To think the Tories must actually want to loose the next election?

I think the UK is in dire straits and will continue to be for a long time. Nothing works, I agree the tories have given up but I also don’t think the opposition are credible and a big part of the problem is that there is very little to distinguish the parties. Labour inherited a strong economy when they came to power last - the same can’t be said for now with the resulting headaches caused by brexit and covid. Not to mention our failing NHS, crumbling infrastructure, migration issues and 5 million economically inactive people draining the system. I think there will be a massive brain drain in the county as a lot of people I know are getting out for their and their kids sakes.

Looks like another by-election is on the way in Tamworth ...

No of course they don’t they always want to be in power bur I think most know they won’t win the next election but there is the chance of the one after

they still have a few cards to play with immigration and Starmer

I think they probably have given up and are planning to let Labour inherit the mess then turn round at the election after claiming they are the party of prudence and fiscal responsibility and enough people will fall for it. The current lot have managed to piss off my Stepmother and my Dad’s friend which is quite an incredible achievement.

It will be interesting to see what Labour come up with, not many good choices for them currently. I have noticed that if they say what they are going to do the Tories have a habit of taking the idea and claiming as their own so I can see why they are quite quiet but that will have to change soon as we gear up to next election.

I wish we didn’t live in interesting times and am quite happy to surrender to any Scandinavians who fancy invading. Am shit at baking so can’t bake them a cake in welcome but can do pancakes fairly well with the right pan.

Also posters need to remember that the official Tory party line is that Rish! is a new phase, and the previous 12 years have nothing to do with him.

AFAIK education spending isn't devolved so the upkeep and maintenance of schools in England and Wales are the responsibility of the Government in Westminster.

But they were too busy pouring our money into ideologically driven free schools and academies to do the essential maintenance RAAC requires.

Well for 20 years the Tories haven't given a toss about you.

I want to know how labour are going to turn the country around

Funny. No one was asking that question of the Tories in 2019, were they ?

If parties had sexes, then Labour is most definitely a woman. Having to work twice as hard to prove themselves where the men (tories) don't even get asked.

Voted for Tories mostly for 20 years, simply because I wanted to vote for a low tax party. Will vote Labour next time but feel like emigrating the country is in such a mess.

You've forgotten the state of Wales.

We could a been Norway!

I want to know how labour are going to turn the country around. If they can come up with some decent properly costed policies I may vote for them for the first time in my life. As it is all I’ve heard is the £1 billion they are going to raise from VAT on private school fees (a drop in the ocean of the £70 billion yearly schools budget). They say that they are not going to raise income tax (which is understandable given that the tax burden is at a 70 year high) but how are they actually going to fund improvements to schools, healthcare and other public services?!

Well they would struggle to do worse wouldn't they?

They've known about the longevity or lack of it if RAAC for a long time.

The government knew our schools and hospitals were falling down. I read that a hospital in Gove's constituency closed its upper floors in 2012!

And these 40 new hospitals that Boris Johnson promised are smaller, often less well situated replacements for 40 current hospitals they knew years ago are on the verge of collapse

And still they wasted billions on the uselessly performative Nightingales.

But some Tories got richer off public money and that's the main thing.

Serious question.

What on earth do you think Labour are going to do to turn this around??

They are silent on every issue, back track on the few they can cobble together!

It is very sweet that you are so hopeful op, but honesty how do you imagine Sir Keir is going to ride to the rescue?

The Tories will just rile up their voters with something about asylum seekers, Sadiq Khan or Benefit scrounges just before the election and the easily manipulated bastards will go and vote for them.

It helps that you have to believe things that aren't true to be a Tory in the first place.

Like Brexit.

Yeah, possibly - they have no solutions but they can lose and then blame Labour for all problems they left behind.

To be fair, most aren't. But the problem is much wider than schools. RACC is used in my local hospital, which needs a complete rebuild. Not sure where the money for that is going to come from, given Labour have said no increases in income tax.

If we won't pay more tax, how are we going to have better services and infrastructure?

There are lots of people out there who will still vote Tory, as they still think Boris woz robbed.

But...but...but...they at least know what a woman is......small boats full of illegal immigrants, oven ready deal......brexit means brexit......keirs beer....chaos under Labour.....the unelectable Jeremy Corbyn.....Dianne Abbot.....Labour spent all the money.....Gordon Brown called a woman a bigot.....Labour is in the SNP pocket

Sounds good to me! They all seem to run civilised societies, and hopefully we'd get our EU passports back.

I think the Tories have a very low opinion of their own voters and believe that enough of them will turn out to vote for them no matter how much they have damaged this country.

To be a Tory voter nowadays you have to be thick and blind, a stranger to logic and facts and in denial about actions having consequences and easily manipulated, even into acting against their own interest, the interest of others and the interest of our country.

Look at the ULEZ numb nuts fighting against cleaner air.

I bet loads of them have something about their children being their world in their divorced dad plenty of fish profile.

Not enough to give up the old diesel though eh?

They've known for years.

I think as well, if you cancel a programme to rebuild schools and then have actually had basically the same information since 2018, and then also don't provide additional capital funding to deal with it, those probably add to the "yup, this is a government problem" side of things.

Agree with pp that they know they’ve lost the next election so actually it makes it quite convenient to be seen to be trying to do something about it when realistically it is the next government that will have to find money to pay for it

A lot of countries do use RAAC concrete in their buildings including germany, singapore. The difference is that other countries maintain it and replace sections of it as time goes by. There is a strict maintenance schedule

If you choose to use cheaper materials and then don't maintain it, then it is a failure on your part. Its like how many people choose to buy cheap clothes from Primark but they also probably replace their clothes more often than someone who buys bespoke tailor made clothing.