It's been all over for Scotland since South Korea lost. At that point, -1 goal difference at 3 points was the minimum bar. And even that may end up not making it.
Yes, the goals given away to Brazil cost Scotland very dear. And the failure to get more against Haiti. Sad, but 1 goal in 3 games doesn't really deserve to go through to be honest.
Even if Scotland had just gone 1-0 down against Brazil, I think it would probably not have been enough. That would have seen three countries on 3 points, with -1 goal difference: Croatia, South Korea and Scotland. And, I can't see all of them making it through.
Scotland needed to either (a) manage a point against Morocco (which I felt they deserved); or (b) score more than once against Haiti (which they seemed disinclined to do).
Assuming that Burnham gets massive devolution passed before the next election, do the Tories and Reform campaign to reverse it, or would it be here to stay and they accept it's too difficult to undo and policitally unpopular to take power from the regions and send it to Whitehall ?
I'd assume keep it on the basis it is often a hassle to undo, although Labour have gotten around, they say, to abolishing PCCs.
* The south is paying the price for economic failure in the north, Andy Burnham is expected to say next week as he unveils radical plans to devolve powers and money from central government to England’s regions
* In his first big policy speech since Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation as prime minister, Burnham will set out an economic strategy under which Whitehall budgets will be slashed and money diverted to be spent by regional mayors
* Burnham will argue that giving mayors new powers and funding to deliver social housing, tackle welfare dependency and run post-16 education will boost economic growth across the country
* This in return will reduce the dependency of the north and Midlands on tax “handouts” from London and the southeast
* Burnham will commit himself to spending a significant amount of his expected premiership in a “No10 of the North” to show his commitment to devolution and rebalancing the economy
* He is also expected to set out plans for a “devolution-first” agenda across Whitehall, under which departments will be expected to assess which areas of their responsibility and funding should be transferred to regional governments
* It is likely to reduce the size of Whitehall as swathes of roles in departments such as transport, education and work and pensions are devolved
* The National Office of Statistics calculates that people in London pay £24,400 in tax on average but get back just £19,500 in spending on public services. In the southeast they pay in £17,600 and get £15,900 back. Yet in the northwest they pay £12,700 in taxes and get back £17,300 in public spending. In the northeast it is £11,200 and £17,400 respectively
All parties talk a big game on devolving power, but it doesn't usually happen, instead being a way of embedding centralised control. It will be interesting if, having been a mayor, Burnham actually believes it and can push through Westminster and Whitehall distaste for local and regional government.
* The south is paying the price for economic failure in the north, Andy Burnham is expected to say next week as he unveils radical plans to devolve powers and money from central government to England’s regions
* In his first big policy speech since Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation as prime minister, Burnham will set out an economic strategy under which Whitehall budgets will be slashed and money diverted to be spent by regional mayors
* Burnham will argue that giving mayors new powers and funding to deliver social housing, tackle welfare dependency and run post-16 education will boost economic growth across the country
* This in return will reduce the dependency of the north and Midlands on tax “handouts” from London and the southeast
* Burnham will commit himself to spending a significant amount of his expected premiership in a “No10 of the North” to show his commitment to devolution and rebalancing the economy
* He is also expected to set out plans for a “devolution-first” agenda across Whitehall, under which departments will be expected to assess which areas of their responsibility and funding should be transferred to regional governments
* It is likely to reduce the size of Whitehall as swathes of roles in departments such as transport, education and work and pensions are devolved
* The National Office of Statistics calculates that people in London pay £24,400 in tax on average but get back just £19,500 in spending on public services. In the southeast they pay in £17,600 and get £15,900 back. Yet in the northwest they pay £12,700 in taxes and get back £17,300 in public spending. In the northeast it is £11,200 and £17,400 respectively
All parties talk a big game on devolving power, but it doesn't usually happen, instead being a way of embedding centralised control. It will be interesting if, having been a mayor, Burnham actually believes it and can push through Westminster and Whitehall distaste for local and regional government.
Good news for the people of Teeside that their redevelopment money will be under the stewardship of Ben T Houchem
* The south is paying the price for economic failure in the north, Andy Burnham is expected to say next week as he unveils radical plans to devolve powers and money from central government to England’s regions
* In his first big policy speech since Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation as prime minister, Burnham will set out an economic strategy under which Whitehall budgets will be slashed and money diverted to be spent by regional mayors
* Burnham will argue that giving mayors new powers and funding to deliver social housing, tackle welfare dependency and run post-16 education will boost economic growth across the country
* This in return will reduce the dependency of the north and Midlands on tax “handouts” from London and the southeast
* Burnham will commit himself to spending a significant amount of his expected premiership in a “No10 of the North” to show his commitment to devolution and rebalancing the economy
* He is also expected to set out plans for a “devolution-first” agenda across Whitehall, under which departments will be expected to assess which areas of their responsibility and funding should be transferred to regional governments
* It is likely to reduce the size of Whitehall as swathes of roles in departments such as transport, education and work and pensions are devolved
* The National Office of Statistics calculates that people in London pay £24,400 in tax on average but get back just £19,500 in spending on public services. In the southeast they pay in £17,600 and get £15,900 back. Yet in the northwest they pay £12,700 in taxes and get back £17,300 in public spending. In the northeast it is £11,200 and £17,400 respectively
All parties talk a big game on devolving power, but it doesn't usually happen, instead being a way of embedding centralised control. It will be interesting if, having been a mayor, Burnham actually believes it and can push through Westminster and Whitehall distaste for local and regional government.
Good news for the people of Teeside that their redevelopment money will be under the stewardship of Ben T Houchem
There are a lot of legal reasons why you could avoid giving Ben any more powers - just insist on audited accounts signed by the auditor
* The south is paying the price for economic failure in the north, Andy Burnham is expected to say next week as he unveils radical plans to devolve powers and money from central government to England’s regions
* In his first big policy speech since Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation as prime minister, Burnham will set out an economic strategy under which Whitehall budgets will be slashed and money diverted to be spent by regional mayors
* Burnham will argue that giving mayors new powers and funding to deliver social housing, tackle welfare dependency and run post-16 education will boost economic growth across the country
* This in return will reduce the dependency of the north and Midlands on tax “handouts” from London and the southeast
* Burnham will commit himself to spending a significant amount of his expected premiership in a “No10 of the North” to show his commitment to devolution and rebalancing the economy
* He is also expected to set out plans for a “devolution-first” agenda across Whitehall, under which departments will be expected to assess which areas of their responsibility and funding should be transferred to regional governments
* It is likely to reduce the size of Whitehall as swathes of roles in departments such as transport, education and work and pensions are devolved
* The National Office of Statistics calculates that people in London pay £24,400 in tax on average but get back just £19,500 in spending on public services. In the southeast they pay in £17,600 and get £15,900 back. Yet in the northwest they pay £12,700 in taxes and get back £17,300 in public spending. In the northeast it is £11,200 and £17,400 respectively
All parties talk a big game on devolving power, but it doesn't usually happen, instead being a way of embedding centralised control. It will be interesting if, having been a mayor, Burnham actually believes it and can push through Westminster and Whitehall distaste for local and regional government.
Good news for the people of Teeside that their redevelopment money will be under the stewardship of Ben T Houchem
30 degrees in my living room right now, with the fan on!
We need an 'unlike' button.
The heatwave finished here about 6 hours ago. A lovely summer's evening but one which probably requires an extra layer if you're outside. Still hot inside, but that's architecture.
* The south is paying the price for economic failure in the north, Andy Burnham is expected to say next week as he unveils radical plans to devolve powers and money from central government to England’s regions
* In his first big policy speech since Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation as prime minister, Burnham will set out an economic strategy under which Whitehall budgets will be slashed and money diverted to be spent by regional mayors
* Burnham will argue that giving mayors new powers and funding to deliver social housing, tackle welfare dependency and run post-16 education will boost economic growth across the country
* This in return will reduce the dependency of the north and Midlands on tax “handouts” from London and the southeast
* Burnham will commit himself to spending a significant amount of his expected premiership in a “No10 of the North” to show his commitment to devolution and rebalancing the economy
* He is also expected to set out plans for a “devolution-first” agenda across Whitehall, under which departments will be expected to assess which areas of their responsibility and funding should be transferred to regional governments
* It is likely to reduce the size of Whitehall as swathes of roles in departments such as transport, education and work and pensions are devolved
* The National Office of Statistics calculates that people in London pay £24,400 in tax on average but get back just £19,500 in spending on public services. In the southeast they pay in £17,600 and get £15,900 back. Yet in the northwest they pay £12,700 in taxes and get back £17,300 in public spending. In the northeast it is £11,200 and £17,400 respectively
All parties talk a big game on devolving power, but it doesn't usually happen, instead being a way of embedding centralised control. It will be interesting if, having been a mayor, Burnham actually believes it and can push through Westminster and Whitehall distaste for local and regional government.
Good news for the people of Teeside that their redevelopment money will be under the stewardship of Ben T Houchem
There are a lot of legal reasons why you could avoid giving Ben any more powers - just insist on audited accounts signed by the auditor
Given the (lack of) standard of auditing in this country I doubt that would be a problem.
Assuming that Burnham gets massive devolution passed before the next election, do the Tories and Reform campaign to reverse it, or would it be here to stay and they accept it's too difficult to undo and policitally unpopular to take power from the regions and send it to Whitehall ?
I hope not. As long as it works. Proper devolution of power from the centre is the first thing I have heard from Burnham that I can agree with.
Likely to be beneficial to some places and detrimental to others.
Especially so if they have increased scope for taxing and borrowing.
What happens to any places which bankrupt themselves and then ask for a bailout ?
BBC Newsnight @BBCNewsnight · 20m "You're spending something like £65 billion on defence and £360 billion on welfare. Lucky you, you must not feel any danger..."
Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski on Britain's defence spending.
.@ZiaYusufUK is a fantastic orator amongst a typical BBC audience and out of touch MPs.
The audience member blamed Brexit for all of the country’s problems.
Zia correctly pointed out that neither Labour nor the Tories have delivered what the British public voted for.
Well, given that my desires for Brexit were fundamentally diffferent to those of -say- a steel worker from Redcar, that's kind of inevitable, isn't it?
BBC Newsnight @BBCNewsnight · 20m "You're spending something like £65 billion on defence and £360 billion on welfare. Lucky you, you must not feel any danger..."
Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski on Britain's defence spending.
He has a point but there's no shortage of other countries which are even worse.
For example:
While many allies have raised defence spending significantly in light of Russia's war against Ukraine, the Czech Republic spent less than 2% of gross domestic product under a previous government last year, despite aiming to hit the target.
Babis's government cut this year's original defence spending plan to around 1.7-1.8% of GDP but Babis had been saying he was looking for ways to meet the target. This is no longer the case, he said.
"Our government will not meet 2% of GDP for defence either," Babis said in a post on Facebook. "We have to put public finances in order first."
While cutting defence, Babis's cabinet raised spending to subsidise energy prices and to fund road building, increasing the overall budget deficit for this year from levels proposed by the previous outgoing government.
In the face of new security threats and U.S. demands for Europe to bear a larger share of responsibility for its defence, NATO has agreed to raise its minimum spending target to 5% of GDP by 2035, including 3.5% on core military spending.
* The south is paying the price for economic failure in the north, Andy Burnham is expected to say next week as he unveils radical plans to devolve powers and money from central government to England’s regions
* In his first big policy speech since Sir Keir Starmer’s resignation as prime minister, Burnham will set out an economic strategy under which Whitehall budgets will be slashed and money diverted to be spent by regional mayors
* Burnham will argue that giving mayors new powers and funding to deliver social housing, tackle welfare dependency and run post-16 education will boost economic growth across the country
* This in return will reduce the dependency of the north and Midlands on tax “handouts” from London and the southeast
* Burnham will commit himself to spending a significant amount of his expected premiership in a “No10 of the North” to show his commitment to devolution and rebalancing the economy
* He is also expected to set out plans for a “devolution-first” agenda across Whitehall, under which departments will be expected to assess which areas of their responsibility and funding should be transferred to regional governments
* It is likely to reduce the size of Whitehall as swathes of roles in departments such as transport, education and work and pensions are devolved
* The National Office of Statistics calculates that people in London pay £24,400 in tax on average but get back just £19,500 in spending on public services. In the southeast they pay in £17,600 and get £15,900 back. Yet in the northwest they pay £12,700 in taxes and get back £17,300 in public spending. In the northeast it is £11,200 and £17,400 respectively
All parties talk a big game on devolving power, but it doesn't usually happen, instead being a way of embedding centralised control. It will be interesting if, having been a mayor, Burnham actually believes it and can push through Westminster and Whitehall distaste for local and regional government.
Good news for the people of Teeside that their redevelopment money will be under the stewardship of Ben T Houchem
There are a lot of legal reasons why you could avoid giving Ben any more powers - just insist on audited accounts signed by the auditor
Given the (lack of) standard of auditing in this country I doubt that would be a problem.
Oh I’m sure there are some local authorities where dodgy accounts have been signed off.
My point is the Ben’s accounts have never been signed off due to problems so if the plan is to not delegate things to him there are ways of doing so
.@ZiaYusufUK is a fantastic orator amongst a typical BBC audience and out of touch MPs.
The audience member blamed Brexit for all of the country’s problems.
Zia correctly pointed out that neither Labour nor the Tories have delivered what the British public voted for.
Well, given that my desires for Brexit were fundamentally diffferent to those of -say- a steel worker from Redcar, that's kind of inevitable, isn't it?
Nonsense. There was one true brexit vision. We keep it in a black-satin lined box that no light can escape or enter. Though we can condemn and cast out unbelievers.
Assuming that Burnham gets massive devolution passed before the next election, do the Tories and Reform campaign to reverse it, or would it be here to stay and they accept it's too difficult to undo and policitally unpopular to take power from the regions and send it to Whitehall ?
I hope not. As long as it works. Proper devolution of power from the centre is the first thing I have heard from Burnham that I can agree with.
Likely to be beneficial to some places and detrimental to others.
Especially so if they have increased scope for taxing and borrowing.
What happens to any places which bankrupt themselves and then ask for a bailout ?
I'm sure you can think of almost any other developed nation cos they'll be more devolved than us. Then look at what they do.
Assuming that Burnham gets massive devolution passed before the next election, do the Tories and Reform campaign to reverse it, or would it be here to stay and they accept it's too difficult to undo and policitally unpopular to take power from the regions and send it to Whitehall ?
I hope not. As long as it works. Proper devolution of power from the centre is the first thing I have heard from Burnham that I can agree with.
Likely to be beneficial to some places and detrimental to others.
Especially so if they have increased scope for taxing and borrowing.
What happens to any places which bankrupt themselves and then ask for a bailout ?
I'm sure you can think of almost any other developed nation cos they'll be more devolved than us. Then look at what they do.
Its not what others do - and there will be variety there.
Its what would be done in this country.
Is Burnham willing to have the 'Burnham to City: Drop Dead' headlines ?
'Sir John Major throws shade on the new prime minister in waiting. "Mr Burnham has had great success, I'm told, with buses," he says. "A little different from dealing with Xi, Putin, Trump, Macron, Merz."
'Sir John Major throws shade on the new prime minister in waiting. "Mr Burnham has had great success, I'm told, with buses," he says. "A little different from dealing with Xi, Putin, Trump, Macron, Merz."
A dumb take from Sir John - who else but an existing or former PM has had any equivalent experience? If he thinks he lacks the quality to step up just say so, but you coukd substitute the buses comment with any new PMs background.
Come on Austria, Ghana, and er a draw in the other group!
I'm not following this football nonsense (although I did see the Americans want it in 2038 again) but why on earth would a result in a different group affect Scotland escaping the group stage? That seems ridiculous.
'Sir John Major throws shade on the new prime minister in waiting. "Mr Burnham has had great success, I'm told, with buses," he says. "A little different from dealing with Xi, Putin, Trump, Macron, Merz."
A dumb take from Sir John - who else but an existing or former PM has had any equivalent experience? If he thinks he lacks the quality to step up just say so, but you coukd substitute the buses comment with any new PMs background.
Also a bit rich from a PM whose most memorable policy in office was the Cones Hotline.
Since the 1980s, Scotland, Wales, the North of England and the Midlands have sacrificed jobs and prosperity whilst London and the South East have become ever richer. It’s time London took a share of the suffering. We never hear of mass redundancies of civil servants and consultants, only engineers, factory workers, steelworkers and other productive trades. Currently its Aberdeen oil and gas engineers whose jobs are being replaced by platitudes. Time for some proper levelling up. Go Andy!
50% of the UK population live within 100 miles of London.
Come on Austria, Ghana, and er a draw in the other group!
I'm not following this football nonsense (although I did see the Americans want it in 2038 again) but why on earth would a result in a different group affect Scotland escaping the group stage? That seems ridiculous.
Because of the expansion to 48 teams, 8 of 12 3rd places go through to the knock out stages, depending on results.
Come on Austria, Ghana, and er a draw in the other group!
I'm not following this football nonsense (although I did see the Americans want it in 2038 again) but why on earth would a result in a different group affect Scotland escaping the group stage? That seems ridiculous.
Because of the expansion to 48 teams, 8 of 12 3rd places go through to the knock out stages, depending on results.
Thanks for that concise and useful explanation of a daft system.
Yesterday 0600 was 22C in my garden; after a day of early cloud and then hot sunshine, the thermometer had risen to 24C by the end of the afternoon; this morning it sits back at 21C at 0700. I have never known such a minimal diurnal variation.
Those claiming Burnham only talks about North V South or even he's never shared his broader views on a wide range of topics, suggest you dig out his 15 minutes speech to the IFS about 3 months ago
Or even The Rest Is Politics Leading when he and Andy Street were on together
Both good and insightful about his mindset and where we're heading
The learning point is not so much about Labour - who so could easily drop back to where they were given an unpopular decision or two - but about the underlying fragility of what has looked like a 'solid' and enduring Reform polling lead. Something else with some novelty value comes along, and a big slice of that Reform support simply evaporates. You could make the same point with the votes Restore pulled in at the by-election.
Since the 1980s, Scotland, Wales, the North of England and the Midlands have sacrificed jobs and prosperity whilst London and the South East have become ever richer. It’s time London took a share of the suffering. We never hear of mass redundancies of civil servants and consultants, only engineers, factory workers, steelworkers and other productive trades. Currently its Aberdeen oil and gas engineers whose jobs are being replaced by platitudes. Time for some proper levelling up. Go Andy!
50% of the UK population live within 100 miles of London.
Counting in the ones waiting on the beach at Calais like that seems a tad inappropriate, though?
The learning point is not so much about Labour - who so could easily drop back to where they were given an unpopular decision or two - but about the underlying fragility of what has looked like a 'solid' and enduring Reform polling lead. Something else with some novelty value comes along, and a big slice of that Reform support simply evaporates. You could make the same point with the votes Restore pulled in at the by-election.
I agree actually. It also goes some way to dispelling the myth that there were/are no direct Labour to Reform switchers, and that Reform's supporters were/are all angry Tories.
When Sunak took over from Truss, it gave the Tories approximately a 7 point bounce. I would be surprised if Burnham's accession did not do the same for Labour. Whether it lasts is entirely another matter.
I think a period of not being top dog will be good for Reform. I feel like they've been running on Red Bull and adrenaline for a long time, and the policies and candidates that they have been putting out have not been stellar for a while.
Is Mr Burnham likely to be aware that England has a South West?
In an academic sense.
The South West, the ignored lesser child of the South.
We've got to get away from this ridiculous idea that there are only two areas that matter, ie. the south and the north.
Exactly.
There is only London.
Which is why the UK underperforms its potential.
If HS2 had started with the Leeds and Manchester sections, I would be very surprised if it had ended up being cancelled.
Why would you be surprised?
Because if transport funding is earmarked for London it goes ahead. If it's anywhere else there's a high chance it does not (see the multiple failed attempts to get a tram system for Leeds, which has wasted millions on preliminary work).
'Sir John Major throws shade on the new prime minister in waiting. "Mr Burnham has had great success, I'm told, with buses," he says. "A little different from dealing with Xi, Putin, Trump, Macron, Merz."
A dumb take from Sir John - who else but an existing or former PM has had any equivalent experience? If he thinks he lacks the quality to step up just say so, but you coukd substitute the buses comment with any new PMs background.
Most new PMs have either held a Great Office of State though ie Chancellor, Home Secretary or Foreign Secretary or won a general election as LOTO. Burnham will become PM having done neither, though he has had some executive experience as Manchester Mayor and was a former Health Secretary.
Major was making the argument that Burnham should at least face a contest before becoming PM to clarify his policies and how we would approach the world stage too
Come on Austria, Ghana, and er a draw in the other group!
I'm not following this football nonsense (although I did see the Americans want it in 2038 again) but why on earth would a result in a different group affect Scotland escaping the group stage? That seems ridiculous.
The logical structure of the WC is that two competitions are currently going on simultaneously. A competition within each group to come top or second, and a trans group competition, conditional on coming third, between 12 countries, only gradually identified, to come in the top 8 of the 12. Of course, it makes no sense. In football, making no sense is rarely an obstacle.
The current situation for Scotland is slightly like some FPTP elections, where, for example the Tories might do worse in % than last time when they came second to Labour, but they still win the election because LD and Greens have taken votes off Labour. Football, like politics, is all relative.
Come on Austria, Ghana, and er a draw in the other group!
I'm not following this football nonsense (although I did see the Americans want it in 2038 again) but why on earth would a result in a different group affect Scotland escaping the group stage? That seems ridiculous.
Because of the expansion to 48 teams, 8 of 12 3rd places go through to the knock out stages, depending on results.
Thanks for that concise and useful explanation of a daft system.
There were 495 potential combinations of how that daft system could play out apparently, 8 of which are still possible.
Those BMG poll numbers would give Burnham Labour most seats with 280 MPs. Reform would have 194, the LDs 76, the Tories 47, the SNP 18 and PC 9 and Greens 8. So most likely a Labour minority government propped up by the LDs
'Sir John Major throws shade on the new prime minister in waiting. "Mr Burnham has had great success, I'm told, with buses," he says. "A little different from dealing with Xi, Putin, Trump, Macron, Merz."
A dumb take from Sir John - who else but an existing or former PM has had any equivalent experience? If he thinks he lacks the quality to step up just say so, but you coukd substitute the buses comment with any new PMs background.
Also a bit rich from a PM whose most memorable policy in office was the Cones Hotline.
I put a 'like' on that because it's funny, but it is a bit unfair to Major.
Since the 1980s, Scotland, Wales, the North of England and the Midlands have sacrificed jobs and prosperity whilst London and the South East have become ever richer. It’s time London took a share of the suffering. We never hear of mass redundancies of civil servants and consultants, only engineers, factory workers, steelworkers and other productive trades. Currently its Aberdeen oil and gas engineers whose jobs are being replaced by platitudes. Time for some proper levelling up. Go Andy!
50% of the UK population live within 100 miles of London.
According to Wiki, UK population 69m, about 44m of whom don't live within 100 miles of London.
'Sir John Major throws shade on the new prime minister in waiting. "Mr Burnham has had great success, I'm told, with buses," he says. "A little different from dealing with Xi, Putin, Trump, Macron, Merz."
A dumb take from Sir John - who else but an existing or former PM has had any equivalent experience? If he thinks he lacks the quality to step up just say so, but you coukd substitute the buses comment with any new PMs background.
Also a bit rich from a PM whose most memorable policy in office was the Cones Hotline.
I put a 'like' on that because it's funny, but it is a bit unfair to Major.
Yes Major won the Gulf War, left low inflation and unemployment and a growing economy and started the NI peace process and kept the UK out of the single currency while still in the EU
Since the 1980s, Scotland, Wales, the North of England and the Midlands have sacrificed jobs and prosperity whilst London and the South East have become ever richer. It’s time London took a share of the suffering. We never hear of mass redundancies of civil servants and consultants, only engineers, factory workers, steelworkers and other productive trades. Currently its Aberdeen oil and gas engineers whose jobs are being replaced by platitudes. Time for some proper levelling up. Go Andy!
50% of the UK population live within 100 miles of London.
According to Wiki, UK population 69m, about 44m of whom don't live within 100 miles of London.
"50% of the UK population live within 100 miles of London" or "UK population 69m, about 44m of whom don't live within 100 miles of London."
Since the 1980s, Scotland, Wales, the North of England and the Midlands have sacrificed jobs and prosperity whilst London and the South East have become ever richer. It’s time London took a share of the suffering. We never hear of mass redundancies of civil servants and consultants, only engineers, factory workers, steelworkers and other productive trades. Currently its Aberdeen oil and gas engineers whose jobs are being replaced by platitudes. Time for some proper levelling up. Go Andy!
50% of the UK population live within 100 miles of London.
Since the 1980s, Scotland, Wales, the North of England and the Midlands have sacrificed jobs and prosperity whilst London and the South East have become ever richer. It’s time London took a share of the suffering. We never hear of mass redundancies of civil servants and consultants, only engineers, factory workers, steelworkers and other productive trades. Currently its Aberdeen oil and gas engineers whose jobs are being replaced by platitudes. Time for some proper levelling up. Go Andy!
50% of the UK population live within 100 miles of London.
According to Wiki, UK population 69m, about 44m of whom don't live within 100 miles of London.
Comments
Scotland needed to either (a) manage a point against Morocco (which I felt they deserved); or (b) score more than once against Haiti (which they seemed disinclined to do).
dragonsReform, LibDems and a Tory.Still hot inside, but that's architecture.
@theipaper
Tomorrow's front page: The Burnham bounce: Labour leapfrogs Reform with new leader
https://x.com/theipaper/status/2070626942408126861
(((Dan Hodges)))
@DPJHodges
·
32m
Just one poll. But there's a trend.
https://x.com/DPJHodges
Especially so if they have increased scope for taxing and borrowing.
What happens to any places which bankrupt themselves and then ask for a bailout ?
BBC Newsnight
@BBCNewsnight
·
20m
"You're spending something like £65 billion on defence and £360 billion on welfare. Lucky you, you must not feel any danger..."
Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski on Britain's defence spending.
https://x.com/BBCNewsnight/status/2070632151779783161
For example:
While many allies have raised defence spending significantly in light of Russia's war against Ukraine, the Czech Republic spent less than 2% of gross domestic product under a previous government last year, despite aiming to hit the target.
Babis's government cut this year's original defence spending plan to around 1.7-1.8% of GDP but Babis had been saying he was looking for ways to meet the target. This is no longer the case, he said.
"Our government will not meet 2% of GDP for defence either," Babis said in a post on Facebook. "We have to put public finances in order first."
While cutting defence, Babis's cabinet raised spending to subsidise energy prices and to fund road building, increasing the overall budget deficit for this year from levels proposed by the previous outgoing government.
In the face of new security threats and U.S. demands for Europe to bear a larger share of responsibility for its defence, NATO has agreed to raise its minimum spending target to 5% of GDP by 2035, including 3.5% on core military spending.
https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/czech-republic-will-miss-nato-defence-spending-target-again-this-year-pm-babis-2026-06-19/
https://x.com/independent/status/2070582940237447193
My point is the Ben’s accounts have never been signed off due to problems so if the plan is to not delegate things to him there are ways of doing so
Then look at what they do.
Farage heatwave 2026.
The guys on a bit of the opposite of a roll, isn't he?
Its what would be done in this country.
Is Burnham willing to have the 'Burnham to City: Drop Dead' headlines ?
There is only London.
You need at least two numbers to fit a trend, and at least three to pick the trend with the best fit.
Plenty of overlooked places in the south east. Clacton for one. Start there.
However, the edge over Nigel Farage's party is 'wafer-thin' and such boosts 'rarely survive contact with the daily grind of leading', pollster warns
https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/labour-lead-reform-with-burnham-as-pm-new-poll-shows-4500466?utm_campaign=PNIEVq7l5sjekqh&ito=gifted_article&data-target=gifted_article&utm_source=XJPLeh5koSHChZEU
Gift link so no paywall.
Not only torrented but my entire DVD collection was ripped to it too.
I think now mathematically impossible for the Scots?
Glad F1 isn't a country. It'd be a step away from declaring itself a Democratic Republic.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cx23rx038w1o
Come on Austria, Ghana, and er a draw in the other group!
Stop laughing at the back
Or even The Rest Is Politics Leading when he and Andy Street were on together
Both good and insightful about his mindset and where we're heading
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/jun/07/labour-donor-dale-vince-influence-access-ecotricity-just-stop-oil-sunak-starmer
I think a period of not being top dog will be good for Reform. I feel like they've been running on Red Bull and adrenaline for a long time, and the policies and candidates that they have been putting out have not been stellar for a while.
Major was making the argument that Burnham should at least face a contest before becoming PM to clarify his policies and how we would approach the world stage too
The current situation for Scotland is slightly like some FPTP elections, where, for example the Tories might do worse in % than last time when they came second to Labour, but they still win the election because LD and Greens have taken votes off Labour. Football, like politics, is all relative.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:2026_FIFA_World_Cup_third-place_table
(Who doesn't love Wikipedia, eh?)
https://www.nowcast.uk/home/seat-calculator
or
"UK population 69m, about 44m of whom don't live within 100 miles of London."
Lol, which to believe?
And posted on a thread about misinformation too.