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“ We do agree on Lee ’30p’ Anderson though, I would happily see him made Tory leader tomorrow”.
That really surprises me Richard. I would have thought Lee would be the polar opposite for you as regards values etc.
I was being somewhat facetious, he’d be a disaster and would lead to a Labour government in a matter of weeks.
As I said, I’m not a Labour voter but they are the only viable alternative at the moment so I will welcome them when the time comes.
Millions of us, perhaps including your good self, don’t (or at least don’t always) vote for ‘the big two’. For example I believe that Reform and the Lib Dems are currently polling about the same percentage. That may translate into a dozen or more seats for the Lib Dems but none at all for Reform. I don’t think that’s right. The current system unfortunately encourages an effective two party state.
We should have more representation in Parliament from smaller parties and that includes Reform if enough people vote for them. As it is, it simply adds to the feeling that their views are not being heard.
“ I was being somewhat facetious, he’d be a disaster and would lead to a Labour government in a matter of weeks”.
So Sunak in charge now is not a disaster, no bounce back on what was there before, no real action or urgency on any of the many big issues this country is facing. He wasn’t the choice of anyone, and unelected.
On the contrary I think voters would warm to LA who would be quite different to previous PMs, the left and MSM would not know how to handle him, just like Trump, but the majority of people would like him.
My only concern would be there are so many toady left liberal Tory’s as MPs, that would be their downfall.The Tory’s have nothing to lose because leaving thing’s as they are now is their disaster.
They need to take a ‘punt’, they have no option.I think it should be fairly obvious from my postings that I’m not a Sunak fan. I gave him too much credit, he’s been worse than I thought he would be. He’s shown himself to be weak and indecisive, I agree with you there.
He has to stay from a Tory point of view though because if he goes there would have to be an election. Should have been one after Truss in my view. But here we are, stuck with a lame duck government dictating to us with their massive majority who no more than 25% would vote for now. Isn’t democracy wonderful?
Our democracy is set every four or five years generally, there’s nothing wrong with that only those that try to kill it as per another referendum, like Starmer.
But now, currently, I’m in no doubt whoever is in power is not up to the job, and that goes for Labour, they are shite as well.
If and when Labour get in then fine, that’s democracy. My feeling though is for an even bigger disaster than we have now and they’ll be out the following election.
I can see it coming that they will have us as close to the EU as possible, which is against the wishes of the majority.
Then watch the sparks fly when they destroy our democracy.The country has currently gone to the dogs now so who gives a **** really.
Most I reckon feel politically homeless!
I always thought Sunak was a naive Thatcherite city boy, but at least and intelligent one.
I’m starting to have my doubts on the latter score.
And yes, he’s weak, very weak – trying to appease all wings of his Party and pleasing none of them.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"‘I can see it coming that they will have us as close to the EU as possible, which is against the wishes of the majority.’
Is it? Recent polling would suggest otherwise. The disaster that is Brexit is becoming more apparent by the day. Plenty of negative articles about it even in the right wing media, some of whom are finally realising that we can’t blame covid and the war forever. Closer ties would be a very simple way to achieve this ‘growth’ that the Tories have become obsessed with recently.
Regardless the Brexiters spent 40 years trying to overturn the result of the 1975 referendum so I’m not sure why anyone wasn’t expecting us Rejoiners to start now. Democracy is an ongoing process, not an event.
Trouble is Richard where as people accept results of General Election’s, remoaners have never accepted the referendum result, wanting another one straight away, want this country to fail just to prove a point and have been a thorn in this country’s side ever since.
It is not the fault of ‘remoaners’ that Brexit is a disaster. It is the fault, amongst others, of those who put forward the idea without even the slightest plan of how it would work. They’ve been making it up as they go along and still are.
That the country is in a bad state is an inevitable consequence that many of us foresaw and tried to warn you about but it was all ‘Project Fear’ apparently. This idea that people ‘want the country to fail’ is rubbish. No doubt there are some who think like that but you can’t accuse all ‘remoaners’ of it.
Still, it will ultimately sink the Tories so it’s not all bad.
Isn’t it strange that tax dodging Zahawi was one of the people wanting to leave the EU when they decided to clamp down on tax evaders? Another multi millionaire who persuaded the poor of this country that they’d be better off out of the EU. Hmm…
Public sector borrowing in December was £27 billion. The highest for any December since records began.
The debt interest was £17 billion in December alone. That is twice the Home Office’s annual budget.
More people are now net beneficiaries than net contributors. Hence the government pathetically begging retired people to go back to work.
The tax burden is the highest it has been for 70 years and set to go up.
The retirement age is to be raised to 68 and there is already talk of it going to 70.
The birth rate has fallen to 1.61 per woman, hence the need to import workers.
The working population is falling and the ageing population is rising. The looming crisis in social care does not bear thinking about.
Taken all together, it is not a rosy picture. If I was thirty years younger and with any sense of ambition, I would be packing my bags.
I think the whole system will eventually collapse, the consequence of decades of misgovernment by the two main parties. I always thought it would be after I had gone but I am not so sure now.
Britain as an economy is worse off under Brexit but it was never about that.
Successive barometer polls since the Referendum confirm the continuing appetite for it.
It’s very little England, and very nostalgic and rose tinted about notions of the Great Britain that once was, but in reality never really existed.
I actually think Leave would still just about win if a poll was held again tomorrow.
I voted Remain, but I accepted the result at the time and things like the Euro Elections and the Brexit Party doing so well and the 2019 General Election further endorsed the original referendum poll result.
Throw in the aging population and the recipe for disaster is clearly there – I’ve got zero expectations about living off State or private pensions and fully expect to be needing to generate income for the “rest of me natural.”
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"I know of so many late 50/early 60s who have taken early retirement either during Covid or since. Not sure if that’s because I’m also older and they are more my age group. In fact it seems at the moment the only ones I know have either retired early or are going on to 70s even 80s who are still working. No one seems to retire at the State Pension Age anymore
‘The birth rate has fallen to 1.61 per woman, hence the need to import workers.’
‘Taken all together, it is not a rosy picture. If I was thirty years younger and with any sense of ambition, I would be packing my bags.’
Both of those things used to be a lot easier but some bright sparks removed freedom of movement to and from 30 countries on our doorstep.
Japan is experiencing similar in terms of low birth rate and increasing numbers of elderly. It has always been resistant to immigration and remains a very homogeneous society. Despite many people’s perception of it as a forward thinking place, an isolationist and somewhat xenophobic attitude remains. It just doesn’t work in the modern world.
Economically we have erected barriers between ourselves and a trading bloc of half a billion mostly wealthy people who again are on our doorstep.
And yet people and politicians just don’t see it, it’s all covid and the war causing everything 🙄. Well, politicians probably see it, they just don’t say anything.
It’s a combination of all of these factors and more and none of them excuse the actions of successive governments but none of them are worse than the current lot, a dangerous mix of incompetence and corruption.
Homer, those retiring early are likely on final salary, index linked pensions. They mostly stopped in the public sector in the mid 2010s going forward (private I’m not so sure) but many even now have 20 or 25 years of final salary service much of which does not get actuarially reduced at 60. Later parts of it get reduced but many of them will have enough to keep themselves going until state pension kicks in (currently 66).
Police officers on the old scheme get a full pension after 30 years regardless of age and even a constable gets something like a £25k pension and £120k lump sum. Again that’s stopped now but there are a few about still.
Who is paying for all this? Current members on less generous terms amongst others.
Starmer was asked earlier this week if he preferred Westminster or Davos. He did not even think about it before saying Davos, then sneering at Westminster as a tribal talking shop.
Not convinced it is a good look for someone who wants to be Prime Minister and who is Leader of the Labour Party (which is supposed to be on the side of working class people) to say he prefers hanging out with billionaires in the Swiss Alps.
Blair became arrogantly dismissive of the House of Commons the longer he served as Prime Minister. Starmer already is and has not even got the job yet.
Tbh, I think Starmer is making all the right moves to maximise his prospects of not only election victory, but by a landslide that wipes out any prospect of a Tory government for ten years plus.
His approach mirrors Blair on the run up to 1997 in so many ways.
Gagging the Left, appearing uber moderate, Tory lite even, himself.
Blair was asked all the same “Could you do any better? Where are your policies, then?” questions too, but none of that actually mattered in the end.
Governments lose elections, Oppositions don’t win them.
When it’s “Time For A Change” it’s “Time For A Change.”
And when a government has terminally messed up with the economy, it’s game over because that hits everyone.
The mini budget disaster was the clincher, never mind it happened under Truss, not Sunak who expressly warned against it.
I’ve always said there’s less, not more, to Sunak than meets the eye and that he’s far more right wing than many realise.
He’s so weak and ineffectual even the return of the manifestly discredited Boris Johnson is insanely gathering traction within an increasingly-desperate Tory Party.
All Starmer has to do is carry on pretending he dislikes people like Mick Lynch just as much as the Tories do and he’s home and hosed.
Whether he will be more radical and left wing in office than he is now selling himself, only time will tell.
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It's the "Millwall FC" of Point broadcasts: "No One Likes Us - We Don't Care"
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