[NevTheSweeper]

It would appear that, in a Prescott moment, the Labour MP for Runcorn, Mike Amesbury has decked someone who allegedly threatened him in the street...
He has reported himself to the rozzers for investigation, but no word of whether or not the scrote is pressing charges (but given that he's a Labour MP I'm sure the bules will push it anyway).

People need to learn that if you threaten some MP they may just take it personally, and unlike that twat of a DJ in the Prescott case you don't have to 'grin and bear it' just because you are a public figure.

The MP now suspended from Labour, the ninth to affect the government.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6244gk9d4po

[kreuzberger]

Cue Chris Mason for tomorrow's Today Programme. His little winkle will be going splut, splut, splut as he hones his "questions-to-annsa" tone.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

It would appear that, in a Prescott moment, the Labour MP for Runcorn, Mike Amesbury has decked someone who allegedly threatened him in the street...
He has reported himself to the rozzers for investigation, but no word of whether or not the scrote is pressing charges (but given that he's a Labour MP I'm sure the bules will push it anyway).

People need to learn that if you threaten some MP they may just take it personally, and unlike that twat of a DJ in the Prescott case you don't have to 'grin and bear it' just because you are a public figure.

The MP now suspended from Labour, the ninth to affect the government.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6244gk9d4po

Taking out the trash.

[satnav]

Over the past few years the media have done an awful lot to create an atmosphere in which some people think that MPs are fair game. Whilst there is no excuse for an MP to assault members of the public they do have a right to defend themselves.

I can remember a few years ago when England cricketer Ben Stokes was in an altercation in Bristol, The Sun newspaper hung him out to dry by selectively releasing footage of the attack. When the case came to court Stokes was found not guilty when a jury got to see the full picture.

[davidjay]

It would appear that, in a Prescott moment, the Labour MP for Runcorn, Mike Amesbury has decked someone who allegedly threatened him in the street...
He has reported himself to the rozzers for investigation, but no word of whether or not the scrote is pressing charges (but given that he's a Labour MP I'm sure the bules will push it anyway).

People need to learn that if you threaten some MP they may just take it personally, and unlike that twat of a DJ in the Prescott case you don't have to 'grin and bear it' just because you are a public figure.

The MP now suspended from Labour, the ninth to affect the government.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c6244gk9d4po

Luckily they've still got plenty.

[Abernathy]

Indeed. Questionable how this can “affect the government” in any tangible way whatsoever.

[Andy McDandy]

I don't seem to remember this sort of doomsaying when Johnson purged the Tories and made his own government a minority.

[Youngian]

Over the past few years the media have done an awful lot to create an atmosphere in which some people think that MPs are fair game. Whilst there is no excuse for an MP to assault members of the public they do have a right to defend themselves.

And for the police and courts to get tougher with those who threaten our elected legislators. And then the whining starts; "it's not fair, two tier Keir, he's an ordinary family man" blah blah.

[Abernathy]

There may be more to this affair than meets the eye. Apparently in July of last year, a man was convicted of stalking Mike Amesbury at his constituency office in Frodsham, where prosecutors said he was seen staring through the glass and asking guards about their level of security.

Amesbury looks as if he could "handle himself" in a scrap, like John Prescott in his prime, and would fancy himself to do so, so I can see that he might well have resorted to fisticuffs if, as he says, he was being threatened. If you recall, Labour campaigners in the election in 2005, me included, were at first despairing at the news that Prescott had chinned a member of the public, but as events played out, JP was actually praised and even admired in most peoples' estimations for standing up for himself, and it did Labour's poll prospects no harm at all.

That said, it is absolutely right that Amesbury has been suspended with the whip removed until investigations are concluded.

Tangentially, I'm a bit disappointed, though not surprised, to hear the former Tory MP Dehenna Davison, whose father was admittedly killed by a single punch to his head, joining in a political pile-on against Amesbury's behaviour that I'm not entirely sure was motivated purely by what happened to her dad.

[Oboogie]

There's no comparison between Amsbury and Prescott. John Prescott defended himself after he was assaulted, Amsbury not only threw the first punch but went on to punch the man repeatedly when he was on the ground, at no point was any violence inflicted upon Amesbury.
It doesn't matter what was said to Amesbury, what threats or insults were issued, there is no legal defence for physically assaulting someone in the street because they said something you didn't like.

[Abernathy]

Admittedly I have not watched the video - I assume you have - but all I'm saying is that I don't think we have the whole story in respect of Mike Amesbury in this instance. I'm comfortable with him being suspended with the whip removed. The Prescott comparison was pure speculation on my part.

[Oboogie]

Admittedly I have not watched the video - I assume you have - but all I'm saying is that I don't think we have the whole story in respect of Mike Amesbury in this instance. I'm comfortable with him being suspended with the whip removed. The Prescott comparison was pure speculation on my part.

No doubt witnesses will emerge to tell us what words were exchanged but as far as the physical violence is concerned it is clearly one sided. Here's the video again.

[Tubby Isaacs]

The £2 bus fare cap has been raised to £3. The previous government had vowed to extend it with no money for it and no sign of a comprehensive spending review, but would have been better not to raise this. This is the sort of thing that bollocks narratives get based on. The Government says it's serious about climate change and put up the price of bus journeys, and all that. However much renewable power you add, the bus cap will always get chucked in your face.

One day we might get away from the Chancellor setting local bus fares, who knows?

[davidjay]

I'm sure Tories everywhere will get outraged on behalf of the poor people. I didn't even know there was a national fare cap.

[soulboy]

Two pound services were great for passengers, I travelled from Swindon to Salisbury and back (eventually) for four quid the other day.

I am not sure how much central government were subsidising these fares but i could hazard a guess.
Two pound fares would be brilliant for any service that was running full and standing all day long.

A two pound cap for services to rural villages? Good luck getting home once the school run is done, they become even less viable.

[Tubby Isaacs]

I'm sure Tories everywhere will get outraged on behalf of the poor people. I didn't even know there was a national fare cap.

There were some buses not covered by it. I would think the buses in Birmingham are set by the mayor/transport executive.

[The Weeping Angel]

The £2 bus fare cap has been raised to £3. The previous government had vowed to extend it with no money for it and no sign of a comprehensive spending review, but would have been better not to raise this. This is the sort of thing that bollocks narratives get based on. The Government says it's serious about climate change and put up the price of bus journeys, and all that. However much renewable power you add, the bus cap will always get chucked in your face.

One day we might get away from the Chancellor setting local bus fares, who knows?

Why is raising this cap so bad. Only yesterday people were convinced Reeves would scrap it.

[kreuzberger]

Public transport is and will remain a class issue for a country that revels in it being just that.

That is a cancer, preying on the communities and destinations which depend upon it the most.

I have been banging on about this for five-odd years, but, more than ever, I believe that public transport should be free at the point of access. The environmental case alone is open and shut.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

The £2 bus fare cap has been raised to £3. The previous government had vowed to extend it with no money for it and no sign of a comprehensive spending review, but would have been better not to raise this. This is the sort of thing that bollocks narratives get based on. The Government says it's serious about climate change and put up the price of bus journeys, and all that. However much renewable power you add, the bus cap will always get chucked in your face.

One day we might get away from the Chancellor setting local bus fares, who knows?

Why is raising this cap so bad. Only yesterday people were convinced Reeves would scrap it.

I believe it was Kuenssberg who postulated £12...

[Abernathy]

O’Brien was good on this this morning. Just about everybody agrees that public services are horrifically fucked after 14 years of Tory shit. Most people (?) realise that it’s probably going to need money to start to put things right, and that that’ll mean more income needs to be gotten to do it, probably by increasing some taxes. And yet no fucker seems to be willing to stump up a bit more for it.

I realise that all of this shit is in large part a consequence of the manifesto pledge not to increase income tax, VAT, or NI, which in retrospect seems not to have been absolutely necessary, but frankly, I’d be more than happy to see Reeves and Starmer just bite the bullet in the coming budget and do what is needed - and hang the consequences. The end justifies the means in this case, and if the Tories could get away with foisting devastating austerity cuts on the country on the basis of a massive lie about Labour fiscal irresponsibility, I think we can recover from Tory accusations of breaking manifesto promises over the remainder of this five year term.