What did you make of the PM's speech?
Nicky's at the Labour conference in Brighton today and on the Phone-in at 9 we're asking: What did you make of Gordon Brown's speech?
If you didn't have chance to listen to it - you can hear the whole speech here. And you can listen to John Pienaar's analysis, as well as Ed Miliband's reaction.
Has he convinced you to give Labour another chance? What did you make of the policy announcements?
Text 85058 and call 0500 909 693 from 8.30am. Or, you can use our brand new service - 5 live Now - which collects together all the discussion around the phone-in and displays it on one page.
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5LNPI: Pre-Budget Report 10 Dec 09
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Are you feeling bruised or boosted this morning? The pre-Budget report has proposed a further National Insurance rise of half a percent and a 1% cap on public pay settlements from 2011. There's a new 50% tax on banker bonuses and the state pension's to rise by 2.5% Do you think this is a step in the right direction or are you losing out with these plans? Here's what you had to say.
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And that was the best he could do? If Brown thinks that anyone sane will be taken in by that load of old rubbish, he is more deluded than I thought possible. Hostels for young single mothers? How about stopping any benefits or housing or making the mothers the responsibility of their parents? Where is the money for the social care coming from? It was all hogwash.
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SUN DUMPS GORDON Does Sun owner Rupert Murdoch think he can lead his readers that easily? His son declared several months ago that the BBC should have less influence. Since then the Tories have indicated they will reduce BBC resources. What’s more, when some years ago, the unpopular and beset PM John Major was unexpectedly returned to power, Murdoch’s paper claimed ‘ It was the Sun wot won it’.
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Gordon Brown is delusional
When he talks about Conservative fundamentalism on markets, yet no Conservative ever said.....
" I want to work with you so that over time we apply the concept of risk not just to the enforcement of regulation, but also to the design and indeed to the decision as to whether to regulate at all.”....
Gordon Brown did in his speech to the CBI, 15 May 2007.
He witters on about his parents not being able to afford a private education for him, but forgets it was he who marshalled Scottish MP's to vote tuition fees and top up fees on English students. Then boasts about devolution.
He produces a shopping list without a price, yet forgets that we have a massive budget deficit.
He boasts about the minimum wage, yet forgets Labours mass immigration policy has undermined wages at the bottom.
He boasts about all the people in work, yet forgets that most of the new jobs created have gone to immigrants.
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I've had to switch the moan-in off. Kinnock is turning my stomach. He said he's known low wages. When? During his childhood paper round? For someone like him, who's milked the European taxpayer-funded gravy train with relish, along with his wife, is positively galling. Talk about a kick in the delicates for the ordinary worker!
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No disrespect to her good self but, at 20, what does Miss Benn know about life to represent a tract of people from a large corss-section of society; rich, poor, entrepreneurial, employed, unemployed - the whole spectrum?
I didn't graduate until I was 22 and entered the "real" world largely without a clue. She may have a lot to offer but I can't see the good people of EWAS going, "M'yes - let's send little more than an inexperienced child up to represent our older, wiser views.
I can't help but feel that she's a political pawn in the devisive Harmans wacky agenda.
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Whoah! Lord Kinnock got a bit shouty there! Perhaps he doth protest too much!
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Tempus - she's not even 20 yet! All this stuff from Brown about getting rid of the hereditaries obviously doesn't apply to MPs (and wannabe MPs) - this 19 yr old is there because she is a scion of the Wedgewood Benn family.
Enough of Kinnock and his faux outrage and passion. Windbag.
I hope you saw Ed Miliband's excruatingly bad performance on Newsnight last night - Paxman skewered him. Well worth a watch if you missed it.
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Aren't all political speeches so out of date!! How do they imagine that getting up and spouting words can change what has happened in this once wonderful country, are we all so gullible? Words come very cheaply to politicians and mean absolutely nothing,
Gordon Brown is in the wrong job, he should have followed his father into the pulpit. He would have been better to suited to preaching to empty pews. He could have done far less harm.
PS. Please someone tell Nicky to stop buttering up the Welsh Windbag !!!!!!
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Sarnia - I watched Paxman take Milliband to pieces last night. It was a joy to see someone who knows what he is talking about make a puffed up Labour MP squirm.
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Poor Ed kept saying "let me finish my point" hoping Jeremy would interrupt him and get him off the hook!
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I enjoyed it so much Zelda that I rewound it and watched it again!
You're right Haesten - he kept saying "if you would let me make my point" when Paxman was totally silent! It was very funny.
Obviously Miliband was extremely uncomfortable and it was a tool he employed to try and give him time to think.
I can't believe that these Nooo Labour callers/supporters on the programme are representative (percentage wise) of the nation as a whole?
I don't know anyone who plans to vote for them next year.
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Nor me Sarnia. Most people I know won't be bothering to vote for anyone because nobody from any party listens to what the real problems in this country are.
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The arrogance of Michael Meacher (just now on the programme) beggers belief!
He should take a good, long hard listen to himself and learn from his pompous and rude performance towards that caller from Wales (for example) exactly why people think that politicians like him are a species apart and what's more live on a different planet.
Go on, Meacher - do yourself a favour; listen to what you said and how you came across and LEARN.
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Well done, Michael Meacher. He stuck to the facts, he used them to attenuate the over-the -top comments of a disillusioned labour party member; apparent lack of the detested 'spin'. It may have something to do with the fact that he no longer has to lie to keep his position in the Cabinet. Most of us are heartily sick of listening to politicians feeding us schoolboy lies and expecting us to believe them. Gordon Brown is the epitome of this attitude. He is so unpopular that he has damaged the Labour Party almost as much as Tony Blair. The party know this this very well, but are frightened to grasp the nettle and deal with it because they would make their position even weaker if they had a leadership struggle so close to the election. Is a dark period of the dreaded Tories(by those of us who know them) inevitable?
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Brown - An apotheosis.... and political mastermind excellent speech!
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Rhetorically, the prime minister's speech pressed all the right buttons; he managed to hold attention with clear contrasts. And he came out smiling. But we all know that this is a department in which Gordon Brown has more than his fair share of problems, largely because he's often unable to marshal the smile in a natural fashion. With gestures he was quite convincing. He used a lot of knuckle displays, particularly when talking about antisocial behaviour. The important story comes in the unintended giveaways. It's very difficult to fake your moods. Throughout Brown's speech you could see that unexpressive look in his eyes, almost sadness, which gave the lie to all his optimistic pronouncements. When he mentioned Tony Blair he concluded with a "mouth purse" – a characteristic habit of drawing his lips together, clear evidence of his desire to say nothing more about the subject.
Colin Samuel @ at Ramada Jarvis Hotel in York
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My code name jaksunjon did not appear on the blog. Has there been an error in my application or in the posting?( Item responding to Michael Meacher on Nicky Cambell's programme this morning.)
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According to opinion polls, immigration is a major concern across the country but, as yet, I haven't heard any coverage by the Liberals or Labour or the BBC. I admit I haven't heard everything broadcast so maybe I have just been unlucky?
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Usual Rubbish from Labour. If he wants to get tough on crime, they should build more jails and throw complete scum families in them for years till the lessons have been learnt. Or send the more violent thugs on our streets to Afghanisthan. If they want to kill or injure people, let them do it on the Taliband and for each one they send they can bring a decent soldier home. 30 yrs ago young thugs used to be scared off the police now they stick 2 fingers up at the law. Enough is enough. Had to turn the phone in off...listening to that other complete waste of space and loser kinnock who clearly (like brown) has not got a clue was laughable. Could'nt they find a more prominent Labour MP to do the phone in? not a has-been. Labour won't be winning me over, quicker they are gone the better for the UK.
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"Tempus - she's not even 20 yet!"
She will be after next Sunday - and by the election. I've just read that she's in her first year at Oxford (studying a politics-based degree) so how does she propose to fit being a full-time MP in with being a full-time ssecond then third year politics undergrad?
Do we really need yet another MP who goes straight from a politics degree to a political career, albeit missing out the internship and advisor position, a la Jack Straw?
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It's no wonder the country is financially in the state it is in, when laybore seem incapable of basic math.
£700,000 to go to 350,000 pensioners with dementia etc. to stay in their homes and receive the care they need.
So, that is £2000 per person per years
Or, £38.46 a week.
Some care that is!!
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"You're right Haesten - he kept saying "if you would let me make my point""
You mean he had one...?
"Brown - An apotheosis.... and political mastermind excellent speech!"
Sadly, your sarcasm hasn't carried on pressing the Post Comment button!
"According to opinion polls, immigration is a major concern across the country but, as yet, I haven't heard any coverage by the Liberals or Labour or the BBC."
Probably because, despite assertions to the contrary, they really aren't interested in listening to us, or taking onboard what we think and are concerned about; they are only interested in imposing what they think is best for us (or them, more properly) and telling us what to think.
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· 21. At 11:09am on 30 Sep 2009, Bee_A_Bee wrote:
It's no wonder the country is financially in the state it is in, when laybore seem incapable of basic math.
£700,000 to go to 350,000 pensioners with dementia etc. to stay in their homes and receive the care they need.
So, that is £2000 per person per years
Or, £38.46 a week.
Some care that is!!
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· 23. At 11:19am on 30 Sep 2009, Bee_A_Bee wrote:
·21. At 11:09am on 30 Sep 2009, Bee_A_Bee wrote:
It's no wonder the country is financially in the state it is in, when laybore seem incapable of basic math.
£700,000 to go to 350,000 pensioners with dementia etc. to stay in their homes and receive the care they need.
So, that is £2000 per person per years
Or, £38.46 a week.
Some care that is!!
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I'm afraid that Mr Brown is a drowning man clutching at straws. Yes, Labour HAVE achieved a great deal during their tenure, but they have also made important mistakes. I believe the total government has underestimated British peoples feeling on being in a war of choice, ie, Iraq/Afghanistan. The millions spent (and still being spent) have taken the UK into deficit, very badly. Alternativelty, the money could have been used for domestic issues such as hospitals and schools.
Yesterday he PROMISED a referendum on Proportional Representation. The Labour Government also promised the UK a referendum on the EU Constitution. They broke this promise so why should anyone believe him about this latest promise.
Finally, the Labour Party and Tony Blair LIED to the UK people about 45 minutes to WMD. I'm afraid that things things, along with the state of the economy and tee MPs expense scandal have destined GB et al to Her Majesty's Opposition.
I personally believe he is intelectually blind to the these issues and should resign before the next election.
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· 18. At 10:45am on 30 Sep 2009, Friston wrote:
According to opinion polls, immigration is a major concern across the country but, as yet, I haven't heard any coverage by the Liberals or Labour or the BBC. I admit I haven't heard everything broadcast so maybe I have just been unlucky?
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· 24. At 11:25am on 30 Sep 2009, Bee_A_Bee wrote:
·23. At 11:19am on 30 Sep 2009, Bee_A_Bee wrote:
·21. At 11:09am on 30 Sep 2009, Bee_A_Bee wrote:
It's no wonder the country is financially in the state it is in, when laybore seem incapable of basic math.
£700,000 to go to 350,000 pensioners with dementia etc. to stay in their homes and receive the care they need.
So, that is £2000 per person per years
Or, £38.46 a week.
Some care that is!!
Gotcha!
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Tempus - re your comment no. 20. Did you read my post? I agree with you; I was pointing out that she is currently 19 (and therefore IMHO far too young).
Unless you were preaching to the converted?
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Nah - it's just where I come from, if you're a couple of months let alone a couple of days shy of a birthday you stop being knows as "x years old" and upgrade to the shiny new "y years old."
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"Yesterday he PROMISED a referendum on Proportional Representation. The Labour Government also promised the UK a referendum on the EU Constitution. They broke this promise so why should anyone believe him about this latest promise."
Strictly speaking, it wasn't PR but "alternative vote." According to Pewter Allen, et al, repeatedly yesterday this has been mentioned in previous LAbour manifestos and not come to anything so you are almost certainly spot on.
Don't forget - it was this government who sent their barrister (at our expense) into court to argue that a promise in a manifesto was not a promise at all and in no way formed any sort of contract or undertaking, binding or otherwise. In short, on the back of the ensuing judgement in the case (on the Lisbon referendum promise) the Labour government set down that anything in a manifesto was nothing more than words - at least as far as a Labour manifesto goes. Their pledges are thus reduced to being not worth the paper they're printed on. Tells you all you need to know about the folly of voting for that party ever again.
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why do we have democracy, when rupert murdoch is apparently dictating its outcome.
why bother with elections now that the sun has said it supports the more extreme (if that was ever possible) neo conservative ideologues in the tory party.
real analysis of the suns (wot did it) is actually a case of supporting after the fact rather than any prediction .. and from there on .
so what has cameron offered murdoch for the support - we know what blair gave.
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Such is my distrust in any politicians right now ( from whichever party )that these kinds of speeches completely wash over me.
Why is it so hard to get through to them about such things as anti social behaviour ?
As for political lightweights such as Cameron and Osborne doing any better ? I just can't see it myself, even with the backing of Murdoch and his rag ' The Sun '.
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Purvee Pattni:
I watched Gordon Brown's speech and, its was very much important....
~Dennis Junior~
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...btw what exactly was the strategy of Cameron and his sidekick Osborne in answer to the banking crisis ?
Oh I know do nothing and just let the banks go to the wall and people lose their savings.
Brilliant !!!
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A quite upbeat speech. Hostels for single mothers was a good idea. They find the money for it in Sweden, so they can find the money for it here. Maybe the electorate will defy the Sun and the Star and vote them back in again. Broken Britain will take money to solve its problems, and the Conservatives are the party of cuts, so they don't have the answer.
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The Tories are the Party of cuts with no policies.
I bet The Sun readers can't wait to vote ?
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"A quite upbeat speech. Hostels for single mothers was a good idea."
Apparently Gordon pinched this policy from the BNP.
What next, British jobs for British workers?
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Oh I know do nothing and just let the banks go to the wall and people lose their savings.
Leonard-Zelig you shouldn't believe Labpur party propaganda, who seem intent on creating straw men they can rubbish.
The Conservativers felt that Northern Rock should have been saved by the banks who were interested in taking it over. Llyods made a proposal yet Brown and Darling never bothered to get back to them on it.
As for the wider economy the Conservatives were very strongly for the Government to create a large credit insurance scheme, much larger than that which Labour eventually got around of doing, to ensure funds were made available to the businesses that needed it as they rightly saw the problem was a credit crunch. The mickey mouse schemes Labour have come up with are incidental where the economy is concerned, unfortunately they do a great deal of damage to our budget deficit.
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"Hostels for single mothers was a good idea"
Cheapjack weren't they called workhouses in past times?
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'Cheapjack weren't they called workhouses in past times?'
I don't think they're called that in Sweden.
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It was a good rallying call.There will be a price to pay if the Conservatives get in.
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I think it was the best speech I heard by a Labour leader since Kinnock, there's absolutely no doubt now that Labour will finish third and that the Liberals will be sitting opposite the new Conservative govt in 2010. Gordon Brown will go down in history as the man who sank Labour, and I suggest we should thank him by putting his statue on the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square.
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"Tempus Fugit wrote:
No disrespect to her good self but, at 20, what does Miss Benn know about life to represent a tract of people from a large corss-section of society; rich, poor, entrepreneurial, employed, unemployed - the whole spectrum?"
Nothing much, she's the very rich daughter of a very rich father who inherited his wealth from the same man Tony Benn did. And of course the Right Honourable Anthony Wedgewood Benn had a dad who was an MP, and uncle Hilary was also in the cabinet, so whe knows all the right people to get in.
I should think she will get on well with Harperson, another person who has inherited her "right" to power.
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So the Sun is no longer supporting Labour. Excellent. Its been an embarrassment to Labour supporters for a long time. Even if I were not a Labour supporter, its departure would probably persuade me to vote Labour.
Enough of the cow-towing to this Australo-American non-resident pretender to the crown of British media.
No doubt the paper will have some influence, but largely its the case that Murdoch has smelt the wind, as he did in 1997, decided who will win, and decided he will back them. He doesnt want the embarrassment of backing what he perceives as a loser. What a craven attitude.
Good riddance.....etc.
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Gordon Brown was the man who encouraged de-regulation and an economy based on credit. Having set fire to the house, he now wants credit because he is standing by with a bucket of water. Sure New Labour have spent more on services than the Tories, but most of it has been wasted in admin, bureaucracy and highly paid consultancy jobs, with little capital legacy left behind to show. With the incapacity benefit claimants, we have 6 million people on the dole, not 2-3m. This is a huge drain on taxes, partly fuelled by the wanton open door immigration policy. We all know that the tories dont have much of a clue, but New labour has been an unmitigated disaster, they may well have wrecked the country beyond the point where it can be salvaged, by anyone.
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'they may well have wrecked the country beyond the point where it can be salvaged, by anyone'
Another one who is pretending to be an ex labour supporter! Gordon Brown should be given a knighthood. He has stopped a world depression and this was acknowledged last week.
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"Broken Britain will take money to solve its problems"
And who is it that created this "broken Britain?" We never heard the term pre-1997...
"Cheapjack weren't they called workhouses in past times?"
They existed as recently as the mid-90s. They were called Magdalene Asylums, mainly in Ireland but they existed also in England.
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"There will be a price to pay if the Conservatives get in."
Indeed - that massive debt of Gordons, to start with.
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Imagine if the tories had been in power during the start of the banking crisis and had just sat on their hands and let the banks fail.
Now that's what you would call an unmitigated disaster.
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"He has stopped a world depression and this was acknowledged last week."
Using borrowed money to stave off the bailiffs just means more bailiffs will turn up at a later date.
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'They existed as recently as the mid-90s. They were called Magdalene Asylums, mainly in Ireland but they existed also in England.'
They weren't workhouses and they aren't in Sweden.
'Indeed - that massive debt of Gordons, to start with.'
Which will be paid off by 2015. Without making the working poor and those on benefits lick the roads clean for their breakfasts, as the conservatives will undoubtedly do.
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Since my eligibility to vote I have always voted Labour, but the truth of the matter has been that it was easy to vote Labour as the party had a leader in every sense of the word. Mr Blair was a great orator (regardless of your political persuasion you have to concede that he was a fabulous speaker). He was always on the offensive during negative news stories, the first on Radio 4 or other such media defending the party and government. The issue with Mr Brown is that he isn't a leader, there have been numerous occassions during his leadership for him to show genuine leadership (one thinks of the missing data drives, the MPs scandal as reference points) and he seemed to retreat into his shell and let others do the job for him. The problem that he has is that the front bench which rode into power in 1997 had a line of talented speakers such as the late Robin Cook, Jack Straw, Mo Molam, Peter Mandleson and the great Alistar Campbell. The current front bench seems to resemble a transition team with 1 or 2 world class poliiticians. I am resigned to a Conservative win and accept this as a necessary part of democracy. However, look forward to the next big Labour project and vision. Preferably under a Leader who can command the troops and does not go missing in the parties darkest hours. Gordon sometimes a person needs to accept they are great at some things and there are other things that do not suit them. The world of work is littered with similar examples there are great technicians who do not suit management roles. Likewise there are good managers who are poor technicians. The trick is knowing which one you are.
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........Gordon Brown was the man who encouraged de-regulation and an economy based on credit. Having set fire to the house, he now wants credit because he is standing by with a bucket of water..........
Better a bucket of water than the petrol Cameron and Osborne would pour on the blaze.
Labour may be hated for not having seen the crash coming but it doesn't follow that the Tories have the answer. Cameron and Osborne are lightweights.
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" Better a bucket of water than the petrol Cameron and Osborne would pour on the blaze. "
Remember the Conservatives 2005 manifesto sought to moderate Government spending by taking £20 billion off the increases that Labour planned. This is not pourng petrol on the inferno of Labour's spending , and though not the solution in its own, if the Conservatives had been elected in 2005 we would have been in a much better place to weather the credit crunch now. Of course just as then, Gordon Brown is trying the same trick as he pulled in 2005, then claiming whole sale sacking of Teachers, Doctors and Nurses and closure of Schools 'n' Hospitals from 'Tory cuts' a lie then just as Brown being dishonset now in his representation of Conservative policy now.
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"Imagine if the tories had been in power during the start of the banking crisis and had just sat on their hands and let the banks fail."
Imagine what? Who says they'd have sat on their hands. The only people who say what the Tories would do are Labourites desperate to cling onto power so they can finish the destruction they started. No-one can say what the Tories would have done because they haven't been in power for twelve years (and, for those at the conference who clearly haven't noticed, Thatcher hasn't been in power for nigh on eighteen years). In the interim they've changed leaders, direction and thinking so who the heck knows what they'd have done on anything for the last decade or so? Speculation by Labour is just a means of trying to deflect from their own failings and inadequacies. Perhaps the Tories kept a low profile during the banking crisis (hmmm - now, just who was it created a paper tiger in the FSA and loosened regulation...?) because they are fed up with Labour nicking all their ideas and thought, "The government is unpopular, we're not far off an election, we're riding quite high; let's leave 'em to sink or swim on their ownsome." Because I sure as hell would've - when your opponent's on the ropes you don't give them a hand up.
===============================================================
"They weren't workhouses and they aren't in Sweden."
Then again, it was obvious to any reasonable person that I was referring in the context of a comment made by another in regard to Gordons grand plan. What Gordon's planning won't be in Sweden either.
"'Indeed - that massive debt of Gordons, to start with.'
Which will be paid off by 2015."
How? Let me see; by making massive cuts in public services, perhaps? No cuts, no debt repayment (national debt's getting ever higher; about six grand a second, by all accounts). Savage cuts, limited debt repayment. We'd only just paid off the debts incurred fighting the Nazis and the Japanese when Gordon embarked on his little spree and our debts are even higher now than what we paid off a few years ago. You'd best give your grandchildren the good news, sooner rather than later; they're going to be carrying this burden well into their dotage and may even have it as a nice little legacy to leave their own offspring.
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"if the Conservatives had been elected in 2005 we would have been in a much better place to weather the credit crunch now"
The credit crunch may have been more of a cracking - almost certainly people would not have been encouraged to over-stretch themselves far beyond their means with 110% mortgages.
"Of course just as then, Gordon Brown is trying the same trick as he pulled in 2005, then claiming whole sale sacking of Teachers, Doctors and Nurses and closure of Schools 'n' Hospitals"
The first thing Labour did was squeeze my local hospital to the point of closure, as punishment on the constituency for voting the "wrong" way. Now, remind me - what was it Balls said the other day about cuts to education, resulting in the loss of a whole swathe of teaching staff...?
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........Remember the Conservatives 2005 manifesto sought to moderate Government spending by taking £20 billion off the increases that Labour planned.........
Totally off the point. Did the Tories call for curbs on easy credit? Did they call for banking reform of the kind we're having to contemplate now?
Frankly, it's of academic interest only what the Tories called for in 2005. Since the balloon went up the financial world has changed utterly and they've been on the wrong side of the argument, so what hope they'll call it right in the future?
Cameron and Osborne simply don't inspire confidence. If I were Labour I'd shine a relentless spotlight on them from now till the election. I'm not a Labour voter but I'd rather see a return to Labour than a Tory government in the hands of those two.
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"'Cheapjack weren't they called workhouses in past times?'
I don't think they're called that in Sweden."
Quite - in Sweden they'd be called "arbetethus."
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"Frankly, it's of academic interest only what the Tories called for in 2005."
No its not, for it shows Brown called it wrong, even though he now professes he is calling the situation correctly. It would seem that Brown along with Labour supporters want to tippex out what has led up to the recession.
As for being on the wrong side of the argument the Conservatives opposed Brown's tripartite regulatory structure.
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56 teresa meyer "Did the Tories call for curbs on easy credit? Did they call for banking reform of the kind we're having to contemplate now?"
This makes for a game of "what if" which works only if we can reliably assume someone in a job would behave exactly like they would if they were only thinking about it (whilst at the same trying to derail the incumbent).
Opposition is not the same as alternative government.
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52. teresa meyer (sorry I'm not picking on you)
"Labour may be hated for not having seen the crash coming"
"Hated" is a bit strong isn't it? Not holding an EU treaty referendum as per its manifesto and not holding a General Election on Brown's accession made Labour unpopular.
As far as the failed financial regulatory regime is concerned this was Brown's baby. He should have walked.
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No disrepect but your coverage of these party conferences is crass and patronising! Carefully selected vetted 5 Live listener audiences, well rehearsed questions and answers followed by the ridiculous use of a 'clapometre'! I'm no killjoy but what about addressing the real issues rather than constantly posing such idiotic personality driven questions like 'will Brown recover'; 'what's he done for you'; will Cameron make a better PM etc etc? Is it any wonder that there is so much voter apathy?
As for The Sun newspaper! It was always a big public confidence trick for this right-wing 'journal' to pretend it had converted to New Labour back in 1997 when Labour won power. What really happened was that New Labour, in order to get elected, had converted to The Sun and all the Tory ideals the Murdoch media empire always have had and always will have.
Consequently with the Tories facing an inevitable poll defeat but New Labour's abandonment of core Labour socialist principles Murdoch could then make out the likes of the Sun weren't tied to the Tories.
Now of course, with New Labour facing a meltdown at the polls due to its failed Tory policies (which The Sun has backed all the way) the paper merely switches back to supporting the official Tory party and blaming Labour for everything.
The reality about the press media in a capitalist society is that there is no such thing as a 'free press'. We have a free capitalist press where the news is manipulated and edited to sell papers for a profit. That is not a free press!
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If you remember the last time the Tories were in you should vote for anyone except them, like the Scorpion crossing the river 'its in their nature' to take care of themselves & their own.
The rest of us are just cattle and an annoyance they put up with.
Gordon's speech was as good as he could muster, he has little personality but I trust him over 99% of other politicians.
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I genuinely think that Gordon Brown does believe what he says,having said that some of his colleagues are not so innocent,there is an awful lot of mud that as stuck in the light of recent events, and I for one was shaken by the things I have seen,we all want to live a decent life and it is totally down to those in power to lead by example,none of us can say we're innocent but without integrity and reliability we are nothing! lets see some good old fashioned honesty for a change! although I am not naive politics is impossible without some glossing over! let's hope that not too many lives are lost or ruined by this.at the end of the day politicians make human mistakes fair enough! it's the deliberate ones that are inexcusable.
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Lord Kinnock should have used some of that Righteous Chapel style indignation he showed yesterday, when he was responsible for sorting out the euro MP expenses sleaze.But I guess He and Glynis far to close to the Gravy Train Engine
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" If you remember the last time the Tories were in you should vote for anyone except them, "
Yes there were no cuts in public spending, unlike what is going to have to take place following the disasterous management of our economy by Gordon Brown.
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Ah, but don't forget that the government spent a lot of our money arguing (sucessfully) in court that a manifesto commitment was no commitment at all!
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66. Tempus Fugit
"...a manifesto commitment [is] no commitment at all..."
These words should appear on every ballot paper in *bold* type.
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