[Boiler]

If you recall, in 2015, the younger Miliband got into frightful hot water over what were actually some fairly modest and humane proposals on immigration. For some bizarre reason, sundry Trots, etc were in particular absolutely frothing at the gash that the party had dared to put "controls on immigration" on one of the party's campaign pledge mugs. I recall Miliband saying at the time that if we didn't talk about immigration, we wouldn't get a hearing on anything else.

I remember the mugs well, and the furore around them. Of course, all this was made worse by the atmosphere around immigration being stirred by a frog-faced cunt from Kent given endless publicity by the Fourth Estate and the BBC.

The tablets of stone were spectacularly misjudged, mind you.

Come the election, the Tories, prompted by Crosby. will be very keen on making immigration a key campaign issue, even if the Rwanda shit goes tits up, as seems likely. Labour really does need to get its policy settled, and be ready for this.

^^ This.

Come the 2024 GE, I will be approaching (if not actually) 60 and definitely retiring. I really cannot face the idea of the current bastards being in power again as I hang my soldering iron up although I suspect they will be, albeit in a minority government.

[davidjay]

The one thing I would bet on is that the Tories will never form a minority government. They're so far beyond the pale now that even the DUP would think twice about baling them out.

[Boiler]

From the Guardian live feed, Starmer's speech to the Commons today.

What a joke. Even now as the latest mealy-mouthed apology stumbles out of one side of his mouth, a new set of deflections and distortions pour from the other.

But the damage is already done.

The public have made up their mind.

They don’t believe a word the Prime Minister says.

They know what he is.

As ever with this Prime Minister those close to him find themselves ruined and the institutions he vows to protect damaged.

Good ministers forced to walk away from public service.

The Chancellor’s career up in flames.

And the Leader of the Scottish Conservatives rendered pathetic.

For all those unfamiliar with this Prime Minister’s career.

This isn’t some fixable glitch in the system.

It’s the whole point.

It’s what he does.

It’s who he is.

He knows he’s dishonest and incapable of changing.

So he drags everybody else down with him.

The more people debase themselves, parroting his absurd defences, the more the public will believe all politicians are the same.

All as bad as each other.

And that suits this Prime Minister just fine.

Some members opposite seem oblivious to the Prime Minister’s game.

Some know what he’s up to but are too weak to act.

But others are gleefully playing the part the Prime Minister cast for them.

A minister on the radio this morning saying it’s the same as a speeding ticket.

No it’s not.

No one has ever broken down in tears because they couldn’t drive faster than 20mph outside a school.

Don’t insult the public with this nonsense.

But Mr Speaker, as it happens the last Minister who got a speeding ticket and then lied about it ended up in prison and I know because I prosecuted him.

And last week we were treated to a grotesque spectacle.

One of the Prime Minister’s loyal supporters accusing teachers and nurses of drinking in the staff room through lockdown.

Members opposite can associate themselves with that if they want.

But those of us who take pride in our NHS workers, our teachers and every other key worker who got us through those dark days will never forget their contempt.

Plenty didn’t agree with every rule the Prime Minister wrote.

But they followed them nonetheless because in this country we respect others, we put the greater good above narrow self-interest and we understand that the rules apply to all of us.

This morning, I spoke to John Robinson, a constituent for the Member for Lichfield, I want to tell his story.

When his wife died of Covid, John and his family obeyed the Prime Minister’s rules.

He didn’t see her in hospital, he didn’t hold her hand as she died.

Their daughters and grandchildren drove 100 miles up the motorway, clutching a letter from the funeral director in case they were questioned by the police.

They didn’t have a service in the church, John’s son-in-law stayed away because he would have been the forbidden seventh mourner.

Doesn’t the Prime Minister realise that John would have given the world to hold his dying wife’s hand, even if it was just for nine minutes?

But he didn’t.

Because he followed the Prime Minister’s rules.

Rules that we now know the Prime Minister blithely, repeatedly and deliberately ignored.

After months of insulting excuses, today’s half-hearted apology will never be enough for John Robinson.

If the Prime Minister had any respect for John and the millions like him who sacrificed everything to follow the rules he’d resign.

But he won’t.

Because he doesn’t respect John.

He doesn’t respect the sacrifice of the British public.

He is a man without shame.

Looking past the Member for Lichfield and the nodding dogs in the cabinet.

There are many decent, honourable members on the benches opposite.

Who do respect John Robinson.

Who do respect the British public.

They know the damage the Prime Minister is doing.

They know things can’t go on as they are.

And they know it is their responsibility to bring an end to this shameful chapter.

Today I urge them once again.

Don’t follow in the slipstream of an out of touch, out of control Prime Minister.

Put their conscience first, put their country first, put John Robinson first and remove the Prime Minister from office.

Bring decency, honesty and integrity back into our politics.

And stop the denigration of everything that this country stands for.

[RedSparrows]

I really, really don't see how anyone can think anything else of this, without freely admitting they're an absolute shite.

Go on, admit you're shites. Just do it. You'll win over a few more cunts and morons, and then we can fire you all into the sun.

[Nigredo]

Really good speech that from Starmer, shame that wet lettuce prick Hoyle ruined it with a reprimand for calling the pork haystack "dishonest".

[Boiler]

Really good speech that from Starmer, shame that wet lettuce prick Hoyle ruined it with a reprimand for calling the pork haystack "dishonest".

Lying to the House: OK.
Calling a liar a liar in the House: not OK.

Maybe someone who knows Erskine May can explain?

[Boiler]

"Durham" is trending on Twitter, I see.

[davidjay]

"Durham" is trending on Twitter, I see.

They're desperate.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

Yes, but it works with their base...

[davidjay]

We can but hope.

[Arrowhead]

"Durham" is trending on Twitter, I see.

#durhampartygate trending tonight. The Tory slime factory must be working overtime right now.

[davidjay]

They're getting ever more desperate. Lie after smear after innuendo.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Interesting theory here.

[Andy McDandy]

Is the TL/DR that Tories are now NewKip, and the older ones prefer decency and competence of any flavour over Johnson and his cronies?

[davidjay]

Is the TL/DR that Tories are now NewKip, and the older ones prefer decency and competence of any flavour over Johnson and his cronies?

Perhaps, or maybe the older voters are of the generation who floated depending on circumstances whereas the new lot still refuse to believe they've been conned.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Is the TL/DR that Tories are now NewKip, and the older ones prefer decency and competence of any flavour over Johnson and his cronies?

Yep. Most longtime Tory voters will be happy with this, but there are a surprisingly large proportion who currently prefer Starmer. There are a lot more voters apparently up for grabs here than among the relatively small number of 2019 switchers (though Starmer's percentage with them is unsurprisingly higher than with Tories in general).

[Nigredo]

A similar hypothetical would be Hank Hill holding his nose to vote for Biden as Trump is utterly detestable.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Forensic take here from The Spectator.

1. What does this mean? What did he deny happened?
2. What was illegal exactly?
3, 4, 6., 7 No contradiction between any of these necessarily. They were working on campaign stuff, and ate food and drank a beer as a break. Again, what's the problem?
5. Mail said the hotel served food till 9pm. If this is a late meeting, apparently the sort that makes it suspicious, then it wouldn't have served food when they went back.
8. Rayner wasn't there, somebody said she was. Fair point. That doesn't make it criminal though.

The most ridiculous aspect of this is is that Tories defended Downing Street lockdown breaking initially with, well, they were working late a lot. Did this not involve takeaways being eaten? Or beer being drunk near the end of the day? What's the difference? I trust Starmer to work hard more than I do Johnson.

What law was broken? I'm waiting for someone to tell me. A particularly gobby Tory MP, Ric Holden, who is sadly not the bloke who used to play for Oldham, travelled to Kent (his constituency is NW Durham) to have a lunch-chat with Gurkhas. What's the difference? Did anyone drink beer?

[mattomac]

It’s day 7, expect it will disappear on Saturday.

Problem I have with this is that all the allegations bar they had a beer and takeaway are all a bit wishy washy, it went from a Pizza to a curry.

This place apparently had 30 people but I would suggest that we’ve had seen 30 instead of 3 that we have seen as whoever was photographing Starmer having a beer was waiting for the opportunity. Is the place a Tardis anyone who has done campaigning will now a lot of people are in and out of these places which was well within the rules.

And the final point which makes it a little weak is when it took place, the 30th of April 2021, was a lot different from the middle of May 2020. The day Johnson had the gathering he has been fined for is also the day after Priti Patel told us to shop neighbours, no gatherings were allowed period, not for 5 minutes, not for 10 and certainly not for 20 minutes that was allowed the following April.

Anything before the vaccine during lockdown to me was a lot more serious, we had no protection. The fact they led on this instead of the high court judgement on care homes says it all.

[MisterMuncher]

Weak, vague and poorly evidenced claims are being made repeatedly because eventually someone will have to deny them, then the press can seize on any inaccuracies, real or perceived, and call Labour liars.