British Politics
Been on holiday for a few weeks, surprised to find no general discussion of British politics so though I'd kick one off.
Tory leadership contest is quickly turning into farce. Trump has backed Boris, which should be reason enough for anyone with half a brain to exclude him.
Of the other candidates Rory Stewart looks the best of the outsiders. Surprised to see Cleverly and Javid not further up the betting, but not sure the Tory membership are ready for a brown PM.
https://www.oddschecker.com/politics/bri...
Regarding the LD leadership contest, Jo Swinson is miles ahead of any other candidate (and indeed any of the Tory lot). Should be a shoe in.
Finally, it's Groundhog Day in Labour - the more serious the anti-Semitism claims get, the more Corbyn's cronies write their own obituary by blaming it on outlandish conspiracy theories - this week, it's apparently the Jewish Embassy's fault...
Truss believes in action and change. That distinguishes ger from typical middle managers. It's also why she got to be pm and why I wouldn't write her off.
I'd we don't want batty change then we better offer some good change because people aren't going to put up with the same old same old.
That’s right. The absolute last thing middle managers want and the thing they fear the most is change. Their job security and pensions depend on things not changing.
On the subject of fear, a clip of pre-referendum David Frost showing just how badly diebitter, ElRazor and many others were conned by a group of very obvious conmen and women:
I watched this through and thought it was pretty interesting, as I didn't know much of Galloway's views on anything other than Israel, and now I do.
Otoh, this interview was somewhat disappointing as they didn't push Liz Truss nearly enough on some of her answers.
Still, probably worth a listen for a PoV take on the collapse of the Tories.
I don't know why, but i listened to this too and it just solidified how ****ing delusional she is. So desperate for supply-side policies that she paid literally no care to their consequences while refusing to take any responsibility.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/art...
Conservative MP Natalie Elphicke defects to Labour party
"The Conservative MP for Dover has defected to the Labour party saying her former party has become “a byword for incompetence and division”."
rats...sinking ship...
Re Liz Truss. I’m currently reading Rory Stewart’s book and Truss doesn’t come out of it all that well, unsurprisingly. And I think Rory has probably left a lot unsaid. The middle manager comment is possibly correct, in terms of just throwing around random targets etc to please superiors but with no actual knowledge of what is required to achieve them and the impacts they would have. She’s definitely not a details person.
when i say middle manager, i'm actually thinking of one specific colleague at my place of work
she's good on client calls, hard working, could do better a better job of meeting internal/soft deadlines. it can cause a few issues with other people having to rejig their calendars to get their stuff done on time. i like her. i dont think she should be prime minister
Green party councillor Mouthy I mean Mothin Ali apologises for his Allahu Ackbar comments
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/gr...
Truss believes in action and change. That distinguishes ger from typical middle managers. It's also why she got to be pm and why I wouldn't write her off.
I'd we don't want batty change then we better offer some good change because people aren't going to put up with the same old same old.
Truss was hopelessly out of her depth. You may have forgotten the restaurant conversation I once mentioned, which someone at the next table recorded on their phone, where Truss, despite having voted Remain, told her lunch companion, 'I embrace the chaos!' and set out her big idea, which was... to get Burger King to sponsor potholes. Seriously. She thought that putting road maintenance out to tender (which no doubt happens all the time in any case, not that she'd know one way or the other), but invoking branded sponsorship and roadside advertising, would help to make up for the colossal economic hit inflicted by Brexit. Hopeless. Completely.
monty has declared. sticky wicket, silly point, the bowler's holding the batsman's willey etc
Don't panic, Panesar is small time compared to some of the faces on the left.
Truss was hopelessly out of her depth. You may have forgotten the restaurant conversation I once mentioned, which someone at the next table recorded on their phone, where Truss, despite having voted Remain, told her lunch companion, 'I embrace the chaos!' and set out her big idea, which was... to get Burger King to sponsor potholes. Seriously. She thought that putting road maintenance out to tender (which no doubt happens all the time in any case, not that she'd know one way or the other), but i
Truss is awful. I dont think anyone is disputing that at all.
Plenty of company of course. If people are saying that her being totally hopeless means she can't be back as a leading figure then I totally disagree.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/art...
Conservative MP Natalie Elphicke defects to Labour party
"The Conservative MP for Dover has defected to the Labour party saying her former party has become “a byword for incompetence and division”."
rats...sinking ship...
rats leaving sinking ship for a ship they feel very comfortable in.
starmer cock a hoop at his changed labour party being a comfortable place for someone so right wing ffs! I wish it was unbelievable rather then maybe marginally suprising.
One shadow cabinet minister said: “People are upset and angry right across the party about the decision.”
Another shadow minister said: “Logically or politically, we didn’t need this … I worry that they’ll not have done sufficient due diligence on her.” They added: “Her hard-right views are a big red line too. Are we welcoming Nigel Farage next week?”
Welcoming Elphicke to the Labour party at PMQs, the Labour leader asked Sunak: “What is the point of this failed government staggering on … [when] the Tory MP for Dover, on the frontline of the small boats crisis, says the prime minister cannot be trusted with our borders?”
Conservative MPs were flabbergasted by Elphicke’s defection. She had been a member of the rightwing European Research Group of Tory MPs and a vocal proponent for tougher rightwing politics. One minister said her move marked the “new ERG wing of the Labour party”.
Critics pointed to Elphicke’s comments on migration and strident criticism of Labour’s policies. A year ago she wrote an article for the Daily Express calling Starmer “Sir Softie” and accusing Labour of wanting “open borders”. She wrote: “Not only have Labour got no plan of their own to tackle illegal immigration, they simply do not want to.”
In 2021 she clashed with the England footballer Marcus Rashford, who she said should have spent more time “perfecting his game and less time playing politics” – a reference to his campaign for free school meals – after he missed a penalty at the Euro 2020 final. She later apologised.
One Labour MP said there was significant anger among some women in the party about the decision to admit Elphicke. “Most of us on the backbenches struggle to get any contact at all from the Labour leader or his team – perhaps if we were to stand in front of a few more flags or join the [European Research Group]?”
An MP on the left of the party added: “I think many in the party think it’s disgusting, that we don’t need people like that in the Labour party, and that she is absolutely vile … Who in their right mind thought this was helpful?”
A former shadow minister said: “Many of us didn’t fight Momentum only to see our leader welcome Reform in the front door.”
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/art...
Will any have the backbone to really stand up to starmer?
rats leaving sinking ship for a ship they feel very comfortable in.
starmer cock a hoop at his changed labour party being a comfortable place for someone so right wing ffs! I wish it was unbelievable rather then maybe marginally suprising.
This was exactly my thoughts. Even Corbyn, a man with less backbone than a jellyfish, wouldn't have had her in the party when he was leader.
I don't agree on his backbone at all. But the real point is that no tory right winger would ever have wanted to join the Labour Party.
new Labour or 'changed Labour' is a different beast entirely. It's okay to the right because it's a right wing party.
Maybe a few hundred tories should defect.
I’d be wry much in favour of a mass defection of Tory MPs to Labour, opening up the near certainty of a new left wing party emerging.
Labour now has far too much baggage (Thatcherism, Iraq and now this) to have any credibility as a progressive party. **** Starmer, **** Labour.
a question: when someone defects, doesnt it require the party he defects to accepts him? or a politician of party x can just join party y without party y leadership having a say, and that makes him a defector?
Yes they can't unilaterally join.
But they could all declare their desire to defect. Given starmer has accepted one of their most right wingers it would be imreresting. Ks could become PM overnight or he could find spurious reasons to reject them because even he would recognise his treachery.
Starmer clearly wants to be PM of some kind of coalition government with the only aims of a) maintaining the status quo and b) doing bad things more competently.
He's looking more and more like some kind of plant (and I don't mean of the vegetable variety, though that also applies).
Dominic Cummings steps up plan to replace Tories with new party
Boris Johnson’s nemesis runs focus groups across the U.K. as plan to eclipse Britain’s Conservatives takes shape.
LONDON — One of Westminster’s most controversial figures is making fresh efforts to re-insert himself at the center of British politics.
Former Downing Street aide Dominic Cummings has been organizing a series of focus groups to get the public’s views about a potential new anti-establishment party.
It marks a ramping up of the top Brexit campaigner’s plotting for what he’s called a “credibly anti-insider” party to “replace the Tories.”
