If a wipeout was in the offing anyway, Sunak might as well have waited until November/ December. Got 2 years under his belt and a little bit more of a legacy.
I don't see any benefit he's derived from going early, except that he gets out of the game a bit earlier. Which might be it of course.
Thing is, there was a decent defensive case to be made for May, and a different decent defensive case for November/December.
Apart from the surprise value (and that seems to be hurting the Conservatives most), it's hard to discern the logic of July.
The memoirs and instant histories will be fascinating.
The optics of another junior doctors strike close to polling day is a nightmare for Sunak .
Junior doctors want rid of the Tories although I can’t see Labour offering anything close to what they want.
Whether there is a note left or not, there is no money.
BTW reaching a settlement with the junior doctors alone is going to cost multiple times the money raised by the non dom nonsense (assuming that raises any money at all of course).
There's always money for tax cuts and Rishi's new bifurcated tax system. Just imagine the abolition of IHT contrasted with striking medical staff. An epitaph for 14 years of government.
The optics of another junior doctors strike close to polling day is a nightmare for Sunak .
Junior doctors want rid of the Tories although I can’t see Labour offering anything close to what they want.
I think it could be the opposite. Puts Starmer is a slightly tricky position and a reminder that these issues will not go away for a Labour Government.
A sliver of hope there for PB Tories.
Mmm, I'd imagine that there's rather less sympathy for junior doctors asking for 35% than there was for the nurses who ended up settling for, what, 7.5% was it?
The lesson to be learned is that they should have stopped accepting below-inflation pay rises sooner, rather than waiting 14 years before going on strike for pay restoration.
Which in turn means that the incoming Labour govt is going to find it harder to keep a lid on public sector pay rises than they would have if the Tories hadn't insisted on stretching things beyond breaking point.
One of the main reasons Utd have struggled in the post-Fergie era is that something is so terribly wrong at the club that good players go there and become crap, and then bloom again when they move away.
The sad thing is that if he was at a big club like Man U, playing at top clubs, in the top competitions he might have got into the England squad but just being a player for a team that’s just in the champions league final Southgate overlooks him.
It’s ok CR, it’s the Tories’ Rorke’s Drift. It looks impossible but if we hold firm we can defeat the lefty hordes. You, me and Colour Sergeant Moon Rabbit.
Trouble is Sunak would encourage the Zulus to charge early, and then the two ranks would turn at and fire at each other:
All the polls are wrong. There are too many assumptions. It doesn't mean the Tories will not get dicked.... But the margin of defeat is unlikely to be as suggested....imho....
Are you arguing for some sort of systemic error across all pollsters, across all methodologies?
Or is it that you think something will happen during the remainder of the campaign to change peoples' minds?
The polls are not wrong.
Richard Tice reckons Reform will stand in 630 constituencies. Nominations must be in by next Friday. Let's see how many they put in.
PS Why not 631, given there are 18 in NI plus Lindsay Hoyle's in Chorley?
Keir Starmer: “Read my lips - I will bring immigration numbers down. If you trust me with the keys to No 10 I will make you this promise: I will control our borders and make sure British businesses are helped to hire Brits first.”
Unlike the Tories, with their promise to reduce immigration to the tens of thousands.
People are just in a place where, right now, they're willing to believe the best about Labour and the absolute worst about the Conservatives - to the extent where anything the former says extenuates that belief and anything the latter says just angers people.
I'm not sure there's much Rishi can do about it. But, he can't stay silent for 5 weeks.
Maybe the best thing is to just point out the dangers of giving Labour a massive majority.
Surely a massive majority is better than a small one? That way a bunch of rebellious Trots can be safely ignored by the leadership, and cannot influence policy.
Keir Starmer: “Read my lips - I will bring immigration numbers down. If you trust me with the keys to No 10 I will make you this promise: I will control our borders and make sure British businesses are helped to hire Brits first.”
I think cracking down on the employers of illegal immigrants is a pretty obvious move and one which has been proposed by the great and good on here for years or
And it's been going on for years. It's already being done. To not do so would be obviously stupid.
This is just politicking. SKS showing a bit of his leg, before he shows another bit to someone else next week.
I think he’s silly to make such a clear cut pledge, unless he is being “clever” because he knows simple maths will mean net migration figures go down.
FFS. Their obsession with tax cuts has been going since the middle of the Parliament and the sheer inability to grasp this is so low down the list of public priorities is absolutely staggering.
The optics of another junior doctors strike close to polling day is a nightmare for Sunak .
Junior doctors want rid of the Tories although I can’t see Labour offering anything close to what they want.
Whether there is a note left or not, there is no money.
BTW reaching a settlement with the junior doctors alone is going to cost multiple times the money raised by the non dom nonsense (assuming that raises any money at all of course).
There's always money for tax cuts and Rishi's new bifurcated tax system. Just imagine the abolition of IHT contrasted with striking medical staff. An epitaph for 14 years of government.
Keir Starmer: “Read my lips - I will bring immigration numbers down. If you trust me with the keys to No 10 I will make you this promise: I will control our borders and make sure British businesses are helped to hire Brits first.”
Unlike the Tories, with their promise to reduce immigration to the tens of thousands.
People are just in a place where, right now, they're willing to believe the best about Labour and the absolute worst about the Conservatives - to the extent where anything the former says extenuates that belief and anything the latter says just angers people.
I'm not sure there's much Rishi can do about it. But, he can't stay silent for 5 weeks.
Maybe the best thing is to just point out the dangers of giving Labour a massive majority.
Surely a massive majority is better than a small one? That way a bunch of rebellious Trots can be safely ignored by the leadership, and cannot influence policy.
What the Tories have found is that the best position for party management is a stable coalition with the Lib Dems, meaning you can ignore your loonier backbenchers while blaming the coalition partners for anything unpopular you have to do.
Keir Starmer: “Read my lips - I will bring immigration numbers down. If you trust me with the keys to No 10 I will make you this promise: I will control our borders and make sure British businesses are helped to hire Brits first.”
I think cracking down on the employers of illegal immigrants is a pretty obvious move and one which has been proposed by the great and good on here for years or
And it's been going on for years. It's already being done. To not do so would be obviously stupid.
This is just politicking. SKS showing a bit of his leg, before he shows another bit to someone else next week.
I think he’s silly to make such a clear cut pledge, unless he is being “clever” because he knows simple maths will mean net migration figures go down.
The numbers are pretty much nailed on to go down, short of another Ukranian refugee crisis, particularly the students.
Keir Starmer: “Read my lips - I will bring immigration numbers down. If you trust me with the keys to No 10 I will make you this promise: I will control our borders and make sure British businesses are helped to hire Brits first.”
I think cracking down on the employers of illegal immigrants is a pretty obvious move and one which has been proposed by the great and good on here for years or
And it's been going on for years. It's already being done. To not do so would be obviously stupid.
This is just politicking. SKS showing a bit of his leg, before he shows another bit to someone else next week.
I think he’s silly to make such a clear cut pledge, unless he is being “clever” because he knows simple maths will mean net migration figures go down.
The blip in student numbers because of COVID will be unwinding, and the numbers on the Ukraine and Hing Kong schemes will probably be down. Overseas student demand is also stalling, perhaps because of the Chinese economy. That all means that, without doing anything, the immigration numbers will very likely be falling.
One of the main reasons Utd have struggled in the post-Fergie era is that something is so terribly wrong at the club that good players go there and become crap, and then bloom again when they move away.
Not only that, good managers go there to fail. Something is very rotten at Old Trafford, and it may be the shadow of SAF.
It’s ok CR, it’s the Tories’ Rorke’s Drift. It looks impossible but if we hold firm we can defeat the lefty hordes. You, me and Colour Sergeant Moon Rabbit.
Trouble is Sunak would encourage the Zulus to charge early, and then the two ranks would turn at and fire at each other:
Keir Starmer: “Read my lips - I will bring immigration numbers down. If you trust me with the keys to No 10 I will make you this promise: I will control our borders and make sure British businesses are helped to hire Brits first.”
I think cracking down on the employers of illegal immigrants is a pretty obvious move and one which has been proposed by the great and good on here for years or
And it's been going on for years. It's already being done. To not do so would be obviously stupid.
This is just politicking. SKS showing a bit of his leg, before he shows another bit to someone else next week.
I think he’s silly to make such a clear cut pledge, unless he is being “clever” because he knows simple maths will mean net migration figures go down.
I don't think you have to be clever. The figures for the last couple of years are so exceptionally high that he'd struggle not to cut numbers.
Keir Starmer: “Read my lips - I will bring immigration numbers down. If you trust me with the keys to No 10 I will make you this promise: I will control our borders and make sure British businesses are helped to hire Brits first.”
Unlike the Tories, with their promise to reduce immigration to the tens of thousands.
People are just in a place where, right now, they're willing to believe the best about Labour and the absolute worst about the Conservatives - to the extent where anything the former says extenuates that belief and anything the latter says just angers people.
I'm not sure there's much Rishi can do about it. But, he can't stay silent for 5 weeks.
Maybe the best thing is to just point out the dangers of giving Labour a massive majority.
Surely a massive majority is better than a small one? That way a bunch of rebellious Trots can be safely ignored by the leadership, and cannot influence policy.
You'd think Tories would understand that, after the DUP alliance.
It’s ok CR, it’s the Tories’ Rorke’s Drift. It looks impossible but if we hold firm we can defeat the lefty hordes. You, me and Colour Sergeant Moon Rabbit.
Trouble is Sunak would encourage the Zulus to charge early, and then the two ranks would turn at and fire at each other:
Presumably net migration will fall as a result of all those folks who keep threatening to leave the country if Labour win actually following through this time?
I’ve discovered France’s answer to one of our left behind Northern towns. St Quentin, where we are staying overnight on the way back home.
OK the dire November weather doesn’t help, but this town is quite something.
A large central square, Saturday evening, grand Flemish-style civic buildings, 2 people in the entire space kicking a football around.
Few restaurants or bars apart from one gaudy red pub cum diner that looks like a TGI Fridays, one proper brasserie, some pizza takeaways and a branch of Subway. Subway, FFS.
Empty shop fronts. 80s and 90s red brick redevelopments around the 12th century basilica (which was open at 10pm, in the dark. Huge. Rather spooky), and an Ibis looking like an old Travelodge facing the West door across an archaeological dig.
Litter. Virtual silence. Patchy Drizzle. All it needs is a Poundland and a branch of British Heart Foundation and it could be somewhere the BBC go to explain Brexit. This is of course the heart of Le Pen country and I understand why. It is blighted.
FFS. Their obsession with tax cuts has been going since the middle of the Parliament and the sheer inability to grasp this is so low down the list of public priorities is absolutely staggering.
It isn't, most polls show most voters want their own taxes cut
It’s ok CR, it’s the Tories’ Rorke’s Drift. It looks impossible but if we hold firm we can defeat the lefty hordes. You, me and Colour Sergeant Moon Rabbit.
Trouble is Sunak would encourage the Zulus to charge early, and then the two ranks would turn at and fire at each other:
It’s ok CR, it’s the Tories’ Rorke’s Drift. It looks impossible but if we hold firm we can defeat the lefty hordes. You, me and Colour Sergeant Moon Rabbit.
Trouble is Sunak would encourage the Zulus to charge early, and then the two ranks would turn at and fire at each other:
It’s ok CR, it’s the Tories’ Rorke’s Drift. It looks impossible but if we hold firm we can defeat the lefty hordes. You, me and Colour Sergeant Moon Rabbit.
Trouble is Sunak would encourage the Zulus to charge early, and then the two ranks would turn at and fire at each other:
One of the main reasons Utd have struggled in the post-Fergie era is that something is so terribly wrong at the club that good players go there and become crap, and then bloom again when they move away.
Not only that, good managers go there to fail. Something is very rotten at Old Trafford, and it may be the shadow of SAF.
More likely the Glazers. Old Trafford is literally falling apart at a time when their competitors (or sides they ought to be competing with…) have either moved to new grounds or are rebuilding on site. I think this is important, and potentially adds to an air of failure at the club. Add in short termism (Sir Alex nearly got the boot early doors until Mark Robins saved him) and you are where you are. Fully expect at least a decade more of shitness, and loving it.
Maybe the Tories should just reciprocate and tell the electorate to go fuck themselves.
Pretty certain that's what they've been doing the last five years.
I make no secret of the fact they lost me over the leasehold issue. Despite Gove trying his best, and arguably the most important advocate for reform being a Conservative - the brilliant Sir Peter Bottomley.
Being a leaseholder since Grenfell feels like being continually told "we don't want your vote, eff off" by the Conservatives. So I did.
FFS. Their obsession with tax cuts has been going since the middle of the Parliament and the sheer inability to grasp this is so low down the list of public priorities is absolutely staggering.
It’s high up for idiot Tories who think they are always over the crown of the laffer curve. They are the type who think that you’d get loads of money if you abolished tax. They should study what their hero actually did not what they think she did.
It’s ok CR, it’s the Tories’ Rorke’s Drift. It looks impossible but if we hold firm we can defeat the lefty hordes. You, me and Colour Sergeant Moon Rabbit.
Trouble is Sunak would encourage the Zulus to charge early, and then the two ranks would turn at and fire at each other:
It’s ok CR, it’s the Tories’ Rorke’s Drift. It looks impossible but if we hold firm we can defeat the lefty hordes. You, me and Colour Sergeant Moon Rabbit.
Trouble is Sunak would encourage the Zulus to charge early, and then the two ranks would turn at and fire at each other:
Gary Lineker 1, Rheinmetal 0. It’s a moral story of supporting teams sponsored by Emirates rather than those bastards supplying weapons to Ukraine.
I like Rheinmetall. They make good stuff. What's lineker said now?
He wants Real to win because Rheinmetall have announced a sponsorship with Dortmund, I honestly y pray he gets held hostage somewhere and the rescue forces say “sorry Gary, bit of a problem, out kit is made by horrid people who make weapons etc, good luck” and then sign off with a terrible pun like “it’s not so much Lockheed but no heed”.
It’s ok CR, it’s the Tories’ Rorke’s Drift. It looks impossible but if we hold firm we can defeat the lefty hordes. You, me and Colour Sergeant Moon Rabbit.
Trouble is Sunak would encourage the Zulus to charge early, and then the two ranks would turn at and fire at each other:
SNP ministers have been accused of “negligence on a remarkable scale” after it emerged they are set to hand back £450 million of EU money they failed to spend on key economic and anti-poverty projects.
Scotland is expected to return 28 per cent of the European structural and investment funding it received in the past six years having failed to allocate the cash.
By comparison, Wales is on course to return 9 per cent of its money, England 6 per cent and Northern Ireland 2 per cent.
SNP ministers have been accused of “negligence on a remarkable scale” after it emerged they are set to hand back £450 million of EU money they failed to spend on key economic and anti-poverty projects.
Scotland is expected to return 28 per cent of the European structural and investment funding it received in the past six years having failed to allocate the cash.
By comparison, Wales is on course to return 9 per cent of its money, England 6 per cent and Northern Ireland 2 per cent.
Maybe the Tories should just reciprocate and tell the electorate to go fuck themselves.
Pretty certain that's what they've been doing the last five years.
I make no secret of the fact they lost me over the leasehold issue. Despite Gove trying his best, and arguably the most important advocate for reform being a Conservative - the brilliant Sir Peter Bottomley.
Being a leaseholder since Grenfell feels like being continually told "we don't want your vote, eff off" by the Conservatives. So I did.
And remember that the most significant leasehold reform - the Right to Manage aka give the boot to the management company that's been fleecing you for years - came in under a Labour government. My in laws are very grateful for that one.
All the polls are wrong. There are too many assumptions. It doesn't mean the Tories will not get dicked.... But the margin of defeat is unlikely to be as suggested....imho....
Are you arguing for some sort of systemic error across all pollsters, across all methodologies?
Or is it that you think something will happen during the remainder of the campaign to change peoples' minds?
The polls are not wrong.
Conservatism exists not to stop progress, nor keep everything the same, but in acknowledgement natures way is everything forever changes, and we need to conserve what is of value and importance. You build a wall to keep the wild things out. Within the wall you build a path to get you from A to B safely in the dark or inclement weather. Where your way leads across the stream, you build a bridge. If you now do nothing to conserve the path and the wall and the bridge, nature will take them from you. It will change your world and take everything you value from you. Those things you want your children to learn in the right way, whilst on your knee? they will learn it first elsewhere, in the wrong way. The world needs Conservative thinking and Conservative action.
We have a Conservative Party in the UK that used to be very good at this, and often rewarded with power, but it has lost its way. Distracted by other things, it’s stopped focussing on its main reason to be - to conserve what is of value and what is important. The party has become an echo chamber for right wing capitalist think tanks and NeoCon groups, its leaders forgetting when they get excited by idea’s, they will ultimately have to defend them on the floor of parliament and at the ballot box.
Echo Chamber Government is not the way to lead a party or govern a country.
That was a party political broadcast brought to you by ChatGPT
Obviously I don’t agree. But then there is nothing agreeable about anything you post.
The situation arose when Abbott had a letter published in the Observer explaining only black people suffer real racism - any prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in her opinion only on par with stick people with red hair endure. But this wasn’t all, it was compounded by a bizarre non apology. She’s sorry, but the wrong draft was submitted and published. How many drafts did you write? Just one.
The bizarre non apology is someone unfit to be an MP, unfit to be a community leader, let alone the straightforward anti semitism in the letter she wrote and submitted to the National Newspaper.
Why would any community leader write that down and send it to a newspaper to be published? How do they truly understand the world? It leaves us wondering if Abbott does actually sincerely believe only black people suffer real racism, prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in the hierarchy she is creating and understands, antisemitism is only on par with stick people with red hair endure. Also, we saw the rally in her constituency last week, we wonder if everyone gathered around her there, everyone who follows her lead and sticking up for her, sincerely subscribe to that warped hierarchy and world view too?
However, for all the media, Tory campaign and Conservative commentary trying to make something out of, what they refer to as Starmer bullying UKs first Black female MP, it was the “after your fpn and all the partying, why should we trust you again?” that’s actually playing large in this election campaign.
All the polls are wrong. There are too many assumptions. It doesn't mean the Tories will not get dicked.... But the margin of defeat is unlikely to be as suggested....imho....
Are you arguing for some sort of systemic error across all pollsters, across all methodologies?
Or is it that you think something will happen during the remainder of the campaign to change peoples' minds?
The polls are not wrong.
Conservatism exists not to stop progress, nor keep everything the same, but in acknowledgement natures way is everything forever changes, and we need to conserve what is of value and importance. You build a wall to keep the wild things out. Within the wall you build a path to get you from A to B safely in the dark or inclement weather. Where your way leads across the stream, you build a bridge. If you now do nothing to conserve the path and the wall and the bridge, nature will take them from you. It will change your world and take everything you value from you. Those things you want your children to learn in the right way, whilst on your knee? they will learn it first elsewhere, in the wrong way. The world needs Conservative thinking and Conservative action.
We have a Conservative Party in the UK that used to be very good at this, and often rewarded with power, but it has lost its way. Distracted by other things, it’s stopped focussing on its main reason to be - to conserve what is of value and what is important. The party has become an echo chamber for right wing capitalist think tanks and NeoCon groups, its leaders forgetting when they get excited by idea’s, they will ultimately have to defend them on the floor of parliament and at the ballot box.
Echo Chamber Government is not the way to lead a party or govern a country.
That was a party political broadcast brought to you by ChatGPT
Obviously I don’t agree. But then there is nothing agreeable about anything you post.
The situation arose when Abbott had a letter published in the Observer explaining only black people suffer real racism - any prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in her opinion only on par with stick people with red hair endure. But this wasn’t all, it was compounded by a bizarre non apology. She’s sorry, but the wrong draft was submitted and published. How many drafts did you write? Just one.
The bizarre non apology is someone unfit to be an MP, unfit to be a community leader, let alone the straightforward anti semitism in the letter she wrote and submitted to the National Newspaper.
Why would any community leader write that down and send it to a newspaper to be published? How do they truly understand the world? It leaves us wondering if Abbott does actually sincerely believe only black people suffer real racism, prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in the hierarchy she is creating and understands, antisemitism is only on par with stick people with red hair endure. Also, we saw the rally in her constituency last week, we wonder if everyone gathered around her there, everyone who follows her lead and sticking up for her, sincerely subscribe to that warped hierarchy and world view too?
However, for all the media, Tory campaign and Conservative commentary trying to make something out of, what they refer to as Starmer bullying UKs first Black female MP, it was the “after your fpn and all the partying, why should we trust you again?” that’s actually playing large in this election campaign.
She also said, IIRC, gypsies didn’t suffer racism, either.
All the polls are wrong. There are too many assumptions. It doesn't mean the Tories will not get dicked.... But the margin of defeat is unlikely to be as suggested....imho....
Are you arguing for some sort of systemic error across all pollsters, across all methodologies?
Or is it that you think something will happen during the remainder of the campaign to change peoples' minds?
The polls are not wrong.
Conservatism exists not to stop progress, nor keep everything the same, but in acknowledgement natures way is everything forever changes, and we need to conserve what is of value and importance. You build a wall to keep the wild things out. Within the wall you build a path to get you from A to B safely in the dark or inclement weather. Where your way leads across the stream, you build a bridge. If you now do nothing to conserve the path and the wall and the bridge, nature will take them from you. It will change your world and take everything you value from you. Those things you want your children to learn in the right way, whilst on your knee? they will learn it first elsewhere, in the wrong way. The world needs Conservative thinking and Conservative action.
We have a Conservative Party in the UK that used to be very good at this, and often rewarded with power, but it has lost its way. Distracted by other things, it’s stopped focussing on its main reason to be - to conserve what is of value and what is important. The party has become an echo chamber for right wing capitalist think tanks and NeoCon groups, its leaders forgetting when they get excited by idea’s, they will ultimately have to defend them on the floor of parliament and at the ballot box.
Echo Chamber Government is not the way to lead a party or govern a country.
That was a party political broadcast brought to you by ChatGPT
Obviously I don’t agree. But then there is nothing agreeable about anything you post.
The situation arose when Abbott had a letter published in the Observer explaining only black people suffer real racism - any prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in her opinion only on par with stick people with red hair endure. But this wasn’t all, it was compounded by a bizarre non apology. She’s sorry, but the wrong draft was submitted and published. How many drafts did you write? Just one.
The bizarre non apology is someone unfit to be an MP, unfit to be a community leader, let alone the straightforward anti semitism in the letter she wrote and submitted to the National Newspaper.
Why would any community leader write that down and send it to a newspaper to be published? How do they truly understand the world? It leaves us wondering if Abbott does actually sincerely believe only black people suffer real racism, prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in the hierarchy she is creating and understands, antisemitism is only on par with stick people with red hair endure. Also, we saw the rally in her constituency last week, we wonder if everyone gathered around her there, everyone who follows her lead and sticking up for her, sincerely subscribe to that warped hierarchy and world view too?
However, for all the media, Tory campaign and Conservative commentary trying to make something out of, what they refer to as Starmer bullying UKs first Black female MP, it was the “after your fpn and all the partying, why should we trust you again?” that’s actually playing large in this election campaign.
She also said, IIRC, gypsies didn’t suffer racism, either.
I was amazed by the abuse by people on my Facebook when Tyson Fury lost the other weekend about him being a traveller - I’m a horrid person and can poke fun inappropriately but I was staggered by the freedom of people giving him crap about his gypsiness (is that a word?) when they would be the first people to eviscerate someone for having a go at a boxer for his colour. They are so right on but had no problem with laughing and mocking his background.
All the polls are wrong. There are too many assumptions. It doesn't mean the Tories will not get dicked.... But the margin of defeat is unlikely to be as suggested....imho....
Are you arguing for some sort of systemic error across all pollsters, across all methodologies?
Or is it that you think something will happen during the remainder of the campaign to change peoples' minds?
The polls are not wrong.
Conservatism exists not to stop progress, nor keep everything the same, but in acknowledgement natures way is everything forever changes, and we need to conserve what is of value and importance. You build a wall to keep the wild things out. Within the wall you build a path to get you from A to B safely in the dark or inclement weather. Where your way leads across the stream, you build a bridge. If you now do nothing to conserve the path and the wall and the bridge, nature will take them from you. It will change your world and take everything you value from you. Those things you want your children to learn in the right way, whilst on your knee? they will learn it first elsewhere, in the wrong way. The world needs Conservative thinking and Conservative action.
We have a Conservative Party in the UK that used to be very good at this, and often rewarded with power, but it has lost its way. Distracted by other things, it’s stopped focussing on its main reason to be - to conserve what is of value and what is important. The party has become an echo chamber for right wing capitalist think tanks and NeoCon groups, its leaders forgetting when they get excited by idea’s, they will ultimately have to defend them on the floor of parliament and at the ballot box.
Echo Chamber Government is not the way to lead a party or govern a country.
That was a party political broadcast brought to you by ChatGPT
Obviously I don’t agree. But then there is nothing agreeable about anything you post.
The situation arose when Abbott had a letter published in the Observer explaining only black people suffer real racism - any prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in her opinion only on par with stick people with red hair endure. But this wasn’t all, it was compounded by a bizarre non apology. She’s sorry, but the wrong draft was submitted and published. How many drafts did you write? Just one.
The bizarre non apology is someone unfit to be an MP, unfit to be a community leader, let alone the straightforward anti semitism in the letter she wrote and submitted to the National Newspaper.
Why would any community leader write that down and send it to a newspaper to be published? How do they truly understand the world? It leaves us wondering if Abbott does actually sincerely believe only black people suffer real racism, prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in the hierarchy she is creating and understands, antisemitism is only on par with stick people with red hair endure. Also, we saw the rally in her constituency last week, we wonder if everyone gathered around her there, everyone who follows her lead and sticking up for her, sincerely subscribe to that warped hierarchy and world view too?
However, for all the media, Tory campaign and Conservative commentary trying to make something out of, what they refer to as Starmer bullying UKs first Black female MP, it was the “after your fpn and all the partying, why should we trust you again?” that’s actually playing large in this election campaign.
She also said, IIRC, gypsies didn’t suffer racism, either.
Gypsies are probably the one group in the UK that face blanket racism every day.
What odds that we see Ed Davey sitting in a bath of custard before the end of the campaign?
A bungee jump over Ironbridge Gorge is likely on the grid
Might as well be the first party leader to have fun during a campaign - it might not help to spend it on a holiday, but it probably would not hurt it as much as conventional wisdom would suggest.
Keir Starmer: “Read my lips - I will bring immigration numbers down. If you trust me with the keys to No 10 I will make you this promise: I will control our borders and make sure British businesses are helped to hire Brits first.”
Unlike the Tories, with their promise to reduce immigration to the tens of thousands.
People are just in a place where, right now, they're willing to believe the best about Labour and the absolute worst about the Conservatives - to the extent where anything the former says extenuates that belief and anything the latter says just angers people.
I'm not sure there's much Rishi can do about it. But, he can't stay silent for 5 weeks.
Maybe the best thing is to just point out the dangers of giving Labour a massive majority.
Surely a massive majority is better than a small one? That way a bunch of rebellious Trots can be safely ignored by the leadership, and cannot influence policy.
The dangers of a massive majority to one's own good governance is like 'a good election to lose', simply not the case. It comes with its own challenges, to be sure, but all things considered you'd rather have that headache than a tight majority.
For the public things might be a bit different, they should probably be wary of making things to easy for one political party, but whatever opponents might say about how bad things have been since 2019 or even more so 1997, with plenty of issues to point to, it really hasn't been the end of the world with either so I don't think the warning resonates with people in advance anyway.
Diane Abbott has been offered a peerage by Keir Starmer if she quits as a Labour candidate -- The Times
This whole affair has really been quite weird. However it ends up just letting her doddle to an easy win and then be ignored for 4-5 years surely would have been easier without all this briefing and back and forth?
Diane Abbott has been offered a peerage by Keir Starmer if she quits as a Labour candidate -- The Times
This whole affair has really been quite weird. However it ends up just letting her doddle to an easy win and then be ignored for 4-5 years surely would have been easier without all this briefing and back and forth?
Ange is Labour's not-so-secret weapon. Especially, but not only, up north, Ange will enthuse quite a lot of people to vote Labour in a way that Starmer won't. That shouldn't be underestimated.
Diane Abbott has been offered a peerage by Keir Starmer if she quits as a Labour candidate -- The Times
Diane Abbott will never stand for Labour at a General Election ever again. That much is obvious from the fact media can’t get Starmer or any front line Labour politician to say that she is. They have obviously got other stuff on her. 😁
Her own party has spent time and money putting together a case to ensure she cannot be a candidate, and we will probably have to wait till Tuesday to find out if she takes the Lords gig or what this, that, and the other, they have lined up to finish her. There is zero chance Diane Abbott will ever be a Labour Candidate again.
Which brings us to the Conservatives now rallying behind Abbott as though she’s been hard done by the Labour leaderships vetting? Are these the same people who, just earlier this year so fresh in the memory, exploited Azhar Ali remarks and disqualification from standing for Labour in a by election, and taunted Starmer to the max in not having changed his party? Because anyone and everyone can see opportunism and complete lack of principle when it happens, and you should not want floating voters to see that in you ever, not just at this dangerous moment.
Keir Starmer: “Read my lips - I will bring immigration numbers down. If you trust me with the keys to No 10 I will make you this promise: I will control our borders and make sure British businesses are helped to hire Brits first.”
Unlike the Tories, with their promise to reduce immigration to the tens of thousands.
People are just in a place where, right now, they're willing to believe the best about Labour and the absolute worst about the Conservatives - to the extent where anything the former says extenuates that belief and anything the latter says just angers people.
I'm not sure there's much Rishi can do about it. But, he can't stay silent for 5 weeks.
Maybe the best thing is to just point out the dangers of giving Labour a massive majority.
Surely a massive majority is better than a small one? That way a bunch of rebellious Trots can be safely ignored by the leadership, and cannot influence policy.
Indeed. I have come to the conclusion that a Labour landslide is now the best outcome: because it will cut the left out of party affairs for a generation.
It’s insane that she wasn’t removed immediately from the candidate pool. That’s on Rishi and whoever won the latest round of musical chairs and gets to be Chairman for a bit.
Am increasingly convinced that the entire Conservative campaign is one gigantic case study in psychological projection. To be coming soon to a University course they'd abolish. Except they won't be able to. Because...
A comment on the campaign, so far. Obviously, Sunak and Starmer (and Davey) are central and dominate the discourse. But it strikes me that Labour are promoting much more of a team approach; Rayner, Reeves, Streeting, Philipson, Reynolds and others are all featuring quite strongly. Whereas for the Tories, I've barely seen anybody but Sunak. Cameron seems to be keeping a low profile, for example.
I think the Tories are hanging far too much on the popularity (or otherwise) of Sunak, and their presidential campaign is backfiring.
A comment on the campaign, so far. Obviously, Sunak and Starmer (and Davey) are central and dominate the discourse. But it strikes me that Labour are promoting much more of a team approach; Rayner, Reeves, Streeting, Philipson, Reynolds and others are all featuring quite strongly. Whereas for the Tories, I've barely seen anybody but Sunak. Cameron seems to be keeping a low profile, for example.
I think the Tories are hanging far too much on the popularity (or otherwise) of Sunak, and their presidential campaign is backfiring.
Or maybe. He's the scapegoat for the utter intellectual, moral and philosophical void which constitutes the Conservative Party in 2024? Hang all the blame and suffering on him and we shall awake reborn and unstained on July 5th? (With the same prejudices and lack of understanding of what got them here).
Ange is Labour's not-so-secret weapon. Especially, but not only, up north, Ange will enthuse quite a lot of people to vote Labour in a way that Starmer won't. That shouldn't be underestimated.
A comment on the campaign, so far. Obviously, Sunak and Starmer (and Davey) are central and dominate the discourse. But it strikes me that Labour are promoting much more of a team approach; Rayner, Reeves, Streeting, Philipson, Reynolds and others are all featuring quite strongly. Whereas for the Tories, I've barely seen anybody but Sunak. Cameron seems to be keeping a low profile, for example.
I think the Tories are hanging far too much on the popularity (or otherwise) of Sunak, and their presidential campaign is backfiring.
It's also absurd.
If they want to run presidential-style campaigns, then they need to change the constitution.
The strongest argument (among many!) for not voting conservative at the GE is that you genuinely have no idea which nutter the MP's/party members will choose to replace Rishi with. We're being asked to pull the arm on a fruit machine.
A comment on the campaign, so far. Obviously, Sunak and Starmer (and Davey) are central and dominate the discourse. But it strikes me that Labour are promoting much more of a team approach; Rayner, Reeves, Streeting, Philipson, Reynolds and others are all featuring quite strongly. Whereas for the Tories, I've barely seen anybody but Sunak. Cameron seems to be keeping a low profile, for example.
I think the Tories are hanging far too much on the popularity (or otherwise) of Sunak, and their presidential campaign is backfiring.
Or maybe. He's the scapegoat for the utter intellectual, moral and philosophical void which constitutes the Conservative Party in 2024? Hang all the blame and suffering on him and we shall awake reborn and unstained on July 5th? (With the same prejudices and lack of understanding of what got them here).
Spectator says that many of leading Cabinet figures are too busy fighting in their own constituency backyard to be available for national battle bus bollocks.
It’s insane that she wasn’t removed immediately from the candidate pool. That’s on Rishi and whoever won the latest round of musical chairs and gets to be Chairman for a bit.
FFS. Their obsession with tax cuts has been going since the middle of the Parliament and the sheer inability to grasp this is so low down the list of public priorities is absolutely staggering.
They know that. They want us to think other people care about taxes so we should.
Ange is Labour's not-so-secret weapon. Especially, but not only, up north, Ange will enthuse quite a lot of people to vote Labour in a way that Starmer won't. That shouldn't be underestimated.
I can't help but read the text of the tweet as an inflated Proclaimers song.
"But I would walk five thousand miles And I would walk five thousand more Just to be the man who walked a million Miles to fall down at your door"
A comment on the campaign, so far. Obviously, Sunak and Starmer (and Davey) are central and dominate the discourse. But it strikes me that Labour are promoting much more of a team approach; Rayner, Reeves, Streeting, Philipson, Reynolds and others are all featuring quite strongly. Whereas for the Tories, I've barely seen anybody but Sunak. Cameron seems to be keeping a low profile, for example.
I think the Tories are hanging far too much on the popularity (or otherwise) of Sunak, and their presidential campaign is backfiring.
It's also absurd.
If they want to run presidential-style campaigns, then they need to change the constitution.
The strongest argument (among many!) for not voting conservative at the GE is that you genuinely have no idea which nutter you'll get.
A comment on the campaign, so far. Obviously, Sunak and Starmer (and Davey) are central and dominate the discourse. But it strikes me that Labour are promoting much more of a team approach; Rayner, Reeves, Streeting, Philipson, Reynolds and others are all featuring quite strongly. Whereas for the Tories, I've barely seen anybody but Sunak. Cameron seems to be keeping a low profile, for example.
I think the Tories are hanging far too much on the popularity (or otherwise) of Sunak, and their presidential campaign is backfiring.
Or maybe. He's the scapegoat for the utter intellectual, moral and philosophical void which constitutes the Conservative Party in 2024? Hang all the blame and suffering on him and we shall awake reborn and unstained on July 5th? (With the same prejudices and lack of understanding of what got them here).
Spectator says that many of leading Cabinet figures are too busy fighting in their own constituency backyard to be available for national battle bus bollocks.
True - good point. Though that doesn't apply, of course, to Lord Cameron.
I’m not sure about this one to be honest. I’d have steered clear because I would not have wanted the excess furore required to work out whether it’s legit.
Comments
Apart from the surprise value (and that seems to be hurting the Conservatives most), it's hard to discern the logic of July.
The memoirs and instant histories will be fascinating.
The lesson to be learned is that they should have stopped accepting below-inflation pay rises sooner, rather than waiting 14 years before going on strike for pay restoration.
Which in turn means that the incoming Labour govt is going to find it harder to keep a lid on public sector pay rises than they would have if the Tories hadn't insisted on stretching things beyond breaking point.
It's just a matter of taking the credit.
I make no secret of the fact they lost me over the leasehold issue. Despite Gove trying his best, and arguably the most important advocate for reform being a Conservative - the brilliant Sir Peter Bottomley.
Being a leaseholder since Grenfell feels like being continually told "we don't want your vote, eff off" by the Conservatives. So I did.
https://x.com/angelarayner/status/1797002513348014307?s=61
https://www.battlefieldsregionguides.co.za/the-little-drummer-boys-at-isandlwana-by-pat-rundgren/
Not that they survived.
@SunPolitics
The 'wheels are coming off' Keir Starmer’s leadership, declares Rishi Sunak
WTAF???
https://www.nuffieldtrust.org.uk/resource/exploring-the-earnings-of-nhs-doctors-in-england
Scotland is expected to return 28 per cent of the European structural and investment funding it received in the past six years having failed to allocate the cash.
By comparison, Wales is on course to return 9 per cent of its money, England 6 per cent and Northern Ireland 2 per cent.
https://www.thetimes.com/uk/scotland/article/snp-to-hand-back-450m-of-unspent-eu-money-vlpx956ps
Didn’t we have to do something similar with the money they never got out to farmers?
And the Covid money that never got out to Scottish businesses?
Maybe next weekend?
The situation arose when Abbott had a letter published in the Observer explaining only black people suffer real racism - any prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in her opinion only on par with stick people with red hair endure. But this wasn’t all, it was compounded by a bizarre non apology. She’s sorry, but the wrong draft was submitted and published. How many drafts did you write? Just one.
The bizarre non apology is someone unfit to be an MP, unfit to be a community leader, let alone the straightforward anti semitism in the letter she wrote and submitted to the National Newspaper.
Why would any community leader write that down and send it to a newspaper to be published? How do they truly understand the world? It leaves us wondering if Abbott does actually sincerely believe only black people suffer real racism, prejudice Jewish people suffer is lesser, in the hierarchy she is creating and understands, antisemitism is only on par with stick people with red hair endure. Also, we saw the rally in her constituency last week, we wonder if everyone gathered around her there, everyone who follows her lead and sticking up for her, sincerely subscribe to that warped hierarchy and world view too?
However, for all the media, Tory campaign and Conservative commentary trying to make something out of, what they refer to as Starmer bullying UKs first Black female MP, it was the “after your fpn and all the partying, why should we trust you again?” that’s actually playing large in this election campaign.
For the public things might be a bit different, they should probably be wary of making things to easy for one political party, but whatever opponents might say about how bad things have been since 2019 or even more so 1997, with plenty of issues to point to, it really hasn't been the end of the world with either so I don't think the warning resonates with people in advance anyway.
Her own party has spent time and money putting together a case to ensure she cannot be a candidate, and we will probably have to wait till Tuesday to find out if she takes the Lords gig or what this, that, and the other, they have lined up to finish her. There is zero chance Diane Abbott will ever be a Labour Candidate again.
Which brings us to the Conservatives now rallying behind Abbott as though she’s been hard done by the Labour leaderships vetting? Are these the same people who, just earlier this year so fresh in the memory, exploited Azhar Ali remarks and disqualification from standing for Labour in a by election, and taunted Starmer to the max in not having changed his party? Because anyone and everyone can see opportunism and complete lack of principle when it happens, and you should not want floating voters to see that in you ever, not just at this dangerous moment.
Sam Webster
@SamInNotts
Even Grant Shapps couldn’t bring himself to back Caroline Henry, former Tory Police Commissioner for Notts
Caught speeding 5 times in 3 months!
Tory Party did nothing, Notts people voted her out
Now Tory candidate for Nottm North 😱
https://x.com/SamInNotts/status/1796899319640961445
5 trends across our 10+ campaign focus groups.
https://x.com/LukeTryl/status/1796862741585531235
To be coming soon to a University course they'd abolish.
Except they won't be able to.
Because...
I think the Tories are hanging far too much on the popularity (or otherwise) of Sunak, and their presidential campaign is backfiring.
He's the scapegoat for the utter intellectual, moral and philosophical void which constitutes the Conservative Party in 2024?
Hang all the blame and suffering on him and we shall awake reborn and unstained on July 5th?
(With the same prejudices and lack of understanding of what got them here).
If they want to run presidential-style campaigns, then they need to change the constitution.
The strongest argument (among many!) for not voting conservative at the GE is that you genuinely have no idea which nutter the MP's/party members will choose to replace Rishi with. We're being asked to pull the arm on a fruit machine.
People ain't stupid.
Creepy stuff.
"But I would walk five thousand miles
And I would walk five thousand more
Just to be the man who walked a million
Miles to fall down at your door"
They think he is so much better than the rest of the cabinet they can't risk anybody else on the stump.
Which is why they are 20 points behind and counting
https://x.com/politlcsuk/status/1797025918868693377?s=61
I’m not sure about this one to be honest. I’d have steered clear because I would not have wanted the excess furore required to work out whether it’s legit.