Did anyone foresee the i paper's front page headline?
I think the adage is "never let a crisis go to waste".
(A pure inflation lock is a bit too stingy, which was the reason for the TL in the first place; the state pension had got hopelessly low. In normal times, a TL is a bit too generous, and inflation spikes send it haywire. So what's in-between?)
TL applied over a 5 year rolling average goes a long way to solving the problem.
Yes. Remove the 2.5% lock, yearly increase with CPI. Adjust upwards if average wages have increased more than prices over a five year period.
Let's remember that until the Triple Lock came in, RPI not CPI was used to calculate the annual rate of pension uplift, and RPI is almost always the higher if flawed measure of inflation.
It was Osborne's great political achievement that he managed to convince anyone that the Triple Lock was more generous than Brown's previous system of uplifting by the greater of RPI or 2.5%, even as wages were stagnating under austerity.
Seen plenty enough of Osborne's political achievements to have drawn a firm conclusion.
Did anyone foresee the i paper's front page headline?
I think the adage is "never let a crisis go to waste".
(A pure inflation lock is a bit too stingy, which was the reason for the TL in the first place; the state pension had got hopelessly low. In normal times, a TL is a bit too generous, and inflation spikes send it haywire. So what's in-between?)
When there was a spike during the pandemic, the government suspended the triple lock for that year.
Ed Miliband ‘passes up leadership bid to target role as chancellor’
Not news. Ed Miliband always said he did not want to be leader again, and also publicly discussed a pact with Angela Rayner whereby he would be her Chancellor.
Coincidentally, like Rachel Reeves and Yvette Cooper, Ed read PPE at Oxford followed by an MSc in Economics from the LSE.
The UK intends to begin negotiations to join a £78bn (€90bn) European Union loan scheme seen as providing vital support for Ukraine. The prime minister said the talks are aimed at strengthening Ukraine's defences while also trying to give UK firms access to future contracts.
"trying to give access"....still no closer to actually getting access to a scheme that Mr Agreement about an Agreement didn't actually get an agreement. I said when he first said he had got an agreement to talk about an agreement by the time he finally gets it over the line all the best contracts will have already been awarded to the Germans and French contractors.
Brexit rendered this sort of thing inevitable, irrespective of whoever Mr Agreement might be.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
Making policy decisions explicitly on the basis of the political voting behaviour of a locality surely isn’t legal? It would be a judicial review waiting to happen.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
Andy Burnham is too flaky to be PM. Angela Rayner too stupid. Ed Miliband too left wing.
It kind of has to be Streeting, if anyone cares about the country.
Don't swallow Streeting's own estimation of himself. When looked at with a cold eye he's shown less administrative ability than Rayner or Burnham. There is no reason to think he would suddenly improve as PM.
However, as he is deeply unpopular with members the point is in all likelihood moot.
Of your list, Miliband is probably Starmer's likeliest successor, but I am surprised how seldom Cooper is mentioned.
I wouldn't dream of voting for Streeting (still less Mahmood) and IMHO that's the position of most members, as they are both seen as too right-wing. Ed M would be an interesting choice (and not especially left-wing), and Cooper an OK one, but it seems unlikely that anyone will want to take over with Burnham hovering in the wings and temporarily excluded by a maneouvre. I can see Starmer hanging on despite potentially awful local elections on the basis that a full choice of alternatives isn't available yet and it's too far from the next election - he can probably buy time by hinting that he'll go before then. If things cheer up he'll benefit, and if they don't he can stand down with dignity in a year or two.
Starmer is needed to soak up the terrible economic news incoming for the next twelve months, and the unpopularity of whatever Labour has to do to try and balance the books. No new leader is in a hurry to pick up that parcel.📦
Perhaps the most interesting week of local politics ever in my neck of the woods approaches.
I genuinely don't know how the local elections will play out in Newham next Thursday and the fact I can say that for the first time having lived here more than 20 years tells you how far Labour has fallen.
My head says Labour will hang on but barely but the Newham Independents have run a solid and professional campaign. My current prediction would be Labour 36, NIP 23, Greens 7 currently but the NIP have come into my Ward (Wall End) with canvassers suggesting they can reach beyond the Muslim Wards.
Labour are trying to hold on to the Tamil vote in the more Hindu Wards - even the Conservatives are getting in on the act in Wall End.
As far as the Mayoral election is result, the question is whether Mirza can pile up enough votes from the Muslim Wards to offset the Labour vote in other areas?
The Mayoral vote is due to count Thursday and that will give us a strong hint of how the Council election the next day will go.
This is what we've come to.
One party wins in Muslim wards.
Another party wins in Hindu wards.
Democracy.
It used to be one lot winning in Protestant wards and another in Catholic wards.
The feudalism that Enoch Powell was so keen for us to prevent
But why bring in more of a bad thing, when what we had was disappearing anyway?
I'm concerned in some ways, relaxed in others.
I'm relaxed that: - The votes of Muslims have always been somewhat blocky, but their votes do still split multiple ways, even if it more like Bootle than Sittingbourne & Sheppey. Like mindedness is not a problem per sé - They are voters who are fully entitled to vote for who they want. - They are entitled to vote for community independents from their community, even if the event that pivoted on was the war in Gaza - That some kind of base expression of support for the fate of civilians in Gaza, and that being a cause celebre, is not in itself Unbritish
I'm concerned that: - There is a level of coercive family voting, probably small, generally not enough to affect a result in a heavily Muslim ward, but something which should be picked up on in the individual instances it does occur. - That withdrawing into Community Independent voting does have the effect of putting a barrier up, and that other parties should be addressing that. - That support for Gaza (or wider Islamism) in quite a sizeable number of cases, does cross a line into hatred.
I feel a certain interest in how a local Councillor is able to do anything material to further a cause such as support for Gaza. It's an interesting piece of information about a candidate but it isn't at all relevant to the role for which s/he is standing, is it?
There’s a pledge for Palestine that council candidates are asked to sign: https://palestinecampaign.org/councillor-pledge-for-palestine/ Most of the Green candidates have signed it here in Camden. The only concrete thing on it is getting pension funds to divest in companies “complicit” in Israeli contraventions of international law.
This is some new meaning of the word “secretly” that I’m not familiar with, given that it’s been reported by multiple sources.
It is the time honoured tactic of the chair of the Oxford or Cambridge Union Society attracting publicity for both themselves and the Society by inviting a controversial speaker and then ensuring that the press gets to find out.
What's a reasonable worst-case scenario for the GOP in the midterms if we assume that the elections aren't stolen and the Strait of Hormuz isn't opened?
Lose the senate and the house.
The GOP would deserve it.
Let's consider the Senate seats they could pick up.
Assuming a hold in Georgia and Michigan, which didn't look certain a year ago (certainly the former).
Maine looks a certainty.
Ohio and North Carolina look very possible.
Texas and Alaska both look realistic if not straightforward.
If they have an astonishing night they might pick up one of Kansas or Florida and the independent they are backing in Nebraska might pull off a win.
So in a very best case scenario where on top of everything else Donald Trump is caught publicly masturbating over a photo of Barack Obama or something, they might pick up six seats and a Dem-leaning independent one.
In a more normal scenario, they should pick up three, maybe four or five.
If therefore they do any better than that we can fairly safely say no Republican will be in the White House in 2028 without even more substantial vote rigging than they have managed up to now.
The Dems got hammered in 2010 yet Obama won easily in 2012.
The GOP got hammered in 1982 yet Reagan won easily in 1984.
The GOP got hammered in 1974 yet Ford almost won in 1976.
So it is possible for big shifts to happen but the main requirement is competent government amid an improving world situation.
The problem for the GOP is that competent government is something we've seen little of from either Trump administration while an improving world situation also looks doubtful.
And drop the drivel about vote rigging - both sides manipulate the electoral system as much as they can and Trump didn't win because of it.
That's an irregular verb, isn't it? I tell home truths, he is exaggerating, you talk drivel.
On that basis, I will stop telling home truths about vote rigging when you stop talking drivel about Trump's attempted coup in 2020.
And what drivel have I ever said about Trump's attempted coup ?
You will not be able to answer that question because I haven't said any drivel about Trump's attempted coup.
Unless that is you think that saying Trump attempted to overturn a fair election result through legal manipulations backed up by encouraging street thuggery is drivel.
Whereas, sadly, it seems that you would prefer to retreat into comforting fictions rather than attempting to understand why Trump won. Which is especially sad from someone with an academic background,
Still I'll leave you to continue waving the pompoms.
Altogether now with yodders:
"Our vote rigging good, their vote rigging bad."
I'll be the one at the back, shaking my head at both sides and wishing we could have some competent government from somebody for the USA and world as a whole.
You said nobody died during the riots,* and you said he did not incite them.
Feel free to deny that, but we all saw your posts.
And that, as you apparently now know perfectly well, is drivel.
I am interested to see you are now rowing back on your previously full throated support for Trump, but I note you still struggle to admit your previous error of judgement. An interesting case study in light of a previous poster's comment on his support.
*This may be very technically true, but for the four people who died as a direct result the following day any reasonable person would say that is a distinction without a difference.
Everyone saw my posts ?
I certainly do not remember them.
I dare say if you had nothing else to do you could go through my comments for the last ten years and find all sorts of odd things because of the discussions that were ongoing, or just my mood, at that time.
So if you want me to comment on a specific allegation then you'll have to substantiate it.
And when the hell have I ever been a full throated supporter of Trump ???
I've never been a full throated supporter of any politician or any party.
Now there have been things I've said Trump was correct about and many more when I have said a specific Dem or Dems in general have been wrong about something.
But that also applies to my opinions about UK politicians and parties as well.
I thought Trump a mediocre President in his first term and that his refusal to accept his fair defeat made him unfit for further office. I think its a tragedy that the Dems were unable to produce a candidate who was worth supporting.
TBF, on the first point I have accidentally elided you with another poster with a similar avatar who was saying those things while you were wittering on about Hunter Biden, so I will withdraw that.
I modify my original statement thus:
I will stop telling home truths about vote rigging* when you stop talking drivel that Kamala Harris is some kind of woke loon and that ICE's murders were the fault of the people they shot.
*Which interestingly at one point you conceded yourself, calling Trump a 'failed vote rigger' although your hatred of the Dems is such you immediately said that wasn't as bad as it might be because Lyndon Johnson was worse.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
Have to say it's a silly idea. Seems like they're trying to shore up their base here, suggesting they're losing support. Could be good news for Kemi.
Do they understand the basic geography of this country? For example, there’s a good chance that after the next election Ashford (where I live) will have a Reform MP and Canterbury (right next to where I live) a Green MP. Indeed Canterbury will likely be in the middle of a sea of Reform. Do they think Reform voters are going to care the difference if the prison is in Whitstable not Herne Bay?
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
Andy Burnham is too flaky to be PM. Angela Rayner too stupid. Ed Miliband too left wing.
It kind of has to be Streeting, if anyone cares about the country.
Don't swallow Streeting's own estimation of himself. When looked at with a cold eye he's shown less administrative ability than Rayner or Burnham. There is no reason to think he would suddenly improve as PM.
However, as he is deeply unpopular with members the point is in all likelihood moot.
Of your list, Miliband is probably Starmer's likeliest successor, but I am surprised how seldom Cooper is mentioned.
I wouldn't dream of voting for Streeting (still less Mahmood) and IMHO that's the position of most members, as they are both seen as too right-wing. Ed M would be an interesting choice (and not especially left-wing), and Cooper an OK one, but it seems unlikely that anyone will want to take over with Burnham hovering in the wings and temporarily excluded by a maneouvre. I can see Starmer hanging on despite potentially awful local elections on the basis that a full choice of alternatives isn't available yet and it's too far from the next election - he can probably buy time by hinting that he'll go before then. If things cheer up he'll benefit, and if they don't he can stand down with dignity in a year or two.
Starmer is needed to soak up the terrible economic news incoming for the next twelve months, and the unpopularity of whatever Labour has to do to try and balance the books. No new leader is in a hurry to pick up that parcel.📦
Maybe Labour should send it by Evri. That should sort it.
If I had the wings of a sparrow And I had the arse of a crow I'm fly over Villa tommorow
This is a whimsical little ditty I’ve sang more than once. I suspect our old mate @Brixian59 has too
Shit on the Villa, Shit on the Villa tonight! Shit on the Villa, Shit on the Villa tonight! Shit on the Villa, Shit on the Villa tonight! Shit on the Villa, Coz they’re a load of shite
Wouldn’t want to go on holiday with you TBF
TFFT
It’s a football chant. I wasn’t singing it on my own. I believe Brixian would have sung it too. As did other teams supporters.
I go on holiday with my wife, and my wife and the in-laws. We have a lovely time.
Like,last weekend in Helmsley (N Yorks, not the wrestler).
Is there any team which has underachieved more than Birmingham City ?
Villa, West Brom, Wolves, Coventry, Stoke, Leicester, Derby, Forest have all had their glory days.
Why hasn't Birmingham ?
Spurs given their resources and fanbase
Spurs have had their great teams and great years - remember all that "year ends in one" stuff their fans would bang on about.
Their underachievement in recent decades has been matched by Chelsea success.
Possibly there's only room for two successful teams in London.
They haven’t won the league for 65 years. 65.
True, Spurs have certainly underachieved compared with Arsenal and Chelsea and compared with how their own fans view them.
But they have had occasional trophy wins, great players and entertaining teams since 1961.
Whereas Birmingham City has been a nothingness forever.
Birmingham City won the League Cup as recently as 2011. And Trevor Francis not a great player? Do you have selective amnesia?
Perhaps the most interesting week of local politics ever in my neck of the woods approaches.
I genuinely don't know how the local elections will play out in Newham next Thursday and the fact I can say that for the first time having lived here more than 20 years tells you how far Labour has fallen.
My head says Labour will hang on but barely but the Newham Independents have run a solid and professional campaign. My current prediction would be Labour 36, NIP 23, Greens 7 currently but the NIP have come into my Ward (Wall End) with canvassers suggesting they can reach beyond the Muslim Wards.
Labour are trying to hold on to the Tamil vote in the more Hindu Wards - even the Conservatives are getting in on the act in Wall End.
As far as the Mayoral election is result, the question is whether Mirza can pile up enough votes from the Muslim Wards to offset the Labour vote in other areas?
The Mayoral vote is due to count Thursday and that will give us a strong hint of how the Council election the next day will go.
This is what we've come to.
One party wins in Muslim wards.
Another party wins in Hindu wards.
Democracy.
It used to be one lot winning in Protestant wards and another in Catholic wards.
The feudalism that Enoch Powell was so keen for us to prevent
But why bring in more of a bad thing, when what we had was disappearing anyway?
I'm concerned in some ways, relaxed in others.
I'm relaxed that: - The votes of Muslims have always been somewhat blocky, but their votes do still split multiple ways, even if it more like Bootle than Sittingbourne & Sheppey. Like mindedness is not a problem per sé - They are voters who are fully entitled to vote for who they want. - They are entitled to vote for community independents from their community, even if the event that pivoted on was the war in Gaza - That some kind of base expression of support for the fate of civilians in Gaza, and that being a cause celebre, is not in itself Unbritish
I'm concerned that: - There is a level of coercive family voting, probably small, generally not enough to affect a result in a heavily Muslim ward, but something which should be picked up on in the individual instances it does occur. - That withdrawing into Community Independent voting does have the effect of putting a barrier up, and that other parties should be addressing that. - That support for Gaza (or wider Islamism) in quite a sizeable number of cases, does cross a line into hatred.
I feel a certain interest in how a local Councillor is able to do anything material to further a cause such as support for Gaza. It's an interesting piece of information about a candidate but it isn't at all relevant to the role for which s/he is standing, is it?
There’s a pledge for Palestine that council candidates are asked to sign: https://palestinecampaign.org/councillor-pledge-for-palestine/ Most of the Green candidates have signed it here in Camden. The only concrete thing on it is getting pension funds to divest in companies “complicit” in Israeli contraventions of international law.
You get these campaigns - sign for 'X' - at every election. It provides the campaigners with a gotcha if someone doesn't sign. Old hands know this but the newer ones will get caught out either now or later when events present themselves.
'Police in South Africa have managed to recover human remains after an officer was lowered from a helicopter into a crocodile-infested river in the search for a businessman swept away by floodwater last week.
The reptile suspected to have eaten the missing man had already been killed but Captain Johan "Pottie" Potgieter said it was still a nerve-wracking experience.
"The sharp-end of a crocodile is not the best place to approach it," he told the News24 website, external.'
This Reform asylum centre policy. It's just giving the "Refugees Welcome Here" crowd what they are campaigning for.
I think it is quite amusing.
I wasn’t aware that those in favour of not locking up people without trial, who you elegantly describe as a “crowd” are, in fact, in favour of detention centres for refugees. Your insights illuminate every single day.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
Have to say it's a silly idea. Seems like they're trying to shore up their base here, suggesting they're losing support. Could be good news for Kemi.
Message to Reform voters:
Psst. Zia Yusuf thinks that you are as stupid and nasty as he is. Pass it on.
(We've spoken a lot about Starmer's lack of political nous. Yet here's Zia, in charge of Reform's signature area of policy, and he's never even tried to get elected. There are newbie council candidates with more political experience than him. No wonder he keeps saying dumb stuff.)
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
Making policy decisions explicitly on the basis of the political voting behaviour of a locality surely isn’t legal? It would be a judicial review waiting to happen.
Andy Burnham is too flaky to be PM. Angela Rayner too stupid. Ed Miliband too left wing.
It kind of has to be Streeting, if anyone cares about the country.
Don't swallow Streeting's own estimation of himself. When looked at with a cold eye he's shown less administrative ability than Rayner or Burnham. There is no reason to think he would suddenly improve as PM.
However, as he is deeply unpopular with members the point is in all likelihood moot.
Of your list, Miliband is probably Starmer's likeliest successor, but I am surprised how seldom Cooper is mentioned.
I wouldn't dream of voting for Streeting (still less Mahmood) and IMHO that's the position of most members, as they are both seen as too right-wing. Ed M would be an interesting choice (and not especially left-wing), and Cooper an OK one, but it seems unlikely that anyone will want to take over with Burnham hovering in the wings and temporarily excluded by a maneouvre. I can see Starmer hanging on despite potentially awful local elections on the basis that a full choice of alternatives isn't available yet and it's too far from the next election - he can probably buy time by hinting that he'll go before then. If things cheer up he'll benefit, and if they don't he can stand down with dignity in a year or two.
Starmer is needed to soak up the terrible economic news incoming for the next twelve months, and the unpopularity of whatever Labour has to do to try and balance the books. No new leader is in a hurry to pick up that parcel.📦
Maybe Labour should send it by Evri. That should sort it.
I know crap postal delivery has become something of a trope but I post and receive quite a lot of stuff and I’d say it’s much improved over say the last 5 years. A lot may have to do with doing most of my stuff via lockers and the open-all-hours local convenience store, would recommend anyone to take those options if available over home delivery, saves a lot of potential problems.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
Making policy decisions explicitly on the basis of the political voting behaviour of a locality surely isn’t legal? It would be a judicial review waiting to happen.
A Reform government would love a judicial review.
Massive detention centres, targeting political opponents, battles with judges… Reform would just be MAGA for the UK.
This Reform asylum centre policy. It's just giving the "Refugees Welcome Here" crowd what they are campaigning for.
I think it is quite amusing.
I wasn’t aware that those in favour of not locking up people without trial, who you elegantly describe as a “crowd” are, in fact, in favour of detention centres for refugees. Your insights illuminate every single day.
The UK intends to begin negotiations to join a £78bn (€90bn) European Union loan scheme seen as providing vital support for Ukraine. The prime minister said the talks are aimed at strengthening Ukraine's defences while also trying to give UK firms access to future contracts.
"trying to give access"....still no closer to actually getting access to a scheme that Mr Agreement about an Agreement didn't actually get an agreement. I said when he first said he had got an agreement to talk about an agreement by the time he finally gets it over the line all the best contracts will have already been awarded to the Germans and French contractors.
Be fair to the man. It took him two years to not-really-decide what a woman is. So complex commercial negotiations will probably take centuries.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
Making policy decisions explicitly on the basis of the political voting behaviour of a locality surely isn’t legal? It would be a judicial review waiting to happen.
Ed Miliband ‘passes up leadership bid to target role as chancellor’
Not news. Ed Miliband always said he did not want to be leader again, and also publicly discussed a pact with Angela Rayner whereby he would be her Chancellor.
Coincidentally, like Rachel Reeves and Yvette Cooper, Ed read PPE at Oxford followed by an MSc in Economics from the LSE.
I can't speak to the quality or otherwise of the economics education offered by the Oxford PPE, although I do think the absence of a regular economics undergraduate degree at Oxford is a strange omission. But the MSc in economics at the LSE is I think the best one year course in economics you will find anywhere.
A malign government can effectively do whatever they like . In the past we’ve generally not faced this scenario, Tory or Labour governments might have been useless at times but I wouldn’t have classed them as malign or a threat to our democracy .
Ed Miliband ‘passes up leadership bid to target role as chancellor’
Not news. Ed Miliband always said he did not want to be leader again, and also publicly discussed a pact with Angela Rayner whereby he would be her Chancellor.
Coincidentally, like Rachel Reeves and Yvette Cooper, Ed read PPE at Oxford followed by an MSc in Economics from the LSE.
Betting has been suspended at Ladbrokes on the next Chancellor. Have Yvette at 16s
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
This is the old new old stupid game companies are playing, jack the price up for a renewal of something, then a) hope you don't notice or give up waiting on the phone for 87 hours and b) if you are persistent by the time you finally get through they give you friends and family discount that is still more than last year but hey we gave you 50% of the quote.
The other terrible business model, looking at you HUT group, the price is never the price, it is always everything is only 90% discount as long as you sign up for their mailing list so you get the discount code (which you have to stay on otherwise you don't get the new codes), but by being on the mailing list they spam you every single day and twice on Sundays with more products you might like.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
It is stupid at two levels- 1) it reminds everyone that they are close to Trump and MAGA, which is now a pretty toxic position to be in, and 2) even a cursory look shows it is likely to be a dismal failure as well as being cruel and pointless. It look like an act of self sabotage more than any kind of policy initiative.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
Making policy decisions explicitly on the basis of the political voting behaviour of a locality surely isn’t legal? It would be a judicial review waiting to happen.
It's not that novel in reality, even if if it's not usually expressed so blatantly? E.g. I'm pretty sure the Tories had a town centres fund of some sort that mysteriously only appeared to dole out cash in Tory held seats.
I think it's a dumb policy for practical reasons - I would have thought they'd need to use one of the old RAF bases or similar if they want a secure pre-deportion holding pen up and running any time soon - but I'm mildly ammused by the idea that those who claim to love migrants might actually have to experience them being dumped in their communities, rather than the usual approach of dumping them on the long suffering working class.
A malign government can effectively do whatever they like . In the past we’ve generally not faced this scenario, Tory or Labour governments might have been useless at times but I wouldn’t have classed them as malign or a threat to our democracy .
I seem to recall a recent decision in the US that gerrymandering was constitutional as if you didn't like it you could vote against it.
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
This is the old new old stupid game companies are playing, jack the price up for a renewal of something, then a) hope you don't notice or give up waiting on the phone for 87 hours and b) if you are persistent by the time you finally get through they give you friends and family discount that is still more than last year but hey we gave you 50% of the quote.
The other terrible business model, looking at you HUT group, the price is never the price, it is always everything is only 90% discount as long as you sign up for their mailing list so you get the discount code (which you have to stay on otherwise you don't get the new codes), but by being on the mailing list they spam you every single day and twice on Sundays with more products you might like.
Mazda was 75 quid don't know what it is now. Green flag has gone up...
A malign government can effectively do whatever they like . In the past we’ve generally not faced this scenario, Tory or Labour governments might have been useless at times but I wouldn’t have classed them as malign or a threat to our democracy .
I seem to recall a recent decision in the US that gerrymandering was constitutional as if you didn't like it you could vote against it.
It’s constitutional as long as it’s not race based according to the recent SCOTUS decision .
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
I had the same thing last year and again this year. Last year I called and simply asked if it was correct that my fee was almost doubling? He asked if I'd used the service often last year and I said no not at all. He then said Ok we'll charge you the same as last year. Will that be Ok? I said fine. Then this year exactly the same happened with exactly the same result!
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
It is stupid at two levels- 1) it reminds everyone that they are close to Trump and MAGA, which is now a pretty toxic position to be in, and 2) even a cursory look shows it is likely to be a dismal failure as well as being cruel and pointless. It look like an act of self sabotage more than any kind of policy initiative.
As someone who won't be voting Reform or Green it also makes me think the best way to avoid the detention centres being near me is to vote for a party that might stop the Trump Copycats getting into power.
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
I had the same thing last year and again this year. Last year I called and simply asked if it was correct that my fee was almost doubling? He asked if I'd used the service often last year and I said no not at all. He then said Ok we'll charge you the same as last year. Will that be Ok? I said fine. Then this year exactly the same happened with exactly the same result!
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
The price of a normal recovery is about £100-£150 so unless whatever piece of shit you're driving leaves you stranded on the side of the road more than twice a year it's just not worth it.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
It is stupid at two levels- 1) it reminds everyone that they are close to Trump and MAGA, which is now a pretty toxic position to be in, and 2) even a cursory look shows it is likely to be a dismal failure as well as being cruel and pointless. It look like an act of self sabotage more than any kind of policy initiative.
As someone who won't be voting Reform or Green it also makes me think the best way to avoid the detention centres being near me is to vote for a party that might stop the Trump Copycats getting into power.
But are there any 4-star hotels round your way, MD?
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
The price of a normal recovery is about £100-£150 so unless whatever piece of shit you're driving leaves you stranded on the side of the road more than twice a year it's just not worth it.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
It is stupid at two levels- 1) it reminds everyone that they are close to Trump and MAGA, which is now a pretty toxic position to be in, and 2) even a cursory look shows it is likely to be a dismal failure as well as being cruel and pointless. It look like an act of self sabotage more than any kind of policy initiative.
As someone who won't be voting Reform or Green it also makes me think the best way to avoid the detention centres being near me is to vote for a party that might stop the Trump Copycats getting into power.
But are there any 4-star hotels round your way, MD?
Unsure, I tend not to browse for hotels near my house
Edited: Ahem. I do live near Leeds so there are probably plenty there.
A malign government can effectively do whatever they like . In the past we’ve generally not faced this scenario, Tory or Labour governments might have been useless at times but I wouldn’t have classed them as malign or a threat to our democracy .
But placing detention centres in constituencies that voted Green would not be done by law. They'd just put them there by executive action, and then you could have a judicial review of the decision on where to put the detention centres. See umpteen similar cases in Trump's USA.
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
The price of a normal recovery is about £100-£150 so unless whatever piece of shit you're driving leaves you stranded on the side of the road more than twice a year it's just not worth it.
How does one know who to call in that situation?
Just Google recovery service/towing on your phone and call the closest one. RAC/AA/Green Flag will do it for non-members but they won't be the cheapest and will just be subbing it out to the person you should have called directly.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
Making policy decisions explicitly on the basis of the political voting behaviour of a locality surely isn’t legal? It would be a judicial review waiting to happen.
It's not that novel in reality, even if if it's not usually expressed so blatantly? E.g. I'm pretty sure the Tories had a town centres fund of some sort that mysteriously only appeared to dole out cash in Tory held seats.
I think it's a dumb policy for practical reasons - I would have thought they'd need to use one of the old RAF bases or similar if they want a secure pre-deportion holding pen up and running any time soon - but I'm mildly ammused by the idea that those who claim to love migrants might actually have to experience them being dumped in their communities, rather than the usual approach of dumping them on the long suffering working class.
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
This is the old new old stupid game companies are playing, jack the price up for a renewal of something, then a) hope you don't notice or give up waiting on the phone for 87 hours and b) if you are persistent by the time you finally get through they give you friends and family discount that is still more than last year but hey we gave you 50% of the quote.
The other terrible business model, looking at you HUT group, the price is never the price, it is always everything is only 90% discount as long as you sign up for their mailing list so you get the discount code (which you have to stay on otherwise you don't get the new codes), but by being on the mailing list they spam you every single day and twice on Sundays with more products you might like.
What's the market price of anything?
Whatever the seller can persuade the buyer to pay.
Perhaps the most interesting week of local politics ever in my neck of the woods approaches.
I genuinely don't know how the local elections will play out in Newham next Thursday and the fact I can say that for the first time having lived here more than 20 years tells you how far Labour has fallen.
My head says Labour will hang on but barely but the Newham Independents have run a solid and professional campaign. My current prediction would be Labour 36, NIP 23, Greens 7 currently but the NIP have come into my Ward (Wall End) with canvassers suggesting they can reach beyond the Muslim Wards.
Labour are trying to hold on to the Tamil vote in the more Hindu Wards - even the Conservatives are getting in on the act in Wall End.
As far as the Mayoral election is result, the question is whether Mirza can pile up enough votes from the Muslim Wards to offset the Labour vote in other areas?
The Mayoral vote is due to count Thursday and that will give us a strong hint of how the Council election the next day will go.
This is what we've come to.
One party wins in Muslim wards.
Another party wins in Hindu wards.
Democracy.
It used to be one lot winning in Protestant wards and another in Catholic wards.
The feudalism that Enoch Powell was so keen for us to prevent
But why bring in more of a bad thing, when what we had was disappearing anyway?
I'm concerned in some ways, relaxed in others.
I'm relaxed that: - The votes of Muslims have always been somewhat blocky, but their votes do still split multiple ways, even if it more like Bootle than Sittingbourne & Sheppey. Like mindedness is not a problem per sé - They are voters who are fully entitled to vote for who they want. - They are entitled to vote for community independents from their community, even if the event that pivoted on was the war in Gaza - That some kind of base expression of support for the fate of civilians in Gaza, and that being a cause celebre, is not in itself Unbritish
I'm concerned that: - There is a level of coercive family voting, probably small, generally not enough to affect a result in a heavily Muslim ward, but something which should be picked up on in the individual instances it does occur. - That withdrawing into Community Independent voting does have the effect of putting a barrier up, and that other parties should be addressing that. - That support for Gaza (or wider Islamism) in quite a sizeable number of cases, does cross a line into hatred.
I feel a certain interest in how a local Councillor is able to do anything material to further a cause such as support for Gaza. It's an interesting piece of information about a candidate but it isn't at all relevant to the role for which s/he is standing, is it?
I don't think many voters will be voting purely on local issues next week, for any party.
Yes, it's more on the margins, or where there happens to be local party strength like a cluster of LDs
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
The price of a normal recovery is about £100-£150 so unless whatever piece of shit you're driving leaves you stranded on the side of the road more than twice a year it's just not worth it.
When I was in my late teens/early 20s I ran a rather rough 109" landrover on a classic car policy, which had free national recovery included. Most years I got my money back in breakdown recovery costs - the record was the occasion I was collected from Kemble Airfield in Gloucestershire at about 11pm on a Saturday night, and delivered to Porthmadog in North Wales at about 5am on a Sunday morning. I think that cost someone almost £700 (this was 20 years ago, so probably £1400 in today's money). My premium for the year had only been about £350!
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
The price of a normal recovery is about £100-£150 so unless whatever piece of shit you're driving leaves you stranded on the side of the road more than twice a year it's just not worth it.
How does one know who to call in that situation?
Just Google recovery service/towing on your phone and call the closest one. RAC/AA/Green Flag will do it for non-members but they won't be the cheapest and will just be subbing it out to the person you should have called directly.
I have mine through the insurance company so when I wrote the car off last year the insurance company called the AA. They called local recovery who took it to an approved repair specialist. Repair specialist evaluated the damage, wrote it off, and we were made an offer. The offer was good enough to allow us to buy a like-for-like with a small addition for wear and tear. One call and seamless sorting of the issue.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
It is very USA, promising to be mean to political enemies.
And think of the costs of closing a facility and moving it once the locals switch support.
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
The price of a normal recovery is about £100-£150 so unless whatever piece of shit you're driving leaves you stranded on the side of the road more than twice a year it's just not worth it.
How does one know who to call in that situation?
Just Google recovery service/towing on your phone and call the closest one. RAC/AA/Green Flag will do it for non-members but they won't be the cheapest and will just be subbing it out to the person you should have called directly.
I have mine through the insurance company so when I wrote the car off last year the insurance company called the AA. They called local recovery who took it to an approved repair specialist. Repair specialist evaluated the damage, wrote it off, and we were made an offer. The offer was good enough to allow us to buy a like-for-like with a small addition for wear and tear. One call and seamless sorting of the issue.
I once fixed the fuel pump on my M6 using barbed wire I stole from a farmer's fence. Moderate blood loss and mild risk of fire. When it comes to cars, I live for the struggle. On the plus side, I am a post-apocalypse first round draft pick.
A Green party candidate in Rochdale is campaigning for more cash machines in the town centre.
I'm sure the #endofcash PBers will be interested how this goes
Is that in the gift of a local authority?
If some applied for permission.
I don’t know why the banks or whatever don’t install those machines that charge in places like this so it becomes viable
Presumably the problem is that even less people would use ones which charge, and there is no price point at which the machine will make enough to cover it's costs.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
Making policy decisions explicitly on the basis of the political voting behaviour of a locality surely isn’t legal? It would be a judicial review waiting to happen.
It's not that novel in reality, even if if it's not usually expressed so blatantly? E.g. I'm pretty sure the Tories had a town centres fund of some sort that mysteriously only appeared to dole out cash in Tory held seats.
I think it's a dumb policy for practical reasons - I would have thought they'd need to use one of the old RAF bases or similar if they want a secure pre-deportion holding pen up and running any time soon - but I'm mildly ammused by the idea that those who claim to love migrants might actually have to experience them being dumped in their communities, rather than the usual approach of dumping them on the long suffering working class.
Given a choice between a deportation policy that does what it says on the tin and trolling the libs, Reform's Home Affairs spokesman would rather troll the libs.
If you are materially comfortable and just miss your youth, that makes sense as a policy.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
Making policy decisions explicitly on the basis of the political voting behaviour of a locality surely isn’t legal? It would be a judicial review waiting to happen.
It's not that novel in reality, even if if it's not usually expressed so blatantly? E.g. I'm pretty sure the Tories had a town centres fund of some sort that mysteriously only appeared to dole out cash in Tory held seats.
I think it's a dumb policy for practical reasons - I would have thought they'd need to use one of the old RAF bases or similar if they want a secure pre-deportion holding pen up and running any time soon - but I'm mildly ammused by the idea that those who claim to love migrants might actually have to experience them being dumped in their communities, rather than the usual approach of dumping them on the long suffering working class.
The US can bugger off. Trump is running the show and has made clear through his actions he doesn't want allies, and none of us have much capacity to offer anyway even though it's in everyone's interests to open the strait.
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
The price of a normal recovery is about £100-£150 so unless whatever piece of shit you're driving leaves you stranded on the side of the road more than twice a year it's just not worth it.
How does one know who to call in that situation?
Just Google recovery service/towing on your phone and call the closest one. RAC/AA/Green Flag will do it for non-members but they won't be the cheapest and will just be subbing it out to the person you should have called directly.
I have mine through the insurance company so when I wrote the car off last year the insurance company called the AA. They called local recovery who took it to an approved repair specialist. Repair specialist evaluated the damage, wrote it off, and we were made an offer. The offer was good enough to allow us to buy a like-for-like with a small addition for wear and tear. One call and seamless sorting of the issue.
I once fixed the fuel pump on my M6 using barbed wire I stole from a farmer's fence. Moderate blood loss and mild risk of fire. When it comes to cars, I live for the struggle. On the plus side, I am a post-apocalypse first round draft pick.
We'll need the best bicycle repairmen more than car junkies, for the long term.
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
On top of sounding like you are going to set up a copy of the US system, which is too much for even a lot of people who would prefer the government to get tougher on immigration, if they want to be treated as a serious grown up party of government, that is absolutely the opposite. You can be tough on immigration without the nonsense of only detention centres in lefty seats etc, that's not a serious proposal, it a policy for the sort of people think the way to stop the small boats is to send the one navy boat in operation to gun down the small boats in the channel.
Making policy decisions explicitly on the basis of the political voting behaviour of a locality surely isn’t legal? It would be a judicial review waiting to happen.
A Reform government would love a judicial review.
Which law specifically would it breach
Judicial review is not just about the breach of a 'specific' law. It's more complicated. All government decisions (unless an act says otherwise - Leon may have a draft of such an act available) have to be rational, within the panoply of law and regulation about the criteria for and process of decision making, consistent with natural justice and accompanied by all the relevant consultations to be conducted according to the meaning of the word 'consult'. They have specifically to take account of all relevant matters and NOT take account of irrelevant ones (like who holds the local seat/LA).
Whether Reform would like such a JR about a punitive Trumpian policy is moot. Suppose, for example, that a Reform government decide to place a huge detention facility in a Green controlled LA or constituency. They then discover that legal action, accompanied by mass demos and threats to set fire to stuff, is taken not be a Green council but by the local branches of Reform, Reclaim, Restore, Renewal, Repair, Repent, BNP, BUF and their irksome friends.
The UK intends to begin negotiations to join a £78bn (€90bn) European Union loan scheme seen as providing vital support for Ukraine. The prime minister said the talks are aimed at strengthening Ukraine's defences while also trying to give UK firms access to future contracts.
"trying to give access"....still no closer to actually getting access to a scheme that Mr Agreement about an Agreement didn't actually get an agreement. I said when he first said he had got an agreement to talk about an agreement by the time he finally gets it over the line all the best contracts will have already been awarded to the Germans and French contractors.
You don't think the UK should support the EU loan agreement with Ukraine? Is that a Brexit freedom?
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
I had the same thing last year and again this year. Last year I called and simply asked if it was correct that my fee was almost doubling? He asked if I'd used the service often last year and I said no not at all. He then said Ok we'll charge you the same as last year. Will that be Ok? I said fine. Then this year exactly the same happened with exactly the same result!
I stopped with both the RAC and the AA because I got tired of this bullshit.
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
The price of a normal recovery is about £100-£150 so unless whatever piece of shit you're driving leaves you stranded on the side of the road more than twice a year it's just not worth it.
How does one know who to call in that situation?
Just Google recovery service/towing on your phone and call the closest one. RAC/AA/Green Flag will do it for non-members but they won't be the cheapest and will just be subbing it out to the person you should have called directly.
I have mine through the insurance company so when I wrote the car off last year the insurance company called the AA. They called local recovery who took it to an approved repair specialist. Repair specialist evaluated the damage, wrote it off, and we were made an offer. The offer was good enough to allow us to buy a like-for-like with a small addition for wear and tear. One call and seamless sorting of the issue.
I once fixed the fuel pump on my M6 using barbed wire I stole from a farmer's fence. Moderate blood loss and mild risk of fire. When it comes to cars, I live for the struggle. On the plus side, I am a post-apocalypse first round draft pick.
We'll need the best bicycle repairmen more than car junkies, for the long term.
A Green party candidate in Rochdale is campaigning for more cash machines in the town centre.
I'm sure the #endofcash PBers will be interested how this goes
Is that in the gift of a local authority?
If some applied for permission.
I don’t know why the banks or whatever don’t install those machines that charge in places like this so it becomes viable
Presumably the problem is that even less people would use ones which charge, and there is no price point at which the machine will make enough to cover it's costs.
What are the economics of cash machines like, anyway? The two nearest to me are in micro corner shops and charge (Two quid?! I should coco.) There are others in co-ops and post offices a longer walk away that are free to use.
A Green party candidate in Rochdale is campaigning for more cash machines in the town centre.
I'm sure the #endofcash PBers will be interested how this goes
Is that in the gift of a local authority?
If some applied for permission.
I don’t know why the banks or whatever don’t install those machines that charge in places like this so it becomes viable
Presumably the problem is that even less people would use ones which charge, and there is no price point at which the machine will make enough to cover it's costs.
What do people want? If they want cash machines they might need to pay for them
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
The price of a normal recovery is about £100-£150 so unless whatever piece of shit you're driving leaves you stranded on the side of the road more than twice a year it's just not worth it.
How does one know who to call in that situation?
Just Google recovery service/towing on your phone and call the closest one. RAC/AA/Green Flag will do it for non-members but they won't be the cheapest and will just be subbing it out to the person you should have called directly.
I have mine through the insurance company so when I wrote the car off last year the insurance company called the AA. They called local recovery who took it to an approved repair specialist. Repair specialist evaluated the damage, wrote it off, and we were made an offer. The offer was good enough to allow us to buy a like-for-like with a small addition for wear and tear. One call and seamless sorting of the issue.
I once fixed the fuel pump on my M6 using barbed wire I stole from a farmer's fence. Moderate blood loss and mild risk of fire. When it comes to cars, I live for the struggle. On the plus side, I am a post-apocalypse first round draft pick.
We'll need the best bicycle repairmen more than car junkies, for the long term.
The US can bugger off. Trump is running the show and has made clear through his actions he doesn't want allies, and none of us have much capacity to offer anyway even though it's in everyone's interests to open the strait.
There is a deep reserve of sensible moderate people in the US fighting a slow losing battle against the insanity. The world should be infinitely grateful to these people but we should also be aware that they can't hold back the tide indefinitely, and plan accordingly.
The US can bugger off. Trump is running the show and has made clear through his actions he doesn't want allies, and none of us have much capacity to offer anyway even though it's in everyone's interests to open the strait.
Sadly that won’t happen anytime soon and we have to prepare for that.
Neither side seems willing to budge on terms to end. The war has ground to a halt (sorry Bart 😢) and we are at stalemate and unless something gives that will perpetuate indefinitely and people just don’t seem concerned.
Comments
https://x.com/timespolitics/status/2051032384888340529
Ed Miliband ‘passes up leadership bid to target role as chancellor’
To put it simply
Streeting is greeting and bleating that he has insufficient seating, making him fleeting.
https://bsky.app/profile/implausibleblog.bsky.social/post/3mksmbgxjrk25
Coincidentally, like Rachel Reeves and Yvette Cooper, Ed read PPE at Oxford followed by an MSc in Economics from the LSE.
Today we announce a new policy:
In order to deport all illegal migrants in Britain, Reform will need to detain tens of thousands at a time.
Migrants will not be able to leave these detention centres, and each will be held there a couple of weeks before being deported.
So here’s our promise:
A Reform government will not put any migrant detention facilities in any constituency with a Reform MP.
Nor will we put them where Reform controls the council.
And of the remaining areas, we will prioritise Green controlled parliamentary constituencies and Green controlled councils to locate the detention centres.
Put simply, if you vote in a Reform council or Reform MP, we guarantee you won’t have a detention centre near you.
If you vote Green, there’s a good chance you will.
This is an important exercise in democratic consent, not just for our mass deportation policy, but for where the detention centres are placed.
https://x.com/ZiaYusufUK/status/2051033457464127976
I modify my original statement thus:
I will stop telling home truths about vote rigging* when you stop talking drivel that Kamala Harris is some kind of woke loon and that ICE's murders were the fault of the people they shot.
*Which interestingly at one point you conceded yourself, calling Trump a 'failed vote rigger' although your hatred of the Dems is such you immediately said that wasn't as bad as it might be because Lyndon Johnson was worse.
Well, how astonishing.
Let's hope this gets the ICE-y reception it deserves.
May 4th be with you!
Very poor language by the BBC.
The earth is a human-infested planet.
I think it is quite amusing.
Psst. Zia Yusuf thinks that you are as stupid and nasty as he is. Pass it on.
(We've spoken a lot about Starmer's lack of political nous. Yet here's Zia, in charge of Reform's signature area of policy, and he's never even tried to get elected. There are newbie council candidates with more political experience than him. No wonder he keeps saying dumb stuff.)
Masses?
Brigades?
Take your pick, if you don't like crowd.
But Walt disnae....
My RAC cover renewal:
"This year’s price £477.99. Last year’s price £326.99"
Oh, not Theresa May?
Mr. Mark, did they offer a rationale for the ~50% hike?
We don’t have a written constitution so effectively the law is what parliament decides it is . We have even less checks and balances than the USA .
The scope to challenge any laws is very narrow .
https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/judicial-review
A malign government can effectively do whatever they like . In the past we’ve generally not faced this scenario, Tory or Labour governments might have been useless at times but I wouldn’t have classed them as malign or a threat to our democracy .
The other terrible business model, looking at you HUT group, the price is never the price, it is always everything is only 90% discount as long as you sign up for their mailing list so you get the discount code (which you have to stay on otherwise you don't get the new codes), but by being on the mailing list they spam you every single day and twice on Sundays with more products you might like.
It look like an act of self sabotage more than any kind of policy initiative.
I think it's a dumb policy for practical reasons - I would have thought they'd need to use one of the old RAF bases or similar if they want a secure pre-deportion holding pen up and running any time soon - but I'm mildly ammused by the idea that those who claim to love migrants might actually have to experience them being dumped in their communities, rather than the usual approach of dumping them on the long suffering working class.
Honestly, you can't take these buggers seriously.
U.S. asks for help with opening Strait of Hormuz while Trump attacks allies
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/us-asks-help-opening-strait-hormuz-trump-attacks-allies-rcna343082
Edited: Ahem. I do live near Leeds so there are probably plenty there.
Whatever the seller can persuade the buyer to pay.
And think of the costs of closing a facility and moving it once the locals switch support.
Nasty and stupid. Should play well with the base
If you are materially comfortable and just miss your youth, that makes sense as a policy.
The US can bugger off. Trump is running the show and has made clear through his actions he doesn't want allies, and none of us have much capacity to offer anyway even though it's in everyone's interests to open the strait.
Whether Reform would like such a JR about a punitive Trumpian policy is moot. Suppose, for example, that a Reform government decide to place a huge detention facility in a Green controlled LA or constituency. They then discover that legal action, accompanied by mass demos and threats to set fire to stuff, is taken not be a Green council but by the local branches of Reform, Reclaim, Restore, Renewal, Repair, Repent, BNP, BUF and their irksome friends.
It's a racket.
Neither side seems willing to budge on terms to end. The war has ground to a halt (sorry Bart 😢) and we are at stalemate and unless something gives that will perpetuate indefinitely and people just don’t seem concerned.
Trump said the U.S. would start guiding commercial ships out of the Strait of Hormuz. The plan doesn’t involve U.S. warships escorting the vessels.
@coachfinstock.bsky.social
Hegseth sending a text with an AI map of "where the mines are" and saying "good lukc"