UK Politics V - Have We Got News For You

[EnglishEdward]

Not a great deal of chance.

But Rishi Sunak must have been wondering how many more defections
he'd suffer if he'd let the general election drift on to December or January.

 

[Kyriakos]

In retrospect, Sunak sunk the party too, so perhaps they should have kept Bojo- in the confined sense that the election result wouldn't likely be worse under him.

 

[innonimatu]

If you mean that the threads must always be started by a brit, I don't think it's a good idea. Give it to @innonimatu , despite knowing that the title won't be pro-Keir

I'm abstaining from starting one, looks like the threads can go past 50 pages now. But if you're wondring. I'd go with "God save the kingdom because no one else will".

Is there anyone among the "candidates for prime-minister" who even cares about the UK?

 

[Samson]

Is there anyone among the "candidates for prime-minister" who even cares about the UK?

Is there any politician who really cares about their country?

 

[Samson]

So it seems the tories local strategy is to pretend they are not tories and hope no one notices?

Tories campaign with leaflets that barely feature party branding – or Sunak

The Conservatives have been campaigning with leaflets that barely feature Rishi Sunak or their party branding, with candidates putting their own local images prominently instead, election material shows.

Spoiler Images of election material :

Spoiler Tory Branding rules :

Source

Also it looks like they are really desperate for money and data. If you try to go to conservatives.com you are directed to a page that only gives you a download to an App called Share2Win with I am sure gives the tories money and data. Why would anyone want to install some closed source software just to donate money?

 

[EnglishEdward]

Strangely enough not competing under a party label and having the national parties short of finds
may actually be very good things for democracy in the UK.

My opinion has for some some been that the cause of a lot of the inadequacies in UK politics was the
nationalisation of party structures, to which local parties are subordinate, which also permits leadership cults.

In the old days, there were local conservative and constitutionalist clubs and conservative and unionist
parties, liberal clubs, and labour and trade unionist parties; that each freely chose their own candidates.

The national parties were largely undefined amalgams of representatives of the local parties.

I.e. it used to be a bottom up politics, whereas now it is a top down politics.

And once upon a time ballot papers included candidates' names without mention of party allegiance.
The insertion of the party name and logo, so that people could vote for the party without
needing to know the names of the individual candidates, was to my mind a very bad step.

 

[Arakhor]

If a candidate has no party allegiance, then sure, don't list it, but if they can be expected to toe the party line, then revealing their party is essential for democratic accountability.

 

[EnglishEdward]

Toeing the party line is only democratic accountability in countries where people vote for party list systems.

UK members of the westminster Parliament are elected on a one representative per constituency.

Their accountability ought to be to their constituents, not to some party whip like Charles Pincher.

And there won't be many top quality candidates if all are expected to toe the party line and vote according to text messages.

 

[Arakhor]

They  ought to serve their constituents, yes.

 

[Samson]

I am not sure exactly what is going on, but if they let Diane Abbott back in to Labour but deselect her that is so messed up.

Diane Abbott readmitted as Labour MP after race row probe

Diane Abbott has been readmitted as a Labour MP, the BBC understands, but it is unclear whether she will stand for the party at the general election.

Party officials had tried to broker a deal by which she would get the whip back in return for standing down.

It is not clear if the Hackney North and Stoke Newington MP has accepted that arrangement.

Labour has not said who its candidate will be in the Hackney North and Stoke Newington seat. Ms Abbott has been contacted for a comment.

The party is currently selecting remaining candidates before a meeting to endorse them next week, before nominations legally close on 7 June.

Asked whether Ms Abbott wanted to stand for the party, Jacqueline McKenzie, an immigration lawyer and friend of the MP, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I think she wants to be given the opportunity to make that decision."

 

[Gorbles]

The incredibly darkly funny aspect of this is how Corbyn was scrutinised for alleged "purges" and here we have Starmer desperately trying to keep any left-of-centre influence out of the party.

Why Keir? What happened to the marketplace of ideas?

 

[Aiken_Drumn]

Diane Abbott should have retired years ago. She has become a huge liability.

 

[Kyriakos]

Same can be said for the Hignfy panel, but stuff keep crawling about until no force remains.

 

[Gorbles]

Diane Abbott should have retired years ago. She has become a huge liability.

In what way?

 

[Aiken_Drumn]

In what way?

In many, repeated gaffs? She's 70.. I believe we should put politicians out to pasture at 65.

 

[Samson]

Who knows what is happening? My money is no one.

Diane Abbott says she has been banned from standing for Labour at election

Starmer: Labour has not taken any decision to bar Diane Abbott from standing (rolling news)

Also, this is the end of an era though I will not cry:

London’s Evening Standard has announced plans to shut its daily newspaper and replace it with a new weekly publication. The Standard has lost £84.5m in the past six years, according to its accounts, and is reliant on funding from its part-owner Baron Lebedev, of Hampton in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and of Siberia in the Russian Federation, to survive. Its other shareholders include a bank with close links to the Saudi government.

 

[Kyriakos]

Is baron Lebedev tied as a noble to Siberia at all, other than nominally through Bojo?

 

[Gorbles]

In many, repeated gaffs? She's 70.. I believe we should put politicians out to pasture at 65.

What repeated gaffes? There's the odd specific one that gets passed around an awful lot, but if we're going to start outlawing MPs based on age and / or gaffes, why are we singling out Abbott?

 

[Snowygerry]

The Brits sell noble titles iirc, a splendid idea, I can make you baron of Colorado, or something

 

[Kyriakos]

Well, they can sell titles to parts of Britain, but not to parts of other countries :S