General Election June 2017

Looks like Frank Zacharias Robin Goldsmith is considering standing in Richmond Park. While Zac no doubt would consider it a serious undertaking, I wouldn't be surprised if CCHQ were toying with him, and were really more interested in making the Lib Dems invest valuable resources defending the seat.

Conservatives set to win more seats than Labour in Wales - http://www.itv.com/news/wales/2017-04-24/shock-poll-suggests-tories-ahead-in-wales/

Not sure if polls mean anything these days going by the last few years

Most of the reading I'm doing on the election is from the top few articles on BBC and I'm surprised at how well the Labour messages are actually coming across. Conservatives on the other hand, repetitive and vague. Maybe my judgement is clouded but I'm daring to hope it won't be apocalyptic.

This tshirt made me smile. In years to come when all of this is done and dusted it's going to look really cool.

Thanks to everybody posting on this thread, I've learnt much more about what choices we have than I have from the media sources that throw their nicely packaged agenda at us.
https://youtu.be/12IOlaazIpI

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Saw a photo of him and his wife (a Rothschild?!) in the free paper and they look really, really similar. Maybe just in that snap the same expressions or something but it looks like a proper narcissistic pairing.

Something something STRONG LEADERSHIP something STRONG.

I think the Conservatives are playing a waiting game, seeing what Labour do, and how the 'progressive alliance' (or various local agreements) evolves.

It's the Tories' election to lose, so they don't need to make the first move, and can instead selectively shoot down attempts by others to take the initiative. Once Labour and Lib Dem etc. make their positions clear, the onslaught from the Lynton Crosby machine will doubtless ramp up.

I suppose the other interesting aspect is that this election is not a traditional 'party' election as the importance of the Brexit issue is so strong. That would suggest fighting the election on pure party ideology might not be so effective. For example, I'm feeling relatively indifferent to party allegiance, and, in theory, would be interested in voting for someone who can make a difference on Brexit. I don't care as much as I might ordinarily do about who gets my vote. Well, as long as it's not the Tories.

^ Looks good to me, but most of the people on here seem to be voting for the Lib Dems for some strange reason.

are they?

Orly?
#green4eva

for some strange reason.

Could be for a number of reasons. They could be pro civil liberties. They could be in favour of a balanced approach to public spending. They could not want to vote Conservative and have no faith in the Labour Party's ability; in general, specifically in relation to their ability to deliver their promises, and to get their MPs to vote in line with their policies.

The attack dogs are off

https://twitter.com/WikiGuido/status/856799315653787649

Tories just kicking the environment can down the road:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/apr/25/high-court-orders-uk-government-explain-clean-air-plan-delay

Orly?
#green4eva

They should bring back David Icke. He could be the Green Corbyn.

Andrew Tyrie retiring apparently. That seems a shame. I don't know too much about the detail of his politics but he's done good work on the Treasury Select Committee.

I agree, he's one of the few Tories who I had any time for.

Possibly because he doesn't appear to have been infected with the Euroscepticism, which I imagine makes staying in the party seem untenable.

He seemed to have a true understanding of public service,
and,
seldom let his contempt for the dismal quality of Tory ministers be concealed.

He has no doubt foreseen the clusterfuck that a Hardbrexit will be,
and decided he has better things to do with his time.

no doubt he will be referred to as a traitor worthy of public stoning on the front page of tomorrow's mail.

http://uk.businessinsider.com/keir-starmer-labour-uk-single-market-brexit-scrap-the-free-movement-of-people-general-election-2017-4

Well thanks Labour. For a party that partially came out of the Unions, where workers are workers (and note Unite is not singing this tune [the but immigrants tune] as Coyne didn't get the vote) I find this in tune with electioneering, but not in tune with the return to principles Corbyn was supposed to represent.

^and that is why Labour won't get my vote

I'm seriously considering cancelling my Unite membership, they haven't done much at all (unlike Unison who partnered with the rights for eu nationals groups (3 million)) and unless they pipe up about this, I may set my practical feelings of "support unions" aside into "no money for you" which leaves me with a tiny IT union in England... grrr. As I am private sector.

Labour is extremely busy ATM pissing off all the left-of-centre people who may just stay home or go to libdem.

Labour also have the huge challenge that the grass roots labour members: the working and non-working poor, the non London masses, the first and second generation middle class are deeply concerned by immigration and by globalistaion. Labour cannot leave these concerns unanswered.

The massive challenge is that Labour consists of two, deeply distinct, constituent bodies; those described above and the liberal intellectual, political theoretical, London based lefties.

If the party cannot maintain a homogenous appeal to those two groups, then there is no opposition large enough to counter the Tories.

Right now I have no fucking scooby how that circle gets squared.

Theresa May has just told a rally that "We want to lead the world in preventing tourism".