POLITICS CORNER

[plaques]

Rishi Sunak's and Suella Braverman's raising racial issues especially the grooming and exploitation of children by Asian men takes a bit of understanding. The overall statistics show that the majority of cases involve White men. Whether a case can be shown that on population numbers there is a bigger Asian involvement per capita has not been shown. Perhaps its a case of Braverman and Sunak trying to bolster there standing on 'illegal' boat people by lumping together all non Whites under one umbrella of 'not wanted here' or are they moving into election mode where a vote for a non-white candidate is an act of treason.
Its a well known fact that Pendle has a relatively high proportion of Asian community with the majority being brought into the area to keep the weaving mills going during their dying days. Once the mills died the workers were abandoned with minimal state aid. This situation has continued ever since with low job opportunities and low class housing. Even so a quick look through court cases show the last child abuse case (2019) to be a resident Colne white man.
The whole Asian grooming debate seems to be another attempt at deflecting attention away from the state of the economy and rising food prices.
Make your own list on what's going wrong in the country but I think that Sunak's pot hole priority would be way down on the list.

[PanBiker]

In Pendle today it has been revealed that the Tory controlled Borough Council is sitting on plans to close Pendle Wavelengths and Nelson Sports Centre. They are trying not to mention this before the local elections but Labour activists including County Councillor Azhar Ali have blown the lid on that. The centres are used extensively by local schools for sport activities and swimming training.

[Stanley]

I think both of you are on the money, there is only one thing on Tory minds at the moment and that's the local elections.
Which may also explain THIS. Why was Robert Jenrick given special privileges and a closed court hearing to get his six month driving ban and £ 1,639 fine.
The case was dealt with through a single justice procedure (SJP) at Northampton Magistrates' Court, which allows a magistrate to rule on criminal cases seen as minor in a closed court, meaning the public and press cannot attend.
Am I being unfair in assuming this method was used as it generated the least publicity?
See THIS Account of the PM being asked to correct his erroneous use of statistics.
Mr Sunak told MPs on 13 December that the backlog was half the size it was when Labour was last in office. But the statistics regulator criticised his use of asylum figures. Mr Sunak said in Parliament: "The backlog now, difficult though it is, is half as big as it was under the last Labour government"..... But the chairman of the UK Statistics Authority, Sir Robert Chote, said: "Given the data quality issues at that time, it would not be reasonable to suggest that this management information from the UK Border Agency accurately represented half a million genuine undecided asylum applications then in the backlog." He said the correct figure to compare with the current backlog figure from the Home Office should be taken from the same Home Office quarterly statistics, which show that the number of applications awaiting a decision in June 2010 was 18,954. "This means that during the period from June 2010 to December 2022 there has been a net increase in undecided asylum applications of 147,307, not a halving," said Sir Robert.
A 'mistake' like this ensures an advantageous headline and any subsequent correction doesn't get the same publicity. Just what is needed in the run up to an election.
This is deliberate dirty politics and shameless.

[Tripps]

I know it was a long time ago, but remember the Selective Employment Tax

"SET was intended to subsidise manufacturing industry from the proceeds of the services industries, to help exports."

"Bookmakers used the introduction of this tax as a reason to reduce the payout on some each-way bets (where a horse is placed in the first two or three, depending on the number of runners) from a quarter the odds to a fifth the odds. However, the previous, larger payouts were never restored when the tax ended".

I bet Gloria knows about that.

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report on the barge that is to be used to house 500 male migrants and will be moored off Weymouth.
The three-storey barge called Bibby Stockholm will be located at Portland Port off the coastal town of Weymouth, and used to house single men while they wait for their asylum claims to be processed. It will operate for at least 18 months. As well as providing basic and functional accommodation, healthcare and catering, the berthed vessel will have security on board to minimise disruption to local communities, says the Home Office. The boat, with 222 rooms, has been refurbished since it was criticised as an "oppressive environment" when the Dutch government used it for asylum seekers.
Refugee groups have called the plan "completely inadequate", while councillors from the local area - which is popular with tourists - have opposed the proposals.
This initiative strikes me as totally repugnant and it makes me wonder about the ethos in the Home Office and government that can even contemplate it as a viable solution.
Surely it would be better to process the asylum seekers? Or have I missed something......

[Stanley]

I see that Michael Gove has admitted that the Tory cuts to social housing in 2010 as part of Austerity were a misteke and responsible for the present shortage.
Funny how we all knew that at the time.....
The same thing applies to a lot of other problems we now have to face.....
What a bloody shower........

[plaques]

See THIS BBC report on the barge that is to be used to house 500 male migrants and will be moored off Weymouth.
The three-storey barge called Bibby Stockholm will be located at Portland Port off the coastal town of Weymouth, and used to house single men while they wait for their asylum claims to be processed. It will operate for at least 18 months. As well as providing basic and functional accommodation, healthcare and catering, the berthed vessel will have security on board to minimise disruption to local communities, says the Home Office. The boat, with 222 rooms, has been refurbished since it was criticised as an "oppressive environment" when the Dutch government used it for asylum seekers.
Refugee groups have called the plan "completely inadequate", while councillors from the local area - which is popular with tourists - have opposed the proposals.
This initiative strikes me as totally repugnant and it makes me wonder about the ethos in the Home Office and government that can even contemplate it as a viable solution.
Surely it would be better to process the asylum seekers? Or have I missed something......

Stuffing 500 people into 222 rooms sounds worse than what we would accept as normal prison conditions. Who is to provide the 'security' and at what cost is another question to be addressed. Leave it to the prisoners guests to look after themselves is reminiscent of the Russian Gulags which is probably what the Dutch meant by "oppressive environment". This plan looks wrong, sounds wrong and is wrong. Another Kafkaesque populist plan by Sunak and Braverman to divert attention from the state of the economy.

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report on the outcome of the enquiry into Islamophobia in the Tory Party....
Rishi Sunak is taking no action against Tory MP Mark Spencer, after an inquiry failed to determine whether he had told a colleague her Muslim faith was a factor in her sacking. Nus Ghani claimed she was told it was "raised as an issue" when she lost her ministerial job in a reshuffle in 2020. Mr Spencer identified himself as the person Ms Ghani was referring to, but denied making the comments. A probe said he had not broken ministerial rules. However, the PM's ethics adviser Sir Laurie Magnus criticised Mr Spencer's handling of Ms Ghani's allegations and said lessons could be learned from the episode. In a written response, Rishi Sunak said: "In the absence of clear evidence, it would not be right to take further action."
Why does this come as no surprise to me?
See THIS also for another example of how these things work in the Mother of Parliaments.
Scott Benton has been filmed by undercover reporters appearing to explain how companies and MPs can avoid registering corporate hospitality. The MP was suspended by the Tory Party after The Times published a video of him offering to lobby for a fake firm. In a fresh story on the same meeting, he appears to suggest that firms can put falsely low values on tickets they offer for live sports and other events. Commons rules require MPs to disclose hospitality worth £300 or more. Mr Benton joked racing tickets he had accepted often came to £295. The Blackpool South MP, who chairs an all-party group with links to the gambling industry, has declared only one race meeting since he was elected in 2019. This was a visit to Ascot in 2021 worth £1,400, funded by the Betting and Gaming Council, an industry lobbying group.
He referred himself to the parliamentary standards commissioner on Wednesday and this seems to be being offered as some sort of mitigation. I'm afraid I don't buy it. He seems to have admitted that he was cynically gaming the system to get these benefits from Lobbyists. Is this the sort of behaviour we expect from public servants, for that is what they are......
I couldn't find THIS Report on what Gove said about mistakes made in 2010 in slashing 60% off social housing and the other cuts.
Michael Gove has admitted past mistakes made by the government over social housing have contributed to some tenants being neglected by landlords. The housing secretary told the BBC the case of Sheila Seleoane - who lay dead in her flat for two-and-a-half years - was an unacceptable example of tenants being let down by housing associations. He said the case speaks "to a wider culture of neglect" in the sector. Her housing association, Peabody, has apologised. The organisation said it had changed the way it works since Ms Seleoane's death "to put people and their wellbeing at the centre of our operations".
And then he said this....
Mr Gove admitted it was a mistake for the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition to abolish the National Tenant Voice, a body set up to give tenants a say on social housing issues, in 2010. Asked whether the coalition government was also wrong to abolish the social housing regulator, he said: "I think we can all now look back and consider some of the regulatory changes that were made in the past and reflect on whether or not they were right." He added that the government had now strengthened the power of the regulator, with social landlords facing tougher inspection regimes and a lower bar for intervention. Under the coalition government, funding for affordable housing was cut significantly as part of efforts to reduce government spending in the wake of the 2008 financial crash.
Funny isn't it, this is what we bumbling amateurs were saying at the time but what the hell did we know about it.....

[Stanley]

See THIS. BBC account of Emily Thornberry defending the Sunak attack advert. I agree with her that the Tories are responsible for the dire sate of the Justice System but I agree with John McDonnell that to use it as a party political point like that demeans us. I assume Starmer has approved it and once more he and I diverge. This is happening far too often of late.
THIS BBC report of events in Scotland grabbed my attention. What a change over a couple of weeks. The SNP under Nicola Sturgeon were the major force in Scottish politics, now it isn't even certain they can stay in power come the next elections.
In its own way it's as astounding as the indictment of Trump in the States.

[plaques]

See THIS. BBC account of Emily Thornberry defending the Sunak attack advert. I agree with her that the Tories are responsible for the dire sate of the Justice System but I agree with John McDonnell that to use it as a party political point like that demeans us. I assume Starmer has approved it and once more he and I diverge. This is happening far too often of late.

As mentioned in previous postings if the sentence ends in a question mark. ? the answer is NO..
Having said that I think that the Labour Party has lowered itself to the same level of the right-wing media. Day after day the headlines follow the same question mark formula. The time given to answering these nonsense questions is usually zero. The caravan has moved on. Any real time, radio/TV exposure usually starts some minor trans sexual question that eats into the response time.

Are Labour wrong... YES.
Are the right-wing media wrong..... YES.

[Tripps]

These are the staff of the SNP's accountants who have just bailed out. I read they have had the job for the last 10 years. Can they do that? Have they no responsibilty for the mess that now exists? They look a formidably competent bunch. They certainly don't look the types to mislay £600 k

Johnston and Carmichael


And here is a link to an example of the SNP's business acumen. The facts are old but verifiable elsewhere.

Mr Gupta and Greensill


I think more will be heard about all this - and to think - I praised Nichola Sturgeon for the clear unambiguous answers she gave when questioned not so long ago. I may have to refer myself to Cynics' School for retraining.

[Stanley]

There doesn't appear to be any politics this morning...... Could they all be on holiday?
Thanks for the Gupta reminder David, funny how fast we forget things like Greensill..... (LINK)
The main political fact that struck me yesterday was the MOH saying that they wouldn't talk to the doctors until they called their strike off. Have they learned nothing?

[plaques]

There doesn't appear to be any politics this morning...... Could they all be on holiday?

Just the usual boring stuff. Doctors going on strike. Teachers adding to the mayhem, Shit still flowing into rivers and beaches, Prices still rising. Chippies closing down, swimming pools closing, GDP still stagnant. Corruption rife in government.

The good news for those who don't want to wait at Dover for their French holiday the 'illegal' refugees are being tipped out of the hotels and put in barges to make room for them.

[Tripps]

here doesn't appear to be any politics this morning...... Could they all be on holiday?

You're not looking hard enough.

I just watched doorstep interview with Nicola Sturgeon.
Sturgeon

I didn't really listen to what she said -probably of no consequence, but I was fascinated by the fact that
she spoke for quite a while, and only used one arm throughout. I think that's a first for any politician.

[Stanley]

You could be right David. Interesting to see the Scottish Tories advocating tactical voting and HQ in London having kittens because they have even mentioned it.
THIS makes me very angry. Barclay fulminates about the doctors but completely misses the point that he is being unrealistic and militant by refusing to even talk to them until they reduce their demands. If he would promise to sit down and talk the doctors would postpone the action and lives would be saved but Barclay says no, following his instructions to the letter. Sunak is a bean-counter and sees everything as a balance-sheet. It's about time someone in government started using common sense.
(Actually I doubt if there is much common sense available in the Tory Party. They have reverted to type and are in pure reactionary mode now. It will not save them.)
Which raises another point. What exactly is the Labour Party doing? We should be hearing statements of policies to address current ills, instead we get attack Corbyn, attack Sunak, negative campaigning and then they accuse the Tories of dog-whistle politics....
Starmer has written in the Daily Mail that he stands by the attack on Sunak. To which Sunak of course replies by accusing Starmer of not prosecuting Saville when he was Prosecutor. Totally sterile politics.....

[plaques]

Barclay fulminates about the doctors but completely misses the point that he is being unrealistic and militant by refusing to even talk to them until they reduce their demands.

Yes, but it gives him someone to blame when the underfunding collapses the NHS completely.

Starmer has written in the Daily Mail that he stands by the attack on Sunak. To which Sunak of course replies by accusing Starmer of not prosecuting Saville when he was Prosecutor. Totally sterile politics.....

. I may not agree with attacking Sunak for not having a more severe sentencing for sexual offences. A subject that I have very little knowledge of. But who else is responsible but the head of the government?

The first case against Savile was brought in 2007-2008. The case was withdrawn when the witnesses would not testify. Starmer was head of the CPS in 2009 when a subsequent review took place, again it was dropped for the same reasons. Starmer criticised the prosecutors and the police for their performance. Later in 2013, the CPS updated its guidance on prosecuting child sexual abuse in England and Wales.

Meanwhile, the cost of living keeps on rising, small businesses are going bust to feed energy profits. Investments and GDP are down and the UK's economic performance is abysmal. All we hear from the Tories is more austerity, sovereignty and mythical Brexit benefits.

[Stanley]

Sunak is looking for a success to brandish as evidence that his bid to rescue the Tories is working. He has put his money on getting Stormont back to power sharing. The very fact that we still refer to a normal democratic government as 'power-sharing' gives a clue to what is going wrong. The opposing factions in Northern Ireland aren't interested in sharing power with anybody, they all want absolute control solely in their power. This is of course impossible. This is why I keep saying that the only way to get progress is to have a referendum on reunification.
All this division in Ireland started when the 'plantations' were founded 400 years ago to promote a Protestant Ireland when this was the last thing the Irish wanted. The native Irish reacted against the new incomers and that is what has been happening ever since.
This is what Sunak is up against and that's the reason why I predict he'll fail.
(Rumours are surfacing again that Sunak is planning an early general election in the second half of 2024 as he believes that is when the Tories will have the best chance of surviving....)

[plaques]

Jacob Rees-Moggs retained EU laws bill is on the edge of collapse. The House of Lords have seen what a disaster it would be and have combined to reject it completely. Sunak could play 'ping-pong' with it and force the bill through but even he can see its nonsense and an embarrassment in an election year. The rumour is that Kemi Badenoch will sift through some of the agreements find a few that are no longer relevant and cancel those and claim a victory. Rees-Mogg will carry on claiming that turning the clock back to pre-Victorian ages will stimulate the economy and bring back sovereignty. (that word again). With a bit of luck he could lose his parliamentary seat in the next election.

[Tripps]

an early general election in the second half of 2024

Actually Stanley said it . . .

Do you mean 2023?
Wikipedia says -
"The next election is scheduled to be held in autumn 2024,[1] with Parliament being dissolved no later than 17 December 2024, after the Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022 repealed the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011. "

PS No I guess you did mean 2024. I have just found
"Both the Times and the Telegraph report this morning that Number 10 are aiming for an autumn 2024 election, provisionally around October – November. With the obvious logic being it gives Rishi more time to meet his priorities – mainly reducing inflation and stopping the boats" [/size]

As Abe said to Hymie - "Here's that £50 I owe you"

[Tripps]

The plot thickens - and not in a good way. . . .

Scottish Nationalist Party

[Stanley]

I agree with you David.... That is a very troubling admission.
THIS Report from the IMF doesn't fill me with joy either! The Tories keep telling us how well we are doing when apparently the real measure is that we are doing worse than everyone else. Not a good platform for an election bid. I suppose the calculation in Number 10 about the General Election is that 2024 can't possibly be as bad as this year so they will at least be able to campaign on an improving economy!
My poll card arrived yesterday. I see I am now a voter in 'Barnoldswick Ward', Craven Ward is history..... I suppose I should be grateful I still come under Pendle Council!

[PanBiker]

My poll card arrived yesterday. I see I am now a voter in 'Barnoldswick Ward', Craven Ward is history..... I suppose I should be grateful I still come under Pendle Council!

Don't forget your photo ID

You will be lumped in with an equal sized chunk of Ribble Valley for the General Election.

I becoming cynical and it's bit like Baldrick, "I have a cunning plan Sir".

Not far from the truth unfortunately.

[Stanley]

I fear you are right Ian. The Tories would not have given a boundary revision like this a fair wind had it not carried advantages for them. Hopefully it will not be enough to save them.
THIS is a troubling report on Braverman's racist language and actions.
Tory peer Baroness Warsi has warned that what she describes as Suella Braverman's "racist rhetoric" is putting British Asian families at risk. The peer, the UK's first South Asian cabinet minister, claimed the home secretary's comments on small boats and grooming gangs "emboldened racists". She told the BBC she feared a backlash against British Asians and had told her dad not to walk home from the mosque. Ahead of announcing plans for a new police taskforce to tackle grooming gangs, Ms Braverman said groups of "vulnerable white English girls" were being "pursued and raped and drugged and harmed by gangs of British Pakistani men who've worked in child abuse networks".
This despite her own departments statistics indicating that the majority of men involved are white.
I'm afraid that what we are looking at here is dog whistle politics, just one of the tactics being deployed by the Tories ahead of the May 4 local elections.
Do we really need THIS report that Matt Hancock is being investigated by the standards watchdog.
On reading it I think this is a different enquiry than the one I was already aware of but am not sure. Whatever, it is not the sort of headline the Tories want at the moment.
THIS surprised me, I thought it was already law but reading on I found I was mistaken.
NSPCC chief executive Sir Peter Wanless said: "It cannot be right that in this country it is illegal to hit an adult, but equal protection is not given to a child. "We need put the wellbeing of children first and bring an end to this legal anomaly." A YouGov poll of almost 3,500 adults suggested two thirds of people (67%) across England think physically disciplining a child is not acceptable. Close to 300 million (three in four) children aged between two and four worldwide experience violent discipline and 250 million (around six in 10) are punished by physical means according to Unicef.
I was reared under a regime of corporal punishment at school and had my share of 6 strokes of the cane by the headmaster. I agree, greater safeguards should be put in place.
(I've just remembered something. All teachers had canes even at primary school and during the war no new rattan was being imported. I remember Mrs Akroyd's cane had split at the end and was bound up by being whipped with copper wire.....)

[Stanley]

See THIS for what appears to be the main political message coming out of government.
The chancellor has said it would be a "terrible mistake" to give pay rises above the rate of inflation, even though strikes are hitting the economy. Jeremy Hunt said the impact of the junior doctors' strike on NHS patients was "regrettable". But wage increases that fuelled inflation would have a "more damaging" impact on the UK economy, he said. Junior doctors are calling for a 35% pay rise, to make up for 15 years of below-inflation wage rises. There has been no breakthrough in the latest public sector strike. The government has said that junior doctors' pay demands are "unreasonable" and that talks can only happen if the BMA union moves "significantly" away from their current position.
Sunak and Hunt seem to have decided to make a stand against the doctors. Sun Tzu, in 'The Art of War' advises generals to pick their battles carefully and this seems to be one that win or lose will cost the Tory Party dear. If the government made a half decent offer it would start talks, if ACAS was involved it would start talks. However, sensible approaches like these have been discarded and the most reactionary strategy embraced.
These are weak politicians trying to look like strong men and this will not go well.

[plaques]

If only we had followed through on the Brexit advantages. The NHS would have been sold off to the Americans with strikes a thing of the past. The EU retained law bill would be making its way through Parliament and by 2024 most of the workers rights along with food and veterinary standards could be cancelled. This may mean a temporary reduction in living standards that should last no longer than 25 years but at the end of the day investment will start pouring in just in time for all manufacturing and food processing to be fully automated and eliminating the low wage economy. Jeremy Hunt and the IMF could be right that being poorer and leaner is the way forward to ultimate prosperity.
And if you believe that you will believe anything.