Thread 34 Starmer - Conference Swanwiches and a Deputy Leader contest

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www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5411278-thread-33-starmer-gerst-monath?page=40&reply=147446478

Very good Labour. Keep it up. It’s no good hiding in the bunker.

They are not going to win over Reform voters, but they might just galvanise the majority of the electorate who don't want to see Snowflake Farage in No. 10 to vote tactically.

The Caerphilly (or Caerpilly if you are the Reform candidate) by-election will be interesting.

I have heard some of his speech now on radio.
loved the bit about what patriotism means to him. Loved that he said it’s about providing hope and encouraging inclusivity and youth centres etc.

This is the Labour government I vote for. The one who wants everyone to have hope and a chance. The one who doesn’t mind aiming for some of the more RW type thinking policies but wants everyone to have the same opportunities. We do need to manage immigration, we do need some form of capitalist aims to have a decent economy - but we can’t do it by wiping out socialism and social politics as we just get a smaller and smaller set of people to choose from. It’s just more making the rich richer crap.

Let’s hope Starmer acts on his promises and his passion and ignores the hecklers from the right and makes the most of the tantrumming farage and uses it to his advantage.

Roght how’s in a prime position to give Farage enough rope to finish himself off!

Excellent line from Wes Streeting. ‘Nigel Farage says go home, I say you are home’

The Telegraph reckons Starmer’s attack on Reform/Farage is an “own goal”, great endorsement that he’s got it right.

Lest we forget that the Labour Party did come into Government when the economy was in dire circumstances. That's why the vote was overwhelmingly in favour of Labour.

I prefer Labour to tackle this in order to restore, rebiuld and renew.

There is a lot of frothing from the Farageists on X about lifting the two child cap. Have they forgotten their dear leader proposed this too?

They hate women having economic agency.

Not just on X

Well I agree. Have the press gone a little bit cold on Farage after his ILR policy? It was too extreme, too candid.

Telegraph exempted of course, but I suspect the retrospective element regarding migration might have given some in the media pause. Legally, to do that is really radical. I don’t mean you can’t do it, but frankly it’s quite a scary prospect when you think about the changes you could make to UK citizens as a result.

Anyway, all speculation, we will see what happens

Agree. I think the own goal is Farage's. He has shown that he doesn't perform well or professionally when he experiences some pushback.

There is a long way to go in the fight to keep him out of No. 10, but this is a start.

Already happened on the GE next year thread.

This is interesting re Caerphilly.
Add to the raw data the fact that the top 5 counties all have universities, and foreign students will be included in that figure.
Oh, and the little matter that immigration isn’t devolved, so the Senedd has no power to do anything about it…

Ha! How very predictable of them.
As I say perennial victims.

He traveled to a foreign government to ask them to put sanctions on the UK to gain political advantage - that seems pretty bang on traitor-y.

Silly...

Women who have children they can't afford are feckless (even if their financial circumstances change after the children are born)
Women who limit the number of children they have based on their own financial limitations/economic circumstances are selfish and contributing to the Demographic collapse.

I was arguing about this on another thread but, while I don't think immigration is actually a big problem, if Labour can introduce sensible policies that address some of the issues people claim they have, while keeping the language about migration reasonable and non-toxic then it should take the wind out of Farages sails. Or at least show up the "I'm not racist but..." People for what they really are and kill some of the straw men. We never had "open borders". What we had was a conservative government who stoked up anti-immigration sentiments while letting in record numbers of people and deliberately creating a crisis in processing asylum claims.
Things like changing the time needed before claiming permanent residency might be a good or bad idea. But it's not automatically vindictive for vindictiveness sakes. Which makes it different to the Reform mantra (and some conservative policies) which seemed to be about making life as hard as possible for people for the sake of it. The people that actually do just want immigrants/refugees to be punished won't be happy of course.

And language does matter. Describing refugees as an "invasion" is hideous, racist rhetoric. Saying so doesn't mean that I think "everyone in the world should come here" which is the standard straw man.

So long as he doesn't start on the Island of Strangers rhetoric again.

I was impressed with Starmer's speech. Tolkien is a big Starmer fan and came in to watch. He was impressed even if he doesn't look it.

He's doing his best Keir impression. I bet he could do the voice, too, with practice.

Feathers are ruffled this morning.

Love Tolkien

They certainly are. A sure indication that Starmer’s speech hit the mark yesterday.

Tolkien has quite a fan club here.

Apparently Maurice Glasman, Blue Labour, Brexiteer, has been critical of Starmer's speech yesterday. He doesn't speak on behalf of me.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/sep/30/met-officers-suspended-over-alleged-abuse-of-suspects-and-support-for-tommy-robinson

Glasman also said that Labour should have open discussions with the EDL. Nope, not happening.

Glasman has been spouting all kinds of shit. I don’t know why he doesn’t just defect to Reform and have done with it. He attended Trump’s inauguration.

"I am not calling Reform voters racist. Most of them are simply concerned and frustrated because they want to see change and are concerned that we secure our borders, as I am. That is not racist."

Starmer is on point to say this. The problem is that those Reform supporters won't like it, for reasons that are obvious.

Love this cartoon, referencing the old sketch about being, upper, middle and working class. If we banned foreign ownership of the media we would be in a very different place.