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politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » Tessa Jowell becomes the opening favourite in new market on

SystemSystem Posts: 11,698
edited November 2013 in General

politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » Tessa Jowell becomes the opening favourite in new market on the LAB candidate to contest the 2016 London Mayoral election

After the general election the biggest UK election from a betting perspective has traditionally been the battle to win the London Mayoralty. There have been four elections since the post was created in 2000 and each has attracted a lot of betting interest.

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    NeilNeil Posts: 7,983
    I've been on Tessa for a little while. I think her name recognition will help more with a wider selectorate. If it does turn out to be an open primary (and Ed probably cant back away from that) then there is less chance of it being rigged for someone else or against her. The potential opponents dont look all that impressive to me.

    That said I'm not sure this is the market to be backing Tessa on.
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    Wulfrun_PhilWulfrun_Phil Posts: 4,604
    Tim - Agreed.

    Although PP didn't let me put much on Khan at 12/1.
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    AlanbrookeAlanbrooke Posts: 23,763
    She would be better off retiring from politics and going off to enjoy life. Kind of sad really.
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    RichardNabaviRichardNabavi Posts: 3,413
    7/2 looks rather mean. Whilst she has good name recognition and is certainly one of the front-runners, she'll be 69 in 2016, which might count against her and which has to be taken into account in assessing whether she'll actually decide to throw herself into the contest.
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    PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,970
    BETTING POST

    Open a WInner.com account now and Tessa Jowell is STILL 12-1 there for the mayoralty.

    I had a tenner on, topped up to £25 now.
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    TheScreamingEaglesTheScreamingEagles Posts: 114,556
    edited November 2013
    RichardNabavi said:

    7/2 looks rather mean. Whilst she has good name recognition and is certainly one of the front-runners, she'll be 69 in 2016, which might count against her and which has to be taken into account in assessing whether she'll actually decide to throw herself into the contest.

    Will her age really be an issue, when at the same time, Hillary Clinton, who is a month younger than Tessa, will be running for President at the same time.
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    TheScreamingEaglesTheScreamingEagles Posts: 114,556
    @RichardNabavi, my twitter feed seems to be discussing John Kerry as Democrat Candidate in 2016.

    He's 50/1 with William Hill to be the candidate.

    I take it, you wouldn't advise that bet, even at those odds??

    Has a 50/1 tip for next President ever been tipped on PB?
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    RichardNabaviRichardNabavi Posts: 3,413
    TheScreamingEagles said:

    RichardNabavi said:

    7/2 looks rather mean. Whilst she has good name recognition and is certainly one of the front-runners, she'll be 69 in 2016, which might count against her and which has to be taken into account in assessing whether she'll actually decide to throw herself into the contest.

    Will her age really be an issue, when at the same time, Hillary Clinton, who is a month younger than Tessa, will be running for President at the same time.
    It's not an absolute bar, but one factor in the assessment.
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    david_herdsondavid_herdson Posts: 17,420
    Alanbrooke said:

    She would be better off retiring from politics and going off to enjoy life. Kind of sad really.

    Maybe politics is what she enjoys in life.

    That said, HenryG has a fine record in this kind of thing and Sadiq Khan still sounds to me to be in a stronger position than his odds suggest; the reverse applies to Jowell.

    Jowell's main claim to fame is helping bring the Olympics to London. By 2016, that will be eleven years in the past was in any case a minor public role compared with, say, Lord Coe.
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    edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,151
    TheScreamingEagles said:

    @RichardNabavi, my twitter feed seems to be discussing John Kerry as Democrat Candidate in 2016.

    He's 50/1 with William Hill to be the candidate.

    Matt Yglesias mentioned that as a joke. That said, objectively, 50/1 for a (probably) successful Secretary of State to get the nomination doesn't sound terrible value.

    I'd to see him run against Hillary using all the right-wing stuff about Benghazi, but I don't think he's cheeky enough.
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    NeilNeil Posts: 7,983
    edmundintokyo said:

    That said, objectively, 50/1 for a (probably) successful Secretary of State to get the nomination doesn't sound terrible value.

    You must have missed Rod's posts assuring us that a SoS couldnt possibly run for POTUS. While I'm certain he's wrong about that in relation to Hillary he did show an impressive record of SoSs not going on to become Presidential contenders in the past.
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    TheScreamingEaglesTheScreamingEagles Posts: 114,556
    edmundintokyo said:

    TheScreamingEagles said:

    @RichardNabavi, my twitter feed seems to be discussing John Kerry as Democrat Candidate in 2016.

    He's 50/1 with William Hill to be the candidate.

    Matt Yglesias mentioned that as a joke. That said, objectively, 50/1 for a (probably) successful Secretary of State to get the nomination doesn't sound terrible value.

    I'd to see him run against Hillary using all the right-wing stuff about Benghazi, but I don't think he's cheeky enough.
    Kerry Swift-Boating Hillary Clinton over Benghazi....

    I want to see that.
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    NeilNeil Posts: 7,983
    RichardNabavi said:

    Whilst she has good name recognition and is certainly one of the front-runners, she'll be 69 in 2016, which might count against her and which has to be taken into account in assessing whether she'll actually decide to throw herself into the contest.

    She has already said she would only stand for one term.

    And Eddie Izzard said he would stand in 2020. Presumably this means he hopes Tessa wins or Labour loses because I cant see any of the others being there for just one term!
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    david_herdsondavid_herdson Posts: 17,420
    TheScreamingEagles said:

    @RichardNabavi, my twitter feed seems to be discussing John Kerry as Democrat Candidate in 2016.

    He's 50/1 with William Hill to be the candidate.

    I take it, you wouldn't advise that bet, even at those odds??

    Has a 50/1 tip for next President ever been tipped on PB?

    Surely Kerry has had his chance and flunked it? He also find it difficult to run if he's still at State due to the foreign travel commitments (yes, that's similar for sitting presidents but that's a different kind of category). I don't see what he brings to the table that Hillary can't trump, except for a non-controversial spouse.
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    CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,785
    TheScreamingEagles said:

    RichardNabavi said:

    7/2 looks rather mean. Whilst she has good name recognition and is certainly one of the front-runners, she'll be 69 in 2016, which might count against her and which has to be taken into account in assessing whether she'll actually decide to throw herself into the contest.

    Will her age really be an issue, when at the same time, Hillary Clinton, who is a month younger than Tessa, will be running for President at the same time.
    By 2016 the electorate (and possibly even more strongly, the older electorate who vote) may be heartily sick of virtually indistinguishable forty-somethings....we can hardly expect to increase the pension age, then kick up when people want to work longer.

    She should go for it - more impressive than the other (forty-something) Labour candidates....

    Assuming well-off London life expectancy she'll have another 18 years at age 69....
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    edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,151
    Neil said:

    edmundintokyo said:

    That said, objectively, 50/1 for a (probably) successful Secretary of State to get the nomination doesn't sound terrible value.

    You must have missed Rod's posts assuring us that a SoS couldnt possibly run for POTUS. While I'm certain he's wrong about that in relation to Hillary he did show an impressive record of SoSs not going on to become Presidential contenders in the past.
    Yup, I think I missed that one. I don't generally buy big generalizations based on a fairly small number of precedents, but I suppose the logistics are tricky if he's currently serving. It must be pretty much impossible to run while serving as Secretary of State, so he'd have to stand down early, which already feels a bit Palinesque if you're trying to run on the basis of your success in office. And unless you're the obvious front-runner there's then a good chance that you run out of money and have to drop out partway though, which would leave you looking like a right chump.
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    another_richardanother_richard Posts: 25,121
    Not had a chance to look but has the PB community decided that Cathy Ashton is:

    1) The new Tallyrand deserving of the exuberant praise normally issued after election victories

    or

    2) Was there only to provide the tea and biscuits

    ;-)
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    david_herdsondavid_herdson Posts: 17,420
    Neil said:

    edmundintokyo said:

    That said, objectively, 50/1 for a (probably) successful Secretary of State to get the nomination doesn't sound terrible value.

    You must have missed Rod's posts assuring us that a SoS couldnt possibly run for POTUS. While I'm certain he's wrong about that in relation to Hillary he did show an impressive record of SoSs not going on to become Presidential contenders in the past.
    There are certainly logisitical difficulties to the SoS running for president but the main reason that they haven't in the past is that the sort of people appointed to be SoS hasn't overlapped with the sort who run for PotUS.

    Even if one did want to run, there haven't been many open contests to give the sitting SoS an opening (and even when there has been, the VP usually has precedence), and if it's not an open contest i.e. the candidate would be up against a president of the opposing party, foreign policy tends to have too low a priority among US primaries voters for a former-SoS to score well.
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    PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,970
    Tessa is not on Betfair's list of mayor candidates. Any way I can get them to put her up ?
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    another_richardanother_richard Posts: 25,121
    Am I right in thinking that Laura Sandys was another from Cameron's 'A List' ?

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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    edited November 2013
    O/T:

    A fascinating post by VoteTalk's David Boothroyd on the Brixton slavery case:

    http://vote-2012.proboards.com/post/120637/thread

    "And here is the story of the police raid in 1978 which closed down the Mao Zedong centre: http://www.marxists.org/history/erol/uk.hightide/closure.htm "
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    FrankBoothFrankBooth Posts: 9,052
    Tessa is an unreconstructed Blairite, is she not? Seems rather passe nowadays. How will she present herself? As Labour Friends of the City? Or perhaps she's moved on?
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    edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,151
    another_richard said:

    Am I right in thinking that Laura Sandys was another from Cameron's 'A List' ?

    Apparently so. Clearly these people weren't prepared for the reality of the endless, soul-destroying days making earnest tweets about local sheds.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    IMO Farage was almost certainly going to stand against Laura Sandys but now I think he might reconsider Boston & Skegness.
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    MonikerDiCanioMonikerDiCanio Posts: 5,792
    david_herdson said:

    Alanbrooke said:

    She would be better off retiring from politics and going off to enjoy life. Kind of sad really.

    Maybe politics is what she enjoys in life.

    That said, HenryG has a fine record in this kind of thing and Sadiq Khan still sounds to me to be in a stronger position than his odds suggest; the reverse applies to Jowell.

    Jowell's main claim to fame is helping bring the Olympics to London. By 2016, that will be eleven years in the past was in any case a minor public role compared with, say, Lord Coe.
    I wouldn't say that Jowell's peripheral role in bringing the Olympics to London was the most memorable part of her career ;

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tessa_Jowell_financial_allegations



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    another_richardanother_richard Posts: 25,121
    tim said:

    Claims that the Tories have deleted Osbornes 2013 Conference speech on the perils of price fixing from their website

    http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/nov/25/george-osbornes-interviews-and-payday-lending-cap-announcement-politics-live-blog?commentpage=1#block-529340dbe4b0ae67c83cc804

    Whatever the rights and wrongs of the issue its increasingly evident that Cameron and Osborne don't have any sort of coherant political or economic philosophy but rather shift into whatever the fashionable opinion is.

    A problem this creates is why should anyone publicly support them when they risk being made to look stupid by the next policy shift.

    It really is a rerun of the Heath government in younger, posher form.
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    richardDoddrichardDodd Posts: 5,472
    Has she got what it takes?..She certainly has a brass neck ... another trough till you drop merchant..is one massive pension not enough for her..
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    PulpstarPulpstar Posts: 75,970
    I've asked Betfair to put Tessa up as a candidate. Obviously there won't be much money (And horrible liquidity) on there at the moment, but come the selection process I'd expect that to improve.
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    AlanbrookeAlanbrooke Posts: 23,763
    david_herdson said:

    Alanbrooke said:

    She would be better off retiring from politics and going off to enjoy life. Kind of sad really.

    Maybe politics is what she enjoys in life.

    That said, HenryG has a fine record in this kind of thing and Sadiq Khan still sounds to me to be in a stronger position than his odds suggest; the reverse applies to Jowell.

    Jowell's main claim to fame is helping bring the Olympics to London. By 2016, that will be eleven years in the past was in any case a minor public role compared with, say, Lord Coe.
    hmm, is it a case of what she enjoys or simply all she has left ?
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    edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,151
    AndyJS said:

    IMO Farage was almost certainly going to stand against Laura Sandys but now I think he might reconsider Boston & Skegness.

    There was a bit of discussion on the last thread but if UKIP's goal is to actually win the seat then they probably have more chance now that the incumbent has gone.
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    TGOHFTGOHF Posts: 21,633
    Surely Jowell doesn't have strong enough Unite links to win ?

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    TGOHFTGOHF Posts: 21,633
    Surely Jowell doesn't have strong enough Unite links to win ?

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    another_richardanother_richard Posts: 25,121
    edmundintokyo said:

    another_richard said:

    Am I right in thinking that Laura Sandys was another from Cameron's 'A List' ?

    Apparently so. Clearly these people weren't prepared for the reality of the endless, soul-destroying days making earnest tweets about local sheds.
    Indeed.

    It brings to mind the 'Tatler Tories' choosing which cabinet positions they would have before they'd dealt with the inconvenience of first being elected:

    http://www.standard.co.uk/news/a-future-tory-cabinet--at-least-according-to-tatler-6898834.html

    There was also Louise Mensch.
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    CyclefreeCyclefree Posts: 25,221
    O/T: In response to MalcolmG (FPT): I was not making a comment about you or your attitude to mental illness just a general comment given that it appeared to be being discussed in the news. Stress - particularly severe stress - can lead to mental illness and people are often reluctant to admit to problems, possibly because the reaction of some can be so dismissive or unsympathetic.
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    david_herdsondavid_herdson Posts: 17,420
    MonikerDiCanio said:

    david_herdson said:

    Alanbrooke said:

    She would be better off retiring from politics and going off to enjoy life. Kind of sad really.

    Maybe politics is what she enjoys in life.

    That said, HenryG has a fine record in this kind of thing and Sadiq Khan still sounds to me to be in a stronger position than his odds suggest; the reverse applies to Jowell.

    Jowell's main claim to fame is helping bring the Olympics to London. By 2016, that will be eleven years in the past was in any case a minor public role compared with, say, Lord Coe.
    I wouldn't say that Jowell's peripheral role in bringing the Olympics to London was the most memorable part of her career ;

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tessa_Jowell_financial_allegations

    I know which career aspect she's more likely on though!

    Seriously though. Mayoralities are personality-driven elections. Do I need to say more?
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    JosiasJessopJosiasJessop Posts: 39,060
    another_richard said:

    tim said:

    Claims that the Tories have deleted Osbornes 2013 Conference speech on the perils of price fixing from their website

    http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/nov/25/george-osbornes-interviews-and-payday-lending-cap-announcement-politics-live-blog?commentpage=1#block-529340dbe4b0ae67c83cc804

    Whatever the rights and wrongs of the issue its increasingly evident that Cameron and Osborne don't have any sort of coherant political or economic philosophy but rather shift into whatever the fashionable opinion is.

    A problem this creates is why should anyone publicly support them when they risk being made to look stupid by the next policy shift.

    It really is a rerun of the Heath government in younger, posher form.
    They all do it. UKIP were in favour of high-speed rail in 2010, now they are against them.
    Labour wanted to increase energy prices when in power, now they want to freeze them.
    Continue ad infinitum for al parties.

    In some ways this is good: if facts change, then politicians should feel free to change their minds as well. Whilst changing views willy-nilly is bad, so is remaining steadfast in the face of changed circumstances.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    edited November 2013
    edmundintokyo said:

    AndyJS said:

    IMO Farage was almost certainly going to stand against Laura Sandys but now I think he might reconsider Boston & Skegness.

    There was a bit of discussion on the last thread but if UKIP's goal is to actually win the seat then they probably have more chance now that the incumbent has gone.
    It depends on the new Tory candidate. They'd be wise to choose an arch-Eurosceptic and such a person would be difficult for Farage to defeat: it would have been difficult enough for him against a Europhile like Sandys.
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    JonnyJimmyJonnyJimmy Posts: 2,548
    FPT

    Almost entirely correct! Would only add that there's some great stuff being made right now. Do you know Sharon Jones & the DapKings, or Charles Bradley? Both late starters (SJ worked in a prison until she was 40ish and CB released his debut album at the age of 67 I think) from Daptone Records in NYC, and both amazing live performers. Sharon Jones is like a James Brown/Tina Turner hybrid, has been out of action for a few months due to operation on a cancer in her stomach and chemo after, but has tour planned for next year. Think she's playing at the roundhouse in Camden and would highly recommend if you can make it.
    SouthamObserver said:

    Foxinsox - I'll let you off. Just so that everyone on here knows: the finest music ever made was recorded by black musicians in the US from the late 50s to the early 80s. No ifs; no buts; just definitive fact. Northern soul is part of it, but as you know, there's a whole lot more: from Motown through Stax to the sweet sound of Philadelphia; early house, go-go, rap; d-d-d-dicso; funk; and on and on and on.

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    edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,151
    SeanT said:

    An American scientist has discovered that the efficacy of drugs diminishes over time, EVEN FOR FIRST TIME USERS. There is no scientific explanation why this happens, but it does. Similarly, this same scientist has discovered that the more you replicate an experiment, the less impressive your results - even if the underlying theory is deemed 'valid'.

    Sounds like selection bias where you only bother replicating the experiment if it showed something interesting in the first place...
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    CyclefreeCyclefree Posts: 25,221
    I recently sat next to Tessa at a dinner and had an interesting chat with her. She's pretty good at getting cross-party consensus on big projects so that would be an asset to someone wanting to be Mayor. I rather like the idea of having a woman, particularly an older one, as Mayor.

    I'm a bit sick of having endless cloned young men running things. It's not as if they have made or are making such a good job of it.
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    edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,151
    AndyJS said:

    edmundintokyo said:

    AndyJS said:

    IMO Farage was almost certainly going to stand against Laura Sandys but now I think he might reconsider Boston & Skegness.

    There was a bit of discussion on the last thread but if UKIP's goal is to actually win the seat then they probably have more chance now that the incumbent has gone.
    It depends on the new Tory candidate. They'd be wise to choose an arch-Eurosceptic and such a person would be difficult for Farage to defeat: it would have been difficult enough for him against a Europhile like Sandys.
    Unless they're very well known already (say Jeremy Clarkson) it's hard to imagine the voters having a clear idea of what the new candidate's position on the EU is, even the minority that actually care about it.
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    currystarcurrystar Posts: 1,171
    tim said:

    Why on earth would anyone take these odds when the Labour candidate is long odds on to win the mayoralty

    Ladbrokes have Labour at 1/2 so Jowell 7/1 for the mayoralty is a much better bet than 7/2 for the nomination.
    Same with Khan at 8/1 (12/1 with PP)

    Surely the price fir winning the mayoralty is massively dependent on who wins the GE. If the tories somehow manage to win then Labour will be massive favourites for London. If as seems likely Ed is in No10, then this election will come one year into his premiership. If Boris stood again in 2016 with Ed as PM then I would make Boris a 1/3 shot
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    MikeSmithsonMikeSmithson Posts: 7,382
    edited November 2013
    Cyclefree said:

    I rather like the idea of having a woman, particularly an older one, as Mayor.

    I'm a bit sick of having endless cloned young men running things. It's not as if they have made or are making such a good job of it.

    Agreed. Lets have more women and more leaders in their 50s. Have you noticed how older colleagues struggle to get promoted when the leader is in his 40s? Look at the ludicrous mess Cameron made with the over-promotion of Chloe Smith.

    I like Tessa Jowell a lot.

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    fitalassfitalass Posts: 4,279
    Nigel Farage really needs to finally make his mind up and pick a seat to stand in, and then he needs to get campaigning. Otherwise he is danger of not appearing serious about making the transition from Brussels to Westminster, which is I suspect not that far from the truth.
    AndyJS said:

    IMO Farage was almost certainly going to stand against Laura Sandys but now I think he might reconsider Boston & Skegness.

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    edmundintokyoedmundintokyo Posts: 17,151
    I'm not sure if this is what's happening with seanT's scientist and their replication stuff or not, but it's a good excuse to link to this guide on mistakes you can make with statistics, many of which are often made in peer-reviewed papers.

    http://www.refsmmat.com/statistics/
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    Morris_DancerMorris_Dancer Posts: 60,999
    edited November 2013
    Good afternoon, everyone.

    Maybe we need more younger men. Pitt the Younger and Alexander the Great did rather well.

    Edited extra bit: and the Black Prince.
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    JonnyJimmyJonnyJimmy Posts: 2,548
    HS2 is an "otter rip off", according to the protestors outside the DfT right now. They're dressed in what are presumably meant to be otter costumes, and complaining that HS2 will make some otters homeless. There were some press there so might be in a paper or two tonight/tomorrow
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    isamisam Posts: 40,971
    Cyclefree said:

    O/T: In response to MalcolmG (FPT): I was not making a comment about you or your attitude to mental illness just a general comment given that it appeared to be being discussed in the news. Stress - particularly severe stress - can lead to mental illness and people are often reluctant to admit to problems, possibly because the reaction of some can be so dismissive or unsympathetic.

    "A stress related illness"...

    Isn't that modern speak for a lot of conditions that used to be called "mental illness"?

    Has anyone read of a recent case where someone in the spotlight has been diagnosed with "mental illness"?
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    SouthamObserverSouthamObserver Posts: 38,954
    Alanbrooke said:

    She would be better off retiring from politics and going off to enjoy life. Kind of sad really.

    To be fair, Boris has shown it can be done on a very part time basis - as long as you pay a lot of people big salaries to take a fair bit of the strain.

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    TykejohnnoTykejohnno Posts: 7,362
    another_richard said:

    tim said:

    Claims that the Tories have deleted Osbornes 2013 Conference speech on the perils of price fixing from their website

    http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2013/nov/25/george-osbornes-interviews-and-payday-lending-cap-announcement-politics-live-blog?commentpage=1#block-529340dbe4b0ae67c83cc804

    Whatever the rights and wrongs of the issue its increasingly evident that Cameron and Osborne don't have any sort of coherant political or economic philosophy but rather shift into whatever the fashionable opinion is.

    A problem this creates is why should anyone publicly support them when they risk being made to look stupid by the next policy shift.

    It really is a rerun of the Heath government in younger, posher form.
    and miliband is a rerun of ?
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    david_herdsondavid_herdson Posts: 17,420
    SeanT said:

    CarlottaVance said:

    TheScreamingEagles said:

    RichardNabavi said:

    7/2 looks rather mean. Whilst she has good name recognition and is certainly one of the front-runners, she'll be 69 in 2016, which might count against her and which has to be taken into account in assessing whether she'll actually decide to throw herself into the contest.

    Will her age really be an issue, when at the same time, Hillary Clinton, who is a month younger than Tessa, will be running for President at the same time.
    By
    She should go for it - more impressive than the other (forty-something) Labour candidates....

    Assuming well-off London life expectancy she'll have another 18 years at age 69....
    Speaking as someone just edging into his 50s, I heartily agree. Enough of these callow, acne'd striplings.

    BTW I have unearthed some amazing stuff while researching my next thriller (and thanks to pb-ers who sent me ideas to my email!).

    An American scientist has discovered that the efficacy of drugs diminishes over time, EVEN FOR FIRST TIME USERS. There is no scientific explanation why this happens, but it does. Similarly, this same scientist has discovered that the more you replicate an experiment, the less impressive your results - even if the underlying theory is deemed 'valid'.

    It is as if the universe grows bored of the experiment: i. e. reacts consciously. The effect is now quite well known in some circles, it is called "the decline effect" or "cosmic habituation", but many boffins are reluctant to talk about it - not surprisingly, as it threatens to undermine the entire scientific method.

    The ramifications are mind boggling. For a start the theory, in theory, cannot be tested as even if you falsify it, you don't know if your falsification will then be subject to cosmic habituation and be de-falsified. Furthermore, who's to know that magic and alchemy didn't once "work"? but then diminish in efficacy over time?

    Is this the quantum observer principle at work in the universe, on a macro, human level: is our consciousness affecting reality because it is an intrinsic part of reality?

    I'm having another coffee. The Thais are having another revolution.
    If that's accurate, it's damn close to not only proving the existance of God but proving that He gets bored (or that He has a sense of humour).
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    TGOHFTGOHF Posts: 21,633
    SouthamObserver said:

    Alanbrooke said:

    She would be better off retiring from politics and going off to enjoy life. Kind of sad really.

    To be fair, Boris has shown it can be done on a very part time basis - as long as you pay a lot of people big salaries to take a fair bit of the strain.

    Aye - lazy that Boris - not achieved much in his term has he.

    Rolls eyes.

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    JohnOJohnO Posts: 4,215
    edited November 2013
    MikeSmithson said:

    Cyclefree said:

    I rather like the idea of having a woman, particularly an older one, as Mayor.

    I'm a bit sick of having endless cloned young men running things. It's not as if they have made or are making such a good job of it.

    Agreed. Lets have more women and more leaders in their 50s. Have you noticed how older colleagues struggle to get promoted when the leader is in his 40s? Look at the ludicrous mess Cameron made with the over-promotion of Chloe Smith.

    I like Tessa Jowell a lot.

    Mike, Further to your inquiries on Saturday, I am a Leader, aged 58 and (if I may say so) pert and gorgeous, particuarly when donning my leopard-style Hersham onesie. Would you like a photo to add to your collection? I bet Dr Nabavi doesn't have one.
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    RichardNabaviRichardNabavi Posts: 3,413
    JohnO said:

    I bet Dr Nabavi doesn't have one.

    Correct.
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    david_herdsondavid_herdson Posts: 17,420
    fitalass said:

    Nigel Farage really needs to finally make his mind up and pick a seat to stand in, and then he needs to get campaigning. Otherwise he is danger of not appearing serious about making the transition from Brussels to Westminster, which is I suspect not that far from the truth.

    AndyJS said:

    IMO Farage was almost certainly going to stand against Laura Sandys but now I think he might reconsider Boston & Skegness.

    What Farage really needs to do is decide whether UKIP are a pressure group or a political party i.e. what is their main aim: to win as many votes as possible, so pressuring the parliamentary parties into adopting UKIP policies (or at least, trending towards them), or to gain seats at whatever level here and there, with the risk of losing support elsewhere and of being tied down to things the vast majority of the electorate don't care about. Does Farage really want to be a constituency MP with all the caseload work that brings?
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    MillsyMillsy Posts: 900
    tim said:

    FPT -Richard Nabavi

    Osborne has got it wrong on payday-lending.

    I agree with Mark Wallace's analysis both on the substantive issue and the politics:

    http://www.conservativehome.com/thetorydiary/2013/11/osborne-payday-loans-price-fix-why-and-why-now.html

    No arguing with that, it's what happens when you have an intellectually vacuous PM and a second rate strategist who thinks he's really impressive.

    "I struggle to see the difference between what Osborne calls a con when Labour propose it, but what he now argues is sensible and justified when it’s his idea."

    Dance fops, dance.

    Osborne's announcement is a little odd but I wonder whether it might be a taste of things to come in respect of "parking the tanks on Labour's lawn". Maybe there will be something on the minimum wage. Who said modernisation was dead?

    Anyway George Eaton over at the Staggers puts it well.

    On Today, Osborne sounded remarkably Miliband-esque as he spoke of how government "needs to step in to create the rules of the market" and to ensure that capitalism "works for hardworking people"...

    Osborne might be right when he argues that those who support a free market system have never believed in "complete laissez-faire" but the problem for him is that the government has often given the impression that they should...

    The Treasury's response to those noting this irony is to argue that the government will intervene in markets (as in the case of Help to Buy) when it can do so to the genuine benefit of people; a cap on energy prices remains a "gimmick" that will help no one

    http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2013/11/osborne-echoes-miliband-he-calls-government-set-rules-market
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    Morris_DancerMorris_Dancer Posts: 60,999
    Hmm. Lazily checking F1 markets. I think there's a mispricing.

    Hamilton 189
    Rosberg 171

    The above is the points this year for each driver. But Rosberg had 3 retirements (one is classified as 19th but he did retire) to Hamilton's 1. That's an average (per race finish) of 10.6875 to Hamilton's 10.5 (or almost exactly even).

    Yet Hamilton's 5 to win the 2014 title and Rosberg's 17 (Ladbrokes).

    Not a tip, but when I have some more free time I'll look at this and maybe make some token bets.
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    JonnyJimmyJonnyJimmy Posts: 2,548
    For Southam and any other soul fans...

    Charles Bradley - No Time For Dreaming
    www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtviJ5ZSTGM

    Sharon Jones & the DapKings - Nobody's Baby
    www.youtube.com/watch?v=uIt19gX9wjo
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    JonnyJimmyJonnyJimmy Posts: 2,548
    Oh, and if you can see my picture - that's me with Sharon Jones on my birthday at Shepherds Bush Empire :)
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    taffystaffys Posts: 9,753
    Does Farage really want to be a constituency MP with all the caseload work that brings?

    Maybe that's what he is asking himself.

    The BBC recently reported that Farage has health issues arising from his air crash and will have to go under the knife.
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    I think UKIP should go for 20% of the vote, even if it means no MPs.
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    malcolmgmalcolmg Posts: 42,062
    Cyclefree said:

    O/T: In response to MalcolmG (FPT): I was not making a comment about you or your attitude to mental illness just a general comment given that it appeared to be being discussed in the news. Stress - particularly severe stress - can lead to mental illness and people are often reluctant to admit to problems, possibly because the reaction of some can be so dismissive or unsympathetic.

    Cyclefree, no problem , I just wanted to be clear due to the unfounded rubbish Carlotta was posting re my hatred of people with mental illness. I merely said that all that was printed was he had stress. Lots of people have stress every day and it does not necessarily mean you have a mental health problem.
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    CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,785
    Labour Uncut:

    If Ed Miliband’s office did know and agree Unite’s strategy in Falkirk, but then signed-off a report lambasting the strategy as “manipulating party processes”, fundamental questions would be asked about the leader’s honesty.

    It would escalate the crisis in Falkirk to a new level. The problems would no longer be confined to a far flung Scottish constituency. The new focus would be Labour HQ at Brewer’s Green, and the most senior officials in the party: the general secretary and the leader’s office.

    And that’s why the party’s report on Falkirk will never be published.

    http://labour-uncut.co.uk/2013/11/25/the-real-reason-labour-will-never-publish-the-falkirk-report/
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    CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,785
    malcolmg said:

    Cyclefree said:

    O/T: In response to MalcolmG (FPT): I was not making a comment about you or your attitude to mental illness just a general comment given that it appeared to be being discussed in the news. Stress - particularly severe stress - can lead to mental illness and people are often reluctant to admit to problems, possibly because the reaction of some can be so dismissive or unsympathetic.

    the unfounded rubbish Carlotta was posting
    'mentally ill and drunk' Carlotta according to you eh? Such a charmer!
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    malcolmgmalcolmg Posts: 42,062
    isam said:

    Cyclefree said:

    O/T: In response to MalcolmG (FPT): I was not making a comment about you or your attitude to mental illness just a general comment given that it appeared to be being discussed in the news. Stress - particularly severe stress - can lead to mental illness and people are often reluctant to admit to problems, possibly because the reaction of some can be so dismissive or unsympathetic.

    "A stress related illness"...

    Isn't that modern speak for a lot of conditions that used to be called "mental illness"?

    Has anyone read of a recent case where someone in the spotlight has been diagnosed with "mental illness"?
    It is also used a lot nowadays as a substitute for highlighting that people are not just up to the job, are scared to admit it and then make themselves ill worrying about it rather than doing something about a career change.
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    CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,785
    Labour Uncut on Labour secrecy:

    In a political world where the name of Dr.David Kelly was ushered into the public domain at the height of the media mole-hunt for Andrew Giligan’s source, and the findings of the Hutton report into Dr.Kelly’s death were leaked to the Sun before its official publication, this level of secrecy is extraordinary.

    Now, the real reason that Labour’s report on Falkirk has been subject to greater security than matters of war and peace, has become clearer.
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    AlastairMeeksAlastairMeeks Posts: 30,340
    Tessa Jowell is too old. London is a young city:

    http://www.londonspovertyprofile.org.uk/indicators/topics/londons-geography-population/londons-population-by-age/

    Look for a candidate who looks young enough for the average London voter to relate to.
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    state_go_awaystate_go_away Posts: 5,422
    malcolmg said:

    isam said:

    Cyclefree said:

    O/T: In response to MalcolmG (FPT): I was not making a comment about you or your attitude to mental illness just a general comment given that it appeared to be being discussed in the news. Stress - particularly severe stress - can lead to mental illness and people are often reluctant to admit to problems, possibly because the reaction of some can be so dismissive or unsympathetic.

    "A stress related illness"...

    Isn't that modern speak for a lot of conditions that used to be called "mental illness"?

    Has anyone read of a recent case where someone in the spotlight has been diagnosed with "mental illness"?
    It is also used a lot nowadays as a substitute for highlighting that people are not just up to the job, are scared to admit it and then make themselves ill worrying about it rather than doing something about a career change.
    Not sure that any of the top 7 batting order for England are up to the job!
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    compouter1compouter1 Posts: 642
    edited November 2013
    May I congratulate Gideon on his Pay Day Loan cap policy....now I wonder where he got that policy from? Who would have thought a Tory chancellor interfering with a private market ....again. Wasn't that described as Marxism by err, who was it, a few months back?

    Though not everyone is happy in the reformed party of private market interference.

    Taken from Conhome: "For a start, its launch does not have the hallmarks of a long-planned policy. Announcing something on the morning airwaves but not pre-briefing the newspapers suggest a rather short notice decision.

    The Financial Conduct Authority says it was given no prior warning, which adds weight to the impression this is a bit of a snap call.....What is the point of the much-heralded “independent regulator” system if this becomes common practice? There is now a risk that other regulators will clamp down on practices just in case the Treasury thinks they ought to, rather than on the basis of their honest assessment of the facts."

    That is the real risk involved in this step: the weakening of the argument against Labour’s proposal to intervene in every market imaginable.

    Deliberately opening such a chink in our own armour, when Labour intend to make cost of living a battleground for the election, is a problem."

    Go Marxist Gideon!

    We are all Marxists now.
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    R0bertsR0berts Posts: 391
    SeanT said:

    edmundintokyo said:

    SeanT said:

    An American scientist has discovered that the efficacy of drugs diminishes over time, EVEN FOR FIRST TIME USERS. There is no scientific explanation why this happens, but it does. Similarly, this same scientist has discovered that the more you replicate an experiment, the less impressive your results - even if the underlying theory is deemed 'valid'.

    Sounds like selection bias where you only bother replicating the experiment if it showed something interesting in the first place...
    OR it is a quantum effect, a Heisenberg effect, the mere act of conscious observation alters reality.

    .
    That's not what the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle says. Though it is one (extreme) interpretation of a strange aspect of quantum behaviour, granted.

    Got a link to this Cosmic Ether thing or whatever it is?
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    state_go_awaystate_go_away Posts: 5,422
    On the subject of stress and cricket , i know the modern trend is to think sledging is cool etc but I dislike it and it can surely add to stress in a way. Let the bowling do the talking not your mouth I say.
    Clarke's comment to Anderson was something a thug would say not a gentleman cricketer. Warners comment about Trott was perhaps not good form and impolite but less serious as to Clarkes loutish behaviour
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    CityunslickerCityunslicker Posts: 60
    Sean T; who says alchemy does not work? Have you heard of Quantitative easing. The entire premise is a con-trick that relies entirely on people being ignorant of the true nature of money. That the elite and banks/institutions are all bought in to this just exposes the warped nature of humanity. out modern alchemy is beyond the wildest fantasies of the historic ones.

    Anyway. Mills is a pretty big albatrous for Jowell whatver her credentials. he has admitted lying in court to HMRC, being associated with Berlusconi and other unsavoury itlalian 'businessmen.' Jowell is back together with him. It's a hard sell, even for Roger....although perhaps with a run at mayoralty looming they might unfortunately split up again. I doubt the other labour candidates will lose much sleep over this.
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    RichardNabaviRichardNabavi Posts: 3,413
    antifrank said:

    Tessa Jowell is too old. London is a young city:

    http://www.londonspovertyprofile.org.uk/indicators/topics/londons-geography-population/londons-population-by-age/

    Look for a candidate who looks young enough for the average London voter to relate to.

    Aaargh - you mean... Owen Jones? Laurie Penny?
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    state_go_awaystate_go_away Posts: 5,422
    RichardNabavi said:

    antifrank said:

    Tessa Jowell is too old. London is a young city:

    http://www.londonspovertyprofile.org.uk/indicators/topics/londons-geography-population/londons-population-by-age/

    Look for a candidate who looks young enough for the average London voter to relate to.

    Aaargh - you mean... Owen Jones? Laurie Penny?
    Is the average London Voter (ie somebody who does vote) that young?
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    isamisam Posts: 40,971
    malcolmg said:

    isam said:

    Cyclefree said:

    O/T: In response to MalcolmG (FPT): I was not making a comment about you or your attitude to mental illness just a general comment given that it appeared to be being discussed in the news. Stress - particularly severe stress - can lead to mental illness and people are often reluctant to admit to problems, possibly because the reaction of some can be so dismissive or unsympathetic.

    "A stress related illness"...

    Isn't that modern speak for a lot of conditions that used to be called "mental illness"?

    Has anyone read of a recent case where someone in the spotlight has been diagnosed with "mental illness"?
    It is also used a lot nowadays as a substitute for highlighting that people are not just up to the job, are scared to admit it and then make themselves ill worrying about it rather than doing something about a career change.
    That's rings true as well, although don't know if its the case for Jonathan Trott.

    Really nowadays lots of words and phrases have lost their meaning thanks to fear of causing offence or desire to target an enemy.

    Was speaking to a friend of mine earlier who was called an "Arab" in print and the editors deleted the piece and profusely apologised even though he describes himself as half Arab, and the point made in relation to the use of the word "Arab" was not unjust or offensive.
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    CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,785
    Cityunslicker said:

    Mills is a pretty big albatrous for Jowell whatver her credentials.

    Oh I dunno - London seems pretty forgiving of 'colourful' Mayors - so I don't see having a 'colourful' spouse would be any great impediment.....

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    CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,785
    Ernst & Young:

    "“The UK is flying off the shelves. 12 months ago we were working with 40 multinational companies that were looking to undertake global and regional headquarter relocations into the UK. But the pipeline has been building rapidly. Over half of these transactions have already completed and we now expect over 60 companies to come to the UK’s shores in the next 18 months, creating jobs and boosting economic growth prospects.

    http://www.ey.com/UK/en/Newsroom/News-releases/13-11-25---The-UK-is-flying-off-the-shelves
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    Morris_DancerMorris_Dancer Posts: 60,999
    Miss Vance, clearly the lure of the world's foremost morris dancing nation is irresistible to foreign sorts!
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    taffystaffys Posts: 9,753
    Some deep emotional selection bias, plus the Devil 'avin a laugh?

    More worryingly, is this what's causing the increasingly shrill warnings about anti biotic resistance?
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    SouthCoastKevinSouthCoastKevin Posts: 158
    edited November 2013
    SeanT said:

    There's people doing serious research on this and none of the obvious explanations - selection bias, prejudice within the journal process - cover all the anomalies. Even the same scientists doing exactly the same tests (on new subjects) are encountering cosmic habituation; indeed some scientists are now testing for cosmic habituation, and removing, beforehand, all obvious bias that might explain it - and they still get cosmic habituation.

    Sorry to be such a pooh-pooher, SeanT, but I agree with R0berts - citation needed. EDIT - Aha, thanks for those. I shall have a read...
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    anothernickanothernick Posts: 3,578
    RichardNabavi said:

    antifrank said:

    Tessa Jowell is too old. London is a young city:

    http://www.londonspovertyprofile.org.uk/indicators/topics/londons-geography-population/londons-population-by-age/

    Look for a candidate who looks young enough for the average London voter to relate to.

    Aaargh - you mean... Owen Jones? Laurie Penny?
    I'm not sure that young people automatically prefer younger candidates. It's striking how the average age of cabinet/shadow cabinet members is now much younger than it used to be (Callaghan became PM at 65, as did Churchill). As the average age of the population has risen so the average age of MPs has fallen. Jowell could be a refreshing change for the identikit 40-somethings that dominate Westminster.
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    isamisam Posts: 40,971
    The QI Elves ‏@qikipedia 2h

    Maths joke: if you have a pizza with radius z and thickness a, its volume is pizza (or pi*z*z*a)
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    SouthCoastKevinSouthCoastKevin Posts: 158
    @SeanT - I did do a search myself but I was wondering what you'd been reading! Apologies again, this time for being dull and unimaginative, but it seems this effect is really about scientists (like any other group of people) being prone to things like confirmation bias and the desire to find patterns in randomness. I mean, if there were something in this cosmic habituation thing then it would undermine the entire basis of the modern scientific approach. Colour me dubious.
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    CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,785
    Car crash TV - thank goodness I decided against watching this:

    http://www.theguardian.com/media/2013/nov/25/one-dimension-doctor-who-matt-smith

    Almost as epic as putting Andrew Neil on a boat in the Thames on election night.....
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    AndyJSAndyJS Posts: 29,395
    SeanT said:

    R0berts said:

    SeanT said:

    edmundintokyo said:

    SeanT said:

    An American scientist has discovered that the efficacy of drugs diminishes over time, EVEN FOR FIRST TIME USERS. There is no scientific explanation why this happens, but it does. Similarly, this same scientist has discovered that the more you replicate an experiment, the less impressive your results - even if the underlying theory is deemed 'valid'.

    Sounds like selection bias where you only bother replicating the experiment if it showed something interesting in the first place...
    OR it is a quantum effect, a Heisenberg effect, the mere act of conscious observation alters reality.

    .
    That's not what the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle says. Though it is one (extreme) interpretation of a strange aspect of quantum behaviour, granted.

    Got a link to this Cosmic Ether thing or whatever it is?
    Heisenberg himself elided the Uncertainty Principle with the Observer Effect.

    Two good essays on Cosmic Hab:

    http://www.science20.com/alpha_meme/science_precognition_cosmic_habituation_and_decline_effect-84694

    http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/12/13/101213fa_fact_lehrer

    The Scientific Method is rubbish, or God is on Poppers (see what I did there?) - you decide.
    Elide is a rather silly word IMO because its two meanings are omit and merge which are sort of opposites of each other.
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    TheuniondivvieTheuniondivvie Posts: 40,236
    Speaking of mayors, Boris seems to be going through the whiny, 'please don't go' stage of the separation (with obligatory, underlying threats).

    http://tinyurl.com/ozw27v2

    Some people should be kept away forcibly from marriage/divorce/stick together for the children metaphors...
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    Scrapheap_as_wasScrapheap_as_was Posts: 10,059
    6...

    I mean six...
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    Morris_DancerMorris_Dancer Posts: 60,999
    edited November 2013
    Mr. Isam, not a QI joke but one I heard elsewhere:

    There are 10 kinds of people in the world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.

    Edited extra bit: those interested in speculative bets might also wish to consider Magnussen for the 2014 title at 50/1.
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    david_herdsondavid_herdson Posts: 17,420
    anothernick said:

    RichardNabavi said:

    antifrank said:

    Tessa Jowell is too old. London is a young city:

    http://www.londonspovertyprofile.org.uk/indicators/topics/londons-geography-population/londons-population-by-age/

    Look for a candidate who looks young enough for the average London voter to relate to.

    Aaargh - you mean... Owen Jones? Laurie Penny?
    I'm not sure that young people automatically prefer younger candidates. It's striking how the average age of cabinet/shadow cabinet members is now much younger than it used to be (Callaghan became PM at 65, as did Churchill). As the average age of the population has risen so the average age of MPs has fallen. Jowell could be a refreshing change for the identikit 40-somethings that dominate Westminster.
    The average age of PM's who first enter No 10 mid-term has always been higher than that of those who win from opposition.
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    MaxPBMaxPB Posts: 37,610
    I like the look of David Lammy if he runs. Good speaker, in touch with lots of London issues. People seem to like him, has respect from across the spectrum. Seems like a no-nonsense kind of guy.
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    dr_spyndr_spyn Posts: 11,289
    So Tessa how do mortgages work?
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    NextNext Posts: 826
    edited November 2013
    SeanT said:

    Sure Cosmic H sounds bonkers (and alarming) but so does quantum physics when you examine it, and that is accepted science: schrodinger's cat, the uncertainty principle, wave particle duality, and the rest of it. Cosmic H might be another delightful anomaly thrown up by quantum science.

    What I find fascinating, as a thriller writer, is that the Decline Effect- Cosmic H - was FIRST noted in scientific tests of precognition - which have in the past produced apparently astonishing results, only for them to be proved unreplicatable. So the original tests must have been fraudulent, or just lucky, precognition is nonsense, blah blah

    But now we know most scientific tests in psychology and many many other fields are not exactly replicatable over time, so.... should we dismiss them equally?

    It's a lovely idea for a book, but it really does seem more like randomness coupled with reporting bias.

    It goes like this: Someone gets quite extraordinary (random) results in an experiment. Those are interesting so they get reported and studied further. Other scientists look for similar findings, and those that comply are then reported. Over time, more sceptical results are published, and the (so called) decline effect sets in.

    Consider climate science (AGW): how many people could/can even get funding if they want to disprove it? There is bias built-in right from the start, let alone what is allowed to be reported by the group-think, and then variability in actual weather data.

    I think the scientific approach should not be called "peer review", but actually "peer pressure". Might be more accurate.
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    dr_spyndr_spyn Posts: 11,289
    Co-operative Bank will issue 3.7 million shares to preference share holders instead of a cash payment.
    http://citywire.co.uk/money/co-op-bank-preference-share-holders-to-get-shares-not-cash-divi/a720276?utm_medium=twitter

    Worthless paper?
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    MaxPBMaxPB Posts: 37,610
    CarlottaVance said:

    Ernst & Young:

    "“The UK is flying off the shelves. 12 months ago we were working with 40 multinational companies that were looking to undertake global and regional headquarter relocations into the UK. But the pipeline has been building rapidly. Over half of these transactions have already completed and we now expect over 60 companies to come to the UK’s shores in the next 18 months, creating jobs and boosting economic growth prospects.

    http://www.ey.com/UK/en/Newsroom/News-releases/13-11-25---The-UK-is-flying-off-the-shelves

    That's what a low corporation tax rate does. The losses from bringing it down to 20% from 28% will be more than made up in extra PAYE/NI receipts from employment and savings from the benefits bill as jobs are created.

    We're being restructured at the moment as well and a HQ move to Ireland (which was on the table as recently as last year) is now off the table and the board are looking a massive investment in freehold office space in London to consolidate the UK division's hold over SEL.
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    CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,785
    SeanT said:

    I think I might set my thriller in Cambridge, and somewhere REALLY spooky in East Anglia. Does anyone know any freaky places in East Anglia (that haven't been used by writers yet)?

    If you haven't read in Dorothy L Sayers 'The Nine Tailors' does spooky Fenland well.....

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    AlastairMeeksAlastairMeeks Posts: 30,340
    Really spooky in East Anglia? This qualifies and then some:

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borley_Rectory

    It's not that far from Cambridge either.

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    Tissue_PriceTissue_Price Posts: 9,039
    SeanT said:

    Of course, you could have just f*cking Googled "Cosmic habituation", like anyone normal. Tchuh!

    http://lmgtfy.com/?q=cosmic+habituation
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    anothernickanothernick Posts: 3,578
    MaxPB said:

    I like the look of David Lammy if he runs. Good speaker, in touch with lots of London issues. People seem to like him, has respect from across the spectrum. Seems like a no-nonsense kind of guy.

    I disagree. Many in Labour think Lammy is overrated and was out of his depth as a minister. I once attended a conference he addressed as Minister of Higher Education. He read out a speech - written, no doubt, by a civil servant - which he clearly did not really understand. Questions were answered with routine cliches and soundbites which left the audience - of senior HE manager - distinctly underwhelmed. His profile within the party is not particularly strong and he hasn't made much effort to promote himself amongst the membership. Not a runner IMO.
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    CarlottaVanceCarlottaVance Posts: 59,785
    edited November 2013
    SeanT said:

    CarlottaVance said:

    SeanT said:

    I think I might set my thriller in Cambridge, and somewhere REALLY spooky in East Anglia. Does anyone know any freaky places in East Anglia (that haven't been used by writers yet)?

    If you haven't read in Dorothy L Sayers 'The Nine Tailors' does spooky Fenland well.....

    That's my problem, Fenland and Borley (ta, antifrank) etc are all a bit obvious - they are fab, but they've been used. I need somewhere slightly less obv, but just as ghoulish. Not that I'm asking for much.
    How about an abandoned American cold war airbase.....with a dark past no one wants to talk about....

    http://www.urbanghostsmedia.com/2009/12/lost-american-airbases-in-britain/
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    Tissue_PriceTissue_Price Posts: 9,039
    anothernick said:

    I disagree. Many in Labour think Lammy is overrated and was out of his depth as a minister. I once attended a conference he addressed as Minister of Higher Education. He read out a speech - written, no doubt, by a civil servant - which he clearly did not really understand. Questions were answered with routine cliches and soundbites which left the audience - of senior HE manager - distinctly underwhelmed. His profile within the party is not particularly strong and he hasn't made much effort to promote himself amongst the membership. Not a runner IMO.

    And then there's this - can anyone doubt an edited version would be a viral hit during a Lammy campaign? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWwyVQ2IQuE

This discussion has been closed.