UKIP poster boy is a racist immigrant, film at 11

[Sheilbh]

Sir John Major's speech in Berlin. Never thought I'd say it but I'm almost totally with him:
http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2014/11/john-major-nearly-50-chance-of-britain-leaving-the-eu/

Edit: Also he's the model for a great ex-PM. What they all should be like (BLAIR ).

[Admiral Yi]

Still blows my mind you can elect a PM with only a high school education.

[Tonitrus]

300 Hungarian women.

Is that an offer?  I'll take it.

[Sheilbh]

Still blows my mind you can elect a PM with only a high school education.

I've always liked John Major for the brief revival of cabinet government and the boom that Labour took over. But he was dealt a dreadful hand considering he won an election no-one should've wanted to win in 92 and had to deal with a cruel party. But he's a far, far better ex-PM than actualy PM.

Also that prompted one of the best ever election posters from 92:


Edit: Also a poster that could never be seriously used by today's Tory party. Which is half their problem.

[Admiral Yi]

Could it be used by any party?

[Sheilbh]

Could it be used by any party?

No, not right now

There would be a putsch in Labour if Alan Johnson showed the slightest interest in being leader, but he's ruled himself out repeatedly and said he's not up to the job. He'd have a similar story. Orphaned at the age of 12 and raised in a council flat by his older sister. He left school at 15 and stacked shelves in Tesco, when he was 18 he became a postman and joined the union - on the more communist wing - then about 18 years later a full time union official. Ended up as a reformist, pro-Blair head of the union (the only one to support Blair on Clause IV - the part of Labour's constitution about public ownership of the economy). Then elected as an MP in 97 and a competent, rather dashing minister.

He resigned from the front bench (he was Shadow Chancellor) after he'd lost the Labour Deputy Leadership (to privately educated Harriet Harman) and it was revealed that his wife was having an affair with his police protection officer from when he was a minister.

But there's not many like him, sadly, which is part of the problem with all the parties.

[Gups]

Still blows my mind you can elect a PM with only a high school education.

Who was the last US President without a college education?

[Brazen]

Truman, on the assumption Wiki has it right. Cleveland if you want no attendance at all, not just failing to graduate.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Presidents_of_the_United_States_by_education

[mongers]

Could it be used by any party?

No, not right now

There would be a putsch in Labour if Alan Johnson showed the slightest interest in being leader, but he's ruled himself out repeatedly and said he's not up to the job. He'd have a similar story. Orphaned at the age of 12 and raised in a council flat by his older sister. He left school at 15 and stacked shelves in Tesco, when he was 18 he became a postman and joined the union - on the more communist wing - then about 18 years later a full time union official. Ended up as a reformist, pro-Blair head of the union (the only one to support Blair on Clause IV - the part of Labour's constitution about public ownership of the economy). Then elected as an MP in 97 and a competent, rather dashing minister.

He resigned from the front bench (he was Shadow Chancellor) after he'd lost the Labour Deputy Leadership (to privately educated Harriet Harman) and it was revealed that his wife was having an affair with his police protection officer from when he was a minister.

But there's not many like him, sadly, which is part of the problem with all the parties.

Yeah, Labour could really do with an Ernest Bevin right now.

[Sheilbh]

So this is weird.

Today's the Rochester and Strood by election. Their (Tory) MP defected to UKIP and voluntarily resigned so the constituency could vote again. Initially the Tories were extremely confident. This MP doesn't have the same personal following as Douglas Carswell, isn't terribly charismatic and Rochester's about 270 on the UKIP list of target seats. In the last few weeks it's looked more or less certain that actually UKIP will win.

Going into this Labour, the main opposition party, four years into an unpopular coalition government had inexplicably settled themselves into their fate of coming third. Just as with Clacton this is the sort of seat that Labour should be trying to win in mid-term by elections and could even win in a general (from my understanding Rochester should be solidly Tory, Strood should be solidly Labour - the predecessor seat was Labour). Until tonight they were happy with coming third and seeing the PM embarrassed especially as there's fears it may prompt more Tory defections to UKIP (if Mark Reckless can survive, anyone can), it was nice seeing him asking Labour, Green and Lib Dem voters to tactically vote Tory and the Labour candidate has won rave reviews. Anyway it didn't matter because all the focus would be on the Tories losing another seat to UKIP.

And then they let someone from Islington do some canvassing. Emily Thornberry the shadow attorney general posted this picture on Twitter with the comment 'Image from Rochester':


Eric Pickles (our Local Government Secretary who spent £30 000 on biscuits for his office) kicked off a massive storm about Islington Labour sneering at English people. That it happened on the same day that there was a devolution debate during which Labour dismissed the idea of English votes for English laws was particularly unfortunate. Working class Labour MPs like Simon Danczuk were equally unimpressed. Initially Labour's press team said there was nothing wrong with the tweet. Then the mood changed. Ed Miliband, we were told, has 'never been so angry' and according to one aide it's 'the angriest I've ever seen him'.

Thornberry initially said it'd been taken out of context and there was prejudice against Islington. But she spoke to Miliband and swiftly apologised. She's now said people should fly the English flag with pride. Then she spoke with Miliband again and has resigned from the shadow cabinet (presumably his rage hit another shade of puce).

So the day after the Tories lose their second seat to UKIP and could face further defections, the front page of the Sun is this:


Meanwhile the Thick of It-ness of the whole situation escalates with shadow Education Secretary Tristram Hunt being wheeled out to tell interviewers that 'we're very much in favour of strong expressions and pride in national identity'. I wouldn't be surprised if, as the Guardian says, this ends with Labour MPs being told to fly the St George's Cross for the cameras. Just think these people could be running the country in about 6 months

The best comment was Faisal Islam from Channel 4 that 'this is not shooting yourself in the foot... This is amputating your leg because you lightly stubbed your toe. Extraordinary.' The Mail will go big I imagine, their Deputy Editors tweeting it's indicative of Labour (and other parties) 'loathing' of the white working class. And the FT's Janan Ganesh has pointed out, rightly, grimly that modern British politics is basically the US culture wars, without God

Edit: Incidentally, my favourite picture from the campaign:

[Tamas]

Why is this win such a shock? At least half of the Brits here on Languish seem to be at least leaning toward UKIP, for better or worse

[Sheilbh]

Why is this win such a shock? At least half of the Brits here on Languish seem to be at least leaning toward UKIP, for better or worse

Well it's not now. But when the election was called the Tories were very confident.

As I say it was 270 on their target list. Demographically it's not their sort of seat. Reckless had personally assured numerous people including MPs, Ministers and local Tories that he wasn't going to defect (the local party chairman has been following Reckless around shouting that he's a liar ). And he doesn't really have any sort of personal following. The Tories basically thought it would be like their Heywood and Middleton (a byelection Labour won, but that came closer than expected) and that they would win.

In the past month or so it's become clear UKIP would win and now the Tories are just very confident they'll win it back in the general election.

They've not been helped by trying to run a populist campaign (against the man they selected to be their candidate four years ago) accusing him of being a privately educated, London carpet-bagger which is true but he was their privately educated, London carpet-bagger just a couple of months ago and his background is less posh than half the Cabinet. Their candidate also tried to run very hard on immigration. I don't think that out-UKIPping UKIP can work and, actually, it makes them look more moderate and honest.

Edit: Though apparently it looks much closer than the polls suggested, so maybe the shock will be further Tory revival in which case Labour will have another collapse and then not oust Miliband.

[Sheilbh]

A rallying cry from Labour, via George Eaton, 'Labour spokesman on Thornberry resignation: "Ed is absolutely determined to make sure that we have a chance of being a one-term opposition."'

Edit: Oh God, the Sun apparently had a quote from Thornberry saying she'd 'never seen anything like it' which suggests she's literally never stepped out of the bounds of Islington South and Westminster.

Edit: Also rumours the Lib Dems are behind the Monster Raving Looney Party. I think that would be a first for a party of government

Edit: Apparently they're also behind a retired dominatrix who is close friends with a former Lib Dem MP (Lembit Opik) and is running as an independent

[PJL]

LOL, the last time a mainstream party came behind the MRLP, the leader resigned and the party wound itself up. Granted this was the post '87 rump SDP led by David Owen who didn't want to join with the Lib Dems. Still would be funny if history repeated itself.

[Sheilbh]

LOL, the last time a mainstream party came behind the MRLP, the leader resigned and the party wound itself up. Granted this was the post '87 rump SDP led by David Owen who didn't want to join with the Lib Dems. Still would be funny if history repeated itself.

Lots of MPs have been beneath a dominatrix before, but has a party?