UK General Discussion: Rishecession

[Swedish Rainbow Capitalist Cheese]

There’s a rather hilarious piece in the ST about how Rishi has succeeded in everything else in his life and is shocked being PM isn’t working out..

Honestly amazing how little it’s remarked on just how out of touch he is.

It also contains the suggestion that he's thinking of running the election campaign around the strategy of arguing Starmer (62) is too old to become PM. The average age of a Tory voter these days is somewhat north of that.

Also while the job has aged SKS he doesn’t look old- it use to be remarked a lot how he didn’t look like he was in his late 50s when he ran for leader.

I actually didn't know that he's that old. I'd have guessed that he was a decade younger.

[Frodo]

In the (unlikely) event the Orkneys join Norway, could the Shetlands and the Outer Hebrides follow suit?

Orkney debates motion to become territory of Norway

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

In the (unlikely) event the Orkneys join Norway, could the Shetlands and the Outer Hebrides follow suit?

Orkney debates motion to become territory of Norway

[map]

The best line there is this: "The Norwegian government declined to comment on the proposals."
I chuckled at that one...

[Meclazine for Israel]

Warning: this post contains analysis of the 2nd Ashes Test at Lords.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-04/sunak-joins-anti-australian-pile-on-after-second-ashes-test/102557428

Rishi clearly demonstrating he does not know much about cricket.

[CumbrianLefty]

Mhairi Black is the latest SNP parlamentarian to announce that they are retiring at the next GE - this is a rather iconic one for obvious reasons, though back in 2015 she did say that she didn't plan to go on at Westminster indefinitely. Of course, she will be one of the youngest retirees ever.

[Torrain]

Edit: beaten to the post by CL

Given she’s recently taken on the role of Deputy Westminster Leader for the party, I assumed she’d stick around for a bit longer. Unclear if she’d take a place at Holyrood if offered in 2026 or later.

I was never someone who really ‘got’ Black as a phenomenon, and always found her approach quite jarring (which is partially by design, I guess, given her combative approach and our opposing politics), but I know she meant a lot to some of my peers.

In terms of numbers, she won Paisley and Renfrewshire South by 10,600 votes in 2019, but only 2,500 votes in 2017.

Quite a “ships passing in the night” moment if she leaves Westminster, and the man she beat re-enters the Commons at the same election.

[CumbrianLefty]

Well unless Labour again only win Edinburgh South north of the border, the latter is very likely.

[TheTide]

It is funny how different people decide at different ages that they've had enough of politics. She's south of 30, but look at who the two main candidates are likely to be in the next U.S. presidential election.

[CumbrianLefty]

She maybe isn't quitting *politics*, mind (even electorally, given the existence of Holyrood)

[Battista Minola 1616]

It is funny how different people decide at different ages that they've had enough of politics. She's south of 30, but look at who the two main candidates are likely to be in the next U.S. presidential election.

If she were a U.S. citizen she would still be too young to be eligible in the next presidential election. And also in the following one.

[Torrain]

https://twitter.com/STVNews/status/1676587122852085760
Looks like MacNeil’s finally crossed the line - after a *lot* of public criticism of the leadership. Interesting it’s happening in the midst of SNP candidate selection for the next election.

[Torrain]

The polling gap has been widening again - it seems to be reaching early-Truss levels:
https://twitter.com/Omnisis/status/1677302168938848259

[MABA 2020]

I almost wish the polls would improve just a little bit for the Tories so they go for an early election and then get smashed anyway. All I see when I see these polls is the next year plus stuck in the current status quo waiting for this terminal government to die.

[CumbrianLefty]

Yes, the coming year is going to be a real bundle of laughs assuming they cling to power.

[JimJamUK]

Some rather right wing press from Labour this morning. ‘Sources’ briefing that Starmer said he “hates tree-huggers” while Rachel Reeves was interviewed on the BBC and was heavily focused on home ownership, saying that the government doesn’t need to spend on social housing they just need to let builders get on and build more homes.

[MaxQue]

Some rather right wing press from Labour this morning. ‘Sources’ briefing that Starmer said he “hates tree-huggers” while Rachel Reeves was interviewed on the BBC and was heavily focused on home ownership, saying that the government doesn’t need to spend on social housing they just need to let builders get on and build more homes.

That is not surprising from someone who is only a Labour member because of their father.

[CumbrianLefty]

Well so is her sister, what's her excuse?

If anything its the other way round - some people can be "tribally Labour" despite being rather right wing in certain respects, this hardly makes RR unique in the party's history.

[Blair]

The weird thing is that Lisa Nandy did a speech the other week saying that social housing would be part of the mix but anyway for my own sanity I don't watch the sunday shows.

Some rather right wing press from Labour this morning. ‘Sources’ briefing that Starmer said he “hates tree-huggers” while Rachel Reeves was interviewed on the BBC and was heavily focused on home ownership, saying that the government doesn’t need to spend on social housing they just need to let builders get on and build more homes.

It was a rather weird set of stories in the ST today; the highlight being one about Sunak that basically just talked about a focus group result (there's a very weird trend to basically use focus groups now as a basis for a whole story when they use to only at best provide 1 or 2 sentences of colour)

[MaxQue]

The weird thing is that Lisa Nandy did a speech the other week saying that social housing would be part of the mix but anyway for my own sanity I don't watch the sunday shows.

Starmer, for some reason, seems unable to contradict or say no to her, even she she contradict other shadow cabinet members.

Of course, if it was up to me, she would go right back to the backbench where she belongs.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

The weird thing is that Lisa Nandy did a speech the other week saying that social housing would be part of the mix but anyway for my own sanity I don't watch the sunday shows.

Starmer, for some reason, seems unable to contradict or say no to her, even she she contradict other shadow cabinet members.

Of course, if it was up to me, she would go right back to the backbench where she belongs.

Are you talking about Nandy or Reeves?

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Not much that Reeves said in the interview was really contradictory with anything Nandy has said: mostly a difference of emphasis, plus the fact that the questions were really odd, though that's normal for a Kuenssberg interview. I suspect that in government (touch wood and so on about that) there will be disputes about this kind of thing, but housing finance is a very complicated issue and not so simple as 'spending taxpayers money' or not.

[MaxQue]

The weird thing is that Lisa Nandy did a speech the other week saying that social housing would be part of the mix but anyway for my own sanity I don't watch the sunday shows.

Starmer, for some reason, seems unable to contradict or say no to her, even she she contradict other shadow cabinet members.

Of course, if it was up to me, she would go right back to the backbench where she belongs.

Are you talking about Nandy or Reeves?

Reeves, through the part about contradictions might also apply to Nandy.

[TheTide]

I assume the moderators are grateful that a certain other subject isn't being discussed. Pretty sure the name will be known officially soon anyway.

[Zinneke]

I assume the moderators are grateful that a certain other subject isn't being discussed. Pretty sure the name will be known officially soon anyway.

It won't be named until he's charged, which might take a while given the complexity of the case. But basically what a useless law the gagging act is if the person is suspended and doesn't appear on TV. With Gylfi Sigurdsson (we can say his name now because he was cleared of charges) it basically was a known fact because he was no longer in the Everton team while the only other "27 year old international" was playing...similar case of showing the gag law is dumb.

Scandal and intrigue though, my god. All this might be Murdoch keeping a former suck up out of the news with his private life too.

[Zinneke]

Also who pays 35k for some OnlyFans-style content?