Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Maybe.
The berk driving to a castle, thereby encouraging everyone else to break lockdown, thereby leading to a second peak... that might not be forgotten so easily.
With the greatest of respect to Mike the YouGov poll seems a complete answer to this thread. During this outrage, fury and incandescence there has been a 2% swing towards the government.
With the greatest of respect to Mike the YouGov poll seems a complete answer to this thread. During this outrage, fury and incandescence there has been a 2% swing towards the government.
What's striking is that views on Cummings split much more in party grounds than on leave/remain. Johnson's appeal was meant to reach beyond traditional Tory voters, especially with the older working class demographic that voted Leave and helped the Tories win seats in the North of England and the Midlands in 2019. But support for Cummings seems to be limited to the Tory bunker. In the long run the Tory's opponents are better off with Cummings still inside the Tory tent, pissing all over its occupants.
It is noticeable how often scientific mavericks are speaking outside their area of expertise. The one pronouncing on immunological "dark matter" is a neurologist who specialises in image analysis.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
Meanwhile the Vine show on r2 this lunchtime features a fearless undercover investigation by a beeb reporter into - drum roll - ILLEGAL HAIRDRESSING. It is all getting a bit silly.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
This is the piece that baffles me - there’s a vital debate about how on earth you cope equitably with the economic devastation on the horizon that the left seems mostly uninterested in...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karol_Sikora I can confirm that Karol Sikora is not on the staff at Imperial and does not hold the title of honorary professor of oncology. This individual has been warned before by the college for making claims that he is employed by us, or associated with us. His views are very certainly not the views of the college.
— Prof Sir Roy Anderson, Rector of the Imperial College London
'Tis not so deep as a well nor so wide as a church-door, But 'tis enough, 'twill serve.'
"Our sting is oft not noted, but it is death ....."
OK, you got me...The Iliad?
I cannot remember to be honest. It is just there in the junk pile of facts and quotes that fill my head. "Dune" possibly? Bene Gesserit? Sadly I cannot go through my library at present so it is what it is
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
This is the piece that baffles me - there’s a vital debate about how on earth you cope equitably with the economic devastation on the horizon that the left seems mostly uninterested in...
It really is incredible, they seem so intent on point scoring that they either can't or won't see the wood for the trees.
I'm very interested to see how Starmer reacts, I see nothing in his history to suggest he has the foggiest idea. But when the furlough ends and millions finally realise they don't have jobs it is going to be carnage.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
This is the piece that baffles me - there’s a vital debate about how on earth you cope equitably with the economic devastation on the horizon that the left seems mostly uninterested in...
It really is incredible, they seem so intent on point scoring that they either can't or won't see the wood for the trees.
I'm very interested to see how Starmer reacts, I see nothing in his history to suggest he has the foggiest idea. But when the furlough ends and millions finally realise they don't have jobs it is going to be carnage.
This is why incumbency is not an assett at the next election, unless of course miracles can be worked between now and then.
Meanwhile the Vine show on r2 this lunchtime features a fearless undercover investigation by a beeb reporter into - drum roll - ILLEGAL HAIRDRESSING. It is all getting a bit silly.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
Take comfort from the deaths of all those dispensable old people, and think how much money the state will save when it doesn't have to pay them, care for them and give them medical care.
I'm not saying Antifa should or shouldn't be designated a terrorist org but that they shouldn't simply because of their name falls at the first hurdle, as the USA has designated the "party of God"* a terrorist organisation, so on that logic the USA is 'pro fascist' because Antifa are designated terrorists, Trump must also be 'against God'.
* A literal translation
Antifa, in my opinion, falls into the same bracket as Democratic People's Republic. Not very democratic, and not a lot of good for people.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
This is the piece that baffles me - there’s a vital debate about how on earth you cope equitably with the economic devastation on the horizon that the left seems mostly uninterested in...
It really is incredible, they seem so intent on point scoring that they either can't or won't see the wood for the trees.
I'm very interested to see how Starmer reacts, I see nothing in his history to suggest he has the foggiest idea. But when the furlough ends and millions finally realise they don't have jobs it is going to be carnage.
This is why incumbency is not an assett at the next election, unless of course miracles can be worked between now and then.
Oh Boris will be blamed, no doubt about that.
But will Starmer offer a credible alternative?
And there are no miracles to be worked btw, unless you can suggest what might trigger them.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
This is the piece that baffles me - there’s a vital debate about how on earth you cope equitably with the economic devastation on the horizon that the left seems mostly uninterested in...
It really is incredible, they seem so intent on point scoring that they either can't or won't see the wood for the trees.
I'm very interested to see how Starmer reacts, I see nothing in his history to suggest he has the foggiest idea. But when the furlough ends and millions finally realise they don't have jobs it is going to be carnage.
Yes, well worth watching Starmer on the economic response.
There’s a massive space opening up off the back of both Brexit and Covid for a bigger state and massive economic intervention. It’s opening up quickly so a skilful opposition could influence how it develops as any good or popular idea pitched by Labour would be quickly implemented by the govt.
This, and the implications stemming from it for taxes, public finance, and employment, are likely to be the terrain of the next election. So far Starmer has had nothing remotely interesting to say on it but perhaps he and Annalise Dodds are hard at work planning away...
In pure anecdote news was talking to my parents yesterday and they mentioned that the first people to get Coronavirus in their sleepy town of three thousand or so was two people who had shortly returned from Cheltenham Festival.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
Take comfort from the deaths of all those dispensable old people, and think how much money the state will save when it doesn't have to pay them, care for them and give them medical care.
Maybe that's why the stock markets are surging.
The roll call of 60,000 excess deaths in the UK is drowned out by the hoopla that the Conservatives remain 10 points ahead in the polls.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karol_Sikora I can confirm that Karol Sikora is not on the staff at Imperial and does not hold the title of honorary professor of oncology. This individual has been warned before by the college for making claims that he is employed by us, or associated with us. His views are very certainly not the views of the college.
— Prof Sir Roy Anderson, Rector of the Imperial College London
Wow. This guy always struck as the ultimate Panglossian and his tweets garnered significant publicity because of it. Is he actually for real or some kind of crank?
So it seems that all the old folk that voted to Leave and for Boris have died of Covid. I'm off to Betfair to get a price on Labour winning in 2024 and us rejoining the EU by 2025.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karol_Sikora I can confirm that Karol Sikora is not on the staff at Imperial and does not hold the title of honorary professor of oncology. This individual has been warned before by the college for making claims that he is employed by us, or associated with us. His views are very certainly not the views of the college.
— Prof Sir Roy Anderson, Rector of the Imperial College London
Prof Sikora getting it in the neck for straying from the strict lockdown orthodoxy?
With the greatest of respect to Mike the YouGov poll seems a complete answer to this thread. During this outrage, fury and incandescence there has been a 2% swing towards the government.
Next.
Hmmm.
Compared to polls before the Cummings saga started, the swing is 2% to Labour - and that's if the YouGov poll is correct and all the other polls follow.
Ultimately it's pointless to even think about minor changes so far from an election. What will worry the Tories is that they had leads in the mid 20s before Starmer took over, and now we've seen that drop to approx 5% in a few polls. Even 10% is a big drop.
People might have forgotten Cummings in 4 years, but given that we're facing an economic disaster as things unwind, and we're sailing closer to the wind in terms of a second peak than most of our neighbours, Boris would clearly prefer to still have that large buffer.
There will be many ups and downs between now and 2024, but the "honeymoon Tories" have already lost faith, and it's going to take a lot to gain that back.
So it seems that all the old folk that voted to Leave and for Boris have died of Covid. I'm off to Betfair to get a price on Labour winning in 2024 and us rejoining the EU by 2025.
The US, Spanish, Mexican and French governments though still rated worse
I think I might try and run a regression between these numbers and the number of CV deaths per million population or something. See if there's any relationship.
With the greatest of respect to Mike the YouGov poll seems a complete answer to this thread. During this outrage, fury and incandescence there has been a 2% swing towards the government.
Next.
Hmmm, time will tell.
I suspect not. We are already post Cummings and any effect is going to fade away. Let's face it there is plenty in the government's performance in recent weeks to get cross about without him.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
Take comfort from the deaths of all those dispensable old people, and think how much money the state will save when it doesn't have to pay them, care for them and give them medical care.
Maybe that's why the stock markets are surging.</blockquote
We can all tug at the emotional heartstrings.
I mean look at you, denying millions of disadvantaged and not in danger children their human right of an education
So it seems that all the old folk that voted to Leave and for Boris have died of Covid. I'm off to Betfair to get a price on Labour winning in 2024 and us rejoining the EU by 2025.
The US, Spanish, Mexican and French governments though still rated worse
I think I might try and run a regression between these numbers and the number of CV deaths per million population or something. See if there's any relationship.
Spain has more deaths per million than the UK, the US more deaths overall
With the greatest of respect to Mike the YouGov poll seems a complete answer to this thread. During this outrage, fury and incandescence there has been a 2% swing towards the government.
Next.
Hmmm, time will tell.
I suspect not. We are already post Cummings and any effect is going to fade away. Let's face it there is plenty in the government's performance in recent weeks to get cross about without him.
I still stand by the notion that time will tell. The government has to manage a whole heap of trouble coming down the track. If it shakes down in their favour, happy days. If it does not, Cummings, PPE, testing and a whole raft of other potential negatives will bite them hard.
So it seems that all the old folk that voted to Leave and for Boris have died of Covid. I'm off to Betfair to get a price on Labour winning in 2024 and us rejoining the EU by 2025.
So it seems that all the old folk that voted to Leave and for Boris have died of Covid. I'm off to Betfair to get a price on Labour winning in 2024 and us rejoining the EU by 2025.
The US, Spanish, Mexican and French governments though still rated worse
"At least we're not as bad as the US."
Can any one single phrase sum up the times we live in as well as that? Both the poverty of ambition in defending a position that is remarkably poor, and the degree to which the US has fallen from a position of leadership to one of derision and contempt.
If there is a GE this year, something so catastrophic will have happened, that I don't think it will be tight at all.
Were such an election to occur, I doubt that the Tories would end up more than 5% ahead - a Hung Parliament pretty likely.
Unless 41 Tory MPs died this year and the opposition won every by election, there is zero chance of an election this year with an 80 seat Tory majority
The US, Spanish, Mexican and French governments though still rated worse
You never fail to state the obvious. We can all read you know?
Oddly enough the Spanish media don’t agree. They reckon the figures are 58.04 UK and 57.95 Spain. Not sure where they get their numbers from but it’s all a bit silly having a pissing competition over this.
If there is a GE this year, something so catastrophic will have happened, that I don't think it will be tight at all.
Were such an election to occur, I doubt that the Tories would end up more than 5% ahead - a Hung Parliament pretty likely.
Unless 41 Tory MPs died this year and the opposition won every by election, there is zero chance of an election this year with an 80 seat Tory majority
If there is a GE this year, something so catastrophic will have happened, that I don't think it will be tight at all.
Were such an election to occur, I doubt that the Tories would end up more than 5% ahead - a Hung Parliament pretty likely.
Unless 41 Tory MPs died this year and the opposition won every by election, there is zero chance of an election this year with an 80 seat Tory majority
If Boris has opened too early and a second wave sweeps out of control, who knows? Let's hope not nonetheless.
So it seems that all the old folk that voted to Leave and for Boris have died of Covid. I'm off to Betfair to get a price on Labour winning in 2024 and us rejoining the EU by 2025.
That poll is already suggesting Boris made the right decision. Some critics misjudged how much folk cared about Cummings and how it would affect future voting. Sure it was the only story in the news but people were getting ludicrously carried away. Less than a week ago Stark Dawning claimed it was the biggest news story of the last 100 years!!!
With the greatest of respect to Mike the YouGov poll seems a complete answer to this thread. During this outrage, fury and incandescence there has been a 2% swing towards the government.
Next.
Hmmm, time will tell.
I suspect not. We are already post Cummings and any effect is going to fade away. Let's face it there is plenty in the government's performance in recent weeks to get cross about without him.
I still stand by the notion that time will tell. The government has to manage a whole heap of trouble coming down the track. If it shakes down in their favour, happy days. If it does not, Cummings, PPE, testing and a whole raft of other potential negatives will bite them hard.
No, the success or failure of the Tories will be determined by how they address those challenges which are immense and might overwhelm any government. Indeed, I would say the probability of being overwhelmed is high, certainly above evens.
All this episode has shown, once again, is how wide the gap is between the media, especially social media, and the country at large.
Is this really new, or is it just the same one that has been going for about a year now and which can't be stamped out in the usual way (Congo is pretty darned good at this stuff) because there is a civil war going on and they are killing the health workers
If there is a GE this year, something so catastrophic will have happened, that I don't think it will be tight at all.
Were such an election to occur, I doubt that the Tories would end up more than 5% ahead - a Hung Parliament pretty likely.
Unless 41 Tory MPs died this year and the opposition won every by election, there is zero chance of an election this year with an 80 seat Tory majority
Nothing is ever a “zero chance”.
If you throw a dart at a dart board your chances of hitting any individual point is zero.
Zero chances do happen, in fact they happen all the time.
Off topic: does anyone know where I would buy gravel like the following pic? I’ve been to 4 garden centres today and nobody has a clue. Probably caught COVID in the process.
The fact that after 10 days of the biggest smear job and witch-hunt in British history the Tories still lead by 10 points with YouGov tells you all need to know - the public are not stupid!
The US, Spanish, Mexican and French governments though still rated worse
I think I might try and run a regression between these numbers and the number of CV deaths per million population or something. See if there's any relationship.
Spain has more deaths per million than the UK, the US more deaths overall
Why do you cling uselessly to stats such as that? Anyone who can project trends just a few days forward can see that soon the UK will be worse than even Spain.
Off topic: does anyone know where I would buy gravel like the following pic? I’ve been to 4 garden centres today and nobody has a clue. Probably caught COVID in the process.
I know exactly where I'd go, but it is just outside of Washington DC. Probably not too helpful for you.
Is this relevant to anything? Cummings is clearly unpopular (no surprise) but I can't see it has any bearing whatsoever on the next general election.
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
Well I suppose it might be relevant to the number of people that die of C19 and the health and safety of the public generally but compared to who wins the next election, maybe not so important.
Really? The majority of people that have died are pretty old, a bloke driving north did very little to contribute to that and by 2024 he'll be long gone.
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
Oi, wotchit! I'm 71 myself and a bit touchy about such casual indifference to the 'pretty old'.
As for that 'bloke driving north', he singlehandedly undermined the Government's long, hard and quite successful campaign. We can never be certain how many casualties he personally may be responsible for, but he sure didn't help.
Doctors in Italy claim the coronavirus has weakened and become a shadow of the disease that rapidly spread around the world.
Italian medics say the infection - which has killed 370,000 worldwide - is much less lethal than it was and 'no longer clinically exists'.
Patients are showing much smaller amounts of the virus in their system, compared to samples taken during the peak of the crisis in March and April, they said.
With the greatest of respect to Mike the YouGov poll seems a complete answer to this thread. During this outrage, fury and incandescence there has been a 2% swing towards the government. Next.
Of course. This particular piece of bad news was craftily buried beneath prime ministerial assurances that the pandemic was over, lockdown was finished with, and we can all do whatever we like.
Perhaps David L would like to come back when the death rate goes up again and the mood changes once more.
Any credibility the Conservatives once had is now irretrievably lost to them.
Off topic: does anyone know where I would buy gravel like the following pic? I’ve been to 4 garden centres today and nobody has a clue. Probably caught COVID in the process.
As you've only got 3 bits, could you just chuck it and get a non matching style?
If there is a GE this year, something so catastrophic will have happened, that I don't think it will be tight at all.
Were such an election to occur, I doubt that the Tories would end up more than 5% ahead - a Hung Parliament pretty likely.
Unless 41 Tory MPs died this year and the opposition won every by election, there is zero chance of an election this year with an 80 seat Tory majority
Nothing is ever a “zero chance”.
Sure - but come on!?
I mean, perhaps if there was some crazy virus around, and they were all forced to sit squashed up in one room together...
The fact that after 10 days of the biggest smear job and witch-hunt in British history the Tories still lead by 10 points with YouGov tells you all need to know - the public are not stupid!
I know it's not the same as hacks saying mildly disagreeable things about you, but I imagine that the several hundred folk burned or drowned or hanged after being accused of being witches might disagree on the biggest smear job and witch-hunt in British history thing. #hyperbolistsrus
So it seems that all the old folk that voted to Leave and for Boris have died of Covid. I'm off to Betfair to get a price on Labour winning in 2024 and us rejoining the EU by 2025.
That poll is already suggesting Boris made the right decision. Some critics misjudged how much folk cared about Cummings and how it would affect future voting. Sure it was the only story in the news but people were getting ludicrously carried away. Less than a week ago Stark Dawning claimed it was the biggest news story of the last 100 years!!!
I think I said it was the biggest political story of the last hundred years. Literally everyone in the country has been impacted by Covid-19 to a highly significant degree. Cummings's antics are relevant to everyone in a way that the behaviour of politicians never are.
The US, Spanish, Mexican and French governments though still rated worse
"At least we're not as bad as the US."
Can any one single phrase sum up the times we live in as well as that? Both the poverty of ambition in defending a position that is remarkably poor, and the degree to which the US has fallen from a position of leadership to one of derision and contempt.
With the greatest of respect to Mike the YouGov poll seems a complete answer to this thread. During this outrage, fury and incandescence there has been a 2% swing towards the government. Next.
Of course. This particular piece of bad news was craftily buried beneath prime ministerial assurances that the pandemic was over, lockdown was finished with, and we can all do whatever we like.
Perhaps David L would like to come back when the death rate goes up again and the mood changes once more.
Any credibility the Conservatives once had is now irretrievably lost to them.
I have been extremely critical of the government's approach to the relaxation of the lockdown and the chances we are now taking. But the irrational frothing about Cummings had very little to do with that.
Comments
But 'tis enough, 'twill serve.'
https://twitter.com/YouGov/status/1267414279147474944
That will be fought almost exclusively on what's left of the economy and a berk driving to a castle will be forgotten by 99% of voters
The berk driving to a castle, thereby encouraging everyone else to break lockdown, thereby leading to a second peak... that might not be forgotten so easily.
Next.
https://twitter.com/ProfKarolSikora/status/1267428899673300992?s=20
The next few years are going to be painful, I can't think of anybody that I would like to see in charge - do you have any suggestions?
https://twitter.com/NAChristakis/status/1267419153822109696
I'm genuinely surprised that so many people are oblivious to what we're about to encounter economy wise
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karol_Sikora
I can confirm that Karol Sikora is not on the staff at Imperial and does not hold the title of honorary professor of oncology. This individual has been warned before by the college for making claims that he is employed by us, or associated with us. His views are very certainly not the views of the college.
— Prof Sir Roy Anderson, Rector of the Imperial College London
I'm very interested to see how Starmer reacts, I see nothing in his history to suggest he has the foggiest idea. But when the furlough ends and millions finally realise they don't have jobs it is going to be carnage.
Maybe that's why the stock markets are surging.
But will Starmer offer a credible alternative?
And there are no miracles to be worked btw, unless you can suggest what might trigger them.
There’s a massive space opening up off the back of both Brexit and Covid for a bigger state and massive economic intervention. It’s opening up quickly so a skilful opposition could influence how it develops as any good or popular idea pitched by Labour would be quickly implemented by the govt.
This, and the implications stemming from it for taxes, public finance, and employment, are likely to be the terrain of the next election. So far Starmer has had nothing remotely interesting to say on it but perhaps he and Annalise Dodds are hard at work planning away...
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/05/1968-and-2020-lessons-from-americas-worst-year-so-far/612415/
https://twitter.com/YouGov/status/1267414279147474944?s=20
Interesting prioritising.
welcome to my world.
Compared to polls before the Cummings saga started, the swing is 2% to Labour - and that's if the YouGov poll is correct and all the other polls follow.
Ultimately it's pointless to even think about minor changes so far from an election. What will worry the Tories is that they had leads in the mid 20s before Starmer took over, and now we've seen that drop to approx 5% in a few polls. Even 10% is a big drop.
People might have forgotten Cummings in 4 years, but given that we're facing an economic disaster as things unwind, and we're sailing closer to the wind in terms of a second peak than most of our neighbours, Boris would clearly prefer to still have that large buffer.
There will be many ups and downs between now and 2024, but the "honeymoon Tories" have already lost faith, and it's going to take a lot to gain that back.
https://twitter.com/YouGov/status/1267414279147474944?s=20
Lowest first day, Monday or not, in quite a while - 13
https://twitter.com/AFP/status/1267424710154911744
Can any one single phrase sum up the times we live in as well as that? Both the poverty of ambition in defending a position that is remarkably poor, and the degree to which the US has fallen from a position of leadership to one of derision and contempt.
Edit: “in” not “is”
All this episode has shown, once again, is how wide the gap is between the media, especially social media, and the country at large.
Zero chances do happen, in fact they happen all the time.
Do these numbers mean anything in isolation? What is the baseline for approval of government actions in general?
I think what this shows more than anything is which societies trust their governments in general.
https://twitter.com/cricketwyvern/status/1267449208535212033?s=20
As for that 'bloke driving north', he singlehandedly undermined the Government's long, hard and quite successful campaign. We can never be certain how many casualties he personally may be responsible for, but he sure didn't help.
Italian medics say the infection - which has killed 370,000 worldwide - is much less lethal than it was and 'no longer clinically exists'.
Patients are showing much smaller amounts of the virus in their system, compared to samples taken during the peak of the crisis in March and April, they said.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8376105/Is-Covid-19-really-potent.html
Or could it be the better weather, more UV light?
Perhaps David L would like to come back when the death rate goes up again and the mood changes once more.
Any credibility the Conservatives once had is now irretrievably lost to them.
I mean, perhaps if there was some crazy virus around, and they were all forced to sit squashed up in one room together...
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1267445910826627078?s=20
The public don't care about this anymore. It's a joke now.
#hyperbolistsrus
You really think Hunt would have got a better (from our perspective) deal like Boris got?
You really think Hunt would have got an 80 seat majority.
Hunt isn't bad, certainly better than May but the time was not right for Hunt. And if Hunt had been elected then you'd have been saying how bad he is.