The one and only UK 2024 election thread - July 4

[Slick]

Sunak has cancelled all his interviews today and gone into hiding. Last time he took the day off on a weekend to relaunch his campaign he came up with the national service policy. Looks like the plan this time is to rush out manifesto.

I was told he’s had a breakdown about the DDay stuff and is standing down tomorrow or Monday.

Told this by someone I know who said he was told by a friend who works at CCHQ. Could be bullshit.

I wouldn’t be surprised to be honest, he’s looked beaten for weeks

[Slick]

All these high price, & supposedly High IQ advisors, & none of them suggested that maybe he could stay in France, & the ITV Interviewer could do the interview there, with an ITV camera crew already there, & he could do the manifesto review on the flight back later ?

I mean how.fucking.hard is it ?

There was a conscious decision to snub the French & Germans, for a potential fraction of a percentage gain with the frothing loons.

The point about the King is well made too; the poor bar steward is suffering thru chemo etc, & still working full days, & the pint sized prick can't work till lunch.

I’m not sure about the French thing, that was more like another damage limitation exercise that also backfired

[fishfoodie]

All these high price, & supposedly High IQ advisors, & none of them suggested that maybe he could stay in France, & the ITV Interviewer could do the interview there, with an ITV camera crew already there, & he could do the manifesto review on the flight back later ?

I mean how.fucking.hard is it ?

There was a conscious decision to snub the French & Germans, for a potential fraction of a percentage gain with the frothing loons.

The point about the King is well made too; the poor bar steward is suffering thru chemo etc, & still working full days, & the pint sized prick can't work till lunch.

I’m not sure about the French thing, that was more like another damage limitation exercise that also backfired

It's hard to know it was the original intent, or just something thrown into the non-apology apology, but the emphasis on how he attended the "British" commemorations looked particularly shit.

[Raggs]

Not only had Sunak blown this completely, Labour have stepped in and really taken advantage, but done so in a very positive manner.

[Slick]

All these high price, & supposedly High IQ advisors, & none of them suggested that maybe he could stay in France, & the ITV Interviewer could do the interview there, with an ITV camera crew already there, & he could do the manifesto review on the flight back later ?

I mean how.fucking.hard is it ?

There was a conscious decision to snub the French & Germans, for a potential fraction of a percentage gain with the frothing loons.

The point about the King is well made too; the poor bar steward is suffering thru chemo etc, & still working full days, & the pint sized prick can't work till lunch.

I’m not sure about the French thing, that was more like another damage limitation exercise that also backfired

It's hard to know it was the original intent, or just something thrown into the non-apology apology, but the emphasis on how he attended the "British" commemorations looked particularly shit.

Oh yeah, totally agree. Just don’t think it was pre planned

[fishfoodie]

I’m not sure about the French thing, that was more like another damage limitation exercise that also backfired

It's hard to know it was the original intent, or just something thrown into the non-apology apology, but the emphasis on how he attended the "British" commemorations looked particularly shit.

Oh yeah, totally agree. Just don’t think it was pre planned

It's like trying to get an insight inside the mind of a 5 year on acid, which is particularly bizarre, when the Tories have always been the most scrupulous in their coordination at election time, & they've always had that discipline, & you could tell the workers to push cannibalism, or whatever as policy, & they'd just line up & do it.

This arsehole is already checked out & on the plane to the US, & doesn't give one single fuck.

[_Os_]

Sunak has cancelled all his interviews today and gone into hiding. Last time he took the day off on a weekend to relaunch his campaign he came up with the national service policy. Looks like the plan this time is to rush out manifesto.

I was told he’s had a breakdown about the DDay stuff and is standing down tomorrow or Monday.

Told this by someone I know who said he was told by a friend who works at CCHQ. Could be bullshit.

That would be utter madness. They wouldn't be able to have a leadership contest. The only person who could replace him is Cameron, who is carrying a lot of negatives himself.

They've totally fucked this. I said somewhere back in the thread they needed to have a good June and claw 25%, that would avoid something really historic. But they've totally fucked it.

1. The election date. They weren't ready didn't even have candidates, their activists are fresh off a recent defeat, now there's funding issues.
2. Leaning into trying to win Reform voters. Polling says 50% of them are certain they're never voting Tory, another 25% are a soft never voting Tory. They only have 25% of Reform voters available to them (max about 3%-4% of total voters). Farage back now, so that strategy is dead.
3. Losing centre ground voters, entire party is positioned to never win them back. They're leaving not just to the Lib Dems, but directly to Labour which isn't normal.
4. Labour lead is growing not closing. Polling single digits with everyone aged under 50.
5. Sunak.

They have three weeks. They would be struggling to turn this around with three months.

People should start taking the polls showing the Tories under 100 seats a lot more seriously. Reform have a shot at polling higher than the Tories ...

An extinction level asteroid is heading straight towards them.

[_Os_]

This is 12 hours old and has over 300k views. The moron still hasn't deleted it.

Just a Tory councillor attacking an ex-Para who is the Labour candidate, for spending his weekend in Normandy doing fund raising for charity.

This is total madness.

[geordie_6]

Not only had Sunak blown this completely, Labour have stepped in and really taken advantage, but done so in a very positive manner.

Starmer seemed to manage it particularly well, and avoided the muck flinging that others may have gleefully partaken in.

[geordie_6]

The Times is on a free weekend, this article is worth reading:
https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/ar ... -6rlvt8nr6

To me in reads like Sunak was mostly to blame and there were advisors telling him to do the whole thing. One advisor was a literal former PM, why get a former PM onboard to tell you how to be a PM, then ignore his advice? Answer: So rich he thinks he's the expert on everything.

The rest of the article is hilarious. They are calling the ITV leaders debate a win because of the pack of lies he came out with about the Labour numbers from the treasury.

The prime minister seemed markedly better prepared than Starmer as he sought to pin on Labour the claim that a black hole in their finances would cost every household £2,000.

[Jock42]

The Times is on a free weekend, this article is worth reading:
https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/ar ... -6rlvt8nr6

To me in reads like Sunak was mostly to blame and there were advisors telling him to do the whole thing. One advisor was a literal former PM, why get a former PM onboard to tell you how to be a PM, then ignore his advice? Answer: So rich he thinks he's the expert on everything.

The more I read about this the angrier the entitled spunk trumpet makes me.

[tabascoboy]

Less satire now (1987!) and more prescient...

[Begbie]

https://x.com/RishiSunak/status/1799697 ... ZF4TQ&s=19

He's gone full Truss.

[tabascoboy]

https://x.com/RishiSunak/status/1799697 ... ZF4TQ&s=19

He's gone full Truss.

So that's what he was working on yesterday, to try and make up for the D-Day commemoration debacle

[Paddington Bear]

All these high price, & supposedly High IQ advisors, & none of them suggested that maybe he could stay in France, & the ITV Interviewer could do the interview there, with an ITV camera crew already there, & he could do the manifesto review on the flight back later ?

I mean how.fucking.hard is it ?

There was a conscious decision to snub the French & Germans, for a potential fraction of a percentage gain with the frothing loons.

The point about the King is well made too; the poor bar steward is suffering thru chemo etc, & still working full days, & the pint sized prick can't work till lunch.

I don’t think he intended to snub anyone. Fundamentally he is a transatlantic man for whom a nation is a tax domicile. He doesn’t have an emotional connection to D Day or any other aspect of history, and didn’t grasp the significance as a result.

[Jock42]

All these high price, & supposedly High IQ advisors, & none of them suggested that maybe he could stay in France, & the ITV Interviewer could do the interview there, with an ITV camera crew already there, & he could do the manifesto review on the flight back later ?

I mean how.fucking.hard is it ?

There was a conscious decision to snub the French & Germans, for a potential fraction of a percentage gain with the frothing loons.

The point about the King is well made too; the poor bar steward is suffering thru chemo etc, & still working full days, & the pint sized prick can't work till lunch.

I don’t think he intended to snub anyone. Fundamentally he is a transatlantic man for whom a nation is a tax domicile. He doesn’t have an emotional connection to D Day or any other aspect of history, and didn’t grasp the significance as a result.

You don't need an emotional grasp to realise the significance of the event. It's about respect, not just of the fallen or the veterans, but of neighbours and allies who have invited you to take part.

[Paddington Bear]

All these high price, & supposedly High IQ advisors, & none of them suggested that maybe he could stay in France, & the ITV Interviewer could do the interview there, with an ITV camera crew already there, & he could do the manifesto review on the flight back later ?

I mean how.fucking.hard is it ?

There was a conscious decision to snub the French & Germans, for a potential fraction of a percentage gain with the frothing loons.

The point about the King is well made too; the poor bar steward is suffering thru chemo etc, & still working full days, & the pint sized prick can't work till lunch.

I don’t think he intended to snub anyone. Fundamentally he is a transatlantic man for whom a nation is a tax domicile. He doesn’t have an emotional connection to D Day or any other aspect of history, and didn’t grasp the significance as a result.

You don't need an emotional grasp to realise the significance of the event. It's about respect, not just of the fallen or the veterans, but of neighbours and allies who have invited you to take part.

I totally agree and I am personally furious at what he did. I’m attempting to explain why he did it - because it’s so stupid it defies any other explanation IMO

[Raggs]

Is decarbonising the power grid really the policy the Tories want front and centre of their attempts to discredit Labour?

I know there's climate change deniers out there, but the extreme weather we're experiencing surely is going to get in a lot of people's heads and have them thinking this is probably money worth spending?

Climate deniers are probably right wing supporters anyway, you're preaching to the choir, and quite possibly a choir that intends to leave you for other right wing options!

Tories are acting like they can win this election at the moment, nothing suggests that's possible. If I were them I'd be focusing on telling people not to split the vote and let left wing parties get in, in an attempt to get the least amount of pain.

[SaintK]

I don’t think he intended to snub anyone. Fundamentally he is a transatlantic man for whom a nation is a tax domicile. He doesn’t have an emotional connection to D Day or any other aspect of history, and didn’t grasp the significance as a result.

You don't need an emotional grasp to realise the significance of the event. It's about respect, not just of the fallen or the veterans, but of neighbours and allies who have invited you to take part.

I totally agree and I am personally furious at what he did. I’m attempting to explain why he did it - because it’s so stupid it defies any other explanation IMO

He did it because he's an entitled, out of touch twat, surrounded by idiot advisors who really don't understand the "real world"

[robmatic]

All these high price, & supposedly High IQ advisors, & none of them suggested that maybe he could stay in France, & the ITV Interviewer could do the interview there, with an ITV camera crew already there, & he could do the manifesto review on the flight back later ?

I mean how.fucking.hard is it ?

There was a conscious decision to snub the French & Germans, for a potential fraction of a percentage gain with the frothing loons.

The point about the King is well made too; the poor bar steward is suffering thru chemo etc, & still working full days, & the pint sized prick can't work till lunch.

I don’t think he intended to snub anyone. Fundamentally he is a transatlantic man for whom a nation is a tax domicile. He doesn’t have an emotional connection to D Day or any other aspect of history, and didn’t grasp the significance as a result.

It's not just him. He's surrounded by this new breed of Tory that is anti-institution and against British norms and values (or can't distinguish between these and the liberal values they hate).

[tabascoboy]

All these high price, & supposedly High IQ advisors, & none of them suggested that maybe he could stay in France, & the ITV Interviewer could do the interview there, with an ITV camera crew already there, & he could do the manifesto review on the flight back later ?

I mean how.fucking.hard is it ?

There was a conscious decision to snub the French & Germans, for a potential fraction of a percentage gain with the frothing loons.

The point about the King is well made too; the poor bar steward is suffering thru chemo etc, & still working full days, & the pint sized prick can't work till lunch.

I don’t think he intended to snub anyone. Fundamentally he is a transatlantic man for whom a nation is a tax domicile. He doesn’t have an emotional connection to D Day or any other aspect of history, and didn’t grasp the significance as a result.

It's not just him. He's surrounded by this new breed of Tory that is anti-institution and against British norms and values (or can't distinguish between these and the liberal values they hate).

To be fair, even though he's a buffoon I couldn't see BoJo making such a crass mistake. Does seem to have evolved over the last couple of years

[Lobby]

I don’t think he intended to snub anyone. Fundamentally he is a transatlantic man for whom a nation is a tax domicile. He doesn’t have an emotional connection to D Day or any other aspect of history, and didn’t grasp the significance as a result.

It's not just him. He's surrounded by this new breed of Tory that is anti-institution and against British norms and values (or can't distinguish between these and the liberal values they hate).

To be fair, even though he's a buffoon I couldn't see BoJo making such a crass mistake. Does seem to have evolved over the last couple of years

Johnson wouldn't have made the same mistake because he would have seen D Day as a chance to look 'Churchillian'. I think Os is right and Sunak and his advisors are so in thrall to the anti-European, anti-Climate change, pro-Trump conspiracy theorists that make up the extreme right of their party that they saw this primarily as an opportunity to snub the EU and Macron.

[sockwithaticket]

He would've made the whole thing about him, a different kind of blunder entirely, but people, especially the client press, would wave it away because "that's just Boris" and he, like fellow travellers Trump and Farage, inexplicably gets a pass on things that would bring down others.

[sockwithaticket]

This is 12 hours old and has over 300k views. The moron still hasn't deleted it.

Just a Tory councillor attacking an ex-Para who is the Labour candidate, for spending his weekend in Normandy doing fund raising for charity.

This is total madness.

He must've deleted it now because your link is 'Not Found'. I followed it through earlier, though, and he was getting bodied in the replies. Especially when he thought to try and rescue the situation with 'I was just asking a question'.

[Hal Jordan]

Is decarbonising the power grid really the policy the Tories want front and centre of their attempts to discredit Labour?

I know there's climate change deniers out there, but the extreme weather we're experiencing surely is going to get in a lot of people's heads and have them thinking this is probably money worth spending?

Climate deniers are probably right wing supporters anyway, you're preaching to the choir, and quite possibly a choir that intends to leave you for other right wing options!

Tories are acting like they can win this election at the moment, nothing suggests that's possible. If I were them I'd be focusing on telling people not to split the vote and let left wing parties get in, in an attempt to get the least amount of pain.

They're doubling down on the "Labour war on the motorists" crap too.

[Insane_Homer]

Sunak cancels all media appearances, so manages to go a whole day without personally saying/doing something epically stupid for the first.

[Raggs]

Sunak cancels all media appearances, so manages to go a whole day without personally saying/doing something epically stupid for the first.

Do we reckon he's resigning?

If he does, the theory he's put a spread bet on the Tories doing awfully really does make more sense!

[Insane_Homer]

I can't see him resigning now. Too thick and stubborn for that. It would also make fuck all difference.

Or he'll be house hunting in New York on Weds.

[fishfoodie]

I can't see him resigning now. Too thick and stubborn for that. It would also make fuck all difference.

Or he'll be house hunting in New York on Weds.

There's always a danger when you look to the past to predict the future, that you ignore the fundamentals of the present.

He's not like any previous PM !, he isn't going to be writing a biography, or giving speeches on the rubber chicken circuit, or any of that bullshit that previous PMs did. What the fuck does he care about his reputation or, legacy ?

He's richer than the King already, & has a job lined up that will make him a billionaire. HE.DOESN'T.GIVE.A.FLYING.FUCK !!

[Jethro]

Out of interest 4th July is election day in Britain.

[sockwithaticket]

What brilliant idea do we think tomorrow will bring? Last time Sunak took the weekend off we got the national service policy.

[fishfoodie]

Out of interest 4th July is election day in Britain.

Well it is unless Penfold & his ilk in the TA try to orchestrate a coup to prevent themselves being relegated to 3rd, or 4th in the number of seats

[Insane_Homer]

The Tory candidate for Surrey Heath, Ed McGuinness, has been caught claiming to have moved into the area whilst posing in a local AirBnB - with honesty and integrity like this, he sounds like the perfect successor to Michael Gove

https://www.threads.net/@graeme.anderso ... D3rOMIyS4w

[tabascoboy]

"Not much difference": well, she's not wrong - but not quite in the way she means...surely the only reason she doesn't go all out and defect to Reform is that she believes merger is inevitable and she will have a key role

[Biffer]

"Not much difference": well, she's not wrong - but not quite in the way she means...surely the only reason she doesn't go all out and defect to Reform is that she believes merger is inevitable and she will have a key role

She's looking to the leadership election and that will be her 'vote for me' policy.

[Lobby]

"Not much difference": well, she's not wrong - but not quite in the way she means...surely the only reason she doesn't go all out and defect to Reform is that she believes merger is inevitable and she will have a key role

She's looking to the leadership election and that will be her 'vote for me' policy.

exactly this; the right wing loons are all positioning themselves to be the Tory's next leader with an implicit promise to invite Farage and Reform to join them in an even more extremist Tory party.

In the Observer on Sunday David Gauke was quoted as predicting that Priti Patel would emerge as the new Tory leader after the election, strike some kind of deal with Farage, and invite Boris Johnson back in to the parliamentary party on the basis that she is on better terms with Johnson than the other possible leadership contenders from the right such as Braverman, Bad Enoch and Jenrick, and is also on good terms with Farage.

[I like neeps]

"Not much difference": well, she's not wrong - but not quite in the way she means...surely the only reason she doesn't go all out and defect to Reform is that she believes merger is inevitable and she will have a key role

She's looking to the leadership election and that will be her 'vote for me' policy.

exactly this; the right wing loons are all positioning themselves to be the Tory's next leader with an implicit promise to invite Farage and Reform to join them in an even more extremist Tory party.

In the Observer on Sunday David Gauke was quoted as predicting that Priti Patel would emerge as the new Tory leader after the election, strike some kind of deal with Farage, and invite Boris Johnson back in to the parliamentary party on the basis that she is on better terms with Johnson than the other possible leadership contenders from the right such as Braverman, Bad Enoch and Jenrick, and is also on good terms with Farage.

There's less than zero chance Farage and Johnson would be playing second fiddle to Patel and in the same orbit as each other on equal terms.

Johnson is never coming back to be a constituency MP/shadow cabinet minister. Farage is not going to be shadow home sec etc.

[Biffer]

She's looking to the leadership election and that will be her 'vote for me' policy.

exactly this; the right wing loons are all positioning themselves to be the Tory's next leader with an implicit promise to invite Farage and Reform to join them in an even more extremist Tory party.

In the Observer on Sunday David Gauke was quoted as predicting that Priti Patel would emerge as the new Tory leader after the election, strike some kind of deal with Farage, and invite Boris Johnson back in to the parliamentary party on the basis that she is on better terms with Johnson than the other possible leadership contenders from the right such as Braverman, Bad Enoch and Jenrick, and is also on good terms with Farage.

There's less than zero chance Farage and Johnson would be playing second fiddle to Patel and in the same orbit as each other on equal terms.

Johnson is never coming back to be a constituency MP/shadow cabinet minister. Farage is not going to be shadow home sec etc.

Yeah, this is where the 'Conservative Reform' party will fall down. Farage will want a guarantee he'll be leader. And he doesn't have to pay attention to his membership because his party is a limited company majority owned by him.

[fishfoodie]

This is 12 hours old and has over 300k views. The moron still hasn't deleted it.

Just a Tory councillor attacking an ex-Para who is the Labour candidate, for spending his weekend in Normandy doing fund raising for charity.

This is total madness.

He must've deleted it now because your link is 'Not Found'. I followed it through earlier, though, and he was getting bodied in the replies. Especially when he thought to try and rescue the situation with 'I was just asking a question'.

Surprise, Surprise, his social media footprint is a mine of information that CCHQ somehow managed to ignore.

[David in Gwent]

Is Sunak about to resign?