Thread 44 Starmer - Knolraap en lof, schorseneren en prei.

[DuncinToffee]

Welcome to our long running thread for political discussion, general chit chat, a friendly hug and taxes in kind

Previous thread

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5486790-thread-43-starmer-il-ritorno-della-luce-e-la-semina-del-lathyrus-odoratus?page=40&reply=150629477

A good reason to celebrate with some Welsh cakes. Glad you are feeling a little better Evenstar wishing you a full recovery very soon💕

Something to cheer us all up a bit.

https://archive.ph/N1P8Y

@blossomtoes I'm going to post that link on every thread where anyone mentions that the IMF will be coming for the UK soon.

My bit of Wales has intermittent sun. Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus!

Another Trump copy…
What will they do about BFPO? I get they don’t really care about the housebound and ill, but you would think they’d support the military.

Good idea. I may join you.

I’ve kept it open with something similar in mind….

My 24 year old son also has a postal vote. I have one because I may not be there on the day. Many people get one for work and travel reasons.

We got postal votes for the last local elections because we were on holiday.

I used to get postal votes when I was a member of Boarding staff at a small independent school. It wouldn't be unusual to be actively working and unable to leave site for the whole time the polling booths were open - plus my home address and polling station were in a different constituency anyway.

I hope everyone here remembers that a vote - and their right to vote - is literally worthless.

Odd to get worked up over something so trivial.

My bit of Wales is celebrating St David's Day with rain too. Just for a change.

You really should do some research

We find evidence that the decision to engage in postal voting is a function of voters’ desire, or need, to reduce the costs of in-person voting. It is particularly popular among the elderly and disabled. In addition, we find that voters who do not have a partisan identity and are, therefore, less likely to derive expressive benefits from in-person voting are also much more inclined to cast the more private postal ballot. There is a clear evidence that the appeal of postal voting in Britain is not restricted to any one segment of the electorate but influenced by a broad range of individual-level factors.
https://academic.oup.com/pa/article/76/1/43/6361031

so largely used by the elderly, the disabled and ‘non partisan’ which would include floating voters.

And -

“The evidence presented in this article shows that it is the supporters of centre-left parties who are, in general, most likely to wait until election day to cast an in-person ballot. “

Dydd Gŵyl Dewi Hapus to fellow Welsh peeps.

I would love to make some Welsh cakes today but I am making lemon meringue pie instead..

Research into what was mainly an anecdote about my mum? Bit late and all available information on that was shared!

Research into the fact mainly older/disabled would be upset to lose their vote - obviously it is those people mainly who can’t get to the polling stations, and why should they not have a vote because of this, you didn’t say?

I guess you mean postal voting in general is an issue, but it would be helpful if you had shared the problems you see with it, as is usual on discussion sites - it would then allow me/us to understand the specific points and allow us to agree/disagree from there on the reasons for taking the quite ambitious (and scary) step of effectively removing peoples’ votes.

Thanks to @Notonthestairswe can all now see relevant evidence and none of it changes my support for it, or brings in a massive revelation showing old people should have no right to vote once they can’t get to a polling station, so I’m none the wiser still to be honest about your meaning.

You shouldn't confuse people with actual research. That isn't what they mean.

Care to share your research into postal votes?

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/postal-voting-in-the-uk/

This is a good outline of the postal vote system.

Anecdote: I know someone who works as a paramedic and did a postal vote. It was returned as invalid because they failed to complete it correctly.

Strange how people can change their mind 🙄

This is so tragic.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/01/iran-school-bombing-death-toll-us-israel-strikes

It is tragic. However when did Trump ever express sympathy and outrage for mass shootings in schools in the US?

I am reading the "moving to Dubai" thread and amused that all the "Of course you should move, the UK is done for" posters have fucked off, and that a lot of respondents struggle to believe the OP had no idea where Dubai was.

Meanwhile I can totally believe it - indeed unless I had been informed to the contrary I would have assumed it.

Yep UK tax dodgers now moaning the FO should fly them home at tax payers expense.....

Hunker down is the advice. And anyway what does the FO even do?