Tonight's debate 7.30pm BBC 1

[BastardisMendacem]

Anyone fancy a discussion thread?

However they determine the audience they are usually some very cringe questions. QT an insult to intelligence of the average viewer these days

Absolutely how I feel.

I want to know what “abstract failure” is. Rayner mentioned it twice.

I did not watch it but heard a clip of Rayner she sounded direct and confident.

I just can’t watch Farage I am so angry and upset he is back in mainstream politics and will get lots of tv coverage

I was shouting at the telly:"abject. It's an abject failure. " It's a bit like when teachers who aren't very bright and don't understand words end up being line managers of departments who use lots of words.

I want to sort here wardrobe out too. I think she's similar age and build to me. We don't wear flouncey sleeves well.

I do think Rayner suffers from a lot of prejudice because she's bolshy and northern, though. A bloke wouldn't get nearly as much vitriol. He'd be forthright and he'd have dragged himself up by his bootstraps, whereas she's above herself.

However, if you're going to be on the telly, you do need to get your words right.

I agree. Clear, concise and incisive. Unfortunately 90% of the population aren’t interested in what he has to say, so don’t notice.

Why is Nigel Farage given a platform?

Because he is the leader of the party that is currently polling third in overall voting intentions, comfortably ahead of the LibDems (who will get about 50 seats to Reform's 0, 1, or 2, because their support is unevenly spread whereas Reform's is much more uniform).

I have absolutely no time for Farage or his party, but they are going to get one out of every six or seven votes across the country and on that basis you have to have him on for a debate if the LibDems and Greens are there.

The woman’s embarrassing. Can you imagine her as deputy to Starmer, attending global meetings with presidents and other high profile people? She would be totally out of her depth. Bet Starmer was hoping she had been found guilty of the house tax drama, so he could have let her go. Now he’s stuck with her.

Well his party is third in popularity. Whether you like it or not. A lot of people are going to vote for them. Not his fault the other two parties are shite.

That's not the job of the deputy leader of the Labour party and it won't be her job if she is deputy PM. She is there to broaden the appeal of the ticket and keep certain sections of the party onside.

John Prescott wasn't someone you would necessarily send out to discuss the trickier financial points of the Common Agricultural Policy with the head of the EU commission, but he did a very effective job for Tony Blair.

Also, the Tories brought you Nadine Dorries, Lee Anderson and Jonathan Gullis, as well as Liz "Voronezh and Rostov are not part of Russia, Mr Lavrov" Truss as Foreign Secretary, so it's not as if things can get a whole lot worse in the intellect department.

Yes. She would be good at it.

Move away from your unconscious bias that leaders have to be middle class white men. Angela is a clear communicator. She's passionate about her politics. She is honest and straightforward. I think many "high profile people" would find her easy to deal with. Especially if English wasnt their first language and so they weren't aware of the implications of a northern accent.

I'd far rather have Rayner than Shapps or Rees Mogg.

There are other politicians, than Rayner, Shapps and Rees Mogg

And yet, I don't think the labour party make enough of the fact she's what a core labour party member (and most of my family) are/ used to be. So every time the tories or reform tell us that Labour are elite...wheel out Rayner. Isn't that exactly what a political party should be? Representative of everyone?

I'm not a massive fan of starmer or raynor, but it's interesting that the labour party can't seem to please anyone. Corbyn- too left. Starmer- too posh/too right/too educated. Rayner- too common. Too thick.

But people would rather an attention seeking twat like Farage, or...insert here.... Conservative.

I'd far rather have Rayner than Shapps or Rees Mogg

Absolutely.

There are other politicians, than Rayner, Shapps and Rees Mogg

Yes, like Gove, Truss, Braverman, Gullis and Anderson, who are possibly worse still than those two.

Fiona Bruce literally explains this every week.

I like this photo taken after the debate had finished. Clearly in real life our Ange and our Pen are BFFs and are just working out where to go to have a few after-show Picpouls and a good laugh about their useless bosses. (Or am I just misreading the body language?)

Astonishing that Mordaunt doesn't have the sense to leave the tax lie alone. Every time she mentioned it we all remembered that it's already been totally discredited.

Sunak tweeted about it again today too. They must think there's some mileage in maintaining the lie.

I really wish that someone would ask a question about women and why they all seem to believe that changing sex is possible. I quite liked what some of the candidates said on other issues but know I can’t trust them to be clear ( so important! ) on our rights to sex protected spaces. Greens,Lib Dem’s , SNP Labour and the others all completely batshit on this.

It’s a lazy assumption to suggest the issue is her gender. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Her communication is quite frankly appalling. She learns a few lines and repeats them parrot fashion almost regardless of what the question is.

She is not capable of partaking in serious political debate. My mind goes back to the Andrew Neil programme where she made such a fool of herself he literally gave up and ended the interview.

She’s a one trick pony who has traded on an image of being the antithesis of all things Conservative. There is literally no substance whatsoever.

We are headed for the perfect storm. A woefully inadequate cabinet with a colossal majority. I think if most Labour voters were honest about their motivation they would agree they are more keen to remove the Conservatives than they are to install the current Labour Party and personnel
into government.

Thankfully if Europe is anything to go by we’ll only have to suffer them for a single term and then we’ll follow suit with right of centre politics dominating.

Let’s hope the country is still standing at the end of it. Seriously, you have to doubt it listening to Rayner.

This issue hasn’t been discussed at either debate so far.
Why is it so obviously being avoided.
I wonder if the Party’s are given a choice of subjects and no one wants to discuss it.

I don't think it's a hot issue amongst the general public.