Current Affairs

[screwy]

Looks as we will be having a General Election sooner than we think as Liz Truss said last night that she will be leading the Conservative Party in the defeat election - and it appears that she may only have a short "shelf life"

Oh no, not another one.!

[Gill W]

All 3 of your Brexit questions refer to the cash benefits of Brexit, those of us who just wanted to be free of the EU straight jacket were quite prepared to accept the probable financial losses of Brexit, so for us your questions are pointless.

You've said it better than me - there are no tangible benefits to Brexit and it's all about the warm, fuzzy feelings of people who feel that they have been freed from an imaginary yoke. You might be happy to accept financial losses (as long as it's not you personally, although you might have thought differently if your defined benefit pension fund had gone pear shaped last week), for a lot of people, the situation that has evolved is disastrous for them.

Since the vote to leave, I'll admit that our politics has been a total s*itshow but that's not down to Brexit, that's down to incompetent politicians.
The simple fact that it took five years to actually leave highlights that.
We had the anti-democrats on one hand and Teresa May (very weak) on the other.
The moment she conceded reparations before negotiations, it was lost.

It is very much to do with Brexit.

Brexit was the catalyst for increasingly inept government., each one worse than the other. Most of the more decent, talented Conservates are long gone from parliament, leaving this crowd of incompetents, elected for the sole reason of 'getting Brexit done'.

If there hadn't been Brexit, David Cameron would more than likely been PM, and crop of Conservatives in Parliament would not have been the bottom of the barrel. There wouldn't be all the problems that Brexit caused, and they would probably have been better at dealing with the other problems that came our way, such as Covid. Cameron wasn't brilliant, but he was vaguely competent, at least

[Onelife]

I know my predictions have come in for a bit of stick recently but the one thing I am certain about is neither Sunak or Hunt has any chance of taking the conservative party into the next GE…. What the conservative party needs to do is look to someone who the public can warm to, but also someone who can give better than what they get at the dispatch box
.
I was right about Theresa and I’m right about Penny giving the party the only fighting chance they have at the next GE.

P’s In the mean time I'm sticking with Liz

[Gill W]

I know my predictions have come in for a bit of stick recently but the one thing I am certain about is neither Sunak or Hunt has any chance of taking the conservative party into the next GE…. What the conservative party needs to do is look to someone who the public can warm to, but also someone who can give better than what they get at the dispatch box
.
I was right about Theresa and I’m right about Penny giving the party the only fighting chance they have at the next GE.

P’s In the mean time I'm sticking with Liz

I didn't warm to your Penny at the dispatch box yesterday.

At this point, I think it'd be very difficult to find any current Conservative MP that the public would warm to. The only 'new', relatively untainted name I can think of is Ben Wallace.

I think it'd be kinder to let your Liz go. Unfortunately, she's not up to the job, and it's not good for the country or for her personally.

Not sure you were right about your Theresa, but after what has happened since, I can see that she was a decent, hardworking person.

[anniec]

I know my predictions have come in for a bit of stick recently but the one thing I am certain about is neither Sunak or Hunt has any chance of taking the conservative party into the next GE…. What the conservative party needs to do is look to someone who the public can warm to, but also someone who can give better than what they get at the dispatch box
.
I was right about Theresa and I’m right about Penny giving the party the only fighting chance they have at the next GE.

P’s In the mean time I'm sticking with Liz

At this point, I think it'd be very difficult to find any current Conservative MP that the public would warm to. The only 'new', relatively untainted name I can think of is Ben Wallace.

Strong hints from reputable sources that Mr Wallace has something lurking in his cupboard, though no one has yet provided proof, but at least one suggests that the Wallace enthusiasts should confer with some of the military top brass (the retired ones, who are free to speak out) and they may get an alternative opinion.

[Onelife]

I know my predictions have come in for a bit of stick recently but the one thing I am certain about is neither Sunak or Hunt has any chance of taking the conservative party into the next GE…. What the conservative party needs to do is look to someone who the public can warm to, but also someone who can give better than what they get at the dispatch box
.
I was right about Theresa and I’m right about Penny giving the party the only fighting chance they have at the next GE.

P’s In the mean time I'm sticking with Liz

I didn't warm to your Penny at the dispatch box yesterday.

At this point, I think it'd be very difficult to find any current Conservative MP that the public would warm to. The only 'new', relatively untainted name I can think of is Ben Wallace.

I think it'd be kinder to let your Liz go. Unfortunately, she's not up to the job, and it's not good for the country or for her personally.

Not sure you were right about your Theresa, but after what has happened since, I can see that she was a decent, hardworking person.

Hi Gill, I think you are right about Liz, but I really struggle to understand how you can say, “Brexit was the catalyst for increasingly inept government” without acknowledging the ineptness of the renegade rebels who tried every trick in the book to thwart the democratic process. If you are looking for a catalyst as to why the party has struggled ever since, then you should look no further than the divisions that the once (long gone) talented conservatives brought upon themselves and the conservative party. imo

[towny44]

All 3 of your Brexit questions refer to the cash benefits of Brexit, those of us who just wanted to be free of the EU straight jacket were quite prepared to accept the probable financial losses of Brexit, so for us your questions are pointless.

You've said it better than me - there are no tangible benefits to Brexit and it's all about the warm, fuzzy feelings of people who feel that they have been freed from an imaginary yoke. You might be happy to accept financial losses (as long as it's not you personally, although you might have thought differently if your defined benefit pension fund had gone pear shaped last week), for a lot of people, the situation that has evolved is disastrous for them.

Since the vote to leave, I'll admit that our politics has been a total s*itshow but that's not down to Brexit, that's down to incompetent politicians.
The simple fact that it took five years to actually leave highlights that.
We had the anti-democrats on one hand and Teresa May (very weak) on the other.
The moment she conceded reparations before negotiations, it was lost.

It is very much to do with Brexit.

Brexit was the catalyst for increasingly inept government., each one worse than the other. Most of the more decent, talented Conservates are long gone from parliament, leaving this crowd of incompetents, elected for the sole reason of 'getting Brexit done'.

If there hadn't been Brexit, David Cameron would more than likely been PM, and crop of Conservatives in Parliament would not have been the bottom of the barrel. There wouldn't be all the problems that Brexit caused, and they would probably have been better at dealing with the other problems that came our way, such as Covid. Cameron wasn't brilliant, but he was vaguely competent, at least

We will never agree on the EU Gill, I still think that sooner or later, and it might already be here, Germany will cease to be the benevolent financial powerhouse of the EU, at which time I think it will Italy's turn to decide to leave the union, and if that happens France will not be far behind,I
I hope I am wrong because we need a vibrant Europe to trade with, but I think that Europes days as a global leader will then be in permanent decline.

[Gill W]

Strong hints from reputable sources that Mr Wallace has something lurking in his cupboard, though no one has yet provided proof, but at least one suggests that the Wallace enthusiasts should confer with some of the military top brass (the retired ones, who are free to speak out) and they may get an alternative opinion.

Ah, I’d missed that….. that’s Wallace off the list then!

My list of untainted Tories is now non existent!

[screwy]

I know my predictions have come in for a bit of stick recently but the one thing I am certain about is neither Sunak or Hunt has any chance of taking the conservative party into the next GE…. What the conservative party needs to do is look to someone who the public can warm to, but also someone who can give better than what they get at the dispatch box
.
I was right about Theresa and I’m right about Penny giving the party the only fighting chance they have at the next GE.

P’s In the mean time I'm sticking with Liz

At this point, I think it'd be very difficult to find any current Conservative MP that the public would warm to. The only 'new', relatively untainted name I can think of is Ben Wallace.

Strong hints from reputable sources that Mr Wallace has something lurking in his cupboard, though no one has yet provided proof, but at least one suggests that the Wallace enthusiasts should confer with some of the military top brass (the retired ones, who are free to speak out) and they may get an alternative opinion.

Any verifiable source or just gossip.?

[Onelife]

This sounds more concerning than what Ben Wallace has in his cupboard…. ?

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politic ... 33481.html

[barney]

All 3 of your Brexit questions refer to the cash benefits of Brexit, those of us who just wanted to be free of the EU straight jacket were quite prepared to accept the probable financial losses of Brexit, so for us your questions are pointless.

You've said it better than me - there are no tangible benefits to Brexit and it's all about the warm, fuzzy feelings of people who feel that they have been freed from an imaginary yoke. You might be happy to accept financial losses (as long as it's not you personally, although you might have thought differently if your defined benefit pension fund had gone pear shaped last week), for a lot of people, the situation that has evolved is disastrous for them.

Since the vote to leave, I'll admit that our politics has been a total s*itshow but that's not down to Brexit, that's down to incompetent politicians.
The simple fact that it took five years to actually leave highlights that.
We had the anti-democrats on one hand and Teresa May (very weak) on the other.
The moment she conceded reparations before negotiations, it was lost.

It is very much to do with Brexit.

Brexit was the catalyst for increasingly inept government., each one worse than the other. Most of the more decent, talented Conservates are long gone from parliament, leaving this crowd of incompetents, elected for the sole reason of 'getting Brexit done'.

If there hadn't been Brexit, David Cameron would more than likely been PM, and crop of Conservatives in Parliament would not have been the bottom of the barrel. There wouldn't be all the problems that Brexit caused, and they would probably have been better at dealing with the other problems that came our way, such as Covid. Cameron wasn't brilliant, but he was vaguely competent, at least

Cameron vaguely competent ?
Do me a favour.
He and Osborn oversaw ten years of totally unnecessary austerity which depressed growth and threw millions into poverty.
Many were glad to see the back of that particular government.
Many institutions including schools and hospitals are still playing catch-up from those days.
Vaguely competent ?
Not for me he wasn’t.
Actually, THE only good thing he did was honour his word on having a referendum.

[Onelife]

Well, it’s make or break time for Liz at the dispatch box today…she’s going to have to come up with something more convincing than the energy price cap to keep the flame burning.

That being said, I hope she puts in a good performance because one miscalculation doesn’t mean she isn’t the right person for the job. imo

[barney]

I’d recommend that she goes sick and cites mental health issues.
That would stop them wading in.
Nobody would dare criticise anyone with mental health problems, would they?

[david63]

one miscalculation doesn’t mean she isn’t the right person for the job

I would agree - the problem is that I, along with almost everyone else, would not consider her actions a "miscalculation" by any definition of that word.

She could also try using the "Urgent business" excuse - Oh no, she's already used that one!

[Onelife]

I’d recommend that she goes sick and cites mental health issues.
That would stop them wading in.
Nobody would dare criticise anyone with mental health problems, would they?

I think the first step to recovery is to acknowledge that you’ve made a mistake and say sorry...the second step is to put more money into mental health services just in case you need it.

Forward planning.

[Onelife]

one miscalculation doesn’t mean she isn’t the right person for the job

I would agree - the problem is that I, along with almost everyone else, would not consider her actions a "miscalculation" by any definition of that word.

She could also try using the "Urgent business" excuse - Oh no, she's already used that one!

That is because you and almost everybody else look for the negatives…I however look for the positives…it’s good for your mental health.

[Onelife]

The flame still burns…. well done, Liz.

[david63]

So now she cannot use the "energy price guarantee" to answer every question it is the "crackdown on the unions" for every answer!

[Onelife]

So now she cannot use the "energy price guarantee" to answer every question it is the "crackdown on the unions" for every answer!

Sounds a sensible approach and one which will be welcomed by all those trying to go about their daily lives.

[david63]

So now she cannot use the "energy price guarantee" to answer every question it is the "crackdown on the unions" for every answer!

Sounds a sensible approach and one which will be welcomed by all those trying to go about their daily lives.

I'm not disagreeing with the approach but with the fact that she ever only has one answer, no matter what the question

[Onelife]

So now she cannot use the "energy price guarantee" to answer every question it is the "crackdown on the unions" for every answer!

Sounds a sensible approach and one which will be welcomed by all those trying to go about their daily lives.

I'm not disagreeing with the approach but with the fact that she ever only has one answer, no matter what the question

I did notice the energy cap answer came up a few times but all in all I thought she handled the other questions pretty well…especially the triple lock question which had Blackford sulking back into his seat.

I thought it was a poor performance form Starmer who resembled a long-playing record of well-rehearsed “yes Kier” we’ve heard them all before questions. But to be fair originality was never one of his strong points, was it?

He seemed to be transfixed with how the increase in interest rates would/will be affecting mortgage payments, which is true of course, but what he forgot to mention is that the BoE were predicting months ago that interest rates would rise to 5% this year, with or without Liz Truss’s help.

[Gill W]

especially the triple lock question which had Blackford sulking back into his seat.

Hunt was saying that the triple lock could not be guaranteed and Cleverley was still saying that this morning during the breakfast media round.

Yet, she's just said, apparently off the top of her head, that she's committed to it.

It's almost as if it's being made up as she goes along

[Manoverboard]

Surely being committed to something does not imply that it can, nor indeed will, happen in the next couple of weeks. For me it's simply a long term objective but one that she will doubtless not be able to deliver.

[Onelife]

especially the triple lock question which had Blackford sulking back into his seat.

Hunt was saying that the triple lock could not be guaranteed and Cleverley was still saying that this morning during the breakfast media round.

Yet, she's just said, apparently off the top of her head, that she's committed to it.

It's almost as if it's being made up as she goes along

Well Gill if she does a U-turn on the triple lock statement then she’s out for sure.

It could of course be the case that someone else is making it up, then at a later stage denies anything about it

.......................

I've just watched the triple lock statement again and Hunt was nodding in agreement so one must presume he is onboard.

[Mervyn and Trish]

That would pretty much guarantee where my floating vote wasn't going at the next election.