Off Topic The Politics Thread

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Should the UK remain a part of the EU or leave?

  • Stay in

    Votes: 56 47.9%

  • Get out

    Votes: 61 52.1%
  • Total voters
    117
  • Poll closed .
A Blairite, a Brownite, and a Corbynite walk into a bar.

“Good evening Mr Burnham” says the barman.

Can’t wait until he rides over the hill to save us all. If he manages to win the by election they will engineer for him of course. Personally can’t see how he will differ from the current muppet show.

Labours only hope is to open up the festering wound of Brexit and put rejoining the EU, or at the very least the Single Market and Customs Union,in their next manifesto, and hope they retain enough seats to form a government with the Lib Dems and Greens (God forbid, what a bunch of ****s they’ve turned into). Perhaps even call an early election to try to stop the rot.

Of course it will end in tears. Rejoining, or even going into the single market, will take years and the benefits will hardly be immediate. It’s not as if the EU is exactly thriving across the board.
 
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Looking like Starmer's on his way out. His 'make or break' speech yesterday was ok but not nearly enough to get the party fully behind him. None of the obvious candidates to take over excites - Alistair Carns a lively outsider, though.
 
Of the current MPs are any of them going to get a decent chunk of 400-odd MPs behind them? The Burgons/Begums who he should have ****ed off ages ago hate Streeting as much as they hate him.
 
I thought his speech yesterday was pathetic with the orchestrated applause way over the top. Nothing in it was remotely encouraging, he really is an empty vessel and sums up the past two years of broken promises and total ineptitude. The problem is there are few in the government to replace him that offer anything that will not require massive tax rises to avoid the country lurching towards bankruptcy. Tough times ahead for all other than 'benefits street'...
 
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Will Starmer go the way of Johnson and run out of people prepared to work for him in government? 400 to work through but ready 25% of those are against him, and over 160 of the rest are already in ministerial roles (“payroll jobs”).

What a hoot.
 
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Sooperhoop said:
I thought his speech yesterday was pathetic with the orchestrated applause way over the top. Nothing in it was remotely encouraging, he really is an empty vessel and sums up the past two years of broken promises and total ineptitude. The problem is there are few in the government to replace him that offer anything that will not require massive tax rises to avoid the country lurching towards bankruptcy. Tough times ahead for all other than 'benefits street'...
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When you talk about those on 'benefits street' you must surely be talking about pensioners and the triple lock. Just short of half of the welfare budget (expected to reach £373bn by the end of the decade) goes on pensioners like me. The triple lock alone will increase the pension spend by £15.5bn a year by 2030. It's unsustainable, but no government dare address the issue. Just look at the fuss that was made over Labour withdrawing the WFA from richer pensioners.

Yes, other elements of welfare spending need to be addressed too, but pensions are going to have to be means tested in some form or other. Protect the poorest pensioners but there are millions that don't need protection.
 
Just been watching Guardian TV aka Channel 4 News. They were interviewing Miatta Fahnbulleh, the Labour MP for Peckham, who has resigned from a job as some under Secretary of State in the communities and housing or whatever department.

Very impressive, articulate, honest, straightforward. Clear judgement and no malice towards Starmer. Degrees from Oxford and the LSE, born in Liberia, family fled the civil war.

Hugely threatening to the likes of Streeting, Rayner, Burnham I’d imagine. And Polanski come to that.
 
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Stroller said:
When you talk about those on 'benefits street' you must surely be talking about pensioners and the triple lock. Just short of half of the welfare budget (expected to reach £373bn by the end of the decade) goes on pensioners like me. The triple lock alone will increase the pension spend by £15.5bn a year by 2030. It's unsustainable, but no government dare address the issue. Just look at the fuss that was made over Labour withdrawing the WFA from richer pensioners.

Yes, other elements of welfare spending need to be addressed too, but pensions are going to have to be means tested in some form or other. Protect the poorest pensioners but there are millions that don't need protection.
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The state pension definitely needs an overhaul, though it is essentially a contributions based benefit as opposed to a truly universal or means tested benefit

However, I also think that the NIC system also needs to be changed - it isn't in my view sufficiently progressive (particularly on employees)

I volunteer for a well known charity several days a week and much of my time is spent giving advice on benefits. I've been genuinely shocked by the number of people I've spoken to who play the mental health card almost immediately. Some are undoubtedly genuine but far too many really aren't
 
I've no problem with the triple lock going, simply keep it on the RPI. Means testing would be a major gamble, where do they draw the line? After years of imploring people to save pensions & AVCs to then pull the rug out because you've been prudent adds insult to injury.

Far better look at those on benefits that shouldn't be, there's so much scamming going on it's becoming an industry. Everyone knows someone on the take, it's ridiculous the amount be wasted but there's no will to rein it in...
 
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sb_73 said:
Just been watching Guardian TV aka Channel 4 News. They were interviewing Miatta Fahnbulleh, the Labour MP for Peckham, who has resigned from a job as some under Secretary of State in the communities and housing or whatever department.

Very impressive, articulate, honest, straightforward. Clear judgement and no malice towards Starmer. Degrees from Oxford and the LSE, born in Liberia, family fled the civil war.

Hugely threatening to the likes of Streeting, Rayner, Burnham I’d imagine. And Polanski come to that.
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****ing immigrants. 200/1 if you fancy a punt.
 
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Stroller said:
Looking like Starmer's on his way out. His 'make or break' speech yesterday was ok but not nearly enough to get the party fully behind him. None of the obvious candidates to take over excites - Alistair Carns a lively outsider, though.
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Is he the ex Royal Marine?
 
Stroller said:
Streeting preparing to resign tomorrow and trigger a leadership contest. FFS!
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Nice of him to pinch attention from the King, the only one of the bunch of ****s which is the hierarchy who seems to be doing a half decent, if irrelevant and pointless, job.

Streeting will fail as the extent of his involvement with Mandelson becomes clear and his failure as health secretary is highlighted.
 
sb_73 said:
Nice of him to pinch attention from the King, the only one of the bunch of ****s which is the hierarchy who seems to be doing a half decent, if irrelevant and pointless, job.

Streeting will fail as the extent of his involvement with Mandelson becomes clear and his failure as health secretary is highlighted.
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I think he's doing OK as Health Secretary, but no, he won't win. The questions are, what will be the timetable, and who else will put themselves forward?

The King's speech includes something about aligning with EU treaties, which seems to be a precursor to putting Single Market/ Customs Union into the next manifesto.
 
Looking like there might not be an immediate challenge to Starmer after all. Al Carns has said he's ready to stand if there is, though.
 
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