Jeremy Corbyn & Tom Watson elected leader and deputy leader of the Labour Party

[Chrism20]

Speaking as a Scottish Conservative (as rare as hens teeth ) I can't believe the way Blair is vilified by a lot of his erstwhile supporters.

Okay he slipped up over Iraq but there seems to some sort of collective amnesia about his electoral successes and progressive policies.

It's almost as though "Calamity Corbyn" and his acolytes would prefer to remain in the electoral wilderness rather than give Blair any credit for anything.

Poor old Darlorich tries quite rightly to point out that appealing to a few hundred thousand Labour Members will not result in a Labour Government but they don't want to listen. Talk about lemmings....

A Scottish Conservative in Falkirk? Wonders never cease

Yes Iraq was a disaster for Blair but you would think that over several terms in office the Labour Party done heehaw.

My local party meet next week to discuss the leader election and I'm actually scared to go.

 

[Gutfright]

My local party meet next week to discuss the leader election and I'm actually scared to go.

I thought the NEC had suspended all branch meetings until after the leadership elections? Something I very strongly disagree with FWIW.

 

[Butts]

A Scottish Conservative in Falkirk? Wonders never cease

Yes Iraq was a disaster for Blair but you would think that over several terms in office the Labour Party done heehaw.

My local party meet next week to discuss the leader election and I'm actually scared to go.

You need to imbibe a few gratis scotches from VT beforehand

 

[Chrism20]

I thought the NEC had suspended all branch meetings until after the leadership elections? Something I very strongly disagree with FWIW.

They can meet to nominate a candidate. They can also meet and agree to decide not to nominate a candidate. Quite a lot of CLPs have already had their meetings this week.

You need to imbibe a few gratis scotches from VT beforehand

No need for ice if the 1100 from Kings Cross today was anything to go by. It was like a fridge on that train. Although with reports over the last week of at least one set running about with up to three overheating carriages I really shouldn't complain. I'd rather freeze than feel like one of those chickens spinning round in the oven in Tesco.

 

[DynamicSpirit]

They can meet to nominate a candidate. They can also meet and agree to decide not to nominate a candidate. Quite a lot of CLPs have already had their meetings this week.

That's correct. We just had our one earlier this evening - and as it happens, I was the person who proposed that we should nominate Owen Smith. (Sadly, for me, Corbyn won in the end)

Our meeting was reasonably friendly, though there were obviously strong disagreements. Quite a few of us (a mixture of Corbyn and Owen supporters) even went out for a meal afterwards - proving that it is possible to have debates and still be friends

 

[Busaholic]

That's correct. We just had our one earlier this evening - and as it happens, I was the person who proposed that we should nominate Owen Smith. (Sadly, for me, Corbyn won in the end)

Our meeting was reasonably friendly, though there were obviously strong disagreements. Quite a few of us (a mixture of Corbyn and Owen supporters) even went out for a meal afterwards - proving that it is possible to have debates and still be friends

Having seen Owen Smith on 'Newsnight' (and I was willing him to do well) I can't see him as a P.M. either. He reminds me of one of those characters from the 'Mad Men' TV series, a slightly old-fashioned Sixties technocrat look, but imbibing some of the advertising slogans of that era. When I see Liz Kendall on the Late Show she always impresses me, but she is too tainted as 'right wing' to get anywhere, aside from the misogyny that would also prevent it.

 

[Gutfright]

When I see Liz Kendall on the Late Show she always impresses me, but she is too tainted as 'right wing' to get anywhere, aside from the misogyny that would also prevent it.

Britain is too sexist to ever have a female PM. That's just fact.

 

[Busaholic]

Britain is too sexist to ever have a female PM. That's just fact.

Er.........

 

[AlterEgo]

Er.........

I think your sarcasm detector broke.

Here's something serious though: Britain won't elect a PM who speaks with a welsh accent. I'd put a month's wages on that.

Bye bye Labour.

 

[Gutfright]

I think your sarcasm detector broke.

Here's something serious though: Britain won't elect a PM who speaks with a welsh accent. I'd put a month's wages on that.

Bye bye Labour.

Smith could always do what Tony Blair did and change his accent depending on his audience.

And Blair isn't the only one to do it.

 

[Senex]

Here's something serious though: Britain won't elect a PM who speaks with a welsh accent. I'd put a month's wages on that.

Ah, that good old topic of a hierarchy of acceptability for accents again! All a matter of total prejudice of course, but great fun. Scottish or Southern Irish good, Welsh or Northern Irish bad. Yorkshire wonderful in every way, Birmingham totally 'orrible, and so on ...
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Smith could always do what Tony Blair did and change his accent depending on his audience.

And Blair isn't the only one to do it.

Harold Wilson was a superb example -- have you heard the recordings of him as a very young politician, not very far from RP? And then as he went on the Yorkshire became more and more marked.

 

[AlterEgo]

Ah, that good old topic of a hierarchy of acceptability for accents again! All a matter of total prejudice of course, but great fun. Scottish or Southern Irish good, Welsh or Northern Irish bad. Yorkshire wonderful in every way, Birmingham totally 'orrible, and so on ...

It's true.

The day we elect a PM whose accent comes from Barry Island is the day I eat my hat.

 

[PHILIPE]

I think your sarcasm detector broke.

Here's something serious though: Britain won't elect a PM who speaks with a welsh accent. I'd put a month's wages on that.

Bye bye Labour.

What about Lloyd George, a Welsh speaker also.

 

[AlterEgo]

What about Lloyd George, a Welsh speaker also.

Remind me how many times Lloyd George appeared on the telly or radio to speak to (exclusively male) voters during his campaign.

 

[Arglwydd Golau]

Interesting little piece on Newsnight yesterday, Jeremy Corbyn is more popular in the north than he is in London, which begs the question...The North of England, where does it start?

 

[PHILIPE]

Remind me how many times Lloyd George appeared on the telly or radio to speak to (exclusively male) voters during his campaign.

He was rather too early for those !!!

 

[AlterEgo]

He was rather too early for those !!!

My point exactly.

The voters wouldn't know how he sounded. He also existed before mainstream Welsh nationalism, during a time when cultural union with Wales was very solid.

 

[Busaholic]

Interesting little piece on Newsnight yesterday, Jeremy Corbyn is more popular in the north than he is in London, which begs the question...The North of England, where does it start?

Islington
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I think your sarcasm detector broke.

The point I was attempting to make was that those Labour Party members/supporters/sympathisers entitled to vote for their new leader would be possibly less likely to vote for a woman than a man - the far left, as well as the far right, have a lot of Neanderthals in their midst. Any Conservative leader would have defeated Jim Callaghan in 1969. Corbyn's friend Galloway made his usual snide comments on 'Question Time' after Angela Eagle had announced her candidacy, with an undertone of sexism which would have appealed to his comrades in Bradford and Tower Hamlets.

 

[Butts]

Islington
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---


The point I was attempting to make was that those Labour Party members/supporters/sympathisers entitled to vote for their new leader would be possibly less likely to vote for a woman than a man - the far left, as well as the far right, have a lot of Neanderthals in their midst. Any Conservative leader would have defeated Jim Callaghan in 1969. Corbyn's friend Galloway made his usual snide comments on 'Question Time' after Angela Eagle had announced her candidacy, with an undertone of sexism which would have appealed to his comrades in Bradford and Tower Hamlets.

Should that be 1979 or am I more demented than I suspected

 

[Busaholic]

Should that be 1979 or am I more demented than I suspected

It should be 1979 - can't help you with the second part

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Should that be 1979 or am I more demented than I suspected

"Crisis, what crisis" was a 1979 famous short quote.

 

[Butts]

"Crisis, what crisis" was a 1979 famous short quote.

Uttered by said Callaghan - aka "Chicken Jim" a famous nom de plume of the era.

Note for younger members the SNP effectively brought down the Labour Government and ushered in 18 years of Tory Rule

 

[asylumxl]

The point I was attempting to make was that those Labour Party members/supporters/sympathisers entitled to vote for their new leader would be possibly less likely to vote for a woman than a man - the far left, as well as the far right, have a lot of Neanderthals in their midst.

You do realise that most modern research on Neanderthals indicates that they were as smart as their homosapien counterparts?

There any many sources out there, but here's an example:

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140430133054.htm

You may perhaps wish to reevaluate your choice of derogative term .

 

[Gutfright]

The point I was attempting to make was that those Labour Party members/supporters/sympathisers entitled to vote for their new leader would be possibly less likely to vote for a woman than a man - the far left, as well as the far right, have a lot of Neanderthals in their midst. Any Conservative leader would have defeated Jim Callaghan in 1969. Corbyn's friend Galloway made his usual snide comments on 'Question Time' after Angela Eagle had announced her candidacy, with an undertone of sexism which would have appealed to his comrades in Bradford and Tower Hamlets.

Interesting theory. Can you name a single woman who has run on a "far left" (the Overton window is quite right-leaning in the UK. There are many European countries who would hardly view Labour as "far left", but that's another story) platform but has been defeated because of sexism?

 

[Arglwydd Golau]

"Crisis, what crisis" was a 1979 famous short quote.

I'm not sure Callaghan actually said that. Wasn't it a newspaper headline? Sounds like the Sun.

 

[WelshBluebird]

Interesting little piece on Newsnight yesterday, Jeremy Corbyn is more popular in the north than he is in London, which begs the question...The North of England, where does it start?

That is really interesting considering a few of the attacks on Corbyn have specifically been about him not having much support outside of the London elite / metropolitan elite.

 

[DarloRich]

That is really interesting considering a few of the attacks on Corbyn have specifically been about him not having much support outside of the London elite / metropolitan elite.

A recent pool ( linked somewhere in here) showed support for Corbyn miles ahead in the north, close lead in London and miles behind everywhere else.

 

[Butts]

A recent pool ( linked somewhere in here) showed support for Corbyn miles ahead in the north, close lead in London and miles behind everywhere else.

There was an interview with him in The Observer today where he espoused some views I suspect you may agree with.

Abolishing Zero Hours Contracts and encouraging Union Recognition in workplaces spring to mind.

 

[DarloRich]

There was an interview with him in The Observer today where he espoused some views I suspect you may agree with.

Abolishing Zero Hours Contracts and encouraging Union Recognition in workplaces spring to mind.

he can suggest what he likes. He wont win so it is all academic.

His lead in the north doesn't surprise me at all

 

[miami]

A recent pool ( linked somewhere in here) showed support for Corbyn miles ahead in the north, close lead in London and miles behind everywhere else.

Where else is there?