Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
Mr. Sykes, both sides have horrendous proponents (and sensible fellows). Base your vote on the arguments, I'd urge you, not whether you agree with or like the individuals arguing for a given side. (Leave may have Fox, but Remain has Blair).
This vote will determine our future probably for decades.
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
For what it's worth in case you'd like an alternative mildly-expressed view to consider, this is the blog I wrote about the issue which you may not have seen but which was generally well-received. It tried to take a step back from the detail and look at the overall issue:
Mr. Sykes, both sides have horrendous proponents (and sensible fellows). Base your vote on the arguments, I'd urge you, not whether you agree with or like the individuals arguing for a given side. (Leave may have Fox, but Remain has Blair).
This vote will determine our future probably for decades.
Good morning all. Don't say you haven't been warned, and will it be a voluntary army or a conscript army..
It so "secret" it's the front page lead in the "Times" ....
Being both aged warriors we might escape conscription unless you fancy the role of Corporal Jones .... "The EU .. They don't like it up em ...."
Mind you I have quite fond memories of my army days.
The British Army, Mike?
Yes Sir, 1952-55.
Fantastic. Good for you.
on topic, we put ourselves under command blue helmet-wise, SACEUR is a non-Brit (doesn't get more integrated than that), I'm pretty sure an EU army would fail on redundancy rather than political disagreement.
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
Yes, I read it too. It's very strong. But unlike Casino I do not think the 23rd June is effectively our last chance. If things progress in the way he feels they will, then there will be another referendum and the UK will leave the EU. But for me it is still an "if", while I also see real benefits in still being part of the club. Throw in the assorted members or the right wing establishment pushing for a leave and all that makes me Remain. This time.
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
For what it's worth in case you'd like an alternative mildly-expressed view to consider, this is the blog I wrote about the issue which you may not have seen but which was generally well-received. It tried to take a step back from the detail and look at the overall issue:
Yes, a good piece too Nick, which I can also strongly identify with because you highlight the fundamental concerns that prevent me embracing the Leave case.
It's such a difficult call, I am not very happy that Cameron has foisted this impossible choice upon us!
Littlejohn in he mail highlighting a rather nasty advert from reman campaign which is now under investigation. As it was mentioned , had leave gone anywhere near this with similar caricatures the remain camp and the left would have been shrieking racism from the rooftops. As it is not a peep.
The man obviously weights more than the woman. How could the seesaw be in balance?
Advertisers clearly don't even have a rudimentary knowledge of physics.
It looks like some freelance operation. No paid advertiser would come up with anything as crass and obvious.
Well, NO:
Equalities activists behind a ‘racist’ Brexit poster are facing investigation Operation Black Vote sparked outrage after releasing a poster featuring an aggressive white skinhead and an elderly Asian woman The Charity Commission wants to know why group calls itself a charity Cabinet handed £28,000 to what appears to be a private company
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
Yes, I read it too. It's very strong. But unlike Casino I do not think the 23rd June is effectively our last chance. If things progress in the way he feels they will, then there will be another referendum and the UK will leave the EU. But for me it is still an "if", while I also see real benefits in still being part of the club. Throw in the assorted members or the right wing establishment pushing for a leave and all that makes me Remain. This time.
Agree with that too. I am absolutely certain there will be a new Treaty within 10 years or less, which it will be impossible for a UK Govt to consent to without another referendum. And that new Treaty will absolutely be a bridge too far, and the chance to force through the renegotiation we really need. But we won't get that opportunity if we've already left!
Just had my ballot paper through the door (I live in Ireland). Wonder if at all the number of British living in the EU have been reckoned in the polling? About 1.5 million (Inc 700,000 wrinklies in Spain) live in the EU. Could swing it to Remain.
"...Beppe Grillo’s Five Star Movement may send shivers down every spine in Brussels (and a few in Westminster) but why do a quarter of Italians now back him? How did the party of Geert Wilders, once banned from entering Britain, end up the most popular in the Netherlands? What took the True Finns to government in Helsinki?
Several million votes were cast for populist parties at the last European Parliament election and it now seems they were getting warmed up, rather than letting off steam. In country after country, the answers tend to be the same. The angry voters tend to be the losers of globalisation, who see the economy moving in a way that disadvantages them and their children.
AN SNP MSP who sends her children to private school has been accused of hypocrisy after using her maiden speech at Holyrood to proclaim that "education is not a commodity to be bought or sold.
But that's not hypocrisy, just a simple statement of fact.
A good education is not a commodity at all - it's not readily available from multiple sources and with a clear market price. It's a specialty product, highly valued and priced accordingly.
I think people have forgotten what hypocrisy actually means. If she does not hide the fact that she sends her kids to private school she is not a hypocrite. According to the article she made the decision because the private school provided "wrap around care" not available in the State sector. She is entitled to campaign for the idea that such care should be available in the State sector whilst facing the reality that it doesn't for her own children.
Her argument that education is not a commodity to be bought and sold is just plainly wrong but that is a different matter.
Her timing, on the day before:
a Sutton Trust report was published showing Scottish young people from the fifth most advantaged areas are four times more likely to go to university than those born into the poorest 20 per cent of areas. The equivalent figure in England is 2.4 times.
The MSP later added: "Educational opportunity and social mobility must be protected. Universal benefits are a principle worth fighting for."
Is at best unfortunate, especially given the 'universal' benefit is disadvantaging the poorest.
Why didn't she tell the Holyrood chamber about the virtues of independent schools, seeing as she clearly values them so much.?
There's nothing inconsistent about opposing the current situation as she sees it, while doing her best for her kids in that situation.
In other words, 'do as I say, not do as I do'?
The MSP in question has proudly proclaimed her left wing credentials and worked with a group which campaigns for the ending of charitable status of Independent Schools.
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
It's a compelling piece.
But, as per @SouthamObserver's point, it assumes that this is our last chance. It is not. Leavers set aside a particular flavour of vitriol whenever it is pointed out that we can have another referendum in future (or indeed vote in a party whose manifesto pledge is to leave the EU).
I think the problem is more that they fear a future govt will agree to ever closer union; their concern is not so much the EU's move to a superstate, as our own government's acquiescence in that move.
Many of them can't reconcile the concepts of "future craven UK govt" and "democratically-elected future craven UK govt".
Nixon was also lucky with his opponents, he could not beat JFK and probably not Bobby Kennedy but he could beat Humphrey or McGovern, Hillary could not beat Obama and probably not Kasich or Rubio but she can beat Trump and Cruz
Littlejohn in he mail highlighting a rather nasty advert from reman campaign which is now under investigation. As it was mentioned , had leave gone anywhere near this with similar caricatures the remain camp and the left would have been shrieking racism from the rooftops. As it is not a peep.
The man obviously weights more than the woman. How could the seesaw be in balance?
Advertisers clearly don't even have a rudimentary knowledge of physics.
It looks like some freelance operation. No paid advertiser would come up with anything as crass and obvious.
It's Saatchi & Saatchi......the Charlotte St gang will have marked your card!
To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, there's only one thing worse than having your advertising talked about....and thats not having it talked about.....
Funny how LEAVErs seem to have jumped to the conclusion that the obnoxious thug is a LEAVEr......
Where did you hear it was made by Saatchi? it's just awful. If it is them it's not the first crap ad they've done but it just doesn't look like a poster more an illustration for a story.
The ad shows an aggressive white ‘thug’ and a south Asian woman wearing a sari sitting on a see-saw, and was produced by advertising giant Saatchi and Saatchi for campaign group Operation Black Vote.
Just had my ballot paper through the door (I live in Ireland). Wonder if at all the number of British living in the EU have been reckoned in the polling? About 1.5 million (Inc 700,000 wrinklies in Spain) live in the EU. Could swing it to Remain.
I think historically the overseas turnout is very low, but may well be far higher on this issue. Its not going to be near 1.5 million though.
Probably the bigger factor in the expat vote will be on those who aspire to retire without hassle to the sun, or those who may inheirit property there. There are also those that do not want their in -laws moving back to Blighty!
Mr. Sykes, if you think there'll be another treaty to our detriment, necessitating another referendum, and we'll leave anyway, why not vote Leave now?
That would save us a decade of more entanglement, which will only deepen the difficulties of withdrawal.
If you're in a relationship that's going nowhere and you think the other person will, in a year or two, propose, it's better to end it promptly than wait, say no, and part in more difficult circumstances.
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
Yes, I read it too. It's very strong. But unlike Casino I do not think the 23rd June is effectively our last chance. If things progress in the way he feels they will, then there will be another referendum and the UK will leave the EU. But for me it is still an "if", while I also see real benefits in still being part of the club.
That's where I am too. Yes, the Eurozone needs to integrate further. No, we don't need to be a part of that. And if the EU develops in ways inimical to the interests of the UK, then we can leave. 23rd June is not our 'last chance'......but if we do leave, it will be for decades, at least.
I would agree however she would be the Democratic Nixon
A 2 time presidential winner? I'm sure the Dems would grab that with both hands, near-impeachment & resignation notwithstanding.
Would they grab the Nixon of 1972 rather than 1968 (or 1960) though? I'm sure they'd grab the *result*, but there's no chance of that.
Probably not, but then that's where comparisons fall down. As things currently stand I can't see Emailgate approaching the gravity of Watergate, though I accept there may be new, better scandals in the woodpile.
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
Thank you for your very kind words, Bob. I won't be giving up on you :-)
Mr. Root, if we vote to Remain and an EU army subsequently comes about, would that alter your view on whether we should be in the EU (whether a full shift to Leave, or something that makes you have second thoughts)?
"And of course one can see why the junior doctors wished to maintain the pretence that the dispute was primarily over patient care and patient ‘safety’. That ennobled them while discrediting a heartless government. It gave the dispute a righteous quality and everyone enjoys the warmth generated by self-righteousness.
But beneath the sanctimonious proclamations of moral superiority lurked an eternal truth: it was just about cash. Cold, hard, cash. And, of course, politics. There’s nothing wrong with that but it’s as well to be honest about such things. Something to remember next time."
Nixon was also lucky with his opponents, he could not beat JFK and probably not Bobby Kennedy but he could beat Humphrey or McGovern, Hillary could not beat Obama and probably not Kasich or Rubio but she can beat Trump and Cruz
Not so, old chap. Hillary is withering on the vine like a grape with all the juice expunged. She'll be lucky not to be indicted for more than misdemeanours.
Mr. Sykes, if you think there'll be another treaty to our detriment, necessitating another referendum, and we'll leave anyway, why not vote Leave now?
That would save us a decade of more entanglement, which will only deepen the difficulties of withdrawal.
If you're in a relationship that's going nowhere and you think the other person will, in a year or two, propose, it's better to end it promptly than wait, say no, and part in more difficult circumstances.
No, I think there will be a new Treaty, the UK will have a vote on "should the UK approve the XXX Treaty", we'll vote No, and get lots of concessions and a fundamental re-alignment of our relationship with the EU - whilst staying in it.
My starting point is that I do actually want us to be part of the EU, I just don't agree with what it has become or the direction it is heading in. Cameron is asking us "in or out". I'd have liked him to have waited until the question could have been "do we go further - yes or no" and then I could have answered "no".
"And of course one can see why the junior doctors wished to maintain the pretence that the dispute was primarily over patient care and patient ‘safety’. That ennobled them while discrediting a heartless government. It gave the dispute a righteous quality and everyone enjoys the warmth generated by self-righteousness.
But beneath the sanctimonious proclamations of moral superiority lurked an eternal truth: it was just about cash. Cold, hard, cash. And, of course, politics. There’s nothing wrong with that but it’s as well to be honest about such things. Something to remember next time."
Other way round. Hunt maintained it was about safety. The quacks' vexation was that the doctors who (let us not forget) were already working weekends would get less money.
Bob__Sykes - does Nick mention his idea that the real benefit of mass immigration has been that the English were too comfortable, too content - and mass immigration has dragged them into the real world. Though I think he meant 3rd world.
I would agree however she would be the Democratic Nixon
A 2 time presidential winner? I'm sure the Dems would grab that with both hands, near-impeachment & resignation notwithstanding.
Against Trump this year and Cruz in 2020 that is possible though so is her ultimate Watergate and resignation too even if she survives e-mailgate
Unlikely she'd stand again at 73 though, so problem solved!
Reagan did at the same age (actually, slightly older).
Barring health or terminal political trouble, she will undoubtedly run again in 2020 if she wins this time.
As well as Reagan, she's also younger than Trump is now, and McCain was when he ran in 2008, and she'll still be still be younger in 2020 than Dole was when he ran in 1996 or than Sanders is now.
Not so, old chap. Hillary is withering on the vine like a grape with all the juice expunged. She'll be lucky not to be indicted for more than misdemeanours.
If Clinton is "withering on the vine" why is she still leading in most national polling and the all important swing states?
Sorry, but I can't see another referendum (not one that I'll see anyway). This one was given through gritted teeth for electoral benefit. And even if it's won, it will have been too close for comfort.
What variety of UK government is going to propose it? You can rule out the Tories and Labour.
A new Treaty? No way, just a tidying up operation, crossing a few 't's and dotting a few 'i's. The intention was all in the 1957 papers and we've already voted on that in 2016.
A commodity is any object that can be bought, sold or marketed. You are, on reflection, half right: education might be better described as a service, since it is not an object in the sense that a tea-bag (or a Rolls-Royce, for that matter) is - but it is certainly marketable. "Speciality products" are merely a sub-set of commodities.
Wrong, although it is often used like that:
A commodity is a basic good used in commerce that is interchangeable with other commodities of the same type. Commodities are most often used as inputs in the production of other goods or services. The quality of a given commodity may differ slightly, but it is essentially uniform across producers.
It refers to low value, basic goods - usually inputs - such as oil, coal, commodity chemicals, etc.
Anything which is a differentiated product is not, by definition, interchangeable. For example, an education at Eton is very different to one at Muggleton Comprehensive and you would not expect them to be priced the same.
I was on a course once where it was argued that there is no such thing as a commodity, clever marketing types like Roger can differentiate goods even when they are surely exactly the same.
Examples are Cravendale milk (which comes from the same effing cows as other milk) and people who refuse to buy petrol from supermarkets but go to Esso or BP instead to buy the standard 95 RON product despite the fact it's the same stuff bought from the same refineries (Hint: Tesco do not own oil wells...)
After leaving the civil service it's former head Bob Kerslake has done a series of jobs for left leaning organisations.. Here is the latest, working for Corbyn.
Miss Plato, they better watch out, or Corbyn will throw the little red book at them.
Mr. Sykes, I'm afraid I disagree. The 'referendum lock' wasn't used when powers shifted to Brussels (opting back into some EU law enforcement directives, I think). Not only that, the experience of this referendum isn't going to endear the process to future leaders of the Conservative Party, and Labour are much more united in favour of the EU.
Mr. Sykes, if you think there'll be another treaty to our detriment, necessitating another referendum, and we'll leave anyway, why not vote Leave now?
That would save us a decade of more entanglement, which will only deepen the difficulties of withdrawal.
If you're in a relationship that's going nowhere and you think the other person will, in a year or two, propose, it's better to end it promptly than wait, say no, and part in more difficult circumstances.
I think Dan Hannan put it well:
If this is how they treat us when we want to Leave, imagine how they'll treat us if we Remain?
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
Yes, I read it too. It's very strong. But unlike Casino I do not think the 23rd June is effectively our last chance. If things progress in the way he feels they will, then there will be another referendum and the UK will leave the EU. But for me it is still an "if", while I also see real benefits in still being part of the club.
That's where I am too. Yes, the Eurozone needs to integrate further. No, we don't need to be a part of that. And if the EU develops in ways inimical to the interests of the UK, then we can leave. 23rd June is not our 'last chance'......but if we do leave, it will be for decades, at least.
I also think we'll get a better deal further down the line. If the Eurozone does move to full federalisation it is in no-one's interests to pretend that the UK can be a part of that and it will be in no-one's interests to play silly buggers. I think a two-speed Europe will emerge. It would be good to be a part of making sure that happens.
Unlikely she'd stand again at 73 though, so problem solved!
Reagan was 74 when re-elected in a landslide.
..... and IIRC you, yourself Jack, were pushing 103 when you last won the highly prestigious PB.com annual TOTY award in a *cough* keenly fought contest.
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
It's a compelling piece.
But, as per @SouthamObserver's point, it assumes that this is our last chance. It is not. Leavers set aside a particular flavour of vitriol whenever it is pointed out that we can have another referendum in future (or indeed vote in a party whose manifesto pledge is to leave the EU).
I think the problem is more that they fear a future govt will agree to ever closer union; their concern is not so much the EU's move to a superstate, as our own government's acquiescence in that move.
Many of them can't reconcile the concepts of "future craven UK govt" and "democratically-elected future craven UK govt".
I don't fear any "big bang" approach to political union, which could just as easily run into trouble on the Continent as here.
I do fear the slow, incremental, steady transfer of power from national, to supranational institutions, always presented as a pragmatic tidying-up exercise.
"And of course one can see why the junior doctors wished to maintain the pretence that the dispute was primarily over patient care and patient ‘safety’. That ennobled them while discrediting a heartless government. It gave the dispute a righteous quality and everyone enjoys the warmth generated by self-righteousness.
But beneath the sanctimonious proclamations of moral superiority lurked an eternal truth: it was just about cash. Cold, hard, cash. And, of course, politics. There’s nothing wrong with that but it’s as well to be honest about such things. Something to remember next time."
Other way round. Hunt maintained it was about safety. The quacks' vexation was that the doctors who (let us not forget) were already working weekends would get less money.
One of many issues...
Who is surprised that the BMA JDC discussed their negotiating position and tactics? I would be surprised if they did not!
I would also be surprised if the DoH did not have similar discussions on their negotiating points and tactics.
IDS still on top form today on Sky - lots of plain speaking and confident. He's not taking any nonsense from interviewers.
Which is what the recent "trust" rating confirms compared to Cameron. I do worry about using Gove in the few weeks left. Gove's ratings are slightly under Cameron's. Iain Dale is very positive about Andrea Leadsom in ConHome today.
Miss Plato, they better watch out, or Corbyn will throw the little red book at them.
Mr. Sykes, I'm afraid I disagree. The 'referendum lock' wasn't used when powers shifted to Brussels (opting back into some EU law enforcement directives, I think). Not only that, the experience of this referendum isn't going to endear the process to future leaders of the Conservative Party, and Labour are much more united in favour of the EU.
Then UKIP will be winning elections pretty soon, surely.
AN SNP MSP who sends her children to private school has been accused of hypocrisy after using her maiden speech at Holyrood to proclaim that "education is not a commodity to be bought or sold.
But that's not hypocrisy, just a simple statement of fact.
A good education is not a commodity at all - it's not readily available from multiple sources and with a clear market price. It's a specialty product, highly valued and priced accordingly.
I think people have forgotten what hypocrisy actually means. If she does not hide the fact that she sends her kids to private school she is not a hypocrite. According to the article she made the decision because the private school provided "wrap around care" not available in the State sector. She is entitled to campaign for the idea that such care should be available in the State sector whilst facing the reality that it doesn't for her own children.
Her argument that education is not a commodity to be bought and sold is just plainly wrong but that is a different matter.
Her timing, on the day before:
a Sutton Trust report was published showing Scottish young people from the fifth most advantaged areas are four times more likely to go to university than those born into the poorest 20 per cent of areas. The equivalent figure in England is 2.4 times.
The MSP later added: "Educational opportunity and social mobility must be protected. Universal benefits are a principle worth fighting for."
Is at best unfortunate, especially given the 'universal' benefit is disadvantaging the poorest.
Why didn't she tell the Holyrood chamber about the virtues of independent schools, seeing as she clearly values them so much.?
There's nothing inconsistent about opposing the current situation as she sees it, while doing her best for her kids in that situation.
In other words, 'do as I say, not do as I do'?
The MSP in question has proudly proclaimed her left wing credentials and worked with a group which campaigns for the ending of charitable status of Independent Schools.
A commodity is any object that can be bought, sold or marketed. You are, on reflection, half right: education might be better described as a service, since it is not an object in the sense that a tea-bag (or a Rolls-Royce, for that matter) is - but it is certainly marketable. "Speciality products" are merely a sub-set of commodities.
Wrong, although it is often used like that:
A commodity is a basic good used in commerce that is interchangeable with other commodities of the same type. Commodities are most often used as inputs in the production of other goods or services. The quality of a given commodity may differ slightly, but it is essentially uniform across producers.
It refers to low value, basic goods - usually inputs - such as oil, coal, commodity chemicals, etc.
Anything which is a differentiated product is not, by definition, interchangeable. For example, an education at Eton is very different to one at Muggleton Comprehensive and you would not expect them to be priced the same.
I was on a course once where it was argued that there is no such thing as a commodity, clever marketing types like Roger can differentiate goods even when they are surely exactly the same.
Examples are Cravendale milk (which comes from the same effing cows as other milk) and people who refuse to buy petrol from supermarkets but go to Esso or BP instead to buy the standard 95 RON product despite the fact it's the same stuff bought from the same refineries (Hint: Tesco do not own oil wells...)
Look at bottled water sales FFS
Cravendale Milk is treated for longevity so it lasts better. It is different to regular milk. I buy it for when I am camping, as it doesn't turn for at least 4-5 days even without refrigeration.
"...Beppe Grillo’s Five Star Movement may send shivers down every spine in Brussels (and a few in Westminster) but why do a quarter of Italians now back him? How did the party of Geert Wilders, once banned from entering Britain, end up the most popular in the Netherlands? What took the True Finns to government in Helsinki?
Several million votes were cast for populist parties at the last European Parliament election and it now seems they were getting warmed up, rather than letting off steam. In country after country, the answers tend to be the same. The angry voters tend to be the losers of globalisation, who see the economy moving in a way that disadvantages them and their children.
Although, in the interest of balance, it's worth pointing out that Beppe Grillo's Five Star Movement is not really like the PVV or UKIP or the FN or SYRIZA or Podemos. Instead they are, if we're going to be kind, simply batshit crazy.
Among the policy positions they have had are calls for: a single European government and a single European language (presumably Italian, but not specified).
Beppe Grillo stands up and says "I see that Italian government has debts equivalent to 120% of GDP. Who do we owe the money to? That's what I want to know?" Well, S. Grillo, that's an easy one. Most Italian debt (unlike with Spain, Ireland, or the UK) is owned by Italian savers, banks and insurance companies. You owe it to yourself: now you can cancel it if you like, but only if you wish to then have to borrow money to recapitalise the banks you just busted.
Even his Five Stars themselves are odd: does Italy really lack clean water?
Yes, he feeds on an anti-establishment mood, and a feeling the elite haven't been doing enough for the people. But it's hard not to conclude that a Beppe Grillo led Italy would be a very, very strange thing.
..... and IIRC you, yourself Jack, were pushing 103 when you last won the highly prestigious PB.com annual TOTY award.
As you know I don't like to mention my political forecasting qualities but as the incumbent TOTY ... and likely to exceed Liz Windsor's reign .... it's always pleasing when a fellow PBer allows one to puff out the chest and sigh gracefully in appreciation.
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
It's a compelling piece.
But, as per @SouthamObserver's point, it assumes that this is our last chance. It is not. Leavers set aside a particular flavour of vitriol whenever it is pointed out that we can have another referendum in future (or indeed vote in a party whose manifesto pledge is to leave the EU).
I think the problem is more that they fear a future govt will agree to ever closer union; their concern is not so much the EU's move to a superstate, as our own government's acquiescence in that move.
Many of them can't reconcile the concepts of "future craven UK govt" and "democratically-elected future craven UK govt".
I don't fear any "big bang" approach to political union, which could just as easily run into trouble on the Continent as here.
I do fear the slow, incremental, steady transfer of power from national, to supranational institutions, always presented as a pragmatic tidying-up exercise.
Cameron speech in Japan on sky pushing the in vote. Is this covered by Purdah? Or perhaps not?
Predicted.
I have now read, twice, the superb blogpost by Casino Royale, which really does articulate well all the arguments in the EU debate in a clear, balanced and plausible way, and congratulations to him for that. The first thing I have read in this process which really does "set it all out".
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
Yes, I read it too. It's very strong. But unlike Casino I do not think the 23rd June is effectively our last chance. If things progress in the way he feels they will, then there will be another referendum and the UK will leave the EU. But for me it is still an "if", while I also see real benefits in still being part of the club.
That's where I am too. Yes, the Eurozone needs to integrate further. No, we don't need to be a part of that. And if the EU develops in ways inimical to the interests of the UK, then we can leave. 23rd June is not our 'last chance'......but if we do leave, it will be for decades, at least.
I also think we'll get a better deal further down the line. If the Eurozone does move to full federalisation it is in no-one's interests to pretend that the UK can be a part of that and it will be in no-one's interests to play silly buggers. I think a two-speed Europe will emerge. It would be good to be a part of making sure that happens.
Yes, because if we can't get to a 'two-speed' Europe, our exit would likely spell the end of the EU outside the Euro.....
Mr. Observer, the wide but shallow approach UKIP has had for recent elections has led to very poor results. However, if it actually did get enough support it could take dozens of seats, many from Labour in parts of the north that would never turn blue.
Continual disappointment would be my prediction, however.
'But beneath the sanctimonious proclamations of moral superiority lurked an eternal truth: it was just about cash. Cold, hard, cash. And, of course, politics. There’s nothing wrong with that but it’s as well to be honest about such things. Something to remember next time."
Mr. P, you don't know when we'll have a recession inside or outside the EU. The next time we have one our position will be best if we have the maximum degree of flexibility to deal with it, without meddling from Brussels' bureaucrats.
Just had my ballot paper through the door (I live in Ireland). Wonder if at all the number of British living in the EU have been reckoned in the polling? About 1.5 million (Inc 700,000 wrinklies in Spain) live in the EU. Could swing it to Remain.
I think historically the overseas turnout is very low, but may well be far higher on this issue. Its not going to be near 1.5 million though.
Probably the bigger factor in the expat vote will be on those who aspire to retire without hassle to the sun, or those who may inheirit property there. There are also those that do not want their in -laws moving back to Blighty!
Agree it won't be anywhere near 1.5m, but this is an unusually relevant vote for the overseas voter. I can imagine particularly in Spain turnout faring a lot higher than usual. And of course there's NI to factor into the equation - it could put our relationship with Ireland under some strain (the Irish government are particular anxious we should stay). Those are two groups of voters which as far as I'm aware are not factored into polling and a combined electorate of 3 million (give or take). In an even race this could add 1 or 2% to the Remain side.
A commodity is any object that can be bought, sold or marketed. You are, on reflection, half right: education might be better described as a service, since it is not an object in the sense that a tea-bag (or a Rolls-Royce, for that matter) is - but it is certainly marketable. "Speciality products" are merely a sub-set of commodities.
Wrong, although it is often used like that:
A commodity is a basic good used in commerce that is interchangeable with other commodities of the same type. Commodities are most often used as inputs in the production of other goods or services. The quality of a given commodity may differ slightly, but it is essentially uniform across producers.
It refers to low value, basic goods - usually inputs - such as oil, coal, commodity chemicals, etc.
Anything which is a differentiated product is not, by definition, interchangeable. For example, an education at Eton is very different to one at Muggleton Comprehensive and you would not expect them to be priced the same.
I was on a course once where it was argued that there is no such thing as a commodity, clever marketing types like Roger can differentiate goods even when they are surely exactly the same.
Examples are Cravendale milk (which comes from the same effing cows as other milk) and people who refuse to buy petrol from supermarkets but go to Esso or BP instead to buy the standard 95 RON product despite the fact it's the same stuff bought from the same refineries (Hint: Tesco do not own oil wells...)
Look at bottled water sales FFS
Cravendale Milk is treated for longevity so it lasts better. It is different to regular milk. I buy it for when I am camping, as it doesn't turn for at least 4-5 days even without refrigeration.
And with refrigeration it lasts much longer than regular milk both opened and unopened. It is a different product.
Its just like the straight bananas and the European army, its all talk and no chance of it happening. its just scaremongering.
Not scaremongering just facts that you find inconvenient.
Could you reference the 'fact', please?
Squareroot rather stupidly referenced straight bananas as scaremongering.
EC Regulation 2257/94 was responsible for this. And before anyone claims it didn't ban anything it is worth pointing out that when it was eventually replaced by another regulation the reasoning provided in the EU press release was:
In this era of high prices and growing demand, it makes no sense to throw these products away or destroy them."
"A million more young people are likely to find themselves living with their parents over the next decade, according to the insurance company Aviva. The main reason is the affordability of housing, the company said.
The study forecasts that 3.8 million people aged between 21 and 34 will be living at home by 2025, a third more than at the moment. The number of households containing two or more families is also expected to rise, from 1.5 million to 2.2 million."
"Figures from the 2011 census show that 1.1 million households in England and Wales were officially overcrowded.
"In London 11.3% of all homes were overcrowded, rising to 25% in the London borough of Newham, the worst affected area in the country."
Earlier in the week the BBC ran a programme called "The Last Whites in the East End". It was about Newham.
Mr. P, you don't know when we'll have a recession inside or outside the EU.
We know there will be one if we leave now.
Even IDS says that is a price worth paying. Others disagree
No we don't.
NIESR (hardly a pro-Brexit outfit) says 1.7% growth in 2017. Bear in mind we'd still be in the EU for at least 2 years. The Treasury says it'll be basically dead flat.
And there are all sorts of policy levers and mechanisms the Government can use to reassure business and stimulate the economy. None of which it is currently including in its forecasts.
The plot thickens. This was done by Saatchi Saatchi not M&C who are currently working for Remain. Maybe that explains why they're not worried about the collateral damage?
Mr. P, you don't know when we'll have a recession inside or outside the EU. The next time we have one our position will be best if we have the maximum degree of flexibility to deal with it, without meddling from Brussels' bureaucrats.
Would you be able to give perhaps 5 pieces of meddling which you think will materially hinder HMGs policy responses to a recession?
Mr. P, the UK's due a recession whether we stay or leave. If we leave, we're better placed to handle our own affairs without throwing such vast sums at Brussels in return for them interfering.
It's taken forty years to proceed from a "Common Market" to a "European Union". It may take another forty years to finalise a "United States of Europe". Those pesky voters have to be mollycoddled along to do what's best for them.
If you try to force-feed them all in one go, they'll choke on it, so you proceed (salami-slice if you wish) slowly. But the direction of travel is inexorable. Look back to the fifties when it was just a twinkle in their eyes, a dream without a timescale.
Project fear will keep things on track, although WW3 was a bit over the top. And another referendum is possible in a few years, when a generation of younger, naïve voters have grown accustomed to the new status quo.
A commodity is any object that can be bought, sold or marketed. You are, on reflection, half right: education might be better described as a service, since it is not an object in the sense that a tea-bag (or a Rolls-Royce, for that matter) is - but it is certainly marketable. "Speciality products" are merely a sub-set of commodities.
Wrong, although it is often used like that:
A commodity is a basic good used in commerce that is interchangeable with other commodities of the same type. Commodities are most often used as inputs in the production of other goods or services. The quality of a given commodity may differ slightly, but it is essentially uniform across producers.
It refers to low value, basic goods - usually inputs - such as oil, coal, commodity chemicals, etc.
Anything which is a differentiated product is not, by definition, interchangeable. For example, an education at Eton is very different to one at Muggleton Comprehensive and you would not expect them to be priced the same.
I was on a course once where it was argued that there is no such thing as a commodity, clever marketing types like Roger can differentiate goods even when they are surely exactly the same.
Examples are Cravendale milk (which comes from the same effing cows as other milk) and people who refuse to buy petrol from supermarkets but go to Esso or BP instead to buy the standard 95 RON product despite the fact it's the same stuff bought from the same refineries (Hint: Tesco do not own oil wells...)
Look at bottled water sales FFS
Cravendale Milk is treated for longevity so it lasts better. It is different to regular milk. I buy it for when I am camping, as it doesn't turn for at least 4-5 days even without refrigeration.
And with refrigeration it lasts much longer than regular milk both opened and unopened. It is a different product.
The secret is to seek out value ...... Aldi's "Cowbelle" Fresh Filter Milk, produced by Arla (who also produce "Cravendale") costs 99p for TWO LITRES, compared with £1.15 for ONE LITRE of Cravendale as charged by the greedy supermarkets.
Not so, old chap. Hillary is withering on the vine like a grape with all the juice expunged. She'll be lucky not to be indicted for more than misdemeanours.
If Clinton is "withering on the vine" why is she still leading in most national polling and the all important swing states?
Withering is a process. Although she is still leading, her leads are nothing like what they were two months ago.
Obviously, we shouldn't just project current trends but there's a huge amount of uncertainty that 'events' could create between now and November and Trump has a very realistic chance of winning - if, at present, a lesser one than Hillary.
IDS still on top form today on Sky - lots of plain speaking and confident. He's not taking any nonsense from interviewers.
Which is what the recent "trust" rating confirms compared to Cameron. I do worry about using Gove in the few weeks left. Gove's ratings are slightly under Cameron's. Iain Dale is very positive about Andrea Leadsom in ConHome today.
Me two, Gove doesn't have the common touch at all.
Comments
It's hard to read it and come away thinking "yep, i'll vote Remain - more of the same please", you'd really have to be the most committed Europhile to vote Remain.
And yet.... - I think back to Diane "We Just Don't Know" James and Liam Fox frothing away last night, next to the far more measured, reasonable and normal Johnson and Salmond. No doubt in my mind last night which pairing I felt most empathy towards.
I'm still torn, everything Casino says resonates with me and I'm with him 99% of the way. But can I say I'll walk into the polling booth on the 23rd and vote Leave. I'm not sure.
I have shared it on Facebook and it's been well received by a handful of my friends already.
1000 seconds
here comes the Air Vice-Marshal,
he's got four rings on his arm
but he's only got one arsehole.
This vote will determine our future probably for decades.
http://www.nickpalmer.org.uk/europe-decision-day-coming/
Seen a lot of people refer to it, sounds like it could be a good piece for a guest slot perhaps.
on topic, we put ourselves under command blue helmet-wise, SACEUR is a non-Brit (doesn't get more integrated than that), I'm pretty sure an EU army would fail on redundancy rather than political disagreement.
The detail is precisely what we should be looking at, because that is where the devil is found.
I also think you're being misleading stating unequivocally we'd have tariffs if we were 'entirely separate'.
Iceland and Turkey do not have tariffs, and nor does any country between the two.
It's such a difficult call, I am not very happy that Cameron has foisted this impossible choice upon us!
Equalities activists behind a ‘racist’ Brexit poster are facing investigation
Operation Black Vote sparked outrage after releasing a poster featuring an aggressive white skinhead and an elderly Asian woman
The Charity Commission wants to know why group calls itself a charity
Cabinet handed £28,000 to what appears to be a private company
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3611698/Charity-probe-racist-Brexit-
The breaking news is that WIND is reporting to JNN the contents of the latest ARSE4EU Referendum Projection :
Should The United Kingdom Remain A Member Of The European Union Or Leave The European Union?
Remain 56% (-1) .. Leave 44% (+1)
Turnout Projection 64% (-1)
Changes from 24th May.
......................................................................
WIND - Whimsical Independent News Division
JNN - Jacobite News Network
ARSE4EU - Anonymous Random Selection of Electors For European Union
"...Beppe Grillo’s Five Star Movement may send shivers down every spine in Brussels (and a few in Westminster) but why do a quarter of Italians now back him? How did the party of Geert Wilders, once banned from entering Britain, end up the most popular in the Netherlands? What took the True Finns to government in Helsinki?
Several million votes were cast for populist parties at the last European Parliament election and it now seems they were getting warmed up, rather than letting off steam. In country after country, the answers tend to be the same. The angry voters tend to be the losers of globalisation, who see the economy moving in a way that disadvantages them and their children.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/26/europes-voters-are-getting-angry-leaders-should-listen-to-them-i/
The MSP in question has proudly proclaimed her left wing credentials and worked with a group which campaigns for the ending of charitable status of Independent Schools.
But, as per @SouthamObserver's point, it assumes that this is our last chance. It is not. Leavers set aside a particular flavour of vitriol whenever it is pointed out that we can have another referendum in future (or indeed vote in a party whose manifesto pledge is to leave the EU).
I think the problem is more that they fear a future govt will agree to ever closer union; their concern is not so much the EU's move to a superstate, as our own government's acquiescence in that move.
Many of them can't reconcile the concepts of "future craven UK govt" and "democratically-elected future craven UK govt".
The ad shows an aggressive white ‘thug’ and a south Asian woman wearing a sari sitting on a see-saw, and was produced by advertising giant Saatchi and Saatchi for campaign group Operation Black Vote.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/eu-referendum-operation-black-vote-brexit-poster-ethnic-minorities-a7049401.html
Probably the bigger factor in the expat vote will be on those who aspire to retire without hassle to the sun, or those who may inheirit property there. There are also those that do not want their in -laws moving back to Blighty!
I hope that isn't the case.
Mr. Sykes, if you think there'll be another treaty to our detriment, necessitating another referendum, and we'll leave anyway, why not vote Leave now?
That would save us a decade of more entanglement, which will only deepen the difficulties of withdrawal.
If you're in a relationship that's going nowhere and you think the other person will, in a year or two, propose, it's better to end it promptly than wait, say no, and part in more difficult circumstances.
All that hot air to no purpose....
But beneath the sanctimonious proclamations of moral superiority lurked an eternal truth: it was just about cash. Cold, hard, cash. And, of course, politics. There’s nothing wrong with that but it’s as well to be honest about such things. Something to remember next time."
http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/05/confirmed-the-junior-doctors-strike-was-about-money-not-patient-safety/
My starting point is that I do actually want us to be part of the EU, I just don't agree with what it has become or the direction it is heading in. Cameron is asking us "in or out". I'd have liked him to have waited until the question could have been "do we go further - yes or no" and then I could have answered "no".
Barring health or terminal political trouble, she will undoubtedly run again in 2020 if she wins this time.
As well as Reagan, she's also younger than Trump is now, and McCain was when he ran in 2008, and she'll still be still be younger in 2020 than Dole was when he ran in 1996 or than Sanders is now.
Sorry, but I can't see another referendum (not one that I'll see anyway). This one was given through gritted teeth for electoral benefit. And even if it's won, it will have been too close for comfort.
What variety of UK government is going to propose it? You can rule out the Tories and Labour.
A new Treaty? No way, just a tidying up operation, crossing a few 't's and dotting a few 'i's. The intention was all in the 1957 papers and we've already voted on that in 2016.
Concerns in Corbyn's office Vice are making a film about the leader and might take the piss. https://t.co/i1EZctuOGD https://t.co/mWp3sNi7LW
Examples are Cravendale milk (which comes from the same effing cows as other milk) and people who refuse to buy petrol from supermarkets but go to Esso or BP instead to buy the standard 95 RON product despite the fact it's the same stuff bought from the same refineries (Hint: Tesco do not own oil wells...)
Look at bottled water sales FFS
ICYMI last night: Tories rake in millions more than Labour amid snap election speculation https://t.co/1kGG44rp5d https://t.co/6A1huHtU8j
http://order-order.com/2016/05/27/corbyn-orders-review-of-chaotic-office/
Mr. Sykes, I'm afraid I disagree. The 'referendum lock' wasn't used when powers shifted to Brussels (opting back into some EU law enforcement directives, I think). Not only that, the experience of this referendum isn't going to endear the process to future leaders of the Conservative Party, and Labour are much more united in favour of the EU.
If this is how they treat us when we want to Leave, imagine how they'll treat us if we Remain?
I do fear the slow, incremental, steady transfer of power from national, to supranational institutions, always presented as a pragmatic tidying-up exercise.
Who is surprised that the BMA JDC discussed their negotiating position and tactics? I would be surprised if they did not!
I would also be surprised if the DoH did not have similar discussions on their negotiating points and tactics.
Among the policy positions they have had are calls for: a single European government and a single European language (presumably Italian, but not specified).
Beppe Grillo stands up and says "I see that Italian government has debts equivalent to 120% of GDP. Who do we owe the money to? That's what I want to know?" Well, S. Grillo, that's an easy one. Most Italian debt (unlike with Spain, Ireland, or the UK) is owned by Italian savers, banks and insurance companies. You owe it to yourself: now you can cancel it if you like, but only if you wish to then have to borrow money to recapitalise the banks you just busted.
Even his Five Stars themselves are odd: does Italy really lack clean water?
Yes, he feeds on an anti-establishment mood, and a feeling the elite haven't been doing enough for the people. But it's hard not to conclude that a Beppe Grillo led Italy would be a very, very strange thing.
Continual disappointment would be my prediction, however.
'But beneath the sanctimonious proclamations of moral superiority lurked an eternal truth: it was just about cash. Cold, hard, cash. And, of course, politics. There’s nothing wrong with that but it’s as well to be honest about such things. Something to remember next time."
http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/05/confirmed-the-junior-doctors-strike-was-about-money-not-patient-safety/
At least all that crap from the junior doctors about patient care that the gullible believed has now been exposed as crap.
Hopefully lessons have been learn't and we won't get duped again by these troughers.
EC Regulation 2257/94 was responsible for this. And before anyone claims it didn't ban anything it is worth pointing out that when it was eventually replaced by another regulation the reasoning provided in the EU press release was:
In this era of high prices and growing demand, it makes no sense to throw these products away or destroy them."
Even IDS says that is a price worth paying. Others disagree
Mrs JackW swears by it and has done so since we were married. Large, meaty, tasty and sizzles with gusto on full heat.
Huzzah ....
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-36391621
Some quotes;
"A million more young people are likely to find themselves living with their parents over the next decade, according to the insurance company Aviva. The main reason is the affordability of housing, the company said.
The study forecasts that 3.8 million people aged between 21 and 34 will be living at home by 2025, a third more than at the moment. The number of households containing two or more families is also expected to rise, from 1.5 million to 2.2 million."
"Figures from the 2011 census show that 1.1 million households in England and Wales were officially overcrowded.
"In London 11.3% of all homes were overcrowded, rising to 25% in the London borough of Newham, the worst affected area in the country."
Earlier in the week the BBC ran a programme called "The Last Whites in the East End". It was about Newham.
NIESR (hardly a pro-Brexit outfit) says 1.7% growth in 2017. Bear in mind we'd still be in the EU for at least 2 years. The Treasury says it'll be basically dead flat.
And there are all sorts of policy levers and mechanisms the Government can use to reassure business and stimulate the economy. None of which it is currently including in its forecasts.
Game theory.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/eu-referendum-operation-black-vote-brexit-poster-ethnic-minorities-a7049401.html
The plot thickens. This was done by Saatchi Saatchi not M&C who are currently working for Remain. Maybe that explains why they're not worried about the collateral damage?
If you try to force-feed them all in one go, they'll choke on it, so you proceed (salami-slice if you wish) slowly. But the direction of travel is inexorable. Look back to the fifties when it was just a twinkle in their eyes, a dream without a timescale.
Project fear will keep things on track, although WW3 was a bit over the top. And another referendum is possible in a few years, when a generation of younger, naïve voters have grown accustomed to the new status quo.
Obviously, we shouldn't just project current trends but there's a huge amount of uncertainty that 'events' could create between now and November and Trump has a very realistic chance of winning - if, at present, a lesser one than Hillary.
Sir Vince "This is the way the world is."
Stunned. R5