May seeks UK snap election

Written By: - Date published: 10:43 pm, April 18th, 2017 - 142 comments
Categories: uk politics - Tags: , ,

News from the UK:

Theresa May calls UK general election for 8 June

Prime minister makes surprise announcement outside No 10, saying she has delivered stability after the Brexit referendum result

Theresa May has called a snap general election to be held on 8 June, despite repeatedly claiming she was against the idea of an early vote.

In a surprise statement outside Downing street, the prime minister said: “After the country voted to leave the EU, Britain needed certainty, stability and strong leadership. Since I became prime minister the government has delivered precisely that.”

She claimed Labour and the other opposition parties had opposed her. “The country is coming together but Westminster is not. Labour have threatened to vote against the final agreement we reach. The Lib Dems have said they want to grind the business of government to a standstill. Unelected members of the House of Lords have vowed to fight us every step of the way.”

May said she was laying down a motion in the House of Commons that will require two-thirds of MPs to back it. …

Well ahead in the polls and looking to lock it in before the inevitable Brexit turmoil.

142 comments on “May seeks UK snap election ”

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  2. Bill 2
    18 April 2017 at 10:52 pm

    So, if Labour lend her the votes so that she clears the 2/3rds required for dissolution ….but why would they do that?

    Corbyn hasn’t been able to find his feet yet thanks to all the tripping coming from within the Labour Party – not to mention the endless hostility from msm.

    Anyway. Let’s say they do (or enough idiots within Labour who want rid of Corbyn at any cost do). I’d guess the Tory’s clean up in June – at least in England and Wales.

    What impetus would that add to the drive towards independence in Scotland and demands for a vote on reunification in Ireland?

    Yeah… interesting times.

    edit – just picking it right now. If the Blairites allow May to call an election – ie, if they vote against the best interests of labour, while the left within Labour don’t vote for a dissolution of parliament, then that will mark the beginning of the absolute end of the UK Labour Party in England and Wales.

    • joe90 2.1
      18 April 2017 at 11:01 pm

      They’re in.

      Jeremy Corbyn has welcomed Theresa May’s call for an early election, arguing that Labour will offer the country “an effective alternative to a government that has failed to rebuild the economy”.

      http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-early-general-election-2017-theresa-may-response-statement-june-8-date-a7688566.html

      • McFlock 2.1.1
        18 April 2017 at 11:08 pm

        interesting.

        I guess they reckon they’ve found their feet

        • Gosman 2.1.1.1
          18 April 2017 at 11:56 pm

          Yes, they discovered they are made of clay though. I admire your positivity when it comes to this. Reminds me of Berlin in 1945.

          • McFlock 2.1.1.1.1
            19 April 2017 at 12:35 am

            I suspect the libdems and labour will gain seats, ukip I have no idea. But I think the conservatives will lose seats. Dunno about the election itself – any opposition victory will be coalition government, if it happens at all.

            Winners don’t usually call snap elections.

            • Gosman 2.1.1.1.1.1
              19 April 2017 at 12:39 am

              I’m sorry. I have to stop laughing for a moment while I type. Where pray tell are Labour going to pick up seats? It won’t be in England so that leaves Scotland and Wales. Not too many to be won there. The LibDems will do much better I agree.

              • McFlock …
                19 April 2017 at 12:45 am

                More than a few marginals in England, especially in the threat of a hard brexit.

                FPP still sucks, though

                • Gosman …
                  19 April 2017 at 1:02 am

                  As UK Labour are about to discover.

                • Gosman …
                  19 April 2017 at 1:03 am

                  Labour can’t even win safe Labour seats in England let alone marginals.

                  • dukeofurl …
                    19 April 2017 at 8:41 am

                    neither could national in northland !

                    Stoke on Trent 23 feb 17 labour win
                    Batley & Spen 20 oct 16 ”
                    etc
                    en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_Kingdom_by-elections_(2010–present)

                    Only one seat they previously held they didnt win out of 7.

                    Conservatives lost Richmond Park to Libdems

                    Short of facts again Gosman

                    • Gosman …
                      19 April 2017 at 8:48 am

                      You miss my point. Incumbent governments usually lose byelections not take seats away from Opposition parties. This happened quite recently in the UK. You might like to sugar coat it but it is really an indictment on Corbyn’s Labour party at the moment.

                    • Phil …
                      19 April 2017 at 9:44 am

                      Short of facts again

                      Just like how you missed the fact that Richmond park has historically been a Lib Dem seat, and the conservative MP lost the by-election partly because he resigned from the party and then ran as an independent without the party machinery behind him?

                      Meanwhile, Copeland has been a stable Labour seat for its entire 30-plus year history and the region (under previous electorate names) has been solid Labour territory since the 1930’s.

                      I totally acknowledged that they’re both only one seat, and not able to be extrapolated to the UK as a whole. But, if you had to pick one party that would look at the those two seat changes and hear alarm bells, it sure as hell would not be the Conservatives.

      • Bill 2.1.2
        19 April 2017 at 10:29 am

        That’s quite astonishing.

        There are Scottish local body elections coming up in May. Last time I looked, Labour were sitting on or around 14% and on track to be essentially removed from the political map of Scotland.

        And that’s going to happen in the last few weeks leading up to the UK General Election.

        How do Corbyn and his advisers think that’s going to play out in msm?

    • Gosman 2.2
      18 April 2017 at 11:44 pm

      Why would voting against an early election be in the interest of the UK Labour party? They are in opposition. Surely they want an opportunity to convince the electorate to make them the government.

      • Bill 2.2.1
        19 April 2017 at 11:54 am

        See my comment directly above. (To reiterate) The fact that those Scottish Local Body Elections are possibly or likely to see the disappearance of Labour from the political landscape in Scotland is not insignificant. (Local Body Elections there, unlike in NZ, are very much party affairs.)

        Had that happened with a UK General Election still a number of years away, then the opportunity would have been there for Jeremy Corbyn to finally seek some kind of positive working relationship with the SNP. (In other words, he could have limited any flow on effect for Labour in England and Wales.)

        But as it stands, Labour are weeks away from being decimated during the run up to a UK wide General Election…and I just can’t see how that plays out in any way other than badly.

        • Gosman 2.2.1.1
          19 April 2017 at 12:03 pm

          I was being a tad flippant. I agree completely with you. This isn’t in the interest of the UK Labour party at all. It is a disaster in the making.

  3. ropata 3
    18 April 2017 at 10:53 pm

    I hope UK Labour can sort itself out before then. Down with the Tory wreckers.

    • Gosman 3.1
      19 April 2017 at 12:00 am

      Pretty sure the state of the UK Labour is why May called the snap election. To win Labour would require the biggest turnaround in modern UK electoral history as far as I am aware.

      • joe90 3.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 12:20 am

        Or Brexit looks like it might be a long, slow, career ending nightmare so she needs to win and win big to strengthen her hand and ram through her favoured but unpopular hard Brexit.

        • Gosman 3.1.1.1
          19 April 2017 at 12:27 am

          Quite possibly so. That just highlights Corbyn’s failure even more though.

        • joe90 3.1.1.2
          19 April 2017 at 12:33 am

          In her announcement May talked about the LibDems. the SNP , un-elected Lords and a disloyal opposition playing politics so I doubt it’s solely about Labour.

          • Gosman 3.1.1.2.1
            19 April 2017 at 12:36 am

            No, it is purely about the weakness of Labour. It is no coincidence she made her move after the most recent poll put Labour behind for the largest gap in 60 years.

          • joe90 3.1.1.2.2
            19 April 2017 at 12:50 am

            No, it is purely about the weakness of Labour.

            Arse. She sees a long, slow, career ending nightmare.

            This is the right approach and it is in the national interest, but the other political parties oppose it. At this moment of enormous national significance there should be unity here in Westminster, but instead there is division. The country is coming together but Westminster is not. In recent weeks Labour have threatened to vote against the final agreement we reach with the EU, the Liberal Democrats have said they want to grind the business of government to a standstill, the SNP say they will vote against the legislation that formally repeals Britain’s membership of the EU and unelected members of the House of Lords have vowed to fight us every step of the way. Our opponents believe because the government’s majority is so small that our resolve will weaken and that they can force us to change course.

            https://www.ft.com/content/18f95130-2423-11e7-a34a-538b4cb30025

        • Richard McGrath 3.1.1.3
          19 April 2017 at 2:04 pm

          “…she needs to win and win big to strengthen her hand and ram through her favoured but unpopular hard Brexit.”

          As opposed to a slow, gradual Brexit spread out over 25 years.

    • Siobhan 3.2
      19 April 2017 at 10:27 am

      Not a chance…the New Labour crowd would rather see a Tory Government than someone not towing the neo liberal line 100%.
      Rather like the Democratss handing power to Trump rather than giving Bernie a chance..and given Bernies really just a company man at heart..it shows you how stuffed up and divided the ‘Left’ really are, world wide.

      https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/feb/21/peter-mandelson-i-try-to-undermine-jeremy-corbyn-every-day

      Down with the Labour wreckers!!

      • Gosman 3.2.1
        19 April 2017 at 11:01 am

        Yet why aren’t people jumping at the opportunity to back Corbyn then?

        • Siobhan 3.2.1.1
          19 April 2017 at 11:41 am

          Why are people voting for more of the same?
          Why are people voting for the destruction of Health Care (NHS) and the undermining of free quality education?
          Why are people voting for a dysfunctional and exploitative housing model?
          Why are people voting for a decline in real wages and living standards??
          Why are people voting for more wars?
          Why are people voting for politicians blatantly in the pay of major Corporations and Financial institutions?

          Well, I could answer that…but i’d rather not get kicked off The Standard this early in the day…

          • ropata 3.2.1.1.1
            19 April 2017 at 5:12 pm

            The British people are nihilists bent on self destruction?
            Dirty Politics, Media conspiracy, Electoral fraud?
            The UK Left is a mess and Labour Blairites are complete asswipes?
            Jeremy Corbyn is a radical commie and the UK public prefer RWNJs?
            Rise of fascism and fear built on generations of ignorance and poverty?

      • red-blooded 3.2.2
        19 April 2017 at 12:55 pm

        Siobhan, it’s not “the New Labour crowd” or “Labour wreckers” who have endorsed the early election – it’s Corbyn. This is really bad judgement and it’s going to decimate his party. Maybe he sees it as a way to clear out those he sees as unsupportive and start again with a tighter team, but if he does I think he’s kidding himself. He can’t pick which seats will be won and therefore which MPs returned, and even if he could he’d still have the House of Lords to contend with. UK Labour are going to feel the results of this early election for a long time, and Corbyn didn’t have to enable it.

        • DS 3.2.2.1
          19 April 2017 at 3:52 pm

          Actually he did. An opposition party cannot viably say “no, we don’t want a new election” – if a government is so bad, why are they wanting to keep it in power?
          He’d never live it down.

          • red-blooded 3.2.2.1.1
            19 April 2017 at 8:46 pm

            Actually, he didn’t. The British have a set parliamentary term (5 years) and it’s only meant to be deviated from in extraordinary circumstances. May’s pretext is pretty flimsy; he could have refused to play into her hands. Yes, it would have been damaging for Labour and for him, but this election is likely to be more damaging – that’s why she’s doing it.

  4. Ovid 4
    18 April 2017 at 10:54 pm

    It’ll be an interesting election. I don’t foresee a change of government, the Tories have a 21% advantage in the polls. But it will be interesting to see if the SNP improves their standing in Scotland. I know 2015’s 56 of 59 Scottish Westminster seats is pretty much a high-water mark, but if they increase their majorities in those seats that would be a pretty compelling argument for Indyref 2.

    The other question is whether UKIP is now a spent force. Having achieved Brexit, does the electorate see any purpose in them any more?

    Also have the Lib Dems rehabilitated from their time in government with the Tories?

    • dukeofurl 4.1
      19 April 2017 at 8:48 am

      They dont need an increase in a vote in Westminster to show the argument for a new ‘indyref’
      Scotlands parliament has voted for it, in a strange way, not now but later ?

  5. ropata 5
    18 April 2017 at 10:59 pm

    May and the Tories do not have the guts to complete their insane Brexit plan. Pity whatever incoming government. Perhaps Labour or the SNP will stand on a pro EU platform?! Effing hell what a mess.

    Nigel Molesworth (of St. Custards fame) makes as much sense as anyone

    can revele that hed gurl MAY will anounce fifth sector pathfinder gold star plattinum status for st custards raffia work program at 11.15am— nigel molesworth (@reelmolesworth) April 18, 2017

    yes @alanbeattie the fule FARAGE is a blot on the nobel name of NIGEL i uterly diskard him— nigel molesworth (@reelmolesworth) March 29, 2017

    • Gosman 5.1
      18 April 2017 at 11:47 pm

      Maybe Labour could stand on any platform that could won them more votes. Unlikely I think.

      • ropata 5.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 9:34 am

        A “soft Brexit” could be a vote winner for the UK Left. The Tories are full steam ahead on the “hard Brexit”, no doubt pandering to the racist vote

        • Richard McGrath 5.1.1.1
          19 April 2017 at 2:26 pm

          WTF has a “hard Brexit” got to do with race? I’m looking forward to a complete rout of UK Labour in June. They should allow the Scots to vote on leaving the UK at the same time. The sooner the English taxpayers are freed from their parasitic grasp, the better for both sides.

          • ropata 5.1.1.1.1
            19 April 2017 at 7:45 pm

            Racist => BNP => Brexit
            See?

            Scotland leaving will be terrible for the English as the Left will be extinguished in England, and the enlightened and intelligent Scots will not be there to bring sanity to the “British” Parliament.

            • Richard McGrath 5.1.1.1.1.1
              21 April 2017 at 8:05 am

              So you’re saying most Brexit supporters are BNP members? Bollocks

  6. millsy 6
    18 April 2017 at 11:00 pm

    Well,I cannot see Labour winning this one. Corbyn needed more time but he isn’t getting it. I suppose the Blairites will be happy. Once the dust settles they will be able to take full and absolute control of the party for at least a generation. Under new leader, Dan Jarvis, with Liz Kendall as shadow chancellor,they will be in lock step with the Tories on war, austerity​ and privatisation.

    • Gosman 6.1
      18 April 2017 at 11:49 pm

      Why did he need more time? Wasn’t the electorate desperate for his ideas? He’s anti-austeriry and anti-economic status quo.

    • Richard McGrath 6.2
      21 April 2017 at 8:06 am

      Austerity = living within your means. Good at both individual and national level

  7. Matthew Whitehead 7
    18 April 2017 at 11:05 pm

    So many hot takes from the UK about how bad the lib dems are, so little time to fav them all. XD

    It does indeed look like this is political positioning from May, an avid champion of that classic political move, “accuse the opposition of playing political games when they call me on my own political games.” If the Lib Dems and Labour can pull together a valid coalition government, that’s the one chance to get a soft Brexit that’s left, so surprisingly I would actually call this good news. It’s a 7-week chance for them to change the public’s mind on hard Brexit.

    That said, it doesn’t help that British Labour is repeating NZ Labour’s own stupid mistakes in not supporting their populist leader sufficiently to allow him a chance to win. They’re likely to sabotage their own chance to pull the country back from the brink if they can’t lean together.

    • Gosman 7.1
      18 April 2017 at 11:52 pm

      You think Labour is going to be able to form a coalition government with the LibDems do you? That woyld entail the LibDems getting another 20 percent of the vote. Unlikely I suggest.

      • Matthew Whitehead 7.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 1:19 pm

        It depends on how much of that national vote is concentrated on certain seats. The Tories have about 40%ish of the popular vote. Were the UK running a proportional system, there’s no way they could form a coalition. However, with several seats three-way races between various parties, (thanks to UKIP and the Lib Dems, and in one case, the Greens) and with the Conservatives advantaged by FPP in general, I think they’re likely to win a majority in Westminster unless something dramatically changes from latest polling, given the Lib Dems’ own unpopularity killed off their half-hearted electoral reform measure.

        I’m just not ruling out the possibility they could lose to a broad coalition of Labour, the Lib Dems, and the SNP, but it would require both Labour and the Lib Dems getting their acts together, which to date there is no indication they will do, and it would require Labour getting its act together about Scotland enough to work constructively with the SNP. Labour’s right is dead keen on opposing their own leader, and the Lib Dems are still in the shadow of their previous disastrous coalition with the Tories. They have enough of the popular vote on their side, they would just need some good campaigns in key constituencies, and maybe an electoral alliance to allow Labour and the Lib Dems to avoid trying to snipe seats that are currently reasonably solidly red or yellow.

        The thing is, May can lose this snap election in two ways: One is if Labour forms a coalition, the other is if the Conservatives have to, as she’ll be forced to back down from her hard Brexit position, regardless of who she ends up in bed with. She’s gambling she’ll get a stronger result in order to give her a mandate for a hard Brexit, but polling indicates that Brexit’s popularity is actually shrinking, not growing, so it’s really down to whether people hate the opposition more than they hate her policies. Most supporters Brexit still has is just because the UK wants the issue done with, and the people voted for it once. I think that support will erode the more the public has to hear about what negotiations are really going to be like. (All indications are that the UK will get a really bad deal, at least looking at it from their perspective)

    • mikesh 7.2
      19 April 2017 at 10:54 am

      What’s the difference between a soft and hard landing, and who decides which one they get? Do the continental negotiators have no say in the matter?

      • Matthew Whitehead 7.2.1
        19 April 2017 at 1:32 pm

        The soft landing is staying in the single market (the EU’s extended free trade zone) and continuing some sort of semi-open border with the EU. The main obstacle to this is the Conservative Party, who have decided that the Brexit result’s reliance on anti-immigration talking points require them to exit without any deal that requires freedom of movement between Britain and the EU, (ie. they will basically go back to tariffs with the EU and have to negotiate other trade deals, and most likely lose a lot of the financial services businesses currently set up in the UK for purposes of access to Europe) but still cut constitutional ties to the EU, freeing themselves of EU regulation, EU mandates, EU courts, etc… There’s no particular indication as to what parts of the EU leave voters really objected to, and most people from either side had been presuming a leave vote would mean a soft exit prior to the vote occurring, which would mean Britain had a little bit more cash, didn’t have to listen to EU laws anymore except insofar as it would be relevant to selling them UK products, and could quit various european institutions.

        The hard version is where they negotiate a deal that doesn’t include any freedom of movement or immigration provisions, which likely means no free trade with Europeans in the foreseeable future. Scotland and Northern Ireland both view hard Brexit as unacceptable and voted quite soundly to remain in the EU, and had the law not been circumvented in the courts, would have blocked such a hard exit plan, however judges ruled that Westminster could decide on its own, (which, functionally, is virtually identical to saying “England can decide for the whole UK”) and this is causing a fair amount of support for leaving the UK in both areas, with Scotland looking likely to leave. They will likely have to make concessions with regards to Gibraltar, either ceding it to Spain or arranging for it to stay associated with the EU, and as there’s no need for the EU to maintain too much of a constructive working relationship, heads of state who want to remain in the EU but have more reluctant voter bases will likely want to see them pay for exiting. They will give them an exit deal with few if any concessions and attempt to embarass the UK however they can, to make it clear that leaving will not be consequence-free. They may even secure concessions about guaranteeing a Scottish independence referendum so they can decide on possible re-entry into the EU as a bargaining chip, as even Spain, one of the most vocal critics, has been clear that if Scotland secures independence they will actually back Scottish membership.

        Mainly, the only thing stopping the EU from essentially not even trying to make any exit concessions to the UK is that they might be reasonably keen on some mutual defense arrangements.

  8. mosa 8
    18 April 2017 at 11:54 pm

    Corbyn is being written off already surprise surprise by the usual corporate mouth piece’s.

    He has six weeks to sell the message that its not all about brexit but the current economic direction and how neo liberal policies are hurting millions of british people.

    Brexit should not be allowed to influence on its own the underlying issues of this general election.

    This is Corbyn’s only chance to change the narrative on the 8th of June.

    The battle against the neo liberal machine in the UK has begun under the cover of Brexit.

    • Gosman 8.1
      19 April 2017 at 12:02 am

      He’s has had longer than 6 weeks and has taken Labour further behind than where it was when he started.

      • mauī 8.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 12:38 am

        I wonder how many people would be willing to put their money on an incumbent western government 6 or 12 weeks out from an election in the current climate..?

  9. Gosman 9
    19 April 2017 at 12:07 am

    The cognitive dissonance over this from some is a wonder to behold. A realistic political analysis would acknowledge the failure of Corbyn is the reason for this snap election and will likely lead to a massive victory for the Conservatives in June. That is what you get for allowing your activist supporter base to select your parliamentary leader.

    • r0b 9.1
      19 April 2017 at 12:14 am

      Yeah democracy is such a pain.

      • Gosman 9.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 12:33 am

        At the moment for the UK Labour party it is.

        There is nothing stating that selection of leaders of political parties should be done on a democratic basis because it leads to better outcomes. Indeed the examples of Trump and Corbyn (and Ian Duncan-Smith) show that allowing the members to choose leaders tend to lead to more extreme choices. In the US this was still electable. Not in the two UK examples though.

  10. Gosman 10
    19 April 2017 at 12:12 am

    To all those Corbynistas here who think the reason Corbyn has done so appallingly is due in large part to hostile media I just have one question. Doesn’t the UK have a media environment closest to what you think is ideal? There is a strong State run non commercial media and a range of daily newspapers from most parts of the political spectrum. There are even strong media watchdogs where complaints are dealt with openly and promptly. What more do you want?

    • Ad 10.1
      19 April 2017 at 9:36 am

      Well, they don’t want The Guardian, because it never told them what they wanted to hear.

      They don’t want The Mirror, because they’ve forgotten the language of the proletariat.

      They don’t want any left equivalent of Fox News, because that would be both too naughty and too successful.

      They want something else, and you should stop being so rude as to ask them what that is.

  11. McFlock 11
    19 April 2017 at 12:42 am

    gossy, I’m sure you’re just bored, rather than shitting yourself that if May gets humiliated even if she wins but loses seats then the anti-tory sentiment might also be reflected here in september.

    After all, you’d either be bored or crapping yourself to be behind more than a third of the comments in the entire thread, surely…

    • Gosman 11.1
      19 April 2017 at 12:44 am

      Anti-Tory sentiment??? Why has this sentiment not been reflected in the polls and byelection results to date?

      May wouldn’t be doing this if Corbyn hadn’t been such a monumental disaster for Labour.

      • McFlock 11.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 12:50 am

        Ah. In your panic you missed the “if” in my statement. If she gets humiliated at the polls. That would denote an increase in anti-tory sentiment, no? If the tories lose a chunk of seats, even if they stay in power?

        Maybe you’re just drunk.

        • Gosman 11.1.1.1
          19 April 2017 at 12:55 am

          Yes and IF my Aunt had a penis she would be my Uncle.

          This whole situation highlights the failure of a strategy many lefties advocated and still advocate for NZ. That is what I find so delicious about it. I suppose that is kind of like being drunk.

          • McFlock 11.1.1.1.1
            19 April 2017 at 1:03 am

            So your pick is that the conservatives will gain seats then, not lose any?

            • Gosman 11.1.1.1.1.1
              19 April 2017 at 1:08 am

              Depends on how well the LibDems do but highly probable. The real question is how bad UK Labour does in England. I suspect very badly indeed.

          • mikesh 11.1.1.1.2
            19 April 2017 at 11:11 am

            “Yes and IF my Aunt had a penis she would be my Uncle.”

            If your mother had had a penis perhaps you would never have been born!

            Talking of what ifs: what if Mademoiselle Le Pen wins the the French presidency and immediately starts talking “frexit”? What effect might that have on the British election? What if Melanchon wins?

        • Johan 11.1.1.2
          19 April 2017 at 4:38 pm

          Why doesn’t this clown called Gosman get his own fuckin website. Each comment he puts the downer on the British Labour Party and for what purpose? Saying the same thing over and over in all his comments, “I hate Labour”, makes him sound like a biased idiot. What makes him think that the policies of the Conservative Party with unimpressive Theresa May as its leader is good for the United Kingdom?

          • Richard McGrath 11.1.1.2.1
            21 April 2017 at 8:14 am

            He hasn’t said he hates UK Labour – just that they face electoral annihilation on June 8. It’ll be biblical. I can hardly wait.

  12. Gosman 12
    19 April 2017 at 1:16 am

    For those here who still cling to the illusion this is not about exploiting the weakness of the UK Labour party

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/apr/18/it-could-be-disastrous-labour-mps-nervous-as-poll-countdown-starts

    “In private, a number of senior Labour MPs said they were very worried. One MP said she was in complete shock and felt sick thinking of colleagues at risk of losing their seats in the Midlands.

    A former shadow cabinet minister said he and others in the party were in a “mad panic”, with some colleagues thinking about whether it was possible to replace Corbyn with a caretaker leader in time for the election”

    • DS 12.1
      19 April 2017 at 1:44 am

      In case you haven’t noticed, the Guardian has been trying to destroy Corbyn since before he won election. Corbyn was actually doing OK up until the failed coup against him by the PLP, a PLP that has had the full backing of every major media outlet.

      In context, the article might as well read “Corbyn eats babies for breakfast.”

      • red-blooded 12.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 7:35 am

        Hey, I wish it was that simple, but you’re ignoring the fact that the failed coup was a reaction to dreadful polls. That’s not “doing OK”.

        Corbyn has accepted Brexit, which gives an opportunity to the Lib Dems as the protest party. It would be nice to think that the British public would back Corbyn’s vision of a more caring society, but they’ve given bugger all sign of this so far. I see this election as a painful one for British Labour.

        • DS 12.1.1.1
          19 April 2017 at 3:27 pm

          There were no dreadful polls before the coup (Labour being roughly level with the Tories, or even a point in front). The coup was launched because the PLP have never let Corbyn actually lead, and have sought to undermine him at every opportunity. It simply used the Brexit referendum as an excuse.

  14. Sanctuary 14
    19 April 2017 at 6:10 am

    The first thing I saw in the UK press today was a bunch of whining Labour Blairites wondering out loud if they could dump Corbyn. So, dissent from the PLP. What a surprise. Fuck them, those entitled, arrogant pricks and their cheerleaders in the Guardian like that sanctimonious witch Polly Toynebee look set on delivering on destroying Labour rather than ever allowing it to be socialist again. And when they are done, all the ex-Blairite MPs will get nice new well paying jobs on the boards of newly privatised health companies, where they will blame everyone but themselves for the collapse of the UK left, just before they climb into the Jag to go pick up the kids from boarding school.

    • Anne 14.1
      19 April 2017 at 8:31 am

      You sound like Jonathan Pie.

      My initial thoughts? F***k the British voters. If they are so dammed thick they can’t see what’s coming, then they deserve what’s coming. Mind you, I often think the same about NZ voters. Cynical? Well, when you’ve been around the traps a long time it’s not surprising.

  15. Nzsage 15
    19 April 2017 at 6:19 am

    Seems like I’ve inadvertantly wondered onto “The Gosman Show” website.

    How do I unsubscribe from him?

  16. Ethica 16
    19 April 2017 at 7:37 am

    I suppose the Tories will have the services of Cambridge Analytica to do the individual profiling and fake news messaging to every voter that worked so well for Trump. It is particularly easy to target specific marginal areas.

  17. Carolyn_nth 17
    19 April 2017 at 8:16 am

    Just out on UK news sites.

    Tory MPs face being prosecuted for electoral fraud while they are fighting the upcoming general election campaign

    14 police forces have sent files to the Crown Prosecution Service relating to the Tory 2015 ‘battle bus’ scheme, which it has been alleged led to Tory candidates breaking strict spending limits on elections.

    The CPS is currently reviewing the evidence and considering whether to charge the MPs with breaking the election spending limits, which are put in place to prevent those with wealthy backers from gaining an unfair advantage during general elections.

    A spokesperson for the CPS confirmed to The Independent on Tuesday evening that any charges would have to be made before the date of the general election, which Theresa May wants to hold on 8 June subject to a vote in Parliament tomorrow.

    • Peroxide Blonde 17.1
      19 April 2017 at 9:42 am

      Yes Carolyn, the prospect of daily news items on various prosecutions of up to 30 Tory MPs for electoral fraud would have been a significant factor is May’s calculations.

      With a margin of 12 MPs she would have been concerned about a number of teh prosecutions going all the way.

      “Criminal charges against more than 30 people, including a raft of Conservative MPs and their agents, are being considered by the Crown Prosecution Service over election expenses at the last general election, Channel 4 News can reveal.”

      https://www.channel4.com/news/exclusive-cps-considering-charges-against-over-30-people-including-tory-mps-over-expenses

      • Gosman 17.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 10:46 am

        Alternatively she could have asked all of the impacted MP’s to resign and have by-elections in each electorate and then win them all handsomely given the disarray UK Labour is in.

  18. Gosman 18
    19 April 2017 at 9:12 am

    This article highlights why UK Labour will likely lose big in these elections

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/apr/18/hes-got-no-oomph-corbyn-divides-voters-in-labour-held-lancaster

    ‘ “I don’t like Jeremy Corbyn. It’s just his manner. I don’t think he’s got any oomph about him,” said Susan Dobson, 56, a lollipop lady on the Marsh. She had voted Labour all her life but was thinking of switching her vote, largely because of Theresa May. “I’m not usually a Tory but I think she’s doing a good job. I’ve never voted Tory before but if she could get in again, I will.” ‘

    • DS 18.1
      19 April 2017 at 3:33 pm

      You’re actually correct, though not in the way you think.

      The Tories will win because the mainstream media (including the Guardian, whose article you post) has spent night and day demonising Corbyn. They dig up things (or the Blairite wing of the party) to act as concern trolls.

      (This may conceivably backfire when voters get to see Corbyn in an actual debate, since expectations would be so low).

      • Carolyn_nth 18.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 3:36 pm

        Apparently May says she won’t participate in TV debates for the election.

        • DS 18.1.1.1
          19 April 2017 at 3:45 pm

          Smart (if cowardly) move. Corbyn needs a chance to show himself to voters without the endless negativity.

  19. Gosman 19
    19 April 2017 at 9:23 am

    https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/apr/18/pollsters-believe-general-election-is-foregone-conclusion

    Maybe Corbyn can turn it around in a little over 6 weeks. I believe the term would be ‘Greatest comeback since Lazarus’.

  20. Armada 20
    19 April 2017 at 10:30 am

    On the 4th of May Local Government elections will be run in England, Wales and Scotland.
    The campaigns are already in-flight.

    Labour will be obliterated in Scotland: they will possibly get single digit support. They will have no heart left for the general election. Their only Scottish MP, morose anti-Corbynista Ian Murray in Edinburgh, will loose his seat.
    Scottish Tory Unionists (that now includes Labour) were running an anti 2nd Independence referendum campaign in the Council elections. They will possibly change that to a pro Brexit campaign. Labour Scotland, under Kezia Dugdale, will screw up, be Unionist and side with the Tories.
    The SNP are actually running a local issues campaign but the constitutional issues are never out of range. They too will probably have to adjust their campaign in light of the June GE.
    Fighting Brexit to remain in the EU by having a 2nd Referendum on leaving the UK is what the SNP are about now. They will probably devise a rolling campaign to take the Council seats wins as endorsement for IndyRef#2 and use the GE campaign for a mandate to proceed with #IndyRef2 with or without Teresa May’s consent.

    Teresa May wants a cast iron mandate to negotiate with the EU. She has said she will not allow a Scottish referendum until the exit is fully settled, including the necessary votes in all the European parliaments. The SNP wants the referendum in 18 months when the Brexit settlement is clear. That will allow them to apply to remain in the EU or EFTA or some variation on that theme. They now have huge EU support for being a member.
    Teresa May will use a big GE win to refuse Scotland a referendum. The SNP will have to consider holding the referendum without May’s consent. They might appeal to the UK Supreme Court and/or the European Courts to argue that May cannot withold consent. The SNP and the EU will want Scottish Independence to have ligitimacy.

    The layers of complexity are fascinating.

    • McFlock 20.1
      19 April 2017 at 11:15 am

      interesting comment and a lolfully-appropriate pseudonym 🙂

    • dukeofurl 20.2
      19 April 2017 at 11:55 am

      Armada, werent you the one making crazy predictions about Irish politics 2 months back ?
      How did that turn out ?

      • Armada 20.2.1
        19 April 2017 at 1:42 pm

        Yes, and all in good time.

        “Privately, middle-ground Fianna Fáil TDs accept that they will be the ones to bring Sinn Féin in from the cold in the coming five to 10 years – once, of course, Sinn Féin has moved on from Adams.”
        http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/fianna-fáil-sinn-féin-coalition-only-a-matter-of-time-1.3049498

        In my view, and the view of FFers i chat to, this can happen immediately an election is called.

        Taoiseach Enda Kenny has put back his retirement until the Stormont pawer sharing executive is sorted and the principals of the EU Brexit negotiation terms are set. That would have taken matters to June or so.
        However May’s GE annoucement has messed that plan up. The ripples from May’s call will be felt in Belfast and in Dublin.

        Thank you, O’noble one, for giving me the opportuinity to update this matter.

        • dukeofurl 20.2.1.1
          19 April 2017 at 4:52 pm

          No need . I have put the Irish Times on my tablet screen so I can keep up without your pearls of wisdom andwild speculation.

  21. McFlock 21
    19 April 2017 at 11:09 am

    Gosman rough count: 34 out of 82 comments to tell us resistance is futile.

    Nah, not bovvered at all lol

  22. ropata 22
    19 April 2017 at 1:04 pm

    This twitter thread (discussion between @reckonsemoji and @jordantcarter ) gives a good overview of UK pol omnishambles

    Blair campaigning for the Lib Dems. Labour MPs refusing to endorse their leader. Lib Dem leader embroiled in homophobia and then the Tories.— 🤔 Reckons Emoji (@reckonsemoji) April 18, 2017

    More…

    ?? Reckons Emoji? @reckonsemoji 5h5 hours ago
    Teresa May has looked at her available options and decided to risk it on a public vote. Which, if you recall, worked well for Dave Cameron.

    ?? Reckons Emoji? @reckonsemoji 5h5 hours ago
    It’s the clearest sign of the paucity of ideas in the dark narrow Brexit corridor that is current UK politics.

    ?? Reckons Emoji? @reckonsemoji 5h5 hours ago
    Is Labour about to do worse than 1983? Will the SNP snag those remaining Scotland seats? Are the Lib Dems coming back, the swines? Lordy.

    ?? Reckons Emoji? @reckonsemoji 5h5 hours ago
    EVEN IF THE TORIES WIN THEY STILL HAVE TO DO BREXIT AND THEY DONT WANT TO BECAUSE THEY KNOW IT’LL BE AWFUL AND YET THEY HAVE TO BECAUSE YOLO

    ?? Reckons Emoji? @reckonsemoji 5h5 hours ago
    If Tories win they reset the five year clock on their term, gives them some post-Brexit space to work with. Increased majority would help.

    Jordan Carter? @jordantcarter 5h5 hours ago
    But they will have a bigger buffer against the crazy brexiteers so might have a chance to back off a bit

    ?? Reckons Emoji? @reckonsemoji 5h5 hours ago
    Not really. A50 has been triggered. EU won’t wait, they’re insistent. Tick tock, tick tock…

  23. Michael 23
    19 April 2017 at 1:06 pm

    I think the French election is probably more significant. If Le Pen wins, Europe fragments into fascist baronies again. As for Britain, I think it will fragment too. In the short term (which is the limit of the political horizon in western societies), I think May’s gamble will pay off for her big time, especially if she (and Corbyn) manage to decimate Labour’s seats in the House of Commons. It looks like UKIP and SNP will be the other winners in this contest. After that, Scotland on the way out and a nasty, xenophobic England. What’s not to like about that, if you’re a Tory (which I’m not, so I concede I may have the pathology a bit mixed up)?

    • aerobubble 23.1
      19 April 2017 at 2:48 pm

      What happens to the stay voter? Does Lab target them? unite lab stauch voters with turnoff conservative europeans? May says shes for a soft brexit, so Lab says its for that as well as a final Brexit vote, stay or leave but this time with a real deal for the public to see, none of the mystery of the last referendum. Lab dither or get out in front giving Brits a real referendum on Brexit?

      • DS 23.1.1
        19 April 2017 at 3:38 pm

        Labour is actually between a rock and a hard place on Brexit. Much of Labour’s heartland voted for Brexit, yet its liberal wing are obsessively Remain. Corbyn himself is a Bennite eurosceptic (i.e. he would have campaigned for Brexit had he not been party leader and forced into a particular position).

        • aerobubble 23.1.1.1
          19 April 2017 at 3:44 pm

          Labour back soft brexit with a final referendum on its terms, this would mean an alternative to Mays’ all in approach. Labour brexiters will stay as Labour is for brexit, and lots of eu stayers will vote Lab for the reset referendum.

    • Grafton Gully 23.2
      19 April 2017 at 7:35 pm

      A nasty, xenophobic England where –

      “The individual citizen must again have the sense that, even if he finds himself in the simplest and lowest position, that his life and opportunities are assured. He should see that his own existence is rooted in the existence of his people and that he must serve his people with all his strength.”

      http://research.calvin.edu/german-propaganda-archive/goering1.htm

    • Richard McGrath 23.3
      21 April 2017 at 8:30 am

      “Fascist baronies” – you mean sovereign nations?

  24. peterlepaysan 24
    19 April 2017 at 10:54 pm

    This will be an interesting election.
    The british media are very anti Corbyn, as are a lot of labour mps.
    The labour party membership seem to rather like Corbyn.
    May is a hopeless debater.
    The scottish/EU question circles this debate like indigenous americans circling european wagon trains.
    May was the best compromise choice the tories could come up with, in a hurry.
    May will not go for public (unscripted) speeches.
    The brexit result will have galvanised previous somnolent voters.

    I think I recall Jim Bolger saying “Bugger the polls, the only one that counts is on the day.”

    The smug gosman posts may yet coms back to bite him.

  25. saveNZ 25
    20 April 2017 at 8:48 am

    I don’t know why Labour can’t call for a 2nd referendum on Brexit to clarify if Britain really wants to leave the EU. With such low voting turnout with Brexit, and the media telling everyone that remain had it in the bag – a decision so important for Britain should have been allowed a 2nd referendum vote – that had more Briton’s actually voting.

    If Labour campaign on something like that they might win. EU was not perfect but a Britian under May without the EU is sounding pretty scary. The stupid Brits bought a lot of Brexit onto themselves because like the NZ government they are in denial about migrants coming for work.

    Germany and France had much stricter criteria for work and benefits from other EU countries and did not get the flood of people on their infrastructure. British government said, we want to lower wages in areas like care work and want as many people coming here as possible. The result is a mess, with services like the NHS and welfare grinding to a halt, housing too expensive for those on normal wages and nobody happy with the state of things in Britain.

    As for Corbyn, I am a fan of him as a politician, but when the MSM did the soundbite from him it was calling for more help for those on benefits, disabled and those at the bottom. while completely valid, sadly I think those in the middle want to hear something that includes them because 21st century democracy is not about the government redistributing wealth it is about making the most people better in a country better off and want to vote for you. Having yourself missing from politician’s lips can make it seem like you are irrelevant and not really a reason to rush to the ballot box.

    With the brainwashing of consumerism, the lack of reporting on real issues anymore, the neoliberal ‘economic’ is everything being called from every corner, the increasing ‘charitisation’ of public services like libraries which makes it feel like every day you are being asked for money to support public services (this has an impact on people’s ability to keep giving), sadly the “lets help the bottom” approach Labour takes as a campaign won’t be successful unless they think hard about trying to make Britain better for the most people possible.

    If Labour supported remain, they should campaign on another referendum – many Britons will want that chance to have their say and would vote Labour to stay in the EU.

    And try to get some empathy for those stuck in the middle who are tackling the gig economy, insecurity, weather devastation like floods, reduced services and their tax payers dollars being wasted on crap like Nuclear power stations built by the Chinese and with guaranteed price gouging written in… and in the age of ever falling costs for wind and solar too..

    What can you say, except that the UK politicians seem similar to the National party like Dinosaurs actively trying to get the Meteorite to destroy them faster.

    • Anne 25.1
      20 April 2017 at 9:34 am

      Nice one SaveNZ. I haven’t kept up with British politics to the same extent as many here, but Corbyn is becoming a bit of a disappointment. He doesn’t seem as politically savvy as I imagined him to be. Having said that, I’m well aware of the anti-Corbyn campaign which reminds me of the anti-Cunliffe campaign we experienced in NZ in 2013/14.

      All the anecdotal evidence pointed to a large portion of the British population not bothering to vote because they thought the Remain camp was “home and hosed”. If there was a second referendum I suspect there would be seismic shift in the outcome which surely would settle the matter once and for all so why doesn’t British Labour go for it?

      • Peroxide Blonde 25.1.1
        20 April 2017 at 11:06 am

        Bollocks.

        There is no comparison between the ant-Corbyn sentiments and the nasty ABC shit of Robertson/King and acolytes.

        Cunliffe had great successes in Telecommunications, Immigration and Health ministries. Corbyn ZERO experiences of any type in ministerial roles.

        Cunliffe was an excellent performer in Parliament, whether on his feet and off the cuff or set piece prepared speech. Corbyn in woefully shite in the chamber.

        Cunliffe had a clear overarching strategy and world view based on solid values/
        Corbyn may hold some similar values to Cunliffe but he could not spell Strategy!

        • Anne 25.1.1.1
          20 April 2017 at 3:59 pm

          And bollocks to you too. I was replying to saveNz’s comment @ 25 and was referring to the way Cunliffe was treated by the media (plus some of his colleagues) and the not unsimilar treatment meted out to Corbyn by media (plus some of his colleagues). Nothing to do with their political prowess, competence and former achievements. That’s another subject.

          • Gosman 25.1.1.1.1
            20 April 2017 at 4:46 pm

            Boo hoo. The big bad media is not being nice to our guy. Boo hoo hoo.

          • saveNZ 25.1.1.1.2
            20 April 2017 at 7:02 pm

            I agree with Anne, Cunliffe was treated disgracefully by some in Labour and in particular the media. Now they are doing it to Little.

            There are lessons to learn from it and Corbyn. Very hard to win when your own colleagues are stabbing you in the back, let a lone a relentless media that is propaganda instead of news, and now crying croc tears about fake news.

            The MSM invented fake news, first!!

      • saveNZ 25.1.2
        20 April 2017 at 3:25 pm

        I’m not saying I think Corbyn is not politically saavy, but the MSM are defiantly reporting certain soundbites that don’t include middle Britain.

        I admire Corbyn for his stance and his lack of pandering to polls, BUT, the sad thing is that in UK Labour the middle ground to win is between Corbyn and the UK rabid warmongering Blairite Labourites. That is the fertile ground to win the election!

        Voters are tired of being asked to pay more taxes, when the money is just wasted by politicians for crony out of touch rubbish. Politicians need to do a bit of austerity themselves and wake up to the future.

        For example the nuclear vs sustainable power debacle. What a fuck up! Britain had an early lead in wind power and then they blew it and got side tracked to nuclear.

        They are experts in off shore oil rigs which could easily keep that industry going post peak oil by converting their off shore rigs to wind power. Nope, they screw up and get the Chinese to build them a nuclear plant at 14 billion pounds but also price gouging on the power and the safety aspects – hello global climate change and Fukushima . Toshiba has just gone bankrupt building a nuclear power plan for the US.

        Then Trident, a colossal waste of money, modern warfare is is not having 64 Trident Nukes at a cost of 200 billion pounds. The lesson from Iraq is – you can’t deploy them. Probably drone technology would have been the better investment. But too many fingers in the pie for Trident and Nukes.

        Then getting the Chinese to build major infrastructure like nuclear power for a massive profit.. What sort of defence and economic strategy is this – it’s crony capitalism and stupidity of the worst kind!

        So I’m pretty sure nobody trust politicians decisions anymore!

        UK Labour are better to campaign for austerity for politicians and their stupid decisions than voters pay ing more taxes for politicians stupid decisions.

    • Richard McGrath 25.2
      21 April 2017 at 8:33 am

      And if there was a second Brexit referendum which was narrowly won by the Remain campaign, would you suggest a third vote?

      • saveNZ 25.2.1
        21 April 2017 at 9:01 am

        Nope – it just has to have more than 75% of British citizens for the Leave vote to be carried out with something that important.

        Under Brexit something like 30% of Britain’s did not vote.

        The media told everyone that Remain had it in the bag.

        If they win again to leave with more than 75% of Britons voting it will be a uniting force. At present is seems like a chaotic disaster.

  26. saveNZ 26
    20 April 2017 at 7:20 pm

    I mean I was shocked to see they have UK libraries run by children’s charities now…

    https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/apr/15/i-ordered-50-tiny-tambourines-john-lewis

    For those that think NZ can’t get worse with more power to Tory’s, it can! Look at the UK!

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    Note: this blog post has been put together over the course of the week I followed the happenings at the conference virtually. Should recordings of the Great Debates and possibly Union Symposia mentioned below, be released sometime after the conference ends, I'll include links to the ones I participated in. ...
    Skeptical Science
    20 hours ago

  • Submission on “Fast Track Approvals Bill”
    The following was my submission made on the “Fast Track Approvals Bill”. This potential law will give three Ministers unchecked powers, un-paralled since the days of Robert Muldoon’s “Think Big” projects.The submission is written a bit tongue-in-cheek. But it’s irreverent because the FTAB is in itself not worthy of respect. ...
    Frankly SpeakingBy Frank Macskasy
    21 hours ago

  • The Case for a Universal Family Benefit
    One Could Reduce Child Poverty At No Fiscal CostFollowing the Richardson/Shipley 1990 ‘redesign of the welfare state’ – which eliminated the universal Family Benefit and doubled the rate of child poverty – various income supplements for families have been added, the best known being ‘Working for Families’, introduced in 2005. ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    22 hours ago

  • A who’s who of New Zealand’s dodgiest companies
    Submissions on National's corrupt Muldoonist fast-track law are due today (have you submitted?), and just hours before they close, Infrastructure Minister Chris Bishop has been forced to release the list of companies he invited to apply. I've spent the last hour going through it in an epic thread of bleats, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 day ago

  • On Lee’s watch, Economic Development seems to be stuck on scoring points from promoting sporting e...
    Buzz from the Beehive A few days ago, Point of Order suggested the media must be musing “on why Melissa is mute”. Our article reported that people working in the beleaguered media industry have cause to yearn for a minister as busy as Melissa Lee’s ministerial colleagues and we drew ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago

  • New Zealand has never been closed for business
    1. What was The Curse of Jim Bolger?a. Winston Peters b. Soon after shaking his hand, world leaders would mysteriously lose office or shuffle off this mortal coilc. Could never shake off the Mother of All Budgetsd. Dandruff2. True or false? The Chairman of a Kiwi export business has asked the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 day ago

  • Stop the panic – we’ve been here before
    Jack Vowles writes – New Zealand is said to be suffering from ‘serious populist discontent’. An IPSOS MORI survey has reported that we have an increasing preference for strong leaders, think that the economy is rigged toward the rich and powerful, and political elites are ignoring ‘hard-working people’.  ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    1 day ago

  • Melissa Lee and the media: ending the quest
    Chris Trotter writes –  MELISSA LEE should be deprived of her ministerial warrant. Her handling – or non-handling – of the crisis engulfing the New Zealand news media has been woeful. The fate of New Zealand’s two linear television networks, a question which the Minister of Broadcasting, Communications ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    1 day ago

  • The Hoon around the week to April 19
    TL;DR: The podcast above features co-hosts and , along with regular guests Robert Patman on Gaza and AUKUS II, and on climate change.The six things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago

  • The ‘Humpty Dumpty’ end result of dismantling our environmental protections
    Policymakers rarely wish to make plain or visible their desire to dismantle environmental policy, least of all to the young. Photo: Lynn GrievesonTL;DR: Here’s the top five news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago

  • Nicola's Salad Days.
    I like to keep an eye on what’s happening in places like the UK, the US, and over the ditch with our good mates the Aussies. Let’s call them AUKUS, for want of a better collective term. More on that in a bit.It used to be, not long ago, that ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 day ago

  • Study sees climate change baking in 19% lower global income by 2050
    TL;DR: The global economy will be one fifth smaller than it would have otherwise been in 2050 as a result of climate damage, according to a new study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) and published in the journal Nature. (See more detail and analysis below, and ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 day ago

  • Weekly Roundup 19-April-2024
    It’s Friday again. Here’s some of the things that caught our attention this week. This Week on Greater Auckland On Tuesday Matt covered at the government looking into a long tunnel for Wellington. On Wednesday we ran a post from Oscar Simms on some lessons from Texas. AT’s ...
    Greater AucklandBy Matt L
    1 day ago

  • Jack Vowles: Stop the panic – we’ve been here before
    New Zealand is said to be suffering from ‘serious populist discontent’. An IPSOS MORI survey has reported that we have an increasing preference for strong leaders, think that the economy is rigged toward the rich and powerful, and political elites are ignoring ‘hard-working people’.  The data is from February this ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    1 day ago

  • Clearing up confusion (or trying to)
    Foreign Minister Winston Peters is understood to be planning a major speech within the next fortnight to clear up the confusion over whether or not New Zealand might join the AUKUS submarine project. So far, there have been conflicting signals from the Government. RNZ reported the Prime Minister yesterday in ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    1 day ago

  • How to Retrieve Deleted Call Log iPhone Without Computer
    How to Retrieve Deleted Call Log on iPhone Without a Computer: A Step–by–Step Guide Losing your iPhone call history can be frustrating, especially when you need to find a specific number or recall an important conversation. But before you panic, know that there are ways to retrieve deleted call logs on your iPhone, even without a computer. This guide will explore various methods, ranging from simple checks to utilizing iCloud backups and third–party applications. So, let‘s dive in and recover those lost calls! 1. Check Recently Deleted Folder: Apple understands that accidental deletions happen. That‘s why they introduced the “Recently Deleted“ folder for various apps, including the Phone app. This folder acts as a safety net, storing deleted call logs for up to 30 days before permanently erasing them. Here‘s how to check it: Open the Phone app on your iPhone. Tap on the “Recents“ tab at the bottom. Scroll to the top and tap on “Edit“. Select “Show Recently Deleted“. Browse the list to find the call logs you want to recover. Tap on the desired call log and choose “Recover“ to restore it to your call history. 2. Restore from iCloud Backup: If you regularly back up your iPhone to iCloud, you might be able to retrieve your deleted call log from a previous backup. However, keep in mind that this process will restore your entire phone to the state it was in at the time of the backup, potentially erasing any data added since then. Here‘s how to restore from an iCloud backup: Go to Settings > General > Reset. Choose “Erase All Content and Settings“. Follow the on–screen instructions. Your iPhone will restart and show the initial setup screen. Choose “Restore from iCloud Backup“ during the setup process. Select the relevant backup that contains your deleted call log. Wait for the restoration process to complete. 3. Explore Third–Party Apps (with Caution): ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • How to Factory Reset iPhone without Computer: A Comprehensive Guide to Restoring your Device
    Life throws curveballs, and sometimes, those curveballs necessitate wiping your iPhone clean and starting anew. Whether you’re facing persistent software glitches, preparing to sell your device, or simply wanting a fresh start, knowing how to factory reset iPhone without a computer is a valuable skill. While using a computer with ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • How to Call Someone on a Computer: A Guide to Voice and Video Communication in the Digital Age
    Gone are the days when communication was limited to landline phones and physical proximity. Today, computers have become powerful tools for connecting with people across the globe through voice and video calls. But with a plethora of applications and methods available, how to call someone on a computer might seem ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #16 2024
    Open access notables Glacial isostatic adjustment reduces past and future Arctic subsea permafrost, Creel et al., Nature Communications: Sea-level rise submerges terrestrial permafrost in the Arctic, turning it into subsea permafrost. Subsea permafrost underlies ~ 1.8 million km2 of Arctic continental shelf, with thicknesses in places exceeding 700 m. Sea-level variations over glacial-interglacial cycles control ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago

  • Where on a Computer is the Operating System Generally Stored? Delving into the Digital Home of your ...
    The operating system (OS) is the heart and soul of a computer, orchestrating every action and interaction between hardware and software. But have you ever wondered where on a computer is the operating system generally stored? The answer lies in the intricate dance between hardware and software components, particularly within ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • How Many Watts Does a Laptop Use? Understanding Power Consumption and Efficiency
    Laptops have become essential tools for work, entertainment, and communication, offering portability and functionality. However, with rising energy costs and growing environmental concerns, understanding a laptop’s power consumption is more important than ever. So, how many watts does a laptop use? The answer, unfortunately, isn’t straightforward. It depends on several ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • How to Screen Record on a Dell Laptop A Guide to Capturing Your Screen with Ease
    Screen recording has become an essential tool for various purposes, such as creating tutorials, capturing gameplay footage, recording online meetings, or sharing information with others. Fortunately, Dell laptops offer several built-in and external options for screen recording, catering to different needs and preferences. This guide will explore various methods on ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • How Much Does it Cost to Fix a Laptop Screen? Navigating Repair Options and Costs
    A cracked or damaged laptop screen can be a frustrating experience, impacting productivity and enjoyment. Fortunately, laptop screen repair is a common service offered by various repair shops and technicians. However, the cost of fixing a laptop screen can vary significantly depending on several factors. This article delves into the ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • How Long Do Gaming Laptops Last? Demystifying Lifespan and Maximizing Longevity
    Gaming laptops represent a significant investment for passionate gamers, offering portability and powerful performance for immersive gaming experiences. However, a common concern among potential buyers is their lifespan. Unlike desktop PCs, which allow for easier component upgrades, gaming laptops have inherent limitations due to their compact and integrated design. This ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • Climate Change: Turning the tide
    The annual inventory report of New Zealand's greenhouse gas emissions has been released, showing that gross emissions have dropped for the third year in a row, to 78.4 million tons: All-told gross emissions have decreased by over 6 million tons since the Zero Carbon Act was passed in 2019. ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    2 days ago

  • How to Unlock Your Computer A Comprehensive Guide to Regaining Access
    Experiencing a locked computer can be frustrating, especially when you need access to your files and applications urgently. The methods to unlock your computer will vary depending on the specific situation and the type of lock you encounter. This guide will explore various scenarios and provide step-by-step instructions on how ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • Faxing from Your Computer A Modern Guide to Sending Documents Digitally
    While the world has largely transitioned to digital communication, faxing still holds relevance in certain industries and situations. Fortunately, gone are the days of bulky fax machines and dedicated phone lines. Today, you can easily send and receive faxes directly from your computer, offering a convenient and efficient way to ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • Protecting Your Home Computer A Guide to Cyber Awareness
    In our increasingly digital world, home computers have become essential tools for work, communication, entertainment, and more. However, this increased reliance on technology also exposes us to various cyber threats. Understanding these threats and taking proactive steps to protect your home computer is crucial for safeguarding your personal information, finances, ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • Server-Based Computing Powering the Modern Digital Landscape
    In the ever-evolving world of technology, server-based computing has emerged as a cornerstone of modern digital infrastructure. This article delves into the concept of server-based computing, exploring its various forms, benefits, challenges, and its impact on the way we work and interact with technology. Understanding Server-Based Computing: At its core, ...
    Gareth’s WorldBy admin
    2 days ago

  • Vroom vroom go the big red trucks
    The absolute brass neck of this guy.We want more medical doctors, not more spin doctors, Luxon was saying a couple of weeks ago, and now we’re told the guy has seven salaried adults on TikTok duty. Sorry, doing social media. The absolute brass neck of it. The irony that the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    2 days ago

  • Jones finds $410,000 to help the government muscle in on a spat project
    Buzz from the Beehive Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones relishes spatting and eagerly takes issue with environmentalists who criticise his enthusiasm for resource development. He relishes helping the fishing industry too. And so today, while the media are making much of the latest culling in the public service to ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    2 days ago

  • Again, hate crimes are not necessarily terrorism.
    Having written, taught and worked for the US government on issues involving unconventional warfare and terrorism for 30-odd years, two things irritate me the most when the subject is discussed in public. The first is the Johnny-come-lately academics-turned-media commentators who … Continue reading → ...
    KiwipoliticoBy Pablo
    2 days ago

  • Despair – construction consenting edition
    Eric Crampton writes – Kainga Ora is the government’s house building agency. It’s been building a lot of social housing. Kainga Ora has its own (but independent) consenting authority, Consentium. It’s a neat idea. Rather than have to deal with building consents across each different territorial authority, Kainga Ora ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Coalition promises – will the Govt keep the commitment to keep Kiwis equal before the law?
    Muriel Newman writes – The Coalition Government says it is moving with speed to deliver campaign promises and reverse the damage done by Labour. One of their key commitments is to “defend the principle that New Zealanders are equal before the law.” To achieve this, they have pledged they “will not advance ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • An impermanent public service is a guarantee of very little else but failure
    Chris Trotter writes –  The absence of anything resembling a fightback from the public servants currently losing their jobs is interesting. State-sector workers’ collective fatalism in the face of Coalition cutbacks indicates a surprisingly broad acceptance of impermanence in the workplace. Fifty years ago, lay-offs in the thousands ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • What happens after the war – Mariupol
    Mariupol, on the Azov Sea coast, was one of the first cities to suffer almost complete destruction after the start of the Ukraine War started in late February 2022. We remember the scenes of absolute destruction of the houses and city structures. The deaths of innocent civilians – many of ...
    Open ParachuteBy Ken
    2 days ago

  • Babies and benefits – no good news
    Lindsay Mitchell writes – Ten years ago, I wrote the following in a Listener column: Every year around one in five new-born babies will be reliant on their caregivers benefit by Christmas. This pattern has persisted from at least 1993. For Maori the number jumps to over one in three.  ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    2 days ago

  • Should the RBNZ be looking through climate inflation?
    Climate change is expected to generate more and more extreme events, delivering a sort of structural shock to inflation that central banks will have to react to as if they were short-term cyclical issues. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāMy pick of the six newsey things to know from Aotearoa’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • Bernard's pick 'n' mix of the news links
    The top six news links I’ve seen elsewhere in the last 24 hours, as of 9:16 am on Thursday, April 18 are:Housing: Tauranga residents living in boats, vans RNZ Checkpoint Louise TernouthHousing: Waikato councillor says wastewater plant issues could hold up Sleepyhead building a massive company town Waikato Times Stephen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the public sector carnage, and misogyny as terrorism
    It’s a simple deal. We pay taxes in order to finance the social services we want and need. The carnage now occurring across the public sector though, is breaking that contract. Over 3,000 jobs have been lost so far. Many are in crucial areas like Education where the impact of ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    2 days ago

  • Meeting the Master Baiters
    Hi,A friend had their 40th over the weekend and decided to theme it after Curb Your Enthusiasm fashion icon Susie Greene. Captured in my tiny kitchen before I left the house, I ending up evoking a mix of old lesbian and Hillary Clinton — both unintentional.Me vs Hillary ClintonIf you’re ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    2 days ago

  • How extreme was the Earth's temperature in 2023
    This is a re-post from Andrew Dessler at the Climate Brink blog In 2023, the Earth reached temperature levels unprecedented in modern times. Given that, it’s reasonable to ask: What’s going on? There’s been lots of discussions by scientists about whether this is just the normal progression of global warming or if something ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago

  • Backbone, revisited
    The schools are on holiday and the sun is shining in the seaside village and all day long I have been seeing bunches of bikes; Mums, Dads, teens and toddlers chattering, laughing, happy, having a bloody great time together. Cheers, AT, for the bits of lane you’ve added lately around the ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago

  • Ministers are not above the law
    Today in our National-led authoritarian nightmare: Shane Jones thinks Ministers should be above the law: New Zealand First MP Shane Jones is accusing the Waitangi Tribunal of over-stepping its mandate by subpoenaing a minister for its urgent hearing on the Oranga Tamariki claim. The tribunal is looking into the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago

  • What’s the outfit you can hear going down the gurgler? Probably it’s David Parker’s Oceans Sec...
    Buzz from the Beehive Point  of Order first heard of the Oceans Secretariat in June 2021, when David Parker (remember him?) announced a multi-agency approach to protecting New Zealand’s marine ecosystems and fisheries. Parker (holding the Environment, and Oceans and Fisheries portfolios) broke the news at the annual Forest & ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    3 days ago

  • PM’s South East Asia mission does the business
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has completed a successful trip to Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, deepening relationships and capitalising on opportunities. Mr Luxon was accompanied by a business delegation and says the choice of countries represents the priority the New Zealand Government places on South East Asia, and our relationships in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    8 hours ago

  • $41m to support clean energy in South East Asia
    New Zealand is demonstrating its commitment to reducing global greenhouse emissions, and supporting clean energy transition in South East Asia, through a contribution of NZ$41 million (US$25 million) in climate finance to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-led Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM). Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts announced ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Minister releases Fast-track stakeholder list
    The Government is today releasing a list of organisations who received letters about the Fast-track applications process, says RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop. “Recently Ministers and agencies have received a series of OIA requests for a list of organisations to whom I wrote with information on applying to have a ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Judicial appointments announced
    Attorney-General Judith Collins today announced the appointment of Wellington Barrister David Jonathan Boldt as a Judge of the High Court, and the Honourable Justice Matthew Palmer as a Judge of the Court of Appeal. Justice Boldt graduated with an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington in 1990, and also holds ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Education Minister heads to major teaching summit in Singapore
    Education Minister Erica Stanford will lead the New Zealand delegation at the 2024 International Summit on the Teaching Profession (ISTP) held in Singapore. The delegation includes representatives from the Post Primary Teachers’ Association (PPTA) Te Wehengarua and the New Zealand Educational Institute (NZEI) Te Riu Roa.  The summit is co-hosted ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Value of stopbank project proven during cyclone
    A stopbank upgrade project in Tairawhiti partly funded by the Government has increased flood resilience for around 7000ha of residential and horticultural land so far, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones today attended a dawn service in Gisborne to mark the end of the first stage of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Anzac commemorations, Türkiye relationship focus of visit
    Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters will represent the Government at Anzac Day commemorations on the Gallipoli Peninsula next week and engage with senior representatives of the Turkish government in Istanbul.    “The Gallipoli campaign is a defining event in our history. It will be a privilege to share the occasion ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Minister to Europe for OECD meeting, Anzac Day
    Science, Innovation and Technology and Defence Minister Judith Collins will next week attend the OECD Science and Technology Ministerial conference in Paris and Anzac Day commemorations in Belgium. “Science, innovation and technology have a major role to play in rebuilding our economy and achieving better health, environmental and social outcomes ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Comprehensive Partnership the goal for NZ and the Philippines
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with the President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos Jr.  The Prime Minister was accompanied by MP Paulo Garcia, the first Filipino to be elected to a legislature outside the Philippines. During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon and President Marcos Jr discussed opportunities to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government commits $20m to Westport flood protection
    The Government has announced that $20 million in funding will be made available to Westport to fund much needed flood protection around the town. This measure will significantly improve the resilience of the community, says Local Government Minister Simeon Brown. “The Westport community has already been allocated almost $3 million ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Taupō takes pole position
    The Government is proud to support the first ever Repco Supercars Championship event in Taupō as up to 70,000 motorsport fans attend the Taupō International Motorsport Park this weekend, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. “Anticipation for the ITM Taupō Super400 is huge, with tickets and accommodation selling out weeks ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Cost of living support for low-income homeowners
    Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced an increase to the Rates Rebate Scheme, putting money back into the pockets of low-income homeowners.  “The coalition Government is committed to bringing down the cost of living for New Zealanders. That includes targeted support for those Kiwis who are doing things tough, such ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government backing mussel spat project
    The Coalition Government is investing in a project to boost survival rates of New Zealand mussels and grow the industry, Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones has announced. “This project seeks to increase the resilience of our mussels and significantly boost the sector’s productivity,” Mr Jones says. “The project - ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Government focused on getting people into work
    Benefit figures released today underscore the importance of the Government’s plan to rebuild the economy and have 50,000 fewer people on Jobseeker Support, Social Development and Employment Minister Louise Upston says. “Benefit numbers are still significantly higher than when National was last in government, when there was about 70,000 fewer ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Clean energy key driver to reducing emissions
    The Government’s commitment to doubling New Zealand’s renewable energy capacity is backed by new data showing that clean energy has helped the country reach its lowest annual gross emissions since 1999, Climate Change Minister Simon Watts says. New Zealand’s latest Greenhouse Gas Inventory (1990-2022) published today, shows gross emissions fell ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Earthquake-prone buildings review brought forward
    The Government is bringing the earthquake-prone building review forward, with work to start immediately, and extending the deadline for remediations by four years, Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk says. “Our Government is focused on rebuilding the economy. A key part of our plan is to cut red tape that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Thailand and NZ to agree to Strategic Partnership
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and his Thai counterpart, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, have today agreed that New Zealand and the Kingdom of Thailand will upgrade the bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership by 2026. “New Zealand and Thailand have a lot to offer each other. We have a strong mutual desire to build ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Government consults on extending coastal permits for ports
    RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Transport Minister Simeon Brown have today announced the Coalition Government’s intention to extend port coastal permits for a further 20 years, providing port operators with certainty to continue their operations. “The introduction of the Resource Management Act in 1991 required ports to obtain coastal ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Inflation coming down, but more work to do
    Today’s announcement that inflation is down to 4 per cent is encouraging news for Kiwis, but there is more work to be done - underlining the importance of the Government’s plan to get the economy back on track, acting Finance Minister Chris Bishop says. “Inflation is now at 4 per ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • School attendance restored as a priority in health advice
    Refreshed health guidance released today will help parents and schools make informed decisions about whether their child needs to be in school, addressing one of the key issues affecting school attendance, says Associate Education Minister David Seymour. In recent years, consistently across all school terms, short-term illness or medical reasons ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Unnecessary bureaucracy cut in oceans sector
    Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is streamlining high-level oceans management while maintaining a focus on supporting the sector’s role in the export-led recovery of the economy. “I am working to realise the untapped potential of our fishing and aquaculture sector. To achieve that we need to be smarter with ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • Patterson promoting NZ’s wool sector at International Congress
    Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson is speaking at the International Wool Textile Organisation Congress in Adelaide, promoting New Zealand wool, and outlining the coalition Government’s support for the revitalisation the sector.    "New Zealand’s wool exports reached $400 million in the year to 30 June 2023, and the coalition Government ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • Removing red tape to help early learners thrive
    The Government is making legislative changes to make it easier for new early learning services to be established, and for existing services to operate, Associate Education Minister David Seymour says. The changes involve repealing the network approval provisions that apply when someone wants to establish a new early learning service, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • RMA changes to cut coal mining consent red tape
    Changes to the Resource Management Act will align consenting for coal mining to other forms of mining to reduce barriers that are holding back economic development, Resources Minister Shane Jones says. “The inconsistent treatment of coal mining compared with other extractive activities is burdensome red tape that fails to acknowledge ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    4 days ago

  • McClay reaffirms strong NZ-China trade relationship
    Trade, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Todd McClay has concluded productive discussions with ministerial counterparts in Beijing today, in support of the New Zealand-China trade and economic relationship. “My meeting with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao reaffirmed the complementary nature of the bilateral trade relationship, with our Free Trade Agreement at its ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Prime Minister Luxon acknowledges legacy of Singapore Prime Minister Lee
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon today paid tribute to Singapore’s outgoing Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.   Meeting in Singapore today immediately before Prime Minister Lee announced he was stepping down, Prime Minister Luxon warmly acknowledged his counterpart’s almost twenty years as leader, and the enduring legacy he has left for Singapore and South East ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • PMs Luxon and Lee deepen Singapore-NZ ties
    Prime Minister Christopher Luxon held a bilateral meeting today with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. While in Singapore as part of his visit to South East Asia this week, Prime Minister Luxon also met with Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and will meet with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.  During today’s meeting, Prime Minister Luxon ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    5 days ago

  • Antarctica New Zealand Board appointments
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