[Tubby Isaacs]

Yep.

And even when there is bidding, does it have to be to Whitehall? Couldn't Andy Burnham handle eg park chess tables (and chairs)?

[Tubby Isaacs]

This is the easy bit, but encouraging. Might be a good way to borrow money off central government balance sheet, if I'm being cynical about it.Rare credit to George Osborne for getting this ball rolling.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Seems like fairly weak sauce.

Sue Gray "dominated discussion" of a bailout for a stadium in Belfast, which hasn't happened, and "subverted the Cabinet because she's really a Sinn Fein sympathiser, or something. She may have been too assertive (Rachel Reeves would surely have to be squared too, why would she agree to it?) but equally could all be bollocks.

[Abernathy]

Is Sue Gray to be cast as the Marcia Falkender de nos jours ?

[Tubby Isaacs]

The amounts mentioned in the article seem to be wrong.

I think it's unlikely that Sue Gray would be insisting on £310m at this stage.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

That John McDonnell's a proper cunt, isn't he?

Who needs enemies etc etc.

[Crabcakes]

Ian Dunt for the i newspaper gives a really good breakdown of the king’s speech. But the striking thing is the difference between this and the last Tory one. This is just simple ideas to help everyday people from all walks of life, measures to start to fix long-ignored issues, and reasonable and long overdue legislation to stop some businesses taking the piss. No bribes. No culture war horse shit.

https://inews.co.uk/opinion/kings-speec ... de-3174621

[davidjay]

Today, the internet has been won by...

[Abernathy]

Wasn’t one of Lizzy’s things during her brief tenure to rage against an imagined enemy that she called “the anti-growth coalition”? On that basis, shouldn’t she be fucking delighted at the Starmer government’s heavy emphasis on generating economic growth ?

[Malcolm Armsteen]

I know we fling mental health insults about in a rather cavalier manner, but she really is suffering from some form of dementia.
Look at her photo-opps, her statements, her facial expressions.
She really isn't well and her close people ought really to look after her a lot better.

[Youngian]

I know we fling mental health insults about in a rather cavalier manner, but she really is suffering from some form of dementia.
Look at her photo-opps, her statements, her facial expressions.
She really isn't well and her close people ought really to look after her a lot better.

At least Truss isn’t claiming her trip to Milwaukee is to visit an imaginary friend.
https://x.com/thenewsagents/status/1813 ... 23087?s=46

[Andy McDandy]

Lift something up rapidly, then drop it. It'll break.

As said, her ministerial jobs were not exactly arduous. Hence all the photo shoot opportunities while civil servants copied old trade deals, or in the case of Russia and Ukraine, she sat there while Johnson took the lead. It's perfectly plausible that she got to the doors of Downing Street (figuratively speaking) without ever doing any real work. As they say in Baseball, born on third base but convinced they hit a home run.

[Youngian]

The global Brexit trade deals clinched the top job for Truss. These indulged the membership’s fantasies. And being the white candidate.

[Tubby Isaacs]

An insight into some of the people on Shabana Mahmood's case. This charmer is the editor of the well-known 5 Pillars website, who were involved with school protests against teaching kids that the gays exist, which they claimed as sexually explicit.

He likes referring to Shabana's "silly wig". Below is the Chief Justice of Bangladesh wearing what is presumably a non-silly wig.

[Crabcakes]

You have to hand it to Truss - by complaining the smoking ban is unconservative, she is both wrong in that it was a conservative policy AND in that it doesn’t matter if it’s unconservative now because the conservatives aren’t in office.

2 errors on a single topic bullet point is amazing, even for her.

[Tubby Isaacs]

"The failed OBR". That's brilliant.

"Cultural decline". What the heck is that? Are Labour filming a new series of Copy Cats?

[Youngian]

Surprised libertarians for fag smoking are still a thing. Numerous among the Thatcher era back benches trying to forward absurd intellectual arguments on behalf of the tobacco lobby. Ken Clarke being one of the worse offenders.

"Cultural decline". What the heck is that?

Fuck knows but probably something to do with immigrants.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Almost certainly. She'll be going full Great Replacement at this rate.

[Andy McDandy]

I think it means having one of That Lot* on Strickly.

*Race, gender, sexuality, disability, scruffiness - take your pick.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Look at the spectacular idiocy BTL. Everybody from "You're locking us into international one fiscal policy set by unelected elite" to "This would have stopped Attlee" (who lots of people think didn't do any austerity). Fiscal rules are set by the government, same as they always have been.