UK General Election 4th July

[Agema]

Sunak says Labour taking victory for granted as Starmer calls on voters to ‘stop the chaos’ – as it happened

Prime minister announces early summer election with date putting parties on campaign trail for six weeks

www.theguardian.com

Sunak has done possibly the best thing in his entire wretched reign and called for a GE. After 14 years of maladministration we're almost certainly going to boot that shambolic shower of shit out of power. The Conservatives have been solidly behind by about 20 points in the polls and even with a good campaign it's hard to see them make up anything like enough to keep power.

In perhaps a fitting metaphor, it was announced in the middle of a downpour, with Rish! lacking an umbrella and getting soaked.

 

[meiam]

Didn't still have some time and could have waited longer? Does he think he has a chance now or he just want to get it over with asap.

 

[Seanchaidh]

After 14 years of maladministration

standards are quite low

 

[Bedinsis]

I remember when Theresa May called an election early. That backfired on her.

I have not kept up with the politics of the UK; my vague impression is that in May's days the motivation was "We need more support" in this case it's "We are not functioning".

 

[Agema]

I remember when Theresa May called an election early. That backfired on her.

I have not kept up with the politics of the UK; my vague impression is that in May's days the motivation was "We need more support" in this case it's "We are not functioning".

May's strategy was that she had a very small majority and was comfortably ahead in the polls, with an election she hoped for a larger majority and probably to avoid the splits and ructions in her own party disrupting her agenda.

Unfortunately, May was herself a poor campaigner - uncharismatic, stiff. Furthermore, Labour was well behind in the polls partly because the media had been free to traduce and demonise Jeremy Corbyn. When he finally had to be heard speaking for himself in the campaign, a huge number of voters felt he wasn't as bad as all the stories they'd been told. The Tory lead thus evaporated and May ended up with her small majority cut even smaller - if the campaign had gone on another week she may even have lost.

The first implication of Sunak calling an election now is that if he does it later it will be even worse. Although you might be right, that he's just decided they just need to get out and he's fed up. Or maybe some Californian tech billionaire finally offered him a suitable job.

 

[Baffle]

Didn't still have some time and could have waited longer? Does he think he has a chance now or he just want to get it over with asap.

Inflation is finally down to a more reasonable number (though still too high), driven mostly by reduced power prices. I have yet to see a winter when power prices did not increase, so maybe he needs to do this now before he's unable to go on about bringing inflation down.

 

[Hades]

Didn't still have some time and could have waited longer? Does he think he has a chance now or he just want to get it over with asap.

I think its because the Tories keep posing local elections and their polls decreasing as time goes on. So perhaps they do the vote now because their position would only get worse the longer they wait.

 

[Seanchaidh]

can't wait for the adults to get back in the room

 

[Trunkage]

Didn't still have some time and could have waited longer? Does he think he has a chance now or he just want to get it over with asap.

They're running the math at the moment. They're probably thinking that if they wait until a full term, they will lose more seats

 

[Trunkage]

I think this election has a forgone conclusion

I'm much more interested in what happens after to things like Brexit

 

[meiam]

I think this election has a forgone conclusion

I'm much more interested in what happens after to things like Brexit

iirc Labour said they wouldn't touch it (or try to reintegrate) cause they didn't want to re open the chaos.

I think the only big things labour said they were doing was maybe re nationalizing some service (maybe just trains)? At this point labour is just winning by default, they're best strategy is to say nothing. Starmer is pretty lukewarm as a politician, but luck is on his side with the cons shooting themselves in the foot repeatedly and whatever is happening to the scots.

 

[Gordon_4]

iirc Labour said they wouldn't touch it (or try to reintegrate) cause they didn't want to re open the chaos.

I think the only big things labour said they were doing was maybe re nationalizing some service (maybe just trains)? At this point labour is just winning by default, they're best strategy is to say nothing. Starmer is pretty lukewarm as a politician, but luck is on his side with the cons shooting themselves in the foot repeatedly and whatever is happening to the scots.

I’m wary of thinking a party is a total shoe in for victory in any election personally. But if Labor do intend to govern they’re going to need a platform so with luck they won’t coast on simply ‘Not being the Tory Party’.

Any inkling on what their plan for government is?

 

[Gergar12]

As an American I hope labour crushes the conservatives what a clown show.

 

[Agema]

I’m wary of thinking a party is a total shoe in for victory in any election personally. But if Labor do intend to govern they’re going to need a platform so with luck they won’t coast on simply ‘Not being the Tory Party’.

Any inkling on what their plan for government is?

At least in the short term, probably little more than to survey the wreckage left of the nation's public services and hastily shove in some basic additional support to stop any of them collapsing. They are going into the election with a so-called "Ming Vase" election strategy. The hope is that once they are in power and settled a little (1-2 years in), then Labour will be more aggressive and ambitious.

I'm much more interested in what happens after to things like Brexit

Rejoining is I think off the table in the short term - at least a decade, perhaps. However, the British government, irrespective of who is running it, is very likely to realign towards the EU, because it's so obvious Brexit was a bust. Sunak had already busied himself quietly undoing some of the most obvious bullshit. Starmer will continue this. I suspect in about 10 years the UK will have effectively moved from a "hard Brexit" to a "soft Brexit". Also, eventually, time and death by old age will probably leave a clear majority of Britons up for rejoining.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Conservatives want to bring back compulsory national service

The hell?

 

[XsjadoBlaydette]

Yeah, been observing a noticeable increased trend in UK RW pundits, headlines and (still intensely, suspiciously partisan) YouTube news feed talking of desires to bring back compulsory national service ever since Israel decided to go all out on their genocidal colonial plans. Is not much work to figure out why.

even took a screenshot of one in January;

Army chief says people of UK are ‘prewar generation’ who must be ready to fight Russia

Ministry of Defence clarifies it has no plans for conscription after Gen Sir Patrick Sanders says UK should take steps to place society on war footing

www.theguardian.com

 

[Silvanus]

Conservatives want to bring back compulsory national service

The hell?

The kind of thing a party promises to shore up support among a specific group of people (older right-wingers) in order to minimise losses, but knows they won't have to follow through on.

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

The kind of thing a party promises to shore up support among a specific group of people (older right-wingers) in order to minimise losses, but knows they won't have to follow through on.

Also appeals to the curmudgeon crowd: "If we made them youngins join the army and get some discipline, they'd see the world the way I do and vote how I want them to."

 

[Agema]

Also appeals to the curmudgeon crowd: "If we made them youngins join the army and get some discipline, they'd see the world the way I do and vote how I want them to."

That's exactly what it is - trying to play on the older generations' perception of youngsters as feckless, weak-willed snowflakes. Of course, they resurrect the idea of national service every 5-10 years. Next they'll be banging on about f***ing grammar schools again.

National service ended in ~1960. What this means is that pretty much everyone under the age of 80 hasn't done national service. And you know what? If they're going to bring it back, bring it back for every one of these lazy good-for-nothings who has dodged it, whether they are 20, 40, 60 or 75. See how much the old farts like the idea of it then when they'll have to do a year of community service.

Although it's worth pointing out that just about everyone has shot the idea down, including the military. I mean, the armed forces aren't big enough these days to take on the sorts of numbers that would be involved.

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

Although it's worth pointing out that just about everyone has shot the idea down, including the military. I mean, the armed forces aren't big enough these days to take on the sorts of numbers that would be involved.

Plus most modern militaries are well past the point where they can work well with large amounts of people who don't want to be there. It's been a long time since you could just put a rifle in a man's hands and say "go take that hill or die trying"; you need cohesion and cooperation.