UK General Discussion

[minionofmidas]

They condemn him for "his use of language"? What would they prefer he have used, lethal force?

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

It's a calculated remark: he has many Muslim constituents (they mostly voted for the Tory in 2010, which is how he won in the first place) and his majority is tiny. Arsehole.

I assume that you're talking about the MP for Bradford East here, as there can't be many constituencies that fit, but I can't see what post you're replying to...

Looking at the BBC website, I presume you're talking about this?

They condemn him for "his use of language"? What would they prefer he have used, lethal force?

Alas there are some who think pointing out that victims can become victimizers is terribly unfair.  Altho calling what Israel does to the Palestinians "atrocities" is slightly excessive.  It's merely ethnic oppression at this point.

[You kip if you want to...]

It's a calculated remark: he has many Muslim constituents (they mostly voted for the Tory in 2010, which is how he won in the first place) and his majority is tiny. Arsehole.

Only explanation really.

Politics at its most cynical and all that, but I guess we might be seeing similar 'reaching out' from LibDem MPs who know they'll probably lose if they don't at least try.

And this is only a very, very, very, very moderate version of what Galloway does, is it not?

[You kip if you want to...]

ComRes online for Indy on Snday/S Mirror: CON 33 +5 LAB 39 nc LD 11+2 Ukip 10-4

Apparently ComRes have fiddled with their methods for minor parties though (to give such a headline worthy result, I suppose).

Still, no movement from Lab to Con yet.

[bore]

ComRes online for Indy on Snday/S Mirror: CON 33 +5 LAB 39 nc LD 11+2 Ukip 10-4

Apparently ComRes have fiddled with their methods for minor parties though (to give such a headline worthy result, I suppose).

Still, no movement from Lab to Con yet.

Makes sense I suppose. All three people who consider europe the top issue weren't voting labour anyway.

[YL]

Chris Huhne's trial starts on Monday.

[You kip if you want to...]

Again on polling, am I adding 2+2 to get 5 if I'm thinking that Labour's vote has grown firmer during 2012 since this Tory bounce seems a lot less significant than the veto bounce despite this (from what I can tell) a more significant event.

[afleitch]

Again on polling, am I adding 2+2 to get 5 if I'm thinking that Labour's vote has grown firmer during 2012 since this Tory bounce seems a lot less significant than the veto bounce despite this (from what I can tell) a more significant event.

Not easy to tell. Beware of Labour leads in the polls during Tory governments

In other news, not very joined up thinking when it comes to the High Speed 2 rail line. No guarantee that the link will ever go to Edinburgh or Glasgow meaning that the air travel from these two cities to London will still end up quicker. Not very good news prior to a referendum either...

The Scottish Government is pledging a high speed link between Glasgow and Edinburgh by 2024, some 7 years before Phase 1 is completed and then an extension down the west coast mainline to Gretna, also likely to be completed before Phase 2 opens. Which could mean the slow lane for the north of England.

[You kip if you want to...]

Clegg's said he intends on staying on as leader post-2015 on his radio chat thing.

Say what you like about him, but at least he hasn't sold out his sense of humour.

[You kip if you want to...]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/if-cameron-falls-theresa-may-is-ready-to-step-into-the-leaders-shoes-8477866.html

These articles are getting silly now.

[ObserverIE]

Chris Huhne pleads guilty to perverting the course of justice, and announces that he will resign as MP for Eastleigh.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

hah

[Silent Hunter]

He'll certainly get prison time, but how much really depends on the trial of his ex-wife, who pleaded marital coercion.

[You kip if you want to...]

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Clegg that is. Probably a tactical mistake in retrospect.

[Insula Dei]

Huhne's text messages to his son (and the replies!) make for chilling reading. Makes you feel sorry for the guy.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

His fault for being a cock, I think.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

The cherry of the top of the glorious cake that is this story: Vicky Pryce is apparently now in a relationship with Denis MacShane. Yes, that one.

[You kip if you want to...]

All an elaborate plot to launch his leadership election in the next month or so.

[CLARENCE 2015!]

That Teresa May ain't bad looking...

[You kip if you want to...]

That Teresa May ain't bad looking...

You joking?

[afleitch]

And so it begins, for England and Wales today at least. It’s quite an interesting day; a Conservative government introducing a bill for equal marriage. Gay rights in the UK has been a piecemeal process and one that unlike other equalities and rights in law, is far too often tabled as votes of ‘conscience.’ The focus today will be on the Conservative rebels, but all parties have been given a ‘free vote’, and Labour’s refusal to whip is disappointing despite assertions early on that this would not be the case. Gay rights for some is still a big moral panic. The assertions, innuendo and threats about its impact on society, freedoms, churches, children are always the same and always shown to be false both here and in the rest of the world. Some of them could for a moment be considered reasonable if gay marriage was a grand new experiment, but it isn’t and hasn’t been for a number of years in many nations. It is a reality and the refusal to engage with reality on matters such as these is one of the black marks against Westminster.

I had the pleasure to meet disturbingly young activists for ‘Scotland for Marriage’ an anti-equal marriage pressure group on the streets of Glasgow. The coalition is a funny one, old Catholics and young ones who follow them and haven’t yet set foot outside of their school, ‘Nothing against gays, got gay friends but but but.’ There are fretful evangelicals who want to pray that God intervenes because ‘gay people die younger’. The first one I met told me she was 16. I told her about the Catholic Church and it’s objection to everything; the repeal of Section 28, recognition of next of kin rights, adoption rights, civil partnerships, anti-bullying initiatives, changes to the equality acts to prevent gays from being fired and even their objection to proposals that would keep same sex couples together in residential care should one or both become sick. She didn’t know any of this, because those who claim to be protecting marriage don’t give a damn about it. They don’t protest and organise and fundraise to stop people divorcing, to stop forced marriage or to stop a non-entity getting her latest wedding on the front page of a magazine for the nth time. There is a strain of homophobia there. It will never go away, for the same reason there will always be racists and always be people who think women have it ‘too good.’

Campaigners and even MP’s say that civil partnerships are ‘enough’ and that we are trying to push for more and more. They try and position themselves as put upon moderates. Yet they have very short memories when it comes to their votes and their opposition to civil partnership legislation in 2004 and it’s the same argument and the same rhetoric as before.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

218 Labour MPs are pledged to vote in favour, 14 will be voting against (mostly very committed Catholics, though not entirely), 3 will be abstaining (this includes both Timms and Shuker; the widely suspected reasons for the lack of a whip) and no one knows about a further 20 (also quite an RC heavy list, actually).

[afleitch]

218 Labour MPs are pledged to vote in favour, 14 will be voting against (mostly very committed Catholics, though not entirely), 3 will be abstaining (this includes both Timms and Shuker; the widely suspected reasons for the lack of a whip) and no one knows about a further 20 (also quite an RC heavy list, actually).

'Tambourine' Shuker's abstention is interesting, though had he not been seeking a political career he'd probably have voted no. I know there's Benton who voted against the equal age of consent so that's expected and Flello who is generally a sh-t for other reasons.

Simon Hughes spoke a while ago saying it should only be about legislating for civil marriage forgetting that he should generally keep quiet about such things.

[You kip if you want to...]

I read somewhere that there's a surprising collection of LibDems planning to abstain or vote no. Any weight in this?

[afleitch]

Stephen Timms got a gentle pillorying after saying that marriage revolved around children.
Next door MP, Lyn Brown said Timms attended her wedding and surely Timms must have noticed that she was above child bearing age when she got married. Did that then make her marriage invalid?