On communications - no. On executing the bolder parts of his manifesto vision - not yet, but I think it is too early to judge. I agree with most of the taxation policies despite all the bleating. I also think he is generally quietly managing the smaller domestic stuff in a far more competent way than the Tories did. On the foreign stage he has acted in a dignified and statesmanlike manner. I think much of our foreign relationships are hideously complicated, and we are forced to co-operate with some distasteful regimes in our wider national interest, despite the over-simplified demands for us to call out everybody we deal with. I think he is going nowhere, although he faces some difficult challenges in getting some of the government's proposed measures through in the coming months. On those, I am sure there will be compromise. So for me, the jury is out (!), but I think he will struggle to be re-elected in 2029 because of the likelihood of the Conservatives and Reform combining either before of after the election. A simplistic summary of a complex situation.
I don’t disagree on sentiment. But nothing is going to change unless the internal regime pivots away from far right and the US decide they don’t want an ally in the Middle East. It’s just not going to happen. The UK has no power in this, like many things.
Interesting that you're ignoring the anti-Labour leftist/alternative vote that could bring him down in the inner city constituencies. I'm absolutely no fan of many of the gang who ran for parliament down here in Birmingham. But there's obviously movement towards it, it's only going to get worse, and they definitely won't go Reform. All it's really going to take is for a few of them to clean up their act and they could easily then attract a lot more people who have been alienated by Labour. They attracted enough even when it was clear they were all arseholes. If the Greens were more on it they could maybe grab a fair proportion of that vote round here - suspect they're not quite ruthless enough for that yet.
There are plenty in and around Labour that would do a FAR better job. Not many that would do a worse job. Burnham Rayner Phillips Long-Bailey Corbyn Butler Nandy Reynolds Just off the top of my head, they would all show how utterly useless starmer is if given the job for a week. He's pathetic he really is. No backbone, no principles, no plan.
I'm always surprised to hear that people think Starmer is bad at the job - it's the complete opposite of what I see! I think he's getting a lot done, but the party's comms/ spin work is really poor. On Corbyn/ Rayner etc - there might be a lot of good policies there, but they can't win an election. Partly because of our media and FPTP, but also because of their own personalities. Starmer did win an election, because he saw what he needed to do to win an election. Make smart decisions, don't upset people, don't overpromise and underdeliver. There's not much public appetite for the big shake up of capitalism that a section of the left wants to see. That would take a real force of nature Labour candidate to emerge, and there hasn't been one of those since Blair. We can't wait around for the next Atlee - I'll take Starmer slowly turning the direction over the oil tanker, over another Corbyn 'winning the argument'. (I wanted Corbyn to win). The truth is that we're skint. We've got the real economic damage of the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and Brexit to contend with. Public services are shot. Major infrastructure projects disastrously over budget. Add to that the public sentiment - over the past 2 decades a big chunk of the population has got riled up to fever pitch on the issue of immigration. So much so that it's all a lot of voters care about. Social media is dividing us more than ever, and the UK's biggest ally has elected a maniac. This is the position Starmer has walked into. Do you think he's navigating it badly? I don't.
I do. Starmer is an absolute disaster. Lets not forget he's a perpetual liar either. Boris Johnson was a liar and right got called out so its only consistency to call Starmer out. The Labour Party is not the party of Keir Hardy or Attlee anymore and is making so many enemies, especially among its own supporters and the weakest in society that they will turn to the right (Reform) or the left (greens and, even Lib Dems). Starmer has,therefore, effectively ruined the party. As to the 'we're skint' argument - no we're not. Its government policy and 'fiscal rules' bullshi.t attempting to equate finance like a household budget that smokescreens people. We are not skint. The government needs to be more progressive, help the most vulnerable and stop talking the far right, divisive crap that suggests we are an island of strangers. Starmer is a complete arsehole.
Came across this speech earlier. Tony Benn may not have made a great leader but the world would certainly be a better place if we heard such strong principled voices in current debates… https://x.com/PoliticsJOE_UK/status...boardutm_content=ThePokeHQ2Fmagazine2FThePoke
This makes so much sense and is filled with reason. I’m no Starmer fan for a multitude of reasons, but this government is so much better than any of the last 5 it’s ridiculous. It shows two things. The labour voting consortium is nigh on impossible to wed, and the right wing media have so much power to influence the hard of thinking. This government inherited a dire situation and it’s insanely hard to square the circles all at once. I don’t think they are doing anywhere near as bad a job as is being made out and good news is largely omitted from the daily discourse. We only hear when economic signals are negative but not when positive. We hear little of significant infrastructure spend, but we hear much of underspend and ironically debt. This government can’t win, no matter what it does. The opposite argument to whatever they do is magnified far in excess of evaluating what has been done. Our media and influencers clearly want a fascist low tax state and to hell with the ramifications. Sadly, we have too many who think that’s a great thing. Given the disaster of Brexit, you’d hope some lessons would have been learned. Clearly not.
This didn’t happen. He didn’t get elected through making smart decisions, he did upset people & he made loads of promises he hasn’t kept. He got elected because the Tories hit self destruct & had a leader with brown skin meaning they lost loads of votes to Reform. He got less votes than Corbyn at his worst in 2019 & was nowhere near Corbyn in 2017 or the Blair years. He was very unpopular before the election never mind now.
Starmer slipped up by not calling Brexit what it was, a sh** show from the start. He should have had another vote, but he backed down to the far-right media, and tried to do the impossible and make it work, having said that if you think Badenoch or the racist Farage would be better, then god help us.
Not a question of backing down to the media, Corbyn was a lifelong critic of the EU and supported the idea of leaving the bloc for many years before the referendum.
Just one question, what as Corbyn to do with Starmer? He's not in the Labour Party. As most Brexiters who were P1locked by Farage, Mogg, Johnson, and the rest of the far-right bullshysters always bring up Corbyn as a get-out-of-jail card because they will not admit that Brexit is the worst thing that has ever happened to this country. Just for the record, Tony Benn was a critic of the EU, and another socialist, Mick Lynch good men and true. But that doesn't make Brexit the best thing since sliced bread
What do you think he's got do wrong he's a disaster? Do you not like 39 billion going into building social and affordable housing we need? 26 billion into the NHS and waiting list coming down month on month? Do you not think energy security that we investing in will safeguard us in the future creating well paid jobs along the way? It's OK calling it a disaster after years of managed decline and zero investment I think the government are taking steps to turn things around but it can't happen over night.
Given that both taxation and borrowing are at record levels, this sounds like 'Trussonomics', or the return of the magic money tree.
I didn't say everything this government has done is a disaster. The NHS money in particular is needed ( more probably). I said Starmer was a disaster. If he does things right (like, to a point the NHS) he does loads wrong. How do you feel about his lies? How do you feel about him attacking the most vulnerable? How do you feel about his backhanders and freebies? How do you feel about his divisive rhetoric? How do you feel about his stance on Gaza? The guy is a disaster. His actions are alienating people for no good reason and he's effectively inviting Farage in because he's not addressing the key causes of poverty and disillusionment - inequality. He's making it worse for large swathes of people and even those who marginally benefit will get swayed by the far right on culture wars or more progressive parties on inequality and wealth distribution simply because they only see marginal change. He's wrecked Labour, moved it to the right and, did I say, he's a liar?
Might sound like it to you. Nothing I've said is inaccurate. The government has an armoury of devices to use to stimulate/ slow the economy, tackle debt, redistribute funds etc etc that a household doesn't have. So the 'we're skint' line is actually a smokescreen for maintaining the failed status quo of neo-liberal economics. Nothing to do with Truss. You should read up on it. Try reading Richard Murphy or watch his videos on you tube for example. Not that they'll change your views on Starmer as you'd support Sir Keir even if he said your own house had to be blown up.
Apologies I misread your comment, when you mentioned another vote I was thinking about the people's vote campaign when Corbyn was leader...that's the result of answering comments after two large glasses of Father's Day Metaxa!!
