Westminster Politics

UnrelatedPsuedo

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Or vote in Starmer. Have 3-4 years of non-action while the media blame Labour for everything the Tories did in the previous 14 years and the next general election all is forgiven and forgotten and the same Tory party get in with another super majority on an anti-immigration / low tax platform.
You could mitigate that somewhat.

If I were Labour, I’d put a policy in the manifesto that tied MP’s pay rises to positive economic and social uplift.

“These guys wrecked the economy. They’re going to spend the next four years blaming us for it. They’ll almost certainly going to promise tax cuts at the next election. The country cannot afford to cut taxes now. That’s the adult answer, and we trust you with it

To this end, no Labour MP’s will take a pay rise unless we are doing what we promised.

This journey is going to be long, but we are in it with you”

It’s awful, but Labour will be playing offence and defence for the next five years. Do a good job. Call a snap election when the going is good. Repeat your messaging, really go all in on just how much the Tories have fecked shit up. Constantly release facts, figures, financial breakdowns once they’ve looked at the books.

I mean, they won’t. Exactly what you say will happen, will play out. But it needn’t be that open/shut.
 

Murder on Zidane's Floor

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Or vote in Starmer. Have 3-4 years of non-action while the media blame Labour for everything the Tories did in the previous 14 years and the next general election all is forgiven and forgotten and the same Tory party get in with another super majority on an anti-immigration / low tax platform.
Agreed.
 

Eplel

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Did Sunak not know that GBNews regularly gives airtime to those anti-vax cranks?

Is he oblivious to the fact that conspiracy theorist groups like TogetherDec (look them up at your own risk) lobby some of his MPs like Jenkyns and Fletcher?
 

Offsideagain

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My late Father, a Labour voter all his life he told me, also said that what happens is this. The Tories are in Government for too long and become complacent, greedy and corrupt and get voted out. Labour come along with all their socialist dogma and good intentions but don't have the depth of talent or knowledge to get stuff done. They then use the 'We didn't know it was this bad' mantra to explain the lack of progress, then to Tories get back in for ten years'. Rinse, spin and repeat. He was pretty close to the truth. My view is that running the Country is now too complicated and important to be left to a bunch of amateurs. Having said that, Kwarteng had a degree in economics and look what a bollocks he made of it. Starmer is the weak link for Labour, the nodding dog repeating what his spin doctors tell him to say. Doesn't come over as sincere to me, neither does Sunak. We're f*****.
 

CassiusClaymore

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My late Father, a Labour voter all his life he told me, also said that what happens is this. The Tories are in Government for too long and become complacent, greedy and corrupt and get voted out. Labour come along with all their socialist dogma and good intentions but don't have the depth of talent or knowledge to get stuff done. They then use the 'We didn't know it was this bad' mantra to explain the lack of progress, then to Tories get back in for ten years'. Rinse, spin and repeat. He was pretty close to the truth. My view is that running the Country is now too complicated and important to be left to a bunch of amateurs. Having said that, Kwarteng had a degree in economics and look what a bollocks he made of it. Starmer is the weak link for Labour, the nodding dog repeating what his spin doctors tell him to say. Doesn't come over as sincere to me, neither does Sunak. We're f*****.
And this is exactly what will happen if/when Labour get in unfortunately and continue to offer nothing new. The very least they could do is set up PR but it won't benefit them any more than it would the Tories so they won't. The best we can hope for is that they don't steal as much of our taxes as the current organized crime syndicate currently in power and what a sad realization that is as a voter, that the best you can hope for is your money goes to where it should be going. I despair.
 

4bars

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And this is exactly what will happen if/when Labour get in unfortunately and continue to offer nothing new. The very least they could do is set up PR but it won't benefit them any more than it would the Tories so they won't. The best we can hope for is that they don't steal as much of our taxes as the current organized crime syndicate currently in power and what a sad realization that is as a voter, that the best you can hope for is your money goes to where it should be going. I despair.
Well, my father always said that the ones that stay in power are corrupt but the ones that they come in new power after an election are equally corrupt but have empty pockets and they want to fill them up. So buckle up

To me, if I would be British, I would have 0 hopes that Labour would be less corrupt but while they are stealing the same I would hope they can pass some sensitive legislation that benefits the middle to low income population
 

Ekkie Thump

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My late Father, a Labour voter all his life he told me, also said that what happens is this. The Tories are in Government for too long and become complacent, greedy and corrupt and get voted out. Labour come along with all their socialist dogma and good intentions but don't have the depth of talent or knowledge to get stuff done. They then use the 'We didn't know it was this bad' mantra to explain the lack of progress, then to Tories get back in for ten years'. Rinse, spin and repeat. He was pretty close to the truth. My view is that running the Country is now too complicated and important to be left to a bunch of amateurs. Having said that, Kwarteng had a degree in economics and look what a bollocks he made of it. Starmer is the weak link for Labour, the nodding dog repeating what his spin doctors tell him to say. Doesn't come over as sincere to me, neither does Sunak. We're f*****.
Not really. He has a doctorate in economic history, with his specific specialism being the English recoinage of 1696. You need a basic aptitude in economics to pursue post grad economic history, but by no means do you need to be a trained economist.

His BA was in classics and history. He was good at that!
 

Compton22

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Obvious how disastrous it was, the innumerable briefings of labour infighting and scandals today show the media have been given the directive of taking the attention away from this absolute car crash.
 

LARulz

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Obvious how disastrous it was, the innumerable briefings of labour infighting and scandals today show the media have been given the directive of taking the attention away from this absolute car crash.
That's not how the media works (as someone who works in it). This car crash was seen by hardly anybody and nobody wants to give GB News any promo/legitimacy except the Mail. It will be mentioned as and when but the fact the most interesting that came from this talk was some conspiracy theorist shouting at Sunak isn't really newsworthy
 

Compton22

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That's not how the media works (as someone who works in it). This car crash was seen by hardly anybody and nobody wants to give GB News any promo/legitimacy except the Mail. It will be mentioned as and when but the fact the most interesting that came from this talk was some conspiracy theorist shouting at Sunak isn't really newsworthy
Not questioning the legitimacy of your claim to work in the media or anything, but when you say "that's not how the media works" you're suggesting that independent news companies are not pressured or coerced into running certain stories by the government of the day? Because the cynic in me finds that hard to believe.
 

LARulz

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Not questioning the legitimacy of your claim to work in the media or anything, but when you say "that's not how the media works" you're suggesting that independent news companies are not pressured or coerced into running certain stories by the government of the day? Because the cynic in me finds that hard to believe.
We're not (at least where I work), there is no benefit in that if you are independent. There is no favour needed and seen as a good thing if you piss off those in power by reporting things they want to bury

Do the right wing press scratch the governments back and vice versa? Yes. Do the others, not from what I have seen and know

But again, speaking as someone who works at a major media company, there is 0 influence from either side
 

Jericholyte2

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The cat man has a chance of winning.
This is why I hate this account, and the camp who still believe Corbyn would have been incredible as PM with his links to Russia and Hamas - that Labour ‘dumped’ him…

…yeah! After he publicly referenced a conspiracy theory about Netanyahu deliberately orchestrating the 7/10 attack so he could wipe out Gaza, then finding antisemitic quotes from him about ‘Jews controlling the media’.

What else did they expect to happen?
 

Jericholyte2

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Labour still campaigned for the guy even after he made the remarks.


I understood it that his comments about the media came after labour initially backed him.

A party spokesperson said: “Following new information about further comments made by Azhar Ali coming to light today, the Labour Party has withdrawn its support for Azhar Ali as our candidate in the Rochdale by-election.

If that’s not the case then I stand corrected.
 

Kaos

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This is why I hate this account, and the camp who still believe Corbyn would have been incredible as PM with his links to Russia and Hamas - that Labour ‘dumped’ him…

…yeah! After he publicly referenced a conspiracy theory about Netanyahu deliberately orchestrating the 7/10 attack so he could wipe out Gaza, then finding antisemitic quotes from him about ‘Jews controlling the media’.

What else did they expect to happen?
What's your take on Starmer suspending another MP for suggesting Brits who serve in the IDF should be arrested? Another righteous purge?
 

Frosty

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4bars

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The Telegraph has outdone itself yet again.

This, from Tim Collins, bemoans the state of the UK military, which (whatever your views on the military) has been objectivity underfunded and run into the ground over the past 14 years.

The problem? Woke people and diversity!

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/02/12/britain-no-longer-has-a-military/
The UK GDP had grown the last 15 years an average of 1.5%-2%. What I can't understand is that the NHS, education, the military and seems like every single meaningful department is underfunded and they can get away without people going to the streets shouting corruption and sharpen the guillotines

And this is not exclusively from UK
 

Tyrion

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The Telegraph has outdone itself yet again.

This, from Tim Collins, bemoans the state of the UK military, which (whatever your views on the military) has been objectivity underfunded and run into the ground over the past 14 years.

The problem? Woke people and diversity!

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/02/12/britain-no-longer-has-a-military/
He barely explains any of that. He just complains about wokeness and blames it on everything without bothering to establish any kind of connection. He can hardly be arsed to give names so he talks about "faceless" woke people. Maybe I could have made the SAS if that's the bar.
 

Jericholyte2

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What's your take on Starmer suspending another MP for suggesting Brits who serve in the IDF should be arrested? Another righteous purge?
Well, yes.

Not fully aware of that one but a blanket statement about people joining the military of a recognised democratic (I know!) state is incendiary, if people have done that and have been found to have committed war crimes then they should be investigated and punished.
 

Mart1974

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BBC News, politics section, top story is inflation holding at 4%. The next 4 stories are all related to Labour and the issue with the Rochdale candidate plus the withdrawal of support for the Graham Jones. This is why Starmer has to be cautious on everything.
 

Superden

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As a muslim, I cant see how any muslim could support this Labour party at the next GE.
 

Vernon Philander

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BBC News, politics section, top story is inflation holding at 4%. The next 4 stories are all related to Labour and the issue with the Rochdale candidate plus the withdrawal of support for the Graham Jones. This is why Starmer has to be cautious on everything.
It’s the same in the Times. There’s been a ramping up of anti Labour and Pro Tory coverage there (more than the usual bias)
 

Kaos

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Well, yes.

Not fully aware of that one but a blanket statement about people joining the military of a recognised democratic (I know!) state is incendiary, if people have done that and have been found to have committed war crimes then they should be investigated and punished.
A recognised 'democratic' apartheid state which is increasingly culpable of committing genocide.

The point is whether that constitutes an MP being punished or accused of anti-semitism. Do you not think Starmer has gone a little too far in his attempts to come across as tackling anti-semitism? To me it looks like he's merely trying to silence any anti-Israeli dissent with an iron fist.
 

Buster15

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BBC News, politics section, top story is inflation holding at 4%. The next 4 stories are all related to Labour and the issue with the Rochdale candidate plus the withdrawal of support for the Graham Jones. This is why Starmer has to be cautious on everything.
I was going to post the same thing.
It is pretty obvious that this anti Labour narrative is intended to coincide with the 2 by-elections.
And it is a small part of what is to come.
 

Boycott

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The Stats For Lefties account is genuinely a terrible clickbait page that just wants to farm engagement from creating outrage. So many times they just throw the word BREAKING with a fire siren next to it and act like an opinion piece in a newspaper suggesting what Labour should do (that the account holder doesn't like) is actual Labour policy that they articulated themselves and made official. They do this because their audience doesn't actually read the article and it helps if the site is behind a paywall so they don't have to. It really does come across like people in an echo chamber wishing for a Labour defeat just to say "i told you so" and win some ideological argument but the polls haven't budged. Or they'll repackage quotes from ages ago that aren't official Labour policy as if it has just been announced and there is no video or link because it didn't happen. They are the ones in an online bubble and that's partly a reason why they were so shocked that 2019 turned out the way it did. They were acting like polls on Twitter were substitutes for actual polls. It's hard to take seriously.

There is plenty of stuff to criticise Labour on anyway that can be done without making things up. My main gripe is from Wes Streeting's constant need to pile on the standard of the NHS as a way to qualify his reforms. I have some experience there and emulating a country half the size of London isn't something I see as particularly effective anymore than just blindly throwing cash at the problem. We're not going to magically come up with the kind of technology Singapore have to ensure there's a digitalised 24/7 monitoring of a patient's health at their fingertips after discharge without firstly ensuring patients being seen get the first form of equipment that needs prioritising: medical supplies, beds, sanitary etc. We've got an aging population too so not only does this mean there's more people needing the service for treatment/check ups that could be for years to come, there's an issue currently of the amount of beds being taken up by patients who are able to be discharged but with the need to be monitored at home they have no place to go or no one to help. The knock on effect of this is that you have A&E patients in ambulances not being able to be given a space because beds in hospitals have become full time occupied. This country needs massive investment into social care and out-patient care.

We threw almost £40bn into track and trace and that's considered widely to have been money down the drain. I don't think it is incompatible to reinvigorate the NHS to where it needs to be to provide world class health care free at the point of use while also being transparent about where the money is going. In fact I'd argue that's a good thing - we should be able to know that the money is being spent effectively. First by bolstering the standard of care first by keeping the existing talent from not leaving through overwork/underpay. Then ensuring that we remove that overwork problem by getting more qualified clinical workers to be on wards. This is an aging population so we've got a lot more older people needing care so we need more numbers of skilled, trained professionals to take on these roles and this is another instance where I disagree with Labour policy on immigration. You can't fast-track students who could be in life or death situations because they are British. NHS nurses from overseas had to go through that period of training too even if they already were qualified in their home countries. They do a tremendous job and just saying we're going to hire more British workers won't cut the deal in the immediate term while those students need to get the proper training and qualifications. That could take years to come into effect where there's enough British workers trained to join the service.
 

Buster15

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BBC News, politics section, top story is inflation holding at 4%. The next 4 stories are all related to Labour and the issue with the Rochdale candidate plus the withdrawal of support for the Graham Jones. This is why Starmer has to be cautious on everything.
If anyone actually believes that the inflation rate is just 4%, I would be amazed. Apart from the government and the pro government media.
 

berbatrick

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Well, yes.

Not fully aware of that one but a blanket statement about people joining the military of a recognised democratic (I know!) state is incendiary, if people have done that and have been found to have committed war crimes then they should be investigated and punished.
It seems to be a crime for UK citizens for join a foreign army at war with a country which is not at war with the UK. On top of that, we have ample evidence of that foreign army committing war crimes, and a plausible case for it committing genocide.
I don't understand how you are cool with letting UK citizens fight there, especially since UK citizens were prosecuted, for transparently bullshit reasons, for fighting alongside Kurdish forces (allied with the UK) against ISIS.
 

Jericholyte2

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A recognised 'democratic' apartheid state which is increasingly culpable of committing genocide.

The point is whether that constitutes an MP being punished or accused of anti-semitism. Do you not think Starmer has gone a little too far in his attempts to come across as tackling anti-semitism? To me it looks like he's merely trying to silence any anti-Israeli dissent with an iron fist.
Yes I do, but given the task of publicly addressing the issue, he has to act on things like that.

I completely understand the issue, and agree re: Netanyahu’s actions, but if he’s to be our representative on the international stage then he can’t allow his MPs to suggest that membership of a military is a ‘crime worthy of arrest’.
 

Jericholyte2

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It seems to be a crime for UK citizens for join a foreign army at war with a country which is not at war with the UK. On top of that, we have ample evidence of that foreign army committing war crimes, and a plausible case for it committing genocide.
I don't understand how you are cool with letting UK citizens fight there, especially since UK citizens were prosecuted, for transparently bullshit reasons, for fighting alongside Kurdish forces (allied with the UK) against ISIS.
I’m not ‘cool’ with any of it, and if the nuance of the argument is that it is genuinely illegal for people to do so then I’ll hold my hands up to my error.

Although this suggests they can:

https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/uk-confirms-citizens-can-legally-serve-in-israeli-forces/
 

Superden

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Feck me...imagine if that was the other way round...

But again, casual islamaphobia barely registers on the scales... as much as I hate the current Labour Party, I cant even imagine how anyone muslim would be associated with the tories. And yet there are many, how many if them will be up in arms with guidos tweet and their close relationship to the tory party?
 

Ekkie Thump

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It seems to be a crime for UK citizens for join a foreign army at war with a country which is not at war with the UK. On top of that, we have ample evidence of that foreign army committing war crimes, and a plausible case for it committing genocide.
I don't understand how you are cool with letting UK citizens fight there, especially since UK citizens were prosecuted, for transparently bullshit reasons, for fighting alongside Kurdish forces (allied with the UK) against ISIS.
The document seems to be limited to wars against states which are at peace with the UK. Since the UK does not recognise Palestine as a state the act wouldn't cover it.

It's a very rubbish law. Seems like you could go and fight for Assad, but not against him. Seems like you could go fight in 30's Spain for, but not against Franco.
 

Mart1974

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I was going to post the same thing.
It is pretty obvious that this anti Labour narrative is intended to coincide with the 2 by-elections.
And it is a small part of what is to come.
Odd that there was no headline article on the BBC about the Green party withdrawing support for its candidate, it was covered as a footnote in Labour's Rochdale story....
 

FlawlessThaw

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Feck me...imagine if that was the other way round...

But again, casual islamaphobia barely registers on the scales... as much as I hate the current Labour Party, I cant even imagine how anyone muslim would be associated with the tories. And yet there are many, how many if them will be up in arms with guidos tweet and their close relationship to the tory party?
They deleted it but I suspect Guido deleted it because it was pointed out that 'Sophisticated Jews' is considered anti-semetic.
 

Maticmaker

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I was going to post the same thing.
It is pretty obvious that this anti Labour narrative is intended to coincide with the 2 by-elections.
And it is a small part of what is to come.
Spot on!
Starmer and the Labour Party heading into stormy waters, he's got to get a grip, anyone rocking the boat gets thrown overboard, the media will be scanning everything said or published by anyone remotely connected to Labour.
I wonder sometime if these people who make the sort of statements we have heard recently actually know what a fuss their words will kick up, or that someone is recording, or reporting what they say, or are they really from la la land, either way close the door Sir Keir and make sure they hand in their key..
 
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Buster15

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Odd that there was no headline article on the BBC about the Green party withdrawing support for its candidate, it was covered as a footnote in Labour's Rochdale story....
That is interesting isn't it. Says it all.