Is there anyone on here who voted Labour who is genuinely happy with how things are going

The latest research shows that brexit is costing us 250m a day or 90 billion pounds in lost tax revenue per year, every year with the overall economy 8% smaller than it would have been had we not left the EU.

Theres not a government that exists who could make the country work better with such a gaping hole in spending power.

It baffles me that Farage ultimately pushed brexit over the line yet reform voters think thats exactly what we need more of.

Everyone is poorer, were more isolated, living standards dropping, everything has been enshittified and the country has never been more down on itself.

I agree with posters upthread who are basically saying that the media are talking the electorate into voting reform, who are basically a small whacky fringe element.

They’ve taxed people more after pledging not to and given some £500 or whatever it is that’s the issue for them.

But that is what society is about ... those fit and well and able to earn help those who are not so fortunate. Or would you favour some other system?

Me. Yes I’m ok with what’s happening. Some things I’m pleased about (especially bringing back Sure Start, called something else now, Best Start?) and I think the kite flying on the budget was done as an attempt to prevent what happened with the winter fuel payment when they brought out an obviously needed policy which had been promoted by some commentators, and got slashed at the knees, they’ve decided I think to try to spread more things over a longer period to fuzz the news cycle.

I’m pleased that Starmer has done so much to rebuild international relationships - that’s not easy work and it takes time. I still feel just relief that the government is serious and that ministers stay in post longer than 5 minutes.

Reform are very obviously selling time and access to anyone who will pay, like the Russian government and that anti abortion bunch from the US. I don’t want to be sold by them.

I voted them, and I'm not unhappy with what's happening. I do feel they could have given everyone £500 last budget and people would still be angry with them. But the last government were so awful I feel more positive (even though we are worse off after the budget).

I don't understand anyone wanting to vote reform based on their manifesto (unless they are only doing so because of the immigrants). It's a disaster waiting to happen and I genuinely fear for the future as they are more than likely to get in.

Thousands of parents in receipt of UC work and pay tax.

Are you saying that you would vote for a party that would push these families into poverty?

They didn't refuse to investigate the rape gangs. Governments don't investigate crime; that's what the police are for. They refused to hold a public inquiry on the grounds that there had already been one - a point which seems to be completely lost on the screamers for justice (suddenly, several years late they care) cheered on by the Tories who failed to implement any of the recommendations from the last public inquiry.

I think Reform will get in. I won’t vote for them but plenty will. Labour needs to address the soaring health / disability bill and ditch the triple lock before anyone can take them remotely seriously as a party. And they’re too scared of their not-very-bright’rebel’ MPs to do this.

I agree with all this. To answer your point about being a similar shit show to the last lot OP, I wouldn’t go that far.

The Labour government has been incredibly badly organised in terms of communications primarily. Nearly everything that has pissed me off about them has been as a result of that. The budget was an exercise in really poor comms strategy (leaking, kite flying etc). There have been one or two actual policy failures in my view (eg winter fuel) but again this was mainly badly managed as I do think that benefit needed cutting for the richest, but just done with a bit more refinement. I think Starmer is too managerial and not inspiring enough at home, but I think he’s been great on the international stage in galvanising the Europeans over Ukraine, and handling Trump which much be incredibly difficult to say the least, and generally behaving like the adult in the room. That in itself is a relief after Boris Johnson and the way many of the Tories (Raab etc) behaved around Brexit. I also do think he has personal integrity and is basically one of the good guys, although I think he’s got too much reliance on Morgan McSweeney and this has weakened his leadership and resulted in the various cock-ups. He’s shown he’s got resilience and I’m hoping that his courage and fire now emerge a bit more on the domestic front.

The Tories on the other hand- where do we start. Literal corruption (PPE scandals etc), partygate, Dominic Cummings, Brexit, Johnson and proroguing parliament to name a few nightmares!!

I cannot see the logic (any logic) in voting for Reform just because you’re disappointed in Labour. It’s like saying you got pinched by a crab in the rock pool so you might as well jump into shark infested waters next time.

If you have any question marks lingering over Reform look no further than Nathan Gill, their former Welsh leader and longstanding right hand pal of Farage who’s just been jailed for 10 years for accepting bribes from Vladimir Putin!!

There were some very simple tax policies they could have introduced to inject some growth into the economy - suggested by both left wing and right wing think tanks - but they just totally ignored them. It’s just criminally poor government.

Who do you think will get in?
I can't see the Tories getting back in any time soon
But voters are increasingly getting fed up with Labour
It's a while off yet and things may turn around in the the next couple of years.

I think the British press is very bad at ever reporting on anything good Labour have done. It's so blatant. Even the BBC have angled non-stories on Labour in order to have a go. I remember the utter disgust over Kier's wife's free clothes, and yet all quiet on the billions worth of money and corruption under the tories. I also think after the big personalities of Boris, that Keir seems to be too quiet now as to what we are used to. A huge proportion of voters seem to equate loud as good.

I am also sick and tired that people have such short memories as to who is to blame for a lot of the troubles in the country, as well as expect them all to be fixed in 18 months. People who complain also seem to lack the ability to have any reason or sense of fair play. .

For example, the recent migrants taxi cost that Labour are stopping in Feb, I've seen people complain that it's all Labour's fault and it should be ended immediately. First of all, I presume it takes time to sort out an alternative paperwork wise and b, they inherited this from the Tories. No praise at all for them finding out this waste of tax payers money and putting an end to it at all. Examples like this can be found a fair bit. Ending wasteful helicopter contracts that Rishi loved etc.

Saying that, they've made some unpopular mistakes with traditional Labour voters which as a party will cost them dear and we've yet to see any real plans for growth, the hardest thing of all. Any party that took over 14 years of tory decline would have a poisoned chalice and to make a difference takes time. Personally, despite doing things steadily in the background for the good and even pandering to the more right leaning views on immigration, people just don't want to see it. They made up their minds already, they want extremism and they've believed the lies that the UK is in this state because of immigration.. and we are going to get Reform. God help us.

Full fact are doing a tracker on Labour.
https://fullfact.org/government-tracker/

Don’t have child you can’t afford. My friend wants to live a certain lifestyle. Having one happy child she can afford enables that. It’s not rocket science. My tax money isn’t here to provide for kids ppl don’t need.

I’m not a labour voter, but I agree with this!

The only people who benefited by a labour government are people who want to live on benefits and be provided for by the hard working tax payers.

How anyone who works for a living can’t be happy with this government.

The LibDems would 100% be my party if only they knew what a women was. I just cannot bring myself to vote for Ed ‘women can have a penis’ Davey. Just never. Ever

I’ve voted Labour for the past 10 years or so. Keir Starmer said this morning that he’s glad that they removed the 2 child cap as that’s what a Labour government is for. Guess I’ve been voting for the wrong party all along. I voted in the hope that they’ll bring grown up politics back to the UK. I certainly didn’t vote for my considerable earnings to be taxed more to give money to those who can’t be bothered to work. Time to find a different party to vote for.

Shame on anyone who chooses to bring children into the world they can't afford to support. These people are the problem not the tax policy.

I'm completely disillusioned by Labour. They stated pre election they were Labour for working people, to make work pay etc. Well unless you're on minimum wage or with multiple kids, they've done bugger all to help working people.

Can someone please set up a party that is common sense?
As far as I can see:
Tories = privileged bullies
Reform = misogynistic Trump lovers and Farage makes my skin crawl
Lib Deb = should be for the middle but seem more useless and socialist than Labour
Green=taken over by women haters and are in complete la la land

Who on earth do we vote for?!

That they would make the changes they promised to turn it around rather than just put tax in breach of their manifesto for what we now know were purely ideological reasons.

They inherited a mess and turned into an absolute disaster.

I agree it wasn’t for the electorate, and now they’re finding out what that means for support, same for upcoming votes.

Under the two-child cap parents could only claim universal credit or tax credits for their first two children. Shame on anyone who thinks that a child should not be eligible because of the circumstances of their birth. One in nine children were affected by the cap and missed out. FFS!

People on UC pay taxes BTW.

All politicians are liars. I don’t think any political party has the answer to solve this issue. I think that fundamentally our economic model is broken and seems to rely on endless, unsustainable growth. Pair that with a culture in Britain of people expecting too much for too little. There’s things about Labour I’m not too happy with but the markets haven’t slumped after the budget so I’m pleased by that.

Our media is so right wing and dismal they don’t bother reporting on any improvements anyway.

Reform are certainly not the answer. Brexit which was Farage’s baby has already proved to be an unmitigated disaster. Wait til you’re having to pay for medical bills thanks to Farage privatising the NHS then you’ll see how bad it can actually get.

Reform won’t get in.

there is a solid mass of voters who are strongly strongly opposed to reform. All the polling suggests that voters are voting tactically at the moment and are likely to continue in the near future.

too many people remember Truss/Kwarteng budget and Boris and while Sunak steadied the ship there’s a lot of people out there who can’t bring themselves to vote Tory as a result, including many traditional Tory voters.

Reform politicians have been funded by Russia. People are only interested in them on a “fuck it nobody else can be worse” basis.

it can indeed get very much worse and the politicians all know it and quite a few of the population.

we are not in a time anymore where people’s lives get better each year. That time is gone, at least for a while. People are pissed off about this, but it isn’t the fault of Kier or Kemi or Zack.

to quote I think Gandalf - all we have to do is decide what to do with the time that is given to us.

I wish I had not lived through a worldwide pandemic and turbulent times. But I do and I have and I accept that my life changed a lot for the worse as did the lives of many others. While I lost people close to me I am happy I didn’t die and I accept that things are going to be tough for quite a while.

right now the politicians are largely doing their best in difficult times. I would love to live in better times but right now we do not and I accept this.