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He wisely stepped away to do the 'King in the North' thing while the party was having its previous spasm.
After losing two leadership campaigns. Yes, he was wise to make himself a new career away from parliament. And IMHO he's done his job well on the whole (with a bit of shying away from some difficult measures thrown in). But this returning hero line... he's tried to be leader twice... it wasn't happening... he's made the most of it... but the idea he can now just stroll back into parliament and become PM.... hmm...
or are so mediocre no one has any idea who they are.
I had to google Al Carns. 🙂
What's Dan Jarvis up to these days..... 🙂 😉 ?
Rayner is the subject of an ongoing HMRC investigation. She can't run for leader.
Theres absolutely loads of labour MPs from the new intake, theres gotta be some good ines in there
Isn't the point to just be better than Starmer? Plus reset of Labour to where it should be.
Rayner is the subject of an ongoing HMRC investigation. She can't run for leader.
Everything I've read about this suggests she'll be cleared. I thought she had been already to be honest. She should never have had to resign in the first place. Another political cockup by Starmer and his idiot advisors.
And why his first act with a massive majority should have been to use that authority to start marching rather than edging towards restoring our relationship with the EU
But also raises the not inconsiderable problem of it being incompatible with y'know, actual democracy.
I genuinely think whoever replaces Starmer will fail just as rapidly, and will become the 6th in line as 'most hated PM' the press are addicted to this world now- where scandal and anger makes for clicks and advertising revenue, and every day needs to be the next scandal. It's why Farage gets treated like a rock-star and every utterance is met with fawning coverage, and why falling immigration numbers, increased removals, closing of 400 hotels for immigrant housing, lifting ban of wind farms, lifting planning restrictions to actually build houses, teacher recruitment, breakfast clubs, lifting of the 2 child cap and all the other myraid things that people said they actually wanted, and have happened, don't get a look in anywhere.
The media will hunt you 24hrs a day ..7 days a week. Chip chip away at you .
World at One, Radio4, they just played 4 or 5 “questions” from different journalists asked of Starmer, without playing the replies. Literally making the story about the journalists chipping away, without even airing the attempts to respond to them.
don't get a look in anywhere
Anything that gets done by this government is filed under ‘well, any government should be doing this anyway’, ignoring the opposition to all those measures from Reform and the Tories.
Still, this Mandelson mess up is on Starmer. It’s a real story, with poor judgment at the heart of it.
But also raises the not inconsiderable problem of it being incompatible with y'know, actual democracy.
The voters a decade ago said we should leave the EU, not sure that covers the way that we left. It's clear that it has totally failed, the US is not riding to our rescue, to put it mildly, and we don't have to fully rejoin to undo some of the damage.
Laggy site double post.
It would take many years to complete as well, plenty of voting (democracy) would occur before we were anywhere close to where we were before 2016 (arguably we’ll never get that close again). Closer ties is a democratically legitimate aim, with plenty of chances to be challenged/changed by voters in future.
Everything I've read about this suggests she'll be cleared. I thought she had been already to be honest. She should never have had to resign in the first place. Another political cockup by Starmer and his idiot advisors.
If she's cleared then it's a different matter. People can make their own judgements about the merits of her innocent mistake which coincidentally saw her trouser £40k.
As someone who works in Comms I'm constantly staggered by just how bad the Labour party's comms have been, right from day one. They seem to keep getting worse all the time too. They're truly bloody awful. This is government has actually done some decent things, but you'd never know it. It's almost like they're embarrassed about it.
But even by their dismal standards 'don't become the story' is surely rule number one?
Starmer is trying to launch something-or-other today but absolutely nobody is listening. And it's his fault they're not listening. He - or more precisely his terrible decision to appoint Mandy - is the only show in town, with a side-helping of how much Morgan McSweeney had to do with it. And it's not going away. There's plenty more to come from the Epstein files. We might not know the half of Mandy's dubious activities yet. I'd be amazed if there's not a whole graveyards worth of skeletons waiting to come out of that particular closet
UK general election by summer 27 anyone? My guess is that it's now unlikely but significantly less unlikely than it was a month ago.
If it does happen, we’re ______.
The time to jettison McSweeney was earlier this week, but it's possibly too late now. Starmer is just no good at getting ahead of the story. That kind of passivity and paralysis never looks good on a supposed leader.
McSweeney is the architect and orchestrator of project Starmer, and always has been. Starmer knows that without him pulling the strings he is dead in the water anyway.
Starmer knows that without him pulling the strings he is dead in the water anyway.
Or maybe McSweeney knows about the Ukrainian rentboys? 😉
UK general election by summer 27 anyone? My guess is that it's now unlikely but significantly less unlikely than it was a month ago.
not a chance. why would they?
Or maybe McSweeney knows about the Ukrainian rentboys?
yay some tongue in cheek homophobia!
anyway starmer does seem to be determined to not do the right thing re mcsweeney
“The vast majority of people I met . . . consider our appointment of Peter Mandelson an unnecessary provocation. Several people showed me a photograph of him blowing out the birthday candles with Jeffrey Epstein...Withdraw Peter Mandelson. He is the wrong man at the wrong time in the wrong place.”
https://bsky.app/profile/pickardje.bsky.social/post/3me4mdwej2k2m
A stopped clock. Ignoring Glasman's memos should be any progressive Labour politician's default position... let's see who else gave this kind of recommendation at the time. There's bound to be similar advice from people who should have the PM's ear... let's see..
McSweeney is the architect and orchestrator of project Starmer, and always has been
Cummings was the architect of Project Boris, but when it was time to throw him under the bus, under the wheels he went.
Starmer does need to grow a pair and get ruthless; it's him or them
Actually, I'll go further on Glasman... listening to people like him is what has resulted in many of this government's most divergent policies... those that have alienated many who voted for it... many of its own MPs and party members... working closely with Theil, Vance etc... taking Farage's lead on asylum seekers... all proposed by Glasman. A man normally best ignored by any Labour PM. Even if he was right about Mandelson.
This is worth listening to
not a chance. why would they
What's saving Starmer at the moment is that turkeys do not vote for Christmas
A bad performance in Scottish, Welsh and local council elections might change their outlook.
Couple more cock ups on top of that and who knows what will happen
what saved Starmer..... was Badenoch
instead of pushing for a vote yesterday afternoon, she chose to extend the debate by 4 hours
Labour MPs were spitting feathers at this point as the decision to withold the advice had enraged them, a rebellion would've been the end of Starmer
those 4 hours gave Rayner time to come up with a compromise amendment and save the day
assuming Starmer does survive itll be thanks to Badenochs blunder
yay some tongue in cheek homophobia!
Its a rather dubious rightwing conspiracy theory. I do wonder what sites Dazh has been hanging around on.
let's see who else gave this kind of recommendation at the time.
Its actually a bit surprising that a right winger did give that recommendation. If you look at the time many right wingers such as Farage actually thought Mandelson was a pretty good choice (Farage obviously thought he should have been chosen (now thats a what if) but approved of Mandelson).
On a semi related side note reading the latest private eye which says when Blair chose Andrew it was because Mandelson was a key cheerleader for him despite Charles being opposed.
The more I read of the machinations of the current Labour leadership and their back room shenanigans….the more I feel it’s gonna take a tidal wave to flush them all out, it’s gonna take more than a mcsweeney/starmer resignation to make the slightest difference to the current government and its ability to actually govern for us, the population
And Peter Geoghegan has a good report on their disdain for journalism
https://bsky.app/profile/petergeoghegan.bsky.social/post/3me56lfngpc2t
There was a journalist yesterday saying how common this kind of stuff is, while not necessarily stooping to the levels of texting official info from cabinet meetings and peado island honey traps, but the "you scratch my back I'll scratch yours" revolving doors between think tanks/foundations, politics and finance pretty much across all western democracies. That actually even this level if corruption probably goes on quite often, it is just the unique conditions of the Epstein files becoming public that has caught out Mandelson.
I think we can look at the Blair foundation as a perfect example of that, where he takes money from and what it promotes.
I think we all suspected that the tories and other traditional right wing parties have always acted like this, the fact that the old "parties of the people" have also adopted the same corrupt systems isn't shocking but is disappointing.
So it isn't enough to just have a Mandelson witch hunt, they desperately need rules and auditing/enforcement to protect democracy.
There was a journalist yesterday saying how common this kind of stuff is
Someone asked the obvious question on radio 4 yesterday... who else was he texting? Who else was he giving this same information to?
We only know about this because of a US investigation into something totally unrelated. Nobody was looking into insider dealing at the heart of our (supposedly) democratic system, were they?
The bottom line is that during a huge financial crisis - the worst since the 1930's - someone at the very highest level of government was tipping off, in real time, one of the very people who caused that crisis the first place. Purely so that they could profit further from it.
Is anyone actually surprised at that? Yes, we're shocked at how blatant it was, but surprised? Not even remotely.
It just confirms what we all suspected anyway. That its a club of people who just can't lose. Whatever happens, they just continue to get richer, even when the system they created has caused a catastrophic economic collapse
Whatever happens, they just continue to get richer, even when the system they created has caused a catastrophic economic collapse
Yes and it's not astonishing that the power lies in government to actually try and sort this.
The effects of neoliberalism bleed through everything that has gone wrong.
I do wonder what sites Dazh has been hanging around on.
Ha not me. I'm always up to date on what the reform/rightwing nutters are saying about this stuff as I have a couple of mates who are reform supporters and they're always banging on about this and various other stuff. They're particularly animated about Zack Polanski's breast enlargement hypnotherapy at the moment so it shows he must be doing something right 😀.
Off topic but did everyone know that the Ukraine war was engineered by leftwing climate change activists in the Biden govt to force everyone to switch to renewable energy via sanctions on Russia?
Off topic but did everyone know that the Ukraine war was engineered by leftwing climate change activists in the Biden govt to force everyone to switch to renewable energy via sanctions on Russia?
Doesn't surprise me in the least. And we'd have had a revolution by now if they weren't keeping us all pacified by spraying us with their sedatives in chemtrails
all comms coming out about Mandelson's appointment are going to expose everyone in cabinet saying
"Trump is corrupt, a russian agent, a maniac, a massive nonce and thats why Mandleson is the perfect choice for ambassador"
Trump is going to be in a meltdown over it and that is going to be the bigger problem!
all comms coming out about Mandelson's appointment are going to expose everyone in cabinet saying
"Trump is corrupt, a russian agent, a maniac, a massive nonce and thats why Mandleson is the perfect choice for ambassador"
Trump is going to be in a meltdown over it and that is going to be the bigger problem!
That was pretty much my thought at the time - want to infiltrate a nest of rats? what better then to send in a tame rat?
Turns out the rat wasn't tame though. A bit like using double agents in intelligence - it's a tricky business.
Nah, the "send a thief to catch a thief" is the excuse.
Mandelsons appointment was nothing more than a reward for the corrupt networking in Labour and financial power brokers that got Starmer into power and suppressed progressive politics.
all comms coming out about Mandelson's appointment are going to expose everyone in cabinet saying
They're going to burn the house down. They blocked Burnham out of spite, now they're going to bring everyone else down with them for the same reason. This has got the potential to be a new expenses-scale scandal. Badenoch and the tories are very lucky they're in opposition and won't have their phones taken off them.
Starmer is trying to launch something-or-other today but absolutely nobody is listening. And it's his fault they're not listening.
Yup. This is why I've changed my mind. Starmer should be replaced now. Politics is a tough game, and he's not winning at it. I support most of what has been achieved so far at a tactical level - but there is no transcending vision, no inspiration and no fearlessness.
Now is the time for Labour to cut its losses and find a leader who can bareknuckle fight when needed, make bold changes and break through the bullshit of Farage and (to a lesser extent) Badenoch.
It's not Rayner, who is tainted by her financial shenanigans. It's not Burnham, who's been hyped up by a small number of Mancunian patriots. Is it Jess Philips? I like her fight but I don't know if she's got the vision side to her.
Starmer is trying to launch something-or-other today but absolutely nobody is listening. And it's his fault they're not listening.
Yup. This is why I've changed my mind. Starmer should be replaced now.
I agree on principal, but replaced with who? be careful what you wish for!
The labour backbenchers are just as much as a train wreck as the tories as half of them think they are in a diferent reality.
Rayner I guess might be an option but she's damaged goods IMO?
We only know about this because of a US investigation into something totally unrelated. Nobody was looking into insider dealing at the heart of our (supposedly) democratic system, were they?
Theres been a number of investigative reports published in Byline Times for the previous 18months but they’ve gone unreported by the main news/media channels as those channels like to cosy up with the folk they should be investigating
Jess Philips was my hope on the leadership battle thread. Assuming she'd won the election ( I'd have voted for Jess but prefered Green over Starmer) I think she'd have made fewer U-turns, been less Tory light, and probably properly upset Trump.
She has vision and conviction, and was never going to get picked because of that vision and conviction.
Jess Phillips is a strong MP, I wish she was my MP - but she wouldn't last five minutes as Labour leader.
One of the reasons I was so incredibly incredibly angry when Rayner screwed up was I had previosuly thought she would make a good labour leader. I still do but not so sure she'll be allowed back
Jess Philips as the John Prescott to Starmer's Blair (or vice versa, with Starmer as the diligent deputy) could have been very powerful - but it's too late now.
Rayner (or rather her peers) making noises. Which could be interesting. (Even though she messed it up.) I'd still take her over Starmer any day.
But Jess Phillips not a chance. No way. I'm sure she's a good local MP but she shouldn't be anywhere near the top.
We absolutely do not need another useless Centrist. It doesn't work as a solution to all the mess the country is in. In fact exacerbates all the problems.
Which probably rules nearly everyone out apart from Clive Lewis. And I can't see that happening.
She has vision and conviction, and was never going to get picked because of that vision and conviction
These are all Centrists with no vision. I don't see it. This is 90% the problem with the Labour 'right.' They're an infected bunch of Neoliberals who don't understand what it takes to fix the country.
We have to learn from Starmer's/Reeves mistakes. The country doesn't want silly tinkering. He was voted in on change remember.
Repeat this and they die, giving Reform a fresh chance.
(Starmer has just added 800 million to a communities spend budget. He knows what he's really got to do. He's got to use that 'niche' economic model 😉 to solve problems.)
Getting rid of Starmer is certainly phase one though.
And why his first act with a massive majority should have been to use that authority to start marching rather than edging towards restoring our relationship with the EU
But also raises the not inconsiderable problem of it being incompatible with y'know, actual democracy.
I genuinely think whoever replaces Starmer will fail just as rapidly, and will become the 6th in line as 'most hated PM' the press are addicted to this world now- where scandal and anger makes for clicks and advertising revenue, and every day needs to be the next scandal. It's why Farage gets treated like a rock-star and every utterance is met with fawning coverage, and why falling immigration numbers, increased removals, closing of 400 hotels for immigrant housing, lifting ban of wind farms, lifting planning restrictions to actually build houses, teacher recruitment, breakfast clubs, lifting of the 2 child cap and all the other myraid things that people said they actually wanted, and have happened, don't get a look in anywhere.
Yep,now peoples brains have also been reduced to Tik-tok mush, the person stood ranting on a beach at a boat is going to get more ‘likes’ (and thefore be pushed to more people) than losing your achievements in a boring speech.
Getting a grasp of effectively using the modern ways is the only way to push back.
It looks like theres a proper leadership battle already underway and that it’s assumed within the party that’s it’s when, not if Starmer goes
A bold start from Ange. Front page of the Times not only saying “I told you so” but also throwing Streeting under the bus
Angela Rayner ‘told Keir Starmer not to appoint Mandelson’
Meanwhile, this just dropped into my social media feed, uninvited. Pretty slick production values from Reform for the Gorton byelection. no doubt paid for by some dubious and opaque funding source. Very folksey with lots of flags, as you'd expect.
He's changed his tone a lot since he was slagging Manchester off only a couple of years ago
Dissapointed to see that the **** went to same uni as me. The people I knew there were better than that
Meanwhile, this just dropped into my social media feed, uninvited. Pretty slick production values from Reform for the Gorton byelection. no doubt paid for by some dubious and opaque funding source. Very folksey with lots of flags, as you'd expect.
You might have warned it was a Facebook feed, don’t allow and burn with fire, preferably with the likes of Goodwin acting as tinder
Rayner is soiled goods - a PM that had so many houses and trusts that she got "confused" in filling out tax forms is not reading the room...even if she is technically cleared. It is what it is. Politics is a tough game.
Rayner is soiled goods - a PM that had so many houses and trusts that she got "confused" in filling out tax forms is not reading the room...even if she is technically cleared. It is what it is. Politics is a tough game.
No one said it was rich pickings in the current Labour party.
The Times and subsequent podcasts are literally filled with resignation expectations for Labour every 20 mins but hey.
I do think this one is probably the next move though.
https://bsky.app/profile/adambienkov.bsky.social/post/3mechkgcth226
Not on the brink now
https://www.thenational.scot/news/25836161.morgan-mcsweeney-resigns-keir-starmers-chief-staff/
It puts distance between Starmer and the whole mess for a short while.
It puts distance between Starmer and the whole mess for a short while.
As with all things Starmer, this is about 72h too late.
He's still toast after the locals
He's still toast after the locals
We're all toast with how polarised society is, and is becoming.
As with all things Starmer, this is about 72h too late.
He's still toast after the locals
Worth remembering he resigned he wasn't sacked so really Starmer hasn't done much here.
Sacking him would have sent a much better message. But this Is Starmer. He doesn't 'do' things proactively. He reacts to whatever is out there.
As with all things Starmer, this is about 72h too late.
He's still toast after the locals
Worth remembering he resigned he wasn't sacked so really Starmer hasn't done much here.
Sacking him would have sent a much better message. But this Is Starmer. He doesn't 'do' things proactively. He reacts to whatever is out there.
The nerve of these dreadful idiots.
If Lucy Powell is concerned that voters will vote Green and not Labour, maybe the obvious response is to show that Labour will enact the type of policies that are attracting them, not to claim it is their right to those votes?
Those red wall votes enticed back to Labour won't vote Green.
The nerve of these dreadful idiots.
If Lucy Powell is concerned that voters will vote Green and not Labour, maybe the obvious response is to show that Labour will enact the type of policies that are attracting them, not to claim it is their right to those votes?
💯
Absolutely.
Not too much to ask is it?
These three way battles will include this kind of campaigning, from all parties. “Vote for us or Reform will get in” will come from Greens, LibDems, PC, Labour… and as for the dubious charts and graphs to show you’re the party to back… straight from the LibDem by-election handbook… and it’s no surprise to see the Green Party having a go with that approach. Good luck to them… but Labour will fight back, obviously.
Those red wall votes enticed back to Labour won't vote Green.
Labour have lost a massive chunk of those to Reform and the only time they had them in their hands is when they campaigned on progressive pledges.
I'd sooner some parry have a go on good progressive ideals than just let the main parties make a mess of everything.
Someone has to step up and be radical.
Even if it just shapes the way we think about things. You've got to start somewhere.
and it’s no surprise to see the Green Party having a go with that approach
That event has already been corrected going forward and an apology made.
I'd rather not see that stuff happen in the first place.
But it's small-fry compared to Labour/Tory and Reform's constant animal like approach.
and it’s no surprise to see the Green Party having a go with that approach
That event has already been corrected going forward and an apology made.
I'd rather not see that stuff happen in the first place.
But it's small-fry compared to Labour/Tory and Reform's constant animal like approach.
There's no way this Mandelson thing is done. I reckon stuff's gonna keep coming up until Starmer has to go.
Just can't see it disappearing so quickly.
It’s not done yet, but Brown’s suggestions might buy Starmer some time… and give us better vetting, oversight and scrutiny of appointments and what’s done in office… something badly needed anyway.
Mandelson in prison would an even better outcome (not something I’d bet on though).
I haven't read all of what Brown said but I did hear a bit on a podcast.( Ponsonby and Massie) The gist of it seemed to be Brown covering his own backside for reappointing the twice disgraced Mandelson to a third cabinet post in 2008
None of Brown’s proposals would do anything to rectify that mistake (or Starmer’s) but could prove to be useful in keeping other chancers out of top jobs. He always come across as someone who wants to learn from mistakes, rather than deny them. Probably the only ex-PM spending time trying to improve UK (and our political systems in particular) rather than just looking after himself. Actually, that’s probably unfair on May.
Asylum seekers?
https://twitter.com/i/status/2019728373195641003
Thing is this sort of post has inflamed both progressives and Reform types (who think it's a fail that they got here in the first place.)
Hate not hope.
im amazed McSweeney made it to Sunday!
his 2 deputies have taken over not sure thats the cleanout thats needed
Still got that arrogant self righteous Mandleson buddy “Pat Mcadden though, he’s never ever wrong and it just the voters who need to reassess their stance
im amazed McSweeney made it to Sunday!
Starmer seems particularly talented at delaying the inevitable until any possibility of political gain has been lost. Has the added bonus of annoying all the ministers and mps who are sent out to shill for a policy which is then binned off.
The gist of it seemed to be Brown covering his own backside for reappointing the twice disgraced Mandelson to a third cabinet post in 2008
Exactly, he appointed him to the Lords in order to bypass basic democracy, so if anything he'd be well advised to keep his mouth shut.
Starmer seems particularly talented at delaying the inevitable
Honestly, it seems like no-one at No10 just has any political radar at all. This seems to be the way they operate, 'decision' making by leaving it until all the options are gone.