This came from The Guardian, later yesterday:
Senior Labour figures are warning of a serious fight if Keir Starmer tries to give the go-ahead to a giant new oilfield off Shetland later this year.
MPs and ministers have told the Guardian they are prepared to oppose the UK prime minister should he try and give final consent to the Rosebank development, which is Britain's biggest untapped oilfield.
Many in the party see the battle over Rosebank as the next front in the struggle between its environmental wing and those around Rachel Reeves who want to push for economic growth above all else.
I think we have to presume that this comes from Ed Miliband, whether directly or not. Implicit in it is the threat that he will resign over this issue, even if he is not over Heathrow (which I suspect he, like everyone else, thinks will not happen).
I welcome a red line.
I do not think he has drawn it in the right place. Heathrow should have been on the wrong side as well - because of the symbolism of the issue.
But, alongside the comment piece by Clive Lewis - who must be sailing close to the wind with the Whips - in The Guardian a day or two ago, this is welcome. There are hints of dissent. That has to be welcome when the price of standing out from the crowd is high.
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We have to hope that politicians here, and elsewhere, can find the courage of their convictions and challenge the party line. I watch in fear, and wait with only a glimmer of hope.
Very welcome as you say.
I wonder how many US Republican politicians will threaten to take a similar stand as Trump and his acolytes now move to sack EVERY FBI agent that was involved in ANY of the January 6th cases, as well as all those who’ve already been told to resign or be sacked on Monday for working with Jack Smith – all incidentally entirely proper and legal cases.
As Rachel Maddow points out powerfully in this clip, this would represent the end of an independent federal law enforcement in the US – much of course as Putin has done in Russia – which is where Trump and co got the idea, of course. Worth watching in full.
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show
Truly worrying
Thanks Ivan for the Rachel Maddox news video alert. This is very scary stuff indeed – I wonder how long this dreadful state of affairs will last and how much damage Trump will do before people get wise to his shenanigans?
I’ve posted that link to quite a few people, but apart from being profoundly grateful that I don’t live in the US I can’t think what else to do …… “there’s none so blind as those who will not see” ………
Agreed
I have now watched that and the one on Musk taking control of payments.
As far as I can see……….
The Government can give the go-ahead for expansion at Heathrow
BUT its then got to go through planning and of course the owners of Heathrow need to want to build it which potentially is a big ‘if’
I would assume however that if the go-ahead is given for Rosebank then work would probably start quite soon so I can see how this might be more of a ‘resigning’ issue as it will actually happen as opposed to Heathrow which might
Agreed
“the owners of Heathrow need to want to build it which potentially is a big ‘if”
Does the UK government not own Heathrow airport?
No
Almost every airport in the U.K. is privately owned
Blame Thatcher
Politically this is such a bizarre hill to die on. Majority in SE don’t want Heathrow expansion, voters outside of SE (not to talk about Scotland or Wales) see it as yet another example that government cares about nothing else but SE (as all previous governments have done. I can’t really understand the thinking of Labour advisers and coms who decided to put such a big emphasis on this. Putting the emphasis on this is as I see it actually the quickest way of killing this project (and another step into killing the Labour Party at the same time).
Much to agree with
Thank you, Richard. One prays.
I reckon the whips and the organ grinder want a show down with Lewis. Begum and Sultana can explain why.
He knows….
Thank you, Richard.
The McSweeney mob feels that gunning after rebellious non-white MPs, especially Muslims, goes down well with “hero voters”.
I wonder if this happened it could be the start of the end of LINO as we know it? The problem is that Starmer and Co seem to be perpetually stumbling from one cock up to another (whilst saying: growth, growth growth). The new oil field will do bugger for growth (might grow the coffers of the LINO party though via “doners). Let’s say 4 or so MPs are booted out – other MPs will start to look at LINO – look at their wobbly majorities and might decide to leave.
Of course this is speculation – but McSweeney & his rabble are leading LINO nowhere (I assume he & others are the erm “brains” behind Starmer & co).
The more that get suspended the better
And also what about the anticipated ‘slashing’ of sickness benefit – because it’s apparently increased 25% over pre pandemic level? This might be another red line for MPs – although we shouldnt hold our breaths.
One of the few defeated Labour MPs Jonathan Ashworth (who now runs the ‘Labour Together ‘ Starmers militant faction) was on R4 Today programme .
With the usual @BBC collusion – it was never questioned whether their was indeed more sickness – given the 7 million waiting for NHS treatment and the approxiimately 3 million suffering long covid, and h research showing increased propensity for cardiovascular and neurological illness after covid infection .
Both Ashworth and the interviewer assumed – it was all about people choosing the luxury of ‘life on benefits’.
Another red line for Labour MP’s should be Starmer/Reeves’ single minded determination to hand the country over to global corporates through SEZs and Freeports – as consistently documented by David Powell https://x.com/EuropeanPowell/status/1885371505954926704.
But the govt is being almost Trumpian in its ‘ flood the zone’ strategy where each day brings a yet another outrageous initiative piled onto the others .
They seem to be challenging their own MP’s to kowtow or else bring down the whole edifice.
The difference between those Labour politicians who get free clothes and ‘stuff’ and those who don’t seems rather stark.
“Leeching” politicians who work for “leeching capitalism” now in the ascendancy once again in this country. It’s now become a badge of shame to be associated with the current Labour Party!
Its existential climate vandalism from the bungling idiots searching for (inappropriate) growth, hamstrung by self inflicted fiscal rules based on failed neoliberal equilibrium economics. Change tack LINO (Labour in Name Only) or as Biden found out you will just usher in far right wing fascists by not improving conditions for the masses.
The money is available, you own your own bank, the Bank of England (BoE), see MMT (Modern Monetary Theory). Bring the BoE under control and reduce austerity inducing high interest rates.
With some changes to tax £90 billion/year is available, see Taxing Wealth Report 2024. With some incentives and changes to pension funds you could have a large pool of money to finance a urgently needed Green New Deal to tackle climate change, properly fund the NHS, build local public transport with trams and electric buses , etc. etc.
But you dont help things by simultanously increasing minimum wages and NIC National Insurance Contributions. Minimum wage uplift needed because of BoE induced inflation but NIC suppress employment in the SME Small & Medium Entreprises sector were most jobs are created.
Let’s hope Milliband is true to his word and reigns when this goes ahead. He’s a weasel who has no place in government.
Do you mean resigns?
Miliband is not a rallying point but Lewis and the others together with the growing collaboration of Independents, Greens and probably SNP might be a significant Parliamentary wedge. They’ll all be accused of something such as antisemitism, although so far, given the Israeli led Internet scouring operation, looks like Starmer hasn’t got much kompromat.
Richard,
You – or your wife might no more about this than me, but……….
My suspicion is that there are a lot of people with conditions that are not serious enough that they get ‘resolved’ but serious enough that they are not able to work.
My initial suggestion might be that if ‘sickness benefit’ is an issue then the NHS needs to be given a clear target of making people fit for work – if possible.
The other point I might make is what do we do to retrain people who cant work in their previous career for medical reasons? Clearly if I was – say a Bin Man, if I do my back in then I need a new career on the other hand if I’m 60 then retraining might not be viable unless I am particularly motivated or there is an obvious outlet for my skills and ability. The Germans do it so why dont we?
All excellent questions
All we gave us the DWP trained to intimidate people who really are ill
I spoke to someone with Parkinson’s recently. A classroom assistant, her mobility is going. Her memory is deteriorating. The DWP sy she should nit gave left work. Her occupational therapist insisted she did. So wrong.
IIR it was Mrs Thatcher who put all her unemployed coal/steel workers (whose jobs SHE had destroyed for political reasons) on “the sick” in the first place, to keep the jobless totals down. But that’s history. Nowadays the DWP has v different motivation, in declaring war on the sick and disabled.
Correct
I’ve often wondered if a government wouldn’t find it less demanding of their allegedly scarce funds (I don’t actually believe the rhetoric) if they simply treated everyone decently: good, well-insulated housing at a controlled rent, free access to a nutritious diet, a properly funded health service to deal with medical (including dental) problems as soon as they arise, free social care, return of SureStart, a free allocation of energy and water to meet a family’s needs, free youth clubs plus sporting facilities for all ages etc etc. Wouldn’t that kind of provision remove so many of society’s current ills that the Government would find itself with funds to spare in comparison with our presently costly (and deadly) mess that is so expensive to deal with?
I can remember being about 11 years old and haing a flash of insight that half the work force were making capitalism work and the other half were clearing up the mess. The great distinguishing factor of capitalism, as William Morris pointed out, is not its efficiency but its wastefulness, wastefulness above all of human ingenuity and talent.
Simon Wren Lewis the other day touched on “economic growth theories”. I think Labour lack a coherent theory of growth that they can articulate to the media and show how it helps them make decisions, etc. They just seem to be pulling on the same old levers, Finance, Housebuilding sectors, Planning and anything else that looks like it can be called “growth”.
We, the cognoscenti(!) know only too well @labourlewis must be such a thorn in the side of the Starmer/Reeves Axis. His true home is @thegreenparty and the sooner he jumps ship for a progressive future the better, I’m sure he’ll bring 100% of his constituents with him, forming the basis for many more real progressive XLabour MPs to follow and really shake up this displorable, functionless 2 party system.
I could not join the Greens or vote for them with their current economic policies.