UK General Election 2017 Megathread

[-:Undertaker:-]

UK PM Theresa May accuses EU politicians and officials of seeking to influence the result of #GE2017 https://t.co/6dQPV7H3Wc pic.twitter.com/MT4YiQsVdz

— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) May 3, 2017

War of words continuing....

BREAKING: Juncker's top aide says “Brexit will never become a success. It is a sad and sorry event” https://t.co/hy563D6MkR

— POLITICOEurope (@POLITICOEurope) May 3, 2017

Yet fails to give a cohesive reason why he is doing so.

Brexit, obviously.

Necessary for who exactly? You call by-elections and take the result as is. Ignoring the fact you made this point to someone who disagrees with FPTP and huge majorities to begin with, the Conservatives would have had a majority regardless and ultimately had no good reason to call this. It essentially shat on the FTPA too, so that's as good as dead.

I'm glad FTPA is dead. It was constitutional vandalism.

Hopefully the Conservative manifesto commits to repealing the Act completely.

Oh no, opposition! Not that the election changes anything immediately with the Lords anyway, all I had seen them do was try to secure the rights of EU nationals in the UK which they conceded. So not sure what this opposition is exactly.

The election changes things with the Lords in that they cannot turn around and say leaving the Single Market and Customs Union wasn't in the manifesto. Or frustrate the Great Repeal Bill which will be transferring large chunks of EU law into British law. The convention is that the Lords won't block manifesto commitments, so putting them into the manifesto will ensure the upper house can't frustrate any final deal as a sneaky way of trying to keep us in.

On EU nationals, HM Government has offered to negotiate this and settle the matter as early as last autumn but the European Union and the German government turned this offer down. Why should we unilaterally offer permanent settlement when they are refusing to do the same for our own British expats over in European nations? If they want to play tit or tat then bring it on.

Maybe Lord Lawson is right that they're beyond reasoning. Let's just wave goodbye and default to WTO tariffs.

[dbgtz]

UK PM Theresa May accuses EU politicians and officials of seeking to influence the result of #GE2017 https://t.co/6dQPV7H3Wc pic.twitter.com/MT4YiQsVdz

— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) May 3, 2017

War of words continuing....

BREAKING: Juncker's top aide says “Brexit will never become a success. It is a sad and sorry event” https://t.co/hy563D6MkR

— POLITICOEurope (@POLITICOEurope) May 3, 2017

Brexit, obviously.

OK, then he fails to give a good reason he voted leave.

I'm glad FTPA is dead. It was constitutional vandalism.

On what grounds..?

The election changes things with the Lords in that they cannot turn around and say leaving the Single Market and Customs Union wasn't in the manifesto. Or frustrate the Great Repeal Bill which will be transferring large chunks of EU law into British law. The convention is that the Lords won't block manifesto commitments, so putting them into the manifesto will ensure the upper house can't frustrate any final deal as a sneaky way of trying to keep us in.

They haven't been blocking anything anyway, so I don't see what your point is.

Going to be interesting to see if the Conservative manifesto actually mentions leaving the single market.

On EU nationals, HM Government has offered to negotiate this and settle the matter as early as last autumn but the European Union and the German government turned this offer down. Why should we unilaterally offer permanent settlement when they are refusing to do the same for our own British expats over in European nations? If they want to play tit or tat then bring it on.

Maybe Lord Lawson is right that they're beyond reasoning. Let's just wave goodbye and default to WTO tariffs.

Two reasons: one is that it is a gesture of good will, not just to EU governments but to the individuals themselves. It is essentially "good pr". Two is that it actually helps keep the more intellectual individuals in the country. Whether you believe it or not, a lot of EU academics are going to leave and plenty will never come in the first place, all down to Brexit.

[FlyingJesus]

Going to be interesting to see if the Conservative manifesto actually mentions leaving the single market.

Gonna be interesting to see if any of the manifestos say anything other than "WE ARE NOT THE OTHER GUY"

[-:Undertaker:-]

OK, then he fails to give a good reason he voted leave.

It doesn't matter what reason he voted Leave for, the vote is over. The question is implementing the outcome of the referendum and who is best to do so. That's either Theresa May, Boris Johnson and David Davis or Jeremy Corbyn and Diane Abbott. Labour areas which voted Leave - like that man - are interested in that. Brexit is transcending traditional party allegiances.

On what grounds..?

It was put in place by Cameron's Ministry during the Coalition to prevent a motion of no confidence from bringing the government down via unhappy Conservative and Liberal Democrat backbenchers. It was a constitutional change that was made in the interest of a single government, not because it was a good idea in itself. With the FTPA it brought the risk that you could have a weak and divided government left in office despite over just half - but under two thirds - of Parliament wanting to call an election. It was absurd. The beauty of the Westminster system has always been it's flexibility (an 'unwritten' constitution that operates on convention).

Furthermore it tampered with the constitution in that it is up to the Monarch to call an election on the advice of her Prime Minister, it was not for Parliament to set in stone the dates of the next election. That power transfer from the Sovereign to Parliament was a constitutional change and I rather dislike our pretty amateur politicians messing with it. It's my constitution too, not a plaything of Cameron and Clegg.

They haven't been blocking anything anyway, so I don't see what your point is.

The Lords attempted to stick amendments on the Article 50 Bill. The risk is that in a few years time with the government weaker, those pro-EU Lords will pounce and will attempt to warp the settlement via the Great Repeal Bill. This cannot be allowed to happen.

Going to be interesting to see if the Conservative manifesto actually mentions leaving the single market.

The Lancaster House speech that the Prime Minister gave a couple of months ago confirmed this as has the white paper.

https://www.gov.uk/government/public...on-white-paper

Ending Freedom of Movement and ending the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice both rule out Single Market membership and new trade agreements with non-EU countries (hence the new International Trade Department) means out of the Customs Union. Why do you think I am voting Conservative? It's clear I am getting what I have wanted all along.

Two reasons: one is that it is a gesture of good will, not just to EU governments but to the individuals themselves. It is essentially "good pr". Two is that it actually helps keep the more intellectual individuals in the country. Whether you believe it or not, a lot of EU academics are going to leave and plenty will never come in the first place, all down to Brexit.

The gesture of goodwill came from us when we offered to settle this issue back in the autumn. Like I said, we were rebutted by the European Commission and the German government. It shows how wedded you are to Brussels when you're trying to pin failure to sort this issue out on this country rather than the European Union which is the side unwilling to address the issue for political leverage reasons.

Ask yourself how it would look if, having guaranteed unilaterally the rights of EU nationals here without anything given in return, during the negotiations the EU then responded to us by making it difficult or extracting concessions out of us in other areas in order to secure the settlement rights of British ex-pats on the continent. It would be a bad negotiating tactic and more importantly a betrayal of British subjects living in mainland Europe.

We'll guarantee EU nationals rights when they guarantee the rights of British subjects. We're willing, are they?

[dbgtz]

I'll reply to that another time Undertaker. I didn't even intend to come on today but this is worth posting:

If talks do not go the UK's way "we risk the secure and well-paid jobs we want for our children and our children’s children," the Prime Minister conceded in a speech outside Downing Street.

Ms May said: "Making Brexit a success is central to our national interest. And it is central to your own security and prosperity.

"Because while there is enormous opportunity for Britain as we leave the European Union, if we do not get this right, the consequences will be serious.

"And they will be felt by ordinary, working people across the country. This Brexit negotiation is central to everything.

"If we don’t get the negotiation right, your economic security and prosperity will be put at risk and the opportunities you seek for your families will simply not happen.

"If we do not stand up and get this negotiation right we risk the secure and well-paid jobs we want for our children and our children’s children too.

"If we don’t get the negotiation right, if we let the bureaucrats of Brussels run over us, we will lose the chance to build a fairer society with real opportunity for all."

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk...-a7716751.html

[-:Undertaker:-]

Up again.

Tories take record 22 point lead with Guardian/ICM...

Conservatives: 49% (+2)
Labour: 27% (-1)
Lib Dems: 9% (+1)
Ukip: 6% (-2)

— Harry Cole (@MrHarryCole) May 8, 2017

I was happy the French election was over thinking I could take a break from it all then just realised we're having an election lol.

[dbgtz]

[dbgtz]

"You've got a pen in your hand. Are you a journalist?" Theresa May takes questions from workers before media #GE2017 https://t.co/hg9ICYtrap pic.twitter.com/NyZtzrimwL

— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) May 9, 2017

Only pre-arranged journalists get questions at May events. Those chosen asked by May aide to state Qs in advance pic.twitter.com/4KLHTvCarv

— Michael Crick (@MichaelLCrick) May 9, 2017

At every Theresa May event so far the media/press are rounded up and kept in a room with press office minders #GE2017 pic.twitter.com/vMhoGCVp2c

— Phil Herd (@philherd) May 9, 2017

[FlyingJesus]

She might as well just answer questions from anyone tbh, no-one's interested in what the politicians actually have to say it's just a slanging match of HAHA SOCIALIST OLD MAN GO AWAY vs YOU'RE A LITERAL MURDERER... SOMEHOW with maybe 2% of all writing anywhere being about actual policies

[-:Undertaker:-]

CPS announces no charges today... except in the South Thanet case which remains open.

Crown Prosecution Service says no criminal charges are to be brought in connection with 2015 General Election spending

— Sky News Breaking (@SkyNewsBreak) May 10, 2017

Fed up of Labour telling us X weeks to save the NHS. Every election since 2010 I keep seeing this yet the NHS is still here.