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 .
yet millions of people have somehow been convinced by a relatively small band of zealots that leaving it will address these fundamental issues.
I agree sb the 17.4 million that wanted to leave the EU were brainwashed by Farage/Boris and Gove. None of them had a good reason. But what do you expect from a load of uneducated racists who are mostly over 65 years old?
 
I agree sb the 17.4 million that wanted to leave the EU were brainwashed by Farage/Boris and Gove. None of them had a good reason. But what do you expect from a load of uneducated racists who are mostly over 65 years old?
Which of the issues highlighted by Max Hastings do you think will be solved by Brexit?
 
Which of the issues highlighted by Max Hastings do you think will be solved by Brexit?
Probably none of them. Brexit wasn't about the NHS, Terrorists (although if you control your borders you have a better chance) and the other stuff mentioned. We know why most people voted to leave.
I have said all along that Brexit won't solve all the issues in this country. By the way, did Mr Hastings say that we are still an EU member and have been for years?,
 
I agree that Labour would do itself a favour by having a clear Brexit policy rather than hoping that everything will miraculously fall into its lap. Even if it comes out in favour of a referendum, it needs to say which way it is recommending people to vote. No chance, sadly.

The analysis was somewhat marred by ignoring the 13 years that the Labour Party was in control.

Excellent comment article in the Times today by Max Hastings, a Tory for most of his life, starting with:
“Three years ago any thoughtful citizen could identify the principal problems facing Britain: productivity; Londonification; the flagging education system; a society financially skewed in favour of the old and against the young; Islamist extremism; funding of the NHS and welfare; stagnation of real earnings; job losses to technology.”
And pointing out that none of these have anything to do with the EU, yet millions of people have somehow been convinced by a relatively small band of zealots that leaving it will address these fundamental issues.

I honestly don't remember anyone arguing that voting to leave would solve any of these problems, apart from the NHS funding (there would be clearly more money to go around if we're not paying into the EU).
I didn't vote leave because of these problems and seriously doubt whether many other people did.
Have to say that I find that a very strange comment.
 
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I agree that Labour would do itself a favour by having a clear Brexit policy rather than hoping that everything will miraculously fall into its lap. Even if it comes out in favour of a referendum, it needs to say which way it is recommending people to vote. No chance, sadly.

The analysis was somewhat marred by ignoring the 13 years that the Labour Party was in control.

Excellent comment article in the Times today by Max Hastings, a Tory for most of his life, starting with:
“Three years ago any thoughtful citizen could identify the principal problems facing Britain: productivity; Londonification; the flagging education system; a society financially skewed in favour of the old and against the young; Islamist extremism; funding of the NHS and welfare; stagnation of real earnings; job losses to technology.”
And pointing out that none of these have anything to do with the EU, yet millions of people have somehow been convinced by a relatively small band of zealots that leaving it will address these fundamental issues.

What is Londonification, and is Hastings saying it is more important than the scale of net immigration that has been running at about 300,000 pa since 2003 (and high for the 7 years before that), of which EU immigration accounts for just under half, and has been a major factor in creating pressure on infrastructure in this country?

We cannot continue to take in a city the size of Birmingham every three years. It just is not sustainable.
 
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Probably none of them. Brexit wasn't about the NHS, Terrorists (although if you control your borders you have a better chance) and the other stuff mentioned. We know why most people voted to leave.
I have said all along that Brexit won't solve all the issues in this country. By the way, did Mr Hastings say that we are still an EU member and have been for years?,

We do not know why most people wanted to leave
I pretty much sure that within the 17.1m not many know now
Brexit we know will create more problems to solve and the UK political parties couldn’t do that before this mess

The main points and highlights of all the leave campaign was immigrants via the free movement of Europeans. Another one was EU membership costs which someone very stupid equated that to be able to spend more on the NHS this during a time when spending had been reduced on the NHS under the blanket of austerity
No mention of the non control of immigration from people outside the EU nor the lack of funding on any of our overall border controls

It was all blamed onto the EU
Articles appeared about wine cellars and corrupt expenditure by EU Ministers but cherry picked the foreigners ... The clever people knew Farage was at it and used the entire campaign to increase his personal wealth as did other UK politicians... yet Johnny Foreigner was spotlighted first and foremost. The rest is history and the groundswell protest was started which will result in billions of pounds being wasted up to date, ruining the UK and putting businesses into a crisis

Hence why I hold my views on Brexiteers
Anyone considered the costs of all of this and estimated how long it will take the tax payer to make this event square ? It is currently estimated at £600 per person in the UK

And we are now heading for a deal we have little say in, we have neglected the people we rule in NI and Scotland all because we fancied a protest

A no deal may save a lot of money short term but any idiot calling for it hasn’t any idea of the long term costs
 
Probably none of them. Brexit wasn't about the NHS, Terrorists (although if you control your borders you have a better chance) and the other stuff mentioned. We know why most people voted to leave.
I have said all along that Brexit won't solve all the issues in this country. By the way, did Mr Hastings say that we are still an EU member and have been for years?,
I honestly don't remember anyone arguing that voting to leave would solve any of these problems, apart from the NHS funding (there would be clearly more money to go around if we're not paying into the EU).
I didn't vote leave because of these problems and seriously doubt whether many other people did.
Have to say that I find that a very strange comment.
What is Londonification, and is Hastings saying it is more important than the scale of net immigration that has been running at about 300,000 pa since 2003 (and high for the 7 years before that), of which EU immigration accounts for just under half, and has been a major factor in creating pressure on infrastructure in this country?

We cannot continue to take in a city the size of Birmingham every three years. It just is not sustainable.
It’s a part of a longer article which I have probably misrepresented, mainly about the type of people who lead the Leave campaign. Apologies for confusion caused.

Hastings is against EU centralisation and admits to mistakes in the past in supporting EU initiatives or not being alert enough to their consequences. But his main point is, I think, that all the other issues he highlights were what we were thinking about in 2015, before the EU referendum was the one and only focus. And I remember that those polls which ask about issues concerning people had the EU pretty low down the list. He feels that a small group of people, like Bill Cash etc, have opposed the EU doggedly on the ‘independence’ grounds for decades, a permanent buzzing, but it is only immigration which has enabled it to become such a burning issue. Hastings is for immigration controls, though he points out that controlling non EU immigration has proven consistently beyond us, and that barely anyone in power is talking about immigration at the moment.

Londonification Goldie is the increasingly London centric economy that we have. A problem according to Hastings.
 
What is Londonification, and is Hastings saying it is more important than the scale of net immigration that has been running at about 300,000 pa since 2003 (and high for the 7 years before that), of which EU immigration accounts for just under half, and has been a major factor in creating pressure on infrastructure in this country?

We cannot continue to take in a city the size of Birmingham every three years. It just is not sustainable.

In her speech to the CBI today, May didn't talk about her deal reducing immigration, she spoke about stopping EU migrants 'jumping the queue'. For their part, the CBI have said that her plan will create labour shortages. The only way Brexit will reduce immigration is by causing a recession whereby no one will want to come here anyway.
 
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What is Londonification, and is Hastings saying it is more important than the scale of net immigration that has been running at about 300,000 pa since 2003 (and high for the 7 years before that), of which EU immigration accounts for just under half, and has been a major factor in creating pressure on infrastructure in this country?

We cannot continue to take in a city the size of Birmingham every three years. It just is not sustainable.

Rubbish maths plus we have the room loads of room on this island
7p on income tax for everyone flushing that out
Scrap the NHS for people who have the means to pay privately that will sort that
Tax big business and internet shopping to a point that it’s equal and that saves every high street in the UK
Devalue the house prices in the South and cap rentals limited the amount of houses people can own and that solves the housing crisis

Tax the banks and ban a lot of the financial products

Ban online betting throughout the UK

Make it law to have one compulsory insurance product that covers everything from Motor to Pet
That would save the UK £500 bn for a start!

Change the sell by dates regulations by 2 days average that would stop £16bn of food going into landfill each year

Employ the French to build our roads and rail because we can’t do that we are not very good

So to the people that believed that Gove & Boris bus please wake up... maybe just think where Gove is now and what he is doing?

Remember the shock on Goves face when the protest vote came in
 
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It’s a part of a longer article which I have probably misrepresented, mainly about the type of people who lead the Leave campaign. Apologies for confusion caused.

Hastings is against EU centralisation and admits to mistakes in the past in supporting EU initiatives or not being alert enough to their consequences. But his main point is, I think, that all the other issues he highlights were what we were thinking about in 2015, before the EU referendum was the one and only focus. And I remember that those polls which ask about issues concerning people had the EU pretty low down the list. He feels that a small group of people, like Bill Cash etc, have opposed the EU doggedly on the ‘independence’ grounds for decades, a permanent buzzing, but it is only immigration which has enabled it to become such a burning issue. Hastings is for immigration controls, though he points out that controlling non EU immigration has proven consistently beyond us, and that barely anyone in power is talking about immigration at the moment.

Londonification Goldie is the increasingly London centric economy that we have. A problem according to Hastings.

Londonification is something I have been only harping on about for years on here... it certainly equalises Ellers non existent Euro Army
 
In her speech to the CBI today, May didn't talk about her deal reducing immigration, she spoke about stopping EU migrants 'jumping the queue'. For their part, the CBI have said that her plan will create labour shortages. The only way Brexit will reduce immigration is by causing a recession whereby no one will want to come here anyway.

Without a steady flow of EU migrants we have no business imo
 
In her speech to the CBI today, May didn't talk about her deal reducing immigration, she spoke about stopping EU migrants 'jumping the queue'. For their part, the CBI have said that her plan will create labour shortages. The only way Brexit will reduce immigration is by causing a recession whereby no one will want to come here anyway.

It will be the mother of all recessions imo maybe a bit of civil war thrown in

Anyone getting my idea of the big UK shop yet?
 
This thread started well enough:

I feel it's time for another political thread, so in the interest of research I am once more watching Question Time in the hope of some material worthy of discussion.

Andy Burnham looks a bit like a Thunderbirds puppet doesn't he?

Those were the days when the UK was great
 
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Another couple of off the wall ideas

Allow the NHS to form its own bank insurance and gambling companies... watch the investments fly in worldwide

Run another poll on this thread to see where posters now stand given the choices are a lot clearer
 
It will be made more difficult, and lets face it we aren't exactly well liked in Europe anyway. If you were a director of a company that trades all over Europe where would you but your offices? I would certainly not be choosing the UK if they left and sadly that is how I expect a lot of these businesses are thinking, and to be honest I can't blame them

Tim and the board I swear on the bible or even the radio times what I have told the forum is 100% true re the measures already taken last year by the global top companies in the UK that the company I work for has produced a full spectrum of relocation media just in preparation

Exodus is real

Even my new parent company Advent International decided to deal in the Euro not Sterling when they purchased us from DHL

We all know in my company that we are nothing but a future equity trade already most of our giant accounts have been moved to Europe and please take note that the company I work for has every major bank and insurance company in the world as a customer and that’s just the financial sector
 
It’s a part of a longer article which I have probably misrepresented, mainly about the type of people who lead the Leave campaign. Apologies for confusion caused.

Hastings is against EU centralisation and admits to mistakes in the past in supporting EU initiatives or not being alert enough to their consequences. But his main point is, I think, that all the other issues he highlights were what we were thinking about in 2015, before the EU referendum was the one and only focus. And I remember that those polls which ask about issues concerning people had the EU pretty low down the list. He feels that a small group of people, like Bill Cash etc, have opposed the EU doggedly on the ‘independence’ grounds for decades, a permanent buzzing, but it is only immigration which has enabled it to become such a burning issue. Hastings is for immigration controls, though he points out that controlling non EU immigration has proven consistently beyond us, and that barely anyone in power is talking about immigration at the moment.

Londonification Goldie is the increasingly London centric economy that we have. A problem according to Hastings.

OK, thanks for the explanation on Londinification. The government has to get to grips with non-EU immigration, no excuses now.
 
In her speech to the CBI today, May didn't talk about her deal reducing immigration, she spoke about stopping EU migrants 'jumping the queue'. For their part, the CBI have said that her plan will create labour shortages. The only way Brexit will reduce immigration is by causing a recession whereby no one will want to come here anyway.

Brexit doesn't stop immigration. It means we can be selective about who we want from other EU countries. It's about control by our elected government.