Politics Chat.

When is the march in Parliament Square with dozens of leading Conservative MPs?

Much as I try not to be a grammar Nazi, surely "inferred" is wrong here (in the headline FFS) because the listener infers, the speaker implies?

surely "inferred" is wrong here

The headline implies that he inferred the inference. Or something.

There's no geopolitics/drunk speculation thread

Two adjacent stories from the guardian. How likely is it that the US leaves NATO and a post-world-cup watershed change in Russia leads to them joining instead?

1 Attachment

There is no disgraced Tory tgat cannot be rehabilitated by John Pienaar.
BBCR5L currently interviewing serial liar and internet fraudster Grant Shapps.

The Electoral Commission on features of recent elections:

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/jun/26/uk-democracy-under-threat-and-reform-is-urgent-says-electoral-regulator

I think that personally targeted ads should be outlawed entirely.

There is no disgraced Tory tgat cannot be rehabilitated by John Pienaar.

Pienaar is usually quite tough on his interviewees, this particular segment 'backbencher of the week' is obviously tongue in cheek. Pienaar still comes across as a little intimidating / patronising, I think. Shapps hasn't been 'rehabilitated' by this interview, clearly not in your eyes anyway!

Oh Dave.

1 Attachment

Quite an interesting report on MPs' outside interests.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/721697/CSPL_MPs__outside_interests_-_full_report.PDF

Page 28 has a table showing the number and variety of outside interests per party.

Cash for access ...

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/jul/20/revealed-tory-donors-who-paid-7m-to-socialise-with-theresa-may

The idea that rich people pay for access to the PM isn’t really that exciting to me - that story about Andrew Griffiths being a massive bellend and sexpesting himself out of a job is much more interesting, if only because it is much more like my experience of dealing with political types (ie, self important bullies with loose underpants elastic)

Which politician made sexual overtures towards you?

I like this cartoon:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/picture/2018/sep/03/ben-jennings-on-theresa-mays-reaction-to-criticism-from-boris-johnson-cartoon

Does anyone have any figures to hand demonstrating Osborne's preformance Vs Brown and/or vs other EU countries recovery vs the UK following the financial crash?

Basically the numbers showing that austerity slowed growth and increased the deficit and borrowing.

If you haven't already, I'd have a browse through mainlymacro, Simon wren Lewis's blog. He discusses that issue at length so I'd expect figures in there, subject to a bit of digging...

Cheers.

I could really do without people like Friedrich Merz in politics:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/nov/22/would-be-merkel-successor-friedrich-merz-questions-german-asylum-guarantee

Memories are so short and understanding so limited.

Apologies for the Spectator link, but I think this is interesting from Nick Cohen on where the Labour Party is heading;

https://www.spectator.co.uk/2019/02/the-corbyn-crack-up/amp/

Same old depressing bollocks from Nick Cohen, highlighting that it's not just the 'far' left of the Labour party which is being completely inflexible and spouting nonsense about its opponents.

The split in the Labour Party is equally frustrating.

So much of the Brexit fuck up has been precipitated by petty factional struggles at times when the country deserves better. I'm sure it has been quite unpleasant being a centrist in Corbyn's Labour party, and the leadership has, by all accounts, done a very poor job of trying to keep the party together.

But it seems that every time there has been a critical point in Labour - immediately after the referendum, immediately before we leave - there is an attempt to split the party to stop them trying to find a consensus solution.

Do Umunna, Leslie, etc. really think that their metropolitan liberal elite party will be so attractive that other Labour MPs (and maybe some 'soft' Tories) will flock to them? Do they think that the young people who may be with them on Brexit, may not be with them on their approach to UK Politics?

For all that the Labour right and former left like Nick Cohen might emphasise Labour's failure, the general election suggested that on domestic policies, people (and not just the young) like what Labour have to say. Will they like whatever the 'pragmatic centre' come up with? Presumably a return to Labour trying to steal Conservative policies. Get your 'immigration control' mug back out.

So. Farewell then, Paul Flynn. I found him an articulate of left-wing Labour during the Blair years.

"every time there has been a critical point in Labour - immediately after the referendum, immediately before we leave - there is an attempt to split the party to stop them trying to find a consensus solution."

Amazed to hear you say this. The way it looks to me is that every time there is a critical point for labour, the leadership do fuck all of use and that's what prompts discussions about breakaways.

I cannot believe anyone thinks the Labour Party is heading in the right direction currently.

The leaderships policy on Brexit is directly opposite what the membership wants, and will do nothing to address the major issues our country faces. Combine this with the complete inability to address the rampant antisemitism on display in some parts of the party, and you have a leadership that is failing its members.

I don’t think splitting away is the right answer, but I can understand why you might think now is the time.

And the split is live. The magnificent 7 ride off into the centre-ground.

I don’t think splitting away is the right answer, but I can understand why you might think now is the time.

I think it marks the death of the People's Vote idea - that would have required Corbyn to get behind it, now all that pressure will bleed off into the new whatever it is.