722 thoughts on “Thursday 7 November: The one priority for this election: leaving the EU before the liberal establishment kills Brexit”

  1. I’ll vote Lib Dem – but I can’t join them. Spectator. Matthew Parris. 9 November 2019.

    I’m most emphatically not joining that party. Not many weeks ago, my column on this page proposed the outlines of a sharp divide between Lib-Demery and liberal conservatism. I hold to that. Of course there have always been admirable people in the Liberal, and, latterly, Liberal Democrat party: admirable people, and some excellent ideas, civilised instincts and humane responses. I admired Nick Clegg, liked Vince Cable’s dry and unsparing rationality, and can see Jo Swinson as a capable and sensible politician. They are, at least, not mad. But the party’s ‘something must be done’ attitude to social needs and problems, its reflexive preference for statist solutions, and its modern reluctance to acknowledge the importance of moral hazard in private life and public policy, creates (for conservatives and freedom–lovers) a hole in Lib Dem political philosophy. I’m also opposed to reversing the result of the 2016 referendum except through a fresh referendum; but there’s no chance the Lib Dems will get the chance to revoke without another plebiscite.

    Leaving aside questions of political orientation, with the not unreasonable suspicion that Parris was never a Conservative in any meaningful sense, one has to doubt the character judgement of someone who could arrive at the conclusions in bold text. Clegg reneged on a major policy decision that essentially destroyed his Party in the next General Election, all this for the lure of personal power. His eventual replacement (after the traumas of the asexual Farron) Vince Cable, opposed the result of the largest Democratic mandate in UK history, while Swinson will go down as an arrogant anti-democrat of almost H!tlerian proportions; the votes of 17 million people counting for nothing at all in her worldview!

    https://www.spectator.co.uk/2019/11/ill-vote-lib-dem-but-i-cant-join-them/

  2. Good morning all

    It was a fine starry night last night , though rained in the early hours briefly .

    We were woken up before 5 am by the coastguard helicopter flying overhead on route to a job on. It returned overhead just over an hour later just after six am .
    Portland lost its own coastguard helicopter a couple of years ago , economic austerity cuts apparently and the Lee on Solent one scuttles from there to here and further down the coast to Devon when needed.

    I don’t have access to the letters page , but can obviously read the comments .. Piper Alpha was mentioned in the comments, what is the reference to that re the letters ..

    2. It may hark back to a comment yesterday about the only ones to survive the Piper alpha disaster were those who acted on instinct and did not follow the procedure to go to the “Safe Areas” on the rig.

  4. The real danger to Brèxit is Labour and the influence of
    the Lib Dems. Mock the Lib Dems if you like but they
    do have the ears of the 48% and are an established
    political party, both together can do an awful lot of damage,
    as well as Labour becoming more hard left and the dangers
    with that. Anything pro Brèxit in parliament will be voted
    down and that’s the reality.

    1. Morning, Ethel. Fortunately the British voter has an instinctive aversion to extremism, so I doubt that we have very much to fear from Labour’s ongoing lurch to the left; it will just make them even more unelectable.

      1. That is very true, we don’t do extremes and Labour certainly
        have headed that way. But they have been very careful with
        placing Jeremy Corbyn as the face of the hard left.
        He with his gentle bearded looks to trick students that he
        is a harmless guru figure . The real danger are those
        younger hard lefties behind Corbyn.
        Labour unfortunately have always had a very efficient
        and ruthlessly good campaigning on the ground.

        1. Sorry ethel, so many mixed conjugations, I have to say something.

          That is very true, we don’t do extremes and Labour certainly 
          have has headed that way. But they have it has been very careful with 
          placing Jeremy Corbyn as the face of the hard left.
          He with his gentle bearded looks to trick students that he 
          is a harmless guru figure . The real danger are is those 
          younger hard lefties behind Corbyn. 
          Labour unfortunately have has always had a very efficient 
          and ruthlessly good campaigning on the ground.

      2. Without that ‘nice’ Mr. Watson they will become really, really nasty.

        I think the DT have developed cold feet; the article is becoming harder to find.
        Maybe Ms. Prince has been carted off to a quiet place.

        “The Labour Party will be a meaner, nastier place without Tom Watson

        In an ordinary general election, news that the deputy leader of one of the two main political parties had decided not to stand would be jaw-dropping.

        But, then, this is not an ordinary election. And, perhaps more aptly, Tom Watson is no ordinary deputy leader, of no ordinary Labour Party.

        Elected by the membership in 2015 with a separate mandate to that which brought Jeremy Corbyn to the leadership, Mr Watson was from the start a thorn in the side of the new regime. They couldn’t get rid of him – and he refused to kowtow to them.

        It is one of the clearest signs of how far to the left the party has swung since then that Mr Watson could be considered to represent the right.

        “Blairite,” the Momentum trolls would taunt him on Twitter, oblivious to the fact that before becoming Deputy Leader Mr Watson was best known as one of Gordon Brown’s trade union bully boys, a political thug who orchestrated a 2006 attempt to overthrow Tony Blair.

        It was the pride of Mr Watson’s life to have been elected Deputy Leader, and he fought manfully against the many attempts by Mr Corbyn’s cronies to overthrow him, most recently at the last Labour conference where it was his turn to be on the receiving end of a narrowly-averted coup.

        So why is he throwing in the towel now after fighting so hard for so long? In part because he is as fed up as most moderate MPs at having to defend a man and a party which has failed so abysmally to tackle the stain of anti-Semitism.

        Like many of those who are standing down, he could not in good conscience recommend that voters honour the leader he was serving as deputy with the highest office in the land, Prime Minister.

        And perhaps there was a little self-preservation in there too; Mr Watson’s majority in West Bromwich East was a relatively healthy 7,713, but elections are unpredictable and the margin was not enough to feel entirely secure. Losing would have devastated this proud politician.

        So what will Mr Watson look back on from his time in politics? He was a good and loyal friend to Prime Minister Brown, a man who needed all the support he could get. He was a capable minister, most particularly as Digital Engagement Minister, an area he took a special interest in having been among the first MPs to communicate with constituents via a blog.

        But there were stand-out lows, too; his war on the Press was shrill and ill-advised, his over-heated demands for a Levenson II inquiry missing the point that the probe would have been a superfluous drain on the public purse. His whipping-up of false allegations of a Westminster child sex abuse ring was downright dangerous; his insistence based on no concrete evidence that the paedophile fantasist Carl Beech was credible destroyed the lives of victims including former Home Secretary Leon Brittan.

        On the plus-side of the ledger, Mr Watson’s doughty four years seeking to protect Labour from the Corbynistas’ worst excesses have been admirable. The party owes him a debt. It will be a meaner, nastier place without him.”

          3. Well go with Labour then, it’s the choice of either
            large party but no that Labour have said they will
            hold a people’s vote and know that the hard left
            jew hating Hamas supporters will not only destroy
            our economy they will also close down detainment
            centres for asylum seekers from the middle East
            as it’s ‘ against their human rights .
            Chose your poison, the EU or the hard left,
            we are leaving the EU with Boris Johnson’s deal
            and he’s not a Jew hater either .

          4. I fear that the truth is that we won’rt be leaving no matter who wins the election. The only hope was a sensible pact between the Conservatives and TBP – why was Boris Johnson so determined to rule that out?

            Johnson becomes more like May every day. “It’s my deal, my deal. No other deal will do” he yells as he throws the toys out of his pram.

          5. But Bob3, I’ve monitored the goings on here and your other home, how far would I have to go back to see you placing hope in Johnson? Stating May is terrible. JRM for PM. Steve Baker is brilliant. I just cannot read or watch any of the stuff you and your fellow GPers and NoTTLers read but I did switch on the ITV news on 22nd June 2016 showing Johnson canvassing in Ashby. He got a new ar$e given to him by a 17 year old as Johnson had no idea how to respond. I was unbelievably despondent. I thought if that’s the best we’ve got then we’re totally facked. Johnson was the guy who wrote two letters and on a whim chose Leave.
            I see you were on Guido, plenty on there think Johnson is the biz.
            There was only one decent MP, the German woman. The rest are all traitors. There is only one way this will all be resolved.

          6. I have always said that you can never trust a Tory on Brexit, they will always let you down in the end and that they only play the Leave card to steal the Brexit and UKIP votes

          8. Who is down-voting you? Are they too cowardly to say who they are and give a coherent account of why they disagree with you?

            I must confess that I once had faith is JRM, Steve Baker and Mark Francois and so I, and I imagine many others, feel very deeply betrayed. Most of us never had much faith in the Bonking Buffoon.

          9. I maybe know one but I really don’t care. As I’ve said before the only place I bother about upvoting and downvoting is on the Daily Mail. Actually my last two comments on there were about the bonking buffoon and I deliberately made them provocative to see what the opinion was about him.
            @poppiesmum wrote me an excellent reply about the betrayal we all feel.

          1. I don’t bother. I prefer to reply and challenge the poster. It challenges my opinion if they’re reasonable. Clicking an arrow just seems pointless.

      2. Indeed so. There is the added fact that
        Boris Johnson is the reason that Mohammed Amìn resigned
        from being the chairman of British Muslim Council
        saying that Mr Johnson is no friend of Muslims in
        this country, he is now in the Lib Dems.
        Jeremy Corbyn we know is a terrorist lover and Jew hater
        and has officially stated that Labour will call for a people’s
        vote. Much is at stake as well as Brèxit .

    4. ‘Morning, Ethel, “Mock the Lib Dems if you like but they do have the ears of the 48%…”

      Believe that and you’ll be voting for them next.

      I guess the figures are falsified in the hope of attracting the numpty vote that say, “I do like to be on the winning side.”

      1. The 48% lost the referendum but they still exist and
        are determined to stop Brèxit, it’s incorrect to think
        the Lib Dems can’t cause any damage to Brèxit,
        especially if they back up Labour who are officially
        a remain party. Both are in parliament and can
        vote down what they like.

          1. I know the 48% don’t get a mention but it was far
            too close for the 52% to think we have a clean run.
            Many of those 48% now that they know Labour is a remain
            party but cannot stomach Corbyn will vote Lib Dems
            and hold their noses. They believe they have a chance to
            stop Brèxit totally now.

    5. I have been banging on about this for weeks. There is one issue*, Brexit. Anyone who cares about Brexit, in or out, must decide how best to vote.
      The Lib/Dems are clear, a vote for them is a vote to Remain. they are the only Remain party.
      Thos who wish to leave theEU are in quandary. The Tories have betrayed the voters three times. Why would the next lot of Tories be any better?
      Labour are an incoherent shambles on the subject. The Brexit Party are clear, but may split the Leave vote without giving Parliament any greater power to achieve Brexit. (The Brexit Party may be a sham, a Trojan Horse, set up to wreck Brexit by splitting the vote.)

      Any discussion about other polices is futile. If we leave the EU without a WA, then a UK Government can introduce any policies on anything. If we “leave” with a WA, then we have to do what the EU says. If we cancel Brexit, we remain in the EU and have to do what the EU ssys.

    6. I wish that all the horrors inherent in the Johnson May Surrender ‘deal’ could be clearly explained by the BBC and the rest of the MSM.

      All we get from Boris Johnson is bumbling, bombastic evasions.

    7. I wish that all the horrors inherent in the Johnson May Surrender ‘deal’ could be clearly explained by the BBC and the rest of the MSM.

      All we get from Boris Johnson is bumbling, bombastic evasions.

  5. The Labour Party will be a meaner, nastier place without Tom Watson

    If only Watson had listened to the country, ie the Labour Voters in the rump of UK who voted for Brexit (and did something about those views), and not to Carl Beech and his foul lying accusations about a paedo ring, UK would now be a far better place: perhaps even heading towards Brexit.

    We are well rid of the unapologetic slime ball

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2019/11/06/labour-party-will-meaner-nastier-place-without-tom-watson/

    2. If you are meaner and nastier without Tom Watson then you must be incredibly mean and nasty.

  7. Morning all

    SIR – Many Eurosceptic Conservatives paid £25 to Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party in May so that it could contest the EU parliamentary elections. That was our protest against Theresa May’s hopeless handling of Brexit and her lousy deal.

    When Boris Johnson took over as Prime Minister he inherited a very poor hand, which, however, he has played with unexpected skill and determination. He has also shown himself steady under fire.

    While Mr Johnson’s deal with the EU is deeply flawed, it is probably the best we can hope for.

    Now is the time for common sense and pragmatism. If we don’t leave now, we may never leave, as the liberal establishment will make sure Brexit never happens.

    At the same time, continued intransigence by Mr Farage could split the Conservative vote and open the way for the election of Britain’s first Marxist government. No sensible person wants to risk that.

    Gregory Shenkman
    London W8

    SIR – An oven-ready deal (Boris Johnson, Commentary, November 6) is a raw deal.

    Barry Tighe
    Woodford Green, Essex

    SIR – In the event that the Brexit Party wins the election, what are its policies and who would the prime minister be?

    Charles James
    Bognor Regis, West Sussex

    1. Gregory Shenkman

      “While Mr Johnson’s deal with the EU is deeply flawed, it is probably the best we can hope for.”

      How can any country that’s a nett contributor to the EU and has a trade deficit with it accept a deal which is detrimental to its own interests?

      Morning Epi.

      1. How can any country that’s a nett contributor to the EU and has a trade deficit with it accept a deal which is detrimental to its own interests?

        The Country isn’t accepting the “deal”, our political class wants to accept it and whilst the “deal” is detrimental to our Country it’s beneficial to the EU. The next question is: which of the two entities, the UK or the EU, does our political class support? I think the answer is clear.

        1. When I see the national debt and read the promises by our politicians to spend and borrow more, I think the time has come to curtail their power. How dare these people dip into our pockets and also overthrow our votes?

          On the latter, obviously we can’t have a national vote on every issue but where we do have one, it should take precedence over votes in parliament.

        2. Boris Johnson is a total fraud and entirely dishonest.

          In order to get support for his party leadership bid he said that ‘No Deal’ was back on the table.

          Now it has been taken off the table.

          The man is full of bombast and has no desire for Britain to escape the EU’s yoke.

        3. Boris Johnson is a total fraud and entirely dishonest.

          In order to get support for his party leadership bid he said that ‘No Deal’ was back on the table.

          Now it has been taken off the table.

          The man is full of bombast and has no desire for Britain to escape the EU’s yoke.

      2. Morning E,
        Hope is a very fickle commodity
        How about we revert to the
        original plan conceived & activated by UKIP as in,
        Walk then Talk,

        1. Morning ogga.

          I think that should have been the plan from day one.

          It would be interesting to know how long it took for countries to join the EU and how long it took for others to do trade deals. Not as long as we’ve been messing about, I’ll bet.

          1. E,
            That surely was the intentions but on hearing ” we won leave it to the tories”
            one just knew that a shower of sh!te was about to descend on
            referendum result, and it did, in spades.

      3. “While Mr Johnson’s deal with the EU is deeply flawed, it is probably the best we can hope for.”
        I hope that I do not get cholera, typhoid, malaria, TB, smallpox, and polio all at the same time. Is that the best I can hope for?
        What do these people have between their ears? What happened to intestinal fortitude? What happened to those people who used to say, “we’re just not having it!”?

        1. The EU was always going to offer a deal in its own interests – and why not? In their position, we’d probably do the same.

          It’s why we have to accept it that baffles me.

          1. Exactly. Only an insane submissive would accept it.
            What is baffling is that so many seem ready to accept it as “the only deal on the table”. The reality is we do not need a “deal”. Article 50 does not mention “deal” or anything else.
            We should be insisting that we get everything back. Everything.
            But we have a generation of politicians who have done nothing. They have taken orders from the EU and posed for photo opportunities for forty years without any thoughts in their heads. None needed.

        2. “….the best we can hope for.”

          Why can we not hope for a clean break with the EU? Why should we make any deal with them at all?

          We should, as Julia Hartley-Brewer said, have told Juncker and Co that we were leaving the EU but offered them a free trade deal – take it or leave it. If they imposed tariffs upon us we would retaliate with the same tariffs on them.

          The sheer incompetence of both May and Johnson when it came to bargaining or acting decisively in Britain’s best interests makes one weep.

          Our best and only hope is that TBP will hold enough seats and hold the balance so that, without TBP support, Johnson will have no chance of getting his deeply flawed ‘deal’ through and will have to go for a sensible WTO arrangement.

        3. “….the best we can hope for.”

          Why can we not hope for a clean break with the EU? Why should we make any deal with them at all?

          We should, as Julia Hartley-Brewer said, have told Juncker and Co that we were leaving the EU but offered them a free trade deal – take it or leave it. If they imposed tariffs upon us we would retaliate with the same tariffs on them.

          The sheer incompetence of both May and Johnson when it came to bargaining or acting decisively in Britain’s best interests makes one weep.

          Our best and only hope is that TBP will hold enough seats and hold the balance so that, without TBP support, Johnson will have no chance of getting his deeply flawed ‘deal’ through and will have to go for a sensible WTO arrangement.

  9. SIR – When members of opposition parties start talking in interviews about enshrining workers’ rights in law under the Brexit deal, perhaps the BBC could remind these interviewees that workers’ rights are set by the governments of countries and not by the EU.

    I am getting very fed up and very hoarse shouting at the Today programme.

    Penny Cole

  10. SIR – Earthquakes occur when the pressures created by movements of subterranean strata overcome the opposing force of friction. The longer the pressure builds up, the more violent the quake.

    In California, lubricants are pumped into the San Andreas Fault to cause multiple tremors, in order to avoid the devastating damage that would be caused by a single major event.

    Fracking does not cause earthquakes (report, November 2), but may trigger benign tremors that protect people from the far more harmful effects of a major quake.

    There may be many legitimate objections to fracking, but the causing of earthquakes is not one of them.

    Stephen Byrne
    Okehampton, Devon

    1. SIR – On Tuesday night it was cold. On Wednesday morning, British electricity demand was about 39 gigawatts. Of this, less than 5 per cent was from wind and solar, while gas provided 60 per cent, nuclear 20 per cent and coal 5 per cent.

      Such mornings will always occur. Even if we increased wind and solar by five times to replace gas, this would not satisfy our current energy needs, never mind the increased demand when all cars and homes are electric.

      Michael Hughes
      Newbury, Berkshire

      1. A good Conservative approach may be to endeavour to reduce our current needs to a level where they can be sustained securely.

        1. JM,
          The lab/lib/con coalition parties are trying to achieve that now by
          returning to cave dwelling.

    2. Why is it that whatever is appropriate to America is automatically presumed to be appropriate everywhere else?

      What may well be good engineering when preventing a catastrophic earthquake under a faultline may not be quite so good when in the middle of a tectonic plate with historic seismic stability.

    3. I rather like this comment under the article:

      “An annoying woman calls an annoying woman annoying; this is news how?”

  12. In the north east of England, there are around 21 constituencies that are likely key Brexit Party targets.
    These targets are:
    Bishop Auckland
    Blaydon
    Blyth Valley
    Darlington
    Easington
    Gateshead
    Hartlepool
    Houghton and Sunderland South
    Jarrow
    Middlesbrough
    Newcastle upon Tyne North
    North Durham
    North Tyneside
    North West Durham
    Redcar
    Sedgefield
    South Shields
    Stockton North
    Sunderland Central
    Wansbeck
    Washington and Sunderland West

      1. Morning B3.
        Leave has never had any proper representation in leadership, period, but for one party, IMHO.

  13. In the north east of England, there are around 21 constituencies that are likely key Brexit Party targets.
    These targets are:
    Bishop Auckland
    Blaydon
    Blyth Valley
    Darlington
    Easington
    Gateshead
    Hartlepool
    Houghton and Sunderland South
    Jarrow
    Middlesbrough
    Newcastle upon Tyne North
    North Durham
    North Tyneside
    North West Durham
    Redcar
    Sedgefield
    South Shields
    Stockton North
    Sunderland Central
    Wansbeck
    Washington and Sunderland West

  14. Tonbridge and Malling Brexit Party candidate quits in protest at Nigel Farage’s general election strategy

    A Brexit Party candidate has quit the party warning its strategy of fielding candidates in every seat risksharming the prospects of delivering Britain’s exit from the EU.
    Stephen Peddie, who was standing in Tonbridge and Malling, resigned in protest after leader Nigel Farage’s stance.

  15. Tom Watson? My, he really does qualify as one of the all time greats, having won The Open five times.

  16. Good morning my friends

    I always find the comments that ROBERT POLATAJKO makes are well put together and thought out. Here is his comment under today’s LIVE DT article:

    “No one should vote Labour because of it’s appalling record from 1997 to 2010. Now Corbyn is descending into outright Marxism and anti British, anti democratic extremism.

    Here is the Labour legacy

    – Iraq and Afghanistan

    – Rotherham grooming and abuse scandal, Mid Staffs NHS scandal, Birmingham schools Islamic fundamentalism Trojan horse.

    – Continued anti Semitism and support for terrorists.

    – Increased political correctness, particularly in the education system to brainwash children.

    – Policy run by the Unions

    – Started HS2, stuffed us with NHS PFI

    – Sowed the seeds of the destruction of the Union with lopsided devolution, ignoring England.

    – Destroyed the final salary pension system

    – Gave away our EU rebate

    – Sucked up to the bankers creating horrendous consequences for britain in the global recession taking a generation to fix

    – Gave away sovereignty through Lisbon and the Human Rights Act

    – Abused state finances with 0.7% overseas aid pledge

    – Halved manufacturing from 22% to 11% of gdp

    – Abolished Primary Purpose Rule and allowed immediate A8 accession allowing 7 million immigrants into Britain 1997 to 2010 in a deliberate attempt to build its voting base.

    – Sucked up to crony public sector Unions by inflating pay and pensions of an unreformed public sector

    – Did nothing to invest in our infrastructure.

    – Imposed postal voting extension open to political corruption.

    – Spent so much money on Labour cronies that we had a 5% structural deficit at the height of the boom.

    – Impoverished millions with the Climate Change Act of alternative energy zealotry.

    – Created the conditions in which thousands died unnecessarily in the NHS

    – Created the catastrophe of multicultural extremism.

    – Allowed failed asylum seekers and illegal immigrants to stay in Britain.

    – Sent our military to wars under equipped

    – Failed to secure our borders.

    – Sold off our gold at rock bottom prices

    – Created hundreds of quangoes to carry out Labour ideology and stuffed them with socialist placemen.

    – Created welfare as a lifestyle, with the totally dysfunctional tax credit system, and the catastrophe of excessive housing benefit

    I am sure there is much more incompetence, self interest and cronyism but who would vote for Labour Based on that record ?

    1. Sorry Richard. I like Polatajko as well but he missed out Blair. The incarnation of evil!

    2. Morning R,
      They are of equal blame as a pro eu
      mass uncontrolled immigration / paedophile umbrella / PC / Appeasement coalition party.
      I can still hear the wretch cameron pledging to reduce the incoming problems then promptly raising them.

    3. The problem is there are lots of Labour voters who vote on reflex. They do so because their Ma did and told them to. They don’t think about the issues, don’t understand reality and are simply blind.

      There might be some otherwise intelligent Labour voters but with them you just have to think ‘Huh?’ at their perspective.

    4. “Abused state finances with 0.7% overseas aid pledge.”

      That is one of the clearest examples of how some people want to bankrupt our country. Debt is one of the favourite weapons of the globalist. Get a country so lost in making interest payments on loans that they cannot spend that money making their countries better places to live in.

      If a country is rich and has money to spare, then give it to whoever you wish. Although there are lots of causes in this country who could use it. But when you are not raising enough in taxation to cover your own spending, then this 0.7% pledge means that you are borrowing money to give it away to someone else.

      This money must be paid back, with interest, at some point. So the bankers get rich and the nation gets even poorer.

  17. UKIP down to one AM, as Gareth Bennett quits the party

    UKIP now has just one AM, despite winning seven seats in the Welsh Assembly election in 2016.
    Gareth Bennett has become the sixth AM to quit the party, saying he will sit as an independent so he can support Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal.
    Mr Bennett warned: “If the Conservatives lose the election, we end up with a Remain Parliament – and we won’t leave the EU at all.”
    Ex-Tory MP Neil Hamilton is now UKIP’s only representative in Cardiff Bay.

    3. BJ,
      From this long term UKIP member, good, and as for Neil Hamilton IMHO
      he must jog on too as he does not in my book represent UKIP members but the nec.
      All will be sorted, work in progress.

  19. “Until now, I have always composed melodies and harmonies just as they
    pour out from my heart. But I have often been told: “as a modern
    composer, you’ll soon have to forget your melodies, and concentrate on
    dissonance, as befits our modern age.” But maybe this award today means
    that a more tolerant age is dawning, when melody and beauty will once
    again be permitted. Perhaps this is a message that there is more to
    European Culture than just dissonance. Perhaps there is also a place in
    European Culture for harmony. And how beautiful it would be if this
    message could go out into the world from Vienna, from the city of
    music.”

    Alma Deutscher, on receiving the European Culture Prize in Vienna on 20th October 2019.

    Just imagine if all Award Acceptance speeches were like this!

    Alma Deutscher was born in Basingstoke.

    1. Watson hasn’t achieved anything – apart from wasting police time, slander and fraud.

      There is no ‘people’s momentum’. No on wants your demented communist idealogue. Your being a ‘Labour member’ shows how utterly dereanged you are. AS for that imagine – hand me a machine gun. Nice of the traitors to line up.

    1. ‘Morning, Lewis, Jess Phillips, the shrill, fat, ugly one-time MP, who spouts ‘humbug’ but cannot recognise the truth of it.

      She’d always need to keep her knickers on, as nobody would be interested, especially if there are a few amiable sheep about.

        2. Possibly to mock JRM whose style-guide for his office advocates the use of ‘Esquire’.

    2. Jess Philips aka “I use the name of murdered MP Jo Cox to silence debate” is a nasty piece of work. As for this retiring Labour MP saying to vote for Boris at the election, his position on the EU tells you all you need to know:

      “[On] Brexit

      In 2013, Austin became one of the first Labour MPs to call for an in/out referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU. He supported the UK remaining in the EU in the 2016 membership referendum. On 15 January 2019, Austin was one of only three Labour MPs to vote for Theresa May’s Brexit deal in the Meaningful vote (along with Kevin Barron and John Mann).”

      So this man wants to keep us under the EU’s control and thinks that Boris is the man to achieve that goal. He is not the only one by far.

      1. Boris Johnson is not and never has been sincerely in favour of Britain escaping the EU’s yoke. He lied when he said that ‘no deal is back on the table’ in order to win the party leadership just as Mrs May thought her lie: ‘No deal is better than a bad deal’ would win her support. Why has Johnson taken ‘no deal’ off the table again? The only possible way to vote is to vote for TBP. Boris Johnson’s slogan could be:
        No break is better than a clean break with the EU.

    3. Keith Vaz. The ‘get raped in the name of diversity’ woman’. The Fiona unpronouncable surname who was a known crook.

      You’re all disgusting poison, Ms Philips. Get off my property and don’t come back.

      1. One of her flunkeys knocked on my door in the run-up to the 2015 election and asked if I wanted to ‘speak to Jess’. Hadn’t a clue who she was then, just told them I was voting for another party.
        This time, I shall be prepared.

  23. Good morning all
    BTL comment fro the letters page.

    Barry Macdonald 7 Nov 2019 8:41AM
    Knowledge Is knowing where you are. Wisdom is knowing where to go. But if you do not know where to go, knowing where you are is useless.

    1. As in

      Toff ‘Young peasant, tell me the best way to Covent Garden’

      Peasant ‘Well Mr Toff, the best way would not entail starting from here’

  26. On one of my occasional forays into the Guardian I came across an article on Astrology, now I only mention this because the article and BTL comments ,unusually ,seemed rational , apolitical and well informed but ho hum about 20 comments down somebody managed to shoehorn an anti-Brexit rant in. so — Beastly’s 2020 Almanac will carry a prediction that Godwin’s Law will either add Brexit or displace Herr H. with same.

    https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2019/nov/06/i-was-an-astrologer-how-it-works-psychics#comments

  27. Following yesterday’s book theme….
    A panel of assorted literary types, appointed by the BBC, has revealed the 100 genre-busting novels they say have ‘shaped our world’.
    No Rudyard Kipling, Henry James or Thomas Hardy? Jane Eyre is absent but Bridget Jones is included?

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e686f186a2a1d586c34a406e77ac2ec5cec8d6fa40012034e574606838be8366.jpg

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7658569/As-list-books-shaped-world-shredded-present-rundown.html

    1. There is great power in words. One word on its own has brought us into the universe of 1984 where many words mean different things, often the complete opposite, of their original, etymologically derived meaning.
      That word is “gay” and it can no longer be used in its original meaning*. It is now the accepted synonym for what was, earlier in our lifetime an illegal, immoral, anti-social sexual perversion and the adherents thereof.

      *As in “the child that is born on the Sabbath Day is bonny and blithe and good and gay”.

      1. ‘Afternoon, Horace. ” It is now the accepted synonym for what was, earlier in our lifetime
        an illegal, immoral, anti-social sexual perversion and the adherents
        thereof.

        You forgot unnatural as well. I refuse to use ‘gay’ in that context and say it like it is, homosexual, and that applies to both sexes.

          3. Some of the men have taken it to heart and are wearing skirts

            Activates guided weapon sysytems to repel incoming attack

          4. “Chase me, Charlie,
            Chase me, Charlie..
            Lost a leg o’ me drawers.
            Chase me, Charlie,
            Chase me, Charlie,
            Won’t you lend me yours?”

          5. “Chase me, Charlie,
            Chase me, Charlie..
            Lost a leg o’ me drawers.
            Chase me, Charlie,
            Chase me, Charlie,
            Won’t you lend me yours?”

          8. I used to love that in dancing class. I especially like the woman in the video, teaching her daughter to dance – lovely to pass it down the generations…

            Afternoon Belle.

          9. Evening HL, hope all is well with you both.

            Moh was at the start of his motorbike test a few months ago , and fell off!
            He is now in the process of selling his bike.. Grit on the road got him!

          13. At the wedding reception after my beautiful bride and I had made our vows in church in front of many of our friends I had to say a few words. As I was no spring chicken at the age of 41 when Caroline was just 26 the following words from this song seemed appropriate:

            When he fancies he is past love
            It is then he meets his last love
            And he loves her as he’s never loved before.

            [I must say these words went down well!]

            Here are the complete lyrics:

            A bachelor gay am I, though I suffer from Cupid’s dart
            But never I vow will I say die in spite of an aching heart
            For a man who has loved a girl or two though the fact must be confessed
            He always swears the whole way through
            To every girl he tries to woo
            That he loves her far the best:

            At seventeen he falls in love quite madly with eyes of tender blue
            At twenty-four he gets it rather badly with eyes of a different hue
            At thirty-five, you’ll find him flirting sadly with two or three or more
            When he fancies he is past love
            It is then he meets his last love
            And he loves her as he’s never loved before.

            A girl as you’ve heard of old, is a kind of a paradox
            She changes her mind more times I’m told than ever she does her frocks.
            And a man’s like a moth around a flame for it’s nearly always found
            He burns his wings but all the same
            The nicest part of Cupid’s game
            Is fluttering round and round:

            At seventeen he falls in love quite madly with eyes of tender blue
            At twenty-four he gets it rather badly with eyes of a different hue
            At thirty-five, you’ll find him flirting sadly with two or three or more
            When he fancies he is past love
            It is then he meets his last love
            And he loves her as he’s never loved before.

    3. Worra bout the Lawrence Boys (DH & TE?) are they in.

      DH ensured that boys could read, in bed, under the covers, by torchlight!

    4. I have read Noel Streatfeild on and off throughout my time .. She is an author who wrote beautiful books for children and adults and of course we mustn’t forget Monica Dickens either .. who wrote wonderful stories ..

  28. Morning Each,
    The bald chancellor is on air as I type, as I see it there is a good case for air being on the chancellor, urgent need of an Irish methinks.
    He is taking peoples out of tax, big licks, but surely we have past the point of more peoples out, than there is peoples in.
    He is just going into his keep in / keeping out pitch, big time.
    O sod it, more expense, a lightening bolt has just struck the telly.

      1. Afternoon TB,
        Safe on two counts, one being I am a member of UKIP, and tother is once being a conductor
        ( buses) still active.

      1. Baroness Fugly’s Other ‘Alf runs it.
        Unless they’ve both retired on her EU pension.

    3. How many of the brainwashed youngsters realise that zero carbon would mean they have to give up their phones, travel, and all the other things we’ve become used to in modern life?

    4. I suspect a dose of the forthcoming Modern Minimum will soon make them change their minds……..

      1. But… they’ve clothes – made from energy, a tent – made from modern materials, cooking utensils, made using energy, food – bought from a shop using energy from a supply chain dependent on energy, foil, a metal pressed using energy… there’s nothing off grid there at all.

        Now if she’d been there in leaves and mud eating raw deer from a fire she’s built and lit herself, under a shelter made entirely from natural materials (something you can’t find in the UK any more as we’ve destroyed most of our forests) I’d be impressed. As it is, she’s cheaped out and is playing pretend like all the Lefties.

    6. Wonder if this is simply made up, or perhaps people responding in the way they feel they have to, rather than it being what they really think?

  30. Support for Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party dips as election launch marred by gaffes and resignation

    Support for the Conservative party has dipped in the last few days as the formal launch of Boris Johnson’s general election campaign was marred by gaffes and a resignation.

    The YouGov poll for Sky News showed support for the Conservatives down two percentage points at 36 per cent, with Labour unchanged at 25.

    1. YOUGove Skynews Poll

      Different polls give quite different result but the Conservative lead is far to close for comfort. The Brexit Party is failing to gain ground and on 11% is unlikely to win any seats

      Nigel & Boris need to bury the hatchet and come to an arrangement over seats. Each party can do its own thing . It make sense for both parties as with a Deal the Brexit Party can potentially gain seats as can the Conservatives. I suspect though that both will remain to stubborn

      Con 36%
      Lab 25%
      Lib 17%
      Brexit 11%
      Green 5%
      Other 6%
      UKIP 0%

  31. Yet another twist to this election

    Indian nationalist party BJP supporters to campaign in UK against Labour what sort of influence they have in the UK I have no idea

    The group will be targeting 48 marginal seats during the campaign, and believe the British Indian vote could swing the election.

    Supporters of India’s governing nationalist party the BJP will be actively campaigning for Conservative Party candidates against the Labour Party during the general election.
    The group, known as the Overseas Friends of BJP (OFBJP) will be targeting 48 marginal seats during the campaign, and believe the British Indian vote in these constituencies could swing the election.

    Kuldeep Singh Shekhawat, the president of the group, told The Times of India that they were campaigning against the Labour Party for its perceived criticism of India regarding the Kashmir conflict.

    1. Given that most Indians I know work their socks off, I’ve never understood their support for Labour.

    2. Given that most Indians I know work their socks off, I’ve never understood their support for Labour.

    1. I must not make tasteless comments about medical experiments.
      I must not make tasteless comments about medical experiments.
      I must not make tasteless comments about medical experiments…….

    2. Lewis, I’ve just this minute put up the front page leader from the Jewish chronicle. Our Jewish people have serious concerns about their welfare should Corbyn succeed.

    3. I don’t really understand the anti-semitism coming from the Labour party.

      Yes, traditionally – starting with the Nazi’s – the Left have hated the Jews but for Corbyn surely, as he supports Palestine and so on and he needs the Muslim voting block he’s obviously not anti semitic but just playing to his voting base?

  34. Jewish people in the UK are fearful of Corbyn and his gang and so they should be. After the Jews who will they come for, the upper class for their riches, the middle class for their homes, the intellectuals because they think? Could those things happen here in the UK? Well, we haven’t had a hard left Marxist as leader of one of the major political parties with the added threat of thousands of pairs of boots on the ground in my lifetime, so anything is possible.

    https://twitter.com/JewishChron/status/1192329662954901504

    1. Although I bear no responsibility for either the Labour party or its toxic views, I still ashamed that this disgusting creed should raise its head in Great Britain.
      In fact, I feel upset and near to tears. The British are not angels, but I really thought we were above that.

    1. Hi Belle,

      Re our conversation yesterday about Nasi Goreng. I just looked it up on wiki https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasi_goreng#Ingredients …

      And there are more than 50 variants to the dish. I quite liked the idea of the last one on the list. Nasi goreng gila (crazy fried rice), fried rice topped with more savoury additional ingredients including chicken, meat, shrimp, sliced
      bakso, sausages, egg, etc.

  36. Another BTL comment from the DT letters

    CJ Laverick 7 Nov 2019 8:37AM

    Austin Mitchell has it right:

    “……………………..

    Brexit has shown how wrong I was [as to the Establishment]. [Brexit] would challenge their comfort and authority, so the Establishment decided to try and stop the ignorant peasantry pulling us out. The Supreme Court abandoned impartiality and went into politics, Parliament used every dodge to stop Brexit, the Speaker fiddled the rules, the Royal Corps of Pundits condemned it, and the Treasury and the Bank of England exuded exaggerated fears. The whole gang sang the praises of the EU as a great venture in peace and internationalism rather than the failing protectionist bloc it really is.

    They ignored the economic consequences of Europe for the rest of us. The Treasury and the Bank used ‘rubbish in, rubbish out’ models to create fear, blaming the disastrous consequences of austerity on Brexit. They ignored the disastrous consequences for the plebs of staying in.

    So one-sided. The costs of membership are known, their fears totally hypothetical but they knew that any realistic assessment would have revealed that the EU is a racket run at Britain’s expense, a system bonding national elites together to ignore the people.

    The EU was created to boost France and Germany by creating a protected market for their agriculture and industries. That doesn’t suit us because it cuts us off from cheaper food and cheaper manufactures, checks attempts to rebuild British production and turns us into Europe’s consumer of last resort to keep their economies growing.

    That’s why they won’t talk about the scale of the drain. Its basic part is the £11 billion annual contribution which has risen inexorably despite Cameron’s promise to freeze it and has way to go. They scoffed at the £350 million a week claim on the Leave bus, but it should be higher. We pay more across across the exchanges and though they do graciously give us some of our money back, they take a big cut to cover their inflated costs and build marble palaces in Brussels.

    It’s also the smallest part of the damage. Leaving out the cost of lost fish and processing from the Common Fisheries Policy, the Common Agricultural Policy costs some £15 per family per week, because we are compelled to buy dearer European food rather than the cheaper edibles available on world markets, particularly from developing countries which need the money.

    Then there’s the trade deficit, now risen to £100 billion a year in visible trade, where we had a surplus with the EU before we went in. There is a surplus in invisibles but deficits in the visibles are lost jobs and profits and a loss of demand to keep the economy growing. That loss is greater than the figures because so many companies seize the opportunity of EU regulations to report their profits in Luxembourg or Dublin and evade British taxes.

    Britain can no longer pay its way. Because it imports more than it produces it must borrow or sell assets to keep buying. This is a country for sale which means loss of control, loss of profits, loss of jobs and companies turning Britain into an exploited dependency, its companies managed for the interests of others.

    We’re well on the way down the path. Continued membership of the EU will take us further. That’s the future the EU offers Britain. It hits the workers by immigration, job insecurity, static earnings and less investment. But it doesn’t disturb the comfort of the Establishment presiding over it. They’re still free to buy houses, farms, property and yachts overseas.

    1. As far as I can recall there is no published limit to what the EU can extort from us if Johnson gets his “deal” through. The “deal’s” been described as an asset strippers’ charter and we could be locked in to taxation rules as well; there goes attracting business by becoming more competitive through tax cuts. Unless Johnson is planning to pull us out at the latest 12/2020 and tells the EU to suck it up we are done for as a nation. Johnson’s option of last resort is he throws the election and leaves us to the mercies of Corbyn and his gang. If that happens at least the Tories couldn’t be blamed for Remaining in the EU; Party before Country and all that.

        1. Did I actually say that? My last two sentences were written as an observation of what the Tory thinking would be if they threw the election i.e. any future action by Corbyn would absolve them, the Tories, of any blame. As to an answer to your question: yes, I believe that there would be some people who would not blame the Tories.

          1. KtK,
            I do not doubt it in the least, and so the
            keep in / keep out mode of voting will continue ie party before country ?
            Little wonder we are where we are as a nation.

      2. Yo can wave goobye to Sterling £££££ if the EU gets its’ wy

        Yo can wave goodbye to Stirling, if Jimmy Krankie gets her way

        1. Do you think that the Crown jewels would be safe or the Sutton Hoo treasure? The latter could possibly be reclassified as Danish or German ‘cos those pesky Angles probably set out from them there furrin parts. Oops, almost forgot, our Royals have a clearly defined German lineage so that’s the Jewels gone.😎

      3. By 12/2020 ? It won’t take that long for those barracuda in Brussels to rip the flesh from us. It won’t take them more than couple of months if we sign up to the WA. They don’t have to push their laws through a wide voting process. They only need the 27 beneficiaries to say OK.
        That won’t take long. They could destroy us in an afternoon.

    2. Yes, we see. We have seen all along. We saw it before we voted to “Leave”. That is why we voted to Leave. It has taken Austin Mitchell a very long time to wake up…

  39. “Trust arrives on foot but it leaves on horseback”
    Now I’m not saying I’m sick to death of broken political promises but if BoJo wants help I am more than happy to borrow one of Paul’s pistols and give him a 9mm helping hand to keep his last “dead in a ditch” whopper
    Somewhat unfair to BoJo I know,so many candidates,so little ammunition……………

    1. Afternoon Rik,
      Get them ear to ear, two for one, only one cigarette though, bad for the health, make every bullet count.

  41. I expect that someone has already pasted up Sherelle’s article today.

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2019/11/07/tories-botched-game-plan-labour-heartlands-could-cost-boris/

    Here is a comment under it by Martin Selves who often speaks a lot of good sense.

    I don’t really understand this article. Is Sherelle saying the message is too clever by half, that it misses the point, that even Boris does not get Brexit, that stop fracking was a stunt?

    If she was, then I agree with her. Boris should say Brexit is not oven ready but sub optimum. He should say his team will try to get the best FTA possible, but a WTO exit is not ruled out. He should say he is talking to TBP.

    The story of Labour so far is simply awful. Watson has quit. If Corbyn gets into No. 10 after everything we know about Momentum, anti semitism, dodgy friendships with terrorists, a nuclear and armed forces dismembership, a trillion pound borrowing requirement, a communist agenda, then ir is because the biggest c🤣ck up ever happened.

    The SNP leader, and Jo Swinson are probably the worst combo of women political leaders I can remember. Boris wants to go after them because the door is open wide, and right thinking people know all 3 opposition partys have the worst leaders in our lifetime. Say it Boris, shout it out loud, and do NOT apologise for Theresa May, say she got it badly wrong.

    The country does not want clever talk, we have had nearly 4 years of it. Talk about the elephant in the room. And what is the elephant?

    We want our Country back, free from the likes of Swinson, Corbyn and Nicola Sturgeom, the 3 most disengenious people ever to enter the HoC.

    Bercow has gone, so has Hammond. Grieve is over the cliff. But so many awful things could still happen, because the Conservatives can find defeat with the ball in the net.

    Go talk Nigel Farage. Make him a distant friend. Boris will find a loyal hard working man who wants to get our Country back. That is the elephant.

    1. R,
      Tell me, if we truly want our country back why O why are we entrusting it’s return to the very treacherous political cretins who gave it away to start with ?

      Plus why O why are peoples still feeding these proven pro eu political cretins via the polling booth ?
      To be quite blunt about it it does give the impression that on the 12th sh!te is back on the menu and once again will be swallowed.

    1. From what I’ve just heard, would it be an idea to offer Barnier £39 billion to change sides?

  43. Lib-Dems to stand aside for the Greens in Burt St Edmunds

    2017 2019 Prediction

    Con 59.2% 48.7%
    Lab 29.5% 18.1%
    Lib 5.7% 16%
    Grn 4.2% 5%
    Other 1.4% 2%
    Brexit 10.1%

      1. Full List

        The Liberal Democrats, Greens and Plaid Cymru announced on Thursday that they won’t be standing candidates against each other in some seats at the general election. The pact is styled as a “remain alliance” with the stated aim of maximising the number of anti-Brexit MPs in the next parliament.

        Under the agreement the Greens will get a free run in 10 seats, the Lib Dems in 43, and Plaid Cymru in 7.

        The full list of seats in the alliance is below:

        ENGLAND

        Green Party – 9 seats

        Brighton, Pavilion
        Isle of Wight
        Bristol West
        Bury St Edmunds
        Stroud
        Dulwich and West Norwood
        Forest of Dean
        Cannock Chase
        Exeter

        Liberal Democrats – 40 seats

        Bath
        Bermondsey and Old Southwark
        Buckingham
        Cheadle
        Chelmsford
        Chelsea and Fulham
        Cheltenham
        Chippenham
        Esher and Walton
        Finchley and Golders Green
        Guildford
        Harrogate and Knaresborough
        Hazel Grove
        Hitchin and Harpenden
        North Cornwall
        North Norfolk
        Oxford West and Abingdon
        Penistone and Stocksbridge
        Portsmouth South
        Richmond Park
        Romsey and Southampton North
        Rushcliffe
        South Cambridgeshire
        South East Cambridgeshire
        South West Surrey
        Southport
        Taunton Deane
        Thornbury and Yate
        Totnes
        Tunbridge Wells
        Twickenham
        Wantage
        Warrington South
        Watford
        Wells
        Westmorland and Lonsdale
        Wimbledon
        Winchester
        Witney
        York Outer

        WALES

        Green Party – 1 seat

        Vale of Glamorgan

        Liberal Democrats – 3 seats

        Brecon and Radnorshire
        Cardiff Central
        Montgomeryshire
        Plaid Cymru – 7 seats
        Arfon
        Caerphilly
        Carmarthen East and Dinefwr
        Dwyfor Meirionnydd
        Llanelli
        Pontypridd
        Ynys Mon

        2. Then having admitted they will collude to deny the voter a choice the electoral commission should step in and void any votes for those candidates.

          It is fundamentally anti democrat to cheat the voter in this manner.

  44. You know, the one thing that would more or less sort out voters’ dilemma over whether to vote Tory or TBP to acheive Brexit is if we had chosen AV when we had the chance.

    1. Yup. I quite liked that system.

      However, I also wanted boundaries reform to come in and obliterate lib dem and Labour seats. I wanted recall but that was scotch by some oaf realising that it meant the master could fire the servant, and the other servants didn’t like the sound of that so stopped it.

    2. Afternoon AA,
      I quite liked the idea / post that called for 17.4 million new UKIP members even temps, just post 24/6/2016, purely as an anti treachery move having sampled the wretch cameron / may for 6 years.
      But them there ukippers are fruitcakes,
      maybe so ,maybe so, but they are patriotic fruitcakes, not treacherous.

  45. Britons are buying smaller furniture to make moving house less of a hassle, according to research by Ikea.

    Not very good research then. I expect it is because UK homes get smaller and smaller and young renters go for furnished accommodation

    The flat-pack giant reports a boom in items that are easier to store – and carry – fuelled by the rise of Generation Rent.
    Those who have been unable to get on the housing ladder are upping sticks more often than their parents, who were more likely to own property at an early age. As a result, sales of ‘easy to dismantle’ furniture were up by 12 per cent year on year.

    1. BJ,
      The weight factor comes into play as for when they are on the road as refugees & moving into holding camps.

      Until such times as they are judged to be in a full state of submission for moving on to their burqa fitting.

    2. I don’t understand modern ‘new build’ houses. The bedrooms are tiny, often barely 2m across. I can touch each wall quite easily with aroom like that. They then play the built in storage nonsense with a cupboard whose door can’t be open at the same time as the room door because the corridor it’s in is only half a metre wide and the ‘storage’ big enough for 4 small t shirts loaded width ways.

      Do they think it’s funny?

  46. Two British women lose their employment battles with American airbases after US claims state immunity… even though the barracks are in the UK

    An interesting one. There is no doubt the Bases are US territory but the 2 woman are UK national and pay UK taxes

    1. When you are a guest in a country, as the US Air Force is, it is normal to observe their laws, rules and cultural practices which would include falling into line with local employment laws.
      But Hey! These are Americans. They do as they please.

      1. Such as killing people by their driving on the wrong side of the road. No doubt their secret view is that we drive on the wrong side of the road as a general rule, and the Yank woman was “right”…

        I remember an evening “do” where the firm I was with was hosting a seminar on pension-related matter. One of the American insurance guests suggested that asset-stripping the pension fund by the employer was reasonable. When told that our (then) trust-based system was designed to prevent this, his reply was “well, change your system”…

        1. A lot of the better US companies operate their pension system as a “trust” independent from the company, which still has to maintain legally required amounts of funding in the trust. Helps make the company less of a juicy target for rapacious takeover merchants as well.

          3. Also stops buyers from using the pension fund to buy the company. Yes, somehow that’s possible.

      2. I believe the US bases are a strictly business arrangement, and the deals with the Government probably include rights and responsibilities.

        Still a stupid move. Best to pay them off generously and avoid the bad publicity.

  47. When is a Local Paper not a Local Paper ?

    Newsquest has said a “substantial loss of advertising revenue” is behind fresh editorial cuts affecting newspapers and magazines in Cumbria, including daily the Carlisle News and Star.

    Three feature writer roles in Carlisle, which produces the News and Star and Cumberland News, and one arts and leisure writer on the Westmorland Gazette in Kendal are at risk of redundancy.

    Separately, Newsquest plans to cut four jobs from a team of six working on premium magazine titles Cumbria Life and Dumfries and Galloway Life, Carlisle Living and a business magazine.

    most of the production work on the magazine titles will move to Newport, South Wales, where Newsquest also has an office.

      1. Which means that potentially they could be produced and printed anywhere. Most are local in name only

        1. The young reporters come and go – the dep editor has been there long-term. I think they are all printed in South Wales now. They do cover local news but there is also a lot of rubbish.

          1. I doubt they are printed in South Wales. They closed their print facility there and moved the printing to England

          3. Happened in about 2008. At the same time it was changed from an Evening paper to a Morning one

  49. EU court cancels decision against UKIP ally over misspending

    In a victory for Brexit activist Nigel Farage, the EU’s top court on Thursday annulled a decision from the European Parliament that demanded a political group linked to the British party UKIP reimburse tens of thousands in EU funds.
    The Alliance for Direct Democracy in Europe had been asked in 2016 to repay 172,655 euros (about $190,000) and denied a further 500,616 euros ($555,000) in EU grants after the European Parliament ruled it had misspent EU funds on Farage’s party’s domestic campaign in Britain, breaking the bloc’s spending rules.

    1. Jut a point. As the EU Parliament figures are in Euros, as yo would expect, why do you show a translation into USD ?
      We are here in England. The currency used in England is Pounds Sterling, or GBP. Not, I repeat, Not, USD or any other currency.

          1. You do realise how geographically challenged the Yanks are, there is a reason why films showing Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower have to state London, England and Paris France?

          2. You do realise how geographically challenged the Yanks are, there is a reason why films showing Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower have to state London, England and Paris France?

  50. Afternoon all.

    From the Keith Schellenberg obit ….

    In 1991, amid growing calls for land reform in Scotland, campaigners formed the Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust and launched a public appeal to raise the
    money to buy the island for its inhabitants.
    Schellenberg’s “Big Hoose”, the Trust suggested, might become a Life Centre, where “bank managers would enrol to learn dry-stone dyking,
    admen would shear sheep, and lawyers muck out the byre”.

    Er, ” dry stone dyking ” …. blimey … what ho!!

  51. Afternoon all.

    From the Keith Schellenberg obit ….

    In 1991, amid growing calls for land reform in Scotland, campaigners formed the Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust and launched a public appeal to raise the
    money to buy the island for its inhabitants.
    Schellenberg’s “Big Hoose”, the Trust suggested, might become a Life Centre, where “bank managers would enrol to learn dry-stone dyking,
    admen would shear sheep, and lawyers muck out the byre”.

    Er, ” dry stone dyking ” …. blimey … what ho!!

    1. Hi MM.

      2 things come to mind:

      1. ‘The UK will also retain control over the deployment of its Armed Forces’
      Perhaps that statement should say:- ‘The UK will also retain (full/partial/some/very little*) control over the deployment of its Armed Forces. (*Delete as appropriate)

      2. If the Remainers get their wish then all bets are off regarding what HMG do or do not want. They’ll do as they are told.

    2. Ahem

      Defense ministers from nine EU countries, including the U.K., on

      Monday pledged to form a joint European military intervention force that

      will allow British support to last post Brexit.

      The European Intervention Initiative, spearheaded by French President

      Emmanuel Macron as part of plans for an autonomous European defense

      force outlined in his Sorbonne speech

      in September, will be tasked with quickly deploying troops in crisis

      scenarios near Europe’s borders. The group includes Germany, Belgium,

      the U.K., Denmark, the Netherlands, Estonia, Spain and Portugal.

      “The goal: that our armed forces learn get to know each other and act together,” French Defense Minister Florence Parly said in a tweet.

      “Thanks to exchanges between staff and joint exercises, we will create a

      European strategic culture. We will be ready to anticipate crises and

      respond quickly and effectively.”

      The initiative will be distinct from the European defense pact known as PESCO —

      which includes all EU member countries except Britain, Malta and

      Denmark — enabling the U.K. to continue to participate after it leaves

      the bloc in 2019.

      The U.K. was “very keen” to sign the agreement in order to “maintain cooperation with Europe beyond bilateral ties,

      https://www.politico.eu/article/uk-to-form-part-of-joint-eu-european-defense-force-pesco/

      1. Order of battle

        British Armed Forces

        Retired British Armed Forces

        Chelsea Pensioners

        UK Scouts

        Boys Brigade

        12345 on List

        Italian Forces
        Greek Forces
        Germans

        French

          1. They won’t be on the list for long – don’t Italian tanks only have reverse gears? Mind you, the French traditionally disappear the minute German soldiers appear, so there won’t be any anyway.

    4. At odds with what Veterans for Britain have been saying for some time, I think. Also, didn’t an ex-head of MI6 and a retired senior general write to all MPs prior to the first vote on May’s capitulation “deal” to ensure that they were in the picture on what May was up to? What to believe?

    6. It’ll be worth keeping that in a safe place – for future reference, if needs be…

      Good for YOH, Mola!

  54. New Speaker to disallow unusual parliamentary procedures

    What kind of democracy have we when it appears rules can just be made up and changed at whim?

    The new Speaker says he will not permit the kind of parliamentary manoeuvres recently used to block a no-deal Brexit allowed by his predecessor John Bercow.
    Sir Lindsay Hoyle said he would not allow the procedures used by MPs to seize control of the agenda.
    It would make it harder for MPs to derail a government after the election, even if it does not have a majority.
    Sir Lindsay said he wanted MPs to agree to change the Commons rules to close off those options.

    1. I don;t suppose the rules need changing, it was Bercow who made things up as he went along. Good for Hoyle.

    2. I don;t suppose the rules need changing, it was Bercow who made things up as he went along. Good for Hoyle.

  55. Question Tim tonight.

    Summary
    Fiona Bruce presents the topical debate from Glasgow, where the panellists are politicians Kirstene Hair, Barry Gardiner and Humza Yousaf, journalist and broadcaster Angela Haggerty and businessman Iain Anderson.

    1. That’ll be the Barry Gardiner Show then. He’s not just deeply boring, he can talk drivel ad nauseum.

    3. Assume there will be a huge SNP presence in the audience,
      they’ll not want to miss that opportunity.
      A Jewish name on that list, I hope he’s given a decent hearing .

    4. Googling them I find Kirstene Hair is really a remainer but is a Scottish Tory. Most bizarre. her head must hurt with the contradictions.

      Barry Gardiner though I am surprised at. Blairite shadow cabinet since 1997 and, seemingly, informed and bothered fellow who actively communicates really clear information to his constituents. I don’t like his second referendum nonsense and his constituency did vote remain, so he’s actually representing them. One of the annoying politicians I want to dislike but can’t as he seems decent.

      Haggerty might be a Scottish writer and rocaster but her website ‘Common space’ shut down comments to prevent people disagreeing with articles. She also now lives in London. Make of that what you will.

      Iain Anderson is as much a businessman as I am a goblin. He’s a Left wing lobbyist ” …Iain is an expert in integrated communications, global political risk and public policy. …” The BBC lies by omission.

      “… He regularly contributes to national and international print and broadcast media including Sky News and BBC. He is also contributing Political Editor of Square Mile. Iain is a former Chairman of the Association of Professional Political Consultants and the CIPR Public Affairs group.

      He is a Fellow of both the CIPR and the PRCA. He was ranked in the top quartile of the Total Politics Top 100
      Lobbyists and appears in the PR Week Power Book. CityAM also includes him in the list of “The City’s most influential financial PRs …” He’s a Left wing political lobbyist. Why can’t the BBC say that?

    7. Assume there will be a huge SNP presence in the audience,
      they’ll not want to miss that opportunity.
      A Jewish name on that list, I hope he’s given a decent hearing .

    9. Googling them I find Kirstene Hair is really a remainer but is a Scottish Tory. Most bizarre. her head must hurt with the contradictions.

      Barry Gardiner though I am surprised at. Blairite shadow cabinet since 1997 and, seemingly, informed and bothered fellow who actively communicates really clear information to his constituents. I don’t like his second referendum nonsense and his constituency did vote remain, so he’s actually representing them. One of the annoying politicians I want to dislike but can’t as he seems decent.

      Haggerty might be a Scottish writer and rocaster but her website ‘Common space’ shut down comments to prevent people disagreeing with articles. She also now lives in London. Make of that what you will.

      Iain Anderson is as much a businessman as I am a goblin. He’s a Left wing lobbyist ” …Iain is an expert in integrated communications, global political risk and public policy. …” The BBC lies by omission.

      “… He regularly contributes to national and international print and broadcast media including Sky News and BBC. He is also contributing Political Editor of Square Mile. Iain is a former Chairman of the Association of Professional Political Consultants and the CIPR Public Affairs group.

      He is a Fellow of both the CIPR and the PRCA. He was ranked in the top quartile of the Total Politics Top 100
      Lobbyists and appears in the PR Week Power Book. CityAM also includes him in the list of “The City’s most influential financial PRs …” He’s a Left wing political lobbyist. Why can’t the BBC say that?

  56. From the DT: “Cargo of sex toys worth £1million stolen from a lorry parked overnight in a lay-by”

    I bet the owners are feeling hard done by……

  57. From the DT: “Cargo of sex toys worth £1million stolen from a lorry parked overnight in a lay-by”

    I bet the owners are feeling hard done by……

      1. The one in the story is an Elephant Hawk Moth – they have clearly marked “eyes” on the tail end to deter predators. Harry’s looks a bit too dead to tell. It’s lost its colour.

      2. The one in the story is an Elephant Hawk Moth – they have clearly marked “eyes” on the tail end to deter predators. Harry’s looks a bit too dead to tell. It’s lost its colour.

        1. Bach seems to just go over my head. I’ve listened to/watched the pieces put up here, but nothing happens.
          It’s like dribble music going in a straight line from left to right across the page.
          That’s not a criticism. It’s just how it affects me.

  60. Labour or Rainbow Win

    A Labour or Rainbow win is likely to lead for an Independence Referendum for England

  61. Jodie Chesney murder: Svenson Ong-a-Kwie and 17-year-old boy guilty

    More cultural enrichment

  63. Grhhhh
    Having just sat on my glasses and smashed them to bits,that’s me done for the day
    Bugger!!

    3. You will have 200 phone calls/texts/letters etc from Specsavers, by the time you get up

      There is a ‘bug/transmitter’ in your specs which tells them you are Blind

    4. I hope you didn’t make a spectacle of yourself. Drink a few glasses and everything will become clear.

    6. This information is not a lot of use to you after the fact, but I always buy those type of glasses with the “bar” joining the glasses together above the lower bar that rests on the nose. This comes after a very bad incident with a pair that I had, where I snapped off both of the arms that lead back to the ears, and the 2 plastic parts that sit on the nose. I just had the lenses and front frame.

      With that “rectangle” above the nose I was able to thread a length of almost unbreakable sewing machine cotton through it and made a loop the circumference of my head. It can be as snug a fit as you like. I was able to wear them without them slipping once in the days that it took for my replacement ones to arrive.

      They were so firmly fixed that I tried shaking my head to see if I could dislodge them, I couldn’t. I lent over, looking down, and they could not fall off because they were tied on. The thread was the same colour as my hair and it was almost invisible. Although it might have looked odd with no “arms” on them.

      https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/6753f2b8343a97511b24b5539f1aec733dadd945f35cd77b198b55c528af1df8.jpg

  64. SIR – Bristol has decided to ban diesel cars, lorries, and buses from the city centre, part of the M32 and the Portway (the main access from the M4 to busy Bristol Airport).

    As Temple Meads, Bristol’s main railway station, is not electrified but is within the exclusion zone, I assume that diesel trains will also be banned.

    So, with no public transport and no delivery vehicles, I hope the council will not complain when no one is using the city.

    Simon Davison
    Cardiff

  65. “A police officer has been charged with the murder of retired footballer Dalian Atkinson who died after being tasered.
    The ex-Aston Villa striker, 48, was restrained by police officers at his father’s house in Telford, Shropshire, on 15 August 2016.
    A second police officer, also from the West Mercia Police force, has been charged with assault causing actual bodily harm.
    Both were bailed after appearing at Birmingham Crown Court. …
    The Crown Prosecution Services (CPS) has not named the officers because it believes their defence will apply for them to remain anonymous.An alternative charge of an unlawful act manslaughter has also been put forward by the CPS for the officer charged with murder, known as “Officer A”.
    The second officer, “Officer B”, indicated she would plead not guilty and was bailed after an earlier appearance at Birmingham Magistrates’ Court.”

    Why is it that it takes years to bring policemen to court (if ever)? Why are they given anonymity? Why are they given bail and not held on remand?
    Why does the Chief Constable feel that it is appropriate to offer a message of support for the accused? Is that not prejudicial, as it suggests that he considers them innocent?

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-50333081

      1. Follow the link and read the report, please. The BBC report calls them “police officers”.
        We must trust the BBC to be impartial, complete and truthful in its reports?

        1. Apologies. I just said she was not a policeman because she was a policewoman..
          Of course the BBC are always impartial and truthful in their reports. And pigs can fly.

      1. Wrongdoers should be prosecuted, do you not think? If we cannot rely on the police to behave correctly, where does law and order and public discipline go?

        1. Indeed, but if the real criminals were put away for ever and there was more support from the public for the police, and other front-line public servants, the chances are that there would be fewer such incidents.

          1. Sos, that is a different point, though.

            It is hard for the ordinary public to support a police “force” that spends more time dancing with activists disrupting London, painting their nails and gay-ifying when LGBT want to demonstrate how woke they are, and kettling ordinary decent protesters than it does fighting the yobs that mark out part of the country as “theirs” and/or march with placards threatening and advocating death to all who don’t agree with their bloodthirsty beliefs. The police have lost the respect of many ordinary people, and they have nobody but themselves to blame.

          2. The responsibility and, in my view, the blame is that of senior police officers who have not merely acquiesced in this nonsense but have encourage it. In slight mitigation, it is not just senior police officers who are at fault but senior people in most walks of life including, very sadly, the Armed Forces.

          3. True, the ordinary officers do as they are told, and if they get no support from their seniors then it must be difficult. But they could be more aloof, rather than participate quite so happily with certain sectors, while pretty much ignoring the plight of most of the public. WHile at the same time hauling ordinary people in for completely ridiculous “crimes” – like that poor lady who objected to muslims having a provocative religious meeting in Hyde Park, when it was against the bye-laws.

            For the police to been seen to endorse one law for us and one law for others, with such apparent gusto, does not look good or encourage public support.

          4. You are right but ordinary officers have the same sort of career aspirations, the same need to provide for their families and the same ambitions as most other people. There is only so much aloofness they can have before its starts to impact on their professional well-being. It doesn’t take much aloofness before one is cast as “not a team player”, “hasn’t got with the programme” or “lacks cooperation”. The tone of any organisation is set by those at the top.

          5. Why is Donald Trump starving children to death!?? More than 8,500 have died in Yemen thanks, in part, to Trump!!

            Trump and House GOP Help the Saudis Starve Yemen – The …
            https://www.theatlantic.com › ideas › archive › 2018/12 › saudis-starve-ye…
            Dec 14, 2018 – Trump Is Helping the Saudis Starve Yemen. And House … As Nicholas Kristof aptly put it, “Your tax dollars help starve children.” Though the …

            Millions of Yemeni Children Are Starving | The American …
            https://www.theamericanconservative.com › larison › millions-of-yemeni-c…
            Sep 19, 2018 – The number of Yemenis at risk of dying from starvation is staggering, but for … its Western patrons, including our government, are largely responsible. … Unfortunately, Trump chose to ignore these concerns and supported the …

            Trump’s Yemen war veto is a moral horror – The Week
            https://theweek.com › articles › trumps-yemen-war-veto-moral-horror
            Apr 17, 2019 – Yet that is exactly what President Trump has decided to do, issuing … Looking at images of starving children in Yemen, my shock is the same.
            ,,,

          7. I’m U.S.-born American and I am NOT Muslim; however, I do have extended family in Russia as well as a couple of its neighboring countries and they include a small family branch who are Muslims. I’ve lived among them a few different times for some fairly lengthy stays in their part of the world.And I actually can say from that personal experience that the vast majority of some 1.7 BILLION Muslims worldwide are quite decent and good people — and they are unquestionably MUCH MORE respectable than any anti-Muslim bigot that I ever have seen or heard of.. Bigotry stinks — especially the DELIBERATE ignorance of bigots! Why are they so nasty and stupid?

          8. You are right but ordinary officers have the same sort of career aspirations, the same need to provide for their families and the same ambitions as most other people. There is only so much aloofness they can have before its starts to impact on their professional well-being. It doesn’t take much aloofness before one is cast as “not a team player”, “hasn’t got with the programme” or “lacks cooperation”. The tone of any organisation is set by those at the top.

          9. I agree. Prison sentences are required to be set low as there is insufficient prison space. If the Government had to requisition half a billion pounds to build and staff half a dozen new prisons to be filled with East Europeans, Africans, and muslims it would be hard for the Government to avoid probing questions about immigrants and diversity?

          10. I agree. Prison sentences are required to be set low as there is insufficient prison space. If the Government had to requisition half a billion pounds to build and staff half a dozen new prisons to be filled with East Europeans, Africans, and muslims it would be hard for the Government to avoid probing questions about immigrants and diversity?

        2. Wrongdoers should, of course, be prosecuted but it has become the default that anyone in authority MUST be the wrongdoer. We have seen this time and time again – soldiers MUST have been cruel or murderous to innocent citizens, police officers MUST have been racist or excessively zealous, fire fighters MUST have been at fault and so on. I accept that it is not always robust evidence but watch a few TV programmes such as “Police Interceptors” or “Cops with Cameras” and you might be absolutely amazed at what our police officers, often young men and women from modest backgrounds, have to put up with – spitting, violence, foul language, abuse and racism – all from innocent citizens going about their lawful business of stealing cars, driving dangerously, burgling homes, dealing in drugs or shoplifting, and all capable of pulling a knife or a gun. I don’t know how these officers keep their cool. That is not to say that police wrongdoing should be accepted but any wrongdoing should be measured by a sensible standard and against the circumstances.

          1. I have seldom, if ever, been confused with someone in authority. The vile behaviour of those with whom the police have to deal is not in a set of scales with bad behaviour by the police. Bad is bad. There are no excuses. Police should be models to be looked up to.
            This is not the case of a police officer being a bit rough. Nor is the Kirkcaldy case that is being pushed down the road to oblivion.

          2. Real life rarely consists of the absolutes you imply. “Bad is bad” is… well, bad because there are degrees of badness just as there are degrees of goodness.

        1. I’m not keen to see anyone who has committed an offence get off.

          What I object to is the very one-sided attacks on those who are trying to do their jobs by people who have an interest in the break down of law and order.

          Police, Firemen, first responders, service personnel. All under attack by people like you who hope that society will break down and that anarchy can take over.

          1. Have you had any dealings with our police, police complaints section or CPS? The police have totally lost the respect of people over here except for those they protect. How many weeks is it now that the gendarmerie have been battering people in your neck of the woods, 46 or week 47? How many they killed? Justifiable from your viewpoint. The scum who you support will be doing similar over here but they’ll only be battering hell out of white brexiters. Not interested in anarchy, that’s for leftards.

          2. “The police have totally lost the respect of people over here except for those they protect.”

            I guess from that, that you are on the side of the law-breakers.

            I’m not surprised, “Little Big Man”

            The gilets jaunes is a different issue, but nice try at deflecting.

          3. Yep I’m a criminal.
            Different issue? Why because you say so? I’ve seen the videos of police battering hell out of people who were doing nothing in both France and Barcelona. I’m sure if I looked for Dutch farmers I’d see the same.
            Our police are always heavy handed with EDL or football fans but for Antifa and Islamists they go out of their way not to arrest them. They are also brave when they are mob handed.
            BBC 999 What’s your emergency? Series 9 Assaults on Police See if you can watch it.
            Beginning to wonder why you’re purporting to be a Leaver. I’m not as big as you, that’s a cert.

          4. All mouth, no trousers, you.

            I wonder if you’ve ever been in the middle of a riot where tear gas is fired and petrol bombs lobbed.

            I have, purely by accident, whilst trying to get out of the situation and I know that the mob was the side that kicked it off and it’s the police that reacted.

            Your perception of what happens, like mine, depends on your prejudices.

            Be careful to ensure that the chip on your shoulder is wood rather than metal, otherwise if you fell in the water you would sink.

          5. The last time I challenged a 6′ 8″ big mouth I got banned.
            I’d have loved it.
            Yep, when it kicks off over here the police will be supporting the left, Islam and the Useful idiots. I hate them with a vengeance.
            Wrong again. I have two massive chips, one for each shoulder, that’s what makes me so balanced. Why to metal vessels float then?

          6. If you challenged a 6’8″ big mouth, chances are they would have been afraid they would squash you like a bug.

            I very much doubt that if it really did kick off, in the way you fantacize, that the police would act as you suggest.

            Their senior people might, those on the ground might not.

            Why do metal vessels float? Full of hot air, just like you.

          7. Well the wimp reported me.
            It’s fantasise unless you’re a Yank.
            Yeah, you’ve got your finger on the pulse as a goat herder.

          10. For the edification of Nottlers who think that Rainbow Six is a slightly irritating, but nevertheless edgy, contributor, here is what he really thinks of us:-

            ‘If you think for a millisecond that I give a flying fig for what any of you arrogant and ignorant, middle and upper class tossers think you’re more deluded than I first thought.’

            From a post of his to me a couple of days ago. I have the whole thing, but you’re probably not interested.

          11. Yes the one where you went cwying to the mods to have it removed. But what do arrogant and ignorant middle class tossers like you think, that is the vast majority of people on this site. One rule for you, another for me.

          13. You truly are an idiot. I’ve written words to that effect on a number of occasions. Why don’t you tell everybody about your bullying of ogga1? I would have preferred it if you’d blocked me as you stated.

        2. I’m not keen to see anyone who has committed an offence get off.

          What I object to is the very one-sided attacks on those who are trying to do their jobs by people who have an interest in the break down of law and order.

          Police, Firemen, first responders, service personnel. All under attack by people like you who hope that society will break down and that anarchy can take over.

        3. You might as well ask why there never seems to be anyone held accountable for deaths due NHS failures and/or negligence. Regular cases reported in the press of horrible mis-diagnoses or people dying while waiting for treatment.

          1. I wouldn’t, as I know the answer, Common Purpose graduates in NHS middle management and above and in the police force above Chief Inspectors. There was a freedom of information request put to all 40 odd police forces asking about police offices with criminal convictions and still employed. There were over 900 from the 20 odd forces that replied, some quite serious. Before if you had a police record then you were out, as it should be.

        1. I’m in two minds over the whole issue.
          I want the criminal taken out quickly but I don’t want them kiled, on the off chance that they are innocent.
          On the other hand I certainly don’t want police officers put at risk from a drugged up crazy who is pretty much impervious to tazering.

          1. The disastrous thing here is when inner city youth decide the way to deal with a traffic stop/minor drug bust or similar is (a) to flee and (b) to point a weapon at the cops. It never ends well. It seems their parents can’t get it through their heads that when a cop is pointing his gun at you, you do as you are told. Or you will probably end up dead.

          2. Sad but true, and even then my sympathies are with the cops.

            Stupid people think that a policeman can shoot to disable; hit an arm or a leg. Nope, they shoot at the biggest bit and that is essentially to kill.

            If someone goes out with a gun and points it at a policeman I have no sympathy if they end up dead.

            If somone gets drugged up and comes at a policeman like a maniac, threatening to kill the policeman and gets shot, I have no sympathy.

          3. There was a case back on the early ’90’s in LA. The police tried to pull over a car for speeding, but the driver tried to get away. The ensuing chase ended of with multiple cop cars and a helicopter. When they finally got them to stop and get out of the car, King refused to obey police instructions and fought with them. The decision was made not to shoot, but to use multiple officers to get him an the ground and handcuffed. even after Tasering him he continued to resist, and the police got a little rough. This ended up with a couple of cops going to jail and King being seen as a hero in the black community. It turned out he was trying to get away to avoid violating his release on parole for earlier offences.

            The reality is if the decision had not been made to take him down physically, he probably would have ended up dead at the hands of the first officer on the scene, it would probably have been “justifiable”, and the case long forgotten. He got a pile of money in damages from the police, but ended up dead from drugs and alcohol.

  66. Dawn Butler has put her name in the hat to be Labour .
    deputy leader. Female, black, hard left, illiterate Jeremy acolyte-
    ticks all the boxes then.

      1. Yes, she is the one with long hair that is always
        sitting right by his side, grinning or looking at her phone.

      2. I dont thing she is a Lesbian

        I thought transitioning was de rigueur these days so what’s wrong with a little bit of a lifestyle change to inch up the political greasy pole?

    4. Gawd almighty .

      Labour will soon nearly be the tribe that lost its head.. do they all twerk in the lobby , have sons or daughters as their staff, talk in patois.. munch chicken titbits and chew maize at Labour gatherings and snort for dessert?

  67. Back to the Tazer

    Policeman: I say Naughty Aggresive Man, I am going to have to Tazer you, have you the Medical Dispensation Form issued to you by your doctor, so that I can get the safe setting enterd into the machine

    Naughty Man: Go away (in the local argot) nasty policeman, I am just going to keep strangling this (enter own vistim type) So you can F… Off

    Policeman: OK Mr Naughty Man you win

    Next days headlines

    Cowardly Policeman charged as an accessory to murder, as he did not use equipment issued to stop Mr Naughty Man strngling his (enter victimt ype).
    Chief Constable (who used to be AC at the Met) leads prosecution of Policeman

    A bit bizarre…… but…….

      2. I don’t think they want to control them, Belle – all part of the plan towards chaos and anarchy.

  72. You can’t beat a kid’s logic.

    A little boy about 13 years old is walking down the street dragging a flattened frog on a string behind him. He came up to the doorstep of ‘a house of ill repute’ and knocked on the door.

    When the Madam answered it, she saw the little boy and asked what he wanted..

    He said, ‘I want to have sex with one of the women inside. I have the money to buy it, and I’m not leaving until I get it.

    The Madam figured, why not, so she told him to come in. Once in, she told him to pick any of the girls he liked. He asked, ‘Do any of the girls have any diseases?’

    Of course the Madam said ‘No’.

    The boy said, ‘I heard all the men talking about having to get shots after making love with Amber – THAT’S the girl I want.’

    Since the little boy was so adamant and had the money to pay for it, the Madam told him to go to the first room on the right.

    He paid the Madam, headed down the hall dragging the squashed frog behind him. Ten minutes later he came back, still dragging the frog, and headed out the door.

    The Madam stopped him and asked, ‘Why did you pick the only girl in the place with a disease, instead of one of the others?’

    He said, ‘Well, if you must know, tonight when I get home, my parents are going out to a restaurant to eat, leaving me at home with a baby-sitter. After they leave, my baby-sitter will have sex with me because she just happens to be very fond of cute little boys. She will then get the disease that I just caught. When Mum and Dad get back, Dad will take the baby-sitter home. On the way, he’ll give her one in the car and he’ll catch the disease.

    Then when Dad gets home from the baby-sitter’s, he and Mum will go to bed and have sex, and Mum will catch it.

    In the morning when Dad goes to work, the Milkman will deliver the milk, have a quickie with Mum and catch the disease, and HE’S the prick who ran over my FROG!’

      1. ‘Morning, John, I keep farmer’s time these days – early to bed and up with the cöck.

        Thank you for setting that one up!

      2. ‘Morning, John, I keep farmer’s time these days – early to bed and up with the cöck.

        Thank you for setting that one up!

        1. You’re welcome. Rain kept me awake most of the night – may go back and try again.

          1. Yep, pretty powerful last night but I only heard it en route to the loo.

            Now, like the loo performance, it’s just drizzling here.

        2. You’re welcome. Rain kept me awake most of the night – may go back and try again.

        3. You’re welcome. Rain kept me awake most of the night – may go back and try again.

  73. Hysteria about Russian interference is becoming a joke. Konstantin Kisin. 6 November 2019.

    Democrats will not win by accusing Trump of colluding with the Russians. Remainers will not win by presenting Brexit as the product of Putin’s meddling.
    Western politicians need to remember that democracy is about the concerns of ordinary people. No amount of foreign interference will ever be as powerful in shaping people’s choices at the ballot box than the sense that they are being ignored and spurned by their elected representatives.

    Morning everyone. This is true! It’s true of Trump and it’s true of Brexit! These accusations of Russian interference in the referendum have like Dominic Cummings three years spent in Russia after graduating only emerged since the announcement of the General Election. Which leads us to the inescapable conclusion that it is simply a manufactured electioneering ploy without credibility.

    https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2019/11/hysteria-about-russian-interference-is-becoming-a-joke/

  75. We counted the MP’s out yesterday and counted them back this morning, none were lost overnight.
    It’s beginning to sound like the Falklands war all over again.

  77. I’ll vote Lib Dem – but I can’t join them. Spectator. Matthew Parris. 9 November 2019.

    I’m most emphatically not joining that party. Not many weeks ago, my column on this page proposed the outlines of a sharp divide between Lib-Demery and liberal conservatism. I hold to that. Of course there have always been admirable people in the Liberal, and, latterly, Liberal Democrat party: admirable people, and some excellent ideas, civilised instincts and humane responses. I admired Nick Clegg, liked Vince Cable’s dry and unsparing rationality, and can see Jo Swinson as a capable and sensible politician. They are, at least, not mad. But the party’s ‘something must be done’ attitude to social needs and problems, its reflexive preference for statist solutions, and its modern reluctance to acknowledge the importance of moral hazard in private life and public policy, creates (for conservatives and freedom–lovers) a hole in Lib Dem political philosophy. I’m also opposed to reversing the result of the 2016 referendum except through a fresh referendum; but there’s no chance the Lib Dems will get the chance to revoke without another plebiscite.

    Leaving aside questions of political orientation, with the not unreasonable suspicion that Parris was never a Conservative in any meaningful sense, one has to doubt the character judgement of someone who could arrive at the conclusions in bold text. Clegg reneged on a major policy decision that essentially destroyed his Party in the next General Election, all this for the lure of personal power. His eventual replacement (after the traumas of the asexual Farron) Vince Cable, opposed the result of the largest Democratic mandate in UK history, while Swinson will go down as an arrogant anti-democrat of almost H!tlerian proportions; the votes of 17 million people counting for nothing at all in her worldview!

    https://www.spectator.co.uk/2019/11/ill-vote-lib-dem-but-i-cant-join-them/

    1. Cable was a liar. His case for the privatisation of the Royal Mail was entirely misleading. His figures on postal deliveries were wildly distorted.
      Not rational at all.

    2. “I admired Nick Clegg, liked Vince Cable’s dry and unsparing rationality, and can see Jo Swinson as a capable and sensible politician.” If you had any remaining doubts about whether Matthew Parris had completely lost the plot, that should convince you!!

    3. ‘Morning, Minty, “…with the not unreasonable suspicion that Parris was never a Conservative…”

      Best description, by the bye-line’, is he’s a hypocrite. Which, at the moment, could be any politician and/or any party.

    4. Morning Araminta.

      “I’m also opposed to reversing the result of the 2016 referendum except through a fresh referendum”

      So you are for reversing the 2016 referendum result, Mr Parris, but, like many others, want to dress up reasons for doing so in flowery words.

      Were I a remainer, I think I’d change sides, so as not to be on the side whose actions stink.

    5. Cable was a liar. His case for the privatisation of the Royal Mail was entirely misleading. His figures on postal deliveries were wildly distorted.
      Not rational at all.

        1. No doubt, and he has not improved any. However, people such as he do seem to reach positions of where their ideology and barmy notions can be pushed into reality to the detriment of people and country.
          (The yellow vans of the German Post Office now have the Royal Warrant displayed. How much further can this country fall?)

        2. No doubt, and he has not improved any. However, people such as he do seem to reach positions of where their ideology and barmy notions can be pushed into reality to the detriment of people and country.
          (The yellow vans of the German Post Office now have the Royal Warrant displayed. How much further can this country fall?)

  78. SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT FROM GRIZZLY Good morning all NoTTLers! Elsie here. Yesterday I travelled into London and met up with Grizzly and Toots, a former inhabitant of this forum. Accompanying them were their good ladies, so we girls had a chance to discuss the latest fashions whilst Grizzly and Toots (G & T) went to the bar to pay for the drinks (not G & Ts, beers and wines instead). Grizzly asked me to send you all his very best wishes, especially to Bob of Bonsall who I told him had a jar of chutney waiting for him. Grizzly himself gave me a sealed box which he told me to keep in the fridge (so I wouldn’t forget where to look for it?) I was a little concerned that it might contain gunpowder because of what he said to me later (more of that further down in this post) and I asked him what had happened the previous day (November the 5th). Didn’t he travel all the way to London to blow up Parliament? Well, it seems that he was stopped at customs and his two barrels of gunpowder were confiscated. “But not to worry” he said, “because whilst in London I met another chap at a pub who was carrying two large jars of acid, and he told me that the next day he intended to dissolve Parliament. And, true to his word, he did.”

    The restaurant we ate at was a fishy one – no meat at all could be ordered – but they did serve mushy peas with the cod I ate. (“Not as good as my home-made mushy peas” said Grizzly, before glancing down the menu and exclaiming “Oh look, they’ve even got crumble for dessert!” “Not as good as MY home-made crumble” I replied.) We had a grand old time laughing about other NoTTLers (in a good-natured way I have to add), and then the discussion turned to the three “F”s: films, food and other “fings”. Grizzly was in fine fettle describing mouth-watering dishes galore, and assuring me that he would be sending me their recipes.

    That’s when it all went pear-shaped. “Enough!” I said, “I can’t cope with so much food (although I did order and eat the Eton Mess – which reminds me that we did discuss David Cameron and some other former political figures such as little Mr Bercow) – and if I prepare and then eat all of those recipes you plan to send me I shall simply explode after eating them all.” Well, quite unprovoked, Grizzly then turned to me and – like Dr Jeckyl turning into Mr Hyde – he hurled the most foul and insulting swear words at me. “You, Elsie”, he swore, “are a Silly Sausage!” Reader, I most certainly did not marry him (© Jane Austen), for I was cut to the quick. To think that, after all our years of friendship and because we are closely related through my late husband Olaf – may his soul rest in Valhalla – Bloodaxe, Grizzly could insult me that way threw me into gloom and deep despair. I left the restaurant at once and in tears. On my return to Lime Towers I packed my bags, flung some flannelette undies and other items of clothing into my travelling bag, wrote a note of explanation for Mr Lime (The Master) and left in a taxi, bound for The Priory. If they can’t cure me of this deep hurt then no-one I know can. NoTTLers, I am leaving this site today, and I may be gone some time! Please play nicely whilst I am gone.

    1. Heysus Christ! I read all that in the hope of learning why Grizzly is no longer here. Or shall I guess?

    3. ???
      What’s this all about EB? Someone (Grizz) says something to you in person ITRW and you decide not to log in to an online forum. Doesn’t add up.

  79. Good morning from a Saxon Queen with longbow and blooded axe .

    Tom Watson probably resigned due to a combination of
    the majority of his constituencies beìng leavers
    and the fact that Corbyn would like to replace him
    with a hard left Trot acolyte and a woman as I said yesterday .

    The hard lefties are getting very exited on local levels
    momentum are getting excited amongst others.
    Labour not only will stop Brèxit, they are a current danger
    with Jeremy Corbyn and his Jew hating and IRA / Hamas supporting
    friends. They are no less a totalitarian dictatorship then the
    EU. There is Labour that will stop Brèxit and there is the
    Lib Dems ( who are doing well with the 48% ) planning to
    join forces with other small parties who are like minded .
    And there are those who want to split the vote or think they
    can but that will stop Brèxit in its entirety .

  80. Liberal Democrats, Greens and Plaid Cymru agree pact

    The three anti-Brexit parties will announce details of the deal on Thursday, but it is thought to cover between 60 and 70 constituencies.
    In Wales, the pact will cover 11 of its 40 seats, BBC Wales has been told.
    Such a pact means two of the parties would agree not to field a candidate, boosting the third candidate’s chances.
    Outside of Wales, the pact will simply be a two-way agreement between the Lib Dems and the Greens.

      1. The even greater surprise is that Boris’ big ego won’t allow him to ally with Farage in order to “Get Brexit Done!”

          1. I think I know what you mean, Anne but I wonder if it’s “Live in hope, die in despair.” or even a ditch.

  81. What the Hell is the Spectator playing at??

    The case for amnesty: why it’s time to offer citizenship to illegal immigrants


    The Spectator

    There is an unspoken truth about British life: we have two classes of citizen. The first are those born or formally settled here, who have all the rights and protections of the law. Then there are perhaps a million others who may have lived here with their families for years but without the proper documents. They can be our neighbours, work in our shops, contribute to our economy — yet they do not have the same basic protections and are far more vulnerable to exploitation. These are the so-called illegal immigrants, and it is past time to offer them amnesty.

    Britain has become the most successful melting pot in Europe, absorbing 2.5 million people over this decade without the far-right backlash seen in much of the continent. A recent Pew study showed that Brits are more likely than any other Europeans to say that migrants make the country -stronger. This is why the Windrush scandal was so damaging to the Tories. To deport people who have been living here peacefully for years because they did not have documentation was not just inhumane but fundamentally un-British. The same principle applies to a great many people who could be considered illegal migrants.

    Consider the case of Ben James, Nigerian by birth, who was sent to school in London and then, at the age of 14, abandoned by his family. He managed to build a career and, as a successful commodities broker in his twenties, approached the Home Office in order to regularise his status. He was asked to leave Britain but fought for the right to stay, eventually winning. His case was taken up by The Spectator in 2001 when we first made the case for an amnesty for people in his situation. The editor, then, was Boris Johnson.

    There is no sign that the Prime Minister has changed his mind about the need for an amnesty since he embarked on his political career. On the contrary, he made the case for this when he was Mayor of London and returned to this theme during the later stages of the Leave campaign. The dilemma he now faces is easy to understand. As this magazine argued in a cover article earlier this year, he needs to win over Brexit party voters, so he may be tempted to sound tough on migration and quietly bury his support for an amnesty. But the case is there to be made.

    The main objection is that people who broke the law in coming here ought not to be rewarded. But this position overlooks the complexities of modern migration patterns and the number of people affected. Ben James, for example, was a child when he was brought here. Other ‘illegals’ have had families and found jobs; they pay taxes. David Wood, a former head of immigration enforcement at the Home Office, has estimated that there are now 1.2 million undocumented migrants in the UK — more than the population of Birmingham. For the UK government to be theoretically committed to their expulsion is an absurdity.

    An amnesty would not increase the actual population of Britain (as opposed to the official population): these people are living here anyway. What it would do is bring them out of the black economy, make it more likely that they will pay tax, and give them a greater incentive to make a contribution to civic life.

    There is now ample evidence to show that amnesties strengthen society. Ronald Reagan offered an amnesty to illegal immigrants in 1986, and studies show that they were then far better able to integrate into -society: their language skills increased, and their wages rose by up to 25 per cent as they were able to escape the unregulated, exploitation-ridden shadow economy. A 2005 amnesty in Spain raised an extra €4,000 of tax revenue for every naturalised citizen.

    An amnesty would not mean that we stop policing the borders. A commonsense line can be drawn between those who have lived here for several years, and those who have not put down roots, who can be removed in a way that deters illegal immigration. The pressure group Migration Watch UK has argued that amnesties encourage more illegal immigration — but any amnesty could require a qualification period of ten years’ residency. That is unlikely to offer much temptation. The problem is that for years UK authorities have been pursuing those who are living and working peacefully, rather than focusing on criminals and smuggling gangs. Much of this stems from a failure of politicians to talk about this rationally.

    The Prime Minister is accused by his enemies of being a cynic who bends his principles to the prevailing wind. But he made the unpopular case for an amnesty as London Mayor, did not resile from it as Foreign Secretary and has made supportive noises since moving into 10 Downing Street. It would not be so radical given that, in practice, there are already routes to citizenship for many illegal migrants. The next step should be to formalise this, on generous yet practical terms, and put it in the 2019 Tory manifesto.

    This would be a bold expression of the Prime Minister’s personal brand of liberal Conservatism, and of the version of Brexit he articulated in the Leave campaign. An amnesty would carry political risk, but so does any worthwhile reform. He is already persuaded of the principle. We now need the policy.

    4. Just send another message that any one is welcome to come to the UK. Just make your own travel arrangements

    5. Who wrote these words?
      “Don’t think alike.
      Our writers have no party line; their allegiance is to clarity of thought, elegance of expression and independence of opinion. Their views range from left to right, their circumstances from high life to low life. None make any pretence of being impartial: our motto is “firm but unfair”.

    6. “…the Home Office, has estimated that there are now 1.2 million
      undocumented migrants in the UK — more than the population of
      Birmingham. For the UK government to be theoretically committed to their
      expulsion is an absurdity.

      Removing them all will reduce the current, absurd, ‘breaking-point’ strain on the country’s infrastructure.

      You can chuck out those ignorant, time-wasting Extinction Rebels at the same time.

      1. I’ve no objection to people like Ben James being given consideration for their status to be regularised on a case by case basis, but a blanket amnesty will simply add to the attraction of the UK for other people to make the attempt to get here and, perhaps, add to the death toll.

    7. and, I wonder which party these non English Speaking, non Christian, peeple would vote for

    9. “Britain has become the most successful melting pot in Europe.”
      Despite the fact that theft and murder is rampant in our capital, a city where more than half the population are foreigners. Despite the fact that the figures for illegal immigrants run into millions. Despite the fact that the biggest foreign grouping in the country, around six or eight million, hate us, frequently attack and murder us, maintain cities and towns as no-go areas for whites, and consider that our young children exist solely for their sexual gratification.
      Our infrastructure has crumbled through lack of maintenance because a fortune is being spent on paying the living costs of foreigners in this country who contribute nothing at all. (When was the last time you saw a litter bin saying “Keep Britain Tidy”?)
      And this balloon thinks the answer is to legitimise another few million illegal freeloaders, instead of deporting them?

      1. That quote pre-supposes that being a ‘melting pot’ is a good idea in the first place.

        It goes with the idea that dilution is enrichment.

    10. “Britain has become the most successful melting pot in Europe, absorbing 2.5 million people over this decade without the far-right backlash seen in much of the continent.”

      The writer needs to get out a bit more.

      Apart from concern about mass immigration being a facet of human nature and NOT ‘far-right’, there is resentment in many of our communities about the scale of the influx and the extent to which it’s changing the face of our towns and cities.

      Morning Bob.

    1. The scary thing – the truly terrifying thing – is that they believe that’s sensible.

      They honestly, truly believe that the best way to resolve the problems we have is massive taxes and incredible spending.

      It’s insane. Yes, macro economics is different to household economics but the simple truth is you cannot invent wealth. It is just deferred debt. To resolve the problems our economy has we need to leave the EU. The EU removes all the levers we have to change tax laws that would make real difference.

    2. They gave a secret plan to abolish poverty. AS the definition is relative poverty they will reduce every one to poverty therefore no one is in poverty

  83. “Until now, I have always composed melodies and harmonies just as they
    pour out from my heart. But I have often been told: “as a modern
    composer, you’ll soon have to forget your melodies, and concentrate on
    dissonance, as befits our modern age.” But maybe this award today means
    that a more tolerant age is dawning, when melody and beauty will once
    again be permitted. Perhaps this is a message that there is more to
    European Culture than just dissonance. Perhaps there is also a place in
    European Culture for harmony. And how beautiful it would be if this
    message could go out into the world from Vienna, from the city of
    music.”

    Alma Deutscher, on receiving the European Culture Prize in Vienna on 20th October 2019.

    Just imagine if all Award Acceptance speeches were like this!

    Alma Deutscher was born in Basingstoke.

  84. Modern slavery arrests after care home raids

    THREE men have been arrested over allegations that staff at two care homes in Gwent were victims of modern slavery.
    Gwent Police and the National Crime Agency carried out warrants at the Danygraig Nursing Home on Newport’s Chepstow Road and Ashville Residential Care Home in Brithdir this morning.
    Two men, aged 53 and 64 from Newport, and another man, aged 43 from Surrey, are in police custody.

        1. She was in the mooood.
          Milking it for all it was worth.
          Buttering up her pupils.
          Cheesey picture.
          “Ouch, that yog hurt.”

          Blimey, dairy produce takes over the English language.
          Don’t tell the vegans.

  86. Life under a four day week will be really grim, especially if they do away with Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays

    1. BJ,
      UKIP at the moment are at war with it’s own nec besides if UKIP is wiped out
      totally then these Isles can take it they are officially dead.
      Being as UKIP members
      ( self respecters ) are the only
      hard core patriotic, standfast party that
      has continued to fight England / GB
      corner.

      1. Good morning ogga

        I do regret the passing of UKIP – they brought it upon themselves by their constant infighting and squabbles.

        1. R,
          R, you have it wrong once more, do not let the love of either the lib/lab/con, either in the past or currently, cloud your vision.
          I did ask before that you do some deeper research into what has / is happening.
          Our wars / war is contained within the party & the nec whom still retain outside allegiances.
          Choreographed squabbles instigated by outside forces in the main.
          The true core of the party in regards to being
          pro English / GB cannot & does not wish to hold a candle to the lab/lib/con pro eu coalition party and their treacherous ongoing treatment of these Isles, not “squabbles” but
          PLANNED out & out treachery.
          Crocodile tears are of little use in today’s political climate, common sense & integrity is in short supply outside of UKIP.

    3. The figures suggest to me that the whole edifice at the top end is rotten.
      Drop the support increase the seats? That is badly wrong.

    4. The figures suggest to me that the whole edifice at the top end is rotten.
      Drop the support increase the seats? That is badly wrong.

      1. I simply cannot believe folk are so stupid as to vote for Tits Mary Swinson. A shrieking harridan with a faux West Country accent following elocution lessons gone wrong.

        The trick of identifying Liberal Democrat’s with the Remain voters is disingenuous and so unreal as to beggar normal belief. I wonder what the Liberal Democrat’s who voted to Leave think about this misappropriation of their votes.

    6. Even if there were Brexit Party flags flying from every household in the land, the polls would still say 10%. It is the easiest lie that the polling companies can tell. As with the media, they are owned by people who are pro-eu and they are trying to skew the vote.

      YouGov are the worst and they have just “teamed up with Sky News” to provide day by day polling numbers. Hmmm.

      I must leave now, as I wish we all could. 🙂

      Have a good night.

    1. Although there hasn’t been any flooding 10 miles south of central London. In October we had 225% of the average monthly rainfall (135mm versus 60mm average) and so far as at the 6th of November we had 50% of the average rainfall for the month and the 10 day forecast is for a lot more rain. ;-(

      1. UK weather is always highly variable but tends to average out over a year or two . We had a pretty dry summer so it is now averaging itself out with more rain

      1. …. and if it’s not global warming, it’s climate change. Oh, or (yikes – yawn) climate emergency. Bored stiff with it all by now. I was fed this sort of stuff way back in 1968. You sort of grow out of it, you look at mediaeval literature, poetry, and realise that this has all happened before. Whoever said (and I am sure someone will tell me whom it was) that there is nothing new under the sun was perfectly correct.

  90. Watching Corbyn’s speech in Manchester the moron certainly has a way with words delivered extempore. I actually despise the Labour Party. They are more hypocritical and disingenuous than Jo Swinson and the Liberals and that is saying something.

    Corbyn’s reference to the ravages of Thatcher in the seventies conveniently ignores the actual ravages of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown in the intervening years. What a self deluded idiot the man is.

    3. Evening C,
      In all fairness and honesty the same can be said of all segments of the lab/lib/con coalition party.

      1. True. It is probably a question of selecting the least worse. The whole lot of them are cretins posing as intellectuals. A more ignorant bunch of morons would be difficult to assemble.

        1. C,
          And so the political roundabout turns, fed by the, hold the nose,
          best of the worst, family tree,supporter / voters.
          Party before country.
          Political lifestyles are protected by this mode
          of voting.

          2. Then C,
            A I can say is that a UKIP vote given with integrity in my book book beats a knowing vote of treachery.
            Honest politics.

      2. Give it a rest Silver Back Ape old friend 🙂

        Jeremy Corbyn is a friend of Terrorists, hates Jews and wants
        a dangerous hard left utopia.. he is intolerant and extremist
        and in a league of his own.. regardless of Labour being Remain
        he is utterly dangerous .

        The Lib Dems now have The ear of the 48% remain vote
        of which would cause significant trouble if all remain
        voters voted for Lib Dems and they formed a coalition-
        saying that at least they are not hard left terrorist hugging loons.

        The Conservatives are neither the above
        and that old Lib/ Lab / Con line is so old and will never be
        a vote winner . Try attacking your old leader instead .

        Right, okay I am going to bed now.

        1. Evening A,
          The toxic trio are equally to blame.
          “My old leader” is very unfavourable in many quarters, that does not alter the fact that the toxic trio have been pro eu for many a year and many a year have been supported & voted for.

          1. Jeremy Corbyn is a Jew hating terrorist supporter
            who is a huge danger, he also has said he’ll stop
            Brèxit but he’s still a dangerous Jew hating terrorist
            supporter . I am sure he long ago with a toothbrush moustache
            had good trains and a good economy but he was also
            still a Jew hating monster if you catch my drift .

          2. A,
            I am well aware of corbyns pedigree, but all I see is a very high % of politico’s that are
            English / GB hating as / is being proved on a daily basis.

    5. Every few generations the young vote in a labour government. Only then do they understand the folly of their ways. It is always pointed out at the end of WW2 the country voted in a labour government due to the dissatisfaction of the soldiers,sailors and airmen. They only lasted one term and it is never explained why this was. I was told why, it was by my late parents, The could just not do anything they said they would do and when Germany came off rationing 4or 5 years BEFORE britain it was the last straw. labour were seen as helping germany far more than britain, and so it goes on.

  93. Listening to the soundtrack of ‘Master and Commander’, reading (still) Shogun, and an eye on the Man U match. Oh, and occasionally sipping my dry white wine. Who says blokes can’t multi-task?

  94. An under-fire MP has been reported to the election regulator amid claims she is withholding fundraising cash from the Labour Party.

    The complaint to the Electoral Commission is a fresh blow to Emma Lewell-Buck, 40, who is already fighting deselection in her South Shields constituency.
    The commission confirmed it has started a preliminary probe to establish whether there is grounds for a formal investigation.

    1. Nice to see that Labour still goes for what it perceives to be posh potty.
      Not Emma Buck, then.

      1. Talking of double-barelled names can you get much posher than Yaxley-Lennon or Wedgwood-Benn?

  95. Item from The Conservative Woman.

    https://www.conservativewoman.co.uk/tcws-tribute-to-a-fine-politician/

    TCW’s tribute to a fine politician
    November 6, 2019

    “THERE are not many Members of Parliament TCW will be sad to see the back of. But there is one: Kate Hoey.

    She stands heads and shoulders above her colleagues – Labour and Conservative. There is not a woman MP to match her in any of the parties.

    As she said in her moving valedictory, she has always put country before party:

    Would that other MPs were as principled. Parliament will be a poorer place without her. Young MPs should listen and learn what political principle really means, and perhaps there is no better place to start than her speech at the Leave Means Leave rally on March 29, 2019:

    (I’m afraid that particular video won’t transfer.)

    We wish Kate well and hope that, liberated from party politics, she will continue to exert her influence for good.”

  96. Nigel considerably lowers his demand on Boris

    He now has only two conditions the extension to 2022 goes and he wants changes to the bit that says we maintain close regulatory alignment with EU

    Maintaing close regulatory alignment for good makes sense. We currently use EU standards and changing them for the sake of change makes no sense

    3. You’ll have to tell me, in your opinion, when was the last time a British government did something that benefitted the people of the UK?

  97. Another one bites the Dust

    Nick Conrad Conservative candidate for Broadlands Norfok has quit over 2014 rape comments

  99. Why Extinction Rebellion seems so nuts. Spiked. Brendan O’Neill 7 November 2019.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e48afcbdd8e7cffb6b45b7422de50411a71e4871f4fd93303e28ce8a75e3ae97.jpg

    One of my favourite political events this year was the Battle of Canning Town. This was the moment when Extinction Rebellion decided to send its painfully middle-class agitators to a working-class part of East London early in the morning to lecture and inconvenience people who just wanted to get to work. What could go wrong?

    Quite a lot, it turned out. There were many wonderful moments. The two posh greens who climbed on top of a Tube train at Canning Town were mocked and eventually dragged down. A commuter can be heard branding one of the protesters a ‘ponytail weirdo’. Elsewhere on the Tube system that day, commuters pointed out that the London Underground is run on electricity and is therefore pretty eco-friendly. ‘Are you that fucking stupid?’, one asked a smug-looking couple of XR agitators. ‘No wonder you can’t get jobs…’

    They are certainly odd, being more like some medieval religious sect (as can be seen from the photograph) than a twenty first century protest group. They have a Virgin Leader and one would be not at all surprised to see a couple of self-flagellators and Stigmata sufferers in there. Whatever the truth of Climate Change this pseudo religious/theatrical presentation leads one to suspect manipulation and this is aside from the question of who is paying for it all!

    https://www.spiked-online.com/2019/11/07/why-extinction-rebellion-seems-so-nuts/

    1. Assuming the black stuff is oil, do the dimwit protesters not realise that our dependence upon it far exceeds the dependence of the alcoholic on the bottle?

      Where do they think the tarmac on which they travel and stand comes from, not to mention the thousands of other uses the black stuff has?

    3. I see some lunatic court has decided that the Met’s eventual and rather feeble (compare it to the reaction to the Countryside Alliance) action against ER protesters was illegal, opening the way for these oiks to sue for wrongful arrest! It seems that “The Law is a Ass” is now the mission statement for the courts!

      The DT reports that the protest have already cost £24 million, without any payouts! Note that the action was brought by a group of 7 protesters including two Labour MPs!

      https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/11/06/extinction-rebellion-protesters-set-million-pound-pay-plot-general/

      https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000b0sl

  100. ‘Morning, Peeps.

    While the departure of Tom Watson will no doubt have the Referendum thugs high-fiving to the point of blistered hands, I take some comfort from the fact that the loss of another reasonable moderate will make Liebour even more unelectable as they lurch further to the extreme left and beyond. Unfortunately, however, he has never paid the price for setting himself up as the Nonce-Finder General under parliamentary privilege, for which he is, I trust, thoroughly ashamed. No doubt all will be revealed when the inevitable book is published, although it is a pity it wasn’t ready in time for the run-up to a GE. I’m sure there will be plenty of damaging revelations about the idiotic Comrade Steptoe.

  101. Fifteen people have been found in the back of a lorry in Wiltshire following reports of “suspicious activity” involving the vehicle.

    Police said they closed the A350 at the Kington Langley crossroads near Chippenham after being called by a member of the public on Wednesday night.

    A man in his 50s has been arrested on suspicion of assisting with illegal entry and is in custody in Swindon.

    All of the people who were discovered in the lorry are believed to be over the age of 16 and it is thought none are in a serious condition, police said.

      1. Probably at most 30% of illegals are detected trying to get into the UK. The other two thirds just disappear into the black economy

    2. Well, they should be in a serious condition. Locked up, in a cage at Heathrow, awaiting deportation on the next flight to Wogistan.
      Instead, we will give them free legal representation* to prevent our laws being enforced. they will be housed comfortably, fed nutritiously, given clothing, and will have their smartphones charged. All at no cost to themselves, but to the UK taxpayer. The UK taxpayer faces the 99% probability of paying for them, their spouses, and their offspring in perpetuity.

      *Not currently available to UK citizens whose ancestors fought at Hastings, Malplaquet, Waterloo, Trafalgar, the Somme, and elsewhere.

    1. night-night. It’s a cold one already in these ‘ere parts, the thermometer is in minus territory.

    1. I have a CD of the Carol Symphony. It is played at Christmas. I worked twenty odd years ago with Adam Hely Hutchinson who was probably his grandson. Adam was a sort of interior designer and had worked for Edward Bulmer.

  107. Sally Gimson’s deselection and the battle for Labour’s soul. Nick Cohen. 7 November 2019

    Anyone who doubts that the far left is more interested in winning the faction fight within the Labour party than a general election, should look at how it has treated Sally Gimson, the Labour candidate in Bassetlaw.

    At least she was the Labour candidate until yesterday when Jon Lansman, a director of Momentum (it is a company, so the anti-capitalist campaigners can retain corporate control) and two other members of Labour’s National Executive Committee, Andi Fox from the transport union TSSA and Sarah Owen from the GMB, deselected her.

    On Friday, the NEC told her that she had to answer multiple allegations against her. It warned her not to talk to anyone about the case. Gimson wisely retained the services of Mishcon de Reya.

    When the ‘trial’ came it was no trial at all. Gimson was not allowed to attend the NEC ‘court’ or know the names of her accusers. Accusations were garbled at her down the phone. Lansman then said he had more important matters to attend to, and that was that.

    I’m not an apologist for Gimson and I don’t like Cohen who I think is a propaganda merchant but this is quite interesting in that it describes techniques for taking over parties (and countries) that I thought had long vanished. If you should entertain any doubts about Labours true orientation once in power this should cure you.

    https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2019/11/sally-gimsons-deselection-and-the-battle-for-labours-soul/

    1. MPs and prospective MPs are not employees, so they can’t resort to the relevant employee legislation. Their only recourse is to sue for libel/slander/defamation.

  108. SIR – As well as banning clapping (Letters, November 5), will the new Speaker ban the use of mobile devices in the House of Commons chamber?

    Ted Holden
    Bolton, Lancashire

    1. Excellent point. We have banned the use of mobile phones on our French courses at Le Grand Osier.

    1. Thanks for that. I’m going to have fun with that on BB and with a certain person of Yank origins on here. Think I mentioned Minnesotastan yesterday in despatches.

      1. The school is in Canada, it is more likely that the two protesters would be referred to the hate police.

  112. What’s with all these flood warnings across the country,
    somewhat excessive to say the least- a climate emergency maybe.
    Hmm, I’ll get myself an arc, boat or at least dig out those
    Hunter Wellington Boots .

      1. Mr Thomas, you are a man. You are not a woman, no matter how many drugs you take.

        Please seek therapy to understand why you think you are something you’re not.

      3. I like his column in the Saturday Torygraph – he’s painfully honest and a good writer. Sadly deluded as he is – no amount of surgery, hormones and dodgy outfits will make him into a woman.

      1. Hi Iffy,

        No probs. I’m always doing it. It’s because we read from newest first. Anyway, you know what they say about great minds… :o)

        1. I always read newest first. It’s like reading from the back of a magazine first – I’m left -handed!

  114. Dalian Atkinson Taser death: Serving police officer charged with murder of ex-Aston Villa footballer

    A serving police officer has been charged with murder in connection with the death of former Aston Villa footballer, Dalian Atkinson, who died

    after being Tasered in a Telford street in August 2016 .

    The PTB have run out of soldiers to prosecute, so let’s attack the police

    Perhaps the ananymous policeman should have ‘exitted left’ like what AC White Feather did on London Bridge

    Anarchy is well rooted in UK now.

    God help us

    https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/11/07/dalian-atkinson-taser-death-serving-police-officer-charged-murder/

    1. Surely this is defrauding the electorate and illegal?

      It’s deliberately collusion and as soon as the electoral commission are informed of it they should render the votes void.

      1. The Electoral Commission???? They’ll do nothing, as usual – it’s for remain, innit?

    3. Lunch was a bowl of soup some time ago but there is always time for Bach. Thanks for these posts Jphnny.

  117. Afternoon all.

    From the Keith Schellenberg obit ….

    In 1991, amid growing calls for land reform in Scotland, campaigners formed the Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust and launched a public appeal to raise the
    money to buy the island for its inhabitants.
    Schellenberg’s “Big Hoose”, the Trust suggested, might become a Life Centre, where “bank managers would enrol to learn dry-stone dyking,
    admen would shear sheep, and lawyers muck out the byre”.

    Er, ” dry stone dyking ” …. blimey … what ho!!

      1. My father and I went to Crystal Palace to see the start of the 1968 London to Sydney Marathon and thence to the first stage (Blackbushe?). Watching the cars going through we heard what sounded like a train coming. Keith’s 8-litre Bentley appeared in a cloud of smoke. They stopped opposite where we were standing and threw out all the kit in the back to get to the isolator switch. When they had got going again Dad discovered his shooting stick had disappeared and we could only conclude it had been piled back in with the rest of their belongings.

        After they returned from the rally my father wrote to him to ask if he had found it and he wrote back to say unfortunately no.

        It was also sad to see that Andrew Cowan, the winner had also died recently.

      2. My father and I went to Crystal Palace to see the start of the 1968 London to Sydney Marathon and thence to the first stage (Blackbushe?). Watching the cars going through we heard what sounded like a train coming. Keith’s 8-litre Bentley appeared in a cloud of smoke. They stopped opposite where we were standing and threw out all the kit in the back to get to the isolator switch. When they had got going again Dad discovered his shooting stick had disappeared and we could only conclude it had been piled back in with the rest of their belongings.

        After they returned from the rally my father wrote to him to ask if he had found it and he wrote back to say unfortunately no.

        It was also sad to see that Andrew Cowan, the winner had also died recently.

      3. Ditto. Another “nice guy” from that era was vintage RR/Bentley “dealer” Bunty Scott-Moncrieff who I met back when I was “mechanicing” for a permanently broke Formula Junior racer. The old club race paddocks were really friendly places and he was a chatty soul.

    2. I like Eigg on toast.
      Why do bank managers need to learn about dykes ? Are many of their lady customers dykes ?

  118. General election 2019: Tories stand by Gower candidate over Facebook post

    A Conservative general election candidate has apologised for a Facebook post in which she said people on a TV show needed “putting down”.
    Francesca O’Brien, who is running for the Gower seat in December’s election, made the comments about Channel 4’s Benefits Street in January 2014.
    Ms O’Brien said her comments were made “off the cuff” but admitted her “use of language was unacceptable”.

    1. Ah, bless! Lovely to hear the tradition of Tory hang-’em-and-flog”em dinosaurism is not totally dead, and we can continue to be entertained by their hyperbole.

      There was one lady who was a Tory councillor where I live for a while who asked for nominations for her lethal injection committee to consider. Needles to say, she got nowhere getting it past the full council. Most likely, a majority of them might have ended up on the list!

    6. Ah, bless! Lovely to hear the tradition of Tory hang-’em-and-flog”em dinosaurism is not totally dead, and we can continue to be entertained by their hyperbole.

      There was one lady who was a Tory councillor where I live for a while who asked for nominations for her lethal injection committee to consider. Needles to say, she got nowhere getting it past the full council. Most likely, a majority of them might have ended up on the list!

      1. Tony Lester sometime Edinburgh councillor wanted all AIDS sufferers, and their “friends” to be marooned on a suitable Scottish island. He suggested an island with no other inhabitants and no habitations.

        1. Far too late. If the very first AIDS sufferers, who were also very active spreaders of that particular plague, had been quarantined, there might have been a chance an that an awful lot of deaths could have been prevented. I believe the only place that did quarantine them was Castro’s Cuba. No idea how long that approach lasted.

  119. There is a petition to get the Conservative and Brexit Parties to form an alliance in order to stop splitting the Leave vote. It seems to be going up at a fair lick. It probably won’t do any good but at least you can make your feelings known. Please sign it if you agree.

    Update, 20.58:-10,146 have signed.

    https://www.change.org/p/the-conservative-and-unionist-party-get-real-and-do-a-deal-we-demand-a-tory-bxp-leave-alliance?mc_cid=cb52f94160&mc_eid=2fe208cbe2

    1. It is almost as if people are starting to say “We can be free of the EU and trading on WTO terms by the end of the year. This is what most of us voted for. Freedom and democracy is right before us. It is a choice to be taken.”

      “Boris – why are you deliberately turning away from this freedom and tying us under the control of the European Union for at least another 3 years (according to Barnier) or effectively permanently if there is another referendum in a few years time? When freedom is right there, why don’t you want us to Leave?”

      The EU will never agree to any deal that gives us the freedom we could have in 2 months time, and they will do their best to bankrupt the United Kingdom with debt while they have control over our finances and laws. Why on Earth would anybody who wants us to be free, choose to let the EU do this to us?

      If you think that Boris has some “plan” to walk away from the talks after a year, when he has allowed them to bind us on the altar, then I have a bridge to sell you that stretches over the Thames.

      1. Why would boris or any politicos concerned with brexitexit want to come out, whats in it for them ?
        Cannot be patriotism for UK as most are pro eu, maybe wonga & career advancement in foreign climes.

      2. I’ve expressed the opinion that Johnson has used the ‘walk away clause’ to bind the ERG in to his plan. From what I’ve read there is nothing else that would convince them to vote for the serfdom “deal”. If he has made this deal with the ERG and then reneges on it, where does he go from such a betrayal? He’s already lied about the WA, it might have been dead but he’s done a very good job at resurrecting it. Why no doubts from the ERG over that move?

        1. I do not understand how he has he managed to corrupt the ERG so completely. What exactly was the quid pro quo for them throwing away their integrity and betraying so many of us? Please could somebody explain it to me?

          1. Perhaps we’ll find out if/when he doesn’t keep his side of the bargain. Whatever it is he appears to have captured most of them. I haven’t read anything on John Redwood’s blog to confirm or deny his support for this WA. Redwood has been consistently opposed to any form of WA and has stuck to his guns all through May’s votes; it will be a disappointment if he goes for this one.

      3. That is the big question.

        If Boris Johnson is in favour of Brexit why does he not want us to get out of the foul tyranny as soon as possible and completely?

        And why is he lying to us? We all know that his ‘fantastic new deal’ is neither new nor fantastic and will keep us enslaved to the EU for years.

  120. Jodie Chesney murder: Svenson Ong-a-Kwie and 17-year-old boy guilty

    More cultural enrichment

    1. Diversity strength, big city, get used to it, raped for diversity.

      Usual tripe. He’ll get 5 years, be out in 2 and kill again in 6 months. Should have his hansd and feet cut off, castrated, his eyes put out and tongue torn out and thrown into a sewer still bleeding.

      1. I think the poor girl was stabbed by one or other of these foreign drug dealers. A victim of the drug wars.

        I watched the interview recorded by Sky with one of her friends. I was shocked at the illiteracy. The group had gone to a park to smoke cannabis when the victim was stabbed in the back.

        We read daily about these needless stabbings yet the Police appear hapless in dealing with the crime. To add insult to injury the ambulance chasing lawyers and political judges pass such light sentences on conviction as to be encouraging the crime.

  121. From the DT: “All imams who work in Germany will in future have to prove they can speak the German language, under a draft law for religious leaders introduced by the government.

    The bill, which passed cabinet on Wednesday, means that foreign preachers will only be granted work visas if they can demonstrate basic German. They would then need to show improvements in their language skills after a year in order to prolong their stay.

    Although it applies to all religious preachers, the coalition treaty signed by the German government – which includes the rule – specifically refers to imams.”

    I bet their preaching won’t have to be in German….

  122. Sainsbury’s profits plunge 91%

    Not surprised they are a total mess at he moment and have poor management and are not customer focused

    irst-half profits at J Sainsbury have tumbled by 91 per cent after the grocer took a hefty £200 million writedown on the value of its supermarket estate.
    Sainsbury’s reported that statutory pre-tax profits fell to £9 million in the 28 weeks to September 21, a steep fall from £107 million a year earlier. Underlying profits also sank by 15 per cent to £238 million, in line with the company’s earlier guidance, on the back of higher marketing costs and tough comparisons with last year when the long summer heatwave boosted sales of food, beer and paddling pools.
    Sainsbury’s traces its history back to 1869 with its first shop on Drury Lane and as well as operating its supermarkets and convenience stores has the Argos brand,…

    1. On the Pride Trail

      They and Argos proudly support LGBTASDFGHJ.

      I do not, so I do not use them.

      If you are a business and want to support a cause….. pick the % Majority. It reflects on your profits

    2. “Not surprised they are a total mess at he moment and have poor management and are not customer focused”
      You can say that again.

    3. Every 50 of those is a £.

      How many are down there? 2, 3 10 thousand?

      That’s a lot of wonga.

        1. Make that about 10% more as they’re hexagonally packed and not square packed like this.
          O
          OO
          OOO
          OOOOO
          OOOOOOO
          and so less space between the coins.

  124. HAPPY HOUR for a pig called Jixy Pixy

    A vegan activist who ‘rescued’ a pig from slaughter has been slammed by animal rights campaigners after she kept it in a tiny two-bed flat.
    Alicia Day, 31, who lived in Southall, west London, at the time had baths with the pig and even took it to Japanese chain Wagamama before her landlord found out.She paid £30 to save the eight-week old animal, called Jixy Pixy, after seeing him advertised online.

    https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/ab4fd02e9443e31c6db0706cf6e235da42014a2c7e5d2ae17bfc9c15ba393aed.jpg

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7660029/Vegan-activist-rescued-pig-showed-shocking-lack-judgement-took-London-flat.html

    3. “If only you were not so tasty, then your kind and our kind could have been friends.”

    2. Watson’s a slandering hypocrite who’s guilty of wasting police time.

      His weight loss is impressive and he should be lauded for it.

      2. His weight loss is more likely the result of some ailment.

        Watson was a trougher. I am sorry that his ability to trough has been checked if it is an ailment. Nobody wishes ill on a fellow man. But whatever illness he has acquired it must be stated that Watson was always a trougher and a thoroughly nasty man to boot.

  127. Good night from the Saxon Queen daughter of Alfred of Wessex.
    I shall leave those of you who are brave enough to watch Question Time,
    I just cannot bare it and prefer to go to bed early with a Phil Rickman offering .

    1. You don’t have to. That place you frequented a year or so ago do a review by Roger Ackroyd.

      1. That’s very thoughtful of you Mr Rainbow but I am still
        going to bed with the latest Phil Rickman book
        and hot chocolate whilst my husband watches some
        sport thing on the television.

      2. Do you mean Peter Ackroyd who wrote Chatterton or Roger Ackroyd who was a murder victim in one of Agatha Christie’s Poirot stories?

        1. I couldn’t find the link to last week’s article so I did a google search and it came up with Roger Ackroyd in Agatha Christie. I posted last week’s article below as it’s quite good IMHO as the Beeb miscalculated with the audience selection. But this week’s looks to be very “DOUR”!

      1. All of it, I cannot bare. The BBC, the planted questions,
        the ambiance, mind you Fiona Bruce isn’t as smug as
        David Dimbleby but I still shall give it a miss.

  129. Ah the Parties are now moving on to Housing all trying to out do each other on how many council and affordable houses they will build. They have no idea as to where the land is to build them or where the huge amounts of funding need to build them and subsidies them

    The other problem is the vast amount of new council housing goes to migrants

    1. Another problem is that they are building the houses in areas where there are not many work opportunities. The politicians intend to spread multiculturism to as many areas in the country as possible irrespective of the consequences.

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