UK Politics Thread

[Jimbuna]

Financial pressure on the Treasury from the coronavirus outbreak has prompted more speculation over the level of future rises in the state pension.

At present, the state pension increases each year in line with the rising cost of living seen in the CPI measure of inflation, increasing average wages, or 2.5%, whichever of those three is highest.

This is known as the triple lock, and it is a Conservative manifesto pledge for the five years of this Parliament.

However, the technical aspects of state-paid wages during the coronavirus outbreak could lead to a big rise in the state pension if the government sticks to the current system.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-53082530

They had better leave well alone, I am due mine in three years come July.

[Jimbuna]

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is speaking to MPs concerned about the sacking of former shadow education secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey.

Mrs Long-Bailey was asked to stand down on Thursday after retweeting an interview which Sir Keir said contained an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory.

The interview with actress Maxine Peake suggested US police learned violent tactics from Israeli secret services.

Mrs Long-Bailey later said she did not agree with all aspects of the article.

"In no way was my retweet an intention to endorse every part of that article," she said.

Jewish groups and some MPs welcomed Sir Keir's decision but Mrs Long-Bailey's allies on the party's left said it was an overreaction.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-53187789

MOMENTUM will not be happy about this but Keir is the leader and imho acted correctly.

[Catfish]

Japan gives UK six weeks to strike a post-Brexit trade deal:
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/u...-a9580731.html

I wonder whether this brings some movement into Johnson's wait-and-see 'tactics'.

[Jimbuna]

Left-wing Labour MPs have told leader Sir Keir Starmer he should not have sacked his shadow minister Rebecca Long-Bailey in an anti-Semitism row.

In a virtual meeting with Sir Keir, MPs also wanted reassurance that those who criticised the Israeli government would not be suspended.

The MPs said the meeting took place "in a mutually respectful manner".

Mrs Long-Bailey was sacked after sharing a story Sir Keir said contained an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-53187789

The Left will not let this go, they will continue to pull the strings of those MP's they control.

And that folks is the fundamental problem with todays Labour Party. For the first time in living memory they managed to get one of their own in as the leader and have created MOMENTUM and solidified their position as a result.

Tories won't mind because Britain is a long way from being so left wing.

[Jimbuna]

The UK and EU have said serious differences remain over a post-Brexit trade deal, following the latest negotiations in Brussels.

EU negotiator Michel Barnier said the bloc's position needed to be "better understood and respected" by the UK if an agreement is to be found.

His UK counterpart David Frost said "significant" disagreement remained on "a number of important issues".

The UK has ruled out extending the December deadline to reach a deal.

The latest round of talks, the first to be held in person since the Covid-19 crisis struck, came after both sides agreed to "intensify" negotiations last month.

Negotiations have continued throughout the pandemic via video link. An additional five weeks of in-person talks are planned for July and early August.

BBC Europe reporter Gavin Lee said the latest round of talks had broken up a day early, with a discussion between the two chief negotiators tomorrow cancelled.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-53266902

[Skybird]

While my view of Brexit pre-Corona was clear, now that the virus has made itself felt and leaves a huge stamp on the economies aorund the globe, I just do not know and am in sort of an idle mode regarding whether Brexit still can be financially and economically shouldered by the UK. Its a complete and total game change, and I struggle to come to terms with assessing it. Problems are mounting, not just inside the UK, but outside as well. Chinese National Socialism has become a most agressive factor (Hongkong, South Chinese Sea), a police state of most brutal and militaryily aggressive, intimidating proportions, Trump's America is untrustworthy and no basis you want to build your future on, and the EU is obsessed with turning Brexit into a punishing precedence for showing that turning your back on the block must see you ending in misery. The latter was to be expected and I thinl could have been handled. But China and the USA failing to be trustworthy fundaments in economic relations is a very big problems with outlooks as uncertain as they can be. That is while the EU's position against china is not one bit better, and extremely weak. Many other nations refuse to make deals with the UK now due to pressure from either the EU, or China. And Trump wants to abuse the UK's dependency on a deal for his own personal political benefit: he will not behave as a close, specially related friend, rest assured. He will make the UK pay for any deal it wants, and then pay more.

It seems to me that maybe the UK has fallen out of the allowing time window. The endless delay game, last but not least by May and then by parliament, now takes revenge.

I have turned pessimistic that Brexit can work out well anymore. And it is questionable to me that Johnson could win another election after the past autumn. The new Labour leader is of another callibre than the collection of walking dead before, and thus more attractive as an alternative than Corbyn ever was.


I hope I get proven wrong, though.

[Jimbuna]

^ Funny thing is every poll you look at still has Labour losing.

https://www.markpack.org.uk/155623/v...oll-scorecard/

[Moonlight]

^That might be true for now but it won't always be the case, when it comes down to giving the Tory heartlands more and more money or sending the cash to the red wall constituencies what do you think Bozo Johnson will do.

He's going to throw those 80 new Tory MPs under the bus, lose the new constituencies but keep the heartlands happy, Tories will always look after Tories first, don't ever forget that.

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by Jimbuna

^ Funny thing is every poll you look at still has Labour losing.

https://www.markpack.org.uk/155623/v...oll-scorecard/

Just give it a little time. Once the full consequences of the current crisis start to bite, thigns will start to look difefrent. Right now everybody looks iont he virus. Once that is out of sight a bit, they will look at Johnson - and see that he has no clothes on while. He currently can deflect all own responsibility on Corona's guilt. That will change. And his own murderous failure in the Corona story will not be forgpotten. The UK's management of the crisis and the health system have terribly failed, the mythological fame of the NHS, already behind many other Wetsenr co9utnries before Corona, has taken severe, serious scratches.



Just a question of time until some people will start to ask uncomfortable questions at prime time hour on TV.

[Catfish]

If Corbyn ever decides to leave, Labour will have a chance i guess.

Waiting for the japanese trade ultimatum

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Catfish

If Corbyn ever decides to leave, Labour will have a chance i guess.

Waiting for the japanese trade ultimatum

That is precisely the problem with Labour....the far left.

[Skybird]

Well, not just Labour, but Johnson alike has a problem: and his problem is countable in monetarian pounds and medical kills. The last comments or speeches by him left me - underwhelmed. Or better completely unimpressed, not one thing he said connected with me, nothing. Pure rhetorics, a good dose of pathos here and there, no substance, but promising the blue down from the sky. That the virus came is not his fault. But that the UK reacted so murderously wrong to it - that is his fault for sure. And wouldn't one expect voters to "honour" such a record? (Okay, since Trump's election I maybe should know better...) And he has yet to find an answer to the virus messing up his Brexit plans that indeed match the challenge. So far he has: nothing.

[mapuc]

It doesn't matter from which country a party comes from.

When a political party are in a crisis and have to introspect them self they have an tendency to only look at what they want to look at and not what is needed to be looked at in this political party.

Markus

[Jimbuna]

The UK government is planning to introduce daily televised press briefings later this year.

A Downing Street source said the new format- similar to that used by the White House in the US - is expected to be brought in by October.

The new briefings would take place each weekday in the afternoon.

It is understood there will be a competitive process to recruit an experienced broadcaster to host the question-and-answer sessions.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-53275395

Heaven help us!

[Skybird]

Yeah, I heard that they plan to revive "Spitting Image".