General British politics discussion thread

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122176974#Comment_122176974

Looks that way when you consider senior ministers were having to get back on planes as soon touched down for foreign engagements.

Sunak just wants to go live his tech bro dream now that he has ticked the PM box. Couldn't care less about the country or party.

Strazdas

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122176990#Comment_122176990

Indeed, one of the main reason party members are seething is that large numbers will be out of a job in six weeks' time and were given no advance warning of what he was planning.

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122176699#Comment_122176699

…and people say that it's only in Ireland that members of the national parliament are so parochial.

Redwood was an absolute plank (no pun, etc.)

ancapailldorcha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177056#Comment_122177056

No, he's worse. He's close to the definition of traitor IMO. Like, he was advising potential investors at conferences not to invest in the UK.

Tom Mann Centuria

I'm just glad this Corbyn bloke is a different one to the one Kier Starmer talked about. That other Corbyn sounds like a right wrong un.

https://x.com/davjam8/status/1793953348288491617?t=JOzr3_AMVaPUvoTrMeD_wA&s=19

ancapailldorcha

A snarky comment and a link dump. Pass.

I'm glad he's finally been kicked out. Should have been done years ago.

Tom Mann Centuria

The link showing what Starmer actually said, yeah that certainly shouldn't be allowed.

ancapailldorcha

Let me guess, it's a carefully edited clip from some Corbynista cultist who thinks he should get 10/10 for leadership for attaining the worst result in modern Labour history.

It's beyond embarrassing at this point. He's going to run as an independent. It's odd that we keep having to hear about him after almost 5 years.

wazzzledazzle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177305#Comment_122177305

Basically this.

Tom Mann Centuria

Tee hee you said the line, fair play. It is clips of his actual words yes.

Christy42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177043#Comment_122177043

The key to victory is the element of surprise. Surprise!

You would think the advantage of being able to decide the date is that you would be prepped. Also surprising as I wasn't uld have expected it as late as possible. He knows he is screwed and is only still tory party leader because no one wants to take a job right before an election they stand no chance in.

wazzzledazzle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177374#Comment_122177374

Toxic brand.

Will remain toxic until Labour become toxic.

I have no idea who'll become next leader. Kemi maybe.

The only one with any competency in the tories as far as i'm concerned is Penny Mordaunt.

Strazdas

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177374#Comment_122177374

I think the assessment that Sunak is a selfish so and so who doesn't give a toss about anyone is probably a pretty accurate. Is he even a real Tory? His entire career trajectory is bizarre : a multi-millionaire, married to an even richer wife, who went into politics and became an MP for reasons unknown,

ancapailldorcha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177402#Comment_122177402

Agreed on the last point. I think Suella will be the next leader. It gives them the chance to play identity politics with Labour and she can do the performative racism better than anyone else.

Timberrrrrrrr

Tories struggling to get candidates to run and then block Lord Frost (Johnsons mate who helped push Brexit through) from running

I suppose being somewhat negative about Sunak over the last year or so hasn't helped his case 🤣

https://twitter.com/ExpressPolitics/status/1793954792592601101?t=rpqchrCqeMoOtkjFCiXPBQ&s=19

CelticRambler

I don't understand all this "surprise" talk. Where's the surprise in a PM calling an election when an election had to be called by early next year at the latest? Phil Moorhouse has been speculating on dates for the last year already, and had even discussed "early July" as one option, albeit an unlikely/unfavourable one.

How can anyone working for any of the parties have been caught unawares, give the election was guaranteed to happen sooner rather than later?

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177565#Comment_122177565

Hasn't been a July election since 1945 so that's odd to begin with and the fact he kept saying "second half of the year" (yes I know 4/7 is second half) which had people in his own party believing it would be Autumn.

When your own cabinet ministers are having to practically turn around mid air to get back to the commons then yes it's accurate to say the PM blindsided everyone.

Leroy42

Also, the whips had been telling MPs to go ahead with their plans in July, holidays etc.

In addition, he has now left big items like the Blood donor repayment scheme unfinished and potentially yet another cruel delay for all those fighting for so long for recognition and recompense. But none of that matters to Sunak.

Sam Russell

The media are refering to the election as being a 'snap' election.

A snap election would have been on the 13th or 20th of June. That is three or four weeks time from announcement.

However, it was a surprise - probably to the whole of the Westminster rabble.

It would have been a better surprise if he also announced that he would not be standing. Is he likely to be re-elected?

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177763#Comment_122177763

Likely but on a hugely reduced majority. A single main party opposition candidate (read: Labour, no Lib Dem, no Green) plus Reform refusing to back out could win, but won't happen.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177770#Comment_122177770

I'de say he would rather be done with the whole thing. I doubt his constituents will see much of him.

ancapailldorcha

They've fucked themselves to what is almost an impressive degree (Can we not paste tweets?):

https://x.com/Samfr/status/1793985475092652141

They've basically vaccinated the next generation against voting for the party unless Labour do something catastrophically and ostentatiously toxic.

In a decade, they'll still be the party who brought Brexit, austerity and performative racism. In two, who knows. In a country with a PR system, I would expect a party like this to disappear.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177884#Comment_122177884

50+ is a bit of an annoying demographic. I bet 50-69 and 70+ have very different voting patterns.

Either way stuff like this shows that "listening to your elders" is a stupid saying because it would appear age makes you far more likely to be a moron in the poll booth.

ancapailldorcha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177923#Comment_122177923

Fair point. It's possible that older people just don't want to pay more tax on their capital which makes sense in some ways but just does more to torpedo the older being wiser and listening to one's elders myths. I think it's why my aunt in London votes Tory consistently but also for Brexit despite solely hiring Romanian workers.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177939#Comment_122177939

Ya and as you know while people like you aunt cling desperately to their taxes their vote has caused all other aspects of cost of living to go up and have probably cost more than a possible but not definite Labour tax increase.

PommieBast

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177923#Comment_122177923

Very annoying. During the Brexit referendum it talked about 60+ being anti-EU but there were ancedotal indications those 80+ (who had first-hand experience of the war and understood how much of European politics was to stop another one) were pro-EU.

ancapailldorcha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177966#Comment_122177966

Of course but it's only a problem when it affects them. One of her sons has made a few… unfortunate life choices but when I explained the lack of economic incentive for him to go out and better his lot, I got roared at. People can buy into the avocado and Costa Coffee tropes all they want but it doesn't alter reality. They just convince themselves that everyone else is lazy and that's that.

Where this becomes relevant to the thread is that this is the demographic that's been primarily responsible for decades of misgovernment of this country (with some exceptions of course). When they choose to prioritise their interests and solely their own interests, this is the result.

Strazdas

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177993#Comment_122177993

For reasons that are hard to pin down, the English over 60s seem very right wing and cantankerous - I guess decades of xenophobic gaslighting by their tabloids had an impact. An obvious crank and shyster like Farage should not have been able to get 4m votes in 2015.

Itssoeasy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177508#Comment_122177508

The article is only telling some of the story. Adam Bolton thankfully pointed out that a member of House of Lords can’t stand for the commons. They have to resign or retire from the lords to stand, which lord frost hasn’t done yet.

Brussels Sprout

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122177923#Comment_122177923

They're split out in this one. The 70+ brigade are even more Tory loving (Reform only get a tiny bump though)

Aside: Lib Dems numbers are remarkably consistent across the various age grouping