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Hess another Mick Lynch type figure, toxic for the people he claims to represent.
Wtf is that supposed to mean? Zia Yusuf is a deeply unpleasant person, far more unpleasant than even Nigel Farage imo. And yeah many people attracted to Reform will know who he is, only about a week ago he was on BBC QT spewing out his far-right nonsense
I don’t understand the Mick Lynch connection at all. Very odd.
Do you think that rail, maritime and transport workers have benefitted from Brexit, Kelvin? If you do I understand that you would find my comparison odd. However, if you think that Mick Lynch's (Ernie's idol) advice to his union members to vote Brexit was against their interests then you'll see that Muslims voting for Yusuf/Reform is comparable. They both put their personal agenda before the interests of people they preach to.
Mick Lynch's (Ernie's idol)
Well that's news to me!
Like a lot of punters on here I very much liked Mick Lynch's combative style when dealing with Tory politicians and the media. However I have always liked Eddie Dempsey, the man who has replaced Mick Lynch as general secretary of the RMT, even more. He is even more apt at hitting nails on the head and he speaks with seamless fluidity.
Dempsey is at least as opposed to the EU as Lynch was. I actually saw Dempsey speak at a packed meeting against the EU during the referendum campaign.
RMT members will have been fully aware of Bob Crow's, Mick Lynch's, and Eddie Dempsey's, views on the EU, and yet they have nevertheless had huge confidence in the abilities to represent them, even if you don't Ed
Is there another current here maybe?
Brexit has I think seen an explosion in legal migration from India, but the mood in the press is heading towards “Brexit was a disaster and it was all Nigel’s idea”. Even the Telegraph are starting to run that.
So perhaps and maybe, if you are Indian, then Reform is (de facto) a pro-Indian immigration party fighting against European free movement and the benefits to Indian immigration that brings. Maybe
It’s going to confuse things for some of the anti-immigrant white Anglo Saxon less enlightened types that’s for sure
Ahh, I see your point now Ed. Not sure they are at all comparable myself. I might be blinded by the wider politics of the two though.
Lynch was the name I'd associated with you (for obvious reasons) but now you mention Dempsey I recall you've been enthusiastic about Dempsey too.
Gong back to my labour economics option at uni one of the ways to erode union power in the work place was to put the union leaders on a pedestal. Things like a nice office, three figure salery, pit bull, exotic holidays and despite all that a council house. Make them feel superior to the rank and file and lose sight of what really matters to their members. Let them get distracted with their politics. Set them up to knock them down, exploit their notoriety in a negative way "the most hated man in Britian". Crow's fight was often right and just but I don't think his persona did unionisation any good and more to the point didn't do his members much good. It strikes me that German union leaders nobody knows the name of do a better job for their members.
Take truck drivers, a chronic shortage, Brexit, Covid... and the unions have failed to capitalise on a highly favourable supply and demand situation, their wages are down in real terms over the last decade and as for their conditions... . If ever there was a time for a union to improve its workers' pay and conditions it's right now. So why aren't I reading about them?
Anyhow compare a debating style of any of the above with say Marylise Léon. I know who is more likely to influence my voting choices, a voice of reason rather than a pit bull. 🙂
Edit: makes sense, igm. I'll add that to the anti-muslim factor.
Crow's fight was often right and just but I don't think his persona did unionisation any good and more to the point didn't do his members much good.
When Bob Crow became RMT leader in 2002 membership was at 57k, by the time of his untimely death in 2014 it was 80k, and this was a period of overall decline for trade union membership.
There is obviously a reason why Bob Crow bucked the trend. I think many rail, maritime, and transport workers might not agree with you.
Anyway this Nigel Farage geezer....... what a ****, eh?
Anyway this Nigel Farage geezer....... what a ****, eh?
Yup.
I don't regard the level of union membership as an accurate guide to the success of the leadership. The closed shop period had some lousy leaders who only succeeded in permanently losing their members their jobs. On the other hand I've worked in places in France with low union membership (around 20%) where the unions have negotiated very well for not only their members but the whole workforce - because the majority of workforce was prepared to support a union call to action and the employers knew it.
Rather predictably Reform led Kent Country Council continues to tear itself apart.
The video is online but a bit sweary so I won't post a link. Easy to find though.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn0gxn496zyo
☝️Her dad was an immigrant from Trinidad, just saying like.
The closed shop period had some lousy leaders who only succeeded in permanently losing their members their jobs.
I was a victim of this, I was forced to join the NGA (National Graphical Association), which had the highest subs of any Union in the country, but when I was threatened with losing my job, the amount of help I was offered came to the sum total of bugger-all. It’s little wonder I then developed a very jaundiced view of the Union system. 🤬
They never got you a wage rise? It's hard to believe that they were strong enough to negotiate a closed shop but not higher wages.
Just tripped over this...
It’s behind a paywall but but may end up interesting or being nothing.
But that Clacton house saga may run on a bit more.
Since the majority of now Reform "supporters" were not voting Reform 15 months ago I think it is difficult to gauge the effect any negative publicity might have.
Although an investigation into the affairs of the partner of a politician several years ago isn't likely to have a huge effect I would have thought.
The fraud investigation into Morgan McSweeney, Starmer's right-hand man, doesn't seem to have damaged Labour much. Although in fairness with the latest opinion poll putting them on level pegging with the Greens I guess Labour's support base couldn't really collapse much more.
Unless dodgy stuff concerning Labour is part of the reason for their historically low level of support now? The freebies scandal involving Starmer couldn't have helped them.
Well all this was so predictable. The quotes below were posted at the time that the local election results were coming through, in the end I think Reform won control of 10 councild.
Here’s hoping that now they’re responsible for actually making some decisions that actually effect peoples lives, that they’ll now be held up to the same scrutiny as the other political parties.
Very likely I would have thought, with responsibility comes accountability, something which Farage uniquely among party leaders has up until now been spared.
I believe that as a baggage-free party leader, combined with an electorate desperate for something fresh and new, that Farage was in a strong position to become UK prime minister in 2029.
Farage might yet rue the day that Reform won control of six councils and scuppered his long-term political ambitions.
How does an organisation like Reform reckon that they have a reputation to besmirch?
Well here in Wales there is alternative alternative, and the good folk of Caerphilly voted for it:
BBC News - Chris Mason: Extraordinary Caerphilly by-election humbles Westminster's big beasts
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gj48q4x39o
Go Plaid!
I remember Leanne Wood leader of PC at the time publicly humiliating Nigel Farage on national television
Wood was an impressive operator.
A good result indeed. Mrs g is involved in the party in our constituency, which neighbours Caerphilly, and has spent a lot of time leafletting and canvassing recently (I helped with leafletting once). She is a happy bunny this morning!
This was fptp because the seat being filled was the fptp seat not one of the "list" seats under the old fptp/ open list system. The Senedd elections next year will be under the new closed list system, so not much opportunity for tactical voting. Looks like Reform will get a bunch of seats, could be an interesting battle to be the largest party. Could be Reform most seats but a Labour/ Plaid coalition gets to form a government. Interesting times, as they say.
The moment you realise Nigel is a liar. 
What have Caerphilly and Clacton got in common?
I thought we'd passed peak flag shagging season as they've disappeared from a few local hotspots, but Notts Council have just raised the bar (or is it lowered?). At least these ones should be the right way up.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czdr3npe33do
A good result indeed. Mrs g is involved in the party in our constituency, which neighbours Caerphilly, and has spent a lot of time leafletting and canvassing recently (I helped with leafletting once). She is a happy bunny this morning!
From what I have read it had been heavily sold as a two horse race between Reform and Plaid.
Plaid benefited hugely from tactical voting from those concerned about Reform getting in. Plaid had a local guy who`d been a Caerphilly councillor over 50 years, and Reform had a guy who worked for Nathan Gill whilst he took bribes from Russia, and stood as a Conservative candidate for Cardiff in 2022 ... I`m surprised Reform got any votes in a South Wales valleys town with credentials like that.
I`m surprised Reform got any votes in a South Wales valleys town with credentials like that.
They have excellent PR, are constantly in the news and stupid, poorly educated and/or wilfully ignorant people are everywhere.
From what I have read it had been heavily sold as a two horse race between Reform and Plaid.
Labour were saying the same mutatis mutandis, it was the publication last week of a credible poll showing Labour a distant third that probably helped clarify the issue for tactical voters.
As with Brexit, Farage has very successfully sold Reform as the “**** you!” vote to ‘the establishment’
Not bad going for a bloke who is the living embodiment of ‘the establishment’.
On Five Live earlier one of the reporters was outside a polling station asking people who had just voted for Reform what particular policy or policies it was of there’s that they particularly supported. Cue lots of people going “erm….. errrrrrrr…..”.
None of them could name a single policy other than some vague bollocks about stopping the boats, without any detail about how they were actually going to do that
https://twitter.com/GoodwinMJ/status/1982935701848240210?t=DbScCoDxMpDnaRgmOZH1uQ&s=19
Someone tell him the annual budget is 1.3 trillion.
0.00769%
🤣
so how does bringing outsiders in and privatising things save money, do they do it for nothing?
idiots, they annoy me
A Reform government would save £100m a year by
Yeah it's just weird how trumpeting the claim that Reform will "save" £100M Matt Goodwin appears to have no understanding of what that represents in relation to government spending in the world's sixth largest economy.
Who the **** is Matt Goodwin anyway? He reminds me Dougal
Farage will be the next PM not because of his policies, "ideology" or promises etc. He will be handed the role of PM because of the sign of time due to the incompetent (well, he will do the "MAGA" as his pal) of current or previous govt to manage the economy. People are increasing feeling the pinch due to the soaring price, inflation, less value for money etc.
It's a great con, you have to hand him that. Spike the UK economy and then ride into power based on that handicap hitting the voters.
There was a voxpop on earlier from Buxton. Now, not a single migrant is being housed in little old Buxton. But it was still the single most brought up issue. Not the housing of migrants, merely the possibility of housing migrants. Any mention of the empty Derby Uni halls in the town was instantly reacted to by a fear that they might be used to house migrants.
Farage will become prime minister because of petty insularity, xenophobia and prejudice. And whilst he is doing his performative nastiness above the table, he'll be robbing people blind under it.
Farage will become prime minister because of petty insularity, xenophobia and prejudice. And whilst he is doing his performative nastiness above the table, he'll be robbing people blind under it.
He will not be a PM relying on those few votes only, impossible.
But he will be a PM because people not previously affected much (or still able to tolerate soaring price etc) are now also feeling the pinch. These are the people sitting on the borderline of affordability or hungry or unaffordable, and they will take their chances with a new PM or party no matter who the person can be. Then we shall see a period of major changes like MAGA now.
Farage will become prime minister because of petty insularity, xenophobia and prejudice
No Danny, you always trot out that line but if there is petty insularity, xenophobia and prejudice, during the 2029 general election then there will have been petty insularity, xenophobia and prejudice, during the 2024 general election when Labour won a landslide victory.
If Nigel Farage becomes UK Prime Minister, which looks increasingly likely, then it will be because of firstly the failure of 5 years of Tory-LibDem government, followed by the failure of 9 years of Tory government, and finally the failure of 5 years of Labour government.
Voters today (living under a huge Labour majority government) have basically the same moral compass as they will have in 4 years time.
There was a voxpop on earlier from Buxton.
Good article on the Beeb about Buxton, probably related to the voxpop you saw.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgkpjdzv74o
In summary, healthcare in the area is far less dependant upon overseas workers (so they have no idea of the need for and benefits of immigration for much of the country) and a shrinking small amount of immigrants, most from Ukraine fleeing the war (so also don't see any potential negatives of immigration, real or imagined)...
So for all intents and purposes immigration should be a total non issue in the area. Yet they vote in a Reform council. 😁
Hardly surprising. Nearly all domestic news on all channels seems to be about asylum seekers (and wholly negative). Even C4/ITN news now. You'd think nothing else ever happened on "these shores" other than the occasional small boat making it here. Totally blown out of proportion in the minds of so many, by the constant drip of "this is all so important some how" from all the media.
So for all intents and purposes immigration should be a total non issue in the area. Yet they vote in a Reform council. 😁
Support for Reform among British Indians has more than trebled in the last year, assuming that concerns over immigration and a rejection of multiculturalism doesn't lie at the heart of this sudden surge of support for Reform among British Indians perhaps those who Reform have been attracting in the last year are motivated by different concerns?