Stop voting for fucking Tories

[Hal Jordan]

"Woke trans boat travelling socialists did it!

[tabascoboy]

As someone once discovered:

Kemi Badenoch is an anagram of Bonehead Mick.

[_Os_]

The political incompetence of this. Anyone that's fair knows ministers were lied to and not to blame for the Post Office scandal, Ed Davey and the Lib Dems have taken a beating, not sure what they were supposed to do after they were given false info. Maybe you could go after some Tories for going slow after all the facts were known but it didn't have much public interest. It wasn't directly political in the way other scandals are.

But the Tories seem determined to wade into the scandal, to add a new chapter to it they're writing themselves, embroiling the scandal in their wish for tax cuts and when an election should be held. They'll end up owning the scandal if they keep going. This is total madness.

[sockwithaticket]

As a collective, the prominent members of the parliamentary conservative party, and any less prominent ones willing to step in front of a camera to run interference for someone notable, seem to have the political nous of a concussed sea cucumber.

[C69]

Staunton has replied to Bad Enoch's HOC claims labelling them all lies.
I suspect this is not going to end wellfor Bad Enoch, she is now in a public spat with a 75 year old Grandee of the City who really has very little to lose.
He apparently totally refutes and denies allknowledge of being investigated for bullying.
He has repeated the claims about the stalling until lthe election and has apparnetly made a personal note about this which was communicated by email contemporaneously to collegues and the Post Office.

[tabascoboy]

Staunton has replied to Bad Enoch's HOC claims labelling them all lies.
I suspect this is not going to end wellfor Bad Enoch, she is now in a public spat with a 75 year old Grandee of the City who really has very little to lose.
He apparently totally refutes and denies allknowledge of being investigated for bullying.
He has repeated the claims about the stalling until lthe election and has apparnetly made a personal note about this which was communicated by email contemporaneously to collegues and the Post Office.

It's a long message but...worth a look at the points made. Who to believe? If Staunton can back these up with evidence Badenoch looks like she was misleading the House ( not that it's viewed with any disfavour now...)

Firstly, with regard to the comment made to Mr Staunton by the senior civil servant to the effect that he was to stall on compensation payments to Horizon victims and on spend on the
Horizon replacement so the government could “limp into the election” with the lowest possible financial liability. Mr Staunton stands by this comment which he recorded at the
time in a file note which he emailed to himself and to colleagues and which is therefore traceable on the Post Office Server.

Secondly, Mr Stanton stands by his characterisation of the conversation with the Secretary of State in which he was informed of his dismissal.

Thirdly, with regard to the alleged failure to observe due process in respect of the proposed appointment of a senior independent director, this is once again a mischaracterisation of the
situation. What happened was that the Government via the UKGI had proposed for the post an external candidate with Whitehall experience. Initially the Board acquiesced, but when it
came to the Board for discussion, because so much had happened in the intervening four weeks the Board voted 6-2 to express clear preference to appoint a well qualified and in their
view better qualified internal candidate, Andrew Dafoor who was already a director, and understood the issues. The 6 included the chief executive. Of the two dissenters one was the
UKGI representative. Mr Staunton informed the Board that they would now have to go through a due process including a nomination committee, Board and shareholder approval
process and could not simply impose their preferred candidate. This was all at an early stage in the consultations, and could not be characterised as a breach of due process.

Fourthly, with regard to allegations of bullying behaviour, this is the first time the existence of such allegations have been mentioned, and Mr Staunton is not aware of any aspect of his
conduct which could give rise to such allegations. They were certainly not raised by the Secretary of State at any stage and certainly not during the conversation which led to Mr
Staunton’s dismissal. Such behaviour would in any case be totally out of character.

With regard to the appointment letter which the Department has chosen to publish, it should be noted that the reference to settlement with claimants is one of a number of issues arising
out of the Horizon issue that are listed and not necessarily the most prominent. It should also be noted that if indeed the Secretary of State were concerned about the lack of urgency with
which it was being addressed, this was never raised in any of the quarterly review meetings to assess progress against these objectives. These meetings were fully minuted.

Last but not least, it should be noted that the Secretary of State has admitted that a letter was sent by the Post Office CEO to Alex Chalk setting out a legal opinion stating the reason so
few sub-postmasters had come forward to have their convictions overturned was because they were “guilty as charged”. That letter was set after the ITV documentary was screened and
after the government had set out a pledge to bring forward legislation to exonerate the postmasters.

As chairman, Mr Staunton championed the cause of the postmasters who he saw as the real backbone of the organisation and the best hope for the future. As a number of recent press
articles have indicated, historically postmasters were treated with contempt by much of the Post Office hierarchy, those attitudes were deeply entrenched and Mr Staunton fought hard
with their representatives on the Board and others including the CEO to change that culture.

Mr Staunton said: “It was in the interests of the business as well as being fair for the postmasters that there was faster progress on exoneration and that compensation for wrongly
convicted postmasters was more generous, but we didn’t see any real movement until after the Mister Bates programme.”

[Hal Jordan]

Ouch. The response of someone used to setting down a reasoned position in words against the hooting of an overpromoted milk monitor.

[fishfoodie]

Ouch. The response of someone used to setting down a reasoned position in words against the hooting of an overpromoted milk monitor.

The bullying allegation, if not supported by a written record somewhere in HR, should lead to a fucking huge lawsuit for defamation, & Badenochs political career going down the shitter with the rest of the turds.

She shows all the signs of yet another non-entity promoted far above any level of competence, & who surrounded herself with worm tongues telling her how clever she was, & has now ran into the cold harsh reality, that she isn't really that clever, or she wouldn't have fucked up this simple situation.

[C69]

Let's see what unfolds.

[SaintK]

Ouch. The response of someone used to setting down a reasoned position in words against the hooting of an overpromoted milk monitor.

The bullying allegation, if not supported by a written record somewhere in HR, should lead to a fucking huge lawsuit for defamation, & Badenochs political career going down the shitter with the rest of the turds.

She shows all the signs of yet another non-entity promoted far above any level of competence, & who surrounded herself with worm tongues telling her how clever she was, & has now ran into the cold harsh reality, that she isn't really that clever, or she wouldn't have fucked up this simple situation.

Quite!
Let's hope she's slowly painting herself into a corner. Would be very good if Staunton recorded their conversation.

[SaintK]

Pretty neat

[fishfoodie]

Another slimeball gone !

Blackpool South MP Scott Benton, who was caught in a lobbying scandal, has lost his appeal against a 35-day suspension from Parliament.

MPs will now vote whether to trigger a recall petition which could see the government facing a by-election.

Mr Benton was caught breaching Commons rules by offering to lobby ministers and table parliamentary questions on behalf of gambling investors.

He was elected as a Conservative in 2019 with a 3,690 majority.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-l ... e-68348594

[C69]

By election in a red wall seat with Benton's majority 3,690.
This is going to get worse before it gets better for Sunak.

It feels like the death throes of a Zombie government now, I note the approval ratings are -2 for Starmer and -43 Sunak.
I suspect there are many more scandals to come on both sides. It is starting to feel like Sunak will lose een more support and Farage will pick up the pieces after the GE.
Perhaps like the Canadian Conservatie decimation and merger with the far right?

[fishfoodie]

By election in a red wall seat with Benton's majority 3,690.
This is going to get worse before it gets better for Sunak.

It feels like the death throes of a Zombie government now, I note the approval ratings are -2 for Starmer and -43 Sunak.
I suspect there are many more scandals to come on both sides. It is starting to feel like Sunak will lose een more support and Farage will pick up the pieces after the GE.
Perhaps like the Canadian Conservatie decimation and merger with the far right?

How about this for a senario.

Farage throws his lot in with Reform, citing Sunak as the reason why he won't support the Tories, too soft of immigration, raised taxes etc etc.

Reform then runs in enough seats in the GE to steal votes from the Tories, to give that Canada result.

Post election, Sunak gone, & some far-right non-entity made leader, Farage offers to merge his couple of MPs with the Tories in return for the Tories lurching even further to the right, & he (assuming he finally breaks his electoral duck), gets a plum office, like shadow Home Office.

[C69]

By election in a red wall seat with Benton's majority 3,690.
This is going to get worse before it gets better for Sunak.

It feels like the death throes of a Zombie government now, I note the approval ratings are -2 for Starmer and -43 Sunak.
I suspect there are many more scandals to come on both sides. It is starting to feel like Sunak will lose een more support and Farage will pick up the pieces after the GE.
Perhaps like the Canadian Conservatie decimation and merger with the far right?

How about this for a senario.

Farage throws his lot in with Reform, citing Sunak as the reason why he won't support the Tories, too soft of immigration, raised taxes etc etc.

Reform then runs in enough seats in the GE to steal votes from the Tories, to give that Canada result.

Post election, Sunak gone, & some far-right non-entity made leader, Farage offers to merge his couple of MPs with the Tories in return for the Tories lurching even further to the right, & he (assuming he finally breaks his electoral duck), gets a plum office, like shadow Home Office.

I think Reform and a few Tories know the game is up and the far right entryism into the Tory Party has been going on for years.
I suspect a new Tory Party will emerge after the (fingers crossed) decimation of the Tory Party.
A new right wing common sense Party based on populism, greater choice, immigration promises and Culture Wars.

[petej]

By election in a red wall seat with Benton's majority 3,690.
This is going to get worse before it gets better for Sunak.

It feels like the death throes of a Zombie government now, I note the approval ratings are -2 for Starmer and -43 Sunak.
I suspect there are many more scandals to come on both sides. It is starting to feel like Sunak will lose een more support and Farage will pick up the pieces after the GE.
Perhaps like the Canadian Conservatie decimation and merger with the far right?

Got to hope it gets so bad they aren't even the second largest party.

[tabascoboy]

By election in a red wall seat with Benton's majority 3,690.
This is going to get worse before it gets better for Sunak.

It feels like the death throes of a Zombie government now, I note the approval ratings are -2 for Starmer and -43 Sunak.
I suspect there are many more scandals to come on both sides. It is starting to feel like Sunak will lose een more support and Farage will pick up the pieces after the GE.
Perhaps like the Canadian Conservatie decimation and merger with the far right?

How about this for a senario.

Farage throws his lot in with Reform, citing Sunak as the reason why he won't support the Tories, too soft of immigration, raised taxes etc etc.

Reform then runs in enough seats in the GE to steal votes from the Tories, to give that Canada result.

Post election, Sunak gone, & some far-right non-entity made leader, Farage offers to merge his couple of MPs with the Tories in return for the Tories lurching even further to the right, & he (assuming he finally breaks his electoral duck), gets a plum office, like shadow Home Office.

I think Reform and a few Tories know the game is up and the far right entryism into the Tory Party has been going on for years.
I suspect a new Tory Party will emerge after the (fingers crossed) decimation of the Tory Party.
A new right wing common sense Party based on populism, greater choice, immigration promises and Culture Wars.

Make
England
Great
Again

...because they sure don't give a shit about the rest of the UK any more

[C69]

How about this for a senario.

Farage throws his lot in with Reform, citing Sunak as the reason why he won't support the Tories, too soft of immigration, raised taxes etc etc.

Reform then runs in enough seats in the GE to steal votes from the Tories, to give that Canada result.

Post election, Sunak gone, & some far-right non-entity made leader, Farage offers to merge his couple of MPs with the Tories in return for the Tories lurching even further to the right, & he (assuming he finally breaks his electoral duck), gets a plum office, like shadow Home Office.

I think Reform and a few Tories know the game is up and the far right entryism into the Tory Party has been going on for years.
I suspect a new Tory Party will emerge after the (fingers crossed) decimation of the Tory Party.
A new right wing common sense Party based on populism, greater choice, immigration promises and Culture Wars.

Make
England
Great
Again

...because they sure don't give a shit about the rest of the UK any more

[Hal Jordan]

It us important to note that not all Reform voters are Tory defectors, there is a sizeable amount who wouldn't ever vote Tory

[_Os_]

This is another landmine the Tories are leaving for Labour. A report on the agri sector which isn't being released, the key part being:

But at a series of meetings that year, officials raised concerns about the financial analysis and the scheme as a whole, and concluded it would be better not to publish them. Various reasons were given, with one official saying it was “a case of waiting for the political situation to settle”. Another said: “[it is] important we make sure ministers are happy with what we put out into the public environment – sensitivities around that.”

https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... nts-scheme

In other words the report is being buried until after the GE. This is happening because a report that was supposed to show how it would be possible to run viable upland/hill farm businesses once the Basic Payment Scheme (which is EU derived) is fully replaced by Environmental Land Management, instead showed there is literally no way to run a viable upland farm once the UK has taken back control. In England entire rural communities will die.

The new scheme focuses on the environment and not production. Upland farms have poorer quality land, the farmers themselves are the poorest, and often tenants not landowners which makes changes to land use to get ELM payments after the production based BPS system is phased out more difficult. The Guardian article doesn't go into this much, but the new system is massively tilted towards the Tory voting south of England which has higher quality lowland land where it's possible for a wildflower meadow or whatever to exist, over the north of England which has poorer quality land and is less Tory voting.

The article focuses only on England, agri support is fully devolved. All the new schemes are more environment focused but there's a lot of variation, Wales/Scotland/NI all look more production focused than what's happening in England. In NI it's political too, Catholic farmers tend to be poorer tenant hill farmers and SF is now the largest party, they're not going to pay wealthy Protestant landowners not to farm without paying struggling Catholic non-landowners. Easy to see how once all the new payment structures are fully in place some English farmers are going to end up disadvantaged compared to Welsh/Scottish/NI farmers.

English farmers are starting to protest about their post-Brexit situation, there's polling which shows Labour now has a majority in rural English constituencies.

[tabascoboy]

By election in a red wall seat with Benton's majority 3,690.
This is going to get worse before it gets better for Sunak.

It feels like the death throes of a Zombie government now, I note the approval ratings are -2 for Starmer and -43 Sunak.
I suspect there are many more scandals to come on both sides. It is starting to feel like Sunak will lose een more support and Farage will pick up the pieces after the GE.
Perhaps like the Canadian Conservatie decimation and merger with the far right?

[Biffer]

Mirror large poll (18,000+ respondents) with the more advanced statistical analysis used by some pollsters now, shows The Tories collapsing to 80 seats, Labour with a majority of 254. SNP only down to 40 in Scotland in this analysis, (rather than using the standard swing method that is often used.), but no Tories left in Scotland. And a second Green MP in Bristol, with them holding Brighton pavilion.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/ ... s-32121361

[sturginho]

Mirror large poll (18,000+ respondents) with the more advanced statistical analysis used by some pollsters now, shows The Tories collapsing to 80 seats, Labour with a majority of 254. SNP only down to 40 in Scotland in this analysis, (rather than using the standard swing method that is often used.), but no Tories left in Scotland. And a second Green MP in Bristol, with them holding Brighton pavilion.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/ ... s-32121361

They reckon my constituency would remain tory, which sounds about right

[tabascoboy]

Mirror large poll (18,000+ respondents) with the more advanced statistical analysis used by some pollsters now, shows The Tories collapsing to 80 seats, Labour with a majority of 254. SNP only down to 40 in Scotland in this analysis, (rather than using the standard swing method that is often used.), but no Tories left in Scotland. And a second Green MP in Bristol, with them holding Brighton pavilion.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/ ... s-32121361

They reckon my constituency would remain tory, which sounds about right

Same, nothing short of the Tory candidate on video massacring babies in a satanic ritual would change it here - and even then maybe not

[Raggs]

Mirror large poll (18,000+ respondents) with the more advanced statistical analysis used by some pollsters now, shows The Tories collapsing to 80 seats, Labour with a majority of 254. SNP only down to 40 in Scotland in this analysis, (rather than using the standard swing method that is often used.), but no Tories left in Scotland. And a second Green MP in Bristol, with them holding Brighton pavilion.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/ ... s-32121361

They reckon my constituency would remain tory, which sounds about right

Same, nothing short of the Tory candidate on video massacring babies in a satanic ritual would change it here - and even then maybe not

Quite surprised to see mine (now two) not going to the tories, though with their drop, and some semi tactical voting, I can see it happening I guess.

[Tichtheid]

Mirror large poll (18,000+ respondents) with the more advanced statistical analysis used by some pollsters now, shows The Tories collapsing to 80 seats, Labour with a majority of 254. SNP only down to 40 in Scotland in this analysis, (rather than using the standard swing method that is often used.), but no Tories left in Scotland. And a second Green MP in Bristol, with them holding Brighton pavilion.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/ ... s-32121361

It would be quite something if the Greens held Brighton Pavilion, the outgoing Caroline Lucas is a big figure in local politics as well as national.
The Greens got battered at the most recent council elections after being in control of Brighton and Hove.

[sockwithaticket]

Mine's projected to stay Tory Although I have been looking at moving and a couple of the areas I've been looking at are projected to go Labour.

[sockwithaticket]

Mirror large poll (18,000+ respondents) with the more advanced statistical analysis used by some pollsters now, shows The Tories collapsing to 80 seats, Labour with a majority of 254. SNP only down to 40 in Scotland in this analysis, (rather than using the standard swing method that is often used.), but no Tories left in Scotland. And a second Green MP in Bristol, with them holding Brighton pavilion.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/ ... s-32121361

They reckon my constituency would remain tory, which sounds about right

Same, nothing short of the Tory candidate on video massacring babies in a satanic ritual would change it here - and even then maybe not

"Well it hasn't affected my house price and I'm sure their parents were benefit cheats anyway".

[Biffer]

A lot of you fuckers seem to live in tory seats.

[Slick]

A lot of you fuckers seem to live in tory seats.

Was just going to say, a perfect cross section of English rugby

[Raggs]

A lot of you fuckers seem to live in tory seats.

Median age of 51 in my county. England median age overall is 40. It was 46 in 2011, 51 in 2021. It's not getting any younger, since I know for a fact that current youngest school years are very low on numbers.

[Sandstorm]

A lot of you fuckers seem to live in tory seats.

They did win a lot in 2019.....

[SaintK]

A lot of you fuckers seem to live in tory seats.

They did win a lot in 2019.....

Quite
It would be wonderful to see the likes of Rees-Mogg, Duncan-Smith and Shapps lose their seats though

[sturginho]

A lot of you fuckers seem to live in tory seats.

You should see the state of my local FB group, as big a bunch of Tory voters you're ever likely to see

[Lobby]

A lot of you fuckers seem to live in tory seats.

They did win a lot in 2019.....

Quite
It would be wonderful to see the likes of Rees-Mogg, Duncan-Smith and Shapps lose their seats though

Under the boundary changes, my area is moving into Duncan-Smith's constituency, which I am delighted to see is predicted to become a Labour seat. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to vote the fucker out.

I can see myself staying up all night on election night and celebrating as each one of these c*nts' seats topples (much as I did when Portillo lost his seat in 1997).

[sockwithaticket]

Oh look, the Tory allergy to accountability is acting up again

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/202 ... l-via-zoom

The home secretary has sacked Britain’s borders watchdog via a Zoom call after clashing over a series of unpublished critical reports.

David Neal, the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration, was told by a top civil servant on Wednesday that James Cleverly was terminating his job with immediate effect.

Neal, who had been in the role for nearly three years and was due to step down next month, had recently expressed his concern that there would be no one in the watchdog role for several months as ministers tried to force through Rishi Sunak’s controversial Rwanda policy.

Downing Street blocked his reappointment, an unusual move for the post in which his predecessors all served two full three-year terms in the post.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... -contracts

Michael Gove failed to register hospitality he enjoyed with a Conservative donor whose company he had recommended for multimillion-pound personal protective equipment (PPE) contracts during the Covid pandemic, the Guardian can reveal.

[Biffer]

They did win a lot in 2019.....

Quite
It would be wonderful to see the likes of Rees-Mogg, Duncan-Smith and Shapps lose their seats though

Under the boundary changes, my area is moving into Duncan-Smith's constituency, which I am delighted to see is predicted to become a Labour seat. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to vote the fucker out.

I can see myself staying up all night on election night and celebrating as each one of these c*nts' seats topples (much as I did when Portillo lost his seat in 1997).

I did the same. Wine, whisky, celebrations and a Friday off work.

[C69]

Quite
It would be wonderful to see the likes of Rees-Mogg, Duncan-Smith and Shapps lose their seats though

Under the boundary changes, my area is moving into Duncan-Smith's constituency, which I am delighted to see is predicted to become a Labour seat. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to vote the fucker out.

I can see myself staying up all night on election night and celebrating as each one of these c*nts' seats topples (much as I did when Portillo lost his seat in 1997).

I did the same. Wine, whisky, celebrations and a Friday off work.

Seems like a great idea.

[Rhubarb & Custard]

A lot of you fuckers seem to live in tory seats.

It's telling even on a rugby message board where people are perhaps more likely to be conservative voters than the average person on the street the feeling is the Tories are some mix of venal, incompetent and liars and the country would be far better without them.

[fishfoodie]

Under the boundary changes, my area is moving into Duncan-Smith's constituency, which I am delighted to see is predicted to become a Labour seat. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to vote the fucker out.

I can see myself staying up all night on election night and celebrating as each one of these c*nts' seats topples (much as I did when Portillo lost his seat in 1997).

I did the same. Wine, whisky, celebrations and a Friday off work.

Seems like a great idea.

I sense Cabals ahead on Election night !