Jonty

Heavens no 😁. Though I doubt tariffs would save him.

Problem is a lot of this won't get reported, or if it is, its only in passing. These are good, solid, bread and butter Labour issues.

The way Trump is adding to the US national debt, he seems to be recreating his Atlantic City casino mess on a national scale.

It does deserve attention. And it was always appalling that the Tory language around food banks essentially normalised them.

Think you are spot on.

I was looking at Nationally rather than locally. We have a good Lib Dem dustrict council. I've voted Lib Dem nationally (partly for tactical reasons) for 2 decades and the council for 30 years. I'm just disappointed that nationally, the Lib Dems haven't stepped up enough. The currency thing is daft.

Indeed. How he and his people have navigated through the last four years is incredible.

As I've indicated before, I would hate to be involved in meetings with the Trump administration. They must be hell. And mentally and emotionally draining. A sign on the meeting room door saying "any sanity must be left outside the room" would probably be accurate. What a mad world.

Not pleasant when set out. But that is the cold logic of it. David Miliband was mentioned at one point, but I believe he ruled himself out. But in terms of strategy, the defence the PM can make is neutered by the political considerations of still having to deal with a vindictive Trump.

That is what this probably boiled down to.

The PM likely let cold logic override everything else when appointing Mandelson. Very poor judgement. But how he can say out loud that he appointed a deeply flawed, unpleasant individual as the person most likely to be able to a vile, deranged lunatic and his sycophants in the White House.

🤡🤡🤡🤡

The main headline is exactly the one I'd use for Kemi.

Much as I'd love to rejoin the EU, it'll be a slow process. And by the time it happens, I do worry about what we'd actually be joining. Will it be a strong defender of democracy and decent human values? Or a toothless organisation lacking direction or principles, being hollowed out by member states?

Hansard is fake news.....

Sadly though, he gets away with this vile behaviour, time after time. And people give into him.

This is plain daft. And the Lib Dems have made no real progress nationally since the election. The mad world we live in needs some sensible adults to step up. Ed and the Lib Dems should be prime candidates to do this. Time to show a lot more maturity or run the risk of fading away. Disappointing.

The Government would likely have fallen foul of employment/contract law, had they not paid the £75K. And you have examples like the payment to Liz Truss, which would have been used as precedents etc.

Dan is an intellectual colossus....

In terms of Reform, I can't see them getting a working majority. And even a coalition with the Tories probably wouldn't get them a majority. But, a fractured centre/left may allow them to try a minority government, even if only for a short time. But damage could still be done.

And it reminds me very much of how some of the old school trots and communists in my old Union, the CPSA, used to think about the former Soviet Union. As I had a lot of relatives on the other side of the Iron Curtain, I found it somewhat distasteful.

If Russia has withdrawn fully from Ukraine and negotiated a proper peace settlement with them, the engagement may be possible. But his stance on working with Labour will likely ensure he doesn't get the chance to try. And will likely ensure the centre/left let Reform have a chance to govern.

He's a very silly boy.

When nothing else in the world matters more than the market.

But I do also agree that we don't have enough capability overall at the moment, in terms of modern assets or personnel. That is being partially addressed, but more needs to be done.

We are doing that already with planes and helicopters. Don't get me wrong, I think sending HMS Dragon is a sensible and correct move. But I think we need to remember that European nations can pool responsibilities. We do that in places like the North Atlantic.

Yep, sadly we are. I certainly will never give her any redemption.

I suspect it's fertile material for John Crace tonight.

She's pre-programmed. And loaded up with Duracell so she keeps running.

I've said before that Kemi is truly one of Thatchers children, where Thatcherite principles haven't been diluted. While Thatcher as a person was more skilled than many recent Tory leaders, I hope we never forget how much damage her policies cause/continue to cause.