UK Politics & Brexit Discussion

[Bluewolf]

Unless your name is Boris Johnson of course.... Just waiting to see how many people he throws under the bus to save his own skin.. 

[The Artful Dodger]

The BBC is essentially to be defunded by the Tories. This is terrible news. The BBC gets a lot of stick from both the left and right and it's news content has certainly been poor over recent years. However, the BBC is much more than that, from Radio 4 to BBC three, the BBC gives a voice to so many different people and is, I think, one of the greatest institutions in Britain. 

This is an ideological attack by an increasingly belligerent government. The move to Fox style, trash news is already pretty evident in our culture but this will only expedite it. I'm very worried about the future of this country.

[Waylander]

Yes it is a hangover from the days of Empire and provides a lot of content and has some decent material.

If the BBC is forced to become self funding you would expect it to cut a lot of services and programs or allow advertising. 

On the advertising front I do notice these days how they use time to self promote as in adverts for their own programs. 

Assuming it happens, I expect a stealth tax somewhere else,

 

 

 

[RandoEFC+]

37 minutes ago, The Artful Dodger said:

The BBC is essentially to be defunded by the Tories. This is terrible news. The BBC gets a lot of stick from both the left and right and it's news content has certainly been poor over recent years. However, the BBC is much more than that, from Radio 4 to BBC three, the BBC gives a voice to so many different people and is, I think, one of the greatest institutions in Britain. 

This is an ideological attack by an increasingly belligerent government. The move to Fox style, trash news is already pretty evident in our culture but this will only expedite it. I'm very worried about the future of this country.

I've always taken this as a pretty strong indication that they aren't doing as bad of a job on impartiality as the noisy fringes would have you believe. The downside is, I do believe the noisy fringes have succeeded in castrating their news coverage to some extent as they aren't exactly bold in reporting on political issues, even when the facts are clear, in fear of political factions using it as ammunition against them. That aside, I agree they can do a better job and stuff like when they had that lawyer on who had links to Jeffrey Epstein to comment on the Ghislaine Maxwell verdict the other week was a poor effort. Some of their journalists, such as Ros Atkins and Lewis Goodall do some excellent investigative journalism still though.

The other thing you haven't mentioned that I'd add is the educational value of the BBC. They put in a huge effort to put stuff in place at the start of the pandemic when the school's closed that helped a lot of people with the initial shock of home-schooling and the likes of Newsround (which is a real god-send, I'll tell you) gets used all over the country on a daily basis. BBC Bitesize seems to have regressed in value as better alternatives have become available but it's another example of what the BBC has offered as a service to the country in the past.

Actually restructuring the way the BBC is funded isn't the worst idea ever. It feels a bit archaic these days that you have to pay the licence fee or get threatened with legal action. I don't know what the best solution is, but it's beside the point really, Nadine Dorries and this government have no interest in the best solution, they're just threatening and attacking the BBC because the right-wing fringe of the party wants them to report news in a more right-wing manner, and they need to stop those MPs from submitting no-confidence letters in Johnson. This will be accompanied by increased anti-migrant rhetoric and various other populist announcements over the coming weeks. They've even dubbed it "Operation Red Meat" in Downing Street which tells you all you need to know.

The (hopefully) last mad gambit of a flailing, failing government. All they have left is to go back to the racist and authoritarian shtick dressed up as 'libertarianism', because that's all they've ever had to offer.

[Waylander]

The timing of this is certainly political.

Yet when nearly every other British company has lost its monopoly why should the BBC be any different?

I'm sure the good content would be bought by other media outlets.

Some minority groups might lose out yet surely it is up to those minority groups to get together using social media to form self-interest groups. 

That's the way I see it anyway.

[The Artful Dodger]

12 minutes ago, Waylander said:

The timing of this is certainly political.

Yet when nearly every other British company has lost its monopoly why should the BBC be any different?

I'm sure the good content would be bought by other media outlets.

Some minority groups might lose out yet surely it is up to those minority groups to get together using social media to form self-interest groups. 

That's the way I see it anyway.

Because life shouldn't be one big free market festival, where basically the wealthy decide what gets made.

The BBC is an absolutely vital part of British culture. Does it have problems, yes. It will be sorely missed when it goes, as looks likely now. The Tories are doing this for purely ideological reasons.

[Waylander]

15 minutes ago, The Artful Dodger said:

Because life shouldn't be one big free market festival, where basically the wealthy decide what gets made.

The BBC is an absolutely vital part of British culture. Does it have problems, yes. It will be sorely missed when it goes, as looks likely now. The Tories are doing this for purely ideological reasons.

No I've been on political forums its been brewing for a while in the public and people not paying the license being prosecuted.

There is a lot more choice today and I don't think the BBC will disappear just need to amend their offering. 

Also if people believe they take a political position at least they know they won't be directly subsidising it.

[The Artful Dodger]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60032465

Not the end but a good start. I fear this desperate government are going to try and railroad it through anyway. Combined with the Nationalties Bill, it's a very serious turn in British politics.

[Stan]

Glad that bill got slapped down by the Lords. 

 

As for our CULTURE SECRETARY, she is 'amazed' to learn that people watch things on YouTube.. 

 

[Waylander]

4 hours ago, The Artful Dodger said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60032465

Not the end but a good start. I fear this desperate government are going to try and railroad it through anyway. Combined with the Nationalties Bill, it's a very serious turn in British politics.

Some of these protests risk serious injury like on motorways and tubes.

They can all petition their MPs and march at Hyde Park etc and advocate for political change via new parties or supporting parties.

It seems some think it will be the end of the world next week if their pet protest is not successful and think that gives them the right to inconvenience others going about their daily transport activities to pay their bills. 

The HoL can delay legislation so the HoC normally has to look at recommendations and normally amend or drop.

Very rare for the HoL to push back twice.

 

[The Artful Dodger]

Thus Government risks serious injury and has seriously injured thousands of people over the years. The risk of injury is a mealy mouthed defence.

 

[RandoEFC+]

Dorries is one of those who will go down swinging. Thick, ill-informed and obsessed with the 'culture war' politics like immigration rhetoric, attacking the BBC and cracking down on 'woke' protestors. Not fit to be in Parliament let alone a ministerial brief. She knows if Johnson goes down, she'll never get a sniff of cabinet again hence she'll fight to the death if that's what it takes to keep the bloated scarecrow in power. Same for Patel and Rees-Mogg.

[Waylander]

Dorries was a major shock getting into the cabinet.

As for the others, the public can vote them out at the elections it has certainly happened post Brexit on both sides. 

If they are relay unpopular or the govt changes tack they can resign and  take a back seat for a term or two and perhaps get a second chance. 

[MUFC]

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60039868

[LFCMike]

51 minutes ago, MUFC said:

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60039868

Why would the Prime Minister have to be told that it was against the rules?

[Stan]

23 minutes ago, LFCMike said:

Why would the Prime Minister have to be told that it was against the rules?

Precisely my thought, too.

It's just another example of his lack of leadership.

'no one told me'.

It's not his fault and never is, according to him. Probably looks in the mirror and thinks he's had a jolly good day every day.

[The Artful Dodger]

So apparently the Government want to process asylum seekers in Ghana or Rwanda now. Albania was the initial suggestion but they scotched it.

Taking away the very obvious and dangerous moral issue at play, the stupidity and arrogance of our current rulers is beyond belief. 'Pick a country our moronic voters think is a ahithole and let them deal with it'. Never have I see such a wilful abrogation of responsibility.

Edited January 18, 2022 by The Artful Dodger

[RandoEFC+]

 

Tick, tick, tick, tick.

[Waylander]

15 hours ago, The Artful Dodger said:

So apparently the Government want to process asylum seekers in Ghana or Rwanda now. Albania was the initial suggestion but they scotched it.

Taking away the very obvious and dangerous moral issue at play, the stupidity and arrogance of our current rulers is beyond belief. 'Pick a country our moronic voters think is a ahithole and let them deal with it'. Never have I see such a wilful abrogation of responsibility.

Here's a consideration I watch Simon Reeves BBC documentaries. He was looking at the Med and landed in particular Southern Spain  where they grow a lot of food produce under plastic sheeting. All the workers were illegals from Africa and on questioning one he showed them around their living quarters that were pretty squalid.

He said they occasionally get beaten with cudgels if they are too slack or just for any reason.

Reeve was shocked by that and said if they could take him back to Africa would he go.

' No the shame, the shame.'

Many are economic migrants, they are different from asylum seekers and the latter travelling through several Western European countries to arrive in Northern France to risk their lives on an inflatable. Very strange times we live in.

Personally did not like our involvement in the war on terror yet also think wrong to abandon the Afghan interpreters.

 

[RandoEFC+]

 

 

 

Good. Night. Vienna.

[Stan]

Hope the leaks come through for anyone who takes over. My worry is that whoever replaces Boris will be just as embarrassing and out of touch 

[Waylander]

I'm not sure they will get Boris out though think they would go for a new leader for the next election.

Current front runners are seen as either Liz Truss (can't see that, too much of the old school Tory about her ) or Rishi Sunak our current Chancellor.

Personally think it will be another contender like i remember I had never heard of Cameron before he became PM.

What does intrigue me is how well Gina Miller's new venture will proceed, I can see her brand being attractive to some voting demographics.

 

[RandoEFC+]

 

The Conservative MP for Bury South has now defected and joined the Labour Party.

To get the serious part out of the way, this is the move of an opportunist who clearly cares more about keeping his seat than the values that drove him into politics on whichever side of the aisle that happens to be, and isn't really fair on, for example, the Labour candidate who stood in Bury South at the last election, or the constituents who voted for a Conservative candidate. Then again, both parties have changed since then and if voters can change their minds and values, there's no reason why MPs can't. I still think you should face a by-election under those circumstances though at the very least.

Still, none of my reservations are going to stop me laughing my tits off at one of Johnson's MPs defecting directly to the Labour Party.

[LFCMike]

Tells you everything you need to know about the current Labour Party that a Tory MP can defect to them.

[The Artful Dodger]

Disgusting and cynical move. Should be a by election. Shows politicians for what they are