Today's by-election... how do you think it will go?

[Westfacing]

A few months back according to the media it was Reform's for the taking - now it's a three-way bet between Labour, Greens and Reform

Of course it doesn’t. Just because their intentions are to do so, doesn’t mean they can magic up money that isn’t there.

Like any other party, people would be desperately disappointed when they get in and fail to deliver on half their promises, and only partially fulfil the others.

People truly believe there is an option that allows unlimited spending with a small pool of taxpayers and a high % benefit claimants. There just isn’t. It’s a fantasy. And the fact Polanski confused the national debt for the deficit shows why he doesn’t see this.

Anyway I shalll have a little chuckle at Labour in third place🤣🤣

You'd be working until you're 80 at least, to claw back the money they'd waste on hugely expensive - but ultimately entirely unworkable - policies and schemes! 😂

Very pleased reform didn’t win!

Oh this is good news to wake up to!
Im in wales, and think Plaid will win the senedd in May, with reform second, but I think people know what to do to keep them out.
Im not fussy on Greens for various reasons but it’s positive that many young people support them, and they’ll be able to vote at the next GE.

I would predict an almost complete exodus of working people. Nobody would want to stay to be a cash cow for the benefit system and illegal immigrants. There are no mechanisms by which they can tax ‘billionaires’ (they never say which ones, or how?), so it would just be higher general taxes. If the Greens get in, I would absolutely move abroad.

I mean look at Scotland under the SNP. A complete disaster and corruption galore.

I might copy and paste this on several threads...

What about the working people who vote for them? Lots of them in Denton and Gorton.

"At least it's not that nasty Farage" - 2026 Mumsnetters 😂

Had to listen to his voice on the radio this morning, talking about how he's proud because he campaigned in English. He may not have come out and said that he wants everyone whose first language is not English to "go home" but the subtext was unmistakable. Why are some of us falling for this?

It’s great

Judging by my FB feed, a lot of friends and family who previously voted conservatives and Labour are really excited that Greens won! Of all ages!

if nothing else, this is quite fascinating.

It's enough for people to pause and think about the future. Including me!

Not scoffing, I have no idea about their policies and I thought it would be one. A flat rate UBI would stop lots of the resentment people have for those who appear to get everything for free, if everyone got the same amount it would stop that. It’s a good idea.

No more than Labour winning meant we got the fully costed plan without tax increases,

Maybe in a few generations time, no time soon.

Name me a meaningful job that can be fully done by AI? Where I work IT is going backwards, requiring more and more actual human workarounds not less. Because they keep trying to use complicated systems that then don't work. Customers generally hate AI 'solutions' because their problems are always more complex than the algorithm accounts for. There have been studies done that shown where companies have tried to introduce AI into the workforce it creates more work, not saves time.

Refuse collection - can't yet be done with AI, doubt if it ever can be, a computer driven bin truck would get stuck somewhere and be unable to right itself.

Bus driver - ditto

Nurse- the potential for killing someone accidentally seems high and AI can't currently do fiddly manual tasks.

Doctor - ditto

And in addition, the price that councils / the NHS would have to pay for these systems would be insane plus the software updates plus the hardware updates. It would cost so much more for the robot that does the refuse collection job than an actual human. Can you imagine councils in charge of lots of complex computer systems? They can't fix potholes or get buses running on time. Seems unlikely to work.

Same in my area. Labour haven’t had to try in most of Wales for years because everyone blindly votes for them because their grandfather told them to.

The Green party are very anti Israel, that probably got them a chunk of the Muslim vote.

I find it depressing that it was a competition between two equally nasty parties: Green and Reform.

I also work in STEM and so far AI is more trouble than it's worth. The company I work for (quite large and international!) have had to ditch their AI plans globally 😁

Denton and Gorton has twice the average unemployment rate.

There’s a reason people who don’t earn their own money are more likely to vote Green.

And yet everyone l know who supports them is either fully employed or at university.

Yep. The ‘Gaza platform’ (or antisemitism Israel platform) is becoming an increasing common metric by which politicians are becoming elected.

The left wing among us will say how great this is. They’re like turkeys who just love the idea of Christmas.

Not in dispute. And some people will also vote Tory for the same kinds of reasons.

However Reform blaming the result on 'family voting' is just another racist dog whistle - making British muslim culture out to be something it isn't, casting aspersions on muslims' integrity etc. Trump decried elections as corrupt when he lost fair and square. Fwiw (and, yes, Godwin's law) so did Hitler.

I think it was always going to be a tough by election for Labour - all the usual by election jeopardy, combined with the general state of the country, the Mandelson scandal and the rejection of Andy Burnham as a candidate. I don't think they will be surprised that they lost.

The good news is that the frustrated voters mostly went left not right. Hopefully Labour will now rethink its strategy, stop trying to pander to the racist far right, and work out who they actually need to be appealing to.

I don't want Polanski in power - he is just another populist and I think he's a lightweight. I also don't think the greens could win a national election as things stand. But hopefully this win will focus minds in the Labour Party and encourage them to get their house in order and their priorities straight.

You seem like a sensible person. Are you comfortable with Polanski’s approach to the economy? I’m not just talking about a wealth tax. I mean his understanding of our national debt and how to manage the deficit?