General British politics discussion thread

breezy1985

Gove reckons Starmer is weak on economics.

This coming from a man instrumental in trashing the economy.

Panthro

Get the popcorn

ancapailldorcha

Etchingham has the patience of a saint. I'd pay an extra £2,000 a year in tax willingly if it meant never having to hear Sunak bleat about tax cuts ever again.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220622#Comment_122220622

Hilarious that he keeps mentioning 2000 when that's the exact amount that is claimed Brexit cost every house.

ancapailldorcha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220624#Comment_122220624

I don't get why people keep clapping for lower taxes when we can see the state of public services. Seems to be mainly older folks as well.

pleasant Co.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220641#Comment_122220641

maybe because your taxes are being spent on ferry companies that have no boats?

devnull

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220641#Comment_122220641

Unfortunately many of the same folk are in denial about how bad public services have got in the UK.

AMKC

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122219472#Comment_122219472

Delighted for him. It's his own fault for bring such an evil horrible man.

thecretinhop

I watched a video he was very good.

Why would sunak go to polls insanity

Tories worried about other forces

Labour allowed to have huge majority there turn

Uniparty like dems and rinos

Ironically he quoted Tony Blair on election night 1997 we have won too much

Ie if Tories get obliterated there can be no punch and Judy show one arse check the same etc

Finally Tories public despair Labour 4 years despair

2028 far left Centre right and far right hoover up votes Tories Labour wiped out

ancapailldorcha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220650#Comment_122220650

Clearly.

Starmer is a weaker debater than I remember. Not hopeless by any stretch but he's definitely no Tony Blair.

https://twitter.com/IanDunt/status/1798093130362671448

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220673#Comment_122220673

Its nice to see posters who's writing style is inspired by classics like Finnegan's Wake.

thecretinhop

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220722#Comment_122220722

As I have said before I have dyslexia

Peter Flynt

Sunak clearly outperforming Starmer. It won't be enough for the tories but at least it might claw back a few seats for them.

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220771#Comment_122220771

Its all just the same old disproven stuff though.

Economy: Tory good, Labour bad.

Dropping nukes: Tory good, Labour bad.

I and most here could have easily written Sunak's tired script.

Water John

Before the return of Farage, Tories aim was to try and get 200+ MPs elected. The estimate on his intervention is put at 60 off that total. That's all Sunak is bailing out.

ancapailldorcha

It's such a grim format. Each candidate has to give a fully costed, worked out plan to fix the NHS or something similar in 45 seconds with interruptions from the other one. I'd forgotten that.

That said, I think Starmer came across as being a bit better, being able to go into detail until being shut down by Julie Etchingham. It's not a thumping win but better than losing.

breezy1985

England seems weirdly obsessed with "questions".

Maybe I am wrong and it's the same in Ireland but it feels like UK debates and PMQs are filed with stupid "Mary from Ahascragh wants to know what colour you would paint your kitchen" kind of questions.

A Dub in Glasgo

It is rubbish

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220841#Comment_122220841

Mostly made up stuff to try and get that 'gotcha' moment

devnull

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220819#Comment_122220819

Personally I think Sunak won that, especially on the people he needs to win over.

Sunak was clearly targeting the core vote and those who might be people who are voting Labour in polls but are still unsure where their final vote is going to be going. Whilst his rhetoric and tactics will never win over someone like me who despises the modern Conservative Party, I am seeing that it is cutting through with the people I mentioned.

He's tapping into doubts that people have about Labour who up until tonight were likely to vote Labour and I think his performance tonight would have won some of them over unfortunately. As someone with family in the UK and also work in the public sector, it's in desperate need of a change of Government, but if I was the Tories today, I'd be very happy with how the debate went and the gap narrowed today I'm afraid.

Starmer needs a better head to head debate next time around in the BBC one, for the good of the country.

thecretinhop

I think labor 200

Tories 50

Rest etc

A Dub in Glasgo

Starmer was poor but that is what usually happens when you say nothing of substance

Sunak was laughed at which tells you anybody could lead Labour to victory against this lot

Randycove

it looked like the same old same old to me.
Tories attacking labour on taxes and labour trying to drag some kind of class war in to it.

ancapailldorcha

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220887#Comment_122220887

I don't think this matters that much. The thing with the Conservatives being divisive is that most people have their minds made up by now.

The only people who have serious doubts about Labour are the left who might vote Green and richer people who want lower taxes. We desperately need a change of government and, thankfully, it's going to happen. I don't think Starmer needs a better head to head debate given his lead in the polls.

Podge_irl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220892#Comment_122220892

You think Labour and the Tories will get less than half the seats in the Commons?

thecretinhop

My anivetsity of my mother is today I'm sorry my gurss were wrong she dies it's emotional facts wrong

Peregrinus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122219414#Comment_122219414

The deadline for lodging or withdrawing a nomination is 4 pm on Friday 7 June, so there is very little time left for any kind of Tory/Reform deal. Last week people were speculating about some kind of grubby deal being stitched up this week, but Farage's decision to reappoint himself as party leader and to run in Clacton pretty much puts the kibosh on that. Far from doing a deal with the Tories, he's aiming to destroy them in the hope that Reform can replace them as the dominant party on the right of UK politics.

On a separate point, because the election was called earlier than expected not all parties were as well-prepared as they might have been and the Tories, ironically, were particularly unprepared. It has been mentioned that they needed to find candidates for more than a hundred seats between the day the election was called and the day nominations close. This will almost certainly mean that they don't have time to do proper vetting of prospective candidates, and it's highly likely that they will nominate more than a few candidates who turn out to have dodgy backgrounds, a history of racist, homophobic, fascist, etc social media engagement, etc, etc. No doubt the Labour party will have a team of people at HQ dedicated to finding these things and bringing them to light.

wazzzledazzle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122220892#Comment_122220892

What?

Anyway, wasn't a great watch. Didn't think neither were particularly good. Sunak is so full of **** though. At least Starmer has genuine integrity

wazzzledazzle

I note Mishal Hussain is moderating the BBC debate. She's fine but i would have preffered Sophie Raworth, or not that it would ever happen Ros Atkins

pixelburp

The whole debate concept really does stink of an attempt at Americanisation of UK politics and presumably the Lib Dems are hopping mad they haven't been invited. Wholesale disenfranchisement and scepticism, and Starmer agreed to a kingmaker TV debate; yes realistically those were the two potential PMs but it leaves a sour taste watching our closest neighbour slowly inch itself towards the bottom.

Said it before but truly he's the Joe Biden of Labour: any other Tory government, any other circumstance and he'd be a lame duck.

wazzzledazzle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122221429#Comment_122221429

I'm sorry, but i don't understand this kind of commentary about Starmer. He is a former head of DPP, Articulate, Capable and seems as honest as one can be in that line of work.

Maybe i'm missing something, but there is an easy comparison to make, Boris, Truss, Rishi, in fairness to Theresa May she seemed genuine enough, but the racist party couldn't have someone like that in charge