General British politics discussion thread

Labour are getting to power without debasing themselves to the worst of the Tory party. That tells me they are more interested in power over doing the right thing. Count Binface has it correct

There has to be an election within the next 7 months…. debasing your party will help how?

What was the alternative? Turn her down

Yes FFS.

This isn't some sort of bloody college debate club. It's supposed to be a political party…with SOME sort of principles that are going to be responsible for the governance of the UK.

This is yet another damaging blow to Sunak.

Sunak is fucked anyway. This stunt won't make any difference to that. It may "damage" Sunak. But it also damages Labour too. It hasn't gone down well at all with the PLP and it's yet another feather taken out of Starmer's cap, which he hadn't got many of in the first place.

If Starmer can just blithely wave over someone like Elphicke into "his" party, it doesn't say much for his own political credentials does it. She is at odds of EVERYTHING the Labour Party is supposed to be about.

When Labour can simply just take on people who are actively opposed to their positions, then all that signals is that nothing is going to change once they're in office.

If Labour can turn such a devoted brexiteer and right winger it bodes well so gain the votes needed.

They haven't "turned" anyone. They just invited a snivelling wretch into their ranks.

Labour needs to be much, much, better than this.

Labour shadow ministers are embarrassing themselves to 'support' Starmer in his decision today

I don't think people really know how bad this person is, she isn't a mere internet troll like so many of the right wing Tories, this is a women who was suspended by the commons because she tried to influence the judge in the case of her rapist husband and then taunted them in public and made their life hell.

She then in government ran to the right of JRM ffs when it came to immigration, economics and heck even taunted Rashford over his superb charity work.

Its embarrassing for Sunak, but you don't have to be the left of Jeremy Corbyn to be disgusted by this especially as it was just not needed whatsoever.

Nadhim Zahawi announces he won't run at the GE.

Another rat deserting the sinking Tory ship.

Its shocking to me that even given how bad the Tories are that there is talk of Labour only managing to achieve a hung parliament. This just underlines the lukewarm response to Starmers version of Labour. Its hardly a great platform to launch the sort of reforms the country so desperately needs. I don't see the next Parliament changing much for the poor citizens of the UK.

Hung parliament talk is nothing more than clickbait.

No real doubt about the next election. Where the lack of enthusiasm comes into play is whether Starmer gets more than a single term.

She belongs nowhere near a real Labour Party.

As if the British FPTP system has ever allowed a "real" Labour Party to come to power … or even a "real" Conservative Party for that matter.

It seems to me that much of the criticism of Starmer in this regard and others comes from people harking back to the great days of Jim Larkin's Labour Party and the glorious poverty (in a different country) that accompanied them. Where's the "real Labour Party" in Ireland now? Even here, in almost-communist France, every party left of centre has found itself losing support and becoming unelectable over the last two decades - because when all is said and done, most voters like the comforts and advantages of a centre/centre-right global capitalist economy.

These "real Labour" idealogues would seem to be quite happy to lose yet another election in favour of purity, rather than play the game of politics that would get a Labour party into government and achieve at least some of the Left's long-wanted goals. Starmer is an astute lawyer: he knows how to play political games. So whatever disagreeable baggage this new recruit is bringing with her, it'd be a fair bet to assume that her defection is part of a bigger plan the details of which will become clear in the coming weeks and months. Or not …

The hung parliament line is nonsense being trotted out by sunak to distract from how terrible he is and also try to panic reform voters into coming back to the tories. Hes basing it on the local election results which if the percentages for those were transferred directly over to a GE would very possibly leave a hung parliament. HOWEVER thats not how things work in any way ever, firstly because local elections have massively lower turnout compared to a GE meaning you cant compare the two elections at all and secondly all GE specific polling shows Labour with a record shattering majority.

If Starmer has made a secret plan that involves Elphicke, that would be much, much worse than simply accepting Elphicke into the party just to annoy the Tories. Making any plan that involves or depends on Elphicke would be a serious, serious misjudgment. Admitting her to the party is one thing; according her any influence, or position of responsibility, would be quite another.

I think people's concern is basically this: Starmer is going to win the next election, and very comfortably. He doesn't at this point need to welcome a piece of work like Elphicke into the party in order to acheive or defend Labour's electability. Therefore, people reason, he must be doing it for some other reason. And what other reason might that be? Is it, as CR suggests, some cunning plan in which Elphicke will play a role? That would be worrying, because why in God's name would you want the likes of Elphicke playing any role in the Labour party? Is it that he wants to strengthen the position of those in the Labour party who hold Elphicke-adjacent views? That would be horrifying. Etc, etc.

In short, I think there's those who accept that sometimes you have to hold your nose and reach out to voters whose views you don't entirely like in order to get into power, and getting into power is necessary if you are to acheive anything at all. But Labour's not in that position right now; welcoming Elphicke can't be excused as a necessary evil that must be suffered in order to get into office. So how can Starmer excuse it?

What hidden added value do you think it might have ?

Only need another 23 or so. Which is unlikely but not implausible considering how many Tories have been booted out so far, and two defections.

Analysis based on a useless/inappropriate data set