Oh no Rosie

[InandOutlander]

I'm so sad to see her go, she was the shining light within the Labour camp.

Article here (though talking of rebelling MPs, you might have spotted who tweeted in my last post)

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/30854449/labour-companies-breakfast-cash-business-secretary/

Cash for Croissants indeed. The Mother of the House isn't wrong is she?
I'm taking no joy in any of this - being a retired TUC and former Labour bod. I'm really pissed off.

I'm sure a lot of small business owners would like to meet the Business Secretary to discuss what they need help with. They haven't got £30k going spare to do it.

All those posts on FWR in the lead up to the election, berating the undecided about the need to get the Tories out. For this grabby shit show.

Edited to add. I only looked Diane Abbott's comments. I don't do The Sun.

Cant help feeling that as the Tories have moved so far right they are basically Reform, and that as Labour has moved right that they are now the Tories.

So with Tory parties x 2 the country is sadly lacking anything that in any way can be said to be left. Or even middle of the road democratic party.

Not that The Sun has much impact now but I remember them backing Labour pre GE

So much hype

The Tories weren’t right. They and Labour were fighting over the centre. Hence Reform taking so many Tory supporters.

It does look like that IwantToRetire.

Ed Miliband was not amused looking at a Guardian report.
Apparently, The Big Breakfast isn't going ahead now.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/oct/04/dont-do-it-again-miliband-tells-labour-over-30000-breakfast-with-minister

So cash for access is fine now?

For £30k I'd be wanting an Eat All You Can breakfast at the very minimum.

I would want legislation or exemptions for my business….

I'd insist on fried bread too!

The Tories weren’t right.

Once the minority group within it, the ERG, basically held sway it was right wing, or rather more right wing than before.

If you compare the Tories in the 2010s and 20s they make MacMillan's tories look radical socialists.

The lurch to the right was during the Regan / Thatcher axis when many western countries shifted.

The post WWII romanticism of building a different world had by then been totally erased.

Exactly. What is the difference between this and an envelope stuffed full of cash? Where does the £15-30k go?

More grubbiness.

Wow.

Just catching up. Obviously it's not surprising that money talks in politics but... just wow. It's good to see the Sun, Diane Abbott and the Guardian all commenting on it.

(larklane my Scouse ex-boyfriend felt like that about the Sun too... for possibly/likely the same understandable reasons, looking at your username).

@BonfireLadyblessings to you, thanks

15k for a photo with Johnathan Reynolds? What bonkersness is this?
Michael Foot never asked me for a penny.

I'm not sure thinking in left and right terms gets us very far now.

The main parties don't differ very much except in certain areas of tax policy, Robert Jenrick discovering his inner immigration hawk (now that he's no longer in a position to do anything about it), and Bridget Phillipson's determination to bring back ILEA style education.

It's a kind of crap consensus where both parties have contempt for their voter base, both exist to serve their personnel and donors, and neither of them are willing to think about long term problems.

Also, Labour making a huge song and dance about the Tories running a government of liggers, while...

I'm not sure thinking in left and right terms gets us very far now

Exactly that's the point.

If there is no party who thinks puting the voters / society at least of as much importance as commercial markets, what is the point of having political parties?

And in terms of individuals why should we vote for any of them, if their main aim is to ingratiate with tax dodging, global company looking for the best deal from different countries?

I'm sure Labour are telling themselves that they can't do anything for public services until the economy improves - it's front and centre of their manifesto, after all - and so they have to schmoove with the business people.

I mean, we all tell ourselves things, don't we?

Suzanne Moore interview with Rosie:

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/10/08/rosie-duffield-interview-labour-sue-gray-women-misogyny/

Archive version:
https://archive.is/7XLO7

Keir Starmer does not have a problem with women, says transport secretary
Louise Haigh’s remarks follow departures of PM’s chief of staff Sue Gray and MP Rosie Duffield
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/oct/08/keir-starmer-problem-women-sue-gray-louise-haigh

Wow, the messaging coming out of Downing St is abysmal - no acknowledgement of how out of touch they are and how male-dominated Labour is. Keir and his wee coterie of blokes need to get their act together or the party might take a lesson from the Tories and find someone else to take over.

I wonder more and more how much of this is due to the nature of the global economy.

How much autonomy do national governments have these days to manage the elements of the economy? Banking, investment, trade? I can't think of one radical type of policy difference a nation could take on economic issues that wouldn't mean being cut off from the global economy.

And without being able to manage the economy, aren't they pretty limited about what they can do in terms of other policies?

More and more over the past few years I find myself thinking that they just don't have many choices on these kinds of issues, and that is across the political spectrum, whatever party is governing and in different countries as well.

We should expect better, though. We should expect our taxes to be honestly spent in the interests of the nation, and that politicians shouldn't seek office simply to enrich themselves and their pals. Is that really too much to ask? As a minimum?

I agree duc748 it isn't much to ask a Party Leader with the slogan of "Change Begins" to live up to it.

I see it now turns out that the author of the ‘independent’ IFS report into VAT on private schools, that has been much criticised but used extensively by Labour to support their policy, turns out to be best mates with the Labour minister charged with implementing it.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2024/10/07/report-used-laboursupport-private-school-vat-close-friend/