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Funny how Robert Buckland suddenly remembers her trying to corrupt the judicial process four years ago.
Perhaps the sight of a former Dictator of Public Prosecutions welcoming and defending a far-right politician who tried to nobble a judge jolted his memory?
What's also funny is that Sir Keir Starmer appears to have such a short memory that he didn't seem to have remembered why Natalie Elphicke was suspended from the House of Commons.
Hey James O'Brien called it a genius move - looks totally regressive to me.
More than half the guardian comments section is in tatters.
Elphicke is just trying to do as much damage as possible to the Tories and Labour in her spiteful farewell to parliament.
Starmer should have told her to do one and at least hold onto a scrap of moral high ground. Elphicke will not be tomorrow's chip paper because she's not the type to go quietly. She will continue to do damage (more to Starmer than Sunak) for as long as she sits as a MP.
This is a huge error by Starmer.
Agree, struggling to see any upside to Labour here and waiting on the 'new information has come to light' suspension and back track
All the evidence is that after the general election she will derive her income from that sector, having easy access to non-hostile government ministers will possibly prove rather useful. Before she became an MP she was doing work for the government, she is obviously aware that the next government will be a Labour government.
Most plausible explanation by far.
She would have done Sunak more damage by defecting to Reform UK.
In the last year support for Labour has more or less remained stable but the Labour lead has slowly increased because the Tories have hemorrhaged votes to Reform UK. Support for Reform UK has more than double in the last year.
Labour has taken about as many votes from the Tories as is reasonably possible, they can't realistically take much more. Reform UK on the other hand can.
With Elphicke defecting to Labour Sunak was able to do what everyone else has done - shrug his shoulders and dismiss as bizarre and illogical because she has nothing in common with Labour.
A defection to Reform UK would have been a huge problem for Sunak because it is seen by many as the natural home for disaffected right-wing Tories, Elphicke's defection would have simply fed that narrative and encouraged others to follow suit.
The problem for Elphicke is that Reform UK won't be forming the next government, Labour will be.
When you add up all the different sections of society he's pissed off you do wonder what he imagines his constituency to be.
This feels pretty signifcant
not just because it shows that elphicke has definitely crossed the floor, but also that Sunak is losing control of parliament
https://twitter.com/PippaCrerar/status/1790114501762674694
This feels pretty signifcant
Other tories also voted for it without crossing the floor and damaging labours reputation. So not really significant at all. But I am sure some still want to believe welcoming such a vile politician into labour is a sign of SKS's tactical genius.
Yup, I don't think there is anything significant about the new far-right Labour MP voting with the majority in what was a free vote.
Especially as it comes days after she was forced to publicly apologise for attempting to justify the sex crimes of a former MP.
One time Tory Party Leader Theresa May also managed to vote for the Labour/LibDem amendment. She remains a Conservative MP.
That is was a free vote not whipped surely makes it more significant & the 8 Tory MPs that voted against the government on this are all considered to the left* of elphicke/ wets by the frothing hard right that are driving the Tories currently!
It doesnt stop her being a horrible woman, but shows she now has to vote very differently and its certainly helping destabilise the tories even more, Ill bet she's off the CCHQ xmas card list
https://twitter.com/MittensOff/status/1790411304588435519
*Im aware that everyone is to the left of her!
Carving that on a rock's not going to cut it, I want to see it tattooed on his face, that might stop him uturning on it all
“First Steps ….. Right, Left, Right, Left, Right, Left “
Remember David Blunkett as Home Secretary? Gengis Khan would have thought some of Davids policies were going a bit too far.
The question SKS is going to struggle with soon (that's already been put in a few places) is How Come Natalie Elphicke is an acceptable member of the Labour party, but Diane Abbot has had the whip withdrawn for over a year now?
They will soon start to run the risk of undermining some core support, if they lurch too far rightwards and keep refusing to make any space for those to the left with a long history in the party...
That ship has already sailed.
Haven't we had a list of stuff before?
Yeah okay.
(Plus GB energy is one hollowed out around the houses construct. )
It's all getting a bit not worth looking at these days.
Economic stability is not a clear aim. Not sure it can be measured or makes any sense in isolation. Besides whatever economic stability does mean - it won't create any new money to spend.
Starmer is so lazy in his lazy-focussed approach. And no - boring isn't necessarily good.
In my mob there's people involved in recruitment to teaching and inspection and the situation is dire, particularly in the more deprived areas. How does he think he's going to recruit 6,500 extra teachers who are any good without upping the salary and status of the profession? 'Secureconomics' will guarantee that doesn't happen.
In my mob there’s people involved in recruitment to teaching and inspection and the situation is dire, particularly in the more deprived areas.
My partner says the same - as a Teacher.
So Starmergeddon happened
Big swing, but low vote share, low turnout, detracts from the fact that Labour were incredibly efficient with their votes, stacking them up in the right places, I dont think people ever really appreciated how ruthless he was going to be about making sure Labour won.
On the plus side, with enthusiasm for Labour low, he has the opportunity to surprise on the upside
Now there is a huge task ahead, 5 years to show improvement in peoples lives or they could well face a wipeout similar to the Tories in 2029
stacking them up in the right places,
Starmer was able to move votes across the country to where he needed them? The man is a genius!
He should have stacked a few more in his constituency though, his share of the vote halved. That's not a good look for a party leader on a winning streak.
Yes, Starmer and his team worked out WHERE the votes were needed, and sacrificed votes where they weren’t. A ruthless approach that’s earned him many detractors and enemies… and delivered Labour many more MPs and the chance for his party to control parliament and the government.
I guess you don't become a fairly competent criminal barrister by not knowing how to win. There's a quietly cold calculating man in there, that seemingly knows how to win a fight. Be interesting to see how things go on.
Starmer Is as cunning as a fox what used to be Professor of Cunning at Oxford University.
He managed to win a landslide victory for Labour with less votes than Corbyn got in 2019.
I know that I am often critical of Starmer but that is quite an achievement - to win a landslide despite not being very popular. And without any help from the Tories and Nigel Farage either.
Now let's see him work his magic in government.
Starmergeddon
So ashamed I didn't think of this 🙂
"He managed to win a landslide victory for Labour with less votes than Corbyn got in 2019."
and corbyn would have won this time? getting lots of votes in a few places just doesnt work under fptp
Starmer had to walk a tightrope to get to where we are this morning, and he did- he was never going to win on charisma!, he was getting piled on from left (gaza) & right (immigration) the press have been relentless in trying to take him down- from beergate to Rayners council house-
"the press have been relentless in trying to take him down"
Hahahahahahahahahaha!
That was meant to be a joke wasn't it?
Never in my lifetime have I seen a labour leader given such an easy ride by the press, even Blair had it tougher than Starmer.
"Never in my lifetime have I seen a labour leader given such an easy ride by the press, even Blair had it tougher than Starmer."
The argument there could be that he didn't give them anything to hang him by (the opposite of Corbyn). That also meant that he also didn't give the voters anything to get excited about.
He should now focus on two big things that matter to people and just get as much done of those as possible.
For example, make NHS better and help younger and/or poorer people with cost of living/housing. Both will ultimately cost money but people won't care about that if they can feel the improvement.
Older people will appreciate NHS as they are primary users of it and younger people will appreciate help and remember it when it comes to voting. Keep Labour in for a couple of terms and a lot of the old tory voters will be dead by then.
the press have been relentless in trying to take him down- from beergate to Rayners council house-
That's a really weird statement, I had to read it several times because I thought that I must be missing some words.
Beergate? Seriously? Imagine if Corbyn had been subjected to something as trivial as that. The main purpose was to distract the public from Boris Johnson's own shenanigans.
And Rayner's council house? Well, erm, the target there was obviously Angela Rayner, not Keir Starmer. The right-wing press seem to be much more concerned about Angela Rayner than Keir Starmer.
Indeed they tried to scare their readers by claiming that Rayner would be calling all the shots if Labour formed a government. They seemed very relaxed about Starmer. And why wouldn't they be? Even the Sun and the Times backed Starmer. Can you imagine them ever backing Corbyn?
https://twitter.com/premnsikka/status/1848601161974063158?t=a6OhXjAgWrkbZ15L4--O1Q&s=19
We're in the stage of normalising market and regulator failure.
But it doesn't matter because we cancelled Rwanda.
Pound to a penny the tabloids have Reeves in a witch costume come the budget.
Trying hard to ignore all the ridiculous blackhole articles as they've simply gotten out of hand when trying to reimagine how an economy should be operated- that is, in the interests of its electorate.
Political failure is tax and spend to serve that purpose which is why there's such a misunderstanding on how we pay for things.
Peter Lynch was the victim of a vengeful, out-of-touch Prime Minister
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/10/23/peter-lynch-was-victim-of-vengeful-prime-minister/
So according to this Daily Telegraph article Keir Starmer is responsible for the mess a racist conspiracy theorist found himself in.
It is interesting the piece claims that the Prime Minister is "out-of-touch" when there is clear evidence that the overwhelming majority of the public support the harsh sentences meted out by the courts to far-right racist rioters. Which suggests that it is Daily Telegraph gutter-rakers who are actually out-of-touch.
^^Yep and they are all "law and order" over cyclists or protesters against fossil fuel extraction.
If a Tory government had locked the rioters up, they would have been totally fine with it.
The fact that Richard Tice, an MP, was claiming Lynch was a political prisoner is downright dangerous. Sod freedom of speech, such bollocks needs consequences.
MoreCashThanDash
Full Member
The fact that Richard Tice, an MP, was claiming Lynch was a political prisoner is downright dangerous. Sod freedom of speech, such bollocks needs consequences.
I didn't know he'd said that but it doesn't surprise me in the slightest.
Farage was on the news easier (sigh) hammering the labour members that are "interfering" in the US elections... He was asked about him going over there on a private jet etc. to support Trump but that's different and obviously ok according to him...
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crlnrjd3087o
I totally agree with Keir Starmer with regards to compensation although I believe there should be reparations in the form of education.
"The fact that Richard Tice, an MP, was claiming Lynch was a political prisoner is downright dangerous"
I agree.
"Sod freedom of speech"
I disagree.
He was asked about him going over there on a private jet etc. to support Trump but that’s different and obviously ok according to him…
From what I have read he is right. The labour lot are volunteers trying to get people voting whereas he is getting paid and trying to boost his profile.
Completely different.
From what I have read he is right. The labour lot are volunteers trying to get people voting whereas he is getting paid and trying to boost his profile.
Completely different.
Ha! You do have a point. <Thumbs up>
whereas he is getting paid and trying to boost his profile.
Who's paying him?
So yet against the economy is grinding along the floor (0.1% for Q3) and the pound (especially for Argee) has retreated to pre-election support levels. (Not that I care as it's not a particularly useful real economic metric but Libs do love the £/$ as evidence of the UK's success and stability.)
Larger point is that the budget is looking likely to unfold very badly.
The NI adjustment is a massive political and economic disaster and will add to the decline of the economy for sure. I've no idea why Labour got themselves in a 'working people' mess either.
All this because they dare not tax the real wealth.
Country needed a massive cash injection across the board - the NHS funding was welcome but nowhere near enough.
Inflation has come right back down and the BoE appear to be slowing on cuts. Why? Makes zero sense.
Meanwhile risk-on assets are booming and people with money are absolutely rinsing it.
There has never been a better time to show how the economy is working for small amounts of people. Markets and institutions holding all the cards, and democratic decisions failing because of some cowardly government not really understanding how to support the economy with its own Bank.
Labour really don't have any answers, and Reeves has put people in real danger by not making good financial support as we head into winter.
They really are the gift that keeps on giving for the far-right. Debates about black-holes have backfired and lost credibility. This was an economic home goal. (I'm also old enough to remember that Libs said Labour would look at the two child benefit cap in the budget too. Aged well.)
Lots have forgotten about the Tory mess and are now squarely thinking Labour are worse, because as said a million times if you don't sort the basic needs of people they will go where we don't want to go.
We've gotten used to the narrative that to tax is to deprive. (Witness the whining of the right over farm IHT). Rather than it's true function of redistribution through limiting wealth, power and resources for a few over the many.
Reeves in the Guardian.
Speaking at the glitzy annual gathering in the Square Mile on Thursday, the chancellor called the financial services sector the “crown jewel” of the UK economy.
“These changes have resulted in a system which sought to eliminate risk-taking. That has gone too far and, in places, it has had unintended consequences, which we must now address.”
Totally pathetic and doesn't reflect the truth of the economy, but does reflect her belief that these parasites create wealth for all of us.
Madness.
She really needs to go.
The Prime Minister today makes a hard, non-negotiable pledge to the readers of The Mail on Sunday. He says that he will fix the mess that is our welfare and employment system, and confront the costly monster of welfare fraud, if necessary with the full might of the law – a weapon he knows very well how to wield.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c36pdz2gegjo
Perhaps someone should remind Keir Starmer that he has won the general election, now has a massive majority, and no longer needs to suck up to Daily Mail readers.
Instead of helping the Daily Mail to demonise benefit claimants perhaps the leader of the Labour Party could try his hand at tackling more urgent problems:
You’re 23 times more likely to be prosecuted for benefit fraud than tax fraud in the UK
Yet tax crimes cost the economy nine times more.