Good on Kemi!

[MrsBennetsPoorNervesAreBack]

I'm no fan of Kemi Badenoch, but I'm even less of a fan of Robert Jenrick, and I'm rather delighted to see that she has sacked him and withdrawn the whip before he could jump to Reform.

She has definitely had the last laugh here. He must be spitting bullets!!

Most Conservative voters that I know, including those who campaigned for RJ’s leadership campaign (not me) have expressed utter contempt for him. They feel utterly let down by him. They do not want to move over to Reform because he is there.

Kemi was excellent and decisive. She knows how hard her job is but she is growing stronger. I like that she speaks the truth regardless of her audience whether it’s popular or not.

A party that was so resoundingly rejected only 18 months ago understands that they are not yet ready to be trusted again. However, this awful government has to go before hospitality , small businesses and the countryside are totally decimated by people who don’t understand us.

I fear total chaos with a Reform government. They understand business, but don’t understand government. It will be a mess.

Mn is still a bit more Labour so you’ll get responses below but generally your feelings are shared by many I’m sure.

Not true. Some (many) of us have been absolutely screwed by this government and are watching our livelihoods and future security slip away. Wait till they come for pensions. They are anti-business and make deductions based on dogma (and some would say jealousy) rather than rational, evidence based choices. They seem determined to punish the prudent and hard working. They have cowardly failed to try to sort out the nhs and elderly care.

Yes, thank God Labour got in and are ‘smashing the gangs’ so effectively.

As someone who does not follow things closely:

Reform are doing well because they are different, they have a strong message, people who want change like decisiveness.

Labour appear to be floundering without a clear direction and it seems like they are tinkering on the edges.

The conservatives still seem somewhat divided with no clear message. They pander to the right right wing but those will vote reform anyway, they need to be centre right.

Greens and Lib Dems are hopeless on womens rights which means I don't trust them an inch as they appear to have no critical thinking skills.

Omnishambles all round.

NHS waiting lists are down to their lowest for years.

GDP growth is up, inflation down, interest rates down, Govt borrowing costs down... wages on avg above inflation... that 'll feed through in better economics.

Agree on adult social care, that i don't understand.

It does matter if they are replaced by someone worse. If only we had a fair voting system, we would never have had Boris Johnson or Liz Truss as PM for starters.

I think Reform will win the next GE because the vast majority of people are so fed up with the Lies, double standards and behaviour of politicians that sometimes verges on criminal. It will be a two fingers up to the establishment election. (Which is exactly what Brexit was)
I think Farage needs to be careful, if Reform voters feel it is the new Conservative party they will turn away.
These politicians, Jenrick at al are so hungry for a seat in the HOC they just cannot stop themselves. I feel sorry for the constituents of the MPs who have jumped ship. Where the Conservative candidate won the seat they now have a reform MP.
I think Kemi B demonstrated strong leadership in acting the way she did btw.

Is GDP growth per capita up?

Instead we have a landslide victory and a dangerously out of control government based on votes received from less than 20% of the eligible electorate.

I think Farage needs to be careful, if Reform voters feel it is the new Conservative party they will turn away

Yes, in Jenrick, Farage has recruited an even more skilled liar than he is, he "could" quickly overshadow Farage (& not in a good way) who is the reason Reform have done so well.

The really question is "Who will benefit if Reform 'would be' voters turn away?"

I suspect many wont vote at all.

Ha ha always looking for the negative...

I bet you never asked that when Sunak had some growth just before the last GE...

Perhaps if people like Jenrick and Badenoch hadn't let in around 5m migrants, we would have better GDP per capita...

Exactly. Whilst the right wing press are busy trying to spread perjorative terms like "Rachel from accounts" & "The worst PM ever", mainly in response to a November budget incl 35billion of tax rises - mainly loaded towards future years e.g extending freezing of tax thresholds by 3 years, we are reminded that the OBR revised Boris' capitulation brexit deal impact to £95billion per year, that the Truss/Kamikwase budget of unfunded tax cuts required a £60billion bailout of LDI pension funds (almost twice the 35bn tax rises), & precipitated the 3rd biggest ever collapse in sterling - nb a budget lauded by Farage as the best budget since Lawsons "green shoots of economic spring" in 87. Have i mentioned the £11billion "lost" in Covid, although "found" in the polished floors of Tory fast lane yachts & that the same freezing of tax thresholds were frozen for 7 years til 2028 under the Tories.
Starmer/Reeves havn't been perfect, e.g. a sales tax on education is cruel but the treasury balance sheet is sound (£20 billion of fiscal headroom) & bond / sterling vigilantes are hiding again because competence seems to have returned to the treasury. Labour clearly have not been helped by the madness of Trump trade taxes & a slow retreat from NATO, but the right wing press would do well to remember how bad some Tories were (id excuse Sunak & Hunt to a large extent) but that Farage is unbelievably even more incompetent.
But good on Kemi, RJ is a snake & she has shown decisive leadership

Agreed.

Kemi couldnt do other than she did but the floodgates are opening.

Its about to be quite a dark time.

Nick candy as uk treasurer isnt anything to relish

Starmer got a lower vote share than Johnson. A fair bit lower.

I think its was actually 23% of the total electorate.... "Out of control "😂

Our next Govt will, whoever wins, will be lucky to get 15%, based on current polling that Reform are on 24% of those who intend to vote.

FPTP might have worked when there were 2 main parties, with 5, its a disaster, we will need some form of PR but will Starmer grasp that particular nettle?

As I saw someone say on X, soon the Conservatives will have a strong campaigning line: “we’ve got rid of the dross to Reform, now you can vote for the real Conservative party”.

I know it sounds silly but I think Kemi has very strong Mum of three small children energy. And I like it.

If people vote in Reform, then they will be choosing lies, double standards and criminal behaviour from politicians on a scale that we have never seen before. They should be very careful of what they wish for.

It was not 23%. It was 20% of registered voters and nearer 16% of all UK adults.

That in part is why we’ve ended up in such a mess with this government.

I don’t like Kemi or the Tory party but she played this very well. I’m impressed. She makes Starmer look very weak in comparison.

I’m floating voter, left wing so usually Labour, occasionally LD but I’m very umipressed with Starmer.

Starmer received the lowest share of the vote for a winning party in over 100 years.

If they don't have a vote or don't vote, then thats immaterial.

i'd imagine you wont be complaining if Reform/Tories win on a similar share...

Do you want PR to fix this issue?

Post Brexit lots of the barely right of centre types left and tortures Lisburn to the right, if this clears out the furthest to the right and leaves a more centrist party that’s much closer to where British elections are won from. I expect Reform to do well this time, but Tories will be back, even if they are out of power for 10-15 years.

Yesterday felt like a satire by Armando Iannucci - Badenoch stealing the thunder; Farage promising faithfully that he wouldn’t be announcing Jenrick…and then announcing Jenrick; the press conference was a series of awkward moments (e.g. when Jenrick missed his cue and Farage stood like a nervous groom at the altar); Jenrick stood and listed all the ways the Tories had broken Britain, while everyone was meant to nod and pretend like he hadn’t been a key part of that. Lee Anderson looked like he was dressed up as a magician, and is posting ‘Friends Reunited’ cringe on social media. Past tweets (there’s always a tweet!) resurfacing yet again. What a bunch of unserious politicians / self-serving clowns.