His and the LDs lumbering oafishness is one of the untold great political stories.
Clegg is partly to blame, having crashed the car and run off from the scene, but the main blame is on the UK public. Talk about a bad break up!
You’ll forgive me if I don’t take your analysis too seriously. As a Conservative, it must still annoy you lost 250 seats in July 2024 and the result for your party in terms of seats and vote share was the worst since 1832.
Even now you’re in a statistical tie with the LDs for third place with YouGov having lost a quarter or more of those who did vote Conservative in 2024.
In the local by elections in the once solid heartland of Surrey last week, the Conservatives lost seats to both Reform and the “lumbering oafishness” of the Liberal Democrats with vote shares down a third to a half from 2021.
It does annoy, you're quite right.
I am, or more accurately was, a lifelong Tory.
I think you can judge my political views most accurately if I say that I'd have voted coalition rather than Tory in 2015.
As such I would really quite like to have a possible vote that was an alternative to my longstanding Tory one. There should be a degree of comfort for that with the LDs. There's not though, and it's been a while since that was true.
I sympathise to an extent.
The brief philosophical convergence of Cameron’s “liberal conservatism” and the Orange Bookers made the Coalition possible but the political cost of the arrangement killed off the Liberal Democrats as William Hague correctly surmised in the aftermath of the 2010 GE.
There are many in both parties who enjoyed the old adversarial relationship and preferred that to what could have been a political realignment. The emergence of “Europe” as an issue further fractured a relationship which had become strained by 2012-13. It didn’t help Conservative activists started working Liberal Democrats seats hard and that work paid dividends for the Conservatives in 2015 though that victory turned out to be the epitome of a poisoned chalice.
Could Cameron and Clegg have sold Coalition 2.0 to their parties and on what basis? Running as Coalition candidates would have smacked of the 1918 Coupon election - had the two leaders tried, would one or both parties have split?
It’s easy for me to see 2024 as revenge for 2015 but the party won seats last year it never got close to between 1997 and 2010 - Chichester being a good example, Surrey Heath another. Such gains would not have been possible but for thousands of disillusioned Conservatives feeling comfortable enough to vote Liberal Democrat or staying home relaxed about a possible Liberal Democrat win.
Perhaps the relevant question for you is where has your old Conservative Party gone and why did it choose to abandon ground on which it had enjoyed electoral success over decades to chase a populist chimera?
"The emergence of “Europe” as an issue further fractured a relationship which had become strained by 2012-13."
Except it was the elephant in the room in 2010. The LibDems made it a condition of Coalition that "though shalt not" discuss European membership. A referendum in 2011 supported by Cameron and Clegg would have locked us into ever closer union - eternally. Silencing the matter allowed Farage to run with it, then Boris to see it as a way to the Top Job.
Epic failure by the LibDems - that ultimately gave us Brexit.
Blaming the Lib Dems for Brexit seems a bit ... harsh?
Slightly surprising 2% more who Farage is than the PM is but clearly his name recognition and charisma is a big boost for Reform.
37% knowing who the LD leader is is not too bad for them given their minor party status, as she is LOTO though Tory MPs would hope for a few more than 62% knowing who she is
Nigel Farage and the Reform Party’s Taliban Tax means sending hundreds of millions of taxpayers' money to an oppressive regime that British soldiers fought and died to defeat.
Nigel Farage and the Reform Party’s Taliban Tax means sending hundreds of millions of taxpayers' money to an oppressive regime that British soldiers fought and died to defeat.
Should have fought harder as they whipped our asses.
It was the US Biden administration's decision to withdraw that handed it back to the Taliban, without that withdrawal western troops would still be there now and no need for us to take migrants at risk from the Taliban who had helped western forces
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
This is something I have changed my mind on to a certain extent; in the past I’d agree that using non white actors in British period pieces was ‘PC gone max’, but now I think it would be completely wrong to deny a black actor the chance to be cast in one. A multi racial school doing a play about the 1966 World Cup Final would cast all kids as players, even though all 22 on the pitch were white, and a production of Shakespeare with an entirely non white cast would be just as legitimate as any other.
Where it does seem provocative is casting title characters; you can’t have a white Mandela or black Henry VIII, although I’d probably be more ok with the latter
BBC series ‘King and Conqueror’ branded ‘woke’ and ‘historically inaccurate’ for featuring black actors playing Anglo-Saxons.
The series portrays the historical Battle of Hastings in 1066 between William, Duke of Normandy and King Harold Godwinson of England.
If you can have actors as black Anglo Saxons you can have an actor as a white Mandela
A nicely thoughtful post there by @isam. I need to watch this as it is the 2nd one of yours I have liked today.
I disagree with you @HYUFD on Nelson Mandela and agree with @isam. Mandela being black is rather fundamental to the whole point of the story. Normans and Anglo Saxons being white is not. OK they clearly weren't black. They also have the wrong haircuts*, and speak the wrong language for the time, but we overlook that. We can overlook (with difficulty I grant you as it is obvious) black Anglo Saxons. It is a bit more difficult to overlook a white Mandela.
* A review I read said it was confusing flipping between the Norman and the Anglo Saxon locations and would have been a lot easy if they had the correct and different haircuts for the time.
It is called acting, if you can act well you should be able to convince in the part regardless of skin colour.
Otherwise if you demand historical figures are represented by actors of the same skin colour that has to apply across the board
I agree on this but it should apply equally. You don’t need to be gay to play a gay person or have killed people and put them under the patio to play Fred West, yet the trans loon lobby, of course, dunked on casting of non ‘trans’ actors in trans roles even getting a Scarlett Johansson show pulled as she backed out due to the furore from the perma-offended brigade. There was also Eddie Redmaye in that film, the Danish Girl IIRC, who got a load of flak for being in it.
I'm half and half here. I think that having had the actual experience makes a big difference, as does challenging the perceptions and assumptions of an audience around skin colour. Though an actor's skill is to understand and portray.
I would struggle to work my way into the head of someone around something as simple as tobacco addiction, for example. Or being an out gay professional footballer - aiui in the UK game we still only have one, following on from Justin Fashanu in 1990. Fashanu hanged himself in a garage in Shoreditch after he was accused of sexual assault.
With all due respect you’re not a professional actor. They immerse themselves in their roles. They inhabit the character and the role.
What you seem to imply would simply narrow the available cast. RTD selected actors on their merit for Queer as Folk, and it works fine.
I think it’s nonsensical to say only a trans actor can play a trans role or only,a straight actor can play a straight role.
It is literally the entire point of acting, to play a role that is not your own.
Sheldon: You can't be Professor Proton. You're not a scientist. Wil Wheaton: Well, I was never on a starship, but pretending I was bought me this house. And if I'd pretended a little longer, it would have a swimming pool
Isn’t it a conversation Sir John Gielgud had with Dustin Hoffman? “ it’s called acting dear boy”
But you can't act yourself a different colour.
I believe in complete freedom for casting. If someone wants to create a quasi-historical drama that uses a cast of all different ethnic backgrounds, good for them. I probably won't watch it because it snaps me out of the historical era and setting.
As an aside, poorly written dialogue has the same effect - if a period drama uses modern language in a way that fails to seem like a plausible approximation of language of that era, again I'll be pulled out of the drama and it won't be entertaining to me. I don't actually want the middle English of Chaucer, but I don't want something that sounds like it was written using ChatGPT either.
Where Isam's comment is absurd is to say that it is 'completely wrong' to create a historically accurate drama that uses a cast that could plausibly belong to the time and space in which the drama is set. That's an unwelcome and frankly fairly shocking encroachment on artistic freedom.
O/t but Mrs C had, today, a text purporting to be from an official body to do with car-parking to the effect that she had a large number of unresolved parking tickets and if she didn't pay up the authorities would be after her. And indeed, her license...... note the spelling ..... would be in danger.
How many official British organisations spell licence that way?
So the text has been deleted.
I keep getting that message, too.
Not easy to block, is it.
The number of scam texts I get has been increasing. There’s been a data breach somewhere no doubt, or my habit of scrawling my number on the back of toilet doors has come back to haunt me.
It’s odd; last autumn I was in the US, and as with my previous two long trips there, my spam filter collected more and more dodgy scam and spam emails, ten or more a day. Enough of these were connected with the US to indicate some clear connection with my being there, although how this works, I do not know, as I was only sharing my email with reputable hotel chains. This summer I’ve been in the Nordic region, but also signed up to a VPN, and now, my spam filter is either empty or has just one or two emails in it, daily. Why it has reduced so, again I do not know.
Nigel Farage and the Reform Party’s Taliban Tax means sending hundreds of millions of taxpayers' money to an oppressive regime that British soldiers fought and died to defeat.
Should have fought harder as they whipped our asses.
It was the US Biden administration's decision to withdraw that handed it back to the Taliban, without that withdrawal western troops would still be there now and no need for us to take migrants at risk from the Taliban who had helped western forces
The Bluesky post from the nIMBy party claims we defeated them.
Shooting incident in Minneapolis. Kids killed by sounds of things.
Trump will presumably be babbling inanely about arming teachers again.
While I thought (and to some extent, still think) the total ban on handguns after Dunblane was rather an over-reaction, better that than the total lack of reaction America has to these constant tragedies.
Andrew Neil @afneil · 51m Former Labour Home Secretary Jack Straw has called for Britain to ‘decouple’ from the ECHR.
Ruddy Far Right wanting to give up all our freedoms !
Blunkett has said we should derrogate from art 8 of the ECHR. In fairness to him and Straw they managed to stop the then favoured method of transportation of migrants in and under lorries. What a complete shower of Home secs have followed since.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
Shooting incident in Minneapolis. Kids killed by sounds of things.
Trump will presumably be babbling inanely about arming teachers again.
While I thought (and to some extent, still think) the total ban on handguns after Dunblane was rather an over-reaction, better that than the total lack of reaction America has to these constant tragedies.
I suspect this be an excuse to send the marines into Minneapolis.
That's Waltz country I think and Waltz had the temerity to run against THE ANOINTED ONE!
Streeting-Pharma ding-dong on drug prices. Anyone here know who's in the right?
Novartis chap was interviewed on R4 and he sounded genuinely frustrated with the UK and was clear that everything should signal that the UK is one of the top places for pharma but the costs and attitude by gov made it impossible.
He pointed out our legacy in the industry, the research universities being top global and the amount of highly qualified people were pretty much only bettered by US and China.
The far-right activist Tommy Robinson is to face no further action after he was arrested over an alleged assault at St Pancras station in London.
British Transport Police (BTP) presented a file of evidence to prosecutors over the incident on 28 July, with footage of Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, pacing around near a man lying face down on the floor, posted on social media. On Wednesday, the force said that the Crown Prosecution Service concluded that there was not enough evidence to bring charges.
It is understood that the victim does not want to pursue charges, and that CCTV footage showed him initially following Robinson as the activist walked away, before he was hit.
Ponders why an alleged victim of assault by a far-right thug with a large social media following might be unwilling to pursue charges...
It is of course possible that Tommeh is telling the truth and the guy aggressively came after him first. And there are, as suggested, witnesses or cctv. Hence no charges
Indeed my guess is that this is the case. The rozzers and CPS have never shown a reluctance to prosecute Robinson in the past; have they?
You have no realistic prospect of conviction if the victim refuses to give evidence in an assault case.
The internet is full of this girl. She’s turned into a huge meme - go see
I wanted to know what really happened. How does a 14 year old end up brandishing an axe and a knife? That’s it. That’s what I did. I asked what happened
Is it now a kind of “misinformation” to simply ask? Get tae Feck
Really worth reading. The spat between Charles Kushner -Jarreds father -and Macron is interesting in that it breaks all diplomatic protocols something the French take seriously.
It is also interesting in that he was imprisoned for tax evasion and tampering with witnesses for which he pleaded guilty and was pardoned by Trump in 2020.
This administration makes the Corleones look classy
The internet is full of this girl. She’s turned into a huge meme - go see
I wanted to know what really happened. How does a 14 year old end up brandishing an axe and a knife? That’s it. That’s what I did. I asked what happened
Is it now a kind of “misinformation” to simply ask? Get tae Feck
Have you ever been to Scotland, especially in the run up to an Old Firm derby weekend?
14 year olds brandishing an axe and a knife is de rigueur.
O/t but Mrs C had, today, a text purporting to be from an official body to do with car-parking to the effect that she had a large number of unresolved parking tickets and if she didn't pay up the authorities would be after her. And indeed, her license...... note the spelling ..... would be in danger.
How many official British organisations spell licence that way?
In other news I just has Wiener schnitzel in graz’s most famous restaurant which is inside a magnificent Renaissance courtyard in the UNESCO listed core of beautiful central Graz
I figured it would be the platonic ideal of Wiener schnitzels and I might finally like it
Nope. It’s still just a chunk of dull thin breaded veal
Is this the most boring national dish in the world?
The internet is full of this girl. She’s turned into a huge meme - go see
I wanted to know what really happened. How does a 14 year old end up brandishing an axe and a knife? That’s it. That’s what I did. I asked what happened
Is it now a kind of “misinformation” to simply ask? Get tae Feck
It’s often a rhetorical strategy, particularly on message boards, to undermine, insinuate, or cast doubt while dodging responsibility. Is that what you’re doing? Just asking the question.
Andrew Neil @afneil · 51m Former Labour Home Secretary Jack Straw has called for Britain to ‘decouple’ from the ECHR.
Whilst a welcome intervention, why was he not saying this before Labour was threatened with electoral wipeout courtesy of Farage?
They have been concerned about immigration since 2013
Daily Mirror 13 Nov 2013
Immigration from Eastern Europe:
David Blunkett and Jack Straw admit Labour Government 'got it wrong'.
Two former Labour Home Secretaries have admitted the Labour government made a disaster throwing the doors of the UK open to Eastern European immigrants.
Jack Straw, home secretary during Tony Blair’s premiership in 2004,said the decision to immediately allow working rights to Poles and other EU migrants was a “ well-intentioned policy we messed up.”
Labour had failed to anticipate the scale of migration when eight former Soviet bloc nations joined the European Union and single-handidly allowed the free movement of workers from the beginning.
Mr Straw’s remarks came on the same day his predecessor as home secretary David Blunkett warned local constituents in Sheffield there was a growing danger of riots unless there was understanding with the influx of Romas.
He said urgent action was needed to improve integration to stop a repeat of race riots which hit northern cities in 2001.
This is something I have changed my mind on to a certain extent; in the past I’d agree that using non white actors in British period pieces was ‘PC gone max’, but now I think it would be completely wrong to deny a black actor the chance to be cast in one. A multi racial school doing a play about the 1966 World Cup Final would cast all kids as players, even though all 22 on the pitch were white, and a production of Shakespeare with an entirely non white cast would be just as legitimate as any other.
Where it does seem provocative is casting title characters; you can’t have a white Mandela or black Henry VIII, although I’d probably be more ok with the latter
BBC series ‘King and Conqueror’ branded ‘woke’ and ‘historically inaccurate’ for featuring black actors playing Anglo-Saxons.
The series portrays the historical Battle of Hastings in 1066 between William, Duke of Normandy and King Harold Godwinson of England.
If you can have actors as black Anglo Saxons you can have an actor as a white Mandela
A nicely thoughtful post there by @isam. I need to watch this as it is the 2nd one of yours I have liked today.
I disagree with you @HYUFD on Nelson Mandela and agree with @isam. Mandela being black is rather fundamental to the whole point of the story. Normans and Anglo Saxons being white is not. OK they clearly weren't black. They also have the wrong haircuts*, and speak the wrong language for the time, but we overlook that. We can overlook (with difficulty I grant you as it is obvious) black Anglo Saxons. It is a bit more difficult to overlook a white Mandela.
* A review I read said it was confusing flipping between the Norman and the Anglo Saxon locations and would have been a lot easy if they had the correct and different haircuts for the time.
It is called acting, if you can act well you should be able to convince in the part regardless of skin colour.
Otherwise if you demand historical figures are represented by actors of the same skin colour that has to apply across the board
I agree on this but it should apply equally. You don’t need to be gay to play a gay person or have killed people and put them under the patio to play Fred West, yet the trans loon lobby, of course, dunked on casting of non ‘trans’ actors in trans roles even getting a Scarlett Johansson show pulled as she backed out due to the furore from the perma-offended brigade. There was also Eddie Redmaye in that film, the Danish Girl IIRC, who got a load of flak for being in it.
I'm half and half here. I think that having had the actual experience makes a big difference, as does challenging the perceptions and assumptions of an audience around skin colour. Though an actor's skill is to understand and portray.
I would struggle to work my way into the head of someone around something as simple as tobacco addiction, for example. Or being an out gay professional footballer - aiui in the UK game we still only have one, following on from Justin Fashanu in 1990. Fashanu hanged himself in a garage in Shoreditch after he was accused of sexual assault.
With all due respect you’re not a professional actor. They immerse themselves in their roles. They inhabit the character and the role.
What you seem to imply would simply narrow the available cast. RTD selected actors on their merit for Queer as Folk, and it works fine.
I think it’s nonsensical to say only a trans actor can play a trans role or only,a straight actor can play a straight role.
It is literally the entire point of acting, to play a role that is not your own.
Sheldon: You can't be Professor Proton. You're not a scientist. Wil Wheaton: Well, I was never on a starship, but pretending I was bought me this house. And if I'd pretended a little longer, it would have a swimming pool
Isn’t it a conversation Sir John Gielgud had with Dustin Hoffman? “ it’s called acting dear boy”
But you can't act yourself a different colour.
I believe in complete freedom for casting. If someone wants to create a quasi-historical drama that uses a cast of all different ethnic backgrounds, good for them. I probably won't watch it because it snaps me out of the historical era and setting.
As an aside, poorly written dialogue has the same effect - if a period drama uses modern language in a way that fails to seem like a plausible approximation of language of that era, again I'll be pulled out of the drama and it won't be entertaining to me. I don't actually want the middle English of Chaucer, but I don't want something that sounds like it was written using ChatGPT either.
Where Isam's comment is absurd is to say that it is 'completely wrong' to create a historically accurate drama that uses a cast that could plausibly belong to the time and space in which the drama is set. That's an unwelcome and frankly fairly shocking encroachment on artistic freedom.
I don't understand your last paragraph. What did I say that was absurd?
Really worth reading. The spat between Charles Kushner -Jarreds father -and Macron is interesting in that it breaks all diplomatic protocols something the French take seriously.
It is also interesting in that he was imprisoned for tax evasion and tampering with witnesses for which he pleaded guilty and was pardoned by Trump in 2020.
This administration makes the Corleones look classy
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
And maybe ask why he is not PM or ever likely to be
In other news I just has Wiener schnitzel in graz’s most famous restaurant which is inside a magnificent Renaissance courtyard in the UNESCO listed core of beautiful central Graz
I figured it would be the platonic ideal of Wiener schnitzels and I might finally like it
Nope. It’s still just a chunk of dull thin breaded veal
Is this the most boring national dish in the world?
The croatians stuff ham and cheese in there too. Livens it up. Not a bad lunch, but it's hardly a cuisine is it?
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
And maybe ask why he is not PM or ever likely to be
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
And maybe ask why he is not PM or ever likely to be
You think it's because of his attitude to Trump?
To be PM you have to do distasteful things as Starmer did when fawning over Trump with the King's invitation
In other news I just has Wiener schnitzel in graz’s most famous restaurant which is inside a magnificent Renaissance courtyard in the UNESCO listed core of beautiful central Graz
I figured it would be the platonic ideal of Wiener schnitzels and I might finally like it
Nope. It’s still just a chunk of dull thin breaded veal
Is this the most boring national dish in the world?
The croatians stuff ham and cheese in there too. Livens it up. Not a bad lunch, but it's hardly a cuisine is it?
In other news I just has Wiener schnitzel in graz’s most famous restaurant which is inside a magnificent Renaissance courtyard in the UNESCO listed core of beautiful central Graz
I figured it would be the platonic ideal of Wiener schnitzels and I might finally like it
Nope. It’s still just a chunk of dull thin breaded veal
Is this the most boring national dish in the world?
The croatians stuff ham and cheese in there too. Livens it up. Not a bad lunch, but it's hardly a cuisine is it?
It’s really dull. Teutonic food is generally awful
However I have remembered an even more boring national dish. PLOV
PLOV is far worse because it takes 9 hours to cook and they make such a fuss about it and yet at the end you always gets a stodgy plate of overcooked rice with oily bits of nondescript meat
Ugh!
On the other hand the local white wine, here in Styria, is delish
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
And maybe ask why he is not PM or ever likely to be
You think it's because of his attitude to Trump?
To be PM you have to do distasteful things as Starmer did when fawning over Trump with the King's invitation
Starmer didn't have to do that. He could have taken the Carney approach. I think Trump respects strength and despises weakness, though he revels in the fawning.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
And maybe ask why he is not PM or ever likely to be
You think it's because of his attitude to Trump?
To be PM you have to do distasteful things as Starmer did when fawning over Trump with the King's invitation
Starmer didn't have to do that. He could have taken the Carney approach. I think Trump respects strength and despises weakness, though he revels in the fawning.
On that I agree with you, but it is done and it is an invitation by the King
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
I'm intrigued, Mr Eagles. Was your invitation so he could pick up fashion tips, or was it specifically to meet a Cambridge educated lawyer who is both modest and subtle?
Streeting-Pharma ding-dong on drug prices. Anyone here know who's in the right?
The pharma companies, clearly.
Like it or not, the government has no power, other than incentives, to make them invest in the UK.
Brexit reduced considerably the benefit of being based in the UK; we pay less than any other major economy for drugs still on patent.*
NHS patient data does offer a very valuable research opportunity for pharmas, but other countries have also upped their game.
It's a negotiation - but the market doesn't lie. Companies like AZN, which has huge ties to the UK, are largely investing elsewhere (their new research centre is in the US), and the UK is dropping rapidly down the clinical trials league.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
If Davey were Prime Minister....
He would have fallen in line with all the other European leader and cosied up to Trump, as per Starmer He would have done diddly squat, for fear of being labelled anti-semitic He would have done diddly squat for fear of detonating more Brexit wars and a titanic public reaction We'd have PR with a very good chance that a right-wing bloc comprising Reform and the Tories would subsequently win with Farage as either the senior or junior partner in government
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
In today's YouGov the Conservatives are on 17% and the LDs are on 16%. What are the chances that the LDs will overtake the Cons? I reckon it is about evens. Be ready to celebrate.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
I'm intrigued, Mr Eagles. Was your invitation so he could pick up fashion tips, or was it specifically to meet a Cambridge educated lawyer who is both modest and subtle?
I have a friend who is a staunch monarchist invited me to a dinner with the King and hundreds of other people, as he reckoned an evening with the King would turn me into a monarchist.
I couldn't go to an event hosted by an alumnus of Trinity College, Cambridge, those fuckers arrogantly think they are the best of the best, real intellectuals.
Streeting-Pharma ding-dong on drug prices. Anyone here know who's in the right?
The pharma companies, clearly.
Like it or not, the government has no power, other than incentives, to make them invest in the UK.
Brexit reduced considerably the benefit of being based in the UK; we pay less than any other major economy for drugs still on patent.*
NHS patient data does offer a very valuable research opportunity for pharmas, but other countries have also upped their game.
It's a negotiation - but the market doesn't lie. Companies like AZN, which has huge ties to the UK, are largely investing elsewhere (their new research centre is in the US), and the UK is dropping rapidly down the clinical trials league.
*Note, the US has the cheapest generic drugs.
The article seems to talk about drug price negotation and also pharma investment in the UK. It's not clear exactly the nature of the connection. At least to this layman.
I'm not sure if we did this one a few weeks ago: funding for expansion of RAF cadets.
To my eye this is best termed "a useful uptick", following on from things done over the last decade.
I like the Minister's title, designed clearly to annoy all the right people, but not the high flown language. One problem is that other branches do more.
IMinister for Veterans and People, Alistair Carns MP, said: "Every young person deserves the chance to discover their potential, regardless of their postcode or family income.
"The cadet experience doesn’t just build character – it transforms futures, helping young people build confidence, develop skills and meet new people.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
I'm intrigued, Mr Eagles. Was your invitation so he could pick up fashion tips, or was it specifically to meet a Cambridge educated lawyer who is both modest and subtle?
I have a friend who is a staunch monarchist invited me to a dinner with the King and hundreds of other people, as he reckoned an evening with the King would turn me into a monarchist.
I couldn't go to an event hosted by an alumnus of Trinity College, Cambridge, those fuckers arrogantly think they are the best of the best, real intellectuals.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
I'm intrigued, Mr Eagles. Was your invitation so he could pick up fashion tips, or was it specifically to meet a Cambridge educated lawyer who is both modest and subtle?
I have a friend who is a staunch monarchist invited me to a dinner with the King and hundreds of other people, as he reckoned an evening with the King would turn me into a monarchist.
I couldn't go to an event hosted by an alumnus of Trinity Hall, Cambridges, those fuckers arrogantly think they are the best of the best, real intellectuals.
(Soz Robert)
They don't call it Tit Hall for nothing.
I once went to a dinner at Pembroke with a Princess. Turned out it was a courtesy title and the aristocracy no longer existed in her country. Sat next to Bob "Failing" Ayling after dinner though. He was pretty funny.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
And maybe ask why he is not PM or ever likely to be
You think it's because of his attitude to Trump?
To be PM you have to do distasteful things as Starmer did when fawning over Trump with the King's invitation
Starmer didn’t have to fawn over Trump. Macron doesn’t, nor does Carney, nor Merz, nor for that matter Putin and that doesn’t seem to the latter any harm.
I’m pleased Davey is boycotting this, and I know his intense dislike of MAGA is heartfelt. I’d hope he would also boycott a state visit by Netanyahu or Putin.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
I'm intrigued, Mr Eagles. Was your invitation so he could pick up fashion tips, or was it specifically to meet a Cambridge educated lawyer who is both modest and subtle?
I have a friend who is a staunch monarchist invited me to a dinner with the King and hundreds of other people, as he reckoned an evening with the King would turn me into a monarchist.
I couldn't go to an event hosted by an alumnus of Trinity College, Cambridge, those fuckers arrogantly think they are the best of the best, real intellectuals.
(Soz Robert)
I was not at Trinity Hall.
Nor, I suspect, was the King.
It was autocorrect, I've fixed it already.
He was at The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity within the Town and University of Cambridge of King Henry the Eighth's Foundation.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
I'm intrigued, Mr Eagles. Was your invitation so he could pick up fashion tips, or was it specifically to meet a Cambridge educated lawyer who is both modest and subtle?
I have a friend who is a staunch monarchist invited me to a dinner with the King and hundreds of other people, as he reckoned an evening with the King would turn me into a monarchist.
I couldn't go to an event hosted by an alumnus of Trinity College, Cambridge, those fuckers arrogantly think they are the best of the best, real intellectuals.
(Soz Robert)
I was not at Trinity Hall.
Nor, I suspect, was the King.
No the King went to Trinity and briefly Aberystwyth
Andrew Neil @afneil · 51m Former Labour Home Secretary Jack Straw has called for Britain to ‘decouple’ from the ECHR.
As Britain's worst Foreign Secretary ever I'm sure we're all desperate to hear his words of wisdom on the ECHR.
He was lucky not be be sent with Bush and Blair to the Hague
Straw and Blunkett are realists.
The fact that both are down on the ECHR shows it is inevitable that we "decouple". Just a matter of time, now. The asylum-seeker issue has to be addressed before the poison totally infects the political bloodstream. It's the least-worst option. I should have thought that it is obvious.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
I'm intrigued, Mr Eagles. Was your invitation so he could pick up fashion tips, or was it specifically to meet a Cambridge educated lawyer who is both modest and subtle?
I have a friend who is a staunch monarchist invited me to a dinner with the King and hundreds of other people, as he reckoned an evening with the King would turn me into a monarchist.
I couldn't go to an event hosted by an alumnus of Trinity College, Cambridge, those fuckers arrogantly think they are the best of the best, real intellectuals.
(Soz Robert)
I was not at Trinity Hall.
Nor, I suspect, was the King.
No the King went to Trinity and briefly Aberystwyth
So he went to the greatest university in the world, but only after a spell at Cambridge.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
And maybe ask why he is not PM or ever likely to be
You think it's because of his attitude to Trump?
To be PM you have to do distasteful things as Starmer did when fawning over Trump with the King's invitation
Starmer didn’t have to fawn over Trump. Macron doesn’t, nor does Carney, nor Merz, nor for that matter Putin and that doesn’t seem to the latter any harm.
I’m pleased Davey is boycotting this, and I know his intense dislike of MAGA is heartfelt. I’d hope he would also boycott a state visit by Netanyahu or Putin.
Can't see Putin getting a state visit, or Netanyahu for that matter
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
I'm intrigued, Mr Eagles. Was your invitation so he could pick up fashion tips, or was it specifically to meet a Cambridge educated lawyer who is both modest and subtle?
I have a friend who is a staunch monarchist invited me to a dinner with the King and hundreds of other people, as he reckoned an evening with the King would turn me into a monarchist.
I couldn't go to an event hosted by an alumnus of Trinity College, Cambridge, those fuckers arrogantly think they are the best of the best, real intellectuals.
(Soz Robert)
I was not at Trinity Hall.
Nor, I suspect, was the King.
No the King went to Trinity and briefly Aberystwyth
Therefore following in the footsteps of the two oldest children of OGH.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
It isn't a snub to the King, Davey went to the King's state dinner with Macron, it is a snub to Trump.
As LDs love liberal Franch Presidents but hate US Republican Presidents, not that Trump has any more clue who Davey is than the average British voter
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
I'm intrigued, Mr Eagles. Was your invitation so he could pick up fashion tips, or was it specifically to meet a Cambridge educated lawyer who is both modest and subtle?
I have a friend who is a staunch monarchist invited me to a dinner with the King and hundreds of other people, as he reckoned an evening with the King would turn me into a monarchist.
I couldn't go to an event hosted by an alumnus of Trinity College, Cambridge, those fuckers arrogantly think they are the best of the best, real intellectuals.
(Soz Robert)
I was not at Trinity Hall.
Nor, I suspect, was the King.
No the King went to Trinity and briefly Aberystwyth
Therefore following in the footsteps of the two oldest children of OGH.
Although I guess he went to both places before my sister and me.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
So how much of a hit in the polls do you think the Lib Dems will experience after this snub to the King?
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
It isn't a snub to the King, Davey went to the King's state dinner with Macron, it is a snub to Trump.
As LDs love liberal Franch Presidents but hate US Republican Presidents
Stretching it a bit to call Trump any sort of republican...
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
If Davey were Prime Minister, Trump would not have been invited. And .. Arms sales to Israel would have ceased. We'd be in the Customs Union. We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
And maybe ask why he is not PM or ever likely to be
You think it's because of his attitude to Trump?
To be PM you have to do distasteful things as Starmer did when fawning over Trump with the King's invitation
Starmer didn’t have to fawn over Trump. Macron doesn’t, nor does Carney, nor Merz, nor for that matter Putin and that doesn’t seem to the latter any harm.
I’m pleased Davey is boycotting this, and I know his intense dislike of MAGA is heartfelt. I’d hope he would also boycott a state visit by Netanyahu or Putin.
Can't see Putin getting a state visit, or Netanyahu for that matter
I reckon we should invite Bibi for a state visit then arrest him, calling it a regrettable accident.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
I'm not sure this is important.
Ceausescu and all kind of strange characters have been invited.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
Well spotted.
The monarch is obliged to meet all manner of objectionable individuals. Remember Ceaușescu's state visit so we could flog the murderous dictator the BAC 1-11 ?*
Davey isn't so obliged.
The role of an opposition leader is not to be a rubber stamp.
*In the event none got built. HMQ humiliated for nothing.
Andrew Neil @afneil · 51m Former Labour Home Secretary Jack Straw has called for Britain to ‘decouple’ from the ECHR.
As Britain's worst Foreign Secretary ever I'm sure we're all desperate to hear his words of wisdom on the ECHR.
He was lucky not be be sent with Bush and Blair to the Hague
Straw and Blunkett are realists.
The fact that both are down on the ECHR shows it is inevitable that we "decouple". Just a matter of time, now. The asylum-seeker issue has to be addressed before the poison totally infects the political bloodstream. It's the least-worst option. I should have thought that it is obvious.
Wasn’t it Blunkett who wanted to machine gun rioting convicts?
"Everyone is Cheating (Even the Professors) Jared Henderson
There's a lot of talk about how AI is making cheating easier than ever, and most people want to find a way to stop it. But the problem goes much deeper than we typically assume. This video covers AI-assisted cheating (like with ChatGPT, Claude, etc.), the value of education (and Caplan's signaling theory), and the reason why professors and researchers commit fraud."
The schnitzel sucks pizzles but Graz at night has moments of sublimity
Are you en route to the Dolomites?
No I’m writing about Styria - the “green heart of Austria” and “Austria’s little Tuscany”
And to be fair it does feel quite Mediterranean. It’s south of the alps so the prevailing climate comes from the Adriatic
It’s very balmy at night. Streets full of outdoor bars and restaurants. And there is a definite dolce far niente
Tomorrow, onto the celebrated wine lands
“ Styria is one of those corners of Europe that makes the great metropolitan pieties look faintly ridiculous. Wander through Graz or the vineyards that creep up the hillsides and you notice an absence. There are no sermons on “decolonising” the pumpkin harvest. There are no joyless lectures about microaggressions over a glass of Schilcher. Instead, you encounter a quiet confidence, a sense that life is richer when it’s not filtered through the brittle catechism of the woke.”
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
I'm not sure this is important.
Ceausescu and all kind of strange characters have been invited.
Grit your teeth and think of ... the UK.
Ceaucescu was knighted by the Callaghan government.
The Liberal Democrat leader, Ed Davey, will boycott King Charles’s state banquet held in honour of Donald Trump to protest against the US president’s failure to intervene decisively to end the war in Gaza.
Davey, who is invited to the dinner for Trump’s state visit to the UK, said to turn down an invitation from the king went against all his instincts and that it was a deeply serious move to refuse to attend.
I’m sure the king and Trump will be devastated at this.
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
Good evening
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
He's not, though is he ? I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump. That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
He is a senior opposition leader but then he chooses to boycott an invite from the King ?
In practice, it is an invite from Starmer who invited Trump to a State visit, embarrassing the King and upsetting a majority of the population.
The invitation stands in the King's name no matter how distasteful
I'm not sure this is important.
Ceausescu and all kind of strange characters have been invited.
Grit your teeth and think of ... the UK.
Ceaucescu was knighted by the Callaghan government.
He also rode down the Mall with the Queen in an open-topped carriage.
The schnitzel sucks pizzles but Graz at night has moments of sublimity
Are you en route to the Dolomites?
No I’m writing about Styria - the “green heart of Austria” and “Austria’s little Tuscany”
And to be fair it does feel quite Mediterranean. It’s south of the alps so the prevailing climate comes from the Adriatic
It’s very balmy at night. Streets full of outdoor bars and restaurants. And there is a definite dolce far niente
Tomorrow, onto the celebrated wine lands
“ Styria is one of those corners of Europe that makes the great metropolitan pieties look faintly ridiculous. Wander through Graz or the vineyards that creep up the hillsides and you notice an absence. There are no sermons on “decolonising” the pumpkin harvest. There are no joyless lectures about microaggressions over a glass of Schilcher. Instead, you encounter a quiet confidence, a sense that life is richer when it’s not filtered through the brittle catechism of the woke.”
lol. Is that an attempted pastiche of me?! Or a quote from the lesser known travel writings of Douglas Murray?
The internet is full of this girl. She’s turned into a huge meme - go see
I wanted to know what really happened. How does a 14 year old end up brandishing an axe and a knife? That’s it. That’s what I did. I asked what happened
Is it now a kind of “misinformation” to simply ask? Get tae Feck
It’s often a rhetorical strategy, particularly on message boards, to undermine, insinuate, or cast doubt while dodging responsibility. Is that what you’re doing? Just asking the question.
The schnitzel sucks pizzles but Graz at night has moments of sublimity
Are you en route to the Dolomites?
No I’m writing about Styria - the “green heart of Austria” and “Austria’s little Tuscany”
And to be fair it does feel quite Mediterranean. It’s south of the alps so the prevailing climate comes from the Adriatic
It’s very balmy at night. Streets full of outdoor bars and restaurants. And there is a definite dolce far niente
Tomorrow, onto the celebrated wine lands
Problem with Austria is, if you order wine in restaurants, they serve it in teeny tiny portions. Like 100ml. Not like, say, Albania, where a half litre is de rigeueur
Comments
Own up PB. Who signed this?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gzk1p90q1o
Streeting-Pharma ding-dong on drug prices. Anyone here know who's in the right?
A ‘deeply serious’ move from a deeply unserious politician.
I believe in complete freedom for casting. If someone wants to create a quasi-historical drama that uses a cast of all different ethnic backgrounds, good for them. I probably won't watch it because it snaps me out of the historical era and setting.
As an aside, poorly written dialogue has the same effect - if a period drama uses modern language in a way that fails to seem like a plausible approximation of language of that era, again I'll be pulled out of the drama and it won't be entertaining to me. I don't actually want the middle English of Chaucer, but I don't want something that sounds like it was written using ChatGPT either.
Where Isam's comment is absurd is to say that it is 'completely wrong' to create a historically accurate drama that uses a cast that could plausibly belong to the time and space in which the drama is set. That's an unwelcome and frankly fairly shocking encroachment on artistic freedom.
Andrew Neil
@afneil
·
51m
Former Labour Home Secretary Jack Straw has called for Britain to ‘decouple’ from the ECHR.
We clearly didn’t.
BBC News - Police issue misinformation warning over girl's weapons arrest
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3r40gylxpwo
While I thought (and to some extent, still think) the total ban on handguns after Dunblane was rather an over-reaction, better that than the total lack of reaction America has to these constant tragedies.
https://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-shooting-annunciation-church/601462164
What a complete shower of Home secs have followed since.
Davey may think it is good politics, but frankly demonstrates why he is not statesperson material
From Starmer to Macron, UVDL to Merz, from Zelensky to Carney and many other leaders, not engaging with Trump is not an option no matter how distasteful that may be
He is the POTUS and as such is involved in multiple important and epoch defining decisions, and world's leaders are essential in attempting to influence these decisions wherever possible, not turning their backs
The real test for Davey is, would he boycott this event if he was Prime Minister ?
That's Waltz country I think and Waltz had the temerity to run against THE ANOINTED ONE!
He pointed out our legacy in the industry, the research universities being top global and the amount of highly qualified people were pretty much only bettered by US and China.
Very annoying.
The internet is full of this girl. She’s turned into a huge meme - go see
I wanted to know what really happened. How does a 14 year old end up brandishing an axe and a knife? That’s it. That’s what I did. I asked what happened
Is it now a kind of “misinformation” to simply ask? Get tae Feck
It is also interesting in that he was imprisoned for tax evasion and tampering with witnesses for which he pleaded guilty and was pardoned by Trump in 2020.
This administration makes the Corleones look classy
https://apnews.com/article/charles-kushner-france-donald-trump-d25e8932699142f7b594e19809c70d34
14 year olds brandishing an axe and a knife is de rigueur.
I figured it would be the platonic ideal of Wiener schnitzels and I might finally like it
Nope. It’s still just a chunk of dull thin breaded veal
Is this the most boring national dish in the world?
Daily Mirror 13 Nov 2013
Immigration from Eastern Europe:
David Blunkett and Jack Straw admit Labour Government 'got it wrong'.
Two former Labour Home Secretaries have admitted the Labour government made a disaster throwing the doors of the UK open to Eastern European immigrants.
Jack Straw, home secretary during Tony Blair’s premiership in 2004,said the decision to immediately allow working rights to Poles and other EU migrants was a “ well-intentioned policy we messed up.”
Labour had failed to anticipate the scale of migration when eight former Soviet bloc nations joined the European Union and single-handidly allowed the free movement of workers from the beginning.
Mr Straw’s remarks came on the same day his predecessor as home secretary David Blunkett warned local constituents in Sheffield there was a growing danger of riots unless there was understanding with the influx of Romas.
He said urgent action was needed to improve integration to stop a repeat of race riots which hit northern cities in 2001.
What was supposed to be a nice day of taking photos around Loch Lomond, turned into a pub crawl dodging the worst of the weather!
Didn’t think I’d manage to spend a week in Scotland without seeing any rain, but this was a proper storm.
You make a lot about how wonderful France is, so how do you explain the crisis now enveloping it
And by the way, we do share a disgust about all things Trump
Apparently it's an important diversion, and Ukrainian translations are no longer being provided.
Deep link to Ukraine the Latest: https://youtu.be/Z_EndZYHoDw?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVCYlsANGtNkzMeM9Fdmqzxr&t=1862
Readable link to Article: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/gift/64d343831fb87bae
I think you're quite wrong on this, BigG.
Turning up to a banquet will give him approximately zero opportunity to "engage" with Trump.
That would, of course, be entirely different if he were PM, as you know.
And ..
Arms sales to Israel would have ceased.
We'd be in the Customs Union.
We'd have PR and no risk of a Farage government with 33% of the vote.
He was lucky not be be sent with Bush and Blair to the Hague
Also Europeans asking the same questions about the ECHR ?
However I have remembered an even more boring national dish. PLOV
PLOV is far worse because it takes 9 hours to cook and they make such a fuss about it and yet at the end you always gets a stodgy plate of overcooked rice with oily bits of nondescript meat
Ugh!
On the other hand the local white wine, here in Styria, is delish
I think Trump respects strength and despises weakness, though he revels in the fawning.
All the best people turn down an invitation from the King.
Like it or not, the government has no power, other than incentives, to make them invest in the UK.
Brexit reduced considerably the benefit of being based in the UK; we pay less than any other major economy for drugs still on patent.*
NHS patient data does offer a very valuable research opportunity for pharmas, but other countries have also upped their game.
It's a negotiation - but the market doesn't lie.
Companies like AZN, which has huge ties to the UK, are largely investing elsewhere (their new research centre is in the US), and the UK is dropping rapidly down the clinical trials league.
*Note, the US has the cheapest generic drugs.
He would have fallen in line with all the other European leader and cosied up to Trump, as per Starmer
He would have done diddly squat, for fear of being labelled anti-semitic
He would have done diddly squat for fear of detonating more Brexit wars and a titanic public reaction
We'd have PR with a very good chance that a right-wing bloc comprising Reform and the Tories would subsequently win with Farage as either the senior or junior partner in government
Otherwise, spot on analysis
Tony Blair part of Trump's meeting on Gaza
What are the chances that the LDs will overtake the Cons?
I reckon it is about evens.
Be ready to celebrate.
I couldn't go to an event hosted by an alumnus of Trinity College, Cambridge, those fuckers arrogantly think they are the best of the best, real intellectuals.
(Soz Robert)
To my eye this is best termed "a useful uptick", following on from things done over the last decade.
I like the Minister's title, designed clearly to annoy all the right people, but not the high flown language. One problem is that other branches do more.
IMinister for Veterans and People, Alistair Carns MP, said: "Every young person deserves the chance to discover their potential, regardless of their postcode or family income.
"The cadet experience doesn’t just build character – it transforms futures, helping young people build confidence, develop skills and meet new people.
"The government is kickstarting a new era for the cadets through this major expansion, backed by £70 million of extra funding."
https://counterterrorbusiness.com/news/21082025/£70-million-boost-cadet-force
I'm sure DA will not be at all cynical
Nor, I suspect, was the King.
He's no fool though and is picking up on what's in the wind on this one.
I once went to a dinner at Pembroke with a Princess. Turned out it was a courtesy title and the aristocracy no longer existed in her country. Sat next to Bob "Failing" Ayling after dinner though. He was pretty funny.
I’m pleased Davey is boycotting this, and I know his intense dislike of MAGA is heartfelt. I’d hope he would also boycott a state visit by Netanyahu or Putin.
He was at The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity within the Town and University of Cambridge of King Henry the Eighth's Foundation.
The fact that both are down on the ECHR shows it is inevitable that we "decouple". Just a matter of time, now. The asylum-seeker issue has to be addressed before the poison totally infects the political bloodstream. It's the least-worst option. I should have thought that it is obvious.
As LDs love liberal Franch Presidents but hate US Republican Presidents, not that Trump has any more clue who Davey is than the average British voter
Anyone else recognise Adrian Edmondson ?
Ceausescu and all kind of strange characters have been invited.
Grit your teeth and think of ... the UK.
The latest involves him having a tea of bangers and mash with baked beans and with onion gravy poured over it all.
As a Strictly superfan he appears on my feed a lot.
@ZiaYusufUK
Quick reminder to all contractors:
a Reform government will immediately ABOLISH the moronic IR35 rules.
We will clear all the obstacles to allow you to increase your earnings and grow our British economy! 🇬🇧
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/tennis/articles/c87ev0nze50o
The monarch is obliged to meet all manner of objectionable individuals. Remember Ceaușescu's state visit so we could flog the murderous dictator the BAC 1-11 ?*
Davey isn't so obliged.
The role of an opposition leader is not to be a rubber stamp.
*In the event none got built.
HMQ humiliated for nothing.
One man’s realist is etc.
And to be fair it does feel quite Mediterranean. It’s south of the alps so the prevailing climate comes from the Adriatic
It’s very balmy at night. Streets full of outdoor bars and restaurants. And there is a definite dolce far niente
Tomorrow, onto the celebrated wine lands
Jared Henderson
There's a lot of talk about how AI is making cheating easier than ever, and most people want to find a way to stop it. But the problem goes much deeper than we typically assume. This video covers AI-assisted cheating (like with ChatGPT, Claude, etc.), the value of education (and Caplan's signaling theory), and the reason why professors and researchers commit fraud."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTiBF2Hq40I
There’s a reason IR35 was introduced. People who were actually employees pretending to be self employed. They’re still at it.
The good news is Radio 4 PM ignored Nigel's travails completely and talked about how Trump manages a cabinet of sycophants. His cabinet love him.
He is a disgrace
Quite nice rhythm to the prose