following immortal words:
'A CHOICE of familiar dialogues, clean of gallicisms, and despoiled phrases, it was missing yet to studious Portuguese and brazilian Youth; and also to persons of others nations, that wish to know the Portuguese language. We sought all we may do, to correct that want, composing and divising the present little work in two parts. The first includes a greatest vocabulary proper names by alphabetical order; and the second forty three Dialogues adapted to the usual precisions of the life. For that reason we did put, with a scrupulous exactness, a great variety own expressions to english and Portuguese idioms; without to attach us selves (as make some others) almost at a literal translation; translation what only will be for to accustom the Portuguese pupils, or-foreign, to speak very bad any of the mentioned idioms.'
I wish I could think of something to add to @Financier's post, but it's so depressing I can't.
1 - How many of the "entryists" come from the SNP? I don't think that has been mentioned. They were willing to tell all those economic lies to their own supporters, so I can't see principles the SNP hasn't got stopping them. Will any data be published by Labour after the fact?
2 - What happens to "supporters" after the Corbyngasm. Are they just names on an email list with new politico-callers, or is it gouing to be turned into a continuing affiliation?
3 - How long do these new members stick around? I can recall Green palpitations about a loss of new members after 3 years when authorisation for auto-payments had to be renewed.
Another paranoid half wit. Why would the SNP care what donkey leads labour in London.
So they can vote for the Labour leader most likely/willing to break up the union. Everyone knows Corbyn wants to give NI away so it seems quite a reasonable position. You're being short-sighted, the SNP have several plausible motives.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
It didn't surprise me one bit ; I predicted a Tory majority on an almost daily routine from December onwards because I knew intuitively that folks in England would never take the risk of a weak Miliband being held to ransom by Lady Macbeth , regardless of what the polls said
Cameron was always going to win the most seats but it was the witless Sturgeon proudly boasting on live TV that she was going to ''lock the Tories out '' that spooked the centrist voters into the arms of the Tories ...the voters in England were not going to allow the odious SNP to pick their pockets for 5 long years, that's for sure !
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
Staying at wife's grave for too long costs widower £160 Frank Blades hit with charge on top of £6,000 fee after spending 20 minutes at cemetery in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, after wife's burial
Mr. G, remember Hubris and Nemesis. The Romans under Trajan probably couldn't imagine the following century would almost see the empire totally collapse.
Nothing lasts forever. Even the longest, the most glittering reign must come to an end someday.
MD , It does not need to last forever , only till after the next referendum, so not long at all.
1 - How many of the "entryists" come from the SNP? I don't think that has been mentioned. They were willing to tell all those economic lies to their own supporters, so I can't see principles the SNP hasn't got stopping them. Will any data be published by Labour after the fact?
2 - What happens to "supporters" after the Corbyngasm. Are they just names on an email list with new politico-callers, or is it gouing to be turned into a continuing affiliation?
3 - How long do these new members stick around? I can recall Green palpitations about a loss of new members after 3 years when authorisation for auto-payments had to be renewed.
Another paranoid half wit. Why would the SNP care what donkey leads labour in London.
You may regard the risk of any London labour leader leading some kind of fightback as slight, and you may be right, but it is hardly inconceivable that some people would like to actively drive the stake further into the labour corpse, just in case, and take steps to undermine them yet further. I do not say that is happening, but in general the idea the SNP, or some of its supporters, would want to keep their feet on their opponents necks, is not entirely unreasonable.
Good to see Cooper get off the fence. Should have done it ages ago.
Absolutely. At least a month ago. As I was commenting last night her delivery is woeful but in this field any sane party intent on actually having an impact on public policy to protect those in need would vote for her in a heartbeat.
She has probably left it too late though. And as for Burnham, words fail me. I will stick with utterly pathetic.
Cooper polls far worse than Burnham, sometimes worse than Corbyn too
Len McCluskey has had a malign and pernicious effect on British public life. His destruction of the Labour party as an electable force in support of his frankly bizarre political views will be his crowning achievement.
Our democracy will not be the stronger for this idiocy but it will recover, eventually. The lessons of the 80s will have to be learned all over again.
Let us hope Len enjoys Labour's impending annihalations, beginning next year.
It just seems incredible to me when you see the battles that Labour went through under Kinnock against entryism, extremism and Militant that that muppet of a leader left the door so wide open to all and sundry to vote again and regain a position in the party. Ed, who of course was also some Union's choice, probably didn't even think carefully about what he was doing. After all, he rarely did.
MPs had a veto, but didn't use it.
Gross irresponsibility. Their job was to identify potential Prime Ministers who the PLP could support, who could build a credible team and who had a reasonable prospect of winning.
Labour is not supposed to be a debating club in need of a wider discussion, it is a political party and should be focussed on results so its beliefs can actually be implemented.
Kendall was good on Today on R4; but not likely to get far. Pity, she is far better than Burnham and Cooper, and while Corbyn will be entertaining, it is a bit soon to throw in the towel for 2020. Corbyn may be the best choice for an LD revival though, even if no MPs defect, many voters will.
I feel that Kendall is very good on a one-to-one basis or even with a small group. However, at present she seems to lack the stature that the job needs and could have done with better advisers. However, Labour was never going to listen to what it needed to hear - if John Cruddas had brought out his review a month or so earlier, then that was something on which she could have built.
Liz is good in small groups and meetings, but never really fleshed out her platform aside from having a balanced budget as well as an emphasis on early years development. On other policies she had little to say. Still gets my first pref though.
I have only experience her at a smallish meeting and quite often on a on-to-one basis in relaxed surroundings. Somehow I feel she has not grown over the last couple of years.
Bit too much personal information there F, what about her political attributes.
SO No is still narrowly ahead in indyref2 polls and outside London the other area Corbyn polls well is Scotland
Corbyn may win Labour a few more votes in Scotland, but that won't stop the Tories getting 40% in England in 2020 and, therefore, an overall majority. The SNP will use the 2021 Scottish election to get a direct mandate for IndyRef2, they'll receive it, Osborne will have to agree and Scotland will be independent by 2025.
I doubt another Islington muppet will make much inroads in Scotland, it has not stopped yet. Every result we see now has SNP rising, the Tory leader has scuttled off to Edinburgh and stolen someone's place to giver her a chance of a losers consolation seat just to stay in charge. As you say it is only a matter of time now, a one way street.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
It didn't surprise me one bit ; I predicted a Tory majority on an almost daily routine from December onwards because I knew intuitively that folks in England would never take the risk of a weak Miliband being held to ransom by Lady Macbeth , regardless of what the polls said
Cameron was always going to win the most seats but it was the witless Sturgeon proudly boasting on live TV that she was going to ''lock the Tories out '' that spooked the centrist voters into the arms of the Tories ...the voters in England were not going to allow the odious SNP to pick their pockets for 5 long years, that's for sure !
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
It didn't surprise me one bit ; I predicted a Tory majority on an almost daily routine from December onwards because I knew intuitively that folks in England would never take the risk of a weak Miliband being held to ransom by Lady Macbeth , regardless of what the polls said
Cameron was always going to win the most seats but it was the witless Sturgeon proudly boasting on live TV that she was going to ''lock the Tories out '' that spooked the centrist voters into the arms of the Tories ...the voters in England were not going to allow the odious SNP to pick their pockets for 5 long years, that's for sure !
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
You think Salmond wanted a Tory majority?
I think he didn't mind either way. The SNP came out strong, the result of the others just affected the tactics to adopt post GE.
Tories smirking at the respective performances of SCon & SLab rather suggest an old hooker crowing about their competitor on the opposite street corner getting the clap.
Jeremy Corbyn has set out his plan to contain and marginalise MPs who oppose his drive to make Labour more left-wing.
In the most detailed explanation to date of how he intends to run the party, the hard-left candidate said he was preparing to mobilise his new army of supporters by giving them many more votes on policy and party direction. According to a pamphlet for the Fabian Society to be published today, they would be pitted against the party’s representatives in Westminster, many of whom are hostile to his objectives.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
It didn't surprise me one bit ; I predicted a Tory majority on an almost daily routine from December onwards because I knew intuitively that folks in England would never take the risk of a weak Miliband being held to ransom by Lady Macbeth , regardless of what the polls said
Cameron was always going to win the most seats but it was the witless Sturgeon proudly boasting on live TV that she was going to ''lock the Tories out '' that spooked the centrist voters into the arms of the Tories ...the voters in England were not going to allow the odious SNP to pick their pockets for 5 long years, that's for sure !
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
You think Salmond wanted a Tory majority?
I do and I think Sturgeon also wanted it as well. It was the best possible option to ensure the next referendum and the correct result. Labour in power would have given them a great chance to comeback in Scotland, whereas illegitimate Tory rule by one useless dodo MP and a few enobled lackies , slashing and burning welfare and doing Scotland down is the perfect recipe for SNP and a disaster for any likely Labour fightback. They are now seen as the Tories little helpers.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
It didn't surprise me one bit ; I predicted a Tory majority on an almost daily routine from December onwards because I knew intuitively that folks in England would never take the risk of a weak Miliband being held to ransom by Lady Macbeth , regardless of what the polls said
Cameron was always going to win the most seats but it was the witless Sturgeon proudly boasting on live TV that she was going to ''lock the Tories out '' that spooked the centrist voters into the arms of the Tories ...the voters in England were not going to allow the odious SNP to pick their pockets for 5 long years, that's for sure !
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
You think Salmond wanted a Tory majority?
I think he didn't mind either way. The SNP came out strong, the result of the others just affected the tactics to adopt post GE.
Never has such a thin majority looked so secure. The SNP neutered on the opposition benches, the LDs a rump of 8, the Kippers consisting of a single backbench rebel and Labour in a frenzy of onanism.
The country deserves a decent alternative, but it looks a decade away.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
It didn't surprise me one bit ; I predicted a Tory majority on an almost daily routine from December onwards because I knew intuitively that folks in England would never take the risk of a weak Miliband being held to ransom by Lady Macbeth , regardless of what the polls said
Cameron was always going to win the most seats but it was the witless Sturgeon proudly boasting on live TV that she was going to ''lock the Tories out '' that spooked the centrist voters into the arms of the Tories ...the voters in England were not going to allow the odious SNP to pick their pockets for 5 long years, that's for sure !
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
Of course it did. Salmond wanted to be one of 56 impotent SNP MP's, as the Tories got on with governing without a care about what he says. Yep, that's exactly what he wanted.
Staying at wife's grave for too long costs widower £160 Frank Blades hit with charge on top of £6,000 fee after spending 20 minutes at cemetery in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, after wife's burial
A bit too quick to condemn there, Plato! Reading the article, it appears that the charge for overtime arose from the impuntuality of the funeral company. Better to direct your scorn, on this occasion, onto the private sector.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
It didn't surprise me one bit ; I predicted a Tory majority on an almost daily routine from December onwards because I knew intuitively that folks in England would never take the risk of a weak Miliband being held to ransom by Lady Macbeth , regardless of what the polls said
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
You think Salmond wanted a Tory majority?
I think he didn't mind either way. The SNP came out strong, the result of the others just affected the tactics to adopt post GE.
Never has such a thin majority looked so secure. The SNP neutered on the opposition benches, the LDs a rump of 8, the Kippers consisting of a single backbench rebel and Labour in a frenzy of onanism.
The country deserves a decent alternative, but it looks a decade away.
This is probably the low point for anti Tories. It cannot last, not with that majority. Surely.
We may be about to see something even more remarkable than Comrade Corbyn at PMQs - the sight of the Tory benches hooting and waving order papers when the LotO stands up to speak, whilst his own side observes stony silence.
Jeremy Corbyn has set out his plan to contain and marginalise MPs who oppose his drive to make Labour more left-wing.
In the most detailed explanation to date of how he intends to run the party, the hard-left candidate said he was preparing to mobilise his new army of supporters by giving them many more votes on policy and party direction. According to a pamphlet for the Fabian Society to be published today, they would be pitted against the party’s representatives in Westminster, many of whom are hostile to his objectives.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
It didn't surprise me one bit ; I predicted a Tory majority on an almost daily routine from December onwards because I knew intuitively that folks in England would never take the risk of a weak Miliband being held to ransom by Lady Macbeth , regardless of what the polls said
Cameron was always going to win the most seats but it was the witless Sturgeon proudly boasting on live TV that she was going to ''lock the Tories out '' that spooked the centrist voters into the arms of the Tories ...the voters in England were not going to allow the odious SNP to pick their pockets for 5 long years, that's for sure !
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
Of course it did. Salmond wanted to be one of 56 impotent SNP MP's, as the Tories got on with governing without a care about what he says. Yep, that's exactly what he wanted.
"cuckoo"....
Salmond wants independence. Like Sturgeon he understands the quickest way to get it is having Tory governments in Westminster.
The Conservatives won a shock majority, Labour were crushed, the Lib Dems swept away to the verge of oblivion, and UKIP went backwards. Whilst the Conservatives having more Scottish seats than Labour would've amused, I don't think the blues have much room for complaint regarding how the year's gone so far.
Jeremy Corbyn has set out his plan to contain and marginalise MPs who oppose his drive to make Labour more left-wing.
In the most detailed explanation to date of how he intends to run the party, the hard-left candidate said he was preparing to mobilise his new army of supporters by giving them many more votes on policy and party direction. According to a pamphlet for the Fabian Society to be published today, they would be pitted against the party’s representatives in Westminster, many of whom are hostile to his objectives.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
Interesting - TSE promised us a full on review of Ashcroft's polling but I don't think we've seen it yet. You were always stressing the importance of naming candidates, do you think that in the end incumbency didn't help the Lib Dems at all, or that it did help them but just didn't make enough of a difference?
I confess to not reading PB as assiduously as one should whilst away .... a shocking admission I know !! .... so I can't comment on whether TSE has undertaken an Ashcroft review.
As for the fortunes of the LibDems and naming candidates it's clear to me a better forecast is likely but the inability of the LibDems to break 8% will clearly counter most incumbency bonuses.
On a personal level I was saddened to see some highly effective LibDems MP's lose - Lynn Featherstone, Andrew George, Danny Alexander and especially Steve Webb.
I would have preferred a continuance of the Coalition - it was a rather decent stab at coalition politics but nobody said the voters had to be grateful to the yellow peril for their part in bringing the nation back from the brink.
We may be about to see something even more remarkable than Comrade Corbyn at PMQs - the sight of the Tory benches hooting and waving order papers when the LotO stands up to speak, whilst his own side observes stony silence.
That presupposes MPs currently sitting as Labour on the opposition benches are in fact "his own side"
If he actually moves to prevent Labour MPs running the party I expect he will find there are many fewer of them left
Mr. W, the Lib Dems have only themselves to blame. The tuition fees three-way split was ridiculous, and you can't spend years attacking evil Conservatives then trying to claim credit for policies enacted by a government with a Conservative major partner.
Edited extra bit: that said, the Coalition was generally effective, and far better than the nightmare scenario of Brown remaining as PM.
Salmond wants independence. Like Sturgeon he understands the quickest way to get it is having Tory governments in Westminster.
Except that is probably not true. With the UK economy booming under a Tory chancellor, and the oil price collapsing, the Scots are not stupid enough to vote for penury, even if Nicola is.
Jeremy Corbyn has set out his plan to contain and marginalise MPs who oppose his drive to make Labour more left-wing.
In the most detailed explanation to date of how he intends to run the party, the hard-left candidate said he was preparing to mobilise his new army of supporters by giving them many more votes on policy and party direction. According to a pamphlet for the Fabian Society to be published today, they would be pitted against the party’s representatives in Westminster, many of whom are hostile to his objectives.
Jeremy Corbyn has set out his plan to contain and marginalise MPs who oppose his drive to make Labour more left-wing.
In the most detailed explanation to date of how he intends to run the party, the hard-left candidate said he was preparing to mobilise his new army of supporters by giving them many more votes on policy and party direction. According to a pamphlet for the Fabian Society to be published today, they would be pitted against the party’s representatives in Westminster, many of whom are hostile to his objectives.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
Interesting - TSE promised us a full on review of Ashcroft's polling but I don't think we've seen it yet. You were always stressing the importance of naming candidates, do you think that in the end incumbency didn't help the Lib Dems at all, or that it did help them but just didn't make enough of a difference?
On a personal level I was saddened to see some highly effective LibDems MP's lose - Lynn Featherstone, Andrew George, Danny Alexander and especially Steve Webb. I would have preferred a continuance of the Coalition - it was a rather decent stab at coalition politics but nobody said the voters had to be grateful to the yellow peril for their part in bringing the nation back from the brink.
JackW you old wet. I am very glad to see the back of a socialist such as Andrew George.
Jeremy Corbyn has set out his plan to contain and marginalise MPs who oppose his drive to make Labour more left-wing.
In the most detailed explanation to date of how he intends to run the party, the hard-left candidate said he was preparing to mobilise his new army of supporters by giving them many more votes on policy and party direction. According to a pamphlet for the Fabian Society to be published today, they would be pitted against the party’s representatives in Westminster, many of whom are hostile to his objectives.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
Interesting - TSE promised us a full on review of Ashcroft's polling but I don't think we've seen it yet. You were always stressing the importance of naming candidates, do you think that in the end incumbency didn't help the Lib Dems at all, or that it did help them but just didn't make enough of a difference?
I confess to not reading PB as assiduously as one should whilst away .... a shocking admission I know !! .... so I can't comment on whether TSE has undertaken an Ashcroft review.
As for the fortunes of the LibDems and naming candidates it's clear to me a better forecast is likely but the inability of the LibDems to break 8% will clearly counter most incumbency bonuses.
On a personal level I was saddened to see some highly effective LibDems MP's lose - Lynn Featherstone, Andrew George, Danny Alexander and especially Steve Webb.
I would have preferred a continuance of the Coalition - it was a rather decent stab at coalition politics but nobody said the voters had to be grateful to the yellow peril for their part in bringing the nation back from the brink.
I did wonder if you were expecting the Lib Dems to do better overall rather than for some them to get more MPs for the same share of the vote.
Personally I am happy that the Tories got a majority rather than a continuation of the coalition - but that's simply because I think the Lib Dems would have blocked the EU referendum. I tend to agree that most of them were inoffensive and probably did deserve more credit, but stunts like the yellow budget box didn't do much their credibility.
Jeremy Corbyn has set out his plan to contain and marginalise MPs who oppose his drive to make Labour more left-wing.
In the most detailed explanation to date of how he intends to run the party, the hard-left candidate said he was preparing to mobilise his new army of supporters by giving them many more votes on policy and party direction. According to a pamphlet for the Fabian Society to be published today, they would be pitted against the party’s representatives in Westminster, many of whom are hostile to his objectives.
Moderate Labour MPs fear they will be “purged” from the party by “aggressive factional nutters” around Jeremy Corbyn if he is successful in his bid to win the party’s leadership. Senior figures in the parliamentary party told The Independent that there is growing concern that Corbyn supporters will use “trigger ballots” in Labour seats across the country to eject MPs considered to be too right-wing.
The same way IndyRef2 impatient SNP MSPs are being deselected. No dissent will be tolerated.
Will purging mean that they will be sent down the mines - we do still have salt mines - or replace the immigrants working on the fruit and veg fields in Lincolnshire?
Mr. kle4, greed is a sin. The Conservatives won a shock majority, Labour were crushed, the Lib Dems swept away to the verge of oblivion, and UKIP went backwards. Whilst the Conservatives having more Scottish seats than Labour would've amused, I don't think the blues have much room for complaint regarding how the year's gone so far.
All this, Mr Dancer, when the Conservatives could not even muster 25% of the electorate to support them! You must believe that there is a God in Heaven, and that he is a Tory!
(...) and you can't spend years attacking evil Conservatives then trying to claim credit for policies enacted by a government with a Conservative major partner. Edited extra bit: that said, the Coalition was generally effective, and far better than the nightmare scenario of Brown remaining as PM.
The Lib Dems´ problem was that they spent far too long being nice to the Conservatives within the Coalition Government, and not making it clear to the electorate which policies came originally from which party. That said, thank you for your "that said" addendum - the Coalition Government would have been even more effective if Cameron could have kept his own backbencers under control.
Apropos Theresa Jowell's witterings a couple of days ago about the "are you beach body ready?" advert and her attempt in passing to reduce the nett fitness and health of the nation. Which party had the following in a recent manifesto
Help protect children and young people from developing negative body images by regulating airbrushing in adverts.
and how does one regulate airbrushing, its almost as incoherent as Cameron's internet policies.
Mr. Clipp, you mean when the Conservatives won a greater share of the vote than any party since 2001.
The Lib Dems tried to have the authority of government and the luxury of opposition. They got neither. You can't differentiate from a government you're part of then expect to claim credit for its work.
Look this Labour party takeover all very normal and capitalist.
An enterprise had a period of popularity after the war, bumbled along for a few decades on the back of it, got revamped by a new CEO for a brief renaissance but his modus operandi caught up with him and then under a series of very average management teams has drifted towards irrelevance.
Now another enterprise (the hard left) which has capital but not the distribution networks is looking to aggressively take over and use what's left of the brand to sell their downmarket tat.
Won't end well - see Woolworths - but one or two people will do well out of the interim.
OT: On the subject of the oil price collapsing, this report assesses the impact on UK Trade and doesn't even consider a scenario below $50 oil. http://www.pwc.co.uk/en_uk/uk/assets/pdf/ukeo-oil-prices-march-2015.pdf Clearly the supply glut is worse than many could have ever anticipated (even as recent as march this year) and could have potentially severe geopolitical consequences. Especially if it is a sustained low price.
Mr. W, the Lib Dems have only themselves to blame. The tuition fees three-way split was ridiculous, and you can't spend years attacking evil Conservatives then trying to claim credit for policies enacted by a government with a Conservative major partner.
Edited extra bit: that said, the Coalition was generally effective, and far better than the nightmare scenario of Brown remaining as PM.
Being an absolute arse over tuition fess never hurt the Labour party and I think to a large degree it was a useful peg for many soft LibDems who appeared horrified that the LibDems ventured into national government of any kind.
I disagree about the stoutness of the LibDems within the Coalition. Many commentators didn't expect it to last five months let alone five years and for two diverse parties to largely rub along for a full term was quite an achievement. Even St Vince of the Cable and the Very Reverend Simon Hughes stayed on board.
Won't end well - see Woolworths - but one or two people will do well out of the interim.
Any everytime a member of the board suggested a revamp, or using some of the better bits of the program that caused the renaissance, the shareholders all started to ask if they really were directors of Argos.
Mr. Indigo, if fit and healthy bodies are unacceptable, is she proposing we only have the unhealthily under/over-weight photographed in adverts, or that the human form becomes forbidden in ads?
It still amuses me that absolutely no-one gives a shit about Captain Sixpack in the Beach Body Ready ad, but Blonde Bikini Girl is apparently outrageous.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
Interesting - TSE promised us a full on review of Ashcroft's polling but I don't think we've seen it yet. You were always stressing the importance of naming candidates, do you think that in the end incumbency didn't help the Lib Dems at all, or that it did help them but just didn't make enough of a difference?
On a personal level I was saddened to see some highly effective LibDems MP's lose - Lynn Featherstone, Andrew George, Danny Alexander and especially Steve Webb. I would have preferred a continuance of the Coalition - it was a rather decent stab at coalition politics but nobody said the voters had to be grateful to the yellow peril for their part in bringing the nation back from the brink.
JackW you old wet. I am very glad to see the back of a socialist such as Andrew George.
I fear you might consider Genghis Khan somewhat damp and liable to dangerous liberal tendencies.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
odious SNP to pick their pockets for 5 long years, that's for sure !
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
Of course it did. Salmond wanted to be one of 56 impotent SNP MP's, as the Tories got on with governing without a care about what he says. Yep, that's exactly what he wanted.
"cuckoo"....
Salmond wants independence. Like Sturgeon he understands the quickest way to get it is having Tory governments in Westminster.
Scotland will only get independence on the back of a Westminster-sanctioned second referendum. That is now not happening this side of 2020, and with Corbyn leading Labour, probably not until 2025 or 2030. By which time, the gilt will have long flaked off those statues of Salmond and Sturgeon.
If there had been minority Govt. of whatever hue, the preening and pontificating Salmond would never have been off our TV screens, as he went about securing that second referendum by 2020 as his "price". And yes, the Scots can bitch and moan about how their voice is excluded from the Westminster process. With as much right as Mancs and Scousers and Geordies. That is what happens when you keep voting for the losing side....
Salmond wants independence. Like Sturgeon he understands the quickest way to get it is having Tory governments in Westminster.
Except that is probably not true. With the UK economy booming under a Tory chancellor, and the oil price collapsing, the Scots are not stupid enough to vote for penury, even if Nicola is.
Whit a weaselly, wee 'probably' from a plastic Jock. No even the courage of his own convictions. Unsurprisingly.
Jeremy Corbyn has set out his plan to contain and marginalise MPs who oppose his drive to make Labour more left-wing.
In the most detailed explanation to date of how he intends to run the party, the hard-left candidate said he was preparing to mobilise his new army of supporters by giving them many more votes on policy and party direction. According to a pamphlet for the Fabian Society to be published today, they would be pitted against the party’s representatives in Westminster, many of whom are hostile to his objectives.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
=======================
It didn't surprise me one bit ; I predicted a Tory majority on an almost daily routine from December onwards because I knew intuitively that folks in England would never take the risk of a weak Miliband being held to ransom by Lady Macbeth , regardless of what the polls said
Cameron was always going to win the most seats but it was the witless Sturgeon proudly boasting on live TV that she was going to ''lock the Tories out '' that spooked the centrist voters into the arms of the Tories ...the voters in England were not going to allow the odious SNP to pick their pockets for 5 long years, that's for sure !
Salmond "joking" that he was going to write Labour's Budget was a high point of hubris too.
That said, looking at his talent pool, Jeremy might be looking at outsourcing the Shadow Chancellor role....
MM, Salmond said it very deliberately, it got exactly the result he wanted.
Of course it did. Salmond wanted to be one of 56 impotent SNP MP's, as the Tories got on with governing without a care about what he says. Yep, that's exactly what he wanted.
"cuckoo"....
LOL, typical Tory, you think it would make a difference if the Tory Lites were in power , the numbers are stacked against SNP no matter which Tory party is in power, much better when the English only one is in power though, from the SNP's viewpoint at least. More impact to Scotland being screwed over by them rather than the Lite version.
Mr. Clipp, you mean when the Conservatives won a greater share of the vote than any party since 2001.
The Lib Dems tried to have the authority of government and the luxury of opposition. They got neither. You can't differentiate from a government you're part of then expect to claim credit for its work.
Are you saying that coalitions will never work? Surely a coalition implies give and take and compromise and why shouldn't a member party of that coalition get credit for the policies it gets through?
The Conservatives had a net loss of 0 in Scotland. Labour had a net loss of about 40.
If the SCons are still coming behind a SLab candidate revealed as a sectarian bigot and disowned by his own party, I think they need some stronger antibiotics for their little problem.
Mr. Mark, I do wonder what happens, though, if the SNP win an outright majority in Holyrood with an explicit manifesto commitment to seeking a second referendum, which is then passed by the Scottish Parliament.
JackW - great to have you back. I didn't get to say at the time but congratulations on getting the PM right. I've been following PB for about two years and when I first saw your ARSE I was sceptical, but by 21:50 on May 7th I'd come to the view that somehow Dave was going to win.
I do have one question, though. What surprised you more, how well the SNP did or how badly the Lib Dems did?
Much thanks.
A couple of aspects of the eventual results undercooked my ARSE.
In Scotland I expected a slightly better result for Labour and the LibDems, indeed the yellow peril held up much better in a number of seats but the SNP tsumani swept almost all before them.
What surprised, both me and senior Conservatives much more was how the spectre of the SNP played as extensively as it did in England - it effectively handed the Tories their majority nudging about two dozen Labour and LibDem seats into the blue column.
Sturgeon and Cameron - Unlikely partners but they danced a highly successful fandango.
Interesting - TSE promised us a full on review of Ashcroft's polling but I don't think we've seen it yet. You were always stressing the importance of naming candidates, do you think that in the end incumbency didn't help the Lib Dems at all, or that it did help them but just didn't make enough of a difference?
I confess to not reading PB as assiduously as one should whilst away .... a shocking admission I know !! .... so I can't comment on whether TSE has undertaken an Ashcroft review.
As for the fortunes of the LibDems and naming candidates it's clear to me a better forecast is likely but the inability of the LibDems to break 8% will clearly counter most incumbency bonuses.
I did wonder if you were expecting the Lib Dems to do better overall rather than for some them to get more MPs for the same share of the vote.
Personally I am happy that the Tories got a majority rather than a continuation of the coalition - but that's simply because I think the Lib Dems would have blocked the EU referendum. I tend to agree that most of them were inoffensive and probably did deserve more credit, but stunts like the yellow budget box didn't do much their credibility.
By polling day I was receiving intel from nervous LibDems that they weren't bringing home the bacon as they expecting but the scale of some of the losses surprised even the pessimists.
I think the LibDems reluctance on the EU referendum was a bargaining chip that they would have willingly cashed in.
Salmond wants independence. Like Sturgeon he understands the quickest way to get it is having Tory governments in Westminster.
Except that is probably not true. With the UK economy booming under a Tory chancellor, and the oil price collapsing, the Scots are not stupid enough to vote for penury, even if Nicola is.
About 6 weeks ago, I and my sons went to plant flowers on my parent's grave which we do twice yearly, as my mother had requested before she died. (it does have under-sown bulbs for the Spring). However whilst the village church still has a healthy congregation, the care of its large and historic churchyard has been taken over by the LA.
We were approached by a council workman, who questioned what we were doing. The council had removed the watering cans from near the outside tap and had removed the bin for dead flowers. He said that the churchyard was now public property and we could not change its appearance. So we took his identity and the next week I had a very 'interesting' conversation with the chair of the council on the rights of grave-owners.
Staying at wife's grave for too long costs widower £160 Frank Blades hit with charge on top of £6,000 fee after spending 20 minutes at cemetery in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, after wife's burial
That Burnham is now being called a Tory is just fabulous. The staffers at the Guardian must be wondering WTF is going on. CiFers are about to take over Labour.
Won't end well - see Woolworths - but one or two people will do well out of the interim.
Any everytime a member of the board suggested a revamp, or using some of the better bits of the program that caused the renaissance, the shareholders all started to ask if they really were directors of Argos.
OT: On the subject of the oil price collapsing, this report assesses the impact on UK Trade and doesn't even consider a scenario below $50 oil. http://www.pwc.co.uk/en_uk/uk/assets/pdf/ukeo-oil-prices-march-2015.pdf Clearly the supply glut is worse than many could have ever anticipated (even as recent as march this year) and could have potentially severe geopolitical consequences. Especially if it is a sustained low price.
Enjoy filling up the gas guzzlers while we can then
Mr. Clipp, you mean when the Conservatives won a greater share of the vote than any party since 2001.
The Lib Dems tried to have the authority of government and the luxury of opposition. They got neither. You can't differentiate from a government you're part of then expect to claim credit for its work.
Are you saying that coalitions will never work? Surely a coalition implies give and take and compromise and why shouldn't a member party of that coalition get credit for the policies it gets through?
Yes, but the give and take should be in the country's best interest and not geared to the best interest of any political party. Well that is the theory anyway. It is when there is fighting on policy inside the coalition that trouble starts - often for the party that started the trouble.
Doubt it. The trigger ballots have been around for years and only involve full members. In practice it's extremely difficult to persuade members to remove the familiar local MP as candidate, even when as in some cases there was quite a good reason to consider it.
The policy-making issue is more real - Corbyn clearly intends to democratise the process with more meaningful consultations, which will be popular with members but will add delay. I'm not sure that MPs feel that they are especially involved themselves at present though - sadly, the normal way as an MP for finding out about a new policy that the leader had thought up was reading about it in the Guardian.
The Conservatives won a shock majority, Labour were crushed, the Lib Dems swept away to the verge of oblivion, and UKIP went backwards. Whilst the Conservatives having more Scottish seats than Labour would've amused, I don't think the blues have much room for complaint regarding how the year's gone so far.
Oh, UKIP going bakwards and the LDs being swept away were not things that I personally wanted, so I think seeing the Tories be the second party of Scotland was a reasonable ask from me, if not from Tories (as you say, it's been a great few months). Come on, Scotland, you cannot tell me having that Tory 'surge' would not have been so perfect.
Mr. kle4, greed is a sin. The Conservatives won a shock majority, Labour were crushed, the Lib Dems swept away to the verge of oblivion, and UKIP went backwards. Whilst the Conservatives having more Scottish seats than Labour would've amused, I don't think the blues have much room for complaint regarding how the year's gone so far.
All this, Mr Dancer, when the Conservatives could not even muster 25% of the electorate to support them! You must believe that there is a God in Heaven, and that he is a Tory!.
Indeed, this isn't about winning the next election, it's about reforming the labour party, and burying and spitting on the grave of New Labour.
I said yesterday if Corbyn wins the rules for the next leadership election could be very different. What will stop Corbyn or his supporters undoing much of the reform of the Labour Party to stack the cards in their favour?
Mr. Mark, I do wonder what happens, though, if the SNP win an outright majority in Holyrood with an explicit manifesto commitment to seeking a second referendum, which is then passed by the Scottish Parliament.
The Westminster Govt. - elected across the UK with a majority - can rightly ignore it.
Of course, Scotland could try UDI....It would have no legitimacy, would raise no money on the markets and would be spurned by the EU, with countries such as Spain having no truck with it. Within weeks, they'd be sending begging letters to Greece.
Mr. Mark, I do wonder what happens, though, if the SNP win an outright majority in Holyrood with an explicit manifesto commitment to seeking a second referendum, which is then passed by the Scottish Parliament.
.. it would be *slightly* more persuasive than Derbyshire declaring itself a Nuclear Free Zone, or Utah declaring that the moon belongs to Joseph Smith, but not very much.
Apropos Theresa Jowell's witterings a couple of days ago about the "are you beach body ready?" advert and her attempt in passing to reduce the nett fitness and health of the nation. Which party had the following in a recent manifesto
Help protect children and young people from developing negative body images by regulating airbrushing in adverts.
and how does one regulate airbrushing, its almost as incoherent as Cameron's internet policies.
It'll end with all beautiful and/or slim people wearing burkas or paper bag + fat suits.
I can't believe what a whiny, over-sensitive population we're breeding in these isles. Clearly a sign that I'm growing old .
On topic, with the ashes secured, Corbyn to be anointed loony-in-chief of Labour, all I really want now is another indyref (but a successful one this time) and I can die happy.
OT: On the subject of the oil price collapsing, this report assesses the impact on UK Trade and doesn't even consider a scenario below $50 oil. http://www.pwc.co.uk/en_uk/uk/assets/pdf/ukeo-oil-prices-march-2015.pdf Clearly the supply glut is worse than many could have ever anticipated (even as recent as march this year) and could have potentially severe geopolitical consequences. Especially if it is a sustained low price.
We have most of the oil majors (and minors) as clients, but as the low price of oil affects their profits, also it is putting pressure on our cash flow. They are holding back on many new explorations or field developments, unless political pressure obliges them to progress in fear of losing field rights. Also many new oil deposits are in more remote locations which ups the cost of E & P.
Another consequence of this low price is that it puts pressure on the economic competitiveness of renewable energy.
Mr. Mark, I do wonder what happens, though, if the SNP win an outright majority in Holyrood with an explicit manifesto commitment to seeking a second referendum, which is then passed by the Scottish Parliament.
.. it would be *slightly* more persuasive than Derbyshire declaring itself a Nuclear Free Zone, or Utah declaring that the moon belongs to Joseph Smith, but not very much.
Indeed, this isn't about winning the next election, it's about reforming the labour party, and burying and spitting on the grave of New Labour.
I said yesterday if Corbyn wins the rules for the next leadership election could be very different. What will stop Corbyn or his supporters undoing much of the reform of the Labour Party to stack the cards in their favour?
What will stop any leader doing the same thing? What might have (but did not) stop previous leaders doing so? Leaders of both main parties.
Mr. Mark, I do wonder what happens, though, if the SNP win an outright majority in Holyrood with an explicit manifesto commitment to seeking a second referendum, which is then passed by the Scottish Parliament.
.. it would be *slightly* more persuasive than Derbyshire declaring itself a Nuclear Free Zone, or Utah declaring that the moon belongs to Joseph Smith, but not very much.
Comments
You know what it's like. Any post commenting on typos is likelier to contain one. And I did check my coursework/exam essays more closely than a post on the interweb
Mr. Abroad, I could, but as I'm dipping in here between writing bits and pieces I'm not going to spend the time doing so. You'll just have to imaginate ungood English.
You're being short-sighted, the SNP have several plausible motives.
In Falkirk.
Hur hur hur......
'Hurray, they've got gonorrhea.'
'But you've got syphilis.'
'No problem, they'll soon have that too.'
They are now seen as the Tories little helpers.
The Conservatives had a net loss of 0 in Scotland. Labour had a net loss of about 40.
The country deserves a decent alternative, but it looks a decade away.
"cuckoo"....
A bit too quick to condemn there, Plato! Reading the article, it appears that the charge for overtime arose from the impuntuality of the funeral company. Better to direct your scorn, on this occasion, onto the private sector.
The Conservatives won a shock majority, Labour were crushed, the Lib Dems swept away to the verge of oblivion, and UKIP went backwards. Whilst the Conservatives having more Scottish seats than Labour would've amused, I don't think the blues have much room for complaint regarding how the year's gone so far.
The new Corbyn policymaking machinery.
http://samilitaryhistory.org/vo041dmd.jpg
As for the fortunes of the LibDems and naming candidates it's clear to me a better forecast is likely but the inability of the LibDems to break 8% will clearly counter most incumbency bonuses.
On a personal level I was saddened to see some highly effective LibDems MP's lose - Lynn Featherstone, Andrew George, Danny Alexander and especially Steve Webb.
I would have preferred a continuance of the Coalition - it was a rather decent stab at coalition politics but nobody said the voters had to be grateful to the yellow peril for their part in bringing the nation back from the brink.
If he actually moves to prevent Labour MPs running the party I expect he will find there are many fewer of them left
"Shakespeare couldn't spell. And for Good Queen Bess, the Queen's English varied from day to day."
Reminds me of a nice story a cleric told on the radio the other day.
He was helping his daughter with her philosophy homework when a text arrived from his wife which said "What do you want from life?"
They then discussed this at some length until his wife arrived home. "That was a very interesting question you texted" said the Vicar.
"Well why didn't you answer it?" said his wife
" It's not the sort of question than can be answered in a text" Said the vicar
"Really? What do you want from Lidl?"
Edited extra bit: that said, the Coalition was generally effective, and far better than the nightmare scenario of Brown remaining as PM.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/labour-leadership-contest-moderate-mps-fear-purge-by-aggressive-factional-nutters-on-the-left-10454739.html
That we've seen vocal calls for deselecting non-Corbyn MPs - it looks really quite ugly and exclusive. No broad church there - just a single religion. http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/politics/article4526813.ece
http://samilitaryhistory.org/vo041dmd.jpg
Surely more:
http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01292/spanish_inq_1292561b.jpg
Indeed, this isn't about winning the next election, it's about reforming the labour party, and burying and spitting on the grave of New Labour.
Personally I am happy that the Tories got a majority rather than a continuation of the coalition - but that's simply because I think the Lib Dems would have blocked the EU referendum. I tend to agree that most of them were inoffensive and probably did deserve more credit, but stunts like the yellow budget box didn't do much their credibility.
And the ABCs wonder why they are failing so miserably.
The Lib Dems tried to have the authority of government and the luxury of opposition. They got neither. You can't differentiate from a government you're part of then expect to claim credit for its work.
An enterprise had a period of popularity after the war, bumbled along for a few decades on the back of it, got revamped by a new CEO for a brief renaissance but his modus operandi caught up with him and then under a series of very average management teams has drifted towards irrelevance.
Now another enterprise (the hard left) which has capital but not the distribution networks is looking to aggressively take over and use what's left of the brand to sell their downmarket tat.
Won't end well - see Woolworths - but one or two people will do well out of the interim.
On the subject of the oil price collapsing, this report assesses the impact on UK Trade and doesn't even consider a scenario below $50 oil.
http://www.pwc.co.uk/en_uk/uk/assets/pdf/ukeo-oil-prices-march-2015.pdf
Clearly the supply glut is worse than many could have ever anticipated (even as recent as march this year) and could have potentially severe geopolitical consequences. Especially if it is a sustained low price.
I disagree about the stoutness of the LibDems within the Coalition. Many commentators didn't expect it to last five months let alone five years and for two diverse parties to largely rub along for a full term was quite an achievement. Even St Vince of the Cable and the Very Reverend Simon Hughes stayed on board.
It still amuses me that absolutely no-one gives a shit about Captain Sixpack in the Beach Body Ready ad, but Blonde Bikini Girl is apparently outrageous.
If there had been minority Govt. of whatever hue, the preening and pontificating Salmond would never have been off our TV screens, as he went about securing that second referendum by 2020 as his "price". And yes, the Scots can bitch and moan about how their voice is excluded from the Westminster process. With as much right as Mancs and Scousers and Geordies. That is what happens when you keep voting for the losing side....
http://t.co/Q0XeJ370j0
I think the LibDems reluctance on the EU referendum was a bargaining chip that they would have willingly cashed in.
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Laters ....
About 6 weeks ago, I and my sons went to plant flowers on my parent's grave which we do twice yearly, as my mother had requested before she died. (it does have under-sown bulbs for the Spring). However whilst the village church still has a healthy congregation, the care of its large and historic churchyard has been taken over by the LA.
We were approached by a council workman, who questioned what we were doing. The council had removed the watering cans from near the outside tap and had removed the bin for dead flowers. He said that the churchyard was now public property and we could not change its appearance. So we took his identity and the next week I had a very 'interesting' conversation with the chair of the council on the rights of grave-owners. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/11802449/Staying-at-wifes-grave-for-too-long-costs-widower-160.html
That Burnham is now being called a Tory is just fabulous. The staffers at the Guardian must be wondering WTF is going on. CiFers are about to take over Labour.
The policy-making issue is more real - Corbyn clearly intends to democratise the process with more meaningful consultations, which will be popular with members but will add delay. I'm not sure that MPs feel that they are especially involved themselves at present though - sadly, the normal way as an MP for finding out about a new policy that the leader had thought up was reading about it in the Guardian.
Of course, Scotland could try UDI....It would have no legitimacy, would raise no money on the markets and would be spurned by the EU, with countries such as Spain having no truck with it. Within weeks, they'd be sending begging letters to Greece.
@IssyFlamel
.@JohnRentoul @MichaelPDeacon peak Toryism has arrived! Now #corbyn's just another true blue Thatcher lover #labour
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CMWnYQ0WsAAXSQu.jpg
Ultra Vires.
It'll end with all beautiful and/or slim people wearing burkas or paper bag + fat suits.
I can't believe what a whiny, over-sensitive population we're breeding in these isles. Clearly a sign that I'm growing old
On topic, with the ashes secured, Corbyn to be anointed loony-in-chief of Labour, all I really want now is another indyref (but a successful one this time) and I can die happy.
Another consequence of this low price is that it puts pressure on the economic competitiveness of renewable energy.
They remain one of my favourite bits of 80s virtue parading.
I am looking forward to the point when the Lefty gobshites break into various factions, each decrying the other as Tories.
Then we will all be Tories....
Now off to do something useful.