Brexit and the waning days of the United Kingdom

[Josquius]

Thatcher was to blame for the Falklands.
Did a reform person say that? Really weird broken clock moment.

[Sheilbh]

Given they've been escalating from blaming Thatcher for the Falklands to abolishing the benefit scrounging royals, I'm just glad you've already protest voted

[Tamas]

Slightly enjoyed the Reform candidates

But you find Jonathan Pie dangerous. :p

[HVC]

Thatcher was to blame for the Falklands.
Did a reform person say that? Really weird broken clock moment.

It's sad when people turn on true heroes for political expediency

[Sheilbh]

Unfinished sentence.

(Although I'd be more tolerant of Jonathan Pie if he ran for election.)

[Tamas]

Watching this Guardian report from Surrey, makes me think the uncertains in polls will vote Tory: https://youtu.be/T7PTpv4Lv_o?si=HGT7h81UBHeKJ9W2

Those people in the video "uhm ohh I don't know" - they are tribal Tories who KNOW that no decent person would vote for them. But on the day in the booth, they won't be able to make themselves vote anyone else. I know their kind from the Fidesz voters - "well who else can you vote on?"

[Sheilbh]

Yeah my suspicion has always been that undecided will swing Tory because if they're undecided at this point (when 25% of their 2019 vote have gone to Labour and Lib Dems and 10-15% are going to Reform) you're really left with pretty core Tory voters.  That they're undecided at all is not great for them. Although that could be wrong - I think about 30% has broadly been seen as the floor for one of the big two parties of government unless apocalypse. But it's been a very, very long time since the Tories were round 30%.

Although I should say the overwhelming majority of Tory voters are absolutely decent people (and I'm not necessarily anti-tribalism, as someone who is, perhaps, a little tribally anti-Tory....). They're opponents not enemies.

[Josquius]

Farage confirms Reform are indeed the shit eater party.

BBC News - West provoked Ukraine war, Nigel Farage says
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cldd44zv3kpo

I'm glad I wrote slava ukraini next to the reform candidate on my voting paper.

[Zanza]

The alternative to undecided persons voting Tory is them staying home.

[PJL]

Farage confirms Reform are indeed the shit eater party.

BBC News - West provoked Ukraine war, Nigel Farage says
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cldd44zv3kpo

I'm glad I wrote slava ukraini next to the reform candidate on my voting paper.

So going after the Owen Jones / George Galloway tankie vote then...

[Sheilbh]

The alternative to undecided persons voting Tory is them staying home.

Yeah. I think many will.

I think that's also probably Sunak's strategy - can he at least get them to turn out because converting people who've already swung will be tough.

[Josquius]

So thinking more on the planning stuff - what would you say the actual practical solution is?

Seems the problem is we've a large mass of regulations which on the surface are perfectly fine and hard to disagree with individually; protect the bats, don't poison ground water, etc.... But which as a collective just add up to it taking forever to get anything done and provide a lot of ammo for bad faith actors to block things altogether.

How does the likes of France manage this? - they do get stuff built but at the same time they traditionally seem to have managed to kept decent compact cities (changing these days) and a good environment.

[Tamas]

So thinking more on the planning stuff - what would you say the actual practical solution is?

Seems the problem is we've a large mass of regulations which on the surface are perfectly fine and hard to disagree with individually; protect the bats, don't poison ground water, etc.... But which as a collective just add up to it taking forever to get anything done and provide a lot of ammo for bad faith actors to block things altogether.

How does the likes of France manage this? - they do get stuff built but at the same time they traditionally seem to have managed to kept decent compact cities (changing these days) and a good environment.

There must be foreign examples to look at.

In Hungary, for example, building projects can be designated as "strategically important" and get to skip most of every checks and regulations. So then you make sure you get Orban's family in on the deal and you get this designation and off you go.

[Tamas]

Zero impact from Brexit maintained heroically:

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/article/2024/jun/23/uk-says-importers-making-deliberate-errors-on-forms-to-avoid-brexit-border-charges

[Sheilbh]

Tories in the know betting on the election date's become quite a story. Gets picked up a lot - and I think, like partygate, links to a "one rule for them" perception.

With a number of Tory MPs and candidates being quite righteously angry about it. Like former Olympian now Tory candidate in Colchester calling them "a shower of shit":
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/article/2024/jun/24/tories-are-a-shower-of-shit-says-conservative-candidate-james-cracknell

Certainly not the story they'd want to be focusing on in the run up to the last week of the campaign.

Meanwhile, Farage and Reform being rightfully criticised by everyone over his pro-Putin comments (wondered when this would come up given that he's a long history on this) - I could be wrong but they are looking quite uncomfortable.