General election

[Bitter_Dave]

Now if he had said something like they will offer an accredited apprenticeship or recognised qualifications for all 18 year olds not in full time employment then that I can understand and support.

Yes, this sort of thing would be more meaningful.

Also, funds to support the youth clubs that closed during the years of austerity, and the youth workers embedded in communities that can help vulnerable young people and stop them getting in trouble. Like we used to have.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Saw this earlier on GB news -


It'll be interesting to see if the Tory faithful who have already made their minds up about how Starmers will run the country are proved right, I have a feeling they will not be adding his name to the list any time soon and it'll remain at 5 - 1 to the Tories.

Worst Prime Ministers Ever

Liz Truss (Sept-Oct 2022)

Boris Johnson (2019-2022)

James Callaghan (1976-79)

Anthony Eden (1955-57)

Neville Chamberlain (1937-40)

Arthur Balfour (1902-5)

https://greatestbritons.com/top-10-worst-prime-ministers

 

[Loiner-62]

Wonder who actually wrote it for him?
Also, does BJ have a track record for being a lying *******? Just asking

 

[Northern_Brewer]

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Hmm - remind me how many Labour PMs we've had since the 1970s? Perhaps Johnson could engage in a little self-examination, who was the most incompetent PM since the 1970s? The most dishonest?

Meanwhile some on the left are accusing Starmer of being Thatcherite...

 

[Bitter_Dave]

When it comes to a dangerous (and dangerously incompetent) Prime Minister I think Boris Johnson managed to achieve that pretty well during the pandemic. Likewise, Liz Truss. Need I say any more!

As for being dangerously left-wing, the only way to win elections in the UK is to stick firmly to the centre ground, something I am sure Starmer is acutely aware of; I don't think he wants to be booted out of office after one term. I would personally like a more radical political agenda, but it isn't really about what I want - it is about what the UK public will accept (and the financial circumstances). Note: Blair only won in 1997 because he said they would stick to Tory spending limits in the first two years (after losing in 1992 when they proposed modest tax rises). I think Labour have a good idea of where the general public is politically, and hopefully when in office will bring them with them. The Tories on the over hand seem massively out of touch...

 

[Stu]

Smoke and mirrors for sure it's not compulsory and does not need to be served in the armed forces, that is not national service just a play on words.

Now if he had said something like they will offer an accredited apprenticeship or recognised qualifications for all 18 year olds not in full time employment then that I can understand and support.

Perhaps the other parties can pull the potentially good points from this the idea of weekend volunteers I would back this if they were paid, not free labour and not taxed on the additional income.

Defence is much wider than front line these days lots of potential to assist our defences if we think outside the box.

I had 6 apprentices working for me up until a couple of years ago. They were absolutely amazing.
All doing Level 3 IT apprenticeships, which included (for those in the know) a number of Microsoft Certifications (desktop, server and software patching mostly), Cisco networking and ITIL foundation.

The next level up was Cyber Security which I also had 2. They did their CompTIA qualifications, the industry standard.

Sadly, many companies don't see the benefit and whilst they're either forced to take them on or pay fines, my company has mostly stopped bothering with the technical ones and just take on business analyst and project manager apprentices because they can make more money out of them.

As I've said above, this country is desperate for Cyber Security analysts, hence why they get paid a ridiculous wage (I know of a 19 year old perm on £50k with a year's experience - he was nothing special, just massively in demand).

And ironically, it's mostly Public Sector that are paying these ridiculous sums, because they've not bothered investing properly.

 

[Agentgonzo]

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Interesting that he felt he had to insert "left-wing" into the headline.

I have no doubt that "... would be the most dangerous prime minister since the 1970s" would make a better headline.

So that can only lead us to conclude that (in Boris Johnson's mind) there has been a more dangerous prime minister since 1970 than Kier Starmer will be. And we can further conclude that it won't have been a left wing PM (otherwise the "left wing" clarification would not be needed).

So we can conclude from the headline that (in Boris's mind) the most dangerous prime minister since the 1970s (including Kier) was not left wing, hence not labour, hence was a Tory PM.

Very interesting indeed.

(Also no idea why he capitalised the word "left")

 

[Northern_Brewer]

Interesting that he felt he had to insert "left-wing" into the headline.

The people who write columns generally don't write the headlines. See also the Big Beast thing.

 

[foxy]

I wonder if Nigel Farage will join the Conservative Party after the election. No doubt they will be looking to replace Rishi Sunak at some point and should Nigel Farage throw his hat into the ring it could make a big difference to the popularity of the Tory Party leading up to the election after Labour shows it can't deliver on its promises after they get in.
He has said he will be Tory leader by 2026, jesting or not.

 

[lancon]

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I only hope that he is not lying this time

 

[samale]

I wonder if Nigel Farage will join the Conservative Party after the election. No doubt they will be looking to replace Rishi Sunak at some point and should Nigel Farage throw his hat into the ring it could make a big difference to the popularity of the Tory Party leading up to the election after Labour shows it can't deliver on its promises after they get in.
He has said he will be Tory leader by 2026, jesting or not.

Has the Tory party delivered any of the promises from the last election campaign. Surely parties should be held to account for not delivering. Only seems fair

 

[Brew_DD2]

I wonder if Nigel Farage will join the Conservative Party after the election. No doubt they will be looking to replace Rishi Sunak at some point and should Nigel Farage throw his hat into the ring it could make a big difference to the popularity of the Tory Party leading up to the election after Labour shows it can't deliver on its promises after they get in.
He has said he will be Tory leader by 2026, jesting or not.

If The Tories decide to lurch further to the Right, they will pay for it the next time they go to the ballot. These right wing parties make a lot of noise, and indeed have a lot to answer for when shaping how this current government has operated, but electorally they are losers.

 

[Stu]

Interesting that every headline that has come out so far is where the Tories are focusing only on older people.
National Service will disillusion anyone younger people and parents of younger people. It’s not at all a policy that many under 50 would ever support.

And this morning, they’ve announced Triple Lock Plus for pensions. I’m now of an age, in my 50s, where I’m seriously having to consider what my pension will look like. But I’m not going to expect the state, which will have less and less income in the next 30 years, to make itself bankrupt to pay for me.

We’re an aging population.

The thing is, it’s a coy move. The Tories know that people over 50 are twice as likely to vote as those under 30. Yet the biggest impacts of these policies is those under 30.

 

[foxy]

Has the Tory party delivered any of the promises from the last election campaign. Surely parties should be held to account for not delivering. Only seems fair

Very rare that a party upholds election promises, and will get even scarcer with the state of the economy. Voters will be expecting things to change over the next 4 years, I doubt very much they will so come the following election the voters will be looking for a savior. If the popularity of Nigel Farage doesn't wane then he has an excellent chance of getting in.
Doesn't mean to say he will deliver either but to the British people he has a lot of charisma.

 

[Stu]

Very rare that a party upholds election promises, and will get even scarcer with the state of the economy. Voters will be expecting things to change over the next 4 years, I doubt very much they will so come the following election the voters will be looking for a savior. If the popularity of Nigel Farage doesn't wane then he has an excellent chance of getting in.
Doesn't mean to say he will deliver either but to the British people he has a lot of charisma.

Farage isn't even standing.

He's just hanging around, making lots of noises.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Voters will be expecting things to change over the next 4 years, I doubt very much they will so come the following election the voters will be looking for a savior.

Starmer has already said several times that they cannot undo 14 years of mismanagement overnight I think those that vote Labour will give them time.

 

[Stu]

Sorry was going to post, then i remebered i will be labled a right wing thug for using my right of free speech

Why? You're absolutely entitled to your opinion.

From my perspective, I'm far from left wing. Some of my views are unpopular - I fully accept that.

My point above though, is that I try and consider everything - which is why I think that the Tories focusing only on older people is really unfair.

We have an aging population. I'm probably one of the few over 50 that realise what that means. It means that we're going to get in the same state that Japan is finding itself in. 10% are over 80. 30% are over 65.

Consider that. In Japan 30% are retired. And then 22% are under 18.
If and when we get there (which isn't long - it's expected in our children's lifetimes), 48% of working people will need to pay for 52% not working. And that assumes that all 48% are working, which of course, they're not. 74.5% of working age people work. So now, we're down to 35%.

That's just over 1/3 of the ENTIRE country working. And yet the Tories are saying "That's OK, we'll keep paying pensioners more"

I keep hearing the "But we paid in". Of course you did. As have I. And continue to. I rarely use the NHS. But I don't begrudge those that do. I've never claimed unemployment benefit, but I also accept that there are some genuinely unable to work or can't find work.

But none of the Governments - right or left - have saved that money. They just expected the tax gravy train to continue.

And what will happen is that those working will end up paying more and more and more tax. As we do today. I pay considerably more tax than I did 14 years ago. Not because of major pay rises, but fiscal drag means my take-home is worth around 20% less.

14 years ago, £50k was seen as a lot of money and 40% tax seemed fair. With inflation, that £50k salary is now £75k (check the BoE inflation calculator!). In 2010, if you earned £33,000, you wouldn't have been anywhere near 40% tax. That's what the equivalent salary of £50k is now.

 

[samale]

Very rare that a party upholds election promises, and will get even scarcer with the state of the economy. Voters will be expecting things to change over the next 4 years, I doubt very much they will so come the following election the voters will be looking for a savior. If the popularity of Nigel Farage doesn't wane then he has an excellent chance of getting in.
Doesn't mean to say he will deliver either but to the British people he has a lot of charisma.

If Farage is the saviour you talk of We are all ******.

 

[samale]

Will a labour government try and roll back some of the effects of Brexit. What will a labour government mean for the likes of Scotland, Wales and Ireland