politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » The plan for a progressive alliance might have an itsy bitsy teenie weenie flaw with it
How the 2015 general election result would look like under different voting systems by The @electoralreform Societyhttps://t.co/Gyvm8kJbyt pic.twitter.com/DPwiWsYk99
I'm sure political calculus had the replacement seat for morley and outwood going red again after the boundary changes. Think that was on GE2015 polling figures tho and corbyns probs affected those.
That's right: Electoral Calculus have the new Batley and Morley as having a notional 2015 Labour majority of almost 5,000 (9.5 percentage points).
Adjusting for the current national polling average makes it much closer - Labour are predicted to win the new seat by one percentage point or about 500 votes. It would be Labour's 170th-safest seat according to their calculations.
They don't have enough in common to make a 'progressive' alliance meaningful in any case. Not being Tory is not enough to sway everyone to vote Lab or LD or SNP in various seats even if they did not vote Tory or UKIP.
I suspect coming up with policies more popular with the public will be a more successful route to power than changing the voting system or coming up with electoral pacts
Crazy talk.
In all seriousness, there are obvious partisan benefits to people like the LDs and UKIP especially to changing the voting system, but that doesn't mean it is not also a good idea regardless, and they should not shy away from proposing it as part of more popular policies just because it will, correctly, also be noted they would do better under such a system, even if it would not mean an electoral pact even under such a system would be successful.
I'm sure political calculus had the replacement seat for morley and outwood going red again after the boundary changes. Think that was on GE2015 polling figures tho and corbyns probs affected those.
That's right: Electoral Calculus have the new Batley and Morley as having a notional 2015 Labour majority of almost 5,000 (9.5 percentage points).
Adjusting for the current national polling average makes it much closer - Labour are predicted to win the new seat by one percentage point or about 500 votes. It would be Labour's 170th-safest seat according to their calculations.
Or Labour's sixth most marginal seat, to put it another way. Which would still be their most devastating defeat since 1935 (and as they gained a hundred seats in that election, arguably since 1931).
When was the last time a party had a net loss of seats at six successive general elections? Even the Liberals didn't have that long a losing streak.
I suspect coming up with policies more popular with the public will be a more successful route to power than changing the voting system or coming up with electoral pacts
Crazy talk.
In all seriousness, there are obvious partisan benefits to people like the LDs and UKIP especially to changing the voting system, but that doesn't mean it is not also a good idea regardless, and they should not shy away from proposing it as part of more popular policies just because it will, correctly, also be noted they would do better under such a system, even if it would not mean an electoral pact even under such a system would be successful.
Agreed. It's quite possible that, having seen what a vote can do when each one counts, people in general will be more open to the idea of changing to a more proportional voting system.
But I admit that I don't like any of the proportional systems I've seen proposed so far. I've said before on here, that it seems grotesque to rule out someone who's hugely second favourite just because s/he's no-one's first choice. That rejects someone everyone would be happy with in favour of someone nobody much wants.
Is this the much trailed Magnum Opus AV Thread, or the AV Paragraph?
FPTP is a much better electoral system for a Parliament - there is a higher chance of a majority and the government can be held to account on their manifesto, rather than negotiating most of it away in negotiations *after* the election.
Just because you fail under FPTP does not mean that it should be changed. Perhaps spending more time developing policies which actual appeal to voters would be a good place to start.
Is this the much trailed Magnum Opus AV Thread, or the AV Paragraph?
FPTP is a much better electoral system for a Parliament - there is a higher chance of a majority and the government can be held to account on their manifesto, rather than negotiating most of it away in negotiations *after* the election.
Is this the much trailed Magnum Opus AV Thread, or the AV Paragraph?
FPTP is a much better electoral system for a Parliament - there is a higher chance of a majority and the government can be held to account on their manifesto, rather than negotiating most of it away in negotiations *after* the election.
Is this the much trailed Magnum Opus AV Thread, or the AV Paragraph?
FPTP is a much better electoral system for a Parliament - there is a higher chance of a majority and the government can be held to account on their manifesto, rather than negotiating most of it away in negotiations *after* the election.
I say stick with FPTP but every second place candidate gets a seat in the replacement House or Lords. Which would be renamed House of Losers with similar powers to the current HoL. If a party scored a majority in the Commons there should be a counterbalancing Opposition majority in the other place.
I say stick with FPTP but every second place candidate gets a seat in the replacement House or Lords. Which would be renamed House of Losers with similar powers to the current HoL. If a party scored a majority in the Commons there should be a counterbalancing Opposition majority in the other place.
So the likes of Ed Balls who were rejected by the electorate could block the will of the people in the Lords?
Any "progressive alliance" that contains the SNP (without which such a thing is unlikely to command a Parliamentary majority anyway) will cause a large number of otherwise sympathetic English voters to run away screaming. It's a non-starter. Labour will have to learn how to win again under the current rules - or make way for another party that can.
Sports Awards - are they making reference to Murray being the winner last year and possibly the first person to win it three times? If so, might the voting TV audience think it's someone else's turn?
1.14ish might be worth a lay?
Edit: Betfair have suspended with Murray at 1.24/1.29, definitely no value in laying that!
I say stick with FPTP but every second place candidate gets a seat in the replacement House or Lords. Which would be renamed House of Losers with similar powers to the current HoL. If a party scored a majority in the Commons there should be a counterbalancing Opposition majority in the other place.
I love your new name: people would be proud of being Losers after all. But in a hung parliament situation both Houses would likely be hung, wouldn't they? Sounds like the country would be hung out to dry.
a progressive alliance is not going to happen. The left of centre parties are not all the same you know. Lib Dems and Labour are as different as UKIP and the Tories - except that hard core Labour hate the Lib Dems more than the Tories do UKIP, and that's saying something. We may share some values (at least with some members of the Labour party - not sure what the party as a whole stands for any more, which is part of the reason why no progressive alliance) but function entirely differently and our outlook is also entirely different.
More likely that more parties will split than come together.
TSE - might Ed Balls have won his seat under AV and thus be able to block the will of the people from the HoC instead? I don't know the answer in that specific case but presumably the point of AV is that some candidates who come second on first preference votes win the seat after reallocations etc?
Technically a net loss of seats at five successive GEs? ('01, '05, '10, '15, '20?)
Good spot, had miscounted. But that would still beat the Liberals 35, 45, 50, and 51.
Mind you, if Labour continue like this I can see them making further losses in 2025 and even 2030. No party has a God-given right to exist but I've never come across a party with such a ferocious death wish before, not even the American Whigs.
I say if we keep FPTP, retain an appointed HoL, but ban anyone who has held or stood for elected office within the last 15 years - so it is not stuffed with people who just lost or were unable to ever get elected. Nothing wrong with some elder statesman down the line, but some limitation seems reasonable.
I'd have thought that assuming that people will vote the same way when the effects can be materially different is little more than garbage in, garbage out.
I'd have thought that assuming that people will vote the same way when the effects can be materially different is little more than garbage in, garbage out.
Is there a subtlety that I'm missing?
It's not perfect, admittedly. If we assume people generally vote the way they want regardless there will not be a significant difference from a new voting system. It at least comes from definitive proof people have voted this way before, and guessing it might change a bit will not be too extreme, rather than complete speculation that there is a huge groundswell that people will vote differently under a different voting system.
It could be true that people would vote differently, in fact most of us presume it would be to some extent, but is the likelihood it would be so much different that we cannot take a general guess?
There was a discussion on BBC's wake up to money programme last week with a representative from Germany who confirmed they were attempting to poach banks from London but when it was pointed out that Frankfurt's red tape was burdensome, the lack of English, and importantly German corporation tax north of 30% he admitted that talks were only exploratory
With UK corporation tax going down to 17% why would banks accept an increase in excess of 13% in their corporation tax.
Furthermore the FT are avid remain and are just part of the continuing project fear
I'd have thought that assuming that people will vote the same way when the effects can be materially different is little more than garbage in, garbage out.
Is there a subtlety that I'm missing?
The ERS commissioned a YouGov poll that asked people to imagine the voting system asked them to rank parties in order (so they could simulate AV and STV). Obviously not an exact science though.
There was a discussion on BBC's wake up to money programme last week with a representative from Germany who confirmed they were attempting to poach banks from London but when it was pointed out that Frankfurt's red tape was burdensome, the lack of English, and importantly German corporation tax north of 30% he admitted that talks were only exploratory
With UK corporation tax going down to 17% why would banks accept an increase in excess of 13% in their corporation tax.
Furthermore the FT are avid remain and are just part of the continuing project fear
There was a discussion on BBC's wake up to money programme last week with a representative from Germany who confirmed they were attempting to poach banks from London but when it was pointed out that Frankfurt's red tape was burdensome, the lack of English, and importantly German corporation tax north of 30% he admitted that talks were only exploratory
With UK corporation tax going down to 17% why would banks accept an increase in excess of 13% in their corporation tax.
Furthermore the FT are avid remain and are just part of the continuing project fear
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
And the chances are we'll get a decent amount of free-trade access to the EU, in any case, as it's in their interests too.
The Australian High Commissioner made the point that in our case, we start from a position of free trade (albeit the single market in services has never been fully completed) and it would be the UK and EU deciding if we should erect new barriers.
Double well done, especially to note the e/w option. I'm amazed that bookies continue to take e/w bets when there's a 1/10 favourite, all they ever do is complain at paying out of the clear second fav who gets placed
There was a discussion on BBC's wake up to money programme last week with a representative from Germany who confirmed they were attempting to poach banks from London but when it was pointed out that Frankfurt's red tape was burdensome, the lack of English, and importantly German corporation tax north of 30% he admitted that talks were only exploratory
With UK corporation tax going down to 17% why would banks accept an increase in excess of 13% in their corporation tax.
Furthermore the FT are avid remain and are just part of the continuing project fear
Because many of them hardly pay any tax ?
Where does the City get its billions from then
For multi-nationals through PAYE . But you were talking about corporation tax.
Not sure I'd want to be a farmer right now with my fate in the hands of the three clowns.
I suspect that most of them will feel that after 45 years of being mucked about by the EU and CAP, almost anything is likely to be an improvement.
In this they are of course probably wrong, as most of CAP's dismal failures in this country were caused by the extraordinary incompetence of first MAFF and later DEFRA (for example TB, RPA, Milk Marque etc). The BSE crisis being a notable exception where the EU were deliberately responsible for maliciously damaging British farming, hugely assisted by the incompetence of the Ministry of Health and the hysteria of Harriet Harman.
There was a discussion on BBC's wake up to money programme last week with a representative from Germany who confirmed they were attempting to poach banks from London but when it was pointed out that Frankfurt's red tape was burdensome, the lack of English, and importantly German corporation tax north of 30% he admitted that talks were only exploratory
With UK corporation tax going down to 17% why would banks accept an increase in excess of 13% in their corporation tax.
Furthermore the FT are avid remain and are just part of the continuing project fear
Because many of them hardly pay any tax ?
Where does the City get its billions from then
For multi-nationals through PAYE . But you were talking about corporation tax.
Do you know the amount of corporation tax paid by the City as a matter of interest
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years. And given the rest of the world will perceive our desperation, it's a fair call that at least in the short to medium term any deals we do strike will be less advantageous than what we have now. All I hear from leavers is head in the sand Pollyanna, pollyanna, pollyanna.
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years. And given the rest of the world will perceive our desperation, it's a fair call that at least in the short to medium term any deals we do strike will be less advantageous than what we have now. All I hear from leavers is head in the sand Pollyanna, pollyanna, pollyanna.
Remind me - do we have a trade balance with the EU if so how much is it
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years.
Not according to the Australian High Commissioner.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
Trump has already stated he is coming out of NAFTA and wants it to be converted to a trade deal with Canada and for the UK to join on our exit from the EU
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years.
Not according to the Australian High Commissioner.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
Depends on the terms doesn't it? Don't expect the Aussies to bend over for us just because they were once our client state. The harder the bargain, the longer it'll take. We'll need it more than they do, and they know that.
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years. And given the rest of the world will perceive our desperation, it's a fair call that at least in the short to medium term any deals we do strike will be less advantageous than what we have now. All I hear from leavers is head in the sand Pollyanna, pollyanna, pollyanna.
Years is something we have. We need to make long term arrangements for the future and not just now-now-now.
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years.
Not according to the Australian High Commissioner.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
How many trade deals has the Australian High Commissioner negotiated?
Well he happened to be the minister in charge of foreign affairs and trade from 1996 to 2007, so he would have overseen the US-Oz trade deal he mentioned which took about 15 months IIRC. So at least one, and quite a biggie.
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years.
Not according to the Australian High Commissioner.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
How many trade deals has the Australian High Commissioner negotiated?
Well he happened to be the minister in charge of foreign affairs and trade from 1996 to 2007, so he would have overseen the US-Oz trade deal he mentioned which took about 15 months IIRC. So at least one, and quite a biggie.
LOL! Something tells me not the answer William was expecting when he wrote that.
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years.
Not according to the Australian High Commissioner.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
How many trade deals has the Australian High Commissioner negotiated?
Well he happened to be the minister in charge of foreign affairs and trade from 1996 to 2007, so he would have overseen the US-Oz trade deal he mentioned which took about 15 months IIRC. So at least one, and quite a biggie.
Ha ha, so he does know a little about trade deals then!
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years.
Not according to the Australian High Commissioner.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
How many trade deals has the Australian High Commissioner negotiated?
Well he happened to be the minister in charge of foreign affairs and trade from 1996 to 2007, so he would have overseen the US-Oz trade deal he mentioned which took about 15 months IIRC. So at least one, and quite a biggie.
Ha ha, so he does know a little about trade deals then!
On topic, STV is a pretty good system, and the Scottish style top up system also effective.
It is noticeable that the populist discontent with the established order is particularly evident where FPTP shuts out minority views: UK, USA and France,
In practice a "Progressive Alliance" in the UK works by tactical voting rather than by explicit pacts. I can see that already happening again.
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years.
Not according to the Australian High Commissioner.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
How many trade deals has the Australian High Commissioner negotiated?
Well he happened to be the minister in charge of foreign affairs and trade from 1996 to 2007, so he would have overseen the US-Oz trade deal he mentioned which took about 15 months IIRC. So at least one, and quite a biggie.
Ha ha, so he does know a little about trade deals then!
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years.
Not according to the Australian High Commissioner.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
How many trade deals has the Australian High Commissioner negotiated?
Well he happened to be the minister in charge of foreign affairs and trade from 1996 to 2007, so he would have overseen the US-Oz trade deal he mentioned which took about 15 months IIRC. So at least one, and quite a biggie.
Ha ha, so he does know a little about trade deals then!
"In the Government of Australia, the Minister administers the portfolio through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade jointly with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, although prior to 1987 there was a separate Department of Trade. "
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Do you really think that. The EU represents 7% of world trade, so there is 93% left for us
So how will our trade opportunities with the 93% be better under WTO rules than now G?
How do you know the rules of yet to be agreed trade deals
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
We all know trade deals take years.
Not according to the Australian High Commissioner.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
How many trade deals has the Australian High Commissioner negotiated?
Well he happened to be the minister in charge of foreign affairs and trade from 1996 to 2007, so he would have overseen the US-Oz trade deal he mentioned which took about 15 months IIRC. So at least one, and quite a biggie.
Ha ha, so he does know a little about trade deals then!
"In the Government of Australia, the Minister administers the portfolio through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade jointly with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, although prior to 1987 there was a separate Department of Trade. "
Ok fair enough, but in the same Department and pretty close to the action at the relevant time.
There's nothing to be gained in arguing with hairsplitters.
I'd suggest that Downer has more locus standi than an anonymous permaposter on the internet.
One thing Downer says is pretty damning of the UK:
"I was the Australian foreign minister for nearly 12 years. Not once in that period did a British foreign secretary visit Australia."
We should do much more to nurture bilateral relations with Australia. Leaving the EU was never a necessary condition to making a start. If anything it was the delusion of the 'special relationship' with the US which made us forget our much closer ties with the Commonwealth.
Ok fair enough, but in the same Department and pretty close to the action at the relevant time.
There's nothing to be gained in arguing with hairsplitters.
I'd suggest that Downer has more locus standi than an anonymous permaposter on the internet.
One thing Downer says is pretty damning of the UK:
"I was the Australian foreign minister for nearly 12 years. Not once in that period did a British foreign secretary visit Australia."
We should do much more to nurture bilateral relations with Australia. Leaving the EU was never a necessary condition to making a start. If anything it was the delusion of the 'special relationship' with the US which made us forget our much closer ties with the Commonwealth.
Any possibility of a FT twitter link of the Australian High Commissioner saying that a Free Trade Deal will be a doddle on today's SP/DP?
Great ! Leave a free trade area of 450m to embrace one of 22m.
Also free trade agreements are currently a political toxin in Australia and the Liberals don't have control of the Senate. If the ALP oppose (which they would at the behest of their beetle browed and tattooed paymasters in the unions) then it can't happen.
Comments
FPT:
No, not the AV thread - just the new thread: it wasn't showing up on my Vanilla index.
Good evening, everyone.
AV it.
Crazy talk.
In all seriousness, there are obvious partisan benefits to people like the LDs and UKIP especially to changing the voting system, but that doesn't mean it is not also a good idea regardless, and they should not shy away from proposing it as part of more popular policies just because it will, correctly, also be noted they would do better under such a system, even if it would not mean an electoral pact even under such a system would be successful.
Or Labour's sixth most marginal seat, to put it another way. Which would still be their most devastating defeat since 1935 (and as they gained a hundred seats in that election, arguably since 1931).
When was the last time a party had a net loss of seats at six successive general elections? Even the Liberals didn't have that long a losing streak.
But I admit that I don't like any of the proportional systems I've seen proposed so far. I've said before on here, that it seems grotesque to rule out someone who's hugely second favourite just because s/he's no-one's first choice. That rejects someone everyone would be happy with in favour of someone nobody much wants.
FPTP is a much better electoral system for a Parliament - there is a higher chance of a majority and the government can be held to account on their manifesto, rather than negotiating most of it away in negotiations *after* the election.
A flaccid AV thread.
http://www2.politicalbetting.com/index.php/archives/2016/06/17/the-euref-might-be-more-like-the-av-referendum-and-not-the-indyref/
No ta.
1) Murray
2) Brownlee
Behind 2 of them are the worst Bond movie ever made.
You bought a ticket for SPECTRE, but now you have the choice to swap it for any other Bond movie ever...
1.14ish might be worth a lay?
Edit: Betfair have suspended with Murray at 1.24/1.29, definitely no value in laying that!
#YorkshireSecessionNow
Boring, Murray wins again. Shouldn't have won it last year.
We may share some values (at least with some members of the Labour party - not sure what the party as a whole stands for any more, which is part of the reason why no progressive alliance) but function entirely differently and our outlook is also entirely different.
More likely that more parties will split than come together.
That's 3 wins now?
Great for equitators that Skelton came third.
There had to be one other time everyone was right.
Technically a net loss of seats at five successive GEs? ('01, '05, '10, '15, '20?)
Mind you, if Labour continue like this I can see them making further losses in 2025 and even 2030. No party has a God-given right to exist but I've never come across a party with such a ferocious death wish before, not even the American Whigs.
Megabank won't go first because their top people will just move to Gigabank.
It will be all or none. I think we're well shy of that line.
Is there a subtlety that I'm missing?
Is there a subtlety that I'm missing?
It's not perfect, admittedly. If we assume people generally vote the way they want regardless there will not be a significant difference from a new voting system. It at least comes from definitive proof people have voted this way before, and guessing it might change a bit will not be too extreme, rather than complete speculation that there is a huge groundswell that people will vote differently under a different voting system.
It could be true that people would vote differently, in fact most of us presume it would be to some extent, but is the likelihood it would be so much different that we cannot take a general guess?
Nice!
With UK corporation tax going down to 17% why would banks accept an increase in excess of 13% in their corporation tax.
Furthermore the FT are avid remain and are just part of the continuing project fear
http://politicalbetting.vanillaforums.com/discussion/comment/1265984/#Comment_1265984
The Australian High Commissioner made the point that in our case, we start from a position of free trade (albeit the single market in services has never been fully completed) and it would be the UK and EU deciding if we should erect new barriers.
Not sure I'd want to be a farmer right now with my fate in the hands of the three clowns.
And we will still trade with the EU
Those wanting to remain have no vision of the opportunities available to us
In this they are of course probably wrong, as most of CAP's dismal failures in this country were caused by the extraordinary incompetence of first MAFF and later DEFRA (for example TB, RPA, Milk Marque etc). The BSE crisis being a notable exception where the EU were deliberately responsible for maliciously damaging British farming, hugely assisted by the incompetence of the Ministry of Health and the hysteria of Harriet Harman.
"Trade deals take years" appears to be a piece of EU conditioning rather than a global fact.
https://twitter.com/NCSpo/status/810601787652710400
https://twitter.com/NCSpo/status/810601976664887296
https://twitter.com/NCSpo/status/810602129811505154
How many referenda have the SNP lost?
It is noticeable that the populist discontent with the established order is particularly evident where FPTP shuts out minority views: UK, USA and France,
In practice a "Progressive Alliance" in the UK works by tactical voting rather than by explicit pacts. I can see that already happening again.
The Australians have been mocking Mr Downer's enthusiasm for Brexit - http://www.smh.com.au/world/alexander-downers-bizarre-bbc-video-urging-britain-to-get-on-with-leaving-the-eu-20161218-gtdrq7.html
"In the Government of Australia, the Minister administers the portfolio through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade jointly with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, although prior to 1987 there was a separate Department of Trade. "
Downer was not responsible for trade.
I'd suggest that Downer has more locus standi than an anonymous permaposter on the internet.
"I was the Australian foreign minister for nearly 12 years. Not once in that period did a British foreign secretary visit Australia."
We should do much more to nurture bilateral relations with Australia. Leaving the EU was never a necessary condition to making a start. If anything it was the delusion of the 'special relationship' with the US which made us forget our much closer ties with the Commonwealth.
From Russia with Love
What do you mean dahlink? My own, or other people's?
A. Wasn't she dead already; and
B. What was she famous for in the first place?