UK General Discussion

[afleitch]

Ministerial resignations and reshuffles are so rare this parliament that this makes a bigger impact that it would otherwise do. Still, it is nice to get one of the 2010 cohort at the table.

[afleitch]

Nigel Evans found not guilty, therefore no Ribble Valley by-election.

Not just that. The evidence against him like wet tissue. It should have never gone to court.

[afleitch]

Not worth fussing over. For many the name Margaret conjures up suburban Surbiton housewives, Mustique royals or the bag lady. In Lanarkshire it's the name of your Catholic auntie in Motherwell. Class doesn't matter.

[afleitch]

Jim Messina (Obama campaign manager) has been hired by the Tories.

Not really impressed that Labour are sitting back watching the Tories throw money at the world's best people (Crosby may be a disgusting person, but he does the job), and Labour has nobody. Ed should take their Messina and raise them an Axelrod!

And they've hired Axelrod!

They have. I was a little concerned until I read this;

'He has been recruited to work alongside shadow foreign secretary, Douglas Alexander, who is in charge of Labour's general election strategy.'

And now I feel better

[afleitch]

https://twitter.com/MrRBourne/status/458014839760502784/photo/1

Why UKIP are scum.

[afleitch]

I turn on Good Morning Britain and there's no sofa, no bricks and no Mike Morris. I know he's dead but still...

[afleitch]

Latest Labour PPB

The way Labour obsess over Clegg is the way someone fusses over someone they secretly want to get into bed with

[afleitch]

It's worth noting that we have almost exactly a year to go till the expected GE (and it's Thursday today)

[afleitch]

A couple of nasty polls for Labour.  Neither is that good for the Tories either in terms of vote share (UKIP are the real beneficiaries) but given how bad they are for Labour that's enough to put the Tories ahead.

ICM: Con 33 Lab 31 UKIP 15 LD 13
Ashcroft: Con 34 Lab 32 UKIP 15 LD 9

Even before these polls Labour's lead has been zig-zagging downwards over the past year. The Tories are in a good position 1 year out.

[afleitch]

The longer Labour don't acknowledge Ed Miliband as a problem the better as far as I am concerned.

[afleitch]

Mackintosh's Glasgow School of Art is on fire. Quite serious and very sad. I work a few blocks away and the smoke is coming through the air con

[afleitch]

Mackintosh's Glasgow School of Art is on fire. Quite serious and very sad. I work a few blocks away and the smoke is coming through the air con

Any update?

Fire started in the basement. The structure of the building internally is quality, untreated wood (and the smell of the smoke was absolutely beautiful in a macabre way). The cavities of the building allowed it to spread fast into the roof and out the back. There were flames coming out of the front of the building; they shattered the windows. The Library, the most beautiful and ornate room in the building is likely destroyed. The damage is probably to a third to a half of the structure. You can't get close to it, but internally it looks gutted.

The air spaces, the light spaces, the wood and everything about the building made it a perfect storm for a fire to take hold.

People are in tears. I don't blame them.

[afleitch]

At least no one was physically injured, but this really was the worst possible time for such a fire with senior students setting up their work to be judged to see whether they were good enough to get the degree they'd been seeking.  Hopefully, they all documented their work before it went up in flames and smoke, but I have the sad feeling there will be some who will need to redo much of their hard work.

It is tragic. It's ironic that it was probably art pieces themselves that caused the fire. A projector overheated and exploded setting fire to foam. All were art pieces.

[afleitch]

[afleitch]

I remember when a marginals poll in Sep 2009 said we'd get a majority of 70

The problem with marginals polls (which bites bums on election night too) is that you need a national comparison. This poll took place over 6 weeks with Tory marginals polled first which as Well's says was when the national polls showed a swing of 5.5 to Labour. In Labour's target seats (Tory held) in this poll, it's 5.5. So it's not showing anything the national polls aren't showing us.

[afleitch]

Scottish Tories set out their stall on devolution. They have finally settled on something close to Devo Max promising greater powers than Labour. It only took them forty years...

[afleitch]

Given this has been one of the most unchanged cabinets in recent political history, it seemed odd to make changes this close to an election.

[afleitch]

Oh yes and the Church of England voted to allow women to wear nice hats.

[afleitch]

What a stramash over the Red Arrows.

[afleitch]

Galloway being a bit of a c-ntweasel again.

[afleitch]

Curious that Clacton has been more heavily polled than Scotland over the past week.

[afleitch]

Ian Paisley is dead.

[afleitch]

The SNP announces that it has doubled it's membership since Thursday and now claims a higher level of membership than the Lib Dems.