the effort you’re putting in to arguing about whether a GP is middle class or upper middle class
I think you overestimate the effort involved in writing a couple of sentences. 😀
They’re picking an awful lot of fights though.
And they'll lose. They're already buckling on the nurses strike, the same will happen with the PCS, rail workers etc.
As for eco-protestors, it's pretty funny the govt telling a bunch of activists that they'll be sent to prison if they disrupt people's lives when the whole strategy of those activists is to get sent to prison to highlight the issue they're protesting about. Also in many cases these acitivists are being found guilty by juries who sympathise and indentify with their cause.
'Hard working majority' is nicked from Obama's 'hard working people' but the 'majority' bit is to imply that strikers/demonstrators are a lazy, ****less minority who should happily accept a pay cut and de-regulation and know that they stand the chance of a good whacking if they organise against it.
From the Guardian article above and very true.
I have always thought it a no-brainer that a highly unpopular Tory government would never prevail in a tug-of-war for public sympathy with nurses. That’s a battle Mrs Thatcher never provoked.
The beauty of the word "majority" is that any group you want to degenerate... nurses, cleaners, protestors... they will always be the "minority"... so you can attack anyone and everyone with that kind of othering, while sounding "democratic" to people who don't fully understand what that means. Let's face it.. the "hard working majority" voted for parties other than Sunak's at the last election... so you could use that to attack him, his party, and those that put them in a power. It's the basest form of politics available (and it works... well has worked... Sunak's hole in support now looks too deep for him to climb out of on the backs of all the "minorities" he can identify and attack).
Thatcher was very sensitive with regards to the public's huge commitment in the NHS. She famously said "the NHS is safe in my hands" to reassure voters, and although I don't think anything was safe in her hands I reckon the NHS did survive her premiership relatively unscathed.
tjagain Full Member
£ 45000 a year fees?
To resurrect this point for a moment. I am sitting right now having my lunch in an Italian Deli surrounded by pupils from a local fee-paying school about a quarter of a mile away.
It made me wonder how the fees for that school compared to Winchester. It turns out almost identical - £43,629
https://www.whitgift.co.uk/admissions/fees
So it turns out that I am surrounded by kids, 12 I've counted, who are just as privileged as Rishi Sunak was when he was their age.
Do they inhabit a different world to me? Undoubtedly. But but I wouldn't exaggerate it - we at least share the same Italian Deli, in fact today due to lack of space I am even sharing the same table as a couple.
They are actually nice kids - always polite and no trouble.
Furthermore two of my very good riding buddies are former Whitgift School boys, although I don't think either of them post on here despite one being a very keen gravel bike rider - he is an accountant and dislikes both the royal family and the Tories. I can't quite remember what the other one does but I am fairly sure that he doesn't inhabit the world of the super rich. I know that his wife is a midwife as I see even more of her on bike rides than him.
Of course both of them might have won scholarships so their parents need not have had to have the equivalent of £43k in today's money, I would have to ask them.
To spend £43k anyone on PAYE would need to gross £90k to pay for it.
Having sent our kids to private school I do understand the cost differential between an 'average' private school and somewhere like Eton/Winchester etc. My OH and I would've been earning probably the same if not more than Sunak's folks and no way was somewhere like Winchester accessible to us, especially for three kids - do we know where the other two went?
do we know where the other two went?
I have no idea but surely every Asian mother knows that you take of your eldest son?
Or have I watched too much of 'Goodness Gracious Me'?
do we know where the other two went?
To the comp on the local sink estate. One is in prison for shoplifting and the other is still at Goldman Sachs
One is in prison for shoplifting and the other is still at Goldman Sachs
Made me laugh. But also made me look. Both have pretty interesting jobs... he's a Clinical Neuropsychologist and she's working at the UN... I'd rather have either of their careers than Rishi's anyway. The UN job came after getting some high profile work for the government that their brother happened to be a part of... nice career stepping stone not available to all of us... but, snide comment aside, looks like a rewarding career.
I’d rather have their careers than Rishi’s anyway.
Why?
It is almost certainly the best paid and the one which needs the least qualifications.
I reckon Rishi has landed on his feet.
I'd hate to be PM. Wouldn't you?
I'd love to be PM. I'd sort you lot right out. 🙂
I’d hate to be PM. Wouldn’t you?
Yup. Doesn't really fit with my 10-4 typical working day with a leisurely lunch. 😀
I'd have hated to have taken the Goldman Sachs and offshore hedgefunds route as well. Loads of money perhaps, but soul destroying. Depends on what you value I suppose. His siblings look to have far more interesting careers to me.
I’d love to be PM.
I'd rather have a retired nurse, even you*, as PM than someone who made their money in a California based hedgefund betting against the prospects of the UK.
[ *please take that in the lighthearted manner it is intended 😉 ]
I would be like Rufus T Firefly if I was Prime Minister.
"who are you going to trust, me or your lying eyes?"
C. Marx
Doesn’t really fit with my 10-4 typical working day with a leisurely lunch.
Worked for Johnson.
Just depends on how much you care about doing a good job.
*adds Kelvin to "the list"*
If I was PM I'd end up making Boris look like an exemplar of honesty, modesty and restraint
Its also quite possible you may all die by my hand
If I was PM I’d end up making Boris look like an exemplar of honesty, modesty and restraint
I'd do a polonium job on Nigel Farage and Sophie Corcoran. A long, painful, lingering death where they can contemplate their demise for a couple of days, livestreamed on www.gov.uk.
Just make them an irrelevance, way better than going to hassle of murderising.
Looks like that, not content with starting wars with the unions and protest groups, Rishi has just instigated a completely pointless power struggle with the Scottish government
In a short space of time, he’s making himself a lot of enemies.
I don't think it's about the policy, which is mostly very widely supported, despite what the BBC lies say. It has to be about arrogance and a sense of entitled control.
"How dare you wee Scottish upstarts do something more positive than we can manage..?"
He doesn't pick the best things to fight over, does he..?
It would look a bit weird if instead of being chauffeur-driven in a bullet proof Range Rover the Prime Minister drove himself around in a Lamborghini surrounded by police outriders and followed by armed police in support vehicles.
Meh,I was thinking of his previous life not the current one he stole from Saj.
“How dare you wee Scottish upstarts do something more positive than we can manage..?”
He doesn’t pick the best things to fight over, does he..?
I think his decisions are based purely on tomorrow’s Daily Mail headlines.
Seems like classic ‘small man’ syndrome to me. Thinks he’ll take everyone on to show how hard he is. I think we’re going to be seeing quite a bit of backtracking, very soon, when reality asserts itself over his ridiculous macho posturing.
Seems like classic ‘small man’ syndrome to me.
That rings bells, someone else seems to be suffering the same thing and starting loads of fights, tip of my tongue, can't quite put my finger on their name. Going well for them as well I hear.
I think its all part of his culture wars - that and a total lack of understanding of Scots law. the reason they went to 16 is because everything under Scots law has you an adult at 16. the only things you have to be older for are things that are under UK law. You cn vote and you can marry without parental consent at 16
the whole thing is a farce. Sturgeon expended loads of political capital on that but in the end got as close to consensus as possible. the GRA was backed by most SNP. Most labour, Lib dems and some tories. Huge majority in Holyrood. what right does he have to override that?
Starmer is going to back him as well.
its just a gift to the SNP thats a few % on the independence vote right there
I was "meh" about the GRA but I am outraged by this. Sunak has no mandate in Scotland.
Sunak is just picking fights to keep the frothing loons in his party at bay. I'm sure if he'd have his own way he'd be hiding in any fridges he could find without BJ already in there.
Feels like the tension within the Tories is bubbling just under the surface. He'll be fine until the local elections. The day after? Well, we'll see.
I don't think Rishi Sunak is quite as short as he appears to be.
I think part of the problem is that his impressively large ears give the wrong perspective to the rest of him.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/rishi-sunak-height-how-tall-b2212471.html
And btw it is impolite to speak critically of someone's height. Besides, Warwick Davis is my favourite game show host. Even if does have to sit on a box.
Sunak also thinks ( I believe) that this veto will be a vote winner in Scotland. Using trans rights as a political football
if anything showed the democratic deficit this does
It seems a very odd hill to choose to die on
He’s just detonated a massive constitutional stand off, and for what?
It’s difficult to see what he stands to gain from any of this even if he nominally ‘wins’
I think he believes it will win him votes in Scotland. tories down to 18% in Scotland last time I looked.
it will also play well i the daily Heil.
Starmer is going to back him as well. he does not like the age of maturity being 16 in Scotland. ( or doesn't understand this)
It’s difficult to see what he stands to gain from any of this even if he nominally ‘wins’
I suspect he hopes by throwing a bone to the antiwoke warriors they might leave him alone for a bit and not agitate to bring back the king over the water to rule again.
Its either that or he looked at the constitutional crisis in Northern Ireland and decided kicking off in Scotland would confuse things especially that the former is down to brexit.
Sunak also thinks ( I believe) that this veto will be a vote winner in Scotland.
More likely he thinks it's a vote-winner in England. Scotland is lost to the Conservatives.
On a different tangent - did we spot this rather left wing thinking from the tories in the news yesterday?...
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-64278651
On a different tangent – did we spot this rather left wing thinking from the tories in the news yesterday?…
I spotted that. To be fair, sounds like it's a "left wing Tory" think tank. And the minimum income might only be £3.84 a week.
It will also play well i the daily Heil.
Starmer is going to back him as well
I am not sure that Starmer actually supports the Westminster veto of the Scottish proposed legislation but he does apparently have very serious concerns about it.
As does the Equality and Human Rights Commission. And also the Guardian newspaper (I have no idea about the "Daily Heil")
It would make things much simpler of course if it was just a case of "woke v anti-woke" but it doesn't appear to be.
I fully expect Starmer to back Sunak. He has made it clear he thinks the GRA is wrong based on his lack of understanding of scots law
Sunak and Starmer have the same objectives with regards to Scotland. they want the SNP to fail and they do not want a left wing socially liberal exemplar north of the border. The Guardian is also staunchly unionist and opposes the SNP at all times.
The GRA has been carefully drafted and amended to not conflict with equalities law as much as possible. Trans rights is a very difficult issue however to ensure no one is disadvantaged
Starmer may crack under pressure from Scots labour who back the GRA but usually he just ignores them
It will be interesting to see how the Scots press plays this. We have 3 quality(ish) papers. The national which is staunchly pro independence but not necessarily pro SNP. the herald which is fairly neutral on independence perhaps slightly tipping towards and the Staunchly tory unionist Scotsman. Ill have a look at them
It would make things much simpler of course if it was just a case of “woke v anti-woke” but it doesn’t appear to be.
No, it's pretty much a young people vs old people issue.
Anyway, judging from my Mum's reaction, who left the SNP because of this issue, she doesn't like the GRR but she is absolutely enraged that Westminster has done this.
I suspect Sunak thought this would somehow strengthen the Union. I think it's going to backfire badly.
The papers are all partly behind paywalls so hard to see the full position
Ian Murray the only Scots labour MP is backing Sunaks view - thats a firm clue to how Starmer will react. The scots labour MSPs are in general appalled at the veto. tories are being quiet. Nowt from DRoss
The national only has a brief editorial Very much opposed to the veto unsuprisingly calling it " the end of devolution"
herald seems to be very much against the Veto and points out that Starmer has shown utter contempt for the scots labour MSPs which appears to be a quote from a scots labour MSP. also gives space to a Scots tory attacking labour for " being divided"
Scotsman is fairly neutral which is a suprise and claims the westminster tories are divided over the veto
From that quick glance and its also early days the scots media are going to come out overall in favour of holyrood and devolution and against Sunaks actions
his lack of understanding of scots law
You do realise TJ that you are suggesting that you have a better understanding of scots law than a trained barrister and former Director of Public Prosecutions and Head of the Crown Prosecution Service, don't you?
And instead of assuming that Starmer and the Guardian are ganging up to be mean to the SNP because they don't want Scottish independence, have you considered the possibility that they may actually have serious concerns about the GRA?
Why can you not see how the GRA might cause serious concerns?
Anyway, judging from my Mum’s reaction, who left the SNP because of this issue, she doesn’t like the GRR but she is absolutely enraged that Westminster has done this.
I think thats going to be a reasonably common viewpoint that its antidemocratic and kills devolution dead. I don't believe its the sort of issue that .a section 35 order was intended for. I'm not totally happy with the GRA but i think its a reasonable compromise and it was backed by all parties ( with a few holdouts) bar the tories and even some tories backed it. the main issue that seems to be a sticking point with both Sunak and Starmer is that it applies from 16. that just shows a basic lack of understanding of scots law
