UK Election results 2019: Boris Johnson returns to power with big majority [Post#486]

[Bel_Homme]

Labour will win the election and there will be another Brexi referendum next year.

My guess.

 

[Uzi]

Labour will win the election and there will be another Brexi referendum next year.

My guess.

Lol, are you having a laugh?

I don't take much notice of the polls as they have been proven to be wrong on a number of occasions in the past, however Labour would need a miracle to win the election outright.

The most likely outcome for me is a slender Tory majority or a hung parliament.

Labour will be pinning a lot of their hopes on Corbyn's performance vs Johnson's in the TV debates.

 

[Technics 1210]

Lol, are you having a laugh?

I don't take much notice of the polls as they have been proven to be wrong on a number of occasions in the past, however Labour would need a miracle to win the election outright.

The most likely outcome for me is a slender Tory majority or a hung parliament.

Labour will be pinning a lot of their hopes on Corbyn's performance vs Johnson's in the TV debates.

Labour do not need a miracle. Labour need a minority government, who then form a majority by forming a coalition with say SNP. 326 is the magic number.

This is the most exciting General Election in my living memory, because ANY result is possible, and even the bookies know it.

 

[Nostalgic]

Would SNP have an incentive to join Labour in a government? In the long run, wouldn't the SNP want Brexit to take place, so they can harness pro-Europe feeling in Scotland to win a second independence referendum, promising to negotiate entry into the EU as an independent country?

 

[MenInG]

Jeremy Corbyn has refused to say if he wants the number of immigrants coming to the UK to rise or fall.

In an interview with the BBC, the Labour leader said people should be "realistic" about needing to fill jobs so the economy's needs can be met.

He said: "Putting arbitrary figures on it as successive governments have done simply doesn't work."

The Tories say they would aim to cut overall immigration but will not set targets, if they win the election.

BBC home editor Mark Easton said immigration was "not the electoral issue it once was", with pollsters saying it is at its lowest level of concern for almost two decades.

But he added: "Some communities remain concerned that foreign arrivals put extra pressure on public services and jobs, and those voters are often in the Labour seats that the Tories are looking to take."

In an interview with BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg on a campaign visit to Scotland, Mr Corbyn hinted that Labour would make it easier for families to bring relatives to live in the UK from overseas and for foreign workers to come to the UK .

He said Labour's immigration policy was "based on fairness and justice, and on the economic needs of our society, and they are considerable".

Mr Corbyn added: "We have to be realistic that in this country we have 40,000 nurse vacancies, we have a great shortage of doctors, we have shortages of many skills, and they cannot be met very quickly because we're not training enough people, so there's going to be immigration in the future."

But asked again whether he wanted the figure to be higher or lower, the Labour leader just said: "I want our system to be decent, to be fair, and our services to be properly run and properly staffed."

Freedom of movement
Mr Corbyn said a motion passed at his party's conference, calling for "freedom of movement" - the right of EU citizens to live and work in any other EU country - to be maintained and extended after Brexit "doesn't necessarily form part of the manifesto".

This is despite his shadow home secretary, Diane Abbott, tweeting earlier about Labour's "commitment" to the pledge.

Mr Corbyn said her remarks were specifically about those EU citizens with settled status - people who have lived in the UK for five years, applied to the Home Office, and have been given the right to stay in the country for as long as they like - and to aid the reunion of families.

But he added: "I have made my case very clear about the value of migration to our society, about the stability of people living in our society, about the horrors of the hostile environment created deliberately by Theresa May, and others, and the uncertainty that so many EU nationals have been put through.

"I think that uncertainty should finish, they should have guaranteed rights to remain in Britain."

Brexit plan
Mr Corbyn said Labour's eventual policy on immigration would also depend on the outcome of Brexit - with his party promising to renegotiate a deal with the EU within three months after winning an election and putting it to the public against Remain in a further referendum.

He called the plan "a sensible approach", adding: "I recognise why people voted Remain and why people voted Leave in different parts of the country and for different reasons - in my own communities where I represent and also all across the country.

"[But] I think that is actually a sensible approach that a very large number of people [have] come to think, well, at least somebody has been grown-up about this."

The Conservatives have said they will end free movement from the EU on 1 January 2021, if they win the election and get their Brexit deal through Parliament by 31 January.

The party made its promise to reduce "immigration overall" in a press release on Thursday, quoting Home Secretary Priti Patel, and reiterating its plan for a "points-based" immigration system, which would apply to EU and non-EU migrants.

However, in an interview later in the day, Mrs Patel was asked several times before saying the party would "look to reduce the numbers" through better immigration controls.

The Conservatives also are expected to ditch their long-standing commitment to cut net migration - the difference between the number of people entering and leaving the country - to below 100,000, after repeatedly failing to meet it.

https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50423622

 

[irfan]

Labour do not need a miracle. Labour need a minority government, who then form a majority by forming a coalition with say SNP. 326 is the magic number.

This is the most exciting General Election in my living memory, because ANY result is possible, and even the bookies know it.

all the polls got it wrong last time, even 2 or 3 weeks out the majority were predicting a huge Tory majority. I know Labour are really targetting the youth vote, since the last election thousands more have become eligible to vote and the majority of under 50's actually support Labour. The Tories should be hoovering up the 35-50 age group but this demographic have bore the brunt of neoliberalism and falling living standards since 2008, they have few assets to 'conserve', hence not drawn to the Conservatives. Of course the outstanding issue of Brexit is the big unknown in this election, is Labour able to steer the debates towards the bigger issues that transcend EU membership.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

Would SNP have an incentive to join Labour in a government? In the long run, wouldn't the SNP want Brexit to take place, so they can harness pro-Europe feeling in Scotland to win a second independence referendum, promising to negotiate entry into the EU as an independent country?

The SNP will only get to hold their referendum if the government in London agree to it. Otherwise they can only hold an unofficial Catalan style referendum. Therefore it’s highly likely that, if the numbers allow it, they’ll prop up a Labour government in Westminster in exchange for Labour allowing another Scottish independence referendum.

If the Tories lead the government again (or if Labour can form a government without the SNPs help) the SNP won’t get their referendum.

 

[Technics 1210]

The longer Corbyn is leader of the opposition, the longer the Tories will be in power because the alternative is Corbyn.

Corbyn is indirectly, a Kingmaker.

 

[Gabbar Singh]

Throw in sky sports and perhaps a free iPad every 18 months and they have my vote.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Labour promises free broadband for all by part-nationalising BT and paid for by tech firm taxes if it wins UK election <a href="https://t.co/leVUOChXhg">https://t.co/leVUOChXhg</a></p>— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) <a href="https://twitter.com/BBCBreaking/status/1195099594859991040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 14, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>n

 

[sweep_shot]

Labour has promised to give every home and business in the UK free full-fibre broadband by 2030, if it wins the general election.

The party would nationalise part of BT to deliver the policy and introduce a tax on tech giants to help pay for it.

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell told the BBC the "visionary" £20bn plan would "ensure that broadband reaches the whole of the country".

The Tories said it was a "fantasy plan" that would cost taxpayers billions.

And the Lib Dems said it was "another unaffordable item on the wish list".

BT chief executive Philip Jansen told BBC News he was happy to work with whoever wins the election to help build a digital Britain.

He added that the impact of any changes on BT pensioners, employees, shareholders - and the millions of investors via pension schemes - needed to be carefully thought through.

However, TechUK, which represents many UK tech firms, said the proposals would be a "disaster" for the telecoms sector and customers.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised £5bn to bring full-fibre to every home by 2025.

But Mr McDonnell said the Conservatives' funding plan for improving broadband was "nowhere near enough" and would leave the UK falling further behind other countries who already have fibre more widely available.

Broadband packages in the UK cost households an average of around £30 a month, according to broadband comparison site Cable - which people would no longer have to pay under Labour's scheme.

The party claims it would "literally eliminate bills for millions of people across the UK".

The BBC's business editor, Simon Jack, said Labour's proposal had caught BT "off guard", as Mr McDonnell had said in July that he had no plans to nationalise the telecoms giant.

The company has disputed the cost of rolling out fibre broadband to every home and business, saying it would cost closer to £40bn than £20bn.

According to a report from regulator Ofcom earlier this year, only 7% of the UK has access to full-fibre broadband.

The government hit its target to bring superfast broadband to 95% of homes by December 2017 - at a cost of £1.7bn - but the internet speeds are significantly lower than those of full-fibre.

Mr McDonnell told the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg Labour would add an extra £15bn to the government's existing £5bn broadband strategy, with the money to come from the party's proposed Green Transformation Fund.

What are the plans?
The plan includes nationalising parts of BT - namely its digital network arm Openreach - to create a UK-wide network owned by the government.

"We're putting the money in and therefore we should own the benefit as well," said the shadow chancellor.

He said the roll-out would begin with communities that have the worst broadband access, followed by towns and smaller centres, and then by areas that are currently well served.

A Labour government would compensate shareholders by issuing government bonds. He said Labour had taken legal advice, including ensuring pension funds with investments in BT are not left out of pocket.

As with other planned Labour nationalisations, he said MPs would set the value of the company at the time of it being taken into public ownership.

Having already announced plans to nationalise water, rail and now broadband, Mr McDonnell said this latest plan was "the limit of our ambitions".

A new entity, British Broadband, would run the network, with maintenance - estimated to cost £230m a year - to be covered by the new tax on companies such as Apple and Google.

"We think they should pay their way and other countries are following suit," said Mr McDonnell.

Labour has not yet completed the final details of how the internet giant tax would work, saying it would be based "percentage wise'' on global profits and UK sales, raising potentially as much as £6bn.

Mr McDonnell said that if other broadband providers did not want to give access to British Broadband, then they would also be taken into public ownership.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50427369.

 

[Robert]

My dear friend, which politician isn't a career politician who does not think about themselves? Jo Swinson, Chukka, Thornbury, the list is endless.

Point being, you are wasting your time in character assassination, there is no point unless you can provide something exclusive to that said politician.

Let me ask you, and anyone reading, what are the 3 top NON-BREXIT policies of the party one is voting for? Tell me why you are supporting LDs, which policies, non-Brexit related?

We are so obsessed with character assassination that we have forgotten why we actually vote.

I have not assassinated any characters. I simply state why I don’t find Corbyn credible and why I find Johnson unconscionable.

The LDs will:

1 add 1% on income tax ringfenced for the NHS

2. convert 80% of energy to renewables in a decade and insulate all low income households by 2025

3. Give everyone a £10K lifetime education fund

4.free childcare from 9 months

5. Recruit 20K teachers and spend £20B on schools

 

[Technics 1210]

I have not assassinated any characters. I simply state why I don’t find Corbyn credible and why I find Johnson unconscionable.

And Jo Swinson is no different. She is far from credible.

Pointing out you do not like a leader because of their personalty trait, is character assassination, or at least a form of smear campaigning. Where are the days when party policies were attacked?

The LDs will:

1 add 1% on income tax ringfenced for the NHS

2. convert 80% of energy to renewables in a decade and insulate all low income households by 2025

3. Give everyone a £10K lifetime education fund

4.free childcare from 9 months

5. Recruit 20K teachers and spend £20B on schools

You mean this : https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2019-50343417

Or the LDs will do what they are best at, renege on their election pledges or make massive U-Turns.

By the way, adding 1% income tax to ring fence funding for the NHS is already in place, it's called National Insurance.

Here are the Non-Brexit Tory Pledges, they look awfully similar to LDs.

£100bn investment over five years on road, rail and other infrastructure
20,000 more police officers over the next three years in England and Wales
£2.7bn for six new hospitals and plans for 34 more
£7.1bn a year more for schools in England by 2022-23

 

[MenInG]

Boris Johnson has been quizzed on Russia, flooding and his children by members of the public during a BBC Radio 5 Live and News Channel phone-in.

Spoiler

During the programme, the PM said there was "no evidence" of Russian interference in UK politics, amid calls for the government to release a report on the subject before the election.

He also said there were "big plans" for investing in flood defences.

And he said claims none of his children went to state school were "wrong".

He also denied reports that Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage had been offered a peerage in return for standing down his parliamentary candidates in Conservative-won seats.

On Russia, the prime minister was asked why the government was not publishing Parliament's Intelligence Security Committee (ISC) report before the 12 December election.

It includes evidence from UK intelligence services concerning alleged Russian attempts to influence the outcome of the 2016 EU referendum and 2017 general election.

The process for clearing it on security grounds was completed in October, but it has since been with Downing Street awaiting final release.

ISC chairman Dominic Grieve says the document, finalised in March, contains information relevant to voters.

And earlier this month Hillary Clinton told the BBC it was "inexplicable and shameful" that the UK government had not yet published it.

On 5 live and the Neww Channel, the prime minister said he saw "absolutely no reason to change the normal procedures for publishing ISC (Intelligence Security Committee) reports just because there is an election".

He said the publication process was "not normally" any quicker.

On the possibility of Russian interference in UK politics, the prime minister said: "There's no evidence of that and you've got to be very careful... you simply can't cast aspersions on everybody who comes from a certain country, just because of their nationality."

It is understood Mr Grieve had hoped to publish the "informative" report on 28 October.

Previous disclosures would suggest these Russian activities did not match the scale of those directed against the 2016 US presidential election, and even in that case, there is considerable debate about how far people were actually influenced by these actions.

But Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has said: "If a report has been called for and written, and it should be in the public domain, then what have they got to hide?"

Party donations
In a wide-ranging question-and-answer session, Mr Johnson was asked how many Russian oligarchs donated to the Conservative Party

He replied: "All donations to the Conservative Party are properly vetted, properly publicised.

"I'll leave it to your teams of researchers to bring that fact before us. It's all there in the public."

Flood defences
Mr Johnson said the government had "big plans" and wanted to invest "massively" in flood defences.

What are the factors making floods worse?
The prime minister went on to criticise Labour's spending plans, arguing they would leave the country in "great jeopardy".

Relatability
Mr Johnson said he had "not the faintest idea" whether voters would be able to relate to him.

"That's a matter for other people - I can't possibly say 'I am relatable,'" he told BBC Breakfast, ahead of his 5 live and News Channel appearance.

"It seems to me the most difficult psychological question that anyone's ever asked me."

When asked on BBC Radio 5 and the News Channel if he had any children who went to state school, Mr Johnson replied: "I don't comment about my children."

However, he said: "Your assertion that none of my children have been to state schools is wrong."

The prime minister added: "I want all our schools to be superb and I want every kid to have - every young person to have - the same opportunities. I believe absolutely passionately in that."

What else was the prime minister quizzed on?
Brexit: The prime minister said there will be no checks on goods going from Northern Ireland to the rest of the UK
Immigration: He wants a "controlled system" of an Australian points-based system
Crime: He said he believed in expanding stop-and-search powers

https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50433574

 

[Technics 1210]

Donald and Melania Trump to see the Queen days before general election at Nato meeting

The Queen will host President Trump and his wife at a reception in Buckingham Palace just before the general election, the White House confirmed this afternoon.

Mr Trump and his wife, Melania, are due to arrive in London from December 2 for a Nato meeting and will be guests of the Queen along with other world leaders.

The visit comes as Boris Johnson seeks his own mandate in the poll and Mr Trump faces an impeachment inquiry led by the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives.

Nato also faces serious questions over its future. Last week President Macron of France complained that the alliance is “on the edge of a precipice” and that a lack of long-term US vision is largely to blame.

“What we are currently experiencing is the brain death of Nato,” Mr Macron told The Economist. “I’d argue that we should reassess the reality of what Nato is in the light of the commitment of the United States.”

Mr Trump, 73, plans to address “burden sharing” at the London summit, a theme he has returned to repeatedly in discussing the alliance.

At the Nato summit in Brussels last summer, he excoriated other heads of state for failing to meet commitments to contribute two per cent of GDP to Nato’s defence.

In London Mr Trump “looks forward to meeting with the other Nato heads of state and government to review the alliance’s unprecedented progress on burden-sharing, including adding more than $100 billion in new defense spending since 2016”, the White House said.

He will also “emphasise the need for the Nato Alliance to ensure its readiness for the threats of tomorrow, including those emanating from cyberspace, those affecting our critical infrastructure and telecommunications networks, and those posed by terrorism”.

Mr Trump last met the Queen in June during a state visit that coincided with Theresa May’s imminent departure from Downing Street. He provoked controversy before the visit by calling the Duchess of Sussex “nasty” in a newspaper interview.

The president, whose mother was Scottish, is known to admire the royal family.

He proclaimed the visit a resounding success afterwards. “There are those that say they have never seen the Queen have a better time, a more animated time,” he said of their dinner.

“We had a period we were talking solid straight, I didn’t even know who the other people at the table were, never spoke to them. We just had a great time together.”

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/...efore-general-election-at-nato-meet-b9m0pskb6

 

[KingKhanWC]

Campaign Against Antisemitism writes to all parties to ask not to support Corbyn.

Why is the Jewish issue so important and relevant when Islamaphobia means nothing, with more Muslims in the UK? Strange lol

 

[sweep_shot]

The Conservative Party has said it will plant 30 million trees a year by 2025 if it wins the general election - as the Liberal Democrats pledged to plant twice as many trees in the same period.

The Tories' £640m fund would be used to plant trees and restore peatland.

Labour dismissed the scheme and said the prime minister had an "atrocious environmental record".

The Lib Dems would plant 60 million trees a year by 2025, leader Jo Swinson said.

Under the Conservatives' scheme, branded the Nature for Climate fund, the party said it would treble the tree-planting rate to 30,000 hectares - approximately 30 million trees, it says - every year by the end of the next Parliament in 2025.

The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) - an advisory group of experts in science, economics, and business - recommends 30,000 hectares of woodland should be planted annually.

Less than half that amount was planted in the UK in the year to March 2019.

Green battleground

We now have yet another green battleground in this election campaign: trees.

After claim and counter claim about everything from a ban on fracking to improving flood defences to reducing carbon emissions, there's a flurry about forests.

The Conservatives say they'll plant at least 30 million more trees every year, a pledge that is roughly in line with a recommendation from the government's official climate advisers. But that would represent a massive increase compared with earlier targets set by the government and, as the other parties are keen to point out, these have not been met.

For their part, the Liberal Democrats have gone much further than the Conservatives by promising to plant 60 million trees a year - that's double the Tory number - arguing that that's needed to help fight climate change.

The Labour Party says its plan for trees, when it comes, will be guided by the science.

Experts in forestry say that a huge programme of tree planting is needed if the UK is to have any chance of reducing its carbon emissions to effectively zero.

They also say that the aim, though difficult, is feasible but will depend on careful planning - "to get the right trees in the right places", as one specialist put it to me.

He also said the effort had to be properly funded and "joined-up", by which he means co-ordinating many different government agencies, forestry organisations and farmers - no easy task.

Conservative leader Boris Johnson said there was "nothing more conservative than protecting our environment".

He said the measures would "sit alongside our world-leading commitment" to cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050.

The Conservatives look set to use the "Vote Blue, Go Green" slogan adopted by David Cameron in 2010, which critics say he abandoned once he got into power.

The Lib Dems said its "ambitious" proposals to plant 40,000 hectares - or, it estimated, 60 million trees - every year would increase UK forest cover by one million hectares by 2045.

The "largest tree-planting programme in UK history" would be part of the party's plan to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by the same year.

"Only the Liberal Democrats have a radical plan to make a real impact in the fight against climate change and build a brighter future for our planet," Ms Swinson said.

Labour's shadow environment secretary Sue Hayman said the Conservative Party's failure to meet previous tree-planting targets showed "they aren't serious about this agenda".

"When Labour comes forward with its own ambitious proposals as part of our Plan For Nature, they will be informed by what the science says is necessary and possible - not by what Boris Johnson thinks he needs to do to greenwash his atrocious environmental record," she added.

Mr Johnson's party also announced a £500m "Blue Planet fund" across the next five years to help support developing countries in protecting oceans.

The sum would be funded by the budget for international aid, the Conservative Party said.

The money would go towards, for example, UK satellites monitoring marine environments and ensuring protected areas were not subject to illegal fishing.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50440867.

 

[Technics 1210]

Police 'assessing' call for peerage claim probe

Police say they are assessing two allegations of electoral fraud, after claims the Tories offered peerages to Brexit Party election candidates to persuade them to stand down.

Labour peer Lord Falconer has urged the Metropolitan Police and prosecution service to launch an investigation.

He said the claims - first raised by the Brexit Party's Nigel Farage - "raise serious questions" about the integrity of the 12 December election.

The PM says the claims are "nonsense".

"I am sure there are conversations that take place between politicians of all parties but certainly nobody's been offered a peerage," Boris Johnson said on Friday.

The claims came after the the Brexit Party had announced that it would not field candidates in any seats won by the Conservatives in 2017, to avoid splitting the pro-Brexit vote.

But the party said it would contest all other seats, prompting pressure from Conservatives who urged Mr Farage to withdraw more candidates to help Mr Johnson win a majority in Parliament.

In a video posted on Twitter earlier this week, Mr Farage claimed he and eight other Brexit Party figures had been offered jobs "in the (Brexit) negotiating team and in government departments" while there had been "hints at peerages too".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2019-50443430

 

[irfan]

Campaign Against Antisemitism writes to all parties to ask not to support Corbyn.

Why is the Jewish issue so important and relevant when Islamaphobia means nothing, with more Muslims in the UK? Strange lol

They have used and weaponised AS so much that's it beginning to lose any meaning, very sad and dangerous thing to do. I recommend the following article written by a British Jew on this topic as it's one of the best summaries and analysis I've read, don't agree with it all though:

As a British Jew I’m not fearful of a Corbyn government but I’m horrified at how antisemitism is being used against him

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/writi...t-how-antisemitism-is-being-used-against-him/

 

[Robert]

Campaign Against Antisemitism writes to all parties to ask not to support Corbyn.

Why is the Jewish issue so important and relevant when Islamaphobia means nothing, with more Muslims in the UK? Strange lol

Because Labour are supposed to be the good guys, I guess.

 

[ShahKhan007]

Campaign Against Antisemitism writes to all parties to ask not to support Corbyn.

Why is the Jewish issue so important and relevant when Islamaphobia means nothing, with more Muslims in the UK? Strange lol

Its admirable how such a small population can hold so much power. If Muslims were as dedicated and smart as Jews we wouldn't be pushed around so easily.

 

[The Viper]

Tommy Robinson endorses Boris Johnson to be prime minister

EDL founder Tommy Robinson has urged ‘everyone’ to vote for Boris Johnson at the upcoming General Election.

He said: ‘Everyone should vote for Boris Johnson. ‘And I’m so happy with what Nigel Farage has done. He should attack the Labour heartlands. If we want Brexit… If we believe in democracy, we have to have Brexit.

‘So yeah. Go Boris!’

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, made the comments outside the High Court where he is being sued for libel. The case relates to comments about a Syrian refugee who was filmed being attacked in a school playground.

A video showing Jamal Hijazi, then 16, being pushed to the ground and threatened with drowning at Almondbury School in Huddersfield provoked outrage and a flood of public sympathy after it was shared online last year.

Robinson, 36, made a comment on Facebook about the video which is the focus of the case.

Jamal’s barrister Ian Helme said Robinson, who he described as ‘a right-wing provocateur’, then published ‘two videos making very serious allegations against Jamal’.

The barrister said Jamal was ‘a schoolboy and a Syrian refugee who has faced horrific bullying at school’, adding that the effect of the videos was that he ‘now has his nascent reputation trashed to one million people’.

The court heard that Robinson’s defence at trial would be that his statements were true.

Robinson attended a preliminary hearing in London yesterday, which set a timetable for a six-day trial to be heard at some point in 2020.

William Bennett QC, for Robinson, said the case would come down to the ‘oral testimony of one witness against another’.

He added that his client’s defence would focus on ‘those people who say they were assaulted by the claimant and the claimant’s denials that he assaulted them’.

In documents filed with the court on Robinson’s behalf, he alleges that the attack on Jamal shown in the video was in retaliation for a threat made earlier that same day.

The value of Jamal’s claim in damages is for up to £100,000.

https://metro.co.uk/2019/11/15/tommy-robinson-endorses-boris-johnson-prime-minister-11163778/

 

[sweep_shot]

The Conservatives have set out more details of their plans for immigration after Brexit, saying migrants will be treated equally regardless of where they come from.

The cost for migrants to use the NHS would also rise, while the rules on claiming benefits - which currently favour EU nationals - would change.

The Tories say they want the "brightest and best" from around the world.

But business leaders say they need access to workers of all skills levels.

Labour is yet to announce its immigration policy, but it is expected to be released in the party's manifesto on Thursday.

And the Lib Dems are pledging a "fair, effective" immigration system if elected - with plans to resettle 10,000 unaccompanied refugee children a year.

The Conservative government has already promised that, after Brexit, immigration rules would apply to EU nationals and non-Europeans in the same way.

Earlier this week, party leader Boris Johnson also said that if he won the election, he would try to reduce the number of so-called "unskilled" migrants coming into the UK.

Announcing more details of their immigration policy on Sunday, the Conservatives said freedom of movement - which lets EU citizens travel, live, study and work in any member country - would end in the UK in January 2021.

The "vast majority" of migrants would need a job offer to come to the UK to work - although there will be a "small number of exceptions" for example high-skilled scientists.

Rules on claiming benefits will be "equalised", meaning that like other migrants, EU citizens would have to wait five years before they can access benefits and will not be able to send child benefit payments abroad.

And the immigration health surcharge - the payment charged to migrants to use the NHS - would apply to all migrants, both EU and non-EU, and would be raised from £400 to £625 a year.

"As we come out of the EU we have a new opportunity for fairness and to make sure all those who come here are treated the same," said Mr Johnson.

Home Secretary Priti Patel added that after Brexit, "immigration will finally be subject to democratic control, allowing us to get overall numbers down".

Meanwhile, writing in the Mail on Sunday, Michael Gove said it was "unfair that people coming from European countries can access free NHS care without paying in while others make significant contributions".

"Our country is made stronger by welcoming people with talent from across the globe," he added.

"But it's not right that people from Bulgaria and Slovenia can come here without any controls and have automatic rights that people from Bangladesh and Singapore do not."

'All skill levels needed'
Responding to the plans, business leaders said it was important that companies still had access to the workers they needed.

Matthew Fell, from the Confederation of British Industry, said there was "concern that the focus of a new system is so squarely on skills".

"The UK has labour shortages that must also be filled," he said.

"A new approach must be just as open to workers who pick, process and transport the food we eat as the architects needed to build new homes and schools," he said.

"Business and government need to work together to train UK workers while developing an open but controlled immigration system that grows our economy."

Meanwhile, Hannah Essex from the British Chambers of Commerce said "access to skills at all levels is essential".

A "flexible and simple immigration system" is needed that "allows firms to recruit the people they need at all skills levels, including temporary, seasonal and permanent roles," she added.

The head of the Food and Drink Federation, Ian Wright, also called for an immigration system which "ensures easy access to the workers we need, at all skill levels", while Tom Ironside, from the British Retail Consortium, said any immigration system must ensure the industry was "able to access workers across all skills levels in sufficient numbers".

The Conservatives say they would introduce an Australian-style points-based system, which would consider migrants' skills and whether they meet certain criteria.

In recent years, the party had a long-standing goal - first introduced by David Cameron and also a promise in the 2017 election manifesto - to cut net migration to less than 100,000 a year.

But the government never came close to meeting the target and faced repeated calls to drop it.

When draft proposals for a new immigration system were published last year, the target of 100,000 was left out.

Earlier this week, Ms Patel said the Tories would "look to reduce the numbers" of immigration through better controls but would not set "arbitrary" targets.

Labour has yet to announce its policy on immigration.

But Jeremy Corbyn has said he would commit to "a fair immigration process that recognised the huge contribution made by migrant workers to this country".

"We have got to be realistic about the needs of our economy for bringing workers in, skilled workers in to help us," he added.

An SNP spokesman said earlier this week that cutting immigration would be "hugely damaging" for the Scottish economy and called the issue to be devolved to the Scottish government.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50449039.

 

[sweep_shot]

Everyone will be entitled to a "free teeth MOT" in England under a Labour government, the party says.

Labour is proposing to scrap band one dentistry charges, which cover a check up, a scale and polish, and any X-rays that may be needed.

It believes patients are put off going because of the fee - a check up costs £22.70 - with many ending up in A&E.

Dental leaders welcomed the move, but said there was a shortage of dentists that needed addressing too.

Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said charges were a real barrier to access services for some.

"With 135,000 patients presenting at A&E with dental problems every year, it's time we put prevention at the heart of our approach to health."

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn added: "This is the first step towards making all dentistry services free of charge."

Labour said the policy would cost £450m a year.

Health is devolved so the policy only covers England. Wales and Northern Ireland both charge for check ups, but Scotland does not.

How do the charges work?

There are three fee bands for treatment. They are:

Band one (£22,70) - check up, scale and polish and any X-rays
Band two (£62.10) - all the treatments in band one plus fillings, extractions and root canal treatment
Band three (£269.30) - all treatments in band one and two plus crowns, dentures and bridges
People on low incomes, pregnant women and under 18s or under 19 and in full-time education are exempt from charges.

Nearly half of treatments delivered each year are provided free.

However, the exemption system has been criticised for being overly complex and has been blamed for people getting fined for wrongly claiming free dental care.

How many people are going without dental care?
Official NHS figures show about half of adults have not used an NHS dentist in the past two years and about four in 10 children for the past year.

But that does not mean that they are all going without care.

Some patients may feel they do not need to go, while large numbers pay to see dentists privately.

The figures also do not cover those who get care from specialist community teams, such as those with mental health problems, learning disabilities and some people in care homes.

No data is published on the actual number of people going without care when they need it.

Labour has pointed to figures suggesting one in five delays going because they cannot afford to see dentists, but that is from research a decade ago.

Will this policy solve the problem?

In theory, free checks should make a difference. The British Dental Association points to data from Scotland, which has had free check ups since 2006, that shows higher rates of NHS dentistry use.

BDA chair Mick Armstrong said the system of exemptions was complex so simplifying the system should encourage more people to come forward for check ups - although they still face the prospect of charges if they need any work done.

But he also said workforce problems needed to be addressed if access was going to improve significantly.

Research by the BDA has suggested three quarters of NHS dental surgeries have vacancies they struggle to fill.

"Any plans to boost access must go hand-in-hand with support for a service facing serious recruitment problems.

"NHS dentistry cannot be delivered without NHS dentists."

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50448108.

 

[sweep_shot]

Boris Johnson, Jeremy Corbyn and Jo Swinson will all attempt to woo the UK's business leaders with speeches to the CBI's annual conference later.

Mr Johnson will vow to end Brexit "uncertainty" and unveil Tory plans to cut business rates if he is returned to power in next month's general election.

Mr Corbyn will set out Labour's plans for 320,000 apprenticeships in England.

And Ms Swinson will say the Lib Dems are the "natural party of business" because they want to cancel Brexit.

Mr Johnson is hoping to win a majority on 12 December, get his Brexit deal taking the UK out of the EU into law by 31 January and begin talks with Brussels on a permanent trading relationship.

The Tory leader is expected to tell the Confederation of British Industry's conference: "Big business didn't want Brexit. You made that clear in 2016 and this body said it louder than any other.

"But what is also clear is that what you want now - and have wanted for some time - is certainty."

'Climate apprenticeship'
The Conservative leader will announce policies to help businesses "make the most of Brexit", including a review of business rates in England, with the aim of bringing the overall burden of the tax down.

The Conservatives also say they plan a cut in National Insurance contributions for employers.

They would increase the employment allowance from £3,000 to £4,000, which they say would amount to a tax cut of up to £1,000 for more than half a million businesses.

They would also increase the Research and Development tax credit rate from 12% to 13%, which the party says will boost manufacturing and the professional, scientific and technical services sectors.

The party also proposes tax relief for landlords and builders and higher tax credits for companies that are involved in research.

"With a Conservative majority government you can be sure we will get Brexit done and leave with the new deal that is already agreed - ending the uncertainty and confusion that has paralysed our economy," Mr Johnson is expected to say.

Business rates are a tax based on rental values of the property businesses occupy.

They are typically 50.4% of the market rent - but there are lots of complex reductions, and smaller businesses pay a bit less.

Business lobby groups - especially small businesses - often complain about the complex system, and that rates have gone up faster than inflation since the current regime was introduced in 1990.

A recent Parliamentary inquiry found the UK had the highest level of this kind of tax in the OECD group of wealthy nations, more than double the average.

However, it's one of the biggest sources of government revenue, raising £31bn in England in the last financial year.

If the next government cut rates back to 1990 levels, it would cost about £10bn, says Jerry Schurder, head of business rates at property consultants Gerald Eve.

Retailers complain that business rates are a factor in the closure of small shops.

But economists at the Institute for Fiscal Studies have argued that cutting business rates would only give retailers short-term respite, as landlords would then increase rents.

Labour wants to tear up Mr Johnson's Brexit agreement and negotiate a new deal with Brussels, including a customs union and a closer relationship with the EU single market, which it would then put to a public vote.

Jeremy Corbyn will set out Labour plans to train 80,000 people a year, as part of a "climate apprenticeship" programme, in his speech to the CBI, which is the UK's largest business lobby group.

'Party of business'
"Labour's Green Industrial Revolution will be a central motor of the party's plans to transform our country and economy, using public investment to create good, clean jobs, tackle the climate emergency and rebuild held back towns, cities and communities," he is expected to say.

Labour's plan would see 320,000 apprentices trained in jobs such as construction, manufacturing and design within renewable energy, transport, sustainable agriculture and forestry, in Labour's first term in office.

It will be funded by diverting 25% of the funds employers already set aside through the Apprenticeship Levy and topped up by any dividends over the cap paid into Labour's Inclusive Ownership Funds - the party's plan to give workers a 10% stake in their employers.

The party said it also wanted to give employers more choice over how they spend Apprenticeship Levy Funds.

Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson will tell business leaders that her party is the "natural party of business" as part of her case for the UK staying in the EU.

She will attack the other two parties' plans to spend on big infrastructure projects, according to remarks circulated prior to the conference.

'Political paralysis'
"Both the Conservatives and Labour will have to scramble around for projects to pour money into just to keep their word - regardless of whether they're good projects and good use of public funds," she will say.

The CBI said it wanted business rates - a tax on business premises collected by councils - to be reformed, as part of a number of recommendations it would like the parties to adopt.

It also asked for the Apprenticeship Levy to be overhauled. The tax has been unpopular with businesses since it was introduced in 2017.

The CBI also said it wanted stalled programmes such as the HS2 high-speed rail link between London and the north of England, and Heathrow's third runway to be finished.

"We simply cannot afford another wasted year of political paralysis, indecision and distraction while productivity and investment suffer," director general Carolyn Fairbairn is expected to say.

Business groups gave mixed reviews to the parties' plans.

On the Conservatives' proposals, Tej Parikh, chief economist at the Institute of Directors, one of the UK's oldest business lobby groups, said tax breaks to spur growth were "a sensible move".

"However, though a thorough review into business rates would be welcome, further reliefs are also needed for the here and now."

Reacting to Labour's proposals, Mr Parikh said businesses wanted to tackle climate change, "but will be concerned at the prospect of further strictures being placed on the Apprenticeship Levy, which has already gummed up the UK's skills system.

"That said, the fact that Labour has combined its proposal with the promise of wider reform suggests it is aware of the challenges and willing to work with businesses to iron out the creases."

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50454627.

 

[sweep_shot]

The High Court will later consider separate legal challenges from the Lib Dems and SNP over their exclusion from ITV's general election debate.

ITV's head-to-head between Conservative leader Boris Johnson and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is on Tuesday.

The SNP and Lib Dems say it is unfair not to invite them to take part.

The Lib Dems have also sent a legal letter to the BBC over its decision not to include their leader Jo Swinson in a debate on 6 December.

The SNP said it expected the High Court to decide on Monday whether the two legal challenges should be heard together and a ruling is expected later in the day.

Speaking ahead of the hearing, SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford, said: "This challenge is not just about the SNP, it's about fairness for every voter and viewer across the country who have a right to see the real choice at this election on that debate stage.

"By excluding key parties from the debate, viewers are being deprived of the opportunity to make their own decisions, and voters in Scotland are not seeing their voting patterns reflected at all.

"People in Scotland voted Remain in 2016 and overwhelmingly backed the SNP as their party of choice in the European elections."

He added that it was "simply false to tell viewers in Scotland that that is their choice when we know Scotland has repeatedly rejected both in recent elections and the SNP could well hold the balance of power on 13 December".

He told the BBC's Andrew Marr show "we may be in a minority government situation" after the general election so it would be "right" to hear the views of smaller parties.

The Lib Dems say it is wrong to exclude "a voice of Remain" - and the only female candidate for prime minister - from the head-to-head debates.

When ITV announced its plans, the channel said it would hold a live interview-based programme alongside the leaders' head-to-head to allow other parties to comment, as well as another multi-party debate ahead of the 12 December poll.

The Liberal Democrats have also criticised the BBC's plan for a live head-to-head between Mr Johnson and Mr Corbyn on Friday, 6 December, because Jo Swinson is not taking part.

The party's lawyers have also sent a letter to the BBC's director general Tony Hall, saying the exclusion of Ms Swinson is "clearly unlawful".

"It also means that viewers will be denied the opportunity to hear the fresh and distinct perspective that the Liberal Democrats bring on the dominant issue of this election, namely Brexit," the letter said.

The BBC declined to comment on the letter.

The broadcaster will host the live head-to-head debate between Mr Johnson and Mr Corbyn in Southampton on 6 December, and will also broadcast a seven-way podium debate between senior figures from the UK's major political parties on 29 November, live from Cardiff.

And BBC Scotland will stage a televised debate between the SNP, Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats on 10 December, although the Scottish Greens have criticised the decision not to include them.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50450902.

 

[sweep_shot]

Putting a penny on income tax will allow the Liberal Democrats to spend more on the NHS if they get into power, the party says.

The party said the tax hike will allow it to invest an extra £26bn a year above inflation by 2023-24 compared to what was being invested last year.

That matches Labour's general election pledge on health, the Lib Dems said.

It equates to a rise of 3.9% rise on average each year, compared to the government's plan of 3.4%.

More money would also be put into social care and other areas of health spending, including training, buildings and public health, under Lib Dem proposals.

Lib Dem health spokeswoman Luciana Berger said: "The NHS is struggling to cope with severe staff shortages, chronic underfunding and crumbling hospital buildings.

"All of these problems would be made much worse by a Tory or Labour Brexit that would end free movement and make it harder to attract nurses and doctors from the EU.

"The Liberal Democrats will build a brighter future by stopping Brexit."

The penny rise in all the income tax bands would also mean more money for the health services in Wales and Northern Ireland. Under devolution, the Scottish government has control over income tax policy.

Overall the tax rise would raise £7bn a year in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the party said.

The Health Foundation think-tank said the extra funding, if the Lib Dems win 12 December's general election, would help keep pace with rising demand.

But it added it would still leave the country "trailing" other comparable countries when it comes to spending.

Which party is pledging to spend the most?
It is hard to tell at this stage. Despite unveiling spending plans, there are still some details that are unclear.

For example, Labour has only committed to what the budget will be in 2023-24, not a breakdown for each year so it is not known what its total spending commitments are worth for the whole period.

Both the Tories - under their plans announced under Theresa May's premiership - and the Lib Dems, with this announcement, have provided these details for the front-line budget.

There is then the wider health budget, which covers things like buildings, training and public health.

The Tories have not set out what they would spend on these areas beyond next year.

These budgets account for £17bn of the overall £138bn spending planned on health this year.

However, both the Lib Dems and Labour have.

The Lib Dems have also set out extra investment for social care - promising more than £3bn extra by 2023-24 to plug the shortfall in spending the Local Government Association is forecasting.

There are also doubts over whether the spending plans are exactly like-for-like.

The Tories have committed to providing NHS England with extra funding to meet rising pension costs.

This may mean the spending claims of extra funds made by the other parties are not quite as generous as they seem.

What is clear, however, is that all three main political parties are promising extra money - above what the NHS has been getting since 2010.

The priorities for that extra spending - reducing waiting times, employing extra staff and investing in buildings - are also very similar.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50467402.

 

[sweep_shot]

The Green Party of England and Wales will launch its election manifesto later with a pledge to reach net zero carbon emissions in the UK by 2030.

The party says it would invest £100bn a year by 2030 as part of a "green new deal" to tackle climate change - to be mainly paid for by borrowing.

The party will also pledge to increase NHS funding, hold a Brexit referendum and extend voting to 16-year-olds.

The party is standing in 369 out of 650 seats in the UK.

Co-leader Sian Berry will promise to "hit the ground running," at the launce of the party's manifesto, because "the future won't give us another chance to get these next two years right".

Brighton MP Caroline Lucas remains the party's only MP, but the Greens have had more success in the European Parliament, where they currently have seven MEPs.

The party is stepping aside in 50 seats across England and Wales to make way for the Liberal Democrats and Plaid Cymru, as part of the "Unite to Remain" agreement.

In exchange the Lib Dems will not compete with the Greens in nine seats, including the Isle of Wight, Bristol West, Exeter and Brighton Pavilion.

The general election takes place on 12 December.

What is in the Green Party's manifesto?
The Green Party's manifesto, which will be launched in south-west London on Tuesday, sets out 10 pieces of legislation the party would introduce if elected into government, including:

The Green New Deal Bill to "get the UK on track to reducing climate emissions to net zero by 2030"
The People's Vote Bill to implement a public vote on "the future of our relationship with the European Union"
The Future Generations Bill which would "require public bodies... to balance the needs of the present with the needs of the future"
The NHS Reinstatement Bill to increase funding for the NHS by at least £6bn per year, until 2030
The Universal Basic Income Bill, introducing unconditional payments for everyone "above their subsistence needs"
The party proposes borrowing £91.2bn a year to pay for capital expenditure. A further £9bn would be raised through tax changes including increasing corporation tax to 24%.

The manifesto also includes promises to build 100,000 new zero carbon homes for social rent each year, introduce a proportional representation voting system and extend votes to 16 and 17-year-olds.

Jonathan Bartley, co-leader of the Green Party in England and Wales praised the manifesto, describing it as "the most ambitious Green new deal proposed anywhere in the world".

"While the other parties are trying to catch up, we're still racing ahead, reaching new horizons," he said.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50467790.

 

[MenInG]

Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn will face each other later in the first TV debate of the election campaign.

The head-to-head between the Conservative and Labour leaders, hosted by news presenter Julie Etchingham, will be shown on ITV at 20:00 GMT.

It comes after the Lib Dems and SNP lost their legal challenge to be included in the live programme.

They argued that their views would not be represented but judges ruled there was no breach of the Broadcasting Code.

The head-to-head is scheduled to be followed at 22:00 by interviews with party leaders, including Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson, reacting to the debate.

News presenter Julie Etchingham told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that chairing the debate was a "hard thing to navigate if they won't engage and debate with each other".

Her role would then be to put specific points to each of them, she said, adding: "The best debates are when they debate and engage properly with one another."

She said ITV had received hundreds of questions "across a whole range of subjects" from their viewers, so the broadcaster knows what questions the public wants answered.

This is the first time we will have just two prime ministerial candidates head-to-head.

Last time we had anything like this was in 2010 when three people were in the ring - not just Gordon Brown and David Cameron, there was Nick Clegg too and that did provide a change in the dynamic because of that brief upsurge in "Clegg-mania".

So these debates have the potential to change the dynamic, but very often they do not.

In part, I think because both sides tend to be so well prepared, so well drilled, they are so familiar with each other's arguments.

And we see so much of our political leaders now our views of them are pretty well grounded. It will have to be an almighty zinger or an extraordinary clanger for it to be a really game-changing moment.

In terms of choreography for tonight, half of it will be devoted to Brexit so actually that plays to Boris Johnson.

He wants it to be about Brexit, he wants the election to be about Brexit, and he's going to get half of tonight's one-hour programme on his core subject.

The second half will be covering absolutely everything else, from foreign affairs to the economy to education to home affairs, so the structure would seem to play to Boris Johnson.

On Monday, in London's High Court, the Lib Dems said they wanted their pro-Remain stance to be represented, while the SNP also wanted the issue of Scottish independence to be raised.

But Lord Justice Davis and Mr Justice Warby said the case was not suitable for judicial review as ITV was not carrying out a "public function" in law by holding the debate.

However, the parties had the right to complain to Ofcom about the programme after it had been broadcast, they said.

The BBC will also host a live head-to-head debate between the Conservative and Labour leaders in Southampton on 6 December, plus a seven-way podium debate between senior figures from the UK's major political parties on 29 November, live from Cardiff.

The Lib Dems have sent a legal letter to the BBC over its decision not to include Ms Swinson in the head-to-head.

BBC Scotland will stage a televised debate between the SNP, Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats on 10 December, although the Scottish Greens have criticised the decision not to include them.

https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50472452

 

[Kroll]

Shame I can’t give my vote to the SNP as I live in England.

 

[Markhor]

First Boris vs Corbyn head to head debate tonight at 8pm on ITV.

Corbyn desperately needs to land some blows.

 

[Markhor]

Decent start from Corbyn. Needs to be aggressive.

 

[Markhor]

Corbyn bringing up Govt's secret talks with US over the NHS.

Boris going in heavy on Corbyn doing a deal with the SNP.

 

[Markhor]

Leaders asked about integrity.

Corbyn missing an open goal - mention that he gave public money to an American businesswoman he was snogging !

 

[barah_admi]

Corbyn bringing up Govt's secret talks with US over the NHS.

Boris going in heavy on Corbyn doing a deal with the SNP.

The latter of which Corbyn has gone on record to say it does not exist.

Johnson goes on record to claim the documents Corbyn has are false, if this debate moderator was strong enough, she would ask him to prove that claim.

 

[Markhor]

Julie Etchingham struggling to keep the leaders within their time limits.

 

[barah_admi]

Corbyn missed an open goal about Islamophobia and Johnson's extra-marital relationships.

He certainly isn't a politician by the modern standard.

 

[Markhor]

Corbyn missed an open goal about Islamophobia and Johnson's extra-marital relationships.

He certainly isn't a politician by the modern standard.

I despise Trump but part of what makes him maddeningly effective is that he hits his opponents time and time again.

Boris is a target rich individual, and when you're behind by double digits in the polls, you need to be as aggressive as possible.

It's a draw so far. No knockout punches yet.

 

[Markhor]

NHS is now the topic and this is Corbyn's wheelhouse.

 

[Markhor]

What is Boris's problem with woman ? Stop talking over her for god sake.

 

[James]

No real winner there. Score draw.

 

[sweep_shot]

Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn have clashed over Brexit in the first TV election debate of the campaign.

Mr Johnson promised to "end this national misery" and said Labour offered "only division and deadlock".

Mr Corbyn said Labour would "get Brexit sorted by giving you, the people, the final say".

The two leaders also locked horns over the NHS, trust and leadership, the future of Scotland - and the Royal Family.

BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg said it was not clear if either men had won or lost the debate but it was striking how the audience had been ready to laugh at their statements.

A snap YouGov poll suggested the public were evenly split on who had won the debate, "with most Labour voters thinking Jeremy Corbyn won, most Conservative voters thinking Boris Johnson won".

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon said she was "not impressed at all" by the debate and said neither man was "fit" to be prime minister.

Liberal Democrat Leader Jo Swinson dismissed the performances of Mr Johnson and Mr Corbyn as "bluster and diversion from both of them".

Green Party co-leader Sian Berry expressed dismay at the "climate chaos" issue being "relegated to the quickfire round in that debate".

And Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage said Mr Corbyn was the "better debater" but criticised him for not saying if he would Leave or Remain in a future referendum.

The Lib Dems and SNP lost a court challenge to ITV's decision not to include their party leaders in the debate.

Lib Dems and SNP lose ITV debate legal challenge
The Conservative Party received criticism for rebranding one of its Twitter accounts as "factcheckUK" during the debate.

The NHS and Brexit
The first half of the debate was dominated by questions on Brexit.

Mr Johnson wants to win a majority in 12 December's general election so he can get the Brexit deal he struck with the EU into law and take the UK out of the bloc 31 January and begin talks with Brussels on a permanent trading relationship.

Mr Corbyn says he would tear up Mr Johnson's agreement and negotiate a new deal with the EU, with a customs union and a closer relationship with the single market, which he would then put to a public vote.

A row broke out over the Labour leader's claim that US health firms will be given access to the NHS in a post-Brexit trade deal.

Mr Corbyn told the PM: "You are going to sell our National Health Service out to the United States and Big Pharma."

He held up redacted accounts of "a series of secret meetings" with the US, in which the government proposed "full market access for US products to our NHS."

In response, Mr Johnson said the claims were "an absolute invention" and that there were "no circumstances whatever in which this government or any Conservative government will put the NHS on the table in any trade negotiation."

With Labour behind in the polls, tonight the danger was for Boris Johnson, to throw away his lead, and that didn't happen.

And the opportunity was for Jeremy Corbyn to start closing the gap and he didn't manage to take it.

This is a genuinely momentous election.

The decision the country faces is between two fundamentally different paths.

But what was striking too in Salford, where the debate was held, was the readiness among the audience to laugh at both men's statements.

The two leaders then clashed over whether Brexit put the future of the union between England and Scotland at risk.

Mr Johnson claimed Labour would agree to another referendum on Scotland to get the support of the SNP and that isn't a price he would be willing to pay.

But Mr Corbyn called the PM's comments "nonsense" and insisted his party would not form a coalition between with the SNP.

'Trust'
Asked about the issue of trust, Mr Johnson said a toxic atmosphere in politics had been caused by MPs "repeatedly refusing to honour the referendum".

The Labour leader said "trust is something that has to be earned and as a public representative you have to listen". He said his style of leadership was to "listen to people and try to bring consensus".

Asked by ITV presenter Julie Etchingham if they would "make a gesture" to change the tone of the debate, the pair shook hands.

Some audience members laughed at Mr Johnson's statement on trust, while others laughed at Mr Corbyn's statements on a Labour's proposal for a reduced working week and his party's Brexit stance.

On health, both men praised the NHS, with Mr Corbyn and Mr Johnson describing it as "one of the most civilised things about this country" and "one of the single most beautiful and brilliant things about Britain" respectively.

However they quickly differed over NHS management. Mr Corbyn called for an "end to privatisation" of services. Mr Johnson insisted his party was not privatising the NHS.

Asked if the monarchy was "fit for purpose", Mr Corbyn replied: "Needs a bit of improvement."

Mr Johnson said: "The institution of the monarchy is beyond reproach."

Asked if the Duke of York Prince Andrew was "fit for the purpose" following criticism over his friendship with the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Mr Corbyn said there were "very, very serious questions that must be answered" adding "nobody should be above the law".

Mr Johnson said "The law must certainly take its course."

The final question pushed the leaders to say what Christmas present they would give each other. Mr Corbyn said he would get the PM a copy of Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens "and then he can understand how nasty Scrooge was".

Mr Johnson initially said he would buy the Labour leader "a copy of my brilliant Brexit deal" but when pushed to give a "non-political answer" he said he would get "some damson jam".

Other party leaders grilled
Following the head-to-head between the Labour and Conservative leaders, the leaders of the Brexit Party, Greens, Lib Dems and SNP were interviewed separately on ITV.

During her interview, Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson emphasised her party's opposition to Brexit and said she could offer the country a "better future" than "those two tired old parties".

She also said her party had plans for a frequent flyer tax to help combat climate change.

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon said "neither of these men should be able to determine Scotland's future" and promised voters that her party would ensure people "escape the chaos of Brexit".

She also insisted "no deal has been done" to form a coalition with the Labour Party in the event of a hung Parliament.

Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage called the current political system "broken, rotten and corrupt" and said he would change the voting system and scrap the House of Lords.

Last up was Green Party co-leader Sian Berry, who accused Mr Corbyn and Mr Johnson of failing to properly address climate change, which she said would leave young people feeling "let down".

BBC debate plans
The BBC will also host a live head-to-head debate between the Conservative and Labour leaders in Southampton on 6 December, plus a seven-way podium debate between senior figures from the UK's major political parties on 29 November, live from Cardiff.

The Lib Dems have sent a legal letter to the BBC over its decision not to include Ms Swinson in the head-to-head.

BBC Scotland will stage a televised debate between the SNP, Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats on 10 December, although the Scottish Greens have criticised the decision not to include them.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50472452.

 

[Robert]

First Boris vs Corbyn head to head debate tonight at 8pm on ITV.

Corbyn desperately needs to land some blows.

I didn’t watch. I could never imagine that the PM and Opposition leader could be as bad as these two. It’s like some cosmic joke.

 

[Technics 1210]

What is Boris's problem with woman ? Stop talking over her for god sake.

Did you watch the entire debate? Corbyn was also talking over the presenter, who was awful in every right. Nothing misogynistic about it.

 

[Markhor]

Did you watch the entire debate? Corbyn was also talking over the presenter, who was awful in every right. Nothing misogynistic about it.

If you've seen Boris interviewed before, you know he has a habit of filibustering. He did it in the BBC Tory leadership debate, and no, he was far more interruptive than Corbyn was.

TV networks should cut the mics off whenever that happens.

Also the format was awful - it encouraged soundbites and repetition of rehearsed talking points over substantive debate.

 

[Abdullah719]

Election debate: Tories dismiss criticism over Twitter 'fact-checking' row

Spoiler

Senior Tories have dismissed criticism of the rebranding of one of their Twitter accounts as a "fact-checking" site during the leaders' debate amid claims it deceived the public.

The @CCHQPress account - the Tory press office - was renamed "factcheckUK" for the duration of the hour-long TV show.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said "no-one will have been fooled" and they had the right to rebut Labour's claims.

But the Lib Dems urged the Electoral Commission to intervene.

In response, the watchdog said it did not have the powers to do so but it urged the parties to act with transparency and integrity.

Twitter rebuked the Conservatives, saying it would take "decisive, corrective" action if something similar happened again.

During the ITV debate between Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn, the first ever televised head-to head encounter between Tory and Labour leaders, the party's press account changed its name and its appearance, telling people it was "fact checking Labour from CCHQ".

Its Twitter handle remained the same and it retained the blue tick - signalling that it is a verified account.

Mr Raab defended the move, which has attracted widespread criticism from non-partisan fact-checking bodies, telling the BBC "no one gives a toss about social media cut and thrust" and were only concerned about the substance of the arguments.

"It was pegged to CCHQ," he told BBC's Breakfast. "No-one looking at it for a split second will have been fooled - they can see it's from CCHQ."

https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50486534

 

[Technics 1210]

If you've seen Boris interviewed before, you know he has a habit of filibustering. He did it in the BBC Tory leadership debate, and no, he was far more interruptive than Corbyn was.

TV networks should cut the mics off whenever that happens.

Also the format was awful - it encouraged soundbites and repetition of rehearsed talking points over substantive debate.

Boris has been known to filibuster, he is known to be a character, but you were insinuating Boris has a problem with women.

The format was awful, because I will let you into a secret, such debates DO NOT work in the UK, do you know why? We DO NOT vote for a leader, but a party! The only people who can vote for Boris or Corbyn, are members of their respective constituent. Which is why character assassinations of leadership are pointless in the UK.

Talk to me about the non-Brexit party policies. Which non-Brexit party policy attracts your vote? Or is it a case you, like many, are simply voting for or against Brexit?

 

[Robert]

Boris has been known to filibuster, he is known to be a character, but you were insinuating Boris has a problem with women.

The format was awful, because I will let you into a secret, such debates DO NOT work in the UK, do you know why? We DO NOT vote for a leader, but a party! The only people who can vote for Boris or Corbyn, are members of their respective constituent. Which is why character assassinations of leadership are pointless in the UK.

Talk to me about the non-Brexit party policies. Which non-Brexit party policy attracts your vote? Or is it a case you, like many, are simply voting for or against Brexit?

The leader has a lot to do with it though. Tories will get a majority because swing voters cannot face the thought of Corbyn in #10.

It all went down the tubes for Labour in 2010 when they elected the wrong Milliband. David would have been PM in 2015 and there would have been no Referendum and no Brexit.

 

[barah_admi]

I despise Trump but part of what makes him maddeningly effective is that he hits his opponents time and time again.

Boris is a target rich individual, and when you're behind by double digits in the polls, you need to be as aggressive as possible.

It's a draw so far. No knockout punches yet.

The knockout punch is that Labour has the better policies but regarding a televised "debate", Corbyn should have destroyed Johnson on Europe, on honesty, on the NHS, on Islamophobia and his poor record on treatment of female colleagues.

I have often applauded Corbyn's want to stay away from personal attacks and "dirty" politics but too much is stake and there is too little time. It is sad but the truth is, most of the people under modern democracies want these types of politics, they want/need to feel titillated. Corbyn may just have to drop some of his morals to hit out at the buffoon Boris.

 

[Technics 1210]

The leader has a lot to do with it though. Tories will get a majority because swing voters cannot face the thought of Corbyn in #10.

It all went down the tubes for Labour in 2010 when they elected the wrong Milliband. David would have been PM in 2015 and there would have been no Referendum and no Brexit.

I am pretty convinced it went down the tube for Labour after the 2008 financial crash, and the voters voted Labour out in 2010. Since then Labour has gained more seats in Parliament under Corbyn.

 

[Kroll]

I like this Labour policy of free fibre broadband for all.

 

[KingKhanWC]

Corbyn smashed the bufoon imo.

JC answered the questions unlike Boris who diverted to attack JC.

There was no need to bring up Islamaphobia just yet esp in answering antisemitism. You could hear the planted Zionists in the audience clapping this.

This election will make or break this country, Boris will ruin it.

 

[Technics 1210]

The leader has a lot to do with it though. Tories will get a majority because swing voters cannot face the thought of Corbyn in #10.

It all went down the tubes for Labour in 2010 when they elected the wrong Milliband. David would have been PM in 2015 and there would have been no Referendum and no Brexit.

Just wanted to comment on this point. Brexit was not the result of a political party, Brexit was the result of austerity. We could change political leaders every year, but unless the financial/capitalist system is not fixed, it will never make a difference.

 

[barah_admi]

Corbyn smashed the bufoon imo.

JC answered the questions unlike Boris who diverted to attack JC.

There was no need to bring up Islamaphobia just yet esp in answering antisemitism. You could hear the planted Zionists in the audience clapping this.

This election will make or break this country, Boris will ruin it.

Yeah there were Jewish plants in there but it should have been brought up instantly.

Anyway, I agree, if the Tories win this election then the people of this country deserve all the **** about to come their way. Excuse my language.

 

[KingKhanWC]

Yeah there were Jewish plants in there but it should have been brought up instantly.

Anyway, I agree, if the Tories win this election then the people of this country deserve all the **** about to come their way. Excuse my language.

I just think because of it being the first debate and the UK having so many people who have no understanding of policies, if Corbyn bought up Islamaphobia some would have seen he's a Muslim fan not a Jewish fan etc. I like his strategy, be honest and be himself, while Boris will show he is a liar and only cares for making the rich richer.

Yep UK citizens can't cry when they have to drive 20-50 miles to take their children to hospitals.

 

[Varun]

Why is there an election every year in the UK?

 

[Markhor]

Boris has been known to filibuster, he is known to be a character, but you were insinuating Boris has a problem with women.

I didn't just insinuate it, I said it and will say it again. It's not a good look for a leader. Rewatch the Tory leadership debate - his Eton bully boy attitude that is unmasked undearneath his jovial and bufoonish facade whenever he's challenged.

The format was awful, because I will let you into a secret, such debates DO NOT work in the UK, do you know why? We DO NOT vote for a leader, but a party! The only people who can vote for Boris or Corbyn, are members of their respective constituent. Which is why character assassinations of leadership are pointless in the UK.

The newspapers were able in 2015 to convince a large enough segment of the electorate that Ed Miliband was an unhinged radical who couldn't even eat a bacon sarnie, and that he would do a secret deal with the SNP. The same treatment is being meted out to Corbyn, arguably worse hence his -60 approval rating from which no leader as been elected PM, so of course it makes a difference even in a parliamentary system.

Talk to me about the non-Brexit party policies. Which non-Brexit party policy attracts your vote? Or is it a case you, like many, are simply voting for or against Brexit?

I do not have the religious devotion to the topic of Brexit some people have, whether pro or anti. My preference was for EEA membership but that ship has sailed.

In a general election, there are a multitude of issues to consider. As a pharmacist, I see the appalling pressures on NHS staff and the long GP appointment waiting times for patients. I'm also horrified the NHS is being used as a bargaining chip in US-UK trade talks and the idea of NHS being forced to pay over the odds for American drugs.

Also the need of the hour is the biggest housebuilding programme since the 1950s. We are desperately short of social housing which originates from Thatcher stopping councils from replacing housing stock after flogging them off in the 80s. That has caused an appalling homeless crisis in one of the wealthiest nations on earth. The Conservatives reckless attitudes towards regulation also means we will not learn from Grenfell.

 

[Markhor]

Why is there an election every year in the UK?

Basically the Prime Minister of the day since 2016 has called an election "to sort Brexit out".

Of course the last one led to nothing of the sort.

 

[s28]

There was no Election in 2018

 

[Technics 1210]

The newspapers were able in 2015 to convince a large enough segment of the electorate that Ed Miliband was an unhinged radical who couldn't even eat a bacon sarnie, and that he would do a secret deal with the SNP. The same treatment is being meted out to Corbyn, arguably worse hence his -60 approval rating from which no leader as been elected PM, so of course it makes a difference even in a parliamentary system.

Aren't you proving the point here? Character smearing didn't work, because in the end Ed Miliband won the leadership contest, thanks to the party members, and his pledges with the unions. The media also did a fine job in smearing Farage in GE2015 - we know how that turned out to be.

I do not have the religious devotion to the topic of Brexit some people have, whether pro or anti. My preference was for EEA membership but that ship has sailed.

In a general election, there are a multitude of issues to consider. As a pharmacist, I see the appalling pressures on NHS staff and the long GP appointment waiting times for patients. I'm also horrified the NHS is being used as a bargaining chip in US-UK trade talks and the idea of NHS being forced to pay over the odds for American drugs.

Also the need of the hour is the biggest housebuilding programme since the 1950s. We are desperately short of social housing which originates from Thatcher stopping councils from replacing housing stock after flogging them off in the 80s. That has caused an appalling homeless crisis in one of the wealthiest nations on earth. The Conservatives reckless attitudes towards regulation also means we will not learn from Grenfell.

I am also a supporter of the EEA, but you have highlighted the fundamental problem in the UK, current model of capitalism which lets face it, is being imported from the USA. The housing crisis for example is the result of many factors. Foreign investment, unfettered EU immigration, lack of housing, and the wealth effect – but the fundamental issue is this myth which many people now believe, that in the UK one is successful if one owns property, and this means people no longer view property as homes, but as investments. We must thank Reaganomics for this. The same with the NHS. If the UK continues to live in the shadow of the USA, the NHS will be privatised and healthcare, which is a human right, will become a privilege in the UK, just as it is happening with education.

The system is so broken, that if any Government builds more houses, existing value of homes will fall, causing negative equity, and yup, resulting in an economic downturn like no one has ever seen before, all because of leveraged debt. Debt. Debt is the cause of most if not all problems.

This is why I have learned not to blame the parties, because I have been hearing about a housing and NHS crisis since the early 80s, and nothing will change until the underlying economic system changes.

The current system will not implode, it will evaporate. For anything to change we must detach ourselves from the USA, or if we accept American imperialism, then we must accept the consequences, that the UK is now the 51st State, if it is not already.

 

[Technics 1210]

2015 - General Election. [Standard GE after 5 years]
2016 - EU referendum.
2017 - PM calls a General Election.
2019 - PM calls a General Election

The UK has had 3 PMs since 2015, and potentially a 4th depending on the outcome of 2019 GE.

Typically there is a 5 year gap between each GE, but PM can call an election anytime subject to parliament approval. Though the fixed terms Parliament Act will no doubt be receded, which will mean the PM can call an election anytime, within 5 years.

However, there is no doubt, that the 2019 GE will be one of the most important elections in living memory, if it is not considered already.

 

[barah_admi]

I just think because of it being the first debate and the UK having so many people who have no understanding of policies, if Corbyn bought up Islamaphobia some would have seen he's a Muslim fan not a Jewish fan etc. I like his strategy, be honest and be himself, while Boris will show he is a liar and only cares for making the rich richer.

Yep UK citizens can't cry when they have to drive 20-50 miles to take their children to hospitals.

I'm a Corbyn fan and a lot of it has to do with his integrity and ability to stay away from such dirty tricks but I just feel the stakes are too high and the time too short for him to the good boy scout. Let's see how future debates play out but the people are already looking for sound bites rather than policies.

 

[KingKhanWC]

I'm a Corbyn fan and a lot of it has to do with his integrity and ability to stay away from such dirty tricks but I just feel the stakes are too high and the time too short for him to the good boy scout. Let's see how future debates play out but the people are already looking for sound bites rather than policies.

Corbyn has a great chance to destroy Boris by simplying quoting him on T.V in the next debate.

He's used language against Gay people, Muslims, Women and Black people. JC should sayif you're black, Mulsim, gay or woman do not vote for this man because he has said this.....

Even if 10% of those groups change from Tory to Labour, Boris has lost.

 

[Captain caveman]

Corbyn has a great chance to destroy Boris by simplying quoting him on T.V in the next debate.

He's used language against Gay people, Muslims, Women and Black people. JC should sayif you're black, Mulsim, gay or woman do not vote for this man because he has said this.....

Even if 10% of those groups change from Tory to Labour, Boris has lost.

Corbyn does not play dirty politics, he is a man of integrity and does not scoop down to the levels of other politicians who have falsely accussed him of being an anti - semite.

 

[sweep_shot]

Boris Johnson aims to change National Insurance rules so workers will not have to pay it until they earn £12,500.

The Tory leader earlier said his party would put up the threshold to ensure "low tax for working people" if it wins the general election.

But he later confirmed to the BBC it would be raised to £9,500 in the first budget of a Tory government, with no timetable for the additional £3,000.

Labour said the reduced revenue would harm public services.

The current threshold sees workers paying National Insurance contributions once they earn £8,628 a year.

Mr Johnson had promised to raise the threshold to £12,500 during the Tory leadership contest.

He told the BBC this was now an "ambition" of his government and a timeframe would be announcement at their first budget if they are elected.

But the PM said bringing in the £9,500 threshold sooner would "help with the cost of living" and "put £500 in the pocket of everybody" - although a later press release claimed the saving would be around £100 per person.

Both figures are still higher than the estimate of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, who said the threshold would save workers about £85 per year and cost the government £2bn.

An earlier estimate by the independent economic think tank said a rise to £12,500 - which would match the threshold where workers start paying income tax - would save workers up to £465 a year, and cost the government £11bn.

But Xiaowei Xu, a research economist with the IFS, said without knowing the proposed timescale of the increase "we do not know how big a policy this is".

On a visit to an engineering plant in Teesside, Mr Johnson was asked by one of the workers whether his pledges for low tax were "for people like you... or people like us".

The PM said: "I mean low tax for people... working people.

"We are going to be cutting national insurance up to £12,000 [and] we are going to be making sure that we cut business rates for small businesses. We are cutting tax for working people."

BBC political correspondent Nick Eardley said it sounded like Mr Johnson had accidentally revealed his big election tax pledge.

He later had to correct the figures in an interview with the BBC, revising it to a £9,500 threshold next year, with an eventual goal of £12,500.

Mr Johnson said: "We want to operate in a prudent way, but we do want to help now with the cost of living while simultaneously having the funds we need to invest into the NHS, police officers and education as well."

Labour's Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell criticised the cost to tax payers, quoting the IFS' £11bn figure.

"Even after 10 years of cruel cuts and despite creaking public services, the Tories still think the answer to the challenges of our time is a tax cut of £1.64 a week, with those on Universal Credit getting about 60p," he said.

"Meanwhile independent experts have said this will cost up to £11bn, so everyone who relies on public services and social security will be wondering whether they will be paying the price."

The SNP's Drew Hendry also attacked the policy, saying if the Conservatives "really wanted to help people on low incomes" then they would "fix and stop the rollout" of Universal Credit.

He said raising the threshold would benefit the "better-off first, and even more than those people on low incomes".

The IFS also said that a rise in the threshold was "an extremely blunt instrument" if the intention was to help lower paid workers.

"Less than 10% of the total gains from raising [National Insurance contributions] thresholds accrue to the poorest fifth of working households," they said.

"The government could target low-earning families much more effectively by raising in-work benefits, which would deliver far higher benefits to the lowest-paid for a fraction of the cost".

What is National Insurance?

National Insurance is a tax paid by workers and the self-employed who are over 16, with the amount varying depending on how much you earn.

Employers do make some contributions on behalf of their workers, but it again depends on how much they are paid.

For employees, it is taken straight out of your salary before you receive it, while self-employed people need to pay as part of their self-assessment.

By paying the tax, you are entitled to a number of benefits, such as a state pension, Jobseeker's Allowance and maternity pay.

The contributions cover these benefits, with some also going towards the NHS.

Where do the other parties stand on National Insurance?
The Liberal Democrats announced in their manifesto earlier that they plan to review the tax and National Insurance status of employees, dependent contractors and freelancers "to ensure fair and comparable treatment" and to "modernise rights to make them fit for the age of the gig economy".

The Green Party also pledged in their manifesto - launched earlier this week - that they wanted to merge employees' National Insurance, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, dividend tax and income tax into a single consolidated income tax, claiming it would "close loopholes" and bring in an additional £20bn to the public purse.

Labour has yet to publish its manifesto, but in an announcement about its plans for the "Living Wage" earlier this month, the party pledged not to raise income tax or National Insurance contributions for the bottom 95% of earners.

The SNP says on its website it would oppose any increases in National Insurance.

Plaid Cymru are calling for an increase to National Insurance contributions for higher rate and additional rate taxpayers, while offering special exemptions for employers in rural and industrial areas with high unemployment.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/election-2019-50492998.

 

[Kroll]

General election 2019: Labour launches 'radical' manifesto

Labour has launched its general election manifesto, promising to "transform" the UK and to renationalise rail, mail, water and energy.

Leader Jeremy Corbyn also promised "a green transformation" of the economy, but a pledge to make the UK "zero carbon" by 2030 has been watered down.

The manifesto sets out plans for a windfall tax on oil firms and scrapping rises in the state pension age.

Mr Corbyn said his offer to voters was "radical" and would mean "real change".

On Brexit, Labour says it wants to renegotiate a new Brexit deal, incorporating a close relationship with the EU, which would then be put to a "legally binding" referendum.

On Scottish independence, the party says it would not grant permission for a referendum on the issue "in the early years" of a Labour government.

BBC economics correspondent Dharshini David said Labour's manifesto pledges would add £83bn to annual government spending by 2024.

The party said this would be paid for by tax increases on higher earners and reversing corporation tax cuts.

What is in the Labour manifesto?

• £75bn to build 150,000 new council and social homes a year, within five years
• Introducing a "real living wage" of at least £10 an hour
• Reviewing the retirement age for people in hard manual jobs
• Introducing a second homes tax
• Reversing inheritance tax cuts and imposing VAT on private school fees
• Giving EU nationals living in UK the automatic right to stay
• Reinstating 3,000 bus routes that have been cut
• Free broadband for all, delivered by part-nationalising BT
• A £3bn plan to offer adults in England free access to retraining
• A pledge to reduce all primary school classes to fewer than 30 children
• An increase in the length of statutory maternity pay from nine months to a year
• Free personal at-home care in England for over-65s most in need of it
• A pledge to renew the Trident nuclear deterrent and spend at least 2% of GDP on defence
• Reducing the voting age to 16

Speaking at Birmingham City University, Mr Corbyn insisted Labour's policies were fully costed and "popular".

But there has been internal controversy over the idea of a one-off tax on oil companies, with some trade union officials fearing it would damage Scotland's North Sea Oil industry.

Mr Corbyn is promising to set up a £250bn Green Transformation Fund - to be paid for through borrowing - to fund 300,000 new "green apprenticeships" and loans for people to buy electric cars.

In September, Labour's annual conference passed a motion urging the party to commit to make the UK carbon neutral by 2030 - matching the Green Party's key general election pledge.

But in its manifesto the Labour is instead promising to "achieve the substantial majority of our emissions reductions by 2030 in a way that is evidence-based".

The watering-down follows complaints from trade unions and others in the Labour movement who feared the pledge would be impossible to meet.

An ambitious plan, but is it credible?

This is without doubt the most ambitious - and most costly - manifesto I've ever seen. Radical it absolutely is, but the question is: is it credible or affordable?

Labour says yes, by introducing higher taxes on the wealthy and big businesses.

But we live in a globalised era when the wealthy can move their money around. Would they leave their cash in a Labour Britain that was going to tax them more?

Another credibility question that centres on Jeremy Corbyn is whether is he the leader to deliver this, given he won't answer the most basic, fundamental political question of our time, which is: "Are you for or against Brexit?"

'We will deliver'

Mr Corbyn said it was a "manifesto of hope", adding: "Over the next three weeks, the most powerful people in Britain and their supporters are going to tell you that everything in this manifesto is impossible.

"That it's too much for you. Because they don't want real change. Why would they? The system is working just fine for them. It's rigged in their favour."

The party is hoping its manifesto will help it get back into power for the first time since 2010, but the opinion polls so far suggest it is heading for defeat on 12 December.

Labour is locked in a battle with the Conservatives - who are also promising to borrow money to spend on public services - in seats across the Midlands and the north of England.

In his speech, Mr Corbyn said voters could trust his party to deliver its pledges because "we're opposed by the vested interests for standing up for a different kind of society".

"We'll deliver real change for the many, and not the few," he said.

Responding to the manifesto launch, the Conservatives said: "A Corbyn-led government would mean higher taxes, the chaos of two more referendums, and frightening levels of debt."

A spokesman added that "hardworking taxpayers" would be left to "foot the bill".

Lib Dem Brexit spokesman Tom Brake said Mr Corbyn's wider plans would be "badly damaged" if Labour took the UK out of the EU.

He added that "the extensive plan of nationalisation" would "keep government locked down for years".

What are the other parties pledging on Brexit, carbon neutrality and housing?

Brexit: The Conservatives say they will deliver Brexit by the end of January 2020 under the terms of the PM's deal negotiated with the EU.

The Liberal Democrats have vowed to cancel Brexit if elected as a majority government, or otherwise campaign for a referendum including the option of staying in the EU.

The SNP wants Scotland to stay in the EU. The Brexit Party wants the UK to leave immediately without an exit deal, but negotiate a free trade agreement with the EU.

Carbon neutrality: The Conservatives have said they want to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, while the Liberal Democrats have pledged to achieve this by 2045.

The Green party has gone even further, by aiming for carbon neutrality by 2030. The SNP says it wants a 100% reduction in emissions as soon as possible.

Housing: The Liberal Democrats say total house building should rise to 300,000 homes each year, a third of which should be for social rent.

The party wants to allow social renters to use their rent payments to build up a stake in their property, and give government-backed loans to first-time renters to help with tenancy deposits.

The Conservatives have announced measures which they say will boost private house building, promising a million homes over the next five years.

They have also pledged to "work with investors and others" to increase the availability of long-term fixed rate mortgages up to 95% of a house's value.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2019-50497288

 

[MenInG]

Jeremy Corbyn has pledged to increase public sector pay by 5% if Labour wins the election.

The party's "radical" manifesto, launched in Birmingham today, says all public sector workers would get a pay rise of 5% - an average of £1,643 - from April 2020.

After 2020, Labour promised to deliver "year-on-year above-inflation pay rises...to reward and retain the people who do so much for us all".

Labour said the 105-page manifesto was fully costed, as was the Liberal Democrats' manifesto launched on Wednesday.

preview image

BBC booed before Corbyn steps in
Labour says it would raise an additional £82.9bn through a variety of taxes, including increasing income tax for those earning more than £80,000, raising corporation tax and extending stamp duty reserve tax for financial transactions.

Money would also be raised by "tackling" tax avoidance and evasion, having an efficiency review of tax reliefs and expenditures, reversing inheritance tax cuts, imposing VAT on private school fees, scrapping the Married Persons Allowance and introducing a 200% second home tax.

Mr Corbyn told supporters at the manifesto launch "Labour is on your side", as he said the "attacks" from the rich and powerful prove Labour is "for the many not the few".

He said: "The billionaires and the super rich, the tax dodgers, the bad bosses and the big polluters - they own the Conservative Party.

"But they don't own us. They don't own the Labour Party. The people own the Labour Party. That's why the billionaires attack us."

Other pledges listed in the manifesto included:

:: Scrapping universal credit
:: Scrapping tuition fees
:: Extra 5,000 firefighters
:: More council houses being built and rent caps
:: Free dental check-ups
:: Free bus travel for under-25s
:: Free full-fibre broadband
:: Free TV licences for over-75s
:: Nationalisation of Royal Mail, energy, water, rail, bus networks and parts of BT

Jeremy Corbyn during the launch of the party's election manifesto at Birmingham City University
Image:
Jeremy Corbyn told supporters at the manifesto launch 'Labour is on your side'
:: Raise corporation tax to 26% from April 2022 (from the current 19%)
:: Upgrade almost all homes to highest energy efficiency standards
:: Living wage of at least £10 an hour for workers aged 16 or over
:: Cut working week to 32 hours (four days) within a decade
:: Ban zero-hour contracts
:: Creating a national education service for life-long learning
:: Getting Brexit "sorted" within six months and having a second referendum
:: Freedom of movement would continue if Remain won but restrictions would be imposed if Leave won
:: Constructing up to 150,000 homes a year

The Labour Party has launched its 2019 election manifesto
Image:
The Labour Party wants to renationalise Royal Mail, water, energy, bus and rail and parts of BT
There were several pledges on the environment within the manifesto, including building 7,000 new offshore wind turbines, 2,000 new onshore wind turbines, enough solar panels to cover 22,000 football pitches and new nuclear power "needed for energy security".

Labour said it will introduce a "windfall tax" on oil companies to help cover costs of renewable energy, but did not say what the tax would be.

Boris Johnson said the manifesto had no "economic credibility" and this was Mr Corbyn's moment to shine but he "completely misses his cue".

"Because what we want to know is what is his plan to deliver Brexit and what's the deal he wants to do - and which side would he vote on that deal and we still don't know," the prime minister said.

"Until we have answers to those questions, until we get Brexit done, none of this carries any economic credibility whatever."

Labour launched its 2019 manifesto in Birmingham
The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) was damning about Labour's plan, saying state control "will drag our economy down, rather than lift people up".

Carolyn Fairburn, CBI director general, said: "It's the most vulnerable in society who will pay the price for this economic experiment.

"Significant hikes in corporation tax, threats to important investment incentives and windfall taxes on oil and gas will set alarm bells ringing for globally mobile businesses."

She added that the CBI shares Labour's goals for a closer trading relationship with Europe and a greener and more inclusive economy, and supports Labour's plan to build more affordable homes, have more apprenticeships and reform business rates.

But, she said without business investment and insight "it won't be possible to drive the economy forward or improve vital public services".

Home Office minister Brandon Lewis said the manifesto showed Mr Corbyn had no plan for Brexit and would cost each taxpayer £2,400 a year.

Manifesto launch shows Corbyn wants to recast Brexit - analysis by political correspondent Tom Rayner

The manifesto might run to 105 pages, and the costing document to 40 more, but the clear message Jeremy Corbyn wanted to get across was boiled down to a five word phrase: "Labour is on your side".

He argued the Conservatives were 'owned' by the very same 'vested interests' that a Labour government was intent on challenging through their radical manifesto.

It is becoming increasingly clear that Labour believe the way to get beyond the issue of Brexit is to recast the result of the referendum of 2016 as a howl of outrage demanding fundamental change.

Behind the 'Campaign for real change' tagline is an implicit argument that the changes a Labour government would bring through its £82 billion plan would be bigger than Brexit."

https://news.sky.com/story/general-...s-to-increase-public-sector-pay-by-5-11866321

 

[barah_admi]

Corbyn has a great chance to destroy Boris by simplying quoting him on T.V in the next debate.

He's used language against Gay people, Muslims, Women and Black people. JC should sayif you're black, Mulsim, gay or woman do not vote for this man because he has said this.....

Even if 10% of those groups change from Tory to Labour, Boris has lost.

Corbyn does not play dirty politics, he is a man of integrity and does not scoop down to the levels of other politicians who have falsely accussed him of being an anti - semite.

This is the problem me and King have been discussing. Corbyn may be "too nice" for the way politics works these days. For guys like us, who want to vote for policies, he is fine. For those who are the majority and think voting is a popularity contest, it is a problem.

 

[Technics 1210]

I don't know about anyone here, but Labour's manifesto is very appealing.

I think the probability of Labour forming a coalition with SNP has increased.

 

[Markhor]

A reminder of the chargesheet against Boris. How on earth can the country give THIS man a majority.

- Referring to Africans as "wide eyed piccaninnies" with "watermelon smiles".

- The same year he said of Africa that “the continent may be a blot, but it is not a blot upon our conscience”, adding its problem was “that we are not in charge any more”.

- Comparing Muslim women wearing veils to bank robbers and letterboxes.

- Allowing public money meant for British businesses to be given to an American businesswoman he was banging.

- Sacked from The Times for inventing quotes. Invented fake stories during his time as Brussels correspondent at the Telegraph.

- Getting sacked from the Tory front bench after lying to former Conservative leader Michael Howard about an extra-marital affair.

- Fathered an illegitimate child and has had three affairs - then tried unsuccessfully to get a gagging order on stories about the kid.

- Promised to eradicate rough sleeping by 2012, only for it to DOUBLE as Mayors of London.

- Claimed police numbers would increase in London despite government cuts.

- The Garden Bridge project he oversaw as Mayor of London which cost £43m of taxpayers money.

- Supported remaining in the Single Market as Mayor of London; changed to support Leave and no deal to appease the party base and further leadership ambitions.

- Lied during the Brexit referendum that remaining in the EU meant having a common border with Turkey leading to 80m Turks being able to migrate to Britain, when Turkey aren't even close to acceding to the EU. He was REPRIMANDED by the UK's official Statistics Authority for falsely claiming leaving the EU meant the UK could invest £350m a week into the NHS.

- Compared the border between Northern and Southern Ireland to Camden and Islington !

- TOTAL failure at the Foreign Office

 

[Markhor]

The time Boris conspired to beat up a journalist.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en-gb"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Jeremy Corbyn better not go too hard on Johnson tonight otherwise he might send his mate Darius Guppy 'round...<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LeadersDebate?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LeadersDebate</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WinForCorbyn?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WinForCorbyn</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/VoteLove?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#VoteLove</a> <a href="https://t.co/iCU8xc1747">pic.twitter.com/iCU8xc1747</a></p>— Momentum (@PeoplesMomentum) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeoplesMomentum/status/1196822073345265665?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">19 November 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Kroll]

I don't know about anyone here, but Labour's manifesto is very appealing.

I think the probability of Labour forming a coalition with SNP has increased.

All the polls still show Tories way out in front.

 

[Technics 1210]

All the polls still show Tories way out in front.

Well, one thing we have learned in the past few years, not to trust the polls!

 

[irfan]

I don't know about anyone here, but Labour's manifesto is very appealing.

I think the probability of Labour forming a coalition with SNP has increased.

Like parts of it and overall it's not too bad but is not that radical, it's hardly a radical Marxist one aimed at overthrowing capitalism, more akin to trying to implement a Scandinavian/German social democratic model. It's funny how Corbyn & McDonnell are portrayed as crazed Communists when in actual fact they are to the right of old Labour stalwarts such as Clem Attlee and Nye Bevan.

 

[KingKhanWC]

This is the problem me and King have been discussing. Corbyn may be "too nice" for the way politics works these days. For guys like us, who want to vote for policies, he is fine. For those who are the majority and think voting is a popularity contest, it is a problem.

This is why democracy isn't the ideal format for leadership. Too many people who have the power of the vote in the UK are simply too stupid to understand policies.

What a great speech today! A superb manifesto too.

 

[sweep_shot]

Pro-EU groups have rushed to buy adverts on Twitter before a global ban on political advertising kicks in on Friday.

Twitter chief executive Jack Dorsey announced the ban in October, saying that the reach of political messages "should be earned, not bought".

The move seemed to have had a chilling effect on political parties, with only the Conservatives placing a Twitter ad.

However, several pro-Remain campaign groups have run ads on the platform.

The BBC found four separate political groups campaigning against Brexit had purchased ads, taking advantage of Twitter's targeting tools before they were taken away from political causes.

A total of 31 adverts have been run by the groups as promoted tweets with messages such as "Brexit: A threat to women's rights" and "We need your help to stop Johnson".

Promoted tweets are posts that appear in a person's feed regardless of whether they follow the advertiser's account. The adverts can be targeted at people based on their age, location, gender and interests, including political leanings.

No pro-Brexit advertising could be found on the platform in the week leading up to Twitter's ban.

However, in the final few hours before the ban, the Conservatives placed an ad attacking Jeremy Corbyn.

The most prolific advertiser was Best For Britain, which describes itself as a campaign to "stop Brexit by any democratic means". It told the BBC it had spent £31,000 on Twitter ads since the election was called.

The pro-Remain group is funded by donors and is the third-largest spender on political advertising on Facebook and Instagram.

On Twitter, the campaigners have run 11 ads in the last seven days with messages such as: "Follow us if you think Brexit should be stopped".

They have also been calling on voters to choose certain candidates based on tactical voting research.

Best For Britain chief executive Naomi Smith said the group had been rushing to buy ads before it became prohibited.

"We've been trying to grow our followership before the ban comes in so that we have a larger audience and can spread our message more organically after the ban," she said.

"We've seen some good results and have promoted threads to audiences that we know we need to reach by targeting young women who, for example, have concerns about jobs or live in marginal seats."

Like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat, Twitter allowed advertisers to target people using specific criteria such as their political leanings and other sensitive information that is gathered based on a person's activity on the platform.

On Thursday, Google announced a worldwide ban on this granular form of targeting in political adverts.

Twitter does not give details of how much each advert cost or how many people saw it.

BBC research found the recent pro-Remain ads had gathered 15,500 likes and more than 6,500 retweets.

The other groups advertising on Twitter were For Our Future's Sake, People's Vote UK and Scientists for EU.

Alex Tait, co-founder of the Coalition for Reform in Political Advertising, said Twitter's ban was a significant move but more symbolic than practical.

"Twitter is not a big place for political ads when you compare it to Facebook and Google," he said.

"Only around £50,000 was spent on the platform in the last election."

He said banning political ads had been Twitter's choice.

"Other platforms have different ideas, so this shows once again that there needs to be regulation around all political advertising to bring about consistent rules."

These may be the last political ads on Twitter, but that does not mean political campaigning will end on the platform.

In the future, however, politicians and groups will have to rely on finding an audience organically rather than reaching them via paid-for promotions.

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-50505349.

 

[barah_admi]

This is why democracy isn't the ideal format for leadership. Too many people who have the power of the vote in the UK are simply too stupid to understand policies.

What a great speech today! A superb manifesto too.

Excellent manifesto! Even better than 2016.

Completely agree, democracy does not work if everyone who votes does not even know what their vote means.

 

[MenInG]

Nigel Farage has unveiled the Brexit Party's general election policies, promising a "political revolution that puts ordinary people first".

The party leader pledged to halve the foreign aid budget, abolish the House of Lords and cap permanent immigration at 50,000 a year.

The Brexit Party is running in 275 seats, after deciding to stand down in the 317 won by the Tories in 2017.

It is also promising a "clean break" from all EU institutions.

Speaking in London, Mr Farage said his party would scrap VAT on fuel bills and stop companies earning less than £10,000 a year paying corporation tax.

He promised millions of trees would be planted to absorb carbon emissions.

Mr Farage said his party would save tens of billions of pounds by redirecting foreign aid, scrapping the HS2 rail project and stopping the UK's contributions to the EU.

He also claimed the party could recover £7bn from the UK's share of capital at the European Investment Bank.

Mr Farage said he favoured making civil servants sign a "pledge of political neutrality" and devising "political guidelines" for the Supreme Court.

He added that any Brexit Party MPs elected would "hold Boris Johnson to his word" over Brexit, and act as "new radicals" in Parliament to "change politics for good".

Immigration levels
Mr Farage accused the Conservatives of having "no intention" of reducing immigration numbers, as firms that supported them wanted "cheap labour".

"We would very much want to get immigration numbers down to what for 60 years were very acceptable and very workable post-war levels," he said. "Yes, I'm talking around about 50,000 people a year."

Mr Farage added that work permits would give "flexibility" to the system, as there was a difference between permanent settlement and allowing workers to come for a "time-limited period".

Other pledges include:

Introducing a ban on exporting waste to other countries for it to be burned
Providing free "base level" broadband for deprived regions, and free wi-fi on all public transport
Abolishing business rates for shops outside the M25, funded by a "small online sales tax"
Scrapping all interest on student loans, and abolishing inheritance tax
Phasing out the BBC licence fee
Limiting postal voting to people who are elderly, infirm or overseas
Several other political parties have launched traditional manifestos - outlining policy commitments for government - this week, but Mr Farage and his colleagues have declined to do so.

The former UKIP leader, who is not standing as a candidate in the election, said manifestos were a "means of telling people what they want to hear without ever having the genuine desire to implement them".

Instead, he said his party would be making a "contract with the people".

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2019-50511014

 

[Robert]

I don't know about anyone here, but Labour's manifesto is very appealing.

Too good to be true. Not affordable.

 

[KingKhanWC]

Too good to be true. Not affordable.

Lets stop bombing countries and we will have plenty and some left over.

 

[Technics 1210]

Too good to be true. Not affordable.

All parties are on a spending spree. How are Lim Dems funding their pledges?