Richard Osborne

Also, slightly more cynically, pretty sure the average Tory/Reform voter faced with higher prices at the pumps will be greatly unimpressed

Give them a problem which is complicated, nuanced, anything but black and white and they ( Badenoch especially) will instantly reduce it to' Starmer's weak, Starmer's crap. Not grown up at all and one reason people are so disillusioned with politics.

Leaving all domestic considerations aside, this is clearly a situation which doesn't have a black and white answer. So it's so depressing to hear Badenoch and farage just go straight for the ' Starmer's crap' line. It's why people hate politics.

Yes, I've been moved to similar sentiments about him for a while. Actually I thought your language was quite mild - the most charmless man in UK politics and never known to say an intelligent thing!

Corbyn's pal? It's a reform guy locked up for taking the Russian rouble, Johnson who made an oligarch a Lord, and suppressed the report on interference in the referendum. Farage who has lauded Putin for his strong leadership. But, yeah, Corbyn...

Thing is, you don't need to actually read the Mail article. If you walk into a supermarket/petrol station/village shop you see the headline . For many people this will be enough, facts irrelevant. This country would be so much better without the Mail.

Is this the 'family voting' that Farage is on about?

Blue sky is a very jolly place this morning!

Been hoping that for a while myself. Along with Ed Miliband the only Labour MPs I follow.

Yes, please do part two. This is essential work, and I'm grateful to you for doing it.
The figures for care workers are scary, unless you're a millionaire/billionaire politician..,

Spell check tried to make me say that, so it was close!

Is that true, do you have evidence, and how different is it for men? Genuine question as I've worked in the book trade for 40 years and never heard that.

Worth bearing in mind that things change. I've ridden a bike since about1965. Used to be that drivers could see you even if you weren't dressed in florescent yellow, cars were car sized, not van sized, and there were a lot less of them.

Some things that can be done are actually cost free. Should be drummed into learners before they get to start the engine that they do not have more rights to the road than other users. And driving bans for transgressors should be more frequent. Exceptional hardship ended as a defence, too.

Once again, I'm left wondering... what exactly do they do to them at Eton??

It's not ' a Labour seat'. That's the point of the election.

My first thought too!

"Funny how Nigel Farage made very little mention of this brand new appointment last week. James Orr is the new "Head of Policy" for Reform UK, responsible for planning how Reform will take over the government of the country.

What could possibly go wrong?"

None of the entitled Reform Ltd leaders
give a damn about working class people

meme via Life after the Tories Destruction of Britain

Robert Jenrick said today people are getting nice cars on benefit for having ' mild anxiety '. So I reckon most people I know are due one (though personally I'll settle for a nice new bike)

The revelations from Epstein files about Farage’s links to Bannon during the Brexit campaign, conspicuously absent from the msm, shows why we need legislation about media ownership and spreading misinformation. The threat from Reform needs to be widely covered in the media.

Ok, I don't follow them on Instagram, so fair enough. But the press, given a story which involves a plot to bring down the pm, an activist who openly wants to destabilise Eu democracy, and the links from him to a UK party leader and a billionaire convicted sex trafficker... well not to worry then.

I ask myself constantly why Reform aren't effectively attacked on multiple fronts by both the press and Labour (this issue, Russia, environmental policy etc etc). But we are beginning to learn how much money is being made available by the super rich, so I guess no need to wonder any further

Wonder if #bbclaurak will mention this

Yes. Never understood why they don't go in hard on Russia all the time. What are they afraid of?

Mandelson was on Times Radio weekly as part of their 'how to win an election ' team (presumably on the payroll). Been quite fun listening to them wriggle around this.

Yes, already done!

And by "our country" I assume you mean the United Arab Emirates where you live?

Not sure if Man United owner Jim Ratcliffe will see this being as he literally migrated to Monaco to avoid paying tax in the UK, but we wanted to put this up outside the stadium anyway….

📍 Old Trafford, Matt Busby Way

In which case, why are we not shouting about Russian interference (and Reform links) from the rooftops???