I am so bored by the politic of absence.
What I mean is I have really had enough of politics where the best we dream of is a prime minister who is not a liar, a cheat, a criminal, an international law breaker, a philanderer, and so much more.
What I wish for is a news cycle is not about what mess the government has created now, and about how it is trying to make excuses for it.
And I am bored by Conservative leadership debate when everyone knows there is not a single person in the Tory partly able to be prime minister: they are entirely absent of talent.
But I am also bored by Opposition, at least in England and Wales, where ideas are absent - most especially from Labour.
Yesterday's non-event from Labour was embarrassing for the scale of the cowardice on display. The parallel announcement in Scotland was almost irrelevant: Labour has very little influence on debate there now.
Of course I know why Labour makes this supine announcements. It is living in fear of the swing voter in the marginal constituency who might cost them power, in their imaginations. People, like me, in other words, who could very easily be alienated by their timidity, if only they realised it.
So let's face some facts. First, the Tories are dead in the water. A dire administration may stagger on, but its chances of winning again are low.
Second, the LibDems are a genuine anti-Brexit party. Labour really does need to take note. Amongst Remainers this issue remains very important, and key to many voting decisions. To assume that people will vote Labour because they do not like the Tories is, for Labour, a very big mistake right now.
Third, the Greens are not in the parliamentary running in any serious way.
Fourth, Labour should be listening to its own membership and a growing number of unions and be promising PR to tackle that. The current leadership stand against this from Labour is unforgivable. It is anti-democratic.
But, fifth, most of all Labour needs to come out fighting rather than be apologising for its very existence. It should be saying Brexit has failed, because it has. It should be saying that this was because the decision was made to leave the single market and it will seek to reverse that. It should say that leaving he single market was never discussed as an option in 2016 and so this option was never endorsed by the electorate. It should say it was Tory hardliners who created this crisis. It should say that it is confident that the EU would have us back in that market. It should commit to rejoining that market now.
All of this is possible. It is correct. And it all makes sense. And it does not say we will rejoin the EU - for reasons which I understand are not possible as yet.
However, it does create a plan to deal with a crisis. It resolves the problems many businesses face. It supports employment. And it is is positive, and people are desperate for positivity.
Why it cannot say all this I do not know.
But instead all we get is an absence of initiative. And I really am very bored by it.
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I wholeheartedly agree with everything here except one minor point. Welsh Labour is
Welsh Labour is the quiet radical force in UK politics … don’t tar our government with the Labour opposition-lite you’ve got in England
For what it is worth, whether or not Johnson remains in office (I hope not, but I’ve been expecting him to go imminently for the best part of two years, and he still seems to have a base of support and I may still be disappointed) we might see a sizeable “ABC” vote at the next general election, which means the Lib Dems could do well in areas that are reluctant to vote Labour for whatever reason. They start from a low base, and there is a long way for them to get back to the 40 or 50 MPs they had from 1997 until 2015.
That makes a difference, but realistically it is Labour that needs to win enough seats to displace the Conservatives. I’ve said it before: passively waiting for the Conservatives to make mistakes is not enough; where is the positive vision for the future?
I don’t know why anyone bothers listening to government ministers and spokespeople any more. They just lie, and lie, and lie again, trying to find a misstatement will let them get away with whatever it is. Raab this morning was awful, searching for some weaselly words to hide what he knew about who knew what and when while sticking to the line he had been fed. For Pincher, this won’t be the first, second or third time. When a person faces a string of independent allegations of sexual misconduct over a number of years, there will be many more that have not become public yet. Standards have weakened so much that somehow he thinks he can survive as an MP. He needs to go, now.
Agreed
And Pincher has to go as his constituents are not safe, and nor is anyone working in the Commons
You said “I don’t know why anyone bothers listening to government ministers and spokespeople any more. ”
I agree with you, but neither do I understand why anyone listens to the Labour party any more, because they have NOTHING TO SAY. To me that is the most scary part of current politics. I no longer believe that Labour has anything to offer. And I don’t believe that any of the others can muster enough support to make a difference.
You are bored by it.
I abhor the absence.
I have ran out of words to describe my feelings about the Tories, but I have nothing but contempt the Labour party I’m afraid.
Hello All
Could we, who support Richard’s Blog, start a movement or pressure group? The group to be in support of proportional representation, re-joining the single market and against interest rises and repressive legislation that damages democracy. Could we then ask our local Labour, LibDem, Green, SNP MP’s and councillors to join the group – or at least make them aware of it and could we link up to petitioning groups and others such as The European Movement? I am worried that Labour’s policy of keeping their heads down to avoid media criticism and the disapproval of Labour Leave voters will erode a lot of their support. It would be a nightmare if the Tories got in again. I feel that everything that’s good about Britain is under attack by the “nasty” party and their paymasters. So please can we do something?
Thanks – but isn’t this duplicating what Compass do?
I recommend taking a look at them.
Hello Richard.
I am bored with the lack of ambition by left wing, or progressive, politicians. It’s all just tinkering with the rentier capitalist system.
There are bold ideas out there, not least on this blog and in your books, but the progressive politicians seem to embrace none of these ideas. It’s infuriating.
Politicians shouldn’t be seeking a cushy, long career of making sure you say plenty without saying or doing anything at all. They should have conviction, courage, ideas and passion to implement these ideas, or fail and become backbenchers or get voted out.
This politics of blandness by the left is worthy of more derision than the predictable selfishness of the right wing.
A few Questions:
1. Why the hell is Pincher still an MP?
If Boris cannot remember being informed about his offences, it begs the following questions:
2. What other things has Boris also conveniently forgotten about?
And
3. Why the hell is Boris still PM if his memory fails him in this way?
Why does Labour not go for the Norway or Swiss option – neither are in the EU but benefit from special trading arrangements with the EU which would at least help British business ?
I wish I could answer that
I’ve been wondering why Starmer made such a ludicrous, logic defying statement yesterday.
Aside from the demographics of, more EU friendly younger people replacing older, antis on the electoral roll; there’s a growing realisation that Brexit was a mistake.
An IPSOS poll, published on the 30th re Brexit, said 45% it had made them worse off, against 17% saying they were better off. So Labour would appear to be pandering to the minority; a minority that is likely to shrink further.
Could it be that they’ve got themselves so tied in knots, over Scotland and the notion of being in thrall to the SNP (there was a very powerful poster campaign, in 2015, showing Milliband in Salmond’s pocket, that arguably contributed to Cameron ‘s narrow victory; when a hung parliament was predicted) has led to this position?
Adopting a hard line over co-operation with the SNP, whilst maintaining a potential problem over cross border trade, would boost their Unionist credentials. Being back in the Single Market would remove a hurdle to Scottish independence; it would remove, at a stroke, one of the few arguments from Project Fear (Scotland) 2.0 that’s likely to gain any traction.
It’s just a thought, a wonder; it’s not something I’d put any effort into defending.
Javid / Sunak resign. Is this a setup to position themseves to take the top jobs in the way Blair & Brown worked out a compromise? Jump from a sinking ship and hope you are the lucky ones to survive. It goes from bad to worse…
Do not forget that one third of the electorate could not find a party worth voting for at the last general election. Has this been investigated and what will motivate them?
Pinch, set and match.
Bored Richard? I disagree with you there. Rage, disgust, contempt, fear and despair are my reactions to this atrocious government. I’m sitting here typing this feeling fairly poorly from Covid, and taking good care to keep out of my partner’s way for fear she’ll get it. And she’s in the clinically vulnerable group.
Yet another one of Johnson’s disasters – Covid is not over, cases are going through the roof, Johnson, you worthless fool. And then there’s Labour’s timidity and ineptness over the Brexit disaster. Just like New Labour, they’ve rolled over and surrendered to the right’s ‘achievements’. Blair had 13 years in power with huge majorities, but reneged on electoral reform, never reversed any of Thatcher’s privatisations, and when the tories won in 2010, Labour just sat there and let the tory lie about public spending under labour being responsible for the deficit be spread unchallenged.
And now we have Starmer doing the same over Brexit. Grovelling to the right wing liar press and the red wall pillocks who voted for it. Weak, cowardly and already defeated it appears.
As I write this I keep flicking over to the Guardian website to see the state of play in the ‘night of the tory resignations’ saga now being played out. The tory vice chair has now resigned, and two PPS. Even previously loyal MPs who supported Johnson in the no cofidence vote are turning against him.
The tories are collapsing, but labour just offer ‘we’re not as bad as they are’ Yes, we know that, but more is needed given the situation that pasrty has put us in.
Agreed
Good luck with Covid
Thanks Richard. Lemsip and brandy help. And hearing how johnson’s demise is getting closer.
Trouble is, his wretched party will still be in power.
So agree – about Labour apologising. They seem to be scared of becomng anything other than a faction within the ‘governing party’ – talking about what the Tories should do about their leader.
Scared of ideas – apparently Starmer couldn’t say what economist had supported his way of pulling the economy round without being in the SM. They will be hobbled by the ‘where’s the money coming from…. which taxes will you put up?’ unless they break out with ‘Anything we can do we can afford’ – or some other way of changing the sterile economic narrative of govt /BoE.
They haven’t challenged the disaster of the covid mismanagement and mis messaging – ‘its all over’ when we have 2m with long covid 10,,000 hospitalised and and increasing long term illness.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jul/05/pretending-covid-over-uk-government-virus-risk-public-health-measures
I’m not so much bored as disgusted with all Westminster parties. As far as Labour is concerned they are dead in the water up here in Scotland and rightly so. The only way they can win back support is to declare themselves for independence but there’s no chance of that. It beggars belief that there is still a roughly 50/50 split between No and Yes. You’d think people would be desperate to desert the sinking ship. Richard, bored you may be, but you’re the one bright light in this shit storm.
My constituency is at the moment rock solid Tory, and the one person who might have been able to win it for Labour (Jo Rust, candidate in the last three GEs) has been driven out of the party and now sits as an independent councillor. If Jo were to run as an Independent and the other three opposition parties (Labour, Lib Dem, Green) either stand down or field paper candidates (frankly any candidate selected by Labour HQ who have long since abandoned any pretense of party democracy will be a paper candidate anyway – Manish Sood in 2010 got only 6,000 votes and was third behind the Lib Dems) that could work. If that does not happen then I am likely to follow my conscience and vote Green.
I can’t add anything to all of the above because I agree with it all-even down to swinging between bored/furious/despairing. However- it’s some comfort to feel that by following tax research I’ve found something that doesn’t make me bored/angry/furious. Thank you all.
Mary Francis’ comment looks like it was incomplete. She might have been about to say that Welsh and English Labour shouldn’t be lumped together. Mark Drakeford , the leader of Welsh Labour, is a much more inspiring figure than Keir Starmer.
The voters think so too. In May, some 80%+ of the English Tory council losses went to the Lib Dems. In Wales, they went to Labour.
I think the Labour right want a coalition tbh. They appear to be taking aim at becoming the mythological centerist Cameron Tory. The Liberal Democrats have shown that they can win the support of young people (2010) and drop them in a heart beat so it is a depressing time.
What are your opinions of what occurred in Tower Hamlets and do you believe similar local concerns might proliferate around the country and have an impact on the next general election (split votes etc)?
I think Tower Hamlets exeptionmal
ABC – Anything But Conservative – has to be the rule next time
So, come what may I will be voting LibDem I suspect
I would honestly start to look to at moving to countries like Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands now. Let’s assume fear of MMT means no deficit monetisation. Then those countries that tax properly and run a structural surplus will benefit. There really is no excuse in the UK and the US, but the right would rather see the nation decay. Oh but they will tell you to cut taxes to boost growth rates and the revenue will surge. That is the economic thinking that will cause problems down the road