To think Starmer calling Refom and its supporters ‘racist’ is politically suicidal?

[SpottyAardvark]

Starmer has called Reform’s policy of ending indefinite right to remain for non-EU immigrants ‘immoral’ & ‘racist’. Reform supporters, and people who are considering voting for Reform because of their concerns about immigration, will inevitably think the Prime Minister is calling them immoral racists, too. And that will infuriate millions of voters.

I understand that it’s Labour’s conference this week and because he is under a lot of political pressure from his own side, Starmer believes he has to throw some red meat to his party. That’s politics. But Starmer has obviously forgotten what happened to Hillary Clinton when she described Trump voters as ‘deplorable’. That didn’t work out well for her, did it?

YABU = Starmer is right. Reform and its supporters are racists and he should call it out.

YANBU = Starmer has just committed political suicide by falling into Farage’s trap and he has alienated working class voters.

I think they’ve tried blame the last gov already. Now it’s on to Reform voters.

Many Reform politicians are proven scumbags and their policies are abhorrent.

People need to understand that supporting them does mean others will make certain judgments about your character.

Facebook comments, the 'newspaper' online comments, show that unless these people concerns are addressed by mainstream parties, the likes of Reform Ltd will get those votes. The best they can hope for atm is that those likely to vote Reform don't actually vote at all when the time comes. Digital ID etc will push those straight to alternative parties. Government failure to address the problem is not the general populations problem to solve through complying to ID, when measures are there to implement. ( employment laws etc)

We don’t. Job opportunities are declining with the advent of AI. I work in the banking industry. Branches are closing at such a rate that they’ll all be gone soon - people are using online banking so no need for branches. Customer helplines are moving more and more towards offshore employees. AI is marching forwards taking the jobs of admin staff. This isn’t happening in just Banking, but lots of industries. So it’s really not true to keep spouting that we need more and more people to fulfil job gaps. People displaced from the finance sector and other office based jobs will have to retrain, possibly for jobs in the NHS or care work, because those are jobs which won’t be replaced by AI.

I’m working class and nothing could interest me in voting Reform.

AI won’t replace people in the long run, they will have to go in to different fields of work instead (someone will have to program, or ensure compliance). It’s not about the field of work, but about replacing aging population.

And people making judgements about reform voters' chatacter, need to understand that this is likely to push more voters toward them than it will pull away.

Well i have a relative in a care home staffed almost exclusively by carers who openly admit they have to do the job for a visa. The majority of them are awful, abrupt, rude, rough not caring in the slightest. They clearly don’t want to be there but have to be!

Ah, so you’re generalising about the indigenous local traders by implying they’re all cowboys. You get bad and corrupt traders in every race or community. You may sing someone’s praises because you get freebies, but that’s not a reason to slate everyone else.

The left have been calling those that don’t agree with them, nazis and fascist for years now, or throwing milkshakes at opponents, or just generally acting like smug little entitled brats, all the time not realising how bad it looks. Elections are never decided by ppl who are life long supporters of the left or right, they are decided by floating voters, who take one look at the childish name calling coming from the left and give it a big nope. Put it this way, in the US the democrats lost a popularity contest to Donald Trump, that right there should make them stop and take stock, but it won’t.

It’s not pushing me towards Reform so far.

To be fair, a lot of blame did lie at the last government's door.
Starmer hasn't laid any blame on Reform voters.

No ot won’t. It really won’t.

This idea that people are teetering on voting this or that, but then if starmer makes a statement will suddenly go…

right that’s it im voting reform

is, imo a load of rubbish. It just doesn’t work like that in reality.

Agree. I’ve had poor experiences over the last few years with elderly relatives and care homes. The standard of the staff working in these places is absolutely awful. It seems to be the go to job for many immigrants, I’m guessing not because it’s a job they want to do, but because they don’t have the qualifications or ability to do any other job. The bar for working in these homes is set pretty low.

If only you knew I don't want to incriminate my partner who has to work with them and rein them in. Not all local tradies are like that I have had some lovely local people do work for me over the years. What she is saying is that her neighbour is helping her for free and out of kindness which you don't see much of these days.

For someone who condemns childish name calling you don't hold back on calling other people 'smug little entitled brats'.

I'm not sure if we ever learned the political leanings of the woman who threw a milkshake at Nigel did we?

Blame or calling them this, either way it will alienate.

By far the most caring person in my late Ma’s care home was an immigrant woman from Tunisia who had married a British man.

I certainly don't. I've paid far more into the system than I've ever taken out. I say just fix the roads, empty the bins and clear off.

Charlie Kirk had absolutely nothing to do with the UK or its politics…..

Well, he's not wrong. YABU.

He didn't refer to Reform voters. He didn't call them anything. He was talking about Reform policies.

But by your own admission, the vancancies created by AI will push people to take other jobs, which obviously means there will be less jobs long term. AI is not going to create extra roles, but will be replacing them. That’s the reality.

Not the minority it's the majority got you. Why don't you or another family member look after them?

I never said he did. The fact is people can't tolerate a different opinion.