Andy Burnham's new cabinet - who's in, who's out.

Tony Blair wasn’t really Labour as we all know!

Reversing those schemes in the 90s would have cost the government an absolute fortune (as it would now).

It was a very grave error caused by Thatcher (as was the sale of social housing leading to huge increases in the housing benefits bill).

Are you complaining about the winter fuel then or just whingeing when it’s working parents and children that get something for once!

"I must be an outlier then"

According to various sources: Before the privitisations c. 3millon people owned shares afterwards c9.-11 million people owned shares.

You, your friends and family might not have rushed to buy, but millions of other ordinary people did. Do you really believe that they were all Conservative voters? No political party or their supporters has a monopoly on ethics or principles.

"Didn’t agree with selling off council houses and particularly refusing to allow the money to be used for reinvestment into building new ones. Many beneficiaries do of course love Thstcher for the benefit they personally felt from such schemes."

Does that mean Angela Rayner loves Margaret Thatcher, because I am pretty sure Ange bought her council house under Right to Buy? She also personally benefitted when the capital appreciation provided the deposit for her second home. An £800k three bed seaside flat at the opposite end of the country...

Let's blame the council house buying Thatcher lovers😂

The endless battering of high income earners is very exhausting.

All champagne socialists.. we are doomed .. I can’t see the honeymoon. Lasting long at all .. we will have another winter of discontent like the late 70s .. comrades in arms and rich ones at that .. Corbyn ( Burnhams matey pal ) Starmer ( worth 7million and was a pal of Corbyn ) don’t take them at face value ..bordering on communism

Defence.

I must be an outlier then - I didn’t rush to buy shares in the 1980s as I didn’t agree with the policy then. We didn’t all succumb to buying things that already belonged to us. On principle. Having said that, I don’t remember that many people in my group of friends or family rushing to buy. Of course many did and I do remember certain dare I say “money money money” types going on and on about how much they would gain.

Didn’t agree with selling off council houses and particularly refusing to allow the money to be used for reinvestment into building new ones. Many beneficiaries do of course love Thstcher for the benefit they personally felt from such schemes.

I think we can see every day now the failings of these policies (probably particularly their implementation which had always been geared to the companies rather than public essential services provision).

“What’s wrong with Breakdast clubs?!!”

@BurntBroccoli - they did not provide enough funding for them. Our school can’t run them.
The breakfast and after school club makes money out of working parents which the school has no choice but to put towards general school costs, which includes the huge unfunded SEND bill most schools are lumped with. Which Bridget Phillipson added more to by insisting even more kids go mainstream who should not be there, or at least, should get funding.
The underfunding of SEND is going to feed directly into even more of a NEET crisis when those kids grow up!

Agree plus there’s a reason people swung to Thatcher. The strikes, chaos and winter of discontent.

Blaming people who voted for Thatcher in the 1980s (not me) seems rather pointless. Millions of people - from the Left, Right and Centre - ran to buy shares in the privatised companies when they were offered. The same political cross section of council tenants chose to buy their homes under Right to Buy.

A more useful question is how successive governments have managed, regulated and invested in these industries since then... I think you'll find no colour has come out smelling of roses. And as for A was a bit less shit that B etc, a turd is still a turd.

There was an advert for the governments summer savings on the radio earlier. ‘Dad spent the savings on ice creams’. Was that the point? Such an odd scheme

Tony Blair had plenty of years to reverse that but did nothing. Luckily, I have solar panels and a heat pump so my bills are little more than the standing charge and I don't use any gas.

Whataboutism

It’s a drop in the ocean compared to what we pay for winter fuel allowance. Breakfast clubs: £315 million

Winter Fuel Payments: £1.8 billion

I know. Blame those voting for Thatcher in the 80s and selling off our utilities to private companies. This is the main reason we pay more than most other developed countries for essential services.

The damage is awful, Starmer lead on the policy too.

But it's a drop in the ocean when compared with the 13% rise on 1 July for most people and that's on top of all of the other rises in energy rises over the last two years.

The podcast I heard I referred to was about her political career not her personal life. But yes I see your point too.

All depends on who pays for them; and who benefits.

What’s wrong with Breakdast clubs?!!

It’s the thing that people complain about the most.

I was specifically replying to someone saying how impressive she was a pod cast and prepping and researching ….and how she clearly hadn’t employed those skills whilst buying her hove flat and considering the optics (ie drinking on open water and vaping). Optics are so important for MPs and it’s astonishing that stevietos letting herself be caught in these moments.

I really don’t like Angela Rayner (and I don’t drink so there’s nothing about her and wine that I enjoy!), but I think bringing up wine on the beach is just a desperate attempt to criticise her over anything you can think of. Which is particularly unnecessary when there’s plenty of more substantial things to criticise her over.

I am in the North West but yes, we'll see. He knows it's the last chance the turn the fortunes of the party around and he has to undo the catastrophic damage caused over the last two years. He's facing a tough job.

I don't think you're right about what will happen in the next few days, judging by the feel around the north west, but we'll see.