It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
Mr. 30, must confess I am not flabbergasted, though when I saw the headline (didn't click it) I assumed that was about shifting intelligence spending from one budget to another (namely Defence).
It's a shame the Government's better at sticking to its 0.7% foreign aid commitment than the 2% Defence spending it pretends to want.
That would be the Foreign Aid that HMG "does not have a full and clear understanding" of where it is being spent.
Osborne's busy buying new Mercedes for African crooks, whilst the Royal Navy's Type 45s sit tied up dockside for 'training' i.e. there's no money for pay for power plant repairs.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
A serious question:
Do you really, honestly, believe than we can re-shape and re-define the EU?
Mr. Divvie, Oborne is in a similar vein to Hitchens. An original thinker, who is often totally bonkers but sometimes makes interesting remarks.
Mr. NorthWales, I wish I thought that were credible. It'd be comfortable voting to Remain, if so. But that's utterly at odds with experience, and I simply don't believe there's even a small chance of it happening.
Thus British democracy needs to be restrained by others, for our own good, and power entrusted to technocrats. Many Remain intellectuals genuinely view the EU as a great safety net, an irreplaceable device that prevents economic disintegration and a Hobbesian war of all against all. Staying thus matters more than anything else: the ends justify the means, including ludicrous scare campaigns...
Genuine believers in enlightenment values must have the courage of their convictions, and be unafraid of the hard work that is required to win the battle of ideas. Above all, they must learn to trust the people again: we are a sensible, grown-up nation, and we don’t need a bunch of European technocrats to force us to be free.
I think we've missed a real opportunity here. We could have recreated EFTA as a free trade bloc that was outside the EU's political remit, with no CAP.
We'd have taken Sweden, and Denmark from inside the EU. We'd have brought Norway and co together from outside. It would have been the perfect destination for all who didn't buy into ever closer union, but liked the idea of a continent wide free trade block - including things like financial services, which we hugely benefit from.
But unfortunately, because the destination is 'completely out, way more out than Norway, or even Switzerland', then (a) it seems unlikely that the referendum will be won, (b) it is much more likely to be near-term disruptive, and therefore unappealing to encourage others to follow us, and (c) for Sweden, which is completely surrounded by EEA states, they aren't going to go to our status, even if they did leave the EU.
Let's wait and see. There are lots of options within the broad sweep of what Gove announced on Tuesday.
I'm incredibly disappointed by Gove. I wanted Norway.
EFTA/EEA is off the table now, because the official policy of Vote Leave is for something else.
I'm still probably going to vote for Leave. But, I was fired up. Now it will be resignation, and disappointment in an opportunity lost.
I suppose the advantage of taking Gove's position is that, in the event of LEAVE. Govt. will be so busy with assorted renegotiations and the legislative consequences, that no-one will have time to mess about with the NHS or Education.
Like in 1944, then?
When the PM is distracted by bigger matters, it's an ideal time for ministers to go their own way with pet projects.
Good point; or the exception that proves the rule. Anyway, Churchill didn't tend to micro-manage.
The main body of the Leave electorate will never accept a vision of Leave that does nothing on freedom of movement.
Cameron's benefit reform is a move in the right direction, but it's not substantial enough.
That's where the disconnect is, they expect overnight action, nothing is going to happen overnight. Under the two speed EU plan we could put limitations on free movement between both sides, but if we try and go it alone getting free trade for goods and services while diminishing any of the four freedoms is going to be a very big ask as it would destabilise the whole of the EU. If we got a bespoke deal which gave us the single financial passport, free trade and selective movement of people while holding on to the other three freedoms (the ideal negotiation), how long do you think it would be before other northern EU countries follow us out of the door and demand the same deal?
As I said within the EEA, shifting the relationship from free movement to enhanced movement would not be too difficult and achievable within 5-10 years as we would be able to draw other countries into the EEA style relationship and negotiating as a bloc is easier than going it alone, especially with an organisation as hostile to outsiders as the EU.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
'I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual'
Can you show me any documentation where Remain has suggested that will happen?
The EU will assume that a vote to stay is the green light for further UK integration.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
Cameron demonstrated this year that the EU is pretty much un-reformable from within.
It is more likely that the changes you desire will occur because of Brexit, and the EU will realise they cannot go on as before.
'To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France. '
--------------------------------------------
The problems with this argument are threefold:
1) There is no desire for the kind of 'reform' you are talking about in the EU, in particular what you are talking about is diametrically opposite to what the key countries and the bureaucracy want 2) The UK has signally failed to achieve this kind of reform in 40 years' membership. Indeed, the EU has continued to work steadily towards its goal of a federal Europe. All the UK has been able to do is duck out of some aspects of that. 3) There is no desire to achieve this kind of reform among the UK political elite or UK bureaucracy either. Cameron's empty renegotiation efforts show that.
Other than those minor sticking points, it's a great plan.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
A serious question:
Do you really, honestly, believe than we can re-shape and re-define the EU?
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
We won't be getting the return of any powers if we vote to Remain. Quite the opposite: "European Union officials [...] are refusing to move key legislation out of fear that they might fuel support for a Brexit. [...] Among them are: a mid-term review of the bloc’s seven-year budget, which could result in a fight over a proposal to increase EU spending by €20 billion; the launch of the Commission’s labor mobility package, which would set out new guidelines for the freedom of movement of workers; and the EU’s accession to the European Convention on Human Rights, which the U.K. government strongly opposes, claiming it would infringe on the sovereignty of the British legal system." http://www.politico.eu/article/brussels-presses-brexit-hold-button-uk-referendum-campaign-eu-legislation/
I think we've missed a real opportunity here. We could have recreated EFTA as a free trade bloc that was outside the EU's political remit, with no CAP.
We'd have taken Sweden, and Denmark from inside the EU. We'd have brought Norway and co together from outside. It would have been the perfect destination for all who didn't buy into ever closer union, but liked the idea of a continent wide free trade block - including things like financial services, which we hugely benefit from.
But unfortunately, because the destination is 'completely out, way more out than Norway, or even Switzerland', then (a) it seems unlikely that the referendum will be won, (b) it is much more likely to be near-term disruptive, and therefore unappealing to encourage others to follow us, and (c) for Sweden, which is completely surrounded by EEA states, they aren't going to go to our status, even if they did leave the EU.
Let's wait and see. There are lots of options within the broad sweep of what Gove announced on Tuesday.
I'm incredibly disappointed by Gove. I wanted Norway.
EFTA/EEA is off the table now, because the official policy of Vote Leave is for something else.
I'm still probably going to vote for Leave. But, I was fired up. Now it will be resignation, and disappointment in an opportunity lost.
I suppose the advantage of taking Gove's position is that, in the event of LEAVE. Govt. will be so busy with assorted renegotiations and the legislative consequences, that no-one will have time to mess about with the NHS or Education.
Like in 1944, then?
When the PM is distracted by bigger matters, it's an ideal time for ministers to go their own way with pet projects.
Good point; or the exception that proves the rule. Anyway, Churchill didn't tend to micro-manage.
Churchill micromanaged horribly (in both senses of the word) - though not in education.
I see Oborne is peddling that old lie about the Smethwick by-election.
Oborne is a supporter of the Islamic Human Rights Commission, an odious outfit which held a dinner to celebrate the Charlie Hebdo massacre.
Seriously, I do wonder if Oborne hasn't secretly converted to Islam. His statements on the subject seem to go far beyond mere buffoonery or attention-seeking iconoclasm.
Do you really, honestly, believe than we can re-shape and re-define the EU?
Yes, in the short term the EU is heading for disaster with the migration crisis, Greece, and the unaccountably of the eurocrats and the ECJ. It is simply not sustainable and in 2017 Germany and France face elections that almost certainly will continue to deepen the eurosceptism throughout Europe. We do have allies, Sweden, Denmark and almost certainly Germany to name a few, and we can be in the forefront of change. I am more optimistic if we do remain precisely because of the overwhelming demand for change recently recognised by Juncker's no less. I believe we need a positive vision for Europe from within just as much as the vision that the leave campaign are promoting.
Brexit is just one problem for the EU. The EIU "thinks that the risk of Brexit has risen"
"It's crunch time for the European Union as multiple crises stretch union to the limit, says Economist Intelligence Unit" "A potential Brexit, instability in Greece, and the migration crisis could all come to a head in mid-2016, and if that happened it could push the EU over the edge," the report said. In the UK the Remain camp has extended its lead in recent polling, but the EIU thinks that the risk of Brexit has risen as a result of Prime Minister David Cameron's "botched budget", the resignation of Iain Duncan Smith and a "fumbled response to the Panama leaks".
Many thanks to those who posted links of Gove's speech and Vote Leave's plan.
I've read the speech which was a better speech than some of the comments on here had led me to expect. I'll read through the plan when I have a bit more time.
Do you really, honestly, believe than we can re-shape and re-define the EU?
Yes, in the short term the EU is heading for disaster with the migration crisis, Greece, and the unaccountably of the eurocrats and the ECJ. It is simply not sustainable and in 2017 Germany and France face elections that almost certainly will continue to deepen the eurosceptism throughout Europe. We do have allies, Sweden, Denmark and almost certainly Germany to name a few, and we can be in the forefront of change. I am more optimistic if we do remain precisely because of the overwhelming demand for change recently recognised by Juncker's no less. I believe we need a positive vision for Europe from within just as much as the vision that the leave campaign are promoting.
Leavers should change their slogan. Instead of "Take Control" it should be "Take Offence". Take offence at the PMs advocacy of his own renegotiation terms. Take offence at how the PM dealt with Boris in the HOC. Take offence at the leaflet. Take offence at the Treasury projections of the costs of Leave. Take offence at Obama offering a view. Next they will take offence at the media coverage, the polls and then the result. Why not simply publish a report from a reputable independent source setting out a costed analysis of how the UK gains in trade, finance and immigration from Leave? After 41 years of being offended it is time to stop whingeing and set out the case.
O/T but I see Ched Evans' conviction has been quashed by the Court of Appeal, and a retrial ordered.
From the Guardian " three appeal judges on Thursday quashed the conviction after fresh evidence emerged. Details can not be reported for legal reasons."
I see Oborne is peddling that old lie about the Smethwick by-election.
Oborne is a supporter of the Islamic Human Rights Commission, an odious outfit which held a dinner to celebrate the Charlie Hebdo massacre.
Seriously, I do wonder if Oborne hasn't secretly converted to Islam. His statements on the subject seem to go far beyond mere buffoonery or attention-seeking iconoclasm.
My impression is that Oborne's ideal government would be a theocracy, and that if a Christian theocracy wasn't viable, he'd prefer an Islamic theocracy to a secular State.
I doubt if that's a widespread view among British Christians.
On EU reforms, if it were possible then the northern European countries would already have done it. The UK, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Austria would have pushed for fundamental reforms and made it happen. The problem is that it is impossible, even within these relatively aligned countries there isn't much of a consensus on what reform entails, and even if there was the group are heavily outnumbered and would be outvoted by the the south. We enlarged the EU towards the east in order to try and stack the deck in favour of reform, we figured that nations who had recently experienced communist rule would do anything to try and avoid falling into a similar trap with the EU and centralisation, only we found they are just as obstructionist as the southern nations.
The EU is unreformable, and if we were to leave with Sweden and Denmark following us out of the door it would allow them to push forwards with the integration they so deeply desire and we want no part of.
Mr. Divvie, Oborne is in a similar vein to Hitchens. An original thinker, who is often totally bonkers but sometimes makes interesting remarks.
Mr. NorthWales, I wish I thought that were credible. It'd be comfortable voting to Remain, if so. But that's utterly at odds with experience, and I simply don't believe there's even a small chance of it happening.
But Europe is changing and I genuinely believe it is credible but whoever leads the UK have to fight and take the opportunity that is coming in the next few years. Just being an onlooker would mean that we have no influence in what could be a very challenging and exciting future
O/T but I see Ched Evans' conviction has been quashed by the Court of Appeal, and a retrial ordered.
From the Guardian " three appeal judges on Thursday quashed the conviction after fresh evidence emerged. Details can not be reported for legal reasons."
Hmmm.
Why "hmm". The evidence will probably be used in the new trial.
Blimey. The Electoral Commission are looking wiser by the day.
Two Conservative MPs paid themselves a total of £41,000 to run their own high profile not-for-profit anti-EU campaign group, the latest parliamentary register of members’ interests reveals. Peter Bone and Tom Pursglove received the money on top of their MPs’ salaries for work undertaken on behalf of the Grassroots Out campaign group, an organisation they founded.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
Cameron demonstrated this year that the EU is pretty much un-reformable from within.
It is more likely that the changes you desire will occur because of Brexit, and the EU will realise they cannot go on as before.
You may be right but if we are to remain we have to have a new resolve to demand change and the crisis in Europe opens an opportunity that was not even available 12 months ago. The Brexit campaign has frightened Europe and this movement to eurosceptism is permanent and will be a huge force for change
Leavers should change their slogan. Instead of "Take Control" it should be "Take Offence". Take offence at the PMs advocacy of his own renegotiation terms. Take offence at how the PM dealt with Boris in the HOC. Take offence at the leaflet. Take offence at the Treasury projections of the costs of Leave. Take offence at Obama offering a view. Next they will take offence at the media coverage, the polls and then the result. Why not simply publish a report from a reputable independent source setting out a costed analysis of how the UK gains in trade, finance and immigration from Leave? After 41 years of being offended it is time to stop whingeing and set out the case.
Leavers also remember that, back in 2003, the Treasury stated that UK trade could increase by 50 per cent over the next 30 years if we joined the euro. Even if we had been converged, and had joined, subsequent events make the projection seem ridiculous.
Mr. Divvie, Oborne is in a similar vein to Hitchens. An original thinker, who is often totally bonkers but sometimes makes interesting remarks.
Mr. NorthWales, I wish I thought that were credible. It'd be comfortable voting to Remain, if so. But that's utterly at odds with experience, and I simply don't believe there's even a small chance of it happening.
But Europe is changing and I genuinely believe it is credible but whoever leads the UK have to fight and take the opportunity that is coming in the next few years. Just being an onlooker would mean that we have no influence in what could be a very challenging and exciting future
It depends what you mean by "reform". I think that the EU leadership do take seriously the need to make EU economies more competitive, But, the direction of travel is always in favour of More Europe, never Less Europe.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
'I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual'
Can you show me any documentation where Remain has suggested that will happen?
The EU will assume that a vote to stay is the green light for further UK integration.
It is important that those who have campaigned for leave are given senior roles in the cabinet and that this becomes HMG avowed intention, no more no less
Of course, free movement means she could come without an invitation anyway. All these right-wingers with their alien culture flooding in, where will it end?
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
'I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual' Can you show me any documentation where Remain has suggested that will happen? The EU will assume that a vote to stay is the green light for further UK integration.
To believe that the EU will ever sensibly reform itself, is a triumph of hope over experience .
Mr. Divvie, Oborne is in a similar vein to Hitchens. An original thinker, who is often totally bonkers but sometimes makes interesting remarks.
Mr. NorthWales, I wish I thought that were credible. It'd be comfortable voting to Remain, if so. But that's utterly at odds with experience, and I simply don't believe there's even a small chance of it happening.
But Europe is changing and I genuinely believe it is credible but whoever leads the UK have to fight and take the opportunity that is coming in the next few years.
Unfortunately, the PM is Cameron, a man with a record of doing just enough to get by.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
'I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual'
Can you show me any documentation where Remain has suggested that will happen?
The EU will assume that a vote to stay is the green light for further UK integration.
It is important that those who have campaigned for leave are given senior roles in the cabinet and that this becomes HMG avowed intention, no more no less
Just not going to happen if Cameron and Osborne remain in place.
Do you really, honestly, believe than we can re-shape and re-define the EU?
Yes, in the short term the EU is heading for disaster with the migration crisis, Greece, and the unaccountably of the eurocrats and the ECJ. It is simply not sustainable and in 2017 Germany and France face elections that almost certainly will continue to deepen the eurosceptism throughout Europe. We do have allies, Sweden, Denmark and almost certainly Germany to name a few, and we can be in the forefront of change. I am more optimistic if we do remain precisely because of the overwhelming demand for change recently recognised by Juncker's no less. I believe we need a positive vision for Europe from within just as much as the vision that the leave campaign are promoting.
Now I know you are a spoof.
If we do remain it has to become a role of the UK government to effect change from within
Leavers also remember that, back in 2003, the Treasury stated that UK trade could increase by 50 per cent over the next 30 years if we joined the euro. Even if we had been converged, and had joined, subsequent events make the projection seem ridiculous.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family diment booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
Cameron demonstrated this year that the EU is pretty much un-reformable from within.
It is more likely that the changes you desire will occur because of Brexit, and the EU will realise they cannot go on as before.
You may be right but if we are to remain we have to have a new resolve to demand change and the crisis in Europe opens an opportunity that was not even available 12 months ago. The Brexit campaign has frightened Europe and this movement to eurosceptism is permanent and will be a huge force for change
Hope conquers experience - it won;t happen, no UK premier - bar Thatcher - has been able to impact the EU.
Yes, in the short term the EU is heading for disaster with the migration crisis, Greece, and the unaccountably of the eurocrats and the ECJ. It is simply not sustainable and in 2017 Germany and France face elections that almost certainly will continue to deepen the eurosceptism throughout Europe. We do have allies, Sweden, Denmark and almost certainly Germany to name a few, and we can be in the forefront of change. I am more optimistic if we do remain precisely because of the overwhelming demand for change recently recognised by Juncker's no less. I believe we need a positive vision for Europe from within just as much as the vision that the leave campaign are promoting.
The Northern alliance is:
UK Sweden Denmark Germany Finland Poland Austria Netherlands
The higher up the list the closer they are to our position on integration.
The Southern alliance is:
Belgium Luxembourg Portugal Greece France Spain Italy Cyprus Romania Croatia
The higher up the list the further they are from our position on integration (at least politically, the public have proven time and again they aren't interested in EU integration).
The problem is that the southern nations are much better at playing the game than we are and are much more unified in their approach to the EU than the northern nations, of the northern alliance three countries will never join the Euro, and Poland have been making noises that they will use the Swedish method of forever failing the tests to avoid joining the Euro which make it potentially 4 semi-detached nations out of a group of 8. In the southern alliance only Romania and Croatia are not in the Euro. The northern alliance is interested in reform, competitiveness and has a global outlook overall. The issue is that we don't have majority support within the EU for this agenda, and while the UK or Germany may be strong nations within the EU (and we are, look at how we led on sanctions against Russia against the tide) we don't have the allies to implement our reform agenda, the southern bloc and eastern bloc is able to block any attempt to cut red tape, increase competitiveness or push through trade deals very easily.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family diment booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
Cameron demonstrated this year that the EU is pretty much un-reformable from within.
It is more likely that the changes you desire will occur because of Brexit, and the EU will realise they cannot go on as before.
You may be right but if we are to remain we have to have a new resolve to demand change and the crisis in Europe opens an opportunity that was not even available 12 months ago. The Brexit campaign has frightened Europe and this movement to eurosceptism is permanent and will be a huge force for change
Hope conquers experience - it won;t happen, no UK premier - bar Thatcher - has been able to impact the EU.
This Europe is so at odds with itself that it needs changing from within and an opportunity exists for a strong eurosceptic HMG to drive change
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family diment booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
Cameron demonstrated this year that the EU is pretty much un-reformable from within.
It is more likely that the changes you desire will occur because of Brexit, and the EU will realise they cannot go on as before.
You may be right but if we are to remain we have to have a new resolve to demand change and the crisis in Europe opens an opportunity that was not even available 12 months ago. The Brexit campaign has frightened Europe and this movement to eurosceptism is permanent and will be a huge force for change
Hope conquers experience - it won;t happen, no UK premier - bar Thatcher - has been able to impact the EU.
Blair did. He improved the EU finances by giving up billions by cutting half our rebate for a pocket full or worthless intentions on CAP reform.... Possibly the worst negotiation since Chamberlain at Munich?
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family diment booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
Cameron demonstrated this year that the EU is pretty much un-reformable from within.
It is more likely that the changes you desire will occur because of Brexit, and the EU will realise they cannot go on as before.
You may be right but if we are to remain we have to have a new resolve to demand change and the crisis in Europe opens an opportunity that was not even available 12 months ago. The Brexit campaign has frightened Europe and this movement to eurosceptism is permanent and will be a huge force for change
Hope conquers experience - it won;t happen, no UK premier - bar Thatcher - has been able to impact the EU.
This Europe is so at odds with itself that it needs changing from within and an opportunity exists for a strong eurosceptic HMG to drive change
Mr. NorthWales, the EU does continue to change. Power shifts to the centre. Integration of the eurozone persists.
As I said, if I believed the EU reforming in a sensible way (free trade but not political union, at least for those like the UK who want that) was realistic, I'd vote Remain and feel very comfortable doing so.
Sadly, I think there's more chance of the EU imploding than there is of it sensibly reforming.
I've always understood that the racist slogan at the Smethwick election was used by Colin Jordan, not Peter Griffiths.
Griffiths didn't say it, but he never disagreed with the sentiment.
"If you want a n***** for a neighbour, vote Labour.”
The slogan helped buck national voting trends in 1964. Griffiths refused to disown it: “I would not condemn any man who said that,” he told the Times during his election campaign. “I regard it as a manifestation of popular feeling.”
Blimey. The Electoral Commission are looking wiser by the day.
Two Conservative MPs paid themselves a total of £41,000 to run their own high profile not-for-profit anti-EU campaign group, the latest parliamentary register of members’ interests reveals. Peter Bone and Tom Pursglove received the money on top of their MPs’ salaries for work undertaken on behalf of the Grassroots Out campaign group, an organisation they founded.
That just stinks and explains their motives in running a separate operation. Peter Bone and Tom Pursglove need a ton of smelly stuff from the papers once they get stuck in.
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
Yes, in the short term the EU is heading for disaster with the migration crisis, Greece, and the unaccountably of the eurocrats and the ECJ. It is simply not sustainable and in 2017 Germany and France face elections that almost certainly will continue to deepen the eurosceptism throughout Europe. We do have allies, Sweden, Denmark and almost certainly Germany to name a few, and we can be in the forefront of change. I am more optimistic if we do remain precisely because of the overwhelming demand for change recently recognised by Juncker's no less. I believe we need a positive vision for Europe from within just as much as the vision that the leave campaign are promoting.
The Northern alliance is:
UK Sweden Denmark Germany Finland Poland Austria Netherlands
The higher up the list the closer they are to our position on integration.
The Southern alliance is:
Belgium Luxembourg Portugal Greece France Spain Italy Cyprus Romania Croatia
The higher up the list the further they are from our position on integration (at least politically, the public have proven time and again they aren't interested in EU integration).
The problem is that the southern nations are much better at playing the game than we are and are much more unified in their approach to the EU than the northern nations, of the northern alliance three countries will never join the Euro, and Poland have been making noises that they will use the Swedish method of forever failing the tests to avoid joining the Euro which make it potentially 4 semi-detached nations out of a group of 8. In the southern alliance only Romania and Croatia are not in the Euro. The northern alliance is interested in reform, competitiveness and has a global outlook overall. The issue is that we don't have majority support within the EU for this agenda, and while the UK or Germany may be strong nations within the EU (and we are, look at how we led on sanctions against Russia against the tide) we don't have the allies to implement our reform agenda, the southern bloc and eastern bloc is able to block any attempt to cut red tape, increase competitiveness or push through trade deals very easily.
Do you really, honestly, believe than we can re-shape and re-define the EU?
Yes, in the short term the EU is heading for disaster with the migration crisis, Greece, and the unaccountably of the eurocrats and the ECJ. It is simply not sustainable and in 2017 Germany and France face elections that almost certainly will continue to deepen the eurosceptism throughout Europe. We do have allies, Sweden, Denmark and almost certainly Germany to name a few, and we can be in the forefront of change. I am more optimistic if we do remain precisely because of the overwhelming demand for change recently recognised by Juncker's no less. I believe we need a positive vision for Europe from within just as much as the vision that the leave campaign are promoting.
Now I know you are a spoof.
I called him out last week, its the c&p regurgitation that gives it away. Even Remainers must be cringing to read it.
I've always understood that the racist slogan at the Smethwick election was used by Colin Jordan, not Peter Griffiths.
Griffiths didn't say it, but he never disagreed with the sentiment.
"If you want a n***** for a neighbour, vote Labour.”
The slogan helped buck national voting trends in 1964. Griffiths refused to disown it: “I would not condemn any man who said that,” he told the Times during his election campaign. “I regard it as a manifestation of popular feeling.”
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family diment booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
And what opportunities are they?
To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France.
Cameron demonstrated this year that the EU is pretty much un-reformable from within.
It is more likely that the changes you desire will occur because of Brexit, and the EU will realise they cannot go on as before.
You may be right but if we are to remain we have to have a new resolve to demand change and the crisis in Europe opens an opportunity that was not even available 12 months ago. The Brexit campaign has frightened Europe and this movement to eurosceptism is permanent and will be a huge force for change
Hope conquers experience - it won;t happen, no UK premier - bar Thatcher - has been able to impact the EU.
This Europe is so at odds with itself that it needs changing from within and an opportunity exists for a strong eurosceptic HMG to drive change
Why has it not happened under Cameron and Osborne then? There are no Lib Dems as an excuse now. Why have we had for 6 years a european minister who is just about the most europhile available from our MPs with the exception of Clarke?
I've always understood that the racist slogan at the Smethwick election was used by Colin Jordan, not Peter Griffiths.
In his book 'The Rise of Enoch Powell' Paul Foot says it just appeared on some anonymous posters stuck around the place. I'm sure if Foot could have pinned it one someone on the Right he would have.
Mr. NorthWales, the EU does continue to change. Power shifts to the centre. Integration of the eurozone persists.
As I said, if I believed the EU reforming in a sensible way (free trade but not political union, at least for those like the UK who want that) was realistic, I'd vote Remain and feel very comfortable doing so.
Sadly, I think there's more chance of the EU imploding than there is of it sensibly reforming.
Absolutely agree that the EU will implode and that is an opportunity
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
Once “don’t knows” and “would not vote” are excluded, Tooting MP Mr Khan’s first preference lead extends to 16 points, taking into account likelihood to vote.
Ukip’s Peter Whittle is on seven per cent, Green Sian Berry is six per cent, Liberal Democrat Caroline Pidgeon is on five per cent, while Respect’s George Galloway is hardly troubling the scorer.
Mr Khan would be short of a majority on first preferences, on 48 per cent, compared to Mr Goldsmith’s 32 per cent. The figures almost mirror headline voting intentions in London, with Conservatives on 30 per cent and Labour 46 per cent.
Yes, in the short term the EU is heading for disaster with the migration crisis, Greece, and the unaccountably of the eurocrats and the ECJ. It is simply not sustainable and in 2017 Germany and France face elections that almost certainly will continue to deepen the eurosceptism throughout Europe. We do have allies, Sweden, Denmark and almost certainly Germany to name a few, and we can be in the forefront of change. I am more optimistic if we do remain precisely because of the overwhelming demand for change recently recognised by Juncker's no less. I believe we need a positive vision for Europe from within just as much as the vision that the leave campaign are promoting.
The Northern alliance is:
UK Sweden Denmark Germany Finland Poland Austria Netherlands
The higher up the list the closer they are to our position on integration.
The Southern alliance is:
Belgium Luxembourg Portugal Greece France Spain Italy Cyprus Romania Croatia
The higher up the list the further they are from our position on integration (at least politically, the public have proven time and again they aren't interested in EU integration).
The problem is that the southern nations are much better at playing the game than we are and are much more unified in their approach to the EU than the northern nations, of the northern alliance three countries will never join the Euro, and Poland have been making noises that they will use the Swedish method of forever failing the tests to avoid joining the Euro which make it potentially 4 semi-detached nations out of a group of 8. In the southern alliance only Romania and Croatia are not in the Euro. The northern alliance is interested in reform, competitiveness and has a global outlook overall. The issue is that we don't have majority support within the EU for this agenda, and while the UK or Germany may be strong nations within the EU (and we are, look at how we led on sanctions against Russia against the tide) we don't have the allies to implement our reform agenda, the southern bloc and eastern bloc is able to block any attempt to cut red tape, increase competitiveness or push through trade deals very easily.
Where do the Irish sit?
Neutral, they don't have a lot of friends in the EU because of their tax agenda.
This Europe is so at odds with itself that it needs changing from within and an opportunity exists for a strong eurosceptic HMG to drive change Why has it not happened under Cameron and Osborne then? There are no Lib Dems as an excuse now. Why have we had for 6 years a european minister who is just about the most europhile available from our MPs with the exception of Clarke?
I believe that post 23rd June the HMG have to adopt a very eurosceptic stance in the EU and those senior in the leave campaign must take that role
I can handle Meeks and Nabavi. I've come close to busting my entire relationship with the former, and managed to get Nabavi to admit he'd secretly been Remain all along since last year.)
Nothing secret about it. Around the end of 2015 I posted here that I had finally made up my mind, having looked at the arguments.
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
Once “don’t knows” and “would not vote” are excluded, Tooting MP Mr Khan’s first preference lead extends to 16 points, taking into account likelihood to vote.
Ukip’s Peter Whittle is on seven per cent, Green Sian Berry is six per cent, Liberal Democrat Caroline Pidgeon is on five per cent, while Respect’s George Galloway is hardly troubling the scorer.
Mr Khan would be short of a majority on first preferences, on 48 per cent, compared to Mr Goldsmith’s 32 per cent. The figures almost mirror headline voting intentions in London, with Conservatives on 30 per cent and Labour 46 per cent.
That seems all over bar the shouting. Hopefully, the Tories can win back Barnet and Camden, in the absence of Brian Coleman.
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
Once “don’t knows” and “would not vote” are excluded, Tooting MP Mr Khan’s first preference lead extends to 16 points, taking into account likelihood to vote.
Ukip’s Peter Whittle is on seven per cent, Green Sian Berry is six per cent, Liberal Democrat Caroline Pidgeon is on five per cent, while Respect’s George Galloway is hardly troubling the scorer.
Mr Khan would be short of a majority on first preferences, on 48 per cent, compared to Mr Goldsmith’s 32 per cent. The figures almost mirror headline voting intentions in London, with Conservatives on 30 per cent and Labour 46 per cent.
That seems all over bar the shouting. Hopefully, the Tories can win back Barnet and Camden, in the absence of Brian Coleman.
I wonder if we'll see split ticketing in the Assembly election?
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
This Europe is so at odds with itself that it needs changing from within and an opportunity exists for a strong eurosceptic HMG to drive change
Why has it not happened under Cameron and Osborne then? There are no Lib Dems as an excuse now. Why have we had for 6 years a european minister who is just about the most europhile available from our MPs with the exception of Clarke?
I believe that post 23rd June the HMG have to adopt a very eurosceptic stance in the EU and those senior in the leave campaign must take that role
I believe that post 23rd June, HMG will continue to adopt a Europhile stance in the EU, and no senior members of the Leave campaign will be appointed to a role of any significance.
The evidence so far seems to support my view. Good luck.
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
With the way London is trending, I don't think even Boris could win this time.
Until the Tories hammer private landlords in London and increase home ownership London is going to be a tough ask. There is a lot of anger at landlords and the message that the government are taking them on just isn't cutting through, it would take private rent controls within the M25 for any message to get through.
This Europe is so at odds with itself that it needs changing from within and an opportunity exists for a strong eurosceptic HMG to drive change
Why has it not happened under Cameron and Osborne then? There are no Lib Dems as an excuse now. Why have we had for 6 years a european minister who is just about the most europhile available from our MPs with the exception of Clarke?
I believe that post 23rd June the HMG have to adopt a very eurosceptic stance in the EU and those senior in the leave campaign must take that role
I believe that post 23rd June, HMG will continue to adopt a Europhile stance in the EU, and no senior members of the Leave campaign will be appointed to a role of any significance.
The evidence so far seems to support my view. Good luck.
I would be annoyed if the eurosceptics were not appointed to cabinet positions, indeed I just cannot see Michael Gove not being either Foreign Secretary or Chancellor in the new post June cabinet
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
I see HM Treasury has been caught out for fiddling the figures and claiming Military Pensions as Defence Spending.
HM Treasury is already in huge trouble with MOD as they are claiming back flying pay and retention bonuses from Army Apache pilots which they say we're incorrectly paid. The pay was made for operational flying and amounts to around £800,000 in total. This was an error by MOD not by the pilots but the Treasury is now insisting the pilots pay back up to £30,000 each.
As a result many of the pilots are quitting and there is now a shortage of Apache pilots. It costs around £4 Million to train a new Apache pilot so with around 15% of the crews having quit so far they are looking at a cost of around £100 million to compensate for the losses even if no one else quits.
Leavers also remember that, back in 2003, the Treasury stated that UK trade could increase by 50 per cent over the next 30 years if we joined the euro. Even if we had been converged, and had joined, subsequent events make the projection seem ridiculous.
"back in 2003, the Treasury stated that UK trade could increase by 50 per cent over the next 30 years if we joined the euro" That is a useful bullet if LEAVE are up to using it.
For the benefit of readers here is a link to that old Treasury study on EMU and UK trade.
It's actually a much more balanced piece of work than the recent assessment, with the estimates of trade gains between 5% and 50%.
That range in turn comes from the Treasury's assessment of a range of academic studies, some of which have even more extreme numbers (see the table on p.58 where EMU related trade gains of up to 200% (!!!) are posited).
Needless to say, nothing remotely like that has actually happened in the actual EMU countries in the last 15 years.
Importantly, the methodology used to generate those very big numbers is the one the Treasury has used in its recent exercise on the EU.
So this again shows how cynical the recent Treasury exercise was - relying on a dubious methodology which they knew perfectly well would produce 'big' (but worthless) numbers.
There is a strong smell of burning bridges coming out of the LEAVE side that I think could doom them. This was set out explicitly in Michael Gove's interventions from a couple of days ago. His message was no compromise with the EU, nor did he bother to make a proper economic case for leaving.
The problem is they are not compromising either with people who like the idea of leaving but need some reassurance that Britain won't be hurt economically. Saying the EU knows where to find us and in any case we are hoping the whole edifice will collapse in a pile of dust, is not giving them that reassurance.
It seems that in general most voters do not like the EU at all, and both on the media and in family discussions, a majority are very much attracted to the idea of divorce from the EU and to re-gain control of our Country. However, I think that a lot of us dream for an ideal world but that the reality is different and when the time comes to place the ‘X’ on that piece of paper the dream will awake and many will realise that is all it is, and they will vote for remain. There is simply too much independent evidence and opinions that leave would be a huge ‘leap in the dark’ and the economy will win notwithstanding the pressure by leave to highlight their one trump card on immigration. I am sure many will attack Obama today if he comes out strongly for remain but I suspect many more will silently take it on board and endorse remain. I could be wrong but there does seem to be a shift towards remain recently. I have just posted my ballot for the Welsh Assembly and Crime Commissioners on the 5th May and, at the risk of infuriating leavers, our Government booklet will be arriving soon after on our doormats, together with Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Resignation is a terrible thing. Do you walk around slowly shaking your head?
Man up ffs life is about reaching out not accepting second best. You're a gambler on a betting site, life is not beige its vivacious and bold.
Having run my own business for 40 years before I retired in 2009 I have never resigned from anything and yes as you know I am for remain with all the opportunities that being involved will present us with
What opportunities? There are none that I can see.
Mr. NorthWales, if we vote to Remain then that'll be seen by Brussels as the green light for ever more integration. They know we won't have another vote for a long time.
If Cameron had actually done what he said he would and secured a decent deal, with the threat of recommending we Leave if he didn't get it, then we'd be in a far better position.
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
I see HM Treasury has been caught out for fiddling the figures and claiming Military Pensions as Defence Spending.
HM Treasury is already in huge trouble with MOD as they are claiming back flying pay and retention bonuses from Army Apache pilots which they say we're incorrectly paid. The pay was made for operational flying and amounts to around £800,000 in total. This was an error by MOD not by the pilots but the Treasury is now insisting the pilots pay back up to £30,000 each.
As a result many of the pilots are quitting and there is now a shortage of Apache pilots. It costs around £4 Million to train a new Apache pilot so with around 15% of the crews having quit so far they are looking at a cost of around £100 million to compensate for the losses even if no one else quits.
MoD beancounters will be happy, as they can mothball the unused airframes, and save operational costs of flying them.
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
With the way London is trending, I don't think even Boris could win this time.
Until the Tories hammer private landlords in London and increase home ownership London is going to be a tough ask. There is a lot of anger at landlords and the message that the government are taking them on just isn't cutting through, it would take private rent controls within the M25 for any message to get through.
Why would the Conservatives wish to hammer private landlords?
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
With the way London is trending, I don't think even Boris could win this time.
Until the Tories hammer private landlords in London and increase home ownership London is going to be a tough ask. There is a lot of anger at landlords and the message that the government are taking them on just isn't cutting through, it would take private rent controls within the M25 for any message to get through.
Why would the Conservatives wish to hammer private landlords?
Yes, in the short term the EU is heading for disaster with the migration crisis, Greece, and the unaccountably of the eurocrats and the ECJ. It is simply not sustainable and in 2017 Germany and France face elections that almost certainly will continue to deepen the eurosceptism throughout Europe. We do have allies, Sweden, Denmark and almost certainly Germany to name a few, and we can be in the forefront of change. I am more optimistic if we do remain precisely because of the overwhelming demand for change recently recognised by Juncker's no less. I believe we need a positive vision for Europe from within just as much as the vision that the leave campaign are promoting.
The Northern alliance is:
UK Sweden Denmark Germany Finland Poland Austria Netherlands
The higher up the list the closer they are to our position on integration.
The Southern alliance is:
Belgium Luxembourg Portugal Greece France Spain Italy Cyprus Romania Croatia
The higher up the list the further they are from our position on integration (at least politically, the public have proven time and again they aren't interested in EU integration).
The problem is that the southern nations are much better at playing the game than we are and are much more unified in their approach to the EU than the northern nations, of the northern alliance three countries will never join the Euro, and Poland have been making noises that they will use the Swedish method of forever failing the tests to avoid joining the Euro which make it potentially 4 semi-detached nations out of a group of 8. In the southern alliance only Romania and Croatia are not in the Euro. The northern alliance is interested in reform, competitiveness and has a global outlook overall. The issue is that we don't have majority support within the EU for this agenda, and while the UK or Germany may be strong nations within the EU (and we are, look at how we led on sanctions against Russia against the tide) we don't have the allies to implement our reform agenda, the southern bloc and eastern bloc is able to block any attempt to cut red tape, increase competitiveness or push through trade deals very easily.
Depends on how hardball the contributors are prepared to play over money. The Northern Alliance is broadly those nations paying in, bar Poland. There is a lot of leverage there, should they choose to use it.
How many of the Brexiteers moaning about "foreigners" sticking their oar in and condemning Obama, are welcoming Le Pen this week?
Not me. She can fuck off back to France.
Who invited her ffs?
A former UKIP MEP invited her I believe.
Another dog whistle
The French far right leader Marine Le Pen is to come to Britain in the next couple of weeks to campaign for Brexit.
Ms Le Pen, whose arrival is unlikely to delight mainstream Brexiteers, will appear alongside the former UKIP Euro MP, Janice Atkinson, who belongs to the same group as the French Front National in Strasbourg.
Ms Le Pen, like other French nationalist politicians, is a keen supporter of Brexit because she believe that it would start a chain reaction of decomposition of the European Union.
I know Mrs Atkinson very well, she was expelled from UKIP.
I appreciate you're not interested in facts but that is the case. I know very little about le Pen but from what I gather she is anti semitic which I find abhorrent, in fact I find the dislike of anybody based on colour, culture or religion ridiculous.
From what I gather Marine has very much distanced herself from the FN's anti-semitism and replaced it with a very strident anti-Muslim push. Make of that what you will.
How many of the Brexiteers moaning about "foreigners" sticking their oar in and condemning Obama, are welcoming Le Pen this week?
Not me. She can fuck off back to France.
Who invited her ffs?
A former UKIP MEP invited her I believe.
Another dog whistle
The French far right leader Marine Le Pen is to come to Britain in the next couple of weeks to campaign for Brexit.
Ms Le Pen, whose arrival is unlikely to delight mainstream Brexiteers, will appear alongside the former UKIP Euro MP, Janice Atkinson, who belongs to the same group as the French Front National in Strasbourg.
Ms Le Pen, like other French nationalist politicians, is a keen supporter of Brexit because she believe that it would start a chain reaction of decomposition of the European Union.
I know Mrs Atkinson very well, she was expelled from UKIP.
I appreciate you're not interested in facts but that is the case. I know very little about le Pen but from what I gather she is anti semitic which I find abhorrent, in fact I find the dislike of anybody based on colour, culture or religion ridiculous.
From what I gather Marine has very much distanced herself from the FN's anti-semitism and replaced it with a very strident anti-Muslim push. Make of that what you will.
Basically it means being anti-Jewish is bad but being anti-Muslim is OK.
In other words, kick the minority which is more in the eye. In the 30's it was the Jews. Today, the Muslims.
I remember the American deep South used to be very anti-Jewish. Today, they are the greatest defendant of Israel. Now that they have Hispanics and Muslims to kick around.
Thanks for this Roger. If true, I'm astonished that Leave haven't appointed a central advertiser.
And they've already got their logo, and their slogan, and the campaign is rapidly progressing. Who does those things without getting a professional in? It's the height of arrogance apart from anything else.
And once a strategy is established, they need in-house people who understand it to run it day to day. I think they need a former or current newspaper man (Patrick O'Flynn?), and someone with a bit of a cheeky headline-grabbing instinct. Could they have sent a courier to No. 11 Downing Street with a pocket calculator and a crystal ball addressed to George Osborne after the 'study' was released? The best and most effective responses to it were those that ridiculed it.
It's unacceptable that one of the most prominent people in Leave gives a keynote speech, and the only take-away from it is 'he made a nice speech'.
How many of the Brexiteers moaning about "foreigners" sticking their oar in and condemning Obama, are welcoming Le Pen this week?
Not me. She can fuck off back to France.
Who invited her ffs?
A former UKIP MEP invited her I believe.
Another dog whistle
The French far right leader Marine Le Pen is to come to Britain in the next couple of weeks to campaign for Brexit.
Ms Le Pen, whose arrival is unlikely to delight mainstream Brexiteers, will appear alongside the former UKIP Euro MP, Janice Atkinson, who belongs to the same group as the French Front National in Strasbourg.
Ms Le Pen, like other French nationalist politicians, is a keen supporter of Brexit because she believe that it would start a chain reaction of decomposition of the European Union.
I know Mrs Atkinson very well, she was expelled from UKIP.
I appreciate you're not interested in facts but that is the case. I know very little about le Pen but from what I gather she is anti semitic which I find abhorrent, in fact I find the dislike of anybody based on colour, culture or religion ridiculous.
From what I gather Marine has very much distanced herself from the FN's anti-semitism and replaced it with a very strident anti-Muslim push. Make of that what you will.
Basically it means being anti-Jewish is bad but being anti-Muslim is OK.
In other words, kick the minority which is more in the eye. In the 30's it was the Jews. Today, the Muslims.
I remember the American deep South used to be very anti-Jewish. Today, they are the greatest defendant of Israel. Now that they have Hispanics and Muslims to kick around.
Yes; I don't think your assessment is without merit.
Comments
Cameron's benefit reform is a move in the right direction, but it's not substantial enough.
https://twitter.com/OborneTweets/status/723081448811458560
Osborne's busy buying new Mercedes for African crooks, whilst the Royal Navy's Type 45s sit tied up dockside for 'training' i.e. there's no money for pay for power plant repairs.
Do you really, honestly, believe than we can re-shape and re-define the EU?
Mr. NorthWales, I wish I thought that were credible. It'd be comfortable voting to Remain, if so. But that's utterly at odds with experience, and I simply don't believe there's even a small chance of it happening.
As I said within the EEA, shifting the relationship from free movement to enhanced movement would not be too difficult and achievable within 5-10 years as we would be able to draw other countries into the EEA style relationship and negotiating as a bloc is easier than going it alone, especially with an organisation as hostile to outsiders as the EU.
Can you show me any documentation where Remain has suggested that will happen?
The EU will assume that a vote to stay is the green light for further UK integration.
Cameron demonstrated this year that the EU is pretty much un-reformable from within.
It is more likely that the changes you desire will occur because of Brexit, and the EU will realise they cannot go on as before.
http://order-order.com/2016/04/21/farron-bankrolled-by-disgraced-rwanda-spinners/
'To change Europe from within by creating alliances to attack the non democratic nature of the EU which I hate as much as yourself, bin red tape, and enhance security throughout the EU. I do believe that on a remain vote the UK need to announce that it is not business as usual but that a much more eurosceptic Country and cabinet will fight for the return of powers and an EU that is to the benefit of all, not just Germany and France. '
--------------------------------------------
The problems with this argument are threefold:
1) There is no desire for the kind of 'reform' you are talking about in the EU, in particular what you are talking about is diametrically opposite to what the key countries and the bureaucracy want
2) The UK has signally failed to achieve this kind of reform in 40 years' membership. Indeed, the EU has continued to work steadily towards its goal of a federal Europe. All the UK has been able to do is duck out of some aspects of that.
3) There is no desire to achieve this kind of reform among the UK political elite or UK bureaucracy either. Cameron's empty renegotiation efforts show that.
Other than those minor sticking points, it's a great plan.
http://www.politico.eu/article/brussels-presses-brexit-hold-button-uk-referendum-campaign-eu-legislation/
Do you really, honestly, believe than we can re-shape and re-define the EU?
Yes, in the short term the EU is heading for disaster with the migration crisis, Greece, and the unaccountably of the eurocrats and the ECJ. It is simply not sustainable and in 2017 Germany and France face elections that almost certainly will continue to deepen the eurosceptism throughout Europe. We do have allies, Sweden, Denmark and almost certainly Germany to name a few, and we can be in the forefront of change. I am more optimistic if we do remain precisely because of the overwhelming demand for change recently recognised by Juncker's no less. I believe we need a positive vision for Europe from within just as much as the vision that the leave campaign are promoting.
"It's crunch time for the European Union as multiple crises stretch union to the limit, says Economist Intelligence Unit"
"A potential Brexit, instability in Greece, and the migration crisis could all come to a head in mid-2016, and if that happened it could push the EU over the edge," the report said.
In the UK the Remain camp has extended its lead in recent polling, but the EIU thinks that the risk of Brexit has risen as a result of Prime Minister David Cameron's "botched budget", the resignation of Iain Duncan Smith and a "fumbled response to the Panama leaks".
http://www.cityam.com/239367/its-crunch-time-for-the-european-union-as-multiple-crises-stretch-union-to-the-limit-says-economist-intelligence-unit?utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Email&utm_campaign=160421_CMU
I've read the speech which was a better speech than some of the comments on here had led me to expect. I'll read through the plan when I have a bit more time.
Now I know you are a spoof.
Take offence at the PMs advocacy of his own renegotiation terms.
Take offence at how the PM dealt with Boris in the HOC.
Take offence at the leaflet.
Take offence at the Treasury projections of the costs of Leave.
Take offence at Obama offering a view.
Next they will take offence at the media coverage, the polls and then the result.
Why not simply publish a report from a reputable independent source setting out a costed analysis of how the UK gains in trade, finance and immigration from Leave? After 41 years of being offended it is time to stop whingeing and set out the case.
Hmmm.
I doubt if that's a widespread view among British Christians.
The EU is unreformable, and if we were to leave with Sweden and Denmark following us out of the door it would allow them to push forwards with the integration they so deeply desire and we want no part of.
Why "hmm". The evidence will probably be used in the new trial.
Two Conservative MPs paid themselves a total of £41,000 to run their own high profile not-for-profit anti-EU campaign group, the latest parliamentary register of members’ interests reveals.
Peter Bone and Tom Pursglove received the money on top of their MPs’ salaries for work undertaken on behalf of the Grassroots Out campaign group, an organisation they founded.
http://www.buzzfeed.com/jimwaterson/grassroots-out
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/eu-referendum-brexit-marine-le-pen-french-front-national-uk-visit-a6992301.html
Of course, free movement means she could come without an invitation anyway. All these right-wingers with their alien culture flooding in, where will it end?
If we do remain it has to become a role of the UK government to effect change from within
I've always understood that the racist slogan at the Smethwick election was used by Colin Jordan, not Peter Griffiths.
"back in 2003, the Treasury stated that UK trade could increase by 50 per cent over the next 30 years if we joined the euro"
That is a useful bullet if LEAVE are up to using it.
UK
Sweden
Denmark
Germany
Finland
Poland
Austria
Netherlands
The higher up the list the closer they are to our position on integration.
The Southern alliance is:
Belgium
Luxembourg
Portugal
Greece
France
Spain
Italy
Cyprus
Romania
Croatia
The higher up the list the further they are from our position on integration (at least politically, the public have proven time and again they aren't interested in EU integration).
The problem is that the southern nations are much better at playing the game than we are and are much more unified in their approach to the EU than the northern nations, of the northern alliance three countries will never join the Euro, and Poland have been making noises that they will use the Swedish method of forever failing the tests to avoid joining the Euro which make it potentially 4 semi-detached nations out of a group of 8. In the southern alliance only Romania and Croatia are not in the Euro. The northern alliance is interested in reform, competitiveness and has a global outlook overall. The issue is that we don't have majority support within the EU for this agenda, and while the UK or Germany may be strong nations within the EU (and we are, look at how we led on sanctions against Russia against the tide) we don't have the allies to implement our reform agenda, the southern bloc and eastern bloc is able to block any attempt to cut red tape, increase competitiveness or push through trade deals very easily.
As I said, if I believed the EU reforming in a sensible way (free trade but not political union, at least for those like the UK who want that) was realistic, I'd vote Remain and feel very comfortable doing so.
Sadly, I think there's more chance of the EU imploding than there is of it sensibly reforming.
"If you want a n***** for a neighbour, vote Labour.”
The slogan helped buck national voting trends in 1964. Griffiths refused to disown it: “I would not condemn any man who said that,” he told the Times during his election campaign. “I regard it as a manifestation of popular feeling.”
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/15/britains-most-racist-election-smethwick-50-years-on
Zac Goldsmith has a “mountain to climb” to avoid defeat in the race to be Mayor after Sadiq Khan opened up an 11-point lead in first preference votes, according to a new poll.
The YouGov survey for the Standard put Conservative Mr Goldsmith on 20 per cent, with Labour’s Mr Khan on 31 per cent. The gap was seven points in March.
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/london-mayoral-election-zac-goldsmith-has-mountain-to-climb-as-sadiq-khan-stretches-poll-lead-a3230406.html
I called him out last week, its the c&p regurgitation that gives it away. Even Remainers must be cringing to read it.
On that note a fascinating discussion with Scott Adams on the Trump phenomenon and how he wins the general.
https://www.reddit.com/r/The_Donald/comments/4eglxx/i_am_scott_adams_a_trained_hypnotist_and_creator/
Ukip’s Peter Whittle is on seven per cent, Green Sian Berry is six per cent, Liberal Democrat Caroline Pidgeon is on five per cent, while Respect’s George Galloway is hardly troubling the scorer.
Mr Khan would be short of a majority on first preferences, on 48 per cent, compared to Mr Goldsmith’s 32 per cent. The figures almost mirror headline voting intentions in London, with Conservatives on 30 per cent and Labour 46 per cent.
This Europe is so at odds with itself that it needs changing from within and an opportunity exists for a strong eurosceptic HMG to drive change
Why has it not happened under Cameron and Osborne then? There are no Lib Dems as an excuse now. Why have we had for 6 years a european minister who is just about the most europhile available from our MPs with the exception of Clarke?
I believe that post 23rd June the HMG have to adopt a very eurosceptic stance in the EU and those senior in the leave campaign must take that role
I believe that post 23rd June the HMG have to adopt a very eurosceptic stance in the EU and those senior in the leave campaign must take that role
I believe that post 23rd June, HMG will continue to adopt a Europhile stance in the EU, and no senior members of the Leave campaign will be appointed to a role of any significance.
The evidence so far seems to support my view. Good luck.
Vanilla mail for you
I believe that post 23rd June, HMG will continue to adopt a Europhile stance in the EU, and no senior members of the Leave campaign will be appointed to a role of any significance.
The evidence so far seems to support my view. Good luck.
I would be annoyed if the eurosceptics were not appointed to cabinet positions, indeed I just cannot see Michael Gove not being either Foreign Secretary or Chancellor in the new post June cabinet
Dave and George would be awesome by your metric?
As a result many of the pilots are quitting and there is now a shortage of Apache pilots. It costs around £4 Million to train a new Apache pilot so with around 15% of the crews having quit so far they are looking at a cost of around £100 million to compensate for the losses even if no one else quits.
That is a useful bullet if LEAVE are up to using it.
For the benefit of readers here is a link to that old Treasury study on EMU and UK trade.
It's actually a much more balanced piece of work than the recent assessment, with the estimates of trade gains between 5% and 50%.
That range in turn comes from the Treasury's assessment of a range of academic studies, some of which have even more extreme numbers (see the table on p.58 where EMU related trade gains of up to 200% (!!!) are posited).
Needless to say, nothing remotely like that has actually happened in the actual EMU countries in the last 15 years.
Importantly, the methodology used to generate those very big numbers is the one the Treasury has used in its recent exercise on the EU.
So this again shows how cynical the recent Treasury exercise was - relying on a dubious methodology which they knew perfectly well would produce 'big' (but worthless) numbers.
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20080107205404/http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/adsuf03_456.pdf
The problem is they are not compromising either with people who like the idea of leaving but need some reassurance that Britain won't be hurt economically. Saying the EU knows where to find us and in any case we are hoping the whole edifice will collapse in a pile of dust, is not giving them that reassurance.
NEW THREAD NEW THREAD
If Cameron had actually done what he said he would and secured a decent deal, with the threat of recommending we Leave if he didn't get it, then we'd be in a far better position.
Won't happen and can't happen.
In other words, kick the minority which is more in the eye. In the 30's it was the Jews. Today, the Muslims.
I remember the American deep South used to be very anti-Jewish. Today, they are the greatest defendant of Israel. Now that they have Hispanics and Muslims to kick around.
They need to hire these people: http://www.ries.com/
And once a strategy is established, they need in-house people who understand it to run it day to day. I think they need a former or current newspaper man (Patrick O'Flynn?), and someone with a bit of a cheeky headline-grabbing instinct. Could they have sent a courier to No. 11 Downing Street with a pocket calculator and a crystal ball addressed to George Osborne after the 'study' was released? The best and most effective responses to it were those that ridiculed it.
It's unacceptable that one of the most prominent people in Leave gives a keynote speech, and the only take-away from it is 'he made a nice speech'.