It's the Home Office estimate, and they're hands-on. If they're speaking Albanian to each other, that's a give away ...although Watford would claim a large number could be Afghans who've done a Master's degree in Albanian literature
Assessing nationalities is relatively straightforward because of language, dialect etc. What takes the time is finding out who they are and whether, given their circumstances, they qualify for asylum.
Yeah, changing demographic of the Labour Party is probably right. I'm happy to stand corrected as I'm not looking at data and this is an assumption, but I'd assume most Labour members are metropolitan and liberal left, not from traditional working class backgrounds. What I do know, from the data, is the party at large and the PLP were overwhelmingly pro-remain. Had Corbyn come out against Brexit they'd have crucified him. His ambivalence on Brexit (he went on holiday during the campaign and refused to sign off most press releases) was the beginning of the end for him among most of his own MPs.
The problem was though that even though he didn’t explicitly come out as “pro-Brexit” (which he most certainly was), the ****s in the Labour Party, such as Starmer, Phillips and Thornberry..stabbed him in the back anyway. Labour now, have made no secret of the fact that they are out to purge the party of anyone with orthodox Left Wing views that don’t toe the party line, and as you rightly say, are now a party of the Liberal Left. Just wish they would stop bombarding me with emails asking for donations, even after I’ve told them umpteen times that I’ve now joined the WPB.
As you know, I have polar opposite views to you on Corbyn and Brexit (wouldn't stop me buying you a pint and us having a great laugh I think), so maybe I would say this - but he didn't exactly do a good job of hiding his real views...
And that was his problem mate. People then saw him for being unprincipled and lacking in morals. I know we hold a lot of differing views mate, that’s for sure, however it’s also a pleasure talking about this stuff with you without descending into childish accusations and abuse…..(that’s from me of course )
Looks like I might have a bit of time on my hands to read a few books soon. Just finishing Paul Sykes book about when he got out of prison and boxing, then onto Sonny Listons autobiography….then up for more suggestions. That along with hours of TV and podcasts will mean I’ve got plenty to do
I'm not a Labour member but have mainly supported Labour over the years, mostly from a perspective of being anti-Tory. I'm also from a traditional working-class background and still consider myself to be working class, although the fact that I now live in leafy Ruislip makes me middle class in the eyes of some. I was pro-Corbyn (at least initially), and anti-Brexit so don't really fit the stereotype. The Labour party and the majority of Labour supporters were undoubtedly pro-Remain and most, I suspect, would rejoin the EU if it were possible. Starmer's being pragmatic in denying this as a possibility, but I remain optimistic that the next government will at least seek to rejoin the Single Market and Customs Union.
That the Labour Party has now become the party of the middle class and has no home for working class people who are looked down upon as being stupid if they don’t conform to their ideas. The fact that you’ve abandoned your working class roots and now have succumbed to those ideas and principles speaks volumes. I still wish you no ill though, however much we disagree
I really have no idea why you've come to despise me Stainesy, and I really don't care much what you think of me. The continual abuse does get a bit wearing, though. I haven't abandoned anything, and my ideas and principles remain the same as they always were. I'm not sure you could say the same.
