[Politics] Are Labour going to turn this country around?

Ike and Tina Burner said:

I feel like this is slightly delusional and doesn't really reflect things that accurately. You are crediting them with making tough decisions and blaming that for their unpopularity but tough decisions are not an inherently good thing. The WFA, for example, is just a badly implemented/messaged policy that has made a decent chunk of pensioners permanently hate them with deep passion. See also Farmers with the inheritance tax.
Making bad tough descisions is not something that has any real merit.
There are different types of unpopularity and they are slipping torwards the visceral hatred category with many people rather than the grumbling populace category which would be the case if things were as you describe. They have burned bridges with some important groups and that won't be undone with any ease, even by freeing up money for services.

Also, I get the feeling that you think Labour are above using spin for moral reasons. I don't think that's the case. I think they're just really bad at it. Their failure to connect positively with people has been a thing since Free Gear took over from Corbyn and has simply persisted now they're actually in charge.

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Harry Wilson's tackle said:

I agree that Starmer doesn't connect positively with people like Corbyn did.
If you call the invocation of dislike and contempt a positive connection.

I agree that Labour will never win back the vote of farmers with more than £2 million worth of farm they want to pass on to their kids tax free.
But labour didn't have, and have never had their vote, ever, anyway.

Ditto the FeMail-reading entitled women who never knew their retirement age was no longer 60 because they don't follow the news.

They have all always hated labour.
f*** 'em.

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Harry Wilson's tackle said:

I agree that Starmer doesn't connect positively with people like Corbyn did.
If you call the invocation of dislike and contempt a positive connection.

I agree that Labour will never win back the vote of farmers with more than £2 million worth of farm they want to pass on to their kids tax free.
But labour didn't have, and have never had their vote, ever, anyway.

Ditto the FeMail-reading entitled women who never knew their retirement age was no longer 60 because they don't follow the news.

They have all always hated labour.
f*** 'em.

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Is it PotG? said:

UK long-term borrowing costs have hit their highest level since 1998.

The unwanted milestone for the Treasury's coffers was reached ahead of an auction of 30-year bonds, known as gilts, this morning.

The yield - the effective interest rate demanded by investors to hold UK public debt - peaked at 5.21%.

At that level, it is even above the yield in the wake of the mini-budget backlash of 2022.

Happy Days are here again, especially since the grown-ups are back in the room.

Growth has ground to a halt since the second half of last year.

Labour accused the Tory government of crashing the economy following the market meltdown of 2022.

It is fair to expect the opposition to now claim that Labour has taken just six months to do the same.

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Machiavelli said:

There's no getting away from just how problematic this is for Labour. It will reduce their room for manoeuvre. Who knows what will happen to gilts, etc over the next year or two. The big difference with Truss is that it happened at breakneck speed and would have got worse. If the upward trajectory continues for much longer, then the pressure will crank up on RR, and for SKS to remove her.

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Machiavelli said:

There's no getting away from just how problematic this is for Labour. It will reduce their room for manoeuvre. Who knows what will happen to gilts, etc over the next year or two. The big difference with Truss is that it happened at breakneck speed and would have got worse. If the upward trajectory continues for much longer, then the pressure will crank up on RR, and for SKS to remove her.

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Harry Wilson's tackle said:

I agree that Starmer doesn't connect positively with people like Corbyn did.
If you call the invocation of dislike and contempt a positive connection.

I agree that Labour will never win back the vote of farmers with more than £2 million worth of farm they want to pass on to their kids tax free.
But labour didn't have, and have never had their vote, ever, anyway.

Ditto the FeMail-reading entitled women who never knew their retirement age was no longer 60 because they don't follow the news.

They have all always hated labour.
f*** 'em.

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Machiavelli said:

...then the pressure will crank up on RR, and for SKS to remove her.

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Bry Nylon said:

Heard several comments to this effect from more than one source over the Christmas break. Seemingly, the view is that Rachel Reeves has not delivered as Chancellor in the way many in the party had hoped plus the fact that she is barely visible isn't helping to instill confidence and is regarded as 'frustrating.'

Lots of admiring glances are being made in the direction of Darren Jones, however, who is regarded as a bit of a rising star - plus has the added advantage of being very media savvy.

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abc said:

Do you ever think where your food comes from? No? Well f***em then!

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Harry Wilson's tackle said:

What has that got to do with millionaire farmers wanting to pass on their property without paying any tax, let alone the 'half the amount' us mere mortal millionaires have to pay, which is what will happen? The reversal of a very unfair tax break for rich people that was brought in by Thatcher. Well done Starmer, I say.

Anyway, please go and have a cry about the poor millionaire famers if it makes you feel pious.

(As it happens I pay over the odds for green, pesticide-free and free-range, from local farms. Sold via our lovely but expensive farm shop. People with less money buy cheap shit imported from unregulated sources, now legal after Brexit, sold in supermarket chains.

I am 'doing my bit for independent British farmers. What are you doing? )

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Rdodge30 said:

Don’t know why I get sucked in by you but hey ho…. Many of the farmers are not rich as you very well know. If you aim something at the hyper wealthy then try not to take out the poor!

Regardless of farmers or anyone else, if inheritance tax means that you have to sell your farm or your family home to pay your dues to the government then there is something inherently wrong with that. System needs an overhaul.

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Rdodge30 said:

Don’t know why I get sucked in by you but hey ho…. Many of the farmers are not rich as you very well know. If you aim something at the hyper wealthy then try not to take out the poor!

Regardless of farmers or anyone else, if inheritance tax means that you have to sell your farm or your family home to pay your dues to the government then there is something inherently wrong with that. System needs an overhaul.

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Rdodge30 said:

Don’t know why I get sucked in by you but hey ho…. Many of the farmers are not rich as you very well know. If you aim something at the hyper wealthy then try not to take out the poor!

Regardless of farmers or anyone else, if inheritance tax means that you have to sell your farm or your family home to pay your dues to the government then there is something inherently wrong with that. System needs an overhaul.

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Harry Wilson's tackle said:

Rachel Reeves doesn't fill me with confidence.
I need someone dynamic and inspiring overseeing The Money to make me believe the country will Turn Around.

It's a shame this bloke is no longer with us:

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Springal said:

But also need to address generations holding on to farming land they don’t use. I buy meat from 2 farmers and both are tenants. Slogging away trying to make ends meet for land they’ll never own paying rent to landowners who do nothing with it

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Harry Wilson's tackle said:

Let me stop you there.

The 20% tax (not 40% like you and I would pay) kicks in when the sale is £2 million.

Before Thatcher changed things we all paid the same according to the same rules.

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