Forum Topic

What is wrong with No 10?

There seems to be a pattern with No 10, the Tories had a landslide victory which went horridly wrong (putting Covid to one side) now Labour in 18 months has gone horridly wrong. Is the answer these landslide victories just don’t work? With both parties the MP’s appear to be so divided and unable to work as a team given the mandate. Within the same party the views are too extreme thus no consensus can be achieved. It appears the more extreme views shout the loudest. So perhaps May elections will rebalance parliament so no extreme views can be passed in the Commons and centre politics which the majority want whether left or right leaning achieves a more rounded approach. This Labour government is proving even worse than the Tories in just 18 months embarrassing and surreal that the UK is in such a mess with this lot.

Jayne Thorburn ● 36d88 Comments

Different people understand and read different things into the terms Welfare, Social Security, Benefits.https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/benefit-expenditure-and-caseload-tables-information-and-guidance/benefit-expenditure-and-caseload-tables-information-and-guidanceIn this link it mentions: "Around 55% of social security expenditure goes to pensioners; in 2025 to 2026 we will spend £177.8 billion on benefits for pensioners in GB. This includes spending on the State Pension which is forecast to be £146.1 billion in 2025 to 2026."This suggests that £37.1 billion of the total £177.8 billion pension spend isn't spent on State Pensions.If we are assuming there is negligible fraud connected with the payment of State Pensions, then perhaps a deduction of £140.7 billion might be more appropriate? While there is no mention of fraud, the OBR Welfare Trends Report sheds some interesting light on Welfare payments over  the last few decades.https://obr.uk/docs/dlm_uploads/Welfare-trends-report-October-2024.pdf

Andrew Jones ● 21d

“Total Pensioner Benefit Spend (2025/26): £177.8 billion (includes pension credit, winter fuel payments, etc.).”To my mind the Pensioner Spend should not be included as a ‘Benefit’ spend and, when talking about percentages of Benefit Fraud for 25/26 the £177.8 billion should be deducted before calculating the Fraud percentage of totals.

Steve Taylor ● 21d

If you live outside the UK but don't tell the DWP when you move then possibly the pension being paid out is more than it should be. https://www.gov.uk/state-pension-if-you-retire-abroad/rates-of-state-pensionCan't imagine there is very much fraud from cases like these though.

Andrew Jones ● 21d

Afaik the state pension is not a benefit but an entitlement.I am not sure how anyone could fraudulently claim it without pretending to be someone else.

Keith Iddon ● 22d

The point is that since checks were stopped because of Covid the welfare costs have ballooned that tell us all we have a massive problem with fraud Labour need to sort it out. Agree furlough and bounce back loans were totally abused and the banks did not do due diligence which they should have done. Tories are out and did make loads of mistakes hence they got booted Labour must be held to the same account so far they are a sorry excuse for a government.

Jayne Thorburn ● 22d

"When debating Benefits Fraud and Benefits Payments it’s disingenuous to factor in State Pension payments unless there is clear evidence of fraud being committed to obtain State Pension payments." Please explain, because you may have got hold of the wrong end of the stick.Otherwise, I agree with you about fraud and the furlough scheme. The Bounce Back Loan scheme was an even bigger mistake. Obviously banks weren't going to do adequate KYC, when they had the government guarantee, and every fraudster was going to take advantage.

Robert Fish ● 22d

“How many more millionaires did Rishi Sunak make during his term as Prime Minister? “Rishi’s biggest mistake as Chancellor was the Furlough Scheme which was over generous. Unfortunately, Rishi assumed that people would behave morally. Instead the generous scheme was exploited by many, many companies which didn’t need it, including, I believe, Prince Charles’ own Duchy of Cornwall. It was shameful how many companies took advantage of Rishi’s generosity.Rishi’s downfall was that he was just too damn nice!  And it is quite abhorrent that the Labour protagonists never mention the Furlough Scheme ‘fraud’ when they blame Rishi for the alleged ‘black hole’. PS. When debating Benefits Fraud and Benefits Payments it’s disingenuous to factor in State Pension payments unless there is clear evidence of fraud being committed to obtain State Pension payments.

Steve Taylor ● 22d

Another question - what's the source for your projected expenditure for 25/26?

Robert Fish ● 22d

I notice you're being very selective with the time period, to make the increase look more disturbing. I took the latest available data (which incudes a small element of forecast, since we're not quite at the end of the fiscal year). Unfortunately, you've shot yourself in the foot with your choice of period. You are quite right that between 22/23 and 24/25 welfare spending rose by £50bn. But look at the data year by year:22/23  £263bn23/24  £297bn24/25  £313bnWelfare spending rose much more in the last year of the Conservative government than in the first year of the Labour administration. Partly this is due to the restoration of the triple lock in 23/24, which led to an unusual increase of 10.1% in the State Pension. But the increase in 24/25 was still 8.5%.These comparisons don't justify your complaints of Labour welfare profligacy.

Robert Fish ● 22d

Total government expenditure on welfare rose from £263.0 billion in 2022/23 to an estimated £313.0 billion for the 2024/25 financial year. Actually the increase is 50B. Total social protection spending is projected to reach approximately £379 billion in 2025/26, with welfare spending on pensioners and disability benefits being major drivers of this growth. It’s the only growth ha!

Jayne Thorburn ● 22d

What's your source for these phantasmagorical figures? In 2024/25 the UK spent £313bn on welfare, compared with £297bn in 2023/24. The forecast for 2025/26 is £324bn, i.e. an increase of £27m, or 9%, in two years. As a result of an aging population and the triple lock, state pension spending alone is expected to rise by £21.8bn over the same period. Not much scope left for those "gaming the system", as you so elegantly put it.

Robert Fish ● 22d

Let’s balance the debate welfare checks stopped as a result of Covid, the tories should have reintroduced them once the pandemic was over they didn’t clearly that was wrong. It is no surprise that the welfare costs have soared since the checks stopped that tells us all something. Labour are our government, what have they done allowed the benefits cost to increase significantly 44 Billion in the last 2 years some of that is accounted for by pensioners the rest….. 44 billion in 2 years…Labour need to get a grip they have killed our economy and we need a thriving economy for so many reasons i think we can all agree on that….so labour have failed all of society accept people on benefits gaming the system. No civilised society can exist with this attitude. So we have the highest level of tax since 1940 something is seriously wrong and Labour don't appear to have any answer other than tax & spend it will cripple us……talk about a divisive government…..

Jayne Thorburn ● 22d

I agree entirely.It's a pretty rum state of affairs that no administration for the last goodness knows how long has been able to get a proper grip of tax evasion and benefit fraud.I think the welfare state is suffering from overreach and the ever growing demand can't be met by its supply of resources available.I think it's improper in principle that a worker has to have their wages topped up by another worker via their tax in the form of in work benefits.Many big employers have the wages they pay to staff subsidised by you and I this way.The ceo's of some of these companies are quite possibly in the House of Lords as a reward.

Keith Iddon ● 22d

Thank you, Philippa for your refreshing antidote to some of the poison peddled on this thread. I preface my own comments by saying I'm no fan of the current timorous and chaotic administration. However, criticism needs to be more honest, fairer and less partisan or self-interested than some of the wilder accusations. As several people have observed, benefit fraud and tax evasion were just as much a fact of life under previous administrations (indeed the record £53m benefit fraud was committed between 2016 and 2021), but that fact is ignored by those who want to concentrate solely on the omissions of the Labour government. You have to laugh at the sweet irony of Steve Taylor’s comment: “Labour has to take ownership of the massive Benefits fraud problem and stop blaming everyone else.” As far as I know the present government has not blamed anyone else for the problem. It is Taylor himself who has sought to make benefit fraud a reason for criticism of Labour. As for the description of the benefits system as “over-generous”, it certainly doesn’t look over-generous in comparison with some of our European neighbours. Our state pension and unemployment benefit look distinctly mean, although in-work benefits look rather more generous – largely because relatively low wages demand more state assistance.

Robert Fish ● 22d

Oh yes it is up for debate. Jayne just doesn't like the change in Govt as she believes in low taxes - and presumably few services as they sold so many buildings off and made it more difficult to have services.It was the Tories whose austerity made it easier for fraud and who chose to allow the NHS and country to be so terribly unprepared for an expected-sometime-pandemic.  Then there came a chaotic crisis and in desperation they seemed to give money to any of their cronies who could procure some or any of the necessary protection for our NHS and other users that should have been ready or at least with procurement criteria  all set up and prepared.We live near a major world airport and we watched the pandemic getting closer and we were still totally unprepared.  Masses of unsuitable and late procured protection was burnt.  Hospital beds procured and deemed unsuitable were sold for a few pounds each online.How many of those people who made money from the Govt over this mess and failure to do their parliamentary work have paid it back?  How many more millionaires did Rishi Sunak make during his term as Prime Minister?  Taxes were organised so that the rich got richer and the poor got poorer.  The gap between rich and poor has increased at a time when there are fewer jobs than there used to be, fewer apprenticeships, less training and housing is so expensive and difficult to find.

Philippa Bond ● 23d

The point is that it’s Labour who won the last election. It’s Labour who found an alleged ‘Black Hole’. It’s Labour who promised to fix the problems. It’s Labour who have refused to fix the over generous Benefits System so it’s Labour who MUST fix the Benefits fraud that is sucking off the Taxpayer. It’s ridiculous to still blame the Conservatives. They have been punished already by the electorate and it is probable they will be finished off with a coup de grâce at the next election so they won’t even be in opposition. Labour has to take ownership of the massive Benefits fraud problem and stop blaming everyone else. It’s not up for debate.

Steve Taylor ● 23d

Yes quite right.

Keith Iddon ● 23d

Point taken Jayne, and while ( again) I acknowledge that two wrongs don't make a right, when you write "Labour are doing nothing about it just increasing taxpayers exposure to huge fraud."a) How do you know Labour are doing nothing about it andb) You could have written exactly the same thing before Labour won the last General Election, but used the words 'The Conservatives" instead of the word Labour.It went on for years didn't it?

Andrew Jones ● 23d

The point being if our system is so weak that it did not identify this fraud much earlier and that Bulgarians got away with 53M over multiple years how can we trust anything re benefits. Hence my view that the scale of fraud is huge. Labour are doing nothing about it just increasing taxpayers exposure to huge fraud.

Jayne Thorburn ● 23d

Jayne is quite correct.A group of 5 Bulgarian nationals fraudulently claimed £53m in benefits and they were sentenced last May.It was plastered all over the news at the time.

Keith Iddon ● 23d

https://www.cps.gov.uk/cps/news/members-britains-biggest-benefit-fraud-gang-jailed-combined-total-more-25-years#:~:text=than%2025%20years-,Members%20of%20Britain's%20biggest%20benefit%20fraud%20gang%20jailed%20for%20a,more%20than%20%C2%A353%20million.

Jayne Thorburn ● 23d

53 million?Can you provide some further information to support the veracity of what you have chosen to present as being an example of extreme benefit fraud?

Andrew Jones ● 23d

I doubt it's anywhere near that high,but have no evidence  either way.

Keith Iddon ● 23d

Totally right Keith. I would love to know how they work out the benefit fraud numbers by very definition unless everyone claiming is checked its impossible. Those who know how to fiddle the system lie its simple. There is no way we can afford this level of fraud the money should go the rebuilding & maintaining hospital & schools not those who game the system. A couple got done for fraudulently claiming 53million over several years go figure that one! The true figure is closer to 40B in my opinion, just check claimants.

Jayne Thorburn ● 23d

That's a very wrong and flippant attitude as far as I'm concerned.I have absolutely no issue with genuine claimants but have no time whatsoever for those avoiding work and who make a career out of working the system.It is supposed to be for those genuinely too sick or diasbled to work and for those who are temporarily between jobs,not for long term abuse from the feckless.

Keith Iddon ● 23d

'..which has to answer to the £billions lost in Benefit Fraud.'Official figures suggest that 'benefit overpayment due to fraud in 2025 was £6.5bn, which is 2.2% of the total, compared with 2.7% (£7.3bn) in 2024. It's estimated that £1.2bn of benefits was underpaid.It's clear that many contributors on here feel that any benefit payments must, by definition, be fraudulent!

Peter Evans ● 24d

Benefits cost is currently 140B forecast to rise to 177B by end of Labours first parliament plus 1M more people claiming benefits since they came to power nothing to spew Labour have and are failing society on a massive level. What is outrageous Labour taxing everyone plus business to fund this! So stopping fraud on this scale should be their priority.

Jayne Thorburn ● 24d

Hypocrite! I didn't see you calling for the previous government to be held accountable. As you well know, benefit fraud and tax evasion, like the poor, are always with us. You only weigh in on the issue because it gives you an opportunity to spew out your visceral hatred of Labour.

Robert Fish ● 24d

my hunch Benefit fraud will be closer to 40B under Labour as the costs have increased dramatically, so lets tackle a fraud which is much easier to identify. Steve is right this government must be held to account for benefit fraud and tax evasion. The economy is NOT performing well under Labour every indicator is going in the wrong direction. Every policy Labour have brought in is destroying the economy thats not good for anyone.

Jayne Thorburn ● 24d

“ You'd be better asking the last government the question.”What a stupid answer.  It’s THIS government you need to hold accountable for Tax Evasion and it’s THIS Labour Government which has to answer to the £billions lost in Benefit Fraud. Meanwhile -  Unemployment up, growth sluggish, inflation above target. There is no economic indicator in which Reeves has performed well. What’s wrong with No. 10??

Steve Taylor ● 24d

Tax evasion is much harder to find as it will be made up by so many different categories, cash work completed by millions even in a small way so any task force is going to go after the big cases its simple cost to retrieve vs reward = money recovered. The switch to using cards rather than cash will naturally mean less cash evasion for sectors like retail & hospitality. As taxes increase more people will be inclined to evade tax if they can. Most people can’t.

Jayne Thorburn ● 24d

Silly Question! Who says they do justify it? You'd be better asking the last government the question. It was austerity that hollowed out HMRC and reduced its capacity for checking tax evasion. Just as an example of the inadequacy of HMRC's compliance control, my company hasn't had a VAT inspection in more than 20 years.

Robert Fish ● 24d

“ whilst tax fraudsters walk free, cannot be justified if we are to have equality before the law”So why DOES this Labour government justify tax fraudsters walking free?

Steve Taylor ● 24d

Yes Robert it's a rum state of affairs that needs putting right.I suppose it's far easier to trace and prosecute a lowly benefit fraudster than it is a rich savvy individual who can employ lawyers and who set up false companies etc. to hide their money.It has needed sorting for many a year.I wouldn't be surprised if some of them belonged to the  same gentlemens' clubs and lodges as some of those pretending to chase them.

Keith Iddon ● 24d

You conveniently ignore the tax gap. For fiscal year 2023/24 HMRC estimates it at £46.8bn. The tax gap dwarfs benefit fraud and error - estimated at $9.7bn in the same period. Despite the huge difference in losses to the Treasury from these two sources, benefit fraud compliance is much more rigorously enforced than tax fraud compliance. The DWP employs 3.5x more staff in compliance than HMRC (adjusted for size of tax and benefits gaps). Consider this quote from the founder of TaxWatch UK: "The current system, which ends up jailing thousands of benefits claimants whilst tax fraudsters walk free, cannot be justified if we are to have equality before the law”. What does your moral compass say about that?

Robert Fish ● 24d

Do you agree we also need we need "much stronger deterrents and tighter checks in place" against tax evasion Jayne?Yes or no?

Andrew Jones ● 24d

Sadly i know of too many people blagging the system, stealing money from hard working people is wrong. Tax evasion is also wrong but there are many doing both claiming benefits and working for cash we need much stronger deterrents and tighter checks in place .

Jayne Thorburn ● 24d

I meant tax evasion,not avoidance.

Keith Iddon ● 24d

Too many people also think tax evasion is ok, and you are one of them Jayne.

Andrew Jones ● 24d

There is a lot of benefit frau often in the form of the fit but feckless avoiding work like its a plague,and tax avoidance going on whether you accept it or not.Both need rectifying.As regards the Victorian values,it seems we are still struggling with the 'deserving and the undeserving poor'dilemma which doesn't look like being solved any time soon.

Keith Iddon ● 24d

'What we all do know is that the level of fraud is eye watering'How do we all know that?  Where's your evidence? I fear you're stuck in an old 'strivers v skivers' view of the world!

Peter Evans ● 24d

At least lets have some values, we appear to have lost our moral compass, too many people thinks its OK to steal from society as they see it as government money not from those that work & pay taxes. We needs serious checks back just watch the claims drop if they know there will be consequences.

Jayne Thorburn ● 24d

Ok, no fraud involved, the person has no savings, has no disablities, is 22, receives the minimum wage, and lives at home with their parents, paying a peppercorn rent of £50 per week. What benefits are they entitled to if they chose to work 20 hours per week, and, what benefits do they lose if they choose to increase their working hours to 30 hours per week?That should reduce the variables to a manageable number.

Andrew Jones ● 25d

No one could answer your question as there are so many variables and depends on the honesty of the benefits claimant, simple really. What we all do know is that the level of fraud is eye watering and super unfair on decent tax payers. Labour have created a two tier system benefits vs work unbelievably it makes more sense for some people to stay on benefits than go to work this can’t be right on any level.

Jayne Thorburn ● 25d

Parasites, sucking the blood of decent, hard-working tax-payers! Bring back the workhouse! Send fraudsters to the colonies! Let's have a return to Victorian values.

Robert Fish ● 25d

So you are saying you have no clue, and it's impossible to answer my question.Not the informative reply I was hoping for, but thanks for replying anyway.

Andrew Jones ● 25d

just google there are multiple benefits that they can lose, those on benefits know their way around the sysytem those of us who have never been on benefits have no clue. Young people should have zero access to benefits unless its is genuine e.g SEND that would stop the rot and mental health issues so called. So it’s impossible to answer your question given all the variations hence fraud is super easy.

Jayne Thorburn ● 25d

Jayne, genuine question.What benefits does someone who is say working for 20 hours per week on the national minimum wage ( for 21 and over) of £12.21 per hour ( going up to £12.71 this coming April) lose if they increase their hours to 30 hours per week?You, Steve and others have mentioned this on a couple of occasions, so you must know more about what benefits are lost than I do.I'm genuinely interested, how much benefit would someone who works 20 hours per week, earning £244.20 lose if they up their hours by 50% and earn £366.30?

Andrew Jones ● 26d

Not sure which world you live in but it’s absolutely not reality. The reason people one WANT to work 20 hrs is that any longer hours they lose benefits. Part time work is hard to find. You should name & shame any company that fits your description I have never come across one. The real problem is Labour tax rises, minimum wage increases, traditional starting points for younger generation  is retail and hospitality they have been killed by Labour now they have to deal with the business rates doubling in some cases it is unsustainable. So Labour are letting down a generation of young people. If young want to volunteer there is plenty of time.

Jayne Thorburn ● 26d

It's complete and utter tosh that "no employer relies on government benefits".  It's not just govt benefits that they rely on but often govt grants too.  There are complaints about workers only doing "20 hours" - or rather only being employed to do "20 hours" but you will often find that many are in fact coerced into actually doing more because that is what the job requires.  Many of course just can't because of other responsibilities including caring.And as for your "There should be zero benefits for young people this would stop the rot" this would just drive more of them into drug running and prostitution to raise money - let alone theft.  Creating a bigger gap between rich and poor doesn't help the situation - it makes it worse.Changing examinations so that there isn't the time in the curriculum to do any volunteer work and the lack of Saturday work is one of the ways that youngsters have lost the opportunity to get any initial work experience and sense of responsibility that can be gained from that.

Philippa Bond ● 26d

It is a fact that labour policies are killing business with increased taxes, employment rights so employers are no longer investing in new staff particularly those with zero work experience. The investment in training young people is a big one so it is not just about salaries. AI will take over doing mundane jobs but remember applicants are also using AI to write their CV! It is so unhealthy for young people to be unemployed living off the state, no wonder they have mental health issues get out of bed, work will solve it. There should be zero benefits for young people this would stop the rot. No employer relies on government benefits.

Jayne Thorburn ● 26d

Just seen that the Police have arrested 'Prince' Andrew. Thought I'd misread it for a moment.

Brian Coyle ● 26d

Too many employers rely on Govt topping up the low pay they offer making it necessary for employees to claim additional money in benefits from the state  leading to the complaint that too many people are on benefits.  AI is being used to initially assess job applications which can lead to multiple rejections unless different and unusual representations are made.  Many rejections can lead to depression and ill health.  The largest economic gain is actually being made by the big tech companies.

Philippa Bond ● 26d

There are an increasing number of job losses due to this government’s ridiculous decision to charge employers more NI contributions. “ Recent data and industry reports from early 2026 indicate that young people in the UK are losing out on job opportunities due to a combination of factors, primarily the increase in employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) implemented by the Labour government. This, combined with above-inflation increases in the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and new employment rights, has made hiring entry-level staff more expensive and risky for businesses.”Economic inactivity among young people, particularly those aged 18-24, has risen significantly, with nearly one million young people in the UK neither working nor studying, preferring to claim generous Benefits.

Steve Taylor ● 26d

There are an increasing number of jobs which are being done by AI.

Philippa Bond ● 26d

“ they inherited a note left on Alistair Darling's desk saying something about being sorry but there was no money left.”No - it was a note left by the despicable little Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Liam Byrne, in 2010, apparently left for the Lib Dem, David Laws, who became Chief Secretary in the coalition government. “Don’t look for the money, there’s none left”Apparently the note came back to haunt him forever especially in the followng election.

Steve Taylor ● 27d

I seem to remember when Blair won the 1997 election the economy was in a pretty decent position and together with his chancellor Gordon Brown agreed to keep the fiscal policy of the Tory government for most of the term in office.When the Tories took over again in 2010,they inherited a note left on Alistair Darling's desk saying something about being sorry but there was no money left.We always seem to be at the same juncture whoever we vote for.It's just a matter of waiting.I think it's called 'boom or bust'.

Keith Iddon ● 27d

Robert Jenrick gave a remarkably encouraging first  speech as “Shadow Chancellor” today. Much as I tried to find fault with his policies, I struggled to find any of any significance. Some may have different opinions? At the same time Reeves was bleating on ( in that terrible, terrible accent) about  14 years of Tory rule. Same old, same old - nothing new, nothing inspiring - just whining!!

Steve Taylor ● 27d

Without a growing economy in the private sector everything is going to stagnate which is NOT good. High taxes are killing the economy, along with new employment rights supporting unions & not business the decline will continue. Higher unemployment particularly amongst the younger generation is appalling and as a direct result of Labours policies. They don’t seem to be able to balance anything & govern for the whole county. The worst thing of all is that they lie & have lost the trust of the country.

Jayne Thorburn ● 27d

What’s wrong with No 10 is that we have the weakest PM in history squatting there.  He is too weak to stop Rachel Thieves. She is happy to pay benefits to those who don’t need it but she refuses to increase Defence spending in these volatile times. “ Reeves blocking spending boost for defenceChancellor accused of refusing to increase MoD budget further despite pleas from military leaders”

Steve Taylor ● 27d

The problem with 14 U turns demonstrates utter incompetence, the public needs to trust any government that they have done their due diligence they have the best skills at their disposal internally or externally to call upon including the 90,000 civil servants they have recruited since they came to power.  They are taxing everyone, killing business and spending our money recklessly. Unemployment is rising due to their policies, business has stagnated or sadly closing and it’s all down to labour. They lived off the economic policies of the previous government when inflation was back to 2% and we saw business growth they have killed it. Call me a cynic but the only reason they wanted to delay May elections is that they know the public have had enough already and will vote accordingly. Changing the leader will make no difference. They screw up and we pay. Business does not operate like that……

Jayne Thorburn ● 27d

I understand that the government have been ordered to pay Reform's legal costs,around 100k.I don't see why this shuld come from public funds as we are the ones having our democracy used as a convenience by Labour.They should have to pay this from their coffers.The 60 million? There is also a case,in my opinion,for them to pay at decent % toward these extra costs,incurred due to their stupidity.

Keith Iddon ● 27d

They ARE being led by a bunch of charlatans.  Steve Reed should be sacked immediately for this blunder which is now costing taxpayers a minimum of £60 million to fund councils to prepare for the elections.

Steve Taylor ● 28d

The fuss about U turns is it implies the government doesn't have any direction, has no vision, makes decisions hoping things will turn out alright without thinking about the outcome.Saying "sorry" (15 times to date, 16 when they backtrack on Chagos) all the time leads the public believing they are being led by a bunch of charlatans.

Denis I. Fox ● 28d

What 'more information' has come to light about this situation,Phillipa?Labour's lawyers(isn't Starmer one of them?) have always known this denail of rightful elections was always going to fail if challenged.They just make mistake after mistake and then do u turn after u turn and you expect us to praise them for some bizarre reason.You mention Churhill and how he viewed democracy.Denying a vote to millions is hardly democratic and plotting to do that shows disdain rather than appreciation for it.I am sure you will have an opposed view,pray enlighten us of it.

Keith Iddon ● 28d

I don't know what the fuss about U-turns is.  Isn't it always a good idea to change direction when more information about a situation comes to light so long as you are not being held to ransom to do so?There are also a lot of different types of democracy and wasn't it Winston Churchill who quoted something about democracy not being that good but that the other forms of government tried are far worse? Bitesize definitions here:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zygmqfr

Philippa Bond ● 28d

17th U turn for Starmer, and more embarrassment for him.Another boost to Reform and Farage's charge to the top.Victory for Democracy.

Denis I. Fox ● 28d

Yet another U-Turn 'The government has abandoned plans to delay 30 council elections in England, following advice this could be unlawful.' BBCWhat fun, Reform will have a field day or will the Greens pile in with their Anti-Semitism, sorry Anti-Zionism,  platform?

Davy Jones ● 28d

“The Home Office's decision to proscribe Palestine Action under anti-terrorism legislation was unlawful, the High Court has ruled.”

Steve Taylor ● 31d

its a very convenient distraction for Starmer……there was no way he would be kicked out yet just wait for May elections when the country will send a reality check to Labour. Reeves today is gloating about 1.3% growth she needs a reality check. The only growth is due to higher taxes and this government spending our money thats not real growth……labour are completely out of touch with reality which tells us they are incompetent, dishonest and no clue what they are doing. In reality our economy is shrinking. Welfare bill is increasing at an alarming rate thanks to Labour.

Jayne Thorburn ● 33d

Sir Jim Ratcliffe Is 100% correct. How dare Stammer ask him for an apology. Stammer should be apologising for staying in No 10 when the majority in the country have called for his eviction.

Steve Taylor ● 33d

Anyone in private business will tell you that times are seriously hard, taxes are killing business and they are NOT investing. Labour has done everything to kill growth and growing the benefits bill is a death knell for us all. Wes was right this government doesn't have a growth strategy even more terrifying they have zero clue how to develop one, not one person in cabinet has ever built a business there all come from benefits somewhere along the line and are anti private business, anti inspiration but happy to take from every business.

Jayne Thorburn ● 33d

The ongoing failures of No.10. “The head of Britain’s largest private employer has issued a chilling verdict on the nation's economy. Ashwin Prasad, CEO of Tesco UK, has warned that the country is "sleepwalking into a quiet epidemic" of joblessness, accusing the government of merely "tinkering at the edges" while millions languish on benefits.This intervention from corporate royalty is a seismic jolt to the political establishment. Prasad's diagnosis is not based on abstract theory but on the brutal reality of the labor market he navigates daily. With unemployment hitting a four-year high of 5.1 percent and over nine million people classed as "economically inactive," the UK is facing a structural crisis that threatens to derail any hope of economic recovery.”

Steve Taylor ● 34d

"It was a slightly different Kier last night."Are you telling us that Milibean Minor does not know how to spell his boss's forename ? No wonder they are in such a mess.

Richard Greenhough ● 34d

They can't deliver Brexit and neither did the previous lot. Hence Labour got in by default with a tawdry low vote and no real mandate of substance. McSweeney saw this and squeaked just like Cummings that we have a stagnant Brussels mode civil service, a vast array of anti-democratic quangos stuffed with over paid do-nothings, and a self satisfied judges home and abroad, making unaccountable woke decisions on key political areas. (Not to mention Starmer not having much of a clue about dealing with Boris wave and illegal immigration, and  Ed the Dread's. Net Zero bankrupting the country.)And if Starmer really wants change he should start with sacking Mr Chagos Hermer

Davy Jones ● 34d

Hate to say it but Abbot may be right! “Diane Abbott on the applause for Keir Starmer this evening:Diane Abbott, "I think the round of applause in the committee room just now was staged""Just as all the endorsements of PM Keir Starmer were staged""I can't see him lasting beyond the May election"Krishnan Guru-Murthy, "Why wait till May?"Diane Abbott, "Because they will be catastrophic, and they want him to stay to take responsibility"”

Steve Taylor ● 34d

The country has become ungovernable, with constant demands for tax cuts and more spending, which even Zac Polanski ought to be able to see don't and can't add up.

Susan Kelly ● 34d

Miliband told Nick on LBC this morning as to yesterday's meeting, the following "It was a slightly different Kier last night. It was the Kier that I know in private that sometimes we haven't seen in public settings. Oh, so we have had a PM who has not been himself, and all is going to change. Well, why did he not tell us this in the first place😁 Better give him another chance, nothing is his doing anyway. Right?

Julian Pavey ● 34d

I still hope Reform beats the Greens and Labour in the seat that is going to be contested.I'm not advocating a Reform  government!I still hope Reform wipes out Labour in the London Mayoral elections in a couple  of years. I’m not advocating a Reform government!

Steve Taylor ● 34d

Politics is becoming more extreme and divided Left or Right whatever happened to balance and centralist politics? Apparently according to Ed Milliband Keir has agreed to lean more left and will raise taxes even further & increase welfare state this will be a disaster for all of us.

Jayne Thorburn ● 35d

The extrapolation is amazing!I stil hope the Greens beat Reform in the seat that is going to be contested.I'm not advocating a Green government!

Andrew Jones ● 35d

That's the Matt Goodwin of the dodgy figures!  The one who doesn't seem to know enough about history or isn't able to do the maths to work out abiut all the generations who have had family who lived and worked abroad in the British forces, Diplomatic Service, British Council etc and all the traders who grew, bought and shipped snd organised all the food and other goods we still buy from abroad.  In my own lifetime this has changed from ship to prop plane to jet!  There are now undersea cables and orbital satellites allowing communication between countries that just weren't in existence a couple of generations ago!

Philippa Bond ● 35d

The green party at war 😁

Julian Pavey ● 35d

The UK Green Party's defence policy"Nuclear Disarmament: Calls for the immediate and unconditional abandonment of the Trident nuclear weapons system""Reduced Military Spending: Views large defence budgets as drains on resources, advocating for shifting funds to green and peaceful economies""US Reliance: Seeks to reduce the UK's dependence on the US, including potentially removing US forces from UK bases""Greens advocate for a shift from traditional military might to a comprehensive approach to global security, tackling climate change and inequality as key security challenges, and reducing reliance on nuclear weapons and powerful allies"Great, just don't tell the world's nutjobs we are fighting with paint.

Julian Pavey ● 35d

Nutjob Zack in charge!That terrifying thought is enough to keep our 16 year olds away from the ballot box.

Denis I. Fox ● 35d

Keeping my fingers crossed it will go to the green party.

Andrew Jones ● 35d

Come May 7th Gorton and Denton, hitherto a strong Labour stronghold may well give way to Reform's latest proponent Matt Goodwin.Couple this catastrophe for Starmer, plus a predicted landslide of Reform wins in eligible councils would leave Starmer forlorn and with no other choice but to call for a GE next year.With this scenario in mind it is surely no coincidence Nigel Farage is later this week naming his "shadow cabinet", ready and able to try and fix broken Britain.What say are the odds for Robert Jenrick- Chancillor, Suella Braverman- Foreign secretary, Zia Yusuf- Home secretary, and Richard Tice- Secretary for Business and Trade?

Denis I. Fox ● 35d

Now Wes is texting Mandy stating Why Labour? they have no growth strategy, he may well ask why labour??????? Politicians seem to have difficulty telling the truth……

Jayne Thorburn ● 35d