The British public never consented to mass migration, but the political elites went ahead with it anyway.
That get says often, but it's not remotely true, is it? Net UK immigration hit six figures in 1998 under Tony Blair's government. The British public voted Blair back into office, twice. Net immigration then hit a new peak in 2014 under David Cameron. He was voted back into office at the next election. If the British public were unhappy about those immigration levels then, they didn't show it at the ballot box.
Immigration then shot up in 2021 under Boris Johnson. He departed No 10 and his successor (skipping over the brief May premiership) responded to public concern about immigration and acted to reduce the numbers. The Tories were voted out and the new Labour government have continued to bring immigration down sharply. So, the political elites have responded now.
Can you please point to where in the 1997, 2001 or 2005 Labour manifestos it said anything about increasing the number of migrants from the tens of thousands to the hundreds of thousands a year?
What did Labour say about immigration in 1997... OK, let's check the manifesto:
Every country must have firm control over immigration and Britain is no exception. All applications, however, should be dealt with speedily and fairly. There are, rightly, criteria for those who want to enter this country to join husband or wife. We will ensure that these are properly enforced. We will, however, reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results that can follow from the existing 'primary purpose' rule. There will be a streamlined system of appeals for visitors denied a visa.
So, they don't give any specific figure, but their "reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results" do imply some loosening.
However, so what? The point of elections is that you can judge the ruling party on what they've done, irrespective of what they'd say they do. If voters really didn't like the increase in immigration, they could have voted Labour out. They did not. When immigration went up further in 2014, the voters could have reacted to that and kicked Cameron out. They did not. We have a democracy. Immigration was talked about in each election campaign. If voters were unhappy, they could have voted accordingly.
The one time when it looks like the voters may have been unhappy about immigration figures was at the 2024 election when they voted out the Conservatives. So, what did the political elites do in response? They 100% reacted and have absolutely slashed net immigration figures.
This all looks like democracy in action to me.
Big difference between "immigration was talked about" and the whole public, en masse, single-issue voting on the topic.
We don't have a referendum system of government. We have a representative democracy. Voters decide for themselves what issues matter to them and between the choices on the ballot paper. I don't think that undermines the concept of democratic consent.
It's a failure mode of democracy for the only way to get the policy you want to be to vote for a person or party you don't want.
I'm glad you support electoral reform and the use of STV to give voters a true choice between parties and between candidates within a party.
Absolutely not and that wouldn't solve the problem. It's a cultural issue caused by the elite consensus becoming detached from common sense.
So, what's your solution? Swiss-style referendums?
I would advocate that - along with devolving power back to localities. At the moment, people feel that government is something done to them, rather than something they participate in.
In the old days of deference, that could work. But in the modern world, people think of themselves as customers. And customers have rights...
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
This ought to be a prestige series for Apple or Amazon.
We were promised a whole ocean of sequels drawn from Patrick O’Brian's twenty-book treasury, yet we were left with only this one magnificent voyage.
The disappointment is almost domestic in its sadness: the picture came out just after everyone had stuffed themselves on Pirates of the Caribbean’s rum-soaked capers. And although it was critically adored and pulled in respectable money worldwide, it didn't quite deliver the obscene domestic blockbuster numbers the studios now insist on before they’ll green-light another expensive wooden ship full of extras getting wet and cold for months on end.
So the Surprise sits at anchor in our heads, her powder magazines untouched, while we quietly grieve the French frigates we never chased, the dinners in the great cabin we never attended. We wonder how the Hollywood bean-counters - who never once smelled salt spray or heard a broadside - managed to convince themselves this particular adventure wasn't worth continuing.
They could get five very good linked seasons out of the 'Circumnavigation' books from Thirteen Gun Salute to The Commodore but it would be insanely expensive. I would play Sir Joseph Blaine for free if that helps.
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
I was out convassing this weekend, and met a few stand-out constituents:
1) The 90-year old bloke who referred to Farage as "my mate", was convinced that the Lib Dems were in favour of unilateral disarmament and that Ed Davey was personally and fully responsible for the Horizon scandal. He then went on to give us a full list of the medications that he was on. Former Tory, now definite Reform.
2) The neighbour of the aforementioned gent, an English lady of South Asian heritage, who was scared of him and his family and felt extremely intimidated by the flag wavers. She very worried about her Muslim parents and had warned them not to venture into the flag festooned areas. She felt that the UK was rapidly going backwards with regard to tolerance and wished that she was in a position to emigrate to Canada or Australia. Voted Lib Dem last time, probably this time too.
3) The initally belligerant 50-something bloke who was fed up with both Labour and the Conservatives (no accountability!) and intended to vote Reform. After a bit of a chat, though, he calmed down and did seem to consider that the Lib Dems might also be a possible protest vote, and actually requested a leaflet from us. Former Tory, this time probable Reform but possibly Lib Dem.
As expected, most are utterly pissed off with Labour, especially because of the bin strike. Our main job seems to be to remind people that Reform are not the only protest vote and, indeed, already don't have a stellar track record themselves when it comes to running councils.
How bleak to live in fear of your neighbour. There are some really vile people out there. I'm grateful to live in the kind of place where neighbours look out for each other.
Lots of people are scared of antisocial neighbours for reasons other than racism – noise; drugs; parking spaces.
Violent reprisals or damage to your property if you complain being a big one I’d expect.
Fear of real or imagined consequences; perhaps just no-one to complain to.
Happy President’s Day/Washington’s Birthday (whichever you prefer)!
I am currently reading Sandburg’s one-volume of Lincoln, and finding it fascinating.
Some examples: At that time, children belonged to their fathers until they were 21. So, Abe’s father sometimes rented him out to other farmers, and to men taking flatboats down to New Orleans.
Abe’s grandfather knew Daniel Boone — and the grandfather was murdered by an Indian while he was working on his farm.
Abe lost his younger brother when the boy was just a few days old*, his mother, to “milk sickness” when he was in his teens, and his older sister, when she died in childbirth.
(*The loss of one child of three, before the age of five, was average for those times.)
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
No she is not despite you snipping
Unless labour have a miracle, then Starmer will be under colossal pressure and it will be the moment the party need to change leader
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
No she is not despite you snipping
Unless labour have a miracle, then Starmer will be under colossal pressure and it will be the moment the party need to change leader
And that will be the story
She is, if the Tories are 3rd in May Kemi is gone, there will be a VONC from Tory MPs and Cleverly would replace her.
If Labour are 3rd then yes it is Starmer facing the leadership challenge
The British public never consented to mass migration, but the political elites went ahead with it anyway.
That get says often, but it's not remotely true, is it? Net UK immigration hit six figures in 1998 under Tony Blair's government. The British public voted Blair back into office, twice. Net immigration then hit a new peak in 2014 under David Cameron. He was voted back into office at the next election. If the British public were unhappy about those immigration levels then, they didn't show it at the ballot box.
Immigration then shot up in 2021 under Boris Johnson. He departed No 10 and his successor (skipping over the brief May premiership) responded to public concern about immigration and acted to reduce the numbers. The Tories were voted out and the new Labour government have continued to bring immigration down sharply. So, the political elites have responded now.
Can you please point to where in the 1997, 2001 or 2005 Labour manifestos it said anything about increasing the number of migrants from the tens of thousands to the hundreds of thousands a year?
What did Labour say about immigration in 1997... OK, let's check the manifesto:
Every country must have firm control over immigration and Britain is no exception. All applications, however, should be dealt with speedily and fairly. There are, rightly, criteria for those who want to enter this country to join husband or wife. We will ensure that these are properly enforced. We will, however, reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results that can follow from the existing 'primary purpose' rule. There will be a streamlined system of appeals for visitors denied a visa.
So, they don't give any specific figure, but their "reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results" do imply some loosening.
However, so what? The point of elections is that you can judge the ruling party on what they've done, irrespective of what they'd say they do. If voters really didn't like the increase in immigration, they could have voted Labour out. They did not. When immigration went up further in 2014, the voters could have reacted to that and kicked Cameron out. They did not. We have a democracy. Immigration was talked about in each election campaign. If voters were unhappy, they could have voted accordingly.
The one time when it looks like the voters may have been unhappy about immigration figures was at the 2024 election when they voted out the Conservatives. So, what did the political elites do in response? They 100% reacted and have absolutely slashed net immigration figures.
This all looks like democracy in action to me.
Big difference between "immigration was talked about" and the whole public, en masse, single-issue voting on the topic.
We don't have a referendum system of government. We have a representative democracy. Voters decide for themselves what issues matter to them and between the choices on the ballot paper. I don't think that undermines the concept of democratic consent.
It's a failure mode of democracy for the only way to get the policy you want to be to vote for a person or party you don't want.
I'm glad you support electoral reform and the use of STV to give voters a true choice between parties and between candidates within a party.
Absolutely not and that wouldn't solve the problem. It's a cultural issue caused by the elite consensus becoming detached from common sense.
So, what's your solution? Swiss-style referendums?
The problem has already been solved to a large extent by social media democratising political discourse. It's just taking a while for the political system to catch up.
That's a bold opinion. Social media participation is very biased and not representative of the electorate in general, and social media algorithms can be biased and shape people's views rather than merely reflecting them.
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
No she is not despite you snipping
Unless labour have a miracle, then Starmer will be under colossal pressure and it will be the moment the party need to change leader
And that will be the story
She is, if the Tories are 3rd in May Kemi is gone, there will be a VONC from Tory MPs and Cleverly would replace her
Any vodka experts? For the last few weeks I've been coming across piles of discarded miniature bottles of Smirnoff, or at least the empties. Is this a new trend after nox was nixed?
LOL, after the Electoral Commission said the cancellations were unjustified.
It’s almost as if No.10 believes in nothing, and just reacts to what’s happening around them.
They are just so UTTERLY pathetic
Has there ever been a UK government with a three figure majority which is so desperately, flounderingly unable to make any decisions or enact any serious policies
The election news means Tories (likely) lose Norfolk, Suffolk, West Sussex and Harlow mostly to NoC in return for Labour total humiliation Restore/GYF to deny Reform in Norfolk?
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
Most people of that sort of thinking won’t be dissuaded by such a change.
They will still believe that the Lizard Men will herd them into the space ships to become slaves on Kessel.
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
It's pretty pointless to elect councils who will be dissolved shortly, but it's certainly not worth Labour dying on this hill, so I'm fine with this decision.
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
No she is not despite you snipping
Unless labour have a miracle, then Starmer will be under colossal pressure and it will be the moment the party need to change leader
And that will be the story
Agreed
She was out flanked by some Tory Councils going against her and seeking legal recourse to cancel
Of course Tory Governments cancelled some local elections too.
In those Tory Councils Reform will have am absolute field day, yes claiming a win against Government but more so against Tory Council that defied Tory Leader.
Tories will be hammered there.
Labour bloodbath is already factored in, Tory leadership election now odds on
Any vodka experts? For the last few weeks I've been coming across piles of discarded miniature bottles of Smirnoff, or at least the empties. Is this a new trend after nox was nixed?
Promotion on miniatures? I think I’ve seen such in the supermarkets.
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
Of the 30, Norfolk, Suffolk and West Sussex currently have a Tory majority of the counties and Harlow of the DCs only (by one seat)
The cost of the UK’s drug pricing deal with Donald Trump’s administration will come out of the Department of Health and Social Care’s budget for the NHS, a government minister has confirmed.
Science minister Patrick Vallance made the disclosure in response to MPs’ demands for greater transparency on the cost that the UK would incur from the deal with the US.
But confusion remains as to whether the NHS faces an extra £1bn or a £3bn bill over the next three years from the deal.
In a letter to the House of Commons Science Innovation and Technology Committee on 30 January,1 Vallance said the deal—which includes a commitment for the UK to double its spend on branded pharmaceuticals from 0.3% of GDP to 0.6% of GDP by 20352—would cost the NHS an extra £1bn by 2028-29 over the remaining three years of the current spending review.3
It might be wishful thinking on my part, but I feel like Starmer is turning a corner and being a bit more combative and a bit less consensus based.
See this BBC story on social media "We will do battle with AI chatbots as we did with Grok"... "if that means a fight with big social media companies, then bring it on "
Whereas six months ago I think it would have been more like "we are looking at all the options carefully, we don't rule out taking action."
No one has clocked the UK take on G20 presidency in 2027.
Starmer has been very impressive on Foreign stage, far more involved on Ukraine than Sunak, best tariff of anyone with Trump, reopen dialogue with China deals with India and on Chagos that Tories failed to close off.
Genuine progress on EU, ease of movement, red tape, business costs easing etc.
His best achievement recognition of the right of Palestine to self determination and 2 state solutions. He could and should have sanctioned Israel more and outed Netanyahu as a war criminal, that may now come now McSweeney and the zionist cabal have been weakened.
He's the most globally respected PM in well over a decade... G20 will show him and Labour at there best, outward looking rather than the insular little Englanderson on the right.
It would be a fitting stage for him to end on and hand over shortly afterwards.
BIB - Did McSweeney remove his copy of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion on the way out?
FFS Zionist cabal? It's possible to be a bit more nuanced on Israel/Gaza/Palestine than that.
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
Most people of that sort of thinking won’t be dissuaded by such a change.
They will still believe that the Lizard Men will herd them into the space ships to become slaves on Kessel.
Man who watched the political class try and cancel one set of elections worries that they'll try and cancel other sets of elections is not engaged in the rampant paranoia you seem to think he is.
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
Bad for Labour but their results are factored in
Disaster for Kemi
It will max out her losses especially on councils Tory Council defied her and sought cancellation.
Disaster too for Tories as it shows all the power and financial clout on the right is with Farage. He'll ridicule her as much as Starmer, why didn't you do what I've done Kemi
Longer term reform council shii shows for 3 years boost Labour
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
Of the 30, Norfolk, Suffolk and West Sussex currently have a Tory majority of the counties and Harlow of the DCs only (by one seat)
So every delayed county council had a Tory majority
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
Of the 30, Norfolk, Suffolk and West Sussex currently have a Tory majority of the counties and Harlow of the DCs only (by one seat)
So every delayed county council had a Tory majority
These are the councils now undertaking elections in May that previously were not
I’d expect Reform, the Greens and the Islamic Independents (now in Your Party but for how long) to have a decent night and Labour to get a battering, the Tories to do less well too.
Adur Basildon Blackburn with Darwen Burnley Cannock Chase Cheltenham Chorley Crawley East Sussex Exeter Harlow Hastings Hyndburn Ipswich Lincoln Norfolk Norwich Pendle Peterborough Preston Redditch Rugby Stevenage Suffork Tamworth Thurrock Welwyn Hatfield West Lancashire West Sussex Worthing
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
Bad for Labour but their results are factored in
Disaster for Kemi
It will max out her losses especially on councils Tory Council defied her and sought cancellation.
Disaster too for Tories as it shows all the power and financial clout on the right is with Farage. He'll ridicule her as much as Starmer, why didn't you do what I've done Kemi
Longer term reform council shii shows for 3 years boost Labour
Its all about Kemi who you clearly despise and fear, when the story of May 26 will be the loss of Wales for labour, labour's disaster in Scotland, and near wipe out in the locals immediately followed by former labour leaders in Wales and Scotland, plus labour Mayors and former councillors demanding Starmer takes responsibility and resigns
I think the biggest problem with the delays is the fact the timetable for some of these councils to be reformed (Baddum tish) may well be years into the future (And some of them will be delayed for well, reasons (Court objections etc)) further still - it's not like the reorgs are going in the next few months after the elections to be put off.
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
Most people of that sort of thinking won’t be dissuaded by such a change.
They will still believe that the Lizard Men will herd them into the space ships to become slaves on Kessel.
Man who watched the political class try and cancel one set of elections worries that they'll try and cancel other sets of elections is not engaged in the rampant paranoia you seem to think he is.
Sir Keith S doesn't have the imagination or decisiveness to overthrow The State.
Anyway, the slaves are going to LV-426. Kessel is fictional.
Not sure this is the kind of language an old school shires Tory would have employed. What colour have Rupe and his mob adopted so shit can be appended to it?
The British public never consented to mass migration, but the political elites went ahead with it anyway.
That get says often, but it's not remotely true, is it? Net UK immigration hit six figures in 1998 under Tony Blair's government. The British public voted Blair back into office, twice. Net immigration then hit a new peak in 2014 under David Cameron. He was voted back into office at the next election. If the British public were unhappy about those immigration levels then, they didn't show it at the ballot box.
Immigration then shot up in 2021 under Boris Johnson. He departed No 10 and his successor (skipping over the brief May premiership) responded to public concern about immigration and acted to reduce the numbers. The Tories were voted out and the new Labour government have continued to bring immigration down sharply. So, the political elites have responded now.
Can you please point to where in the 1997, 2001 or 2005 Labour manifestos it said anything about increasing the number of migrants from the tens of thousands to the hundreds of thousands a year?
What did Labour say about immigration in 1997... OK, let's check the manifesto:
Every country must have firm control over immigration and Britain is no exception. All applications, however, should be dealt with speedily and fairly. There are, rightly, criteria for those who want to enter this country to join husband or wife. We will ensure that these are properly enforced. We will, however, reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results that can follow from the existing 'primary purpose' rule. There will be a streamlined system of appeals for visitors denied a visa.
So, they don't give any specific figure, but their "reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results" do imply some loosening.
However, so what? The point of elections is that you can judge the ruling party on what they've done, irrespective of what they'd say they do. If voters really didn't like the increase in immigration, they could have voted Labour out. They did not. When immigration went up further in 2014, the voters could have reacted to that and kicked Cameron out. They did not. We have a democracy. Immigration was talked about in each election campaign. If voters were unhappy, they could have voted accordingly.
The one time when it looks like the voters may have been unhappy about immigration figures was at the 2024 election when they voted out the Conservatives. So, what did the political elites do in response? They 100% reacted and have absolutely slashed net immigration figures.
This all looks like democracy in action to me.
Big difference between "immigration was talked about" and the whole public, en masse, single-issue voting on the topic.
We don't have a referendum system of government. We have a representative democracy. Voters decide for themselves what issues matter to them and between the choices on the ballot paper. I don't think that undermines the concept of democratic consent.
It's a failure mode of democracy for the only way to get the policy you want to be to vote for a person or party you don't want.
I'm glad you support electoral reform and the use of STV to give voters a true choice between parties and between candidates within a party.
Absolutely not and that wouldn't solve the problem. It's a cultural issue caused by the elite consensus becoming detached from common sense.
So, what's your solution? Swiss-style referendums?
When I was 15 I thought that WAS the solution - let the people decide. I'm a little wiser (maybe, opinion may differ) and a lot older and I accept that we have a representative democracy where we place responsibility in the hands of elected representatives who may not always agree with what we think, nor vote as we would like.
On the more substantive point, yes the nation in the main voted for parties and governments that allowed mass migration, but I don't believe that in itself confers legitimacy. Take the SNP. They have persistently tried to frame elections for the Scottish Parliament and Westminster as referenda on independence. But this is false - people will look at a prospectus and choose the party that best aligns, without agreeing to all. The Brexit vote was partially about immigration, yet the so called elites think its racist to say so.
LOL, after the Electoral Commission said the cancellations were unjustified.
It’s almost as if No.10 believes in nothing, and just reacts to what’s happening around them.
SPOT ON. it’s like they believe in nothing and just react.
Compare and contrast u-turn on postponing council elections with Lady Thatchers government in the Eighties, who did postpone elections, even sacked all the councillors to bring contractors in, as what does impinge on democracy and tax payers is where local government reorganisation just drags on, not implemented on time, so creating and owning the unholy mess Labour are making of this. Lady Thatcher’s Government knew its mind, never U-turned on anything, just focussed on delivering strong consistent government. And if Labour want to tell us the last Conservative government was rubbish, under Boris, Truss and Sunak - that government did manage to cancel local elections and deliver reorganisation in time.
As a betting post, the date of the next General Election, I don’t think it is going to be Thursday 3rd May 2029 now. Labour are in for a complete Blood Bath at next GE - the voters will never put up with a government that is U Turning and flip flopping every five minutes. It’s a government that doesn’t know its mind, or have the strength to back up its own mind and stay the course. That is definition of the worst possible government to have. I suspect now they will cling on till the last possible moment to avoid their shellacking.
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
They're not going to stop believing that just because it didn't happen.
These are the councils now undertaking elections in May that previously were not
I’d expect Reform, the Greens and the Islamic Independents (now in Your Party but for how long) to have a decent night and Labour to get a battering, the Tories to do less well too.
Adur Basildon Blackburn with Darwen Burnley Cannock Chase Cheltenham Chorley Crawley East Sussex Exeter Harlow Hastings Hyndburn Ipswich Lincoln Norfolk Norwich Pendle Peterborough Preston Redditch Rugby Stevenage Suffork Tamworth Thurrock Welwyn Hatfield West Lancashire West Sussex Worthing
I am very pleased they are being held because their cancellation was a democratic outrage
For Farage to humiliate Starmer like this is extraordinary
And of course Kemi will have a poor night but it is nothing to compare what is coming at Starmer despite the bravado of one or two of his supporters
And no, Kemi will be in post for a long time to come
On the upside - from May Reform are going to be running a lot of councils and that’s going to reveal that they aren’t that competent
All REF councils need to do is sort out the pot holes. If they can do that and demonstrate that REF-lef authorities don't have roads like third world countries, they'll be laughing.
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
Bad for Labour but their results are factored in
Disaster for Kemi
It will max out her losses especially on councils Tory Council defied her and sought cancellation.
Disaster too for Tories as it shows all the power and financial clout on the right is with Farage. He'll ridicule her as much as Starmer, why didn't you do what I've done Kemi
Longer term reform council shii shows for 3 years boost Labour
Its all about Kemi who you clearly despise and fear, when the story of May 26 will be the loss of Wales for labour, labour's disaster in Scotland, and near wipe out in the locals immediately followed by former labour leaders in Wales and Scotland, plus labour Mayors and former councillors demanding Starmer takes responsibility and resigns
And Starmer resigning is the worst possible news for the Conservatives. Starmer’s government is the most useless ever - it hasn’t a scoobies what it wants to do or how to do it - whatever they promise they will u-turn on it, so we can’t trust a single promise or policy - whatever Labour forms after him later this year will definitely be better at politics.
These are the councils now undertaking elections in May that previously were not
I’d expect Reform, the Greens and the Islamic Independents (now in Your Party but for how long) to have a decent night and Labour to get a battering, the Tories to do less well too.
Adur Basildon Blackburn with Darwen Burnley Cannock Chase Cheltenham Chorley Crawley East Sussex Exeter Harlow Hastings Hyndburn Ipswich Lincoln Norfolk Norwich Pendle Peterborough Preston Redditch Rugby Stevenage Suffork Tamworth Thurrock Welwyn Hatfield West Lancashire West Sussex Worthing
I am very pleased they are being held because their cancellation was a democratic outrage
For Farage to humiliate Starmer like this is extraordinary
And of course Kemi will have a poor night but it is nothing to compare what is coming at Starmer despite the bravado of one or two of his supporters
And no, Kemi will be in post for a long time to come
Remind us when Tories cancelled local elections
It shows the power of Russian money is how Labour should frame it.
On the upside - from May Reform are going to be running a lot of councils and that’s going to reveal that they aren’t that competent
All REF councils need to do is sort out the pot holes. If they can do that and demonstrate that REF-lef authorities don't have roads like third world countries, they'll be laughing.
But they won’t. They will divert the pot hole money to spend it on flags.
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
Bad for Labour but their results are factored in
Disaster for Kemi
It will max out her losses especially on councils Tory Council defied her and sought cancellation.
Disaster too for Tories as it shows all the power and financial clout on the right is with Farage. He'll ridicule her as much as Starmer, why didn't you do what I've done Kemi
Longer term reform council shii shows for 3 years boost Labour
Its all about Kemi who you clearly despise and fear, when the story of May 26 will be the loss of Wales for labour, labour's disaster in Scotland, and near wipe out in the locals immediately followed by former labour leaders in Wales and Scotland, plus labour Mayors and former councillors demanding Starmer takes responsibility and resigns
And Starmer resigning is the worst possible news for the Conservatives. Starmer’s government is the most useless ever - it hasn’t a scoobies what it wants to do or how to do it - whatever they promise they will u-turn on it, so we can’t trust a single promise or policy - whatever Labour forms after him later this year will definitely be better at politics.
I would just say that that is not the issue
The country needs rid of Starmer, and even if it is not good for the conservatives, the country is far more important than that
LOL, after the Electoral Commission said the cancellations were unjustified.
It’s almost as if No.10 believes in nothing, and just reacts to what’s happening around them.
SPOT ON. it’s like they believe in nothing and just react.
Compare and contrast u-turn on postponing council elections with Lady Thatchers government in the Eighties, who did postpone elections, even sacked all the councillors to bring contractors in, as what does impinge on democracy and tax payers is where local government reorganisation just drags on, not implemented on time, so creating and owning the unholy mess Labour are making of this. Lady Thatcher’s Government knew its mind, never U-turned on anything, just focussed on delivering strong consistent government. And if Labour want to tell us the last Conservative government was rubbish, under Boris, Truss and Sunak - that government did manage to cancel local elections and deliver reorganisation in time.
As a betting post, the date of the next General Election, I don’t think it is going to be Thursday 3rd May 2029 now. Labour are in for a complete Blood Bath at next GE - the voters will never put up with a government that is U Turning and flip flopping every five minutes. It’s a government that doesn’t know its mind, or have the strength to back up its own mind and stay the course. That is definition of the worst possible government to have. I suspect now they will cling on till the last possible moment to avoid their shellacking.
That’s a 2030 election?
When the economy is going gang busters the NHS is much improved voters won't give a shit about 2026 local elections.
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
Why on earth does holding an election mean they can't "reogranise" ? 😂
Surely it's not beyond the whit of man to hold a democratic vote AND have a reorganisation of the authority ?
On the upside - from May Reform are going to be running a lot of councils and that’s going to reveal that they aren’t that competent
All REF councils need to do is sort out the pot holes. If they can do that and demonstrate that REF-lef authorities don't have roads like third world countries, they'll be laughing.
But they won’t. They will divert the pot hole money to spend it on flags.
These are the councils now undertaking elections in May that previously were not
I’d expect Reform, the Greens and the Islamic Independents (now in Your Party but for how long) to have a decent night and Labour to get a battering, the Tories to do less well too.
Adur Basildon Blackburn with Darwen Burnley Cannock Chase Cheltenham Chorley Crawley East Sussex Exeter Harlow Hastings Hyndburn Ipswich Lincoln Norfolk Norwich Pendle Peterborough Preston Redditch Rugby Stevenage Suffork Tamworth Thurrock Welwyn Hatfield West Lancashire West Sussex Worthing
I am very pleased they are being held because their cancellation was a democratic outrage
For Farage to humiliate Starmer like this is extraordinary
And of course Kemi will have a poor night but it is nothing to compare what is coming at Starmer despite the bravado of one or two of his supporters
And no, Kemi will be in post for a long time to come
So you are anticipating a long period of Reform polling leads.
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
Possibly a blessing in disguise for Sir Keir. I've spoken to a few Reform voters who were convinced that this was merely a trial run, and Sir Keir's ultimate aim was to cancel the next general election. Crazy but they appeared to believe it. Anyway, if this quells just some of the Starmer-is-Cromwell discontent then Labour might benefit.
Bad for Labour but their results are factored in
Disaster for Kemi
It will max out her losses especially on councils Tory Council defied her and sought cancellation.
Disaster too for Tories as it shows all the power and financial clout on the right is with Farage. He'll ridicule her as much as Starmer, why didn't you do what I've done Kemi
Longer term reform council shii shows for 3 years boost Labour
Its all about Kemi who you clearly despise and fear, when the story of May 26 will be the loss of Wales for labour, labour's disaster in Scotland, and near wipe out in the locals immediately followed by former labour leaders in Wales and Scotland, plus labour Mayors and former councillors demanding Starmer takes responsibility and resigns
LOL, after the Electoral Commission said the cancellations were unjustified.
It’s almost as if No.10 believes in nothing, and just reacts to what’s happening around them.
SPOT ON. it’s like they believe in nothing and just react.
Compare and contrast u-turn on postponing council elections with Lady Thatchers government in the Eighties, who did postpone elections, even sacked all the councillors to bring contractors in, as what does impinge on democracy and tax payers is where local government reorganisation just drags on, not implemented on time, so creating and owning the unholy mess Labour are making of this. Lady Thatcher’s Government knew its mind, never U-turned on anything, just focussed on delivering strong consistent government. And if Labour want to tell us the last Conservative government was rubbish, under Boris, Truss and Sunak - that government did manage to cancel local elections and deliver reorganisation in time.
As a betting post, the date of the next General Election, I don’t think it is going to be Thursday 3rd May 2029 now. Labour are in for a complete Blood Bath at next GE - the voters will never put up with a government that is U Turning and flip flopping every five minutes. It’s a government that doesn’t know its mind, or have the strength to back up its own mind and stay the course. That is definition of the worst possible government to have. I suspect now they will cling on till the last possible moment to avoid their shellacking.
That’s a 2030 election?
When the economy is going gang busters the NHS is much improved voters won't give a shit about 2026 local elections.
You are beginning to sound desperate, but then any decent labour supporter would see this cannot go on
These are the councils now undertaking elections in May that previously were not
I’d expect Reform, the Greens and the Islamic Independents (now in Your Party but for how long) to have a decent night and Labour to get a battering, the Tories to do less well too.
Adur Basildon Blackburn with Darwen Burnley Cannock Chase Cheltenham Chorley Crawley East Sussex Exeter Harlow Hastings Hyndburn Ipswich Lincoln Norfolk Norwich Pendle Peterborough Preston Redditch Rugby Stevenage Suffork Tamworth Thurrock Welwyn Hatfield West Lancashire West Sussex Worthing
I am very pleased they are being held because their cancellation was a democratic outrage
For Farage to humiliate Starmer like this is extraordinary
And of course Kemi will have a poor night but it is nothing to compare what is coming at Starmer despite the bravado of one or two of his supporters
And no, Kemi will be in post for a long time to come
So you are anticipating a long period of Reform polling leads.
The cost of the UK’s drug pricing deal with Donald Trump’s administration will come out of the Department of Health and Social Care’s budget for the NHS, a government minister has confirmed.
Science minister Patrick Vallance made the disclosure in response to MPs’ demands for greater transparency on the cost that the UK would incur from the deal with the US.
But confusion remains as to whether the NHS faces an extra £1bn or a £3bn bill over the next three years from the deal.
In a letter to the House of Commons Science Innovation and Technology Committee on 30 January,1 Vallance said the deal—which includes a commitment for the UK to double its spend on branded pharmaceuticals from 0.3% of GDP to 0.6% of GDP by 20352—would cost the NHS an extra £1bn by 2028-29 over the remaining three years of the current spending review.3
I really hope '20352' got into the final agreement text. That would make the cost impact very manageable over the next few years!
LOL, after the Electoral Commission said the cancellations were unjustified.
It’s almost as if No.10 believes in nothing, and just reacts to what’s happening around them.
SPOT ON. it’s like they believe in nothing and just react.
Compare and contrast u-turn on postponing council elections with Lady Thatchers government in the Eighties, who did postpone elections, even sacked all the councillors to bring contractors in, as what does impinge on democracy and tax payers is where local government reorganisation just drags on, not implemented on time, so creating and owning the unholy mess Labour are making of this. Lady Thatcher’s Government knew its mind, never U-turned on anything, just focussed on delivering strong consistent government. And if Labour want to tell us the last Conservative government was rubbish, under Boris, Truss and Sunak - that government did manage to cancel local elections and deliver reorganisation in time.
As a betting post, the date of the next General Election, I don’t think it is going to be Thursday 3rd May 2029 now. Labour are in for a complete Blood Bath at next GE - the voters will never put up with a government that is U Turning and flip flopping every five minutes. It’s a government that doesn’t know its mind, or have the strength to back up its own mind and stay the course. That is definition of the worst possible government to have. I suspect now they will cling on till the last possible moment to avoid their shellacking.
That’s a 2030 election?
When the economy is going gang busters the NHS is much improved voters won't give a shit about 2026 local elections.
Yeah, that 1.5% growth is really going to make our lives better.
These are the councils now undertaking elections in May that previously were not
I’d expect Reform, the Greens and the Islamic Independents (now in Your Party but for how long) to have a decent night and Labour to get a battering, the Tories to do less well too.
Adur Basildon Blackburn with Darwen Burnley Cannock Chase Cheltenham Chorley Crawley East Sussex Exeter Harlow Hastings Hyndburn Ipswich Lincoln Norfolk Norwich Pendle Peterborough Preston Redditch Rugby Stevenage Suffork Tamworth Thurrock Welwyn Hatfield West Lancashire West Sussex Worthing
I am very pleased they are being held because their cancellation was a democratic outrage
For Farage to humiliate Starmer like this is extraordinary
And of course Kemi will have a poor night but it is nothing to compare what is coming at Starmer despite the bravado of one or two of his supporters
And no, Kemi will be in post for a long time to come
So you are anticipating a long period of Reform polling leads.
Actually I am not
You may be right, but I don't see the Labour revival happening before Starmer hangs up his boots.
I think the biggest problem with the delays is the fact the timetable for some of these councils to be reformed (Baddum tish) may well be years into the future (And some of them will be delayed for well, reasons (Court objections etc)) further still - it's not like the reorgs are going in the next few months after the elections to be put off.
In Lancashire they haven't EVEN decided how many Unitaries there should be so it is self-evident there won't be elections for the new Authorities until 2028 with a year running in parallel
When they did Cumbria very late in the day they noticed there were more outside appointments for Westmorland and Furness to supply than there were going to be councillors so they arbitarily increased the councillors to the point where the wards were unequal to the extent that a Labour ward which elected two councillors was larger than another which could be relied upon to elect three Lib Dem councillors.
Only now are they sorting that out and the 2027 elections to WFC will be on equal votes.
It really was a shambles, I was apparently the only one who thought calling the new council Westmorland And Furness Unitary Council was not a good idea.
These are the councils now undertaking elections in May that previously were not
I’d expect Reform, the Greens and the Islamic Independents (now in Your Party but for how long) to have a decent night and Labour to get a battering, the Tories to do less well too.
Adur Basildon Blackburn with Darwen Burnley Cannock Chase Cheltenham Chorley Crawley East Sussex Exeter Harlow Hastings Hyndburn Ipswich Lincoln Norfolk Norwich Pendle Peterborough Preston Redditch Rugby Stevenage Suffork Tamworth Thurrock Welwyn Hatfield West Lancashire West Sussex Worthing
I am very pleased they are being held because their cancellation was a democratic outrage
For Farage to humiliate Starmer like this is extraordinary
And of course Kemi will have a poor night but it is nothing to compare what is coming at Starmer despite the bravado of one or two of his supporters
And no, Kemi will be in post for a long time to come
So you are anticipating a long period of Reform polling leads.
Actually I am not
You may be right, but I don't see the Labour revival happening before Starmer hangs up his boots.
LOL, after the Electoral Commission said the cancellations were unjustified.
It’s almost as if No.10 believes in nothing, and just reacts to what’s happening around them.
SPOT ON. it’s like they believe in nothing and just react.
Compare and contrast u-turn on postponing council elections with Lady Thatchers government in the Eighties, who did postpone elections, even sacked all the councillors to bring contractors in, as what does impinge on democracy and tax payers is where local government reorganisation just drags on, not implemented on time, so creating and owning the unholy mess Labour are making of this. Lady Thatcher’s Government knew its mind, never U-turned on anything, just focussed on delivering strong consistent government. And if Labour want to tell us the last Conservative government was rubbish, under Boris, Truss and Sunak - that government did manage to cancel local elections and deliver reorganisation in time.
As a betting post, the date of the next General Election, I don’t think it is going to be Thursday 3rd May 2029 now. Labour are in for a complete Blood Bath at next GE - the voters will never put up with a government that is U Turning and flip flopping every five minutes. It’s a government that doesn’t know its mind, or have the strength to back up its own mind and stay the course. That is definition of the worst possible government to have. I suspect now they will cling on till the last possible moment to avoid their shellacking.
That’s a 2030 election?
When the economy is going gang busters the NHS is much improved voters won't give a shit about 2026 local elections.
So you'll get back to us when the economy is going gangbusters, eh?
All of the county councils delayed are actually Tory controlled as are many of the district councils to be delayed, so Kemi is probably even more at risk if these local elections go ahead. Indeed whichever of Kemi or SKS's parties come third on NEV in May will likely see their leader removed by the end of the summer.
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
Why on earth does holding an election mean they can't "reogranise" ? 😂
Surely it's not beyond the whit of man to hold a democratic vote AND have a reorganisation of the authority ?
The Ref UK stance has been 'We knew nothing about running councils and we had no plans, and that is why it is OK that we did nothing about anything in the first 6 months; we needed the learning experience.'
How do you think they will cope with reorganisation?
I think the biggest problem with the delays is the fact the timetable for some of these councils to be reformed (Baddum tish) may well be years into the future (And some of them will be delayed for well, reasons (Court objections etc)) further still - it's not like the reorgs are going in the next few months after the elections to be put off.
In Lancashire they haven't EVEN decided how many Unitaries there should be so it is self-evident there won't be elections for the new Authorities until 2028 with a year running in parallel
When they did Cumbria very late in the day they noticed there were more outside appointments for Westmorland and Furness to supply than there were going to be councillors so they arbitarily increased the councillors to the point where the wards were unequal to the extent that a Labour ward which elected two councillors was larger than another which could be relied upon to elect three Lib Dem councillors.
Only now are they sorting that out and the 2027 elections to WFC will be on equal votes.
It really was a shambles, I was apparently the only one who thought calling the new council Westmorland And Furness Unitary Council was not a good idea.
The British public never consented to mass migration, but the political elites went ahead with it anyway.
That get says often, but it's not remotely true, is it? Net UK immigration hit six figures in 1998 under Tony Blair's government. The British public voted Blair back into office, twice. Net immigration then hit a new peak in 2014 under David Cameron. He was voted back into office at the next election. If the British public were unhappy about those immigration levels then, they didn't show it at the ballot box.
Immigration then shot up in 2021 under Boris Johnson. He departed No 10 and his successor (skipping over the brief May premiership) responded to public concern about immigration and acted to reduce the numbers. The Tories were voted out and the new Labour government have continued to bring immigration down sharply. So, the political elites have responded now.
Can you please point to where in the 1997, 2001 or 2005 Labour manifestos it said anything about increasing the number of migrants from the tens of thousands to the hundreds of thousands a year?
What did Labour say about immigration in 1997... OK, let's check the manifesto:
Every country must have firm control over immigration and Britain is no exception. All applications, however, should be dealt with speedily and fairly. There are, rightly, criteria for those who want to enter this country to join husband or wife. We will ensure that these are properly enforced. We will, however, reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results that can follow from the existing 'primary purpose' rule. There will be a streamlined system of appeals for visitors denied a visa.
So, they don't give any specific figure, but their "reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results" do imply some loosening.
However, so what? The point of elections is that you can judge the ruling party on what they've done, irrespective of what they'd say they do. If voters really didn't like the increase in immigration, they could have voted Labour out. They did not. When immigration went up further in 2014, the voters could have reacted to that and kicked Cameron out. They did not. We have a democracy. Immigration was talked about in each election campaign. If voters were unhappy, they could have voted accordingly.
The one time when it looks like the voters may have been unhappy about immigration figures was at the 2024 election when they voted out the Conservatives. So, what did the political elites do in response? They 100% reacted and have absolutely slashed net immigration figures.
This all looks like democracy in action to me.
Big difference between "immigration was talked about" and the whole public, en masse, single-issue voting on the topic.
We don't have a referendum system of government. We have a representative democracy. Voters decide for themselves what issues matter to them and between the choices on the ballot paper. I don't think that undermines the concept of democratic consent.
It's a failure mode of democracy for the only way to get the policy you want to be to vote for a person or party you don't want.
I'm glad you support electoral reform and the use of STV to give voters a true choice between parties and between candidates within a party.
Absolutely not and that wouldn't solve the problem. It's a cultural issue caused by the elite consensus becoming detached from common sense.
So, what's your solution? Swiss-style referendums?
When I was 15 I thought that WAS the solution - let the people decide. I'm a little wiser (maybe, opinion may differ) and a lot older and I accept that we have a representative democracy where we place responsibility in the hands of elected representatives who may not always agree with what we think, nor vote as we would like.
On the more substantive point, yes the nation in the main voted for parties and governments that allowed mass migration, but I don't believe that in itself confers legitimacy. Take the SNP. They have persistently tried to frame elections for the Scottish Parliament and Westminster as referenda on independence. But this is false - people will look at a prospectus and choose the party that best aligns, without agreeing to all. The Brexit vote was partially about immigration, yet the so called elites think its racist to say so.
I am not aware of anyone, elite or not, who thinks saying the Brexit vote was partially about immigration is racist. I think you are getting confused: some people are saying that the voting decision of some voters was driven by racism.
I've long thought that. We'd probably still be using Fahrenheit too.
The 'Save the Sixpence' campaign would have won out, perchance?
I think however one factor you are overlooking is that Heath was in favour as well. He was a 'moderniser' in several fields (local government, anyone?) and he wasn't interested in playing politics to prevent a change he approved of, or forestall it, especially when he found it more profitable to attack Labour for their mismanagement of the macroeconomic situation.
If Home or even Maudling had been in charge of the Conservatives they might have taken a different view and it would have been much harder.
Now today, we'd have a load of politicians jumping on the bandwagon, Blair style, in the hope of some easy popularity.
I think the biggest problem with the delays is the fact the timetable for some of these councils to be reformed (Baddum tish) may well be years into the future (And some of them will be delayed for well, reasons (Court objections etc)) further still - it's not like the reorgs are going in the next few months after the elections to be put off.
In Lancashire they haven't EVEN decided how many Unitaries there should be so it is self-evident there won't be elections for the new Authorities until 2028 with a year running in parallel
When they did Cumbria very late in the day they noticed there were more outside appointments for Westmorland and Furness to supply than there were going to be councillors so they arbitarily increased the councillors to the point where the wards were unequal to the extent that a Labour ward which elected two councillors was larger than another which could be relied upon to elect three Lib Dem councillors.
Only now are they sorting that out and the 2027 elections to WFC will be on equal votes.
It really was a shambles, I was apparently the only one who thought calling the new council Westmorland And Furness Unitary Council was not a good idea.
Westmorland, Torver And Furness?
Was thinking City University of Newcastle upon Tyne (which was Northumbria’s first choice of university name).
I think the biggest problem with the delays is the fact the timetable for some of these councils to be reformed (Baddum tish) may well be years into the future (And some of them will be delayed for well, reasons (Court objections etc)) further still - it's not like the reorgs are going in the next few months after the elections to be put off.
In Lancashire they haven't EVEN decided how many Unitaries there should be so it is self-evident there won't be elections for the new Authorities until 2028 with a year running in parallel
When they did Cumbria very late in the day they noticed there were more outside appointments for Westmorland and Furness to supply than there were going to be councillors so they arbitarily increased the councillors to the point where the wards were unequal to the extent that a Labour ward which elected two councillors was larger than another which could be relied upon to elect three Lib Dem councillors.
Only now are they sorting that out and the 2027 elections to WFC will be on equal votes.
It really was a shambles, I was apparently the only one who thought calling the new council Westmorland And Furness Unitary Council was not a good idea.
Westmorland, Torver And Furness?
Was thinking City University of Newcastle upon Tyne (which was Northumbria’s first choice of university name).
Well done to Reform for forcing the issue. I wonder if swings will be higher in councils that try to avoid facing the voters.
More than likely...
What a victory Starmer just handed Farage
Ironic, that he uses a speech at an international conference to draw in domestic politics by naming the Greens and Reform as an ever present danger than within 24 hours hands Farage a humiliating victory
It does not need much imagination as to Reform's election leaflets in those councils
The British public never consented to mass migration, but the political elites went ahead with it anyway.
That get says often, but it's not remotely true, is it? Net UK immigration hit six figures in 1998 under Tony Blair's government. The British public voted Blair back into office, twice. Net immigration then hit a new peak in 2014 under David Cameron. He was voted back into office at the next election. If the British public were unhappy about those immigration levels then, they didn't show it at the ballot box.
Immigration then shot up in 2021 under Boris Johnson. He departed No 10 and his successor (skipping over the brief May premiership) responded to public concern about immigration and acted to reduce the numbers. The Tories were voted out and the new Labour government have continued to bring immigration down sharply. So, the political elites have responded now.
Can you please point to where in the 1997, 2001 or 2005 Labour manifestos it said anything about increasing the number of migrants from the tens of thousands to the hundreds of thousands a year?
What did Labour say about immigration in 1997... OK, let's check the manifesto:
Every country must have firm control over immigration and Britain is no exception. All applications, however, should be dealt with speedily and fairly. There are, rightly, criteria for those who want to enter this country to join husband or wife. We will ensure that these are properly enforced. We will, however, reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results that can follow from the existing 'primary purpose' rule. There will be a streamlined system of appeals for visitors denied a visa.
So, they don't give any specific figure, but their "reform the system in current use to remove the arbitrary and unfair results" do imply some loosening.
However, so what? The point of elections is that you can judge the ruling party on what they've done, irrespective of what they'd say they do. If voters really didn't like the increase in immigration, they could have voted Labour out. They did not. When immigration went up further in 2014, the voters could have reacted to that and kicked Cameron out. They did not. We have a democracy. Immigration was talked about in each election campaign. If voters were unhappy, they could have voted accordingly.
The one time when it looks like the voters may have been unhappy about immigration figures was at the 2024 election when they voted out the Conservatives. So, what did the political elites do in response? They 100% reacted and have absolutely slashed net immigration figures.
This all looks like democracy in action to me.
Big difference between "immigration was talked about" and the whole public, en masse, single-issue voting on the topic.
We don't have a referendum system of government. We have a representative democracy. Voters decide for themselves what issues matter to them and between the choices on the ballot paper. I don't think that undermines the concept of democratic consent.
It's a failure mode of democracy for the only way to get the policy you want to be to vote for a person or party you don't want.
I'm glad you support electoral reform and the use of STV to give voters a true choice between parties and between candidates within a party.
Absolutely not and that wouldn't solve the problem. It's a cultural issue caused by the elite consensus becoming detached from common sense.
So, what's your solution? Swiss-style referendums?
When I was 15 I thought that WAS the solution - let the people decide. I'm a little wiser (maybe, opinion may differ) and a lot older and I accept that we have a representative democracy where we place responsibility in the hands of elected representatives who may not always agree with what we think, nor vote as we would like.
On the more substantive point, yes the nation in the main voted for parties and governments that allowed mass migration, but I don't believe that in itself confers legitimacy. Take the SNP. They have persistently tried to frame elections for the Scottish Parliament and Westminster as referenda on independence. But this is false - people will look at a prospectus and choose the party that best aligns, without agreeing to all. The Brexit vote was partially about immigration, yet the so called elites think its racist to say so.
I am not aware of anyone, elite or not, who thinks saying the Brexit vote was partially about immigration is racist. I think you are getting confused: some people are saying that the voting decision of some voters was driven by racism.
I've probably phrased it badly, not for the first time. It was a truth of politics in this country for a long time that any complaint about immigration was shouted down as racism, and that kind of attitude led in part to Brexit.
There is a (possible apocryphal) story from the Blair years about "rubbing the right's noses in diversity".
Comments
In the old days of deference, that could work. But in the modern world, people think of themselves as customers. And customers have rights...
https://x.com/archer_rs/status/2023345838563442783
No drone activity reported in the vicinity, so either local ‘terrorists’ or yet another unfortunate industrial accident.
All good news anyway!
Starmer humiliation as he u turns on the locals no doubt because he was told Farage would win the case in the court this week
Another Farage win which is so depressing:
Sky breaking news#
Ministers abandon plans to delay local elections
The government has abandoned their bid to delay the local elections to 30 councils in England.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed has decided to "withdraw his decision" to postpone the elections, due to take place in May, "in the light of recent legal advice", according to a letter from the Government Legal Department shared by Nigel Farage.
It is a victory for Reform UK and Farage, who had taken the government to court in a bid to prevent the elections being delayed.
A two-day High Court hearing was due to start on Thursday, but the government will now "seek to agree an order" with Reform UK to end its case, and the government "will agree to pay the claimant's costs of these proceedings".
In a post on X, Farage wrote: "We took this Labour government to court and won.
"In collusion with the Tories, Keir Starmer tried to stop 4.6 million people voting on May 7th. Only Reform UK fights for democracy."
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government said: "Following legal advice, the government has withdrawn its original decision to postpone 30 local elections in May.
"Providing certainty to councils about their local elections is now the most crucial thing and all local elections will now go ahead in May 2026."
A total of 63 councils were offered the opportunity in December to request a delay to their May local elections due to the Local Government Reorganisation programme.
While a majority said they wanted their elections to proceed, 29 requested a delay, with many citing the vast cost of holding elections while delivering the reorganisation programme.
Ministers then announced that 30 councils would see their elections delayed - but have now U-turned after Reform UK took them to court.
To compensate for the cost pressures that councils cited, £63 million in new funding is being provided to assist with the reorganisation programme.
It’s almost as if No.10 believes in nothing, and just reacts to what’s happening around them.
https://x.com/alifarhat79/status/2023190273589965262?s=46&t=fJymV-V84rexmlQMLXHHJQ
Starmer’s Labour will get marmalated in the elex
Expect a leadership challenge
"BREAKING: Starmer announces that all male children under two will NOT be executed"
How long can this go on ?
Come on labour, you know you want to, back John Healey as the unity candidate
It could also massively delay the move to unitaries as those councils requesting delay did so as they needed the time to prepare to reorganise
Happy President’s Day/Washington’s Birthday (whichever you prefer)!
I am currently reading Sandburg’s one-volume of Lincoln, and finding it fascinating.
Some examples: At that time, children belonged to their fathers until they were 21. So, Abe’s father sometimes rented him out to other farmers, and to men taking flatboats down to New Orleans.
Abe’s grandfather knew Daniel Boone — and the grandfather was murdered by an Indian while he was working on his farm.
Abe lost his younger brother when the boy was just a few days old*, his mother, to “milk sickness” when he was in his teens, and his older sister, when she died in childbirth.
(*The loss of one child of three, before the age of five, was average for those times.)
Unless labour have a miracle, then Starmer will be under colossal pressure and it will be the moment the party need to change leader
And that will be the story
If Labour are 3rd then yes it is Starmer facing the leadership challenge
'Oh no they won't'
Has there ever been a UK government with a three figure majority which is so desperately, flounderingly unable to make any decisions or enact any serious policies
Restore/GYF to deny Reform in Norfolk?
They will still believe that the Lizard Men will herd them into the space ships to become slaves on Kessel.
She was out flanked by some Tory Councils going against her and seeking legal recourse to cancel
Of course Tory Governments cancelled some local elections too.
In those Tory Councils Reform will have am absolute field day, yes claiming a win against Government but more so against Tory Council that defied Tory Leader.
Tories will be hammered there.
Labour bloodbath is already factored in, Tory leadership election now odds on
https://www.bmj.com/content/392/bmj.s253
The cost of the UK’s drug pricing deal with Donald Trump’s administration will come out of the Department of Health and Social Care’s budget for the NHS, a government minister has confirmed.
Science minister Patrick Vallance made the disclosure in response to MPs’ demands for greater transparency on the cost that the UK would incur from the deal with the US.
But confusion remains as to whether the NHS faces an extra £1bn or a £3bn bill over the next three years from the deal.
In a letter to the House of Commons Science Innovation and Technology Committee on 30 January,1 Vallance said the deal—which includes a commitment for the UK to double its spend on branded pharmaceuticals from 0.3% of GDP to 0.6% of GDP by 20352—would cost the NHS an extra £1bn by 2028-29 over the remaining three years of the current spending review.3
FFS Zionist cabal? It's possible to be a bit more nuanced on Israel/Gaza/Palestine than that.
That's still a score I would say favours Australia, but it's no gimme. They will need to bowl well.
Disaster for Kemi
It will max out her losses especially on councils Tory Council defied her and sought cancellation.
Disaster too for Tories as it shows all the power and financial clout on the right is with Farage. He'll ridicule her as much as Starmer, why didn't you do what I've done Kemi
Longer term reform council shii shows for 3 years boost Labour
I’d expect Reform, the Greens and the Islamic Independents (now in Your Party but for how long) to have a decent night and
Labour to get a battering, the Tories to do less well too.
Adur
Basildon
Blackburn with Darwen
Burnley
Cannock Chase
Cheltenham
Chorley
Crawley
East Sussex
Exeter
Harlow
Hastings
Hyndburn
Ipswich
Lincoln
Norfolk
Norwich
Pendle
Peterborough
Preston
Redditch
Rugby
Stevenage
Suffork
Tamworth
Thurrock
Welwyn Hatfield
West Lancashire
West Sussex
Worthing
Anyway, the slaves are going to LV-426. Kessel is fictional.
What colour have Rupe and his mob adopted so shit can be appended to it?
https://x.com/rupertlowe10/status/2023354326626754763?s=46&t=fJymV-V84rexmlQMLXHHJQ
On the more substantive point, yes the nation in the main voted for parties and governments that allowed mass migration, but I don't believe that in itself confers legitimacy. Take the SNP. They have persistently tried to frame elections for the Scottish Parliament and Westminster as referenda on independence. But this is false - people will look at a prospectus and choose the party that best aligns, without agreeing to all. The Brexit vote was partially about immigration, yet the so called elites think its racist to say so.
Compare and contrast u-turn on postponing council elections with Lady Thatchers government in the Eighties, who did postpone elections, even sacked all the councillors to bring contractors in, as what does impinge on democracy and tax payers is where local government reorganisation just drags on, not implemented on time, so creating and owning the unholy mess Labour are making of this. Lady Thatcher’s Government knew its mind, never U-turned on anything, just focussed on delivering strong consistent government. And if Labour want to tell us the last Conservative government was rubbish, under Boris, Truss and Sunak - that government did manage to cancel local elections and deliver reorganisation in time.
As a betting post, the date of the next General Election, I don’t think it is going to be Thursday 3rd May 2029 now. Labour are in for a complete Blood Bath at next GE - the voters will never put up with a government that is U Turning and flip flopping every five minutes. It’s a government that doesn’t know its mind, or have the strength to back up its own mind and stay the course. That is definition of the worst possible government to have. I suspect now they will cling on till the last possible moment to avoid their shellacking.
That’s a 2030 election?
For Farage to humiliate Starmer like this is extraordinary
And of course Kemi will have a poor night but it is nothing to compare what is coming at Starmer despite the bravado of one or two of his supporters
And no, Kemi will be in post for a long time to come
You can never have too much democracy!
The Government is not only set to u-turn, but it's being forced to pay Reform UK's legal costs.
Party source believes it could run into six figures
I frankly despair that Starmer could hand Farage such victory
Surely wise folk in labour must have their head in their hands
It shows the power of Russian money is how Labour should frame it.
The country needs rid of Starmer, and even if it is not good for the conservatives, the country is far more important than that
Two observation from TwiX
You could never do it today, because the culture war that erupted would prevent it from happening.
The stupider culture warriors would be happy to reverse it...
https://x.com/Scott_Wortley/status/2023160195916943376?s=20
Surely it's not beyond the whit of man to hold a democratic vote AND have a reorganisation of the authority ?
BIG NIGE is just so much better at basic politics
OTOH that’s like claiming Adrian Chiles could duff up a pet rabbit so maybe not so world changing
At the time I and my family were running a very busy newsagent and grocery store and the task was immense
Until council funding is fixed it doesn’t matter which colour rosette the council is. The end result will be pretty similar.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/02/16/ghost-number-plates-haunting-britain-police/
“One in 15 cars are wearing illegal number plates that can’t be read by ANPR cameras”.
Who’d have thought it?
Decimalisation was in 1971, 55 years ago.
When they did Cumbria very late in the day they noticed there were more outside appointments for Westmorland and Furness to supply than there were going to be councillors so they arbitarily increased the councillors to the point where the wards were unequal to the extent that a Labour ward which elected two councillors was larger than another which could be relied upon to elect three Lib Dem councillors.
Only now are they sorting that out and the 2027 elections to WFC will be on equal votes.
It really was a shambles, I was apparently the only one who thought calling the new council Westmorland And Furness Unitary Council was not a good idea.
Until then: growth of 0.1% =/= "gangbusters"
How do you think they will cope with reorganisation?
It might work if it is done 99% by officers.
https://x.com/danieljhannan/status/2023060067667620018
I'm surprised decimalisation, being all European and stuff, isn't the thing that the right-wing culture warriors describe as "woke".
I think however one factor you are overlooking is that Heath was in favour as well. He was a 'moderniser' in several fields (local government, anyone?) and he wasn't interested in playing politics to prevent a change he approved of, or forestall it, especially when he found it more profitable to attack Labour for their mismanagement of the macroeconomic situation.
If Home or even Maudling had been in charge of the Conservatives they might have taken a different view and it would have been much harder.
Now today, we'd have a load of politicians jumping on the bandwagon, Blair style, in the hope of some easy popularity.
Ironic, that he uses a speech at an international conference to draw in domestic politics by naming the Greens and Reform as an ever present danger than within 24 hours hands Farage a humiliating victory
It does not need much imagination as to Reform's election leaflets in those councils
There is a (possible apocryphal) story from the Blair years about "rubbing the right's noses in diversity".