Brexit and the waning days of the United Kingdom

[Josquius]

Poor Liz. She just wanted to be the best prime minister ever but the stupid queen unfairly had to go and die and her radical economic ideas had to be completely batty and unworkable.

Though not sure the why me about the queen even makes sense. Helps give her five minutes a bit of significance beyond just being shit and short.

[Sheilbh]

Yeah I mean it extends her 44 days in office by at least the 14 days of national mourning when politics stopped.

But yeah does make you think of this cartoon from the coronation (which weirdly predicted the outfit she wore ):

[Josquius]

Looks like the smoking ban is passing the first hurdles. And causing some tory infighting. Wins all round.

[Sheilbh]

In the polls 60% support the smoking ban. 60% support legalising smoking week. What are we thinking here?

[Jacob]

So the long term plan here is to outlaw smoking completely?

Interesting. Another revenue stream for organized crime, I suppose. But it might also have a positive health impact.

[Barrister]

In the polls 60% support the smoking ban. 60% support legalising smoking week. What are we thinking here?

Wait, what?

UK is considering banning the smoking of tobacco, but legalizing the smoking of cannabis?

That seems counter-productive...

[Sheilbh]

Wait, what?

UK is considering banning the smoking of tobacco, but legalizing the smoking of cannabis?

That seems counter-productive...

That's just public opinion.

Sunak is proposing a bill (modelled on New Zealand under Ardern which has since been repealed by Luxon) that basically says anyone under the legal age to buy tobacco products (smoking and vaping) at the point it passes will never legally be able to buy them. So basically the age you can buy tobacco products will keep increasing by one year for ever.

Labour also back that and it will pass - although it's started to cause ructions within the Tory party (so I suspect this government will pass it, Labour will implement and the Tory party then will oppose it ). I'm not massively sold on it - not least for Jake's reason.

At the same time public opinion is broadly quite relaxed on drugs- but there's no proposals on it. Which is fine (and that's more in line with my views), but just seems a bit incoherent.

[Tamas]

Banning it is silly, it will make it cool again.

[Sheilbh]

Banning it is silly, it will make it cool again.

77 year olds on their scooters with their fags and vapes, flicking Vs at the 76 year olds

[Josquius]

In the polls 60% support the smoking ban. 60% support legalising smoking week. What are we thinking here?

I would fall into the overlap point of that Venn.

If you really want to grow tobacco in your garden to smoke then you have my respect.

[Jacob]

I would fall into the overlap point of that Venn.

If you really want to grow tobacco in your garden to smoke then you have my respect.

So ban commercial tobacco product, but allow commercial marijuana products?

Or allow homegrown tobacco and weed, but not commercial products?

[Josquius]

I would fall into the overlap point of that Venn.

If you really want to grow tobacco in your garden to smoke then you have my respect.

So ban commercial tobacco product, but allow commercial marijuana products?

Or allow homegrown tobacco and weed, but not commercial products?

I lean mostly towards 2.
Though there are medicinal uses for cannabis that there aren't for tobacco which suggests there actually is a better case there.

Though I'd probably lean against an outright ban and rather just have extremely strict licensing such that tobacco isn't available from every other shop in town but maybe half a dozen places per region.
Though given the expense, logistics and lack of political pazaz I get that wouldn't really be doable in practice.

[Sheilbh]

Fair to say Labour's media team are enjoying Liz Truss' media round

The Labour Party
@UKLabour
Just a reminder that an actual lettuce has done more to stand up to Liz Truss than Rishi Sunak.

Also come out that the advance for her book was £1,500. For context the advance for Sturgeon's memoir was reported to be about £300k and Johnson's £500k. And it's full of oddities like describing bits of the UK welfare system in parenthesis as "a type of social security entitlement" which makes it pretty clear that she's aiming it at an American audience/trying to get into the conservative/"deep state"/grifter market there. I think she might struggle because she's not a natural media performer and comes across as a bit weird/not very charismatic.

Edit: Incidentally all of the Labour attacks of the last few days are basically trying to tie Sunak to Truss - either they're the same or he's too weak to stand up to her supporters. Which I think is a pretty smart attack line. The only way he can really parry it would remind everyone that he lost the leadership election (though won the MPs vote - one other reason I think leadership elections of governing parties should be MPs only) and/or force him to denounce and attack parts of his own party. He could say that he pointed out Truss' plans were mental and could cause big financial problems etc - but it's tough when she's still a backbencher with supporters.

[Sheilbh]

Though I'd probably lean against an outright ban and rather just have extremely strict licensing such that tobacco isn't available from every other shop in town but maybe half a dozen places per region.
Though given the expense, logistics and lack of political pazaz I get that wouldn't really be doable in practice.

Tobacco is pretty strictly licensed already.

And you say that but in the last 10 years alone we've got the plain packaging, not allowed to display etc.

[Admiral Yi]

There you go Squeeze.  The left playing the bad economy card.