Thread 44 Sunak: Hung parliament and Rishful thinking.

[DuncinToffee]

prevoius thread
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5066068-thread-43-sunak-seriously-scapegoating?page=40&reply=135107360

Aw @Piggywaspushed, shingles sucks. Good health and strength to you.💞

Thanks for the well wishes, everyone.

I'm not doing too bad. I was ill all last week but no rash, so now I know why....

Shhhh! Nobody tell the Europeans they’d be able to eat outside if they left the EU.

@RafaistheKingofClay wow, that Kemi really knows about life in EU countries, doesn't she? I must have imagined all that eating outside that I did in the various summer holidays I've had in EU countries recently.

I've felt for some time that we, as a nation, are being totally gaslit.

It's fascinating, in an awful sort of way....

I’ve often thought, on a hot summer’s evening, when crammed inside a Greek taverna or Parisian café, how lovely it would be to be able to sit outside. And I’ve always wondered why the EU have never allowed it to happen...

I was sat outside in Germany this afternoon having a very lovely sparking rose - who do I report myself to?

Blimey, I'm surprised they let me back in the country after being in Spain. Maybe the sangria went to my head and I dreamed we ate outside.

Piggy, hope you get well soon.

Y'all were only able to eat outside in Europe because Britain was part of the EU and you are British citizens.🙄

Now in 2024 we are eventually actually leaving the EU, the EU hope they will not be able to dine Al fresco anymore. Al fresco is a British thing for British people and Kemi will guarantee it.

Well thanks Kemi, looking forward to sitting outside a cafe thanks to Brexit benefits. If I can find one that's still open and has staff because, er, Brexit. Recover quickly piggy, shingles is horrible.

Better not tell her we not only ate outside at a pub yesterday evening but eyed up a restaurant with tables outside as a possibility for this evening.

So another big fuck you to wheelchair users.

Ffs.

This is just beyond parody

Exactly. Payments in the UK are usually narrow which is the number 1 reason there aren't seats outside.

Meanwhile, the PIP replacement scheme is underway.

Also I would question the wisdom of providing ready made weapons street furniture in most town centres. And that's before you get to the litter and nuisance for the poor sods who have to live in the 1st floor flats.

This vaguely reminds me of people in the 70s who had a vesta curry (once) and were experts on world cuisine. Kemi saw a postcard once (presumably at a friends) and has cracked "being foreign" in one easy step.

I know John Cleese is enjoying a very active twilight. Is Kemis special advisor B. Fawlty CBE, OBE MBE and tufty club ?

We've also had a spate of "dine and runs" in our town - one chap was filmed finishing off pork chops before looking about shiftily and pegging it. There have been debates about charging people before they eat if they sit outside!

We also have narrow cobbled pavements and the A frame boards are not allowed on pavements as they are deemed an obstruction.

I'm not sure how Kemi thought we all did the "eat out to spread the virus about" either...

And bumpy and generally there aren't enough dropped kerbs etc.

We went out yesterday and stopped off to have a drink (outside!thanks Kemi!). Then, due to complete lack of fucking dropped kerbs and crossings, couldn't get to the other side of the road to get the bus home. There was a rough underpass thing, but just so steep I wasn't sure I'd be able to push DH's chair up the other end.

Ended up having to go to the next but one bus stop. So infuriating. But not an unusual wheelchair experience.

Interesting YouGov findings re RSE in schools

https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/49445-should-pupils-be-taught-about-gender-identity-in-schools

Yet again, it does suggest the government is stoking a culture war whihc most people (and even more who are parents) aren't really up for.

The headline's a bit provocative in itself - the survey covered all aspects.

I am not a fan of pavement terraces unless it is in a pedestrianised area or very low traffic. Prefer a beer without exhaust fumes

We have a pub with a massive outdoor seating area in the middle of a roundabout, far enough from the road so very enjoyable.

https://x.com/Steven_Swinford/status/1791728587508215860

Exclusive:

Rishi Sunak warned by senior ministers that further curbs to international students could hit Britain’s growth prospects

Sunak is weighing up a new crackdown on graduate visas in coming weeks. He wants only ‘brightest and best’ to come to UK

Gillian Keegan, the education secretary, Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor and David Cameron, the foreign secretary, have all raised concerns

Keegan wrote to Sunak this week on the issue

DfE modelling suggests that the existing policy of banning foreign students brining relatives to UK could halve numbers and lead to a 0.5% hit to GDP

Ministers have drawn up contingency plans to save research in event universities fail

I am sure that a certain sort of voter will lap this up - the sort of person that thinks university is a waste of time unless you are studying law at a Russell Group university. But that overlooks the HE institutions that also train plumbers, builders etc. I think those HEI will be far more at risk than larger universities (which the Government will have to bail out - they'll let the small institutions go).

And -

The report reveals the total economic benefits have risen from £31.3 billion to £41.9 billion between 2018/19 and 2021/22, an increase of 34%. The data also confirm that – even when accounting for the impact on public services (estimated at £4.4 billion) – the economic benefits of hosting international students significantly outweigh the costs, with a total net benefit of £37.4bn to the UK economy.

The report also finds that, on average, international students make a £58 million net economic contribution per constituency, equivalent to approximately £560 per citizen.

https://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/universities-uk-international/insights-and-publications/uuki-publications/costs-and-benefits-international-higher-0

As far as I am concerned this is just the Conservatives burning money.
A bit like Brexit.
And the thing is it will never be enough for r/w media.
So its pointless as well as destructive.

Surely they can't be in long enough to inflict things like this though? If October is the latest they can call a GE they'd have to put a lot of work in to take this option away before then...is it possible?

I do honestly think they are trying to sabotage the country because they know they won't be in power. It's flipping the bird to the public on a national scale.

"Surely they can't be in long enough to inflict things like this though? If October is the latest they can call a GE they'd have to put a lot of work in to take this option away before then...is it possible?"

Just putting it out there as a potential policy is destructive - it adds instability into the sector.
Business/people need to be able to plan.

But then deliberately coordinating the GE with the US election shows that the Conservatives don't care much about stability. The Autumn is going to be a mess.
I can only imagine that they think they can benefit from the tension & uncertainty.

I suspect they're sharing the US/Trump's social media bot attacks on racism and anti-abortion (some odd BOGOF deal to win the hearts and minds) which is why we're tied in to the same dates and getting these odd tangents no one here is asking for.