Urgent Statement from PM today

[MegaSteve]

If you're both pro UK Union and pro EU then Lib Dem is you're only real choice come June 8th. That should sit well with a lot of voters.

Tim Farron will be dancing a jig. He should pick up seats from all of Conservatives, Labour and SNP. Conservatives should get a good share of former UKIP support which will perhaps help win them a few more seats.

Anyone think they know how UKIP will fare - got 12% vote share in 2015, I reckon it'll be less than half that 5% at best. No Farage = no votes.

The thought of Tim Farron dancing a proverbial jig over the next few weeks will give me nightmares ...

And, I wouldn't be surprised if Nige doesn't chance his luck as an independent somewhere...

 

[Dellboy]

Great news, Tories to come back with a majority of 100+, push Brexit through and then get on with the normal day to day stuff, cant wait for June now

 

[Khamelion]

A few of the replies on the thread are about can May be trusted, of course she can't, no politician can, they all have as many faces as suits them, depending on who they are talking to and on whatever subject.

There is always another agenda behind the one they are talking about, always an excuse as to why they change their minds on any given subject, they will spin any topic to suit their needs as they see fit and then tell the next person who'll listen something completely different.

As for this GE, she explained that in her announcement in front of number 10 earlier today.

As the old joke goes, how do you know a politician is lying? Their lips are moving.

 

[drdel]

It is obvious why now as Labour, Liberals and SNP have all recently said they will frustrate the Brexit plans as much as possible. Also the Lords have stated the same. Up until now the PM thought the opposition would accept the referendum result, they haven't so she needs a clear mandate going forward.

Not going back on her word just accepting new circumstances and moving on - good strategy.

 

[User62651]

So 48% of electorate not happy with Brexit (along with an awful lot of young folks who didn't to vote in EU ref) perhaps many of whom looking to give Tories a kicking especially if there's even a slim chance of reversing Brexit - that's potentially a lot of voters for Tories to lose.

May will win for sure (given getting back UKIP votes I think) and probably increase Tory majority but she cannot unite the UK despite the rhetoric, that's what happens when you can win outright power with less than 37% of vote and have a country or union of countries so divided.

Map at last general election, hardly an even spread of politcal views UK wide, very polarised across borders and from urban/rural.

Afterwards she'll tell us she now has a mandate to do what she likes but I can't see how this GE will help achieve much of anything for the UK tbh.



Re table Tory vote share only went up 0.8% in 2015 from 2010, it's the 15% LibDem crash and the UKIP 9% gain from 2015 and what happens to that vote share in June that's of real interest, will LDs recover and UKIP lose and where do those votes then go?

 

[ger147]

Solves the George Osborne issue from a few weeks back as presumably he won't be standing for re-election?

 

[User62651]

Solves the George Osborne issue from a few weeks back as presumably he won't be standing for re-election?

Why do you think that? I know he has the paper editorial thing now but I think he harbours political ambitions, is relatively young, is biding his time and is still hungry for the top job. No?

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Why do you think that? I know he has the paper editorial thing now but I think he harbours political ambitions, is relatively young, is biding his time and is still hungry for the top job. No?

At Christmas my elder daughter predicted a summer election after May had resigned.
Osbourne seen as the 'uniting' Tory leader.

 

[ger147]

Why do you think that? I know he has the paper editorial thing now but I think he harbours political ambitions, is relatively young, is biding his time and is still hungry for the top job. No?

His constituency is due to disappear at the next GE which is now 8th June, so the presumption was he would stand down in 2020, otherwise he would need to find another seat.

Seems like TM has brought his retirement plans forward...

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Great news, Tories to come back with a majority of 100+, push Brexit through and then get on with the normal day to day stuff, cant wait for June now

Great news for the right wing branch of the Tory party perhaps, that would be around 20% of sitting MP's.
Might not be great news if you wish to keep a United Kingdom though.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

His constituency is due to disappear at the next GE which is now 8th June, so the presumption was he would stand down in 2020, otherwise he would need to find another seat.

Seems like TM has brought his retirement plans forward...

Have those boundary changes been brought in yet though? Will we not be voting based on the current set up?

I used to live in his constituency, grew up there. It is solid Tory, as are the surrounding areas. If he wants a seat there he will get one.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Oh joy - isn't that exactly what the country needs right now - something else to divide the country. I wonder if these politicians actually do care about the general public ? Surely this is just a poor late April Fools joke ?

Do they realise they are playing games with people's lives. It's all pathetic.

 

[ger147]

Have those boundary changes been brought in yet though? Will we not be voting based on the current set up?

I used to live in his constituency, grew up there. It is solid Tory, as are the surrounding areas. If he wants a seat there he will get one.

I don't know if the boundary changes will be in effect for this GE. It's been reported as the next GE since they were announced and this is now the next GE so we'll have to wait and see I suppose.

 

[IanM]

Hmm... a colleague who was moaning about Theresa until today for being a coward in NOT calling a Gen Election, is now calling her a coward for calling it at a time when the opposition is in a mess!

The only hope Comrade Corbyn has is that all the Remain folk vote Labour... bet this GE is going to be all about EU! (Thought we did all that this time last year?) Or calling the GE in June when there's not much rain is a risk for the Tories

Maybe the Mods can just cut and paste all the Article 50 posts and save everyone the time. I wonder what I'll be told I didn't understand this time?

 

[Old Skier]

Hmm... a colleague who was moaning about Theresa until today for being a coward in NOT calling a Gen Election, is now calling her a coward for calling it at a time when the opposition is in a mess! ?

As did all the other party leaders. It appears that the great SNP leader has changed her mind (I know, no change there then).

 

[delc]

Theresa May has to get a 2/3rds majority in Parliament to hold a General Election within the 5 fixed period. Probably not a problem, but you never know!

 

[Doon frae Troon]

The Rev Stu calls it pretty well from North Britain.

https://wingsoverscotland.com/the-end-of-sanity/#comments

 

[ColchesterFC]

Haven't we had people on this forum and in the general public complaining about Theresa May being an "unelected" PM? And now many of those same people are complaining about her calling a general election. Seems that with some people she can't win no matter what she does. And it's hardly going to affect Brexit negotiations as they haven't really started yet and the EU are still sorting out their position.

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Tory Electoral Fraud.......seems to be trending on twitter

 

[Doon frae Troon]

'Do you know that Polling Stations are occasionally used as primary schools'

That made me smile