These are two opinion poll results announced yesterday:
Labour's support has collapsed.
Right now, there is little chance of it returning.
The Tories have no idea what to do about anything.
The door is being opened for the far-right by neoliberal parties who are too frightened to condemn Trump or the populism of Farage.
And nowhere is there a credible alternative to the failed politics of neoliberalism on offer - including from the Greens, who are in policy confusion on far too many issues, including economic policy.
People want neither populism nor neoliberalism. They want politics that works, and neither of these approaches does.
Meanwhile, the power of wealthy donors and an utterly corrupt political system in the UK are preventing an alternative from emerging.
No wonder people are disenchanted. There is no reason to be otherwise.
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Owen Jones did a video – which started with reviewing a new book on Starmer.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0w7_sx3Txs
As I have suggested in the past, Starmer is a very average middle manager, that “goes with the flow”. Comments on this blog on Reeves suggests the same. Starmers controllers are to blame for this – McSeeney and his ilk – the powers behind the vacent throne. British people did not elect McSeeney & it is time him & his ilk were booted out.
Related to the various polls: John Harris interviewed people in Staffordshire:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/feb/02/donald-trump-trumpism-britain-amazon-warehouse-staffordshire-strongman-leader
There is nothing surprising – apart from the inability of ordinary people to deploy a little bit of questioning – be a bit critical of Trump. People eh!
Thanks
A good video by Owen
Thank you, Mike.
McSweeney comes from a Fine Gael*, Irish Tory, family, which explains his initial loathing of the left and later worked for Mandelson and Steve Reed. McSweeney also has connections with Leo Varadkar*.
*Varadkar and his lieutenants are known as the Tory Boys in Ireland. They courted the Tories on this side, but were shocked when word got out during Brexit what the UK Tories really thought of them, including derogatory comments by, but not only, Johnson. The somewhat west British Varadkar has since wised up.
I confirm the widespread belief that they are Tories in Ireland! Seeking to serve the Ballsbridge elite in Dublin.
Harris chose, deliberately or not, a heartland of UKIP to do his interviews. Rugeley is full of casual racists who vote right/far right. I know because I live 5 miles away in another similar town, although Rugeley is far more run down. Indicative of some West Midlands towns however, many are right wing hotbeds.
“ Owen Jones did a video – which started with reviewing a new book on Starmer.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0w7_sx3Txs “
Thanks Mike, also summarised in Guardian article –
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/feb/05/labour-left-keir-starmer-power-right-britain
I dont profess a great insight into the Human Condition and I come at this from my particular area of work, but…….
Allowing for the fact that when you get into office you will find you open a whole can of worms and your ability to do stuff may well be constrained in ways you were not aware of when you were elected, there are a whole series of actions an incoming government could take that would both have real benefit AND show that you were in Government not In Office.
Abolish the two child rule in Benefits
Sort the Local Housing Allowance
Reinstate a national Council Tax Benefit system
Fully Fund teachers & NHS pay rises
keep the £2 maximum bus fare
Freeze Rail fares
Freeze domestic Energy bills
Freeze Social Housing rents
Reduce Interest Rates
Etc Etc
These are the popular ones, there are quite a few unpopular ones as well!
Increase duty on alcohol, tobacco & road fuel
Reduce the speed limit to 60mph on motorways & 50 mph on other roads
Increases in higher rate tax
Indeed I might manage to get some of my less popular ideas through amidst the joys caused by the more popular!
You might not like me but Prime Minister Boxall looks like he’s on charge with a plan (now thats really alarming!!), not as Thatcher called it ‘frit’
Hear! Hear!
If Labour had done THAT, then v few omnibus passengers would be discussing immigration at all. They aren’t racist, they just don’t like the queues for health care and housing.
I never have discussions about small boats or “illegal” immigration, but I DO hear complaints about “the queues”, and who might be jumping them, but it’s not difficult to persuade people WHY the queues exist once you talk about the “money” question.
If you remove the grievances, you disarm the (wealthy corrupt) rabble rousers.
You don’t disarm them by perpetuating the grievances AND agreeing with the rabble rousers, or, if you are on the left, mocking the voters who are swayed by them.
Much to agree with
A serious question from the back of the omnibus, here in a v deprived ward of S Bristol with a rapidly growing Reform vote.
Why are so many of my neighbours (whose lives have steadily been getting crappier for the last couple of decades) attracted by Reform’s lying populism?
What can I do about it? (other than moan about Labour, and look down my nose at my neighbours, who happen to be my friends).
Thoughtful answers appreciated.
If only people like Mandelson had “never let a day go by without doing something to undermine” N*g** Fa***e, perhaps we might have been in a better place.
See tomorrow’s vieo – now being edited
Thank you, Robert.
I love your conclusion.
I love upsetting centrist log rollers, especially if they are drinking, by pointing out Mandelson’s clients / donors / owners are also invested in Farage. I follow up by explaining what I do / did, if the person is or persons are unaware, and how no thinking corporate / oligarch relies on one proxy.
@ RobertJ,
Maybe because every other mainstream party has let them down?
Since 2010 we’ve had a constant diet of austerity: first from the Coalition, then the Tories alone; now continuing under Labour. If people don’t see their prospects improving, they’ll look for alternatives. The likely alternatives are the Greens and Reform, and the Greens aren’t offering easy solutions.
Exactly Drew!
In 1992 James Colville coined the phrase “It’s the economy stupid” which became the campaign slogan for President Clintons campaign for the presidency. As President Biden and VP Kamala Harris found out that is not enough. President Biden had done reasonably well with the usual metrics for the economy but they still got trounced at the polls allowing President Trump to wreak his hatred and contempt upon the world.
Boosting the economy at the macro level is not enough. The more pertinent question is that of Ronald Reagan in 1980 “Are you better off now than you were 4 years ago”
You can grow GDP all you want but if wages for the majority are stagnant, jobs are insecure, food, energy and rent/mortgages are taking up an ever increasing share of your income, you can’t get a GP appointment without selling your first born, you’re in pain and on a waiting list for 2 years and the GDP growth trickles ever upwards then you will get the disillusionment and the susceptibility to the likes of President Trump and his ilk. The Prime Minister and Chancellor should take note.
Two thoughts
The metrics are wrong
Distribution matters
What to do? – give them a project. I took a look @ South Bristol. I assume the deprived ward has lots of terraced houses? Turn a given terrace into a power station – solar & batts. Taking a collective approach could get each home to perhaps 65 – 70% home generated elec. Collective approach also means collective buying of the kit. Work together to get a socially good result. Yes, there is the landlord problem (however, they could be talked round).
& for the avoidance of doubt – I’m happy to give advice and even engineer projects for any & all – & I won’t charge. I’m not in this for the money – I’m in this for the politics – for change.
But they have no capital Mike….
Ripple Energy (co-operative energy generation): https://rippleenergy.com/how-it-works
A Ripple session with Dan Edelstyn of Power Station (every street aa Power Station): https://vimeo.com/975914360/d6587e3a1b?share=copy
The Power Station people have done this in their nook of London, houses on their street and the local school: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/just-build-power-stations they are more than happy to share how they did it.
Hundreds of 1930s council semis round here, up high with south facing roof elevations, now it’s a mix of council & rtb. Solar + battery for a semi in 2020, cost £12,000 per semi (much less if done in bulk), ROI = 5-6%pa, currently (yes, I’ve got one, did it 4 years ago, not a penny of grant, and paid 20% VAT, and boy, am I bitter), as Richard says, people don’t have that capital, & those that do, end up spending it on lifesaving private healthcare for Long Covid complications (a neighbour has recently spent £15,000 on daughter’s long covid brain surgery, cos no nhs provision). Yes, we’d love community energy schemes, but it’s uphill all the way, with obstruction from planners, and especially the big generators and distributors and of course, the creaking grid infrastructure (esp local substations that only get fixed when they explode or catch fire).
The locals ARE doing all they can, but against too many vested interests who obstruct them. And of course THE MONEY – if only Rachel from accounts would cough up some BoE created cash, she would get so much growth for her buck, both from new installer jobs, (tax & NI receipts) and all the cash people would have to spend locally instead of handing it to energy company shareholders.
People use up most of their energy just staying alive, so the creative juices are in short supply.
But….” black hole, difficult decisions, growth, balanced budget, national debt, growth, taxpayers’ money, growth, 3rd runway, tighten belts, growth, someday, over the rainbow, my father was a toolmaker, growth…”
see Bristol Energy Network,
https://www.bristolenergynetwork.org.uk/
for what people are already trying to do, and the community wind turbine scheme at Lawrence Weston (not a BEN scheme).
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/meet-bristol-community-who-built-8643853
for a scheme that succeeded against all the odds.
I’m not involved in either, although I am in BEN, but like what they are doing.
(Something I’ve never worked out, very high tower blocks are all the rage in Bristol, but we can’t have wind turbines?)
Much to agree with
Should I put you and Mike in touch though?
In response to Richard: this is true – they don’t have capital. But they do pay an elec bill. This reality is more thah enough to fund the project – via “the promise to pay” (I seem to recall that you quite like this phrase). People cannot live without elec – so one has a very good captive bunch of clients. e.g. roof-top PV has a good business case & an even better one when 10 or 20 households all want it.
It is doable – it ain’t easy – but it is dooable.
I like that…
https://livingwitness.org.uk/earthquaker/99/what-are-quakers-called-to-do/
Just watched this today. Recorded in Paisley in November. Some creative thinking and determined can do attitude to get this going. Might be worth connecting with the speaker Emma Fletcher?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJLu0U_MELg&list=WL&index=2
I will watch
The failure to deal with illegal immigration and two tier policing is primarily behind the rise in reform. you go into a city centre pub anywhere in the country and interview the 20-35 aged population and that is what they will tell you. Start rabbiting on about the pros and cons of neoliberalism and you will be sent packing.
That is not what they tell me
They tell me they are relaxed on diversity, because their friends are.
They are fed up with politics that fails to deliver
You are wrong
If a polling company did a survey on migration and asked people what’s the percentage of ‘illegal migrants’ entering UK out of all migrants, I’m sure the vast majority of population would vastly overestimate ‘illegal migration’ (which is miniscule). A very good percentage (maybe even majority) would say half or more of all migrants are ‘illegal migrants’. But as both Labour and Tories keep talking about ‘illegal migration’ as a huge threat and a real problem for people’s wellbeing, then this is a natural consequence of their actions.
They massively overestimate so-called illegal immigrants and those who come in visas. The data is available.
Thank you, Richard.
These comments remind me of when colleagues and I engaged the Home Office, then led by May, on the skills shortage in key sectors.
May worked in the City. Her hubby* retired from the City last year. May is remembered by some retired City types, some of whom wonder if she’s neurodivergent. They do think she’s provincial and excessively exercised by immigration. None is surprised how relatively brief her City career was.
*Fun facts for this community: Philip May went out briefly with Benazir Bhutto at Oxford. They split amicably. Bhutto* introduced May to his future wife* at a Tory, sic, disco. She then went out with Imran Khan.
“She then went out with Imran Khan.”
May or Bhutto????
Two-tier policing?! Tell that to the climate activists in jail right now for doing far less than throwing stones and smashing up Greggs. Tell that to the Pro-Palestine protesters whose marches were policed by the Met under pressure from Israeli lobby groups.
Thank you and well said, Tom.
We should also compare to the indulgence of the so-called farmer protests.
‘Illegal immigration’? What is that? Have you been mesmerised by MSM as o many seem to have been?
Agreed
There are no such things, until cases have been heard, and then they are immigrants with failed applications for residence.
Anyone who blames immigration is wrong and a fool.
Have you tried winning hearts, minds and votes on the omnibus with that strategy recently? Do come down here and try telling my neighbours that they are fools. I’ll meet you at the bus stop.
I don’t think you’ve quite grasped what I’m saying yet.
Apologies:
Angela Rayner quoted in the book “Get In” (on Starmer): “Starmer doesn’t run the Labour party – he is incapable of running a bath”………never a truer word was said. Starmer is either Sooty or Sweep, McSeeney and his mob are Harry Corbett – that is what the country elected.
“In the name of god go – you have sat for too long to do any good”.
(the words of a great leader).
Thank you and well said, Mike.
The great man has a statue by Parliament.
His associate, John Hampden, has a statue where I live. The descendants jumped ship, were rewarded with an earldom and retain some land in their ancestral county.
I didn’t realise Hampden Park football stadium in Scotland was named after him.
Correct.
The corruption provides the hydrogen that enables the Neo-lib air balloon to defy gravity so that it rightfully comes crashing down to reality.
Somehow, we need to light match.
I use the hydrogen analogy because it is as dangerous as Neo-liberalism.
Might the similarities of moderate support for Con, Lab, and Ref be a reflection of a lack of real choice of effective performance difference between them?
Might the Ldems do better if they offered a significant difference of policies?
If there is such a lack of real choice, might it be a socio-political consequence of Neoliberalism?
“When solving problems, dig at the roots instead of just hacking at the leaves.” (Anthony J. D’Angelo)
The hard bit is knowing what the root is. Beneath political parties sits an electoral system, whereby people vote, transferring away their power and excluding themselves from decision-making, this being done by those elected instead. Politicians and political parties are not the root here, the electoral system is. The need to be elected in order to have this kind of political power, leads to winning at whatever cost: bribery, blackmail, lies, backstabbing, and the emergence of hierarchic alliances (parties). These are all the consequence of the set-up. If the set-up was different so would all the rest be. If someone can win by being an entertaining fool with a three-word slogan, there’s no point being serious and nuanced. In fact, if serious and nuanced doesn’t draw votes it is counterproductive to do that. I’ve heard said that the public is too stupid to run a country. But that would also mean they’re too stupid to elect an effective govt to run it well on their behalf. I would argue that the public aren’t too stupid, and exist in sufficient number to divide up the many concerns that need due deliberation. 650 MPs cannot, in my view, do this on behalf of so many (and they don’t, as is often noted here, they act for the super-rich and themselves instead). It is, in my view, frankly absurd, infantilising and insulting, to think that they can, and conversely that everyone else is simply not collectively capable. That’s where I see the root problem lying. Many more people need to be involved in deliberating and deciding policy directly, without an eye to career, re-election, favour and so on. Politics needs to be fully inclusive, and that means participating in decisions.
Thank you, Richard and the community.
A dozen years ago, as UKIP gained prominence, aided and abetted by sympathisers at the BBC, a sympathy that remains to this day as evidenced by the coverage of many issues, including Palestine, the City* began to court UKIP in the UK and in Brussels. Donors / owners are footloose, so they will fund Starmer’s Labour, but not Corbyn’s, and the Tories and Reform.
*That included funding their legendary “parties” when the European Parliament decamped to Strasbourg and seconding staff from the likes of Crispin Odey’s hedge fund to UKIP HQ.
I can see that big and dark money mobilising to get a Reform and Tory and even Liberal coalition in place.
As for the others, let me remind this community of what Mandelson said and maintains to this day, “The left has nowhere to go.” Unfortunately, Mandelson is correct, especially as left wing voters can be scared / herded into voting for the status quo and what’s left of the Labour left, Greens and SNP appear incapable of getting their act together, internally and in alliance. Last week, one heard that the MPs suspended by Labour are desperate to get the whip back. However, it was made clear that there’s no possibility of return for Begum and Sultana.
Burgon?
Thank you, Richard.
Apparently, so.
A propos of nothing, am I the only one to notice that some of the dissenters are either of Irish and Catholic background or Muslim?
No, as I noted in another comment, just now
Richard Burgon had the guts NOT to sign the BoD pledges in dep leaders’ election (along with Dawn Butler, the only MP to notice and say out loud, that Boris Johnson was a liar). I respect them both.
That’s a start. But he would never get nominated unless there was a revolution. The rules were changed specifically to prevent ANY left wing candidate ever becoming leader again.
Apsana Begum, MP for Limehouse and Poplar.
Ah….yes, of course
How odd that it might be those two not allowed back
I have heard only 2 might return
Regarding the Greens, I had an e-mail from Welsh Greens about the election of a councillor in Llanddarog. I sent the following e-mail & of course there was no reply. Part of the problem is that most parties are populated with people that are incapable of delivering what many communities need: low-cost-energy, adequate public transport, local food, etc etc. They focus instead on policy this & policy that – instead of action this/action that.
“There is a community energy project: South Cornelly which is the flagship project for community energy in Wales (the Welsh gov are very keen on it – 1st minister visited the other week). I have just looked at Llanddarog – there is no reason why a community energy system could not be built there that would deliver electricity @ around half the price that people pay now. Furthermore, most electricity (90%) could come from such a scheme. Suggestion: if you stand a green candidate – this is what they could offer. I would be very happy to provide the tech experience/knowledge to deliver on the promise. I would also note that this is not something that would occur to either the LibDems or Plaid. It does however, fit well with the Green party ethos. Also, no reason why Llanddarog residents could not “drive down the road” and talk to the South Cornelly people. Just saying.”
& for those interested this is what ignited the South Cornelly project – I wrote it.:
“the vision is of a Wales where inexhaustible natural resources from sun, wind and sea are harnessed for the benefit of all people; where local people own the means of energy production and enjoy the benefits from this ownership; where the local energy economy supports community services for all people, not just profits for the few.”
This could & should apply to all corners of the UK. It is not an exclusively Welsh “vision”. But instead of this, the focus is to help private equity infest rural areas with solar. LINO accusers those that oppose this as “blockers” & this is undoubtedly true in so much as they block profits for private equity.
This is the Green problem
Many are obsessed with eithre identity politucs or environmental pureness and peopkle want services, not that. I am not saying discrimination does not matter – but these issues are blocking progress.
As a Green Party member, I couldn’t agree more Richard. They mean well, but, due to being naturally inclusive, are too prone to entryists hijacking party policy.
The root cause is the immense power the Young Greens have over policy. They even with their own ring-fenced financing, which effectivly makes them a party within a part!
I don’t know why suspended Lab MPs should want to get the whip back. They’re free to vote with their conscience! And I’m encouraged by the gathering signs that they & other independent & LibDem/SNP/other figures might be able to join forces in an alliance to tackle the Tory/Reform enemy.
They want to stand again
“As for the others, let me remind this community of what Mandelson said and maintains to this day, “The left has nowhere to go.” Unfortunately, Mandelson is correct, especially as left wing voters can be scared / herded into voting for the status quo and what’s left of the Labour left, Greens and SNP appear incapable of getting their act together, internally and in alliance.”
I disagree with the first point from Mandelson, but you’re correct, at present, about the Labour left, Greens and SNP being incapable of getting their act together. This arrogant contempt for voters that labour should be courting with proper policies instead of grovelling to know-nothing right wing gobshites like Farage with rubbish like ‘smash the gangs’ will be a disaster for labour.
2024 was a one off in that some left wing voters voted tactically for labour and the right wing vote was split. It won’t happen again. If labour won’t produce decent left wing policies and continues it’s surrender to neoliberalism and refuses to challenge Farage, left wing voters will desert them altogether, which they will deserve. And by 2029 I’m betting the tories will have let themselves be absorbed by the Reform fascists into one party whose overwhelming aim will be to get power.
And with Starmer’s hopeless non-leadership we can assume we’ll still have FPTP, so Bob’s your Uncle. I realise of course that with external events moving so quickly everything might be different…………NATO (minus the USA) at war with Russia, pretty possible.
Other European countries get to fascism before us; France seems highly likely.
Or, and I think this very likely now, war between Xi’s China and Trump’s America, probably over Taiwan. Both countries led by corrupt and aggressive oligarchs, both highly nationalistic, the Chinese military very possibly a match for the USA’s now, plus Trump is, as Richard has noted, wrecking effective government in the USA.
Happy days eh?
I sense a video coming on….
The treatment of Apsana Begum has been utterly disgraceful, both during her personal traumas including a period of sick leave, and in the discipline issue (her crime was to vote against the two child benefit cap).
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apsana_Begum
Not much public support from other female Labour MPs either.
I agree
She was groomed and absued and then punished for it
When so many voters believe the fairy tale put about by the rich and on behalf of the rich by shill politicians that the government has no money of its own yet self-same voters cannot explain how money as a means of account is created in the UK (and the implications thereof) then not much is going change.
How predictable and ironic so many voters are switching their allegiance from one party that shills for the rich, the current Labour Party under Starmer, to another one Reform where its politicians do the same. It’s like living with lunatics!
Let’s not, of course, forget the endless bullshit which is piped (indeed, directed) into the phones of many of these voters on social media by the likes of Musk and Zuckerberg. And the array of bots/astroturfers which push it avidly. If you’re on twitter and you see a blue tick posting divisive nonsense, you can be almost certain that the poster is either sitting in a troll farm somewhere in Africa/Philippines/similar, earning a pittance to promote disinformation and division, is a bot, or simply a nihilistic troll. Also the odd ‘true believer’ as well, I suppose.
Much of this stuff has been funded by the Russians, who might not be very good at military warfare any longer, hence the ‘meat waves’ in Ukraine, but they’ve done a flipping good job over the years of disrupting our democracies, causing discord and supporting far-right parties across the world. Putin would have been well-set to take advantage if it weren’t for his murderous blunder in invading Ukraine.
Completely correct Mariner. Which is the main reason I hold social media responsible for much of the world’s current woes, although I appreciate people like Richard can use it to spread positive messages which they couldn’t otherwise do in a MSM dominated by right wing oligarchs and cowed public broadcasters.
And as you say, a tyrant like Putin has made extensive use of it to interfere in our societies. Made easier of course by the discontents caused by neoliberalism.
Let us not forget that at the most recent election, over 40.2% of people did not vote.
Around 19.5 million who were registered to vote, did not do so.
Labour only got 33.7% of those that did vote, but FPTP gave them a massive undemocratic majority.
These are numbers that are astonishing considering the previous 14 years of incompetent, fraudulent, criminal Tory rule, but they also tell us what is wrong with British democracy.
Labour’s majority has no foundation, or lasting support. It has been that way for a long time. The Tories would always rule by a minority of the votes cast, but now they have to worry about another far-right party challenging their traditional vote.
I’ve said all along that simply playing Tory lite won’t work for Labour. It never has. It always results in the return of an even worse Tory, or more likely in future, a Tory/Reform coalition.
The danger here is that neoliberalism, combined with FPTP, is putting so many people off voting, that only the politically committed will end up voting. That opens the door to the likes of Reform, although let’s be honest, they are conning many to vote for them, who will suffer if they ever got power. That’s what the extreme right do, just as Trump is doing now.
The danger is that the 40%+ of non-voters will grow. I’ve concluded that the constituency where I live, there is no point in voting. Even last time, Lab/Lib Dems/Greens split the progressive vote and the Tory won again.
Then there is the serious question, just how “progressive” are Labour now? They have done something’s different to the Tories, but the neoliberal template is not challenged.
Given that Labour will never have the media giving them the easy ride that the Tories always get — especially the Tory press — Labour are ultimately stuffed.
It’s early days, but I doubt whether I will vote at the next election. Seriously, if the only point of voting is to stop the Tories or Reform getting power, yet it results in a Labour government that isn’t much different — what is the point?
There is a reason why people are not voting.
Sadly all too correct MarP. FPTP has disenfranchised me all my life. We desperately need PR and a political culture where coalitions are the norm, so people have some kind of stake in the political process.
I finally had enough of labour’s timidity and repudiation of decent policies and voted green last year. Needless to say they came a distant fifth here, and labour won, mainly because the right wing vote was split between the Tories and reform. Who came 2nd and 3rd respectively.
I’m so sick of my vote not counting and labcon’s refusal to change to PR I will try to do a vote swap next time whereby a non green voter in a constituency where the greens have a good chance votes green and I vote here for their party of choice.
Mar P
As a none voter for some years, and taking a simplistic view, that 19.5 million is becoming rather trenchant – that’s a nice juicy number of voters looking for somewhere to park their faith in politics. I would not mind seeing it go up.
But I have to confess it is so easy get around under the current FPTP system.
The UK government – wedded to its conventions and convinced of its superiority – does not take non-participation seriously at all – I mean, it pays little heed to social exclusion (remember that!?) caused by hungry children and poor people, and the indices of poverty – like increased crime – there is no effort to make a correlation anywhere except to moralise about it on the basis of ownership or ‘lifestyle choice’.
When I go to work these days all I see are crumbling things and crumbling people. To the point where I just wish that I could just stop going to work.
Thank you to Bay Tampa Bay above.
Bhutto went out with Imran Khan.
Ben Davies
Two tier policing Ben?
You are of course aware that the Met Police have been found to be institutionally racist and mysoginist by their own regulatory body for the last 50 years
Were you complaining and protesting then?
No didn’t think so
“No wonder people are disenchanted. There is no reason to be otherwise.”
That’s party a would vote for
The disenchanted party.
Or maybe I wouldn’t.
Last one to leave turn out the lights
I am not quitting
https://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2025/02/04/the-failure-of-british-politics/comment-page-1/#comment-1005304
Richard Murphy says:
“Should I put you and Mike in touch though?”
Yes please,
You may give him my signup email address if he is agreeable.
I could introduce him to the BEN, I think they might be interested. I’m a bit of an armchair warrior at the moment because of personal circumstances but I am signed up to a lot of local initiatives.
He might be just the person to get some things moving. And with a Green-led council at present, the politics might be favourable now. the Greens need some successes because they’ve inherited all Labour’s cuts – a REAL black hole.
Thank you.
Electoral reform is required from FPTP to PR to remove the unfairness and encourage more ambitious political debate as parties compete with better quality manifesto.
As this site testifies citizen education is required – I would let 16+ vote and mandate that everyone votes cf. Australia – I think they have a box for ‘none of above’. Democracy is a habit!
@Gillian Charters
https://www.taxresearch.org.uk/Blog/2025/02/04/the-failure-of-british-politics/comment-page-1/#comment-1005333
I think I met David Saunders about 5 yrs ago at some solar powers meetings in Bristol. A v. energetic gentleman – he is certainly plugged into something!
so what do we know about REform’s plans other than sloganising hs Labour has offered.Bring in Pr and get the best of the brightest in.