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It’s May and you know what that means, yes it’s time for local council elections! Local elections are held every year in different parts of the country, every 4 years for any given part, except where it's more complicated than that, which is most places. Go here to see what’s up for grabs this year. The vote is on 22 May and things to look forward to include the Liberal Democrats shrivelling up and dying and this face. But that’s not all! Coinciding with these local elections is the European Parliament election which comes every five years. This one’s going to be a doozy because Britain’s place in Europe has been the centre of attention for some years now, with the Tories promising a referendum on membership and the Ukips stealing all their thunder and generally being the one-issue party of getting out of Europe. Given their current popularity, UKIP is likely to do well in these elections. The dedicated Euro election thread is here. Parties in play this year include:  *I couldn't find a funny picture of Clegg because I guess he's just that bland) And here is your guide to voting courtesy of  European Parliament elections So what's this European election poo poo all about then? The main thread covers the grand scheme of things but for the UK all you really need to know is:
Wikipedia has an excellent breakdown of what you need to know. You can see which of our national parties join which supranational parties and how many seats are up for grabs in your home electoral region. Click through to see election results for your region from 2009, which may help inform how you should vote if you want to keep certain bastards out (the form of PR used reduces the relevance of tactical voting but it is not completely off the table). Of course that was five years ago. User Alecto made an excel spreadsheet that uses polling and turnout data to estimate how the regional seats will be distributed this time around. Local Council elections Gonna do this section later. Recent poo poo We Should All Be Angry About
Previous UK Megathreads March 2014 - in which Seaside Loafer tells us about going to a train station and taking a steamer Feburary 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 May / June 2013 April 2013 - Thatcher came to this thread to die. Also features Ninpo’s effortpost on the poverty trap that exists for people working less than 16 hours a week. February / March 2013 Warning:  December 2012 / January 2013 featuring Zero Gravitas's terrible landlady stealing his underwear to make sure he returned the keys and Trickjaw's fight against the bastards of the Work Program. October / November 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 featuring Iohannes’ effortpost on minimum alcohol pricing October 2010 - April 2012 Other threads of interest for citizens of the UK  Hackgate scandal thread - now with even more prosecutions! UK Marriage Equality thread Scottish independence thread The EDL/UK Fascist watch thread Remember: * These threads are being watched by the police  * The UK threads have been accused of being insular cliques that dogpile anyone expressing the Wrong Opinion. We actually welcome newcomers but don't come trotting in with poo poo anecdotes and Daily Mail headlines to support your arguments; the least you can do is cite a study. Microplastics fucked around with this message at 14:23 on May 8, 2014 |
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May 1, 2014 07:55
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I think my favourite Tory smear recently is them deriding Miliband's rental market fix as 'Venezuelan-style' Because obviously Hugo Chavez invented rent control.
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May 1, 2014 08:54
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The Tories need to do their sums: there's far more voting renters than there are voting landlords.
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May 1, 2014 09:02
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Umiapik posted:The Tories need to do their sums: there's far more voting renters than there are voting landlords. Yes, but every renter aspires to one day be a landlord and boy, let me tell you, the boot will be on the other foot then!
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May 1, 2014 09:05
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Umiapik posted:The Tories need to do their sums: there's far more voting renters than there are voting landlords. Yeah but the difference is the renters don't have any money. The system works!
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May 1, 2014 09:08
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As much as I enjoy having a moment in the spot light, that voting guide isn't mine. And drat you for stealing the op, now next month's (that I here by bagsie) will be even more neo-liberal!
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May 1, 2014 09:24
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Crane Fist posted:I think my favourite Tory smear recently is them deriding Miliband's rental market fix as 'Venezuelan-style' Because obviously Hugo Chavez invented rent control. I think this is a dig at the UN inspector lady who the tories and right wing press shat a collective brick over when she said that maybe throwing people out of their homes because of the spare room tax thing wasnt a good idea. Speaking of housing... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-27223956 quote:
Plasmafountain fucked around with this message at 09:35 on May 1, 2014 |
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May 1, 2014 09:28
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I think this is another example of Conservatives being horribly out of touch with ordinary people. If you're a BTL landlord yourself, like most of your friends and you don't actually know anybody who rents and you've got the income and assets to give your own kids a head start on the housing ladder, then, naturally, the system as it stands will look reasonable enough to you and calls to change it will seem bizarre and threatening. (note, according to the nearest figures I can lay my hands on, there are about 1.9m private landlords in the uk, but over 9m renters.)
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May 1, 2014 09:35
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Zero Gravitas posted:I think this is a dig at the UN inspector lady who the tories and right wing press shat a collective brick over when she said that maybe throwing people out of their homes because of the spare room tax thing wasnt a good idea. Ah, but she was Brazilian, not Venezuelan. The Daily Mail didn't call her a "Venezuela nut".
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May 1, 2014 09:39
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Grant Shapps is utterly pathetic, but he also lives and dies by the proven maxim "repeat a lie often enough and it becomes the truth". Hence, Len McCluskey/Labour's Union Paymasters are dropped into every single response to anything Miliband does, and judging by people I talk to IRL, it works. What would be great would be for Miliband to go into an all-out attack on the countless dodgy arrangements the Tories have made with their biggest donors (oh God that was genuinely great when he brought up Osborne's best man in PMQs yesterday) in response, but I'm more or less resigned that it will never happen.
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May 1, 2014 10:10
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Well, Jeremy Clarkson did another racism. Maybe he'll finally get the sack this time? http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/may/01/jeremy-clarkson-not-use-n-word
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May 1, 2014 10:13
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Answers Me posted:Well, Jeremy Clarkson did another racism. Maybe he'll finally get the sack this time? http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/may/01/jeremy-clarkson-not-use-n-word Nope because he says he didn't say it and he's CLARKY THE LEG-END
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May 1, 2014 10:26
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Answers Me posted:Well, Jeremy Clarkson did another racism. Maybe he'll finally get the sack this time? http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/may/01/jeremy-clarkson-not-use-n-word If he does he'll become even more insufferable. He'll go full time at The Sun/The Times as their new 'voice of the man on the street' and he'll attack the BBC incessantly 'having seen with my own eyes the waste and bureaucracy' that 'drags the organisation to the left'. He'll get his own show or even channel on sky that will make that Noel Edmonds nonsense seem reasonable.
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May 1, 2014 10:27
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Answers Me posted:Well, Jeremy Clarkson did another racism. Maybe he'll finally get the sack this time? http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/may/01/jeremy-clarkson-not-use-n-word Maybe he didn't, he denied it and usually he's pretty happy to talk about how politically incorrect he is. Also he wrote a column once about how that was the one swear word he would forbid his children from saying.
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May 1, 2014 10:27
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notaspy posted:If he does he'll become even more insufferable. He'll go full time at The Sun/The Times as their new 'voice of the man on the street' and he'll attack the BBC incessantly 'having seen with my own eyes the waste and bureaucracy' that 'drags the organisation to the left'. He'll get his own show or even channel on sky that will make that Noel Edmonds nonsense seem reasonable. Nah, his next career move will be UKIP's first MP, I reckon. 
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May 1, 2014 10:35
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Answers Me posted:Well, Jeremy Clarkson did another racism. Maybe he'll finally get the sack this time? http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/may/01/jeremy-clarkson-not-use-n-word I don't know exactly how much stock I would put into allegations about Jeremy Clarkson coming from the Daily Mirror...
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May 1, 2014 10:43
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FiftySeven posted:I don't know exactly how much stock I would put into allegations about Jeremy Clarkson coming from the Daily Mirror... I don't know exactly how much stock I would put into denials of racism about Jeremy Clarkson coming from Jeremy Clarkson, so I guess they cancel each other out?
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May 1, 2014 10:51
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Answers Me posted:Well, Jeremy Clarkson did another racism. Maybe he'll finally get the sack this time? http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/may/01/jeremy-clarkson-not-use-n-word I dunno, it seems pretty tame. I'm rather more concerned by the confirmation that the 'slope' gag was intentional.
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May 1, 2014 10:53
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Answers Me posted:Well, Jeremy Clarkson did another racism. Maybe he'll finally get the sack this time? http://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/may/01/jeremy-clarkson-not-use-n-word Oh come on, this is a complete non-issue, an actual case of PC gone mad. Most people these days realise that Political Correctness is more about controlling the cognitive behaviour of the masses than protecting minorities, a current example would be how UKIP is constantly spammed with racist accusations rather than well thought out policy alternatives. Clarkson is an intelligent man and I would think his politically incorrect slip ups are designed to be rebellious against this Frankfurt school style manipulation rather than be offensive to either minorities or in the case of Asian people who represent 60% of the global population majorities.
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May 1, 2014 11:07
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Umiapik posted:(note, according to the nearest figures I can lay my hands on, there are about 1.9m private landlords in the uk, but over 9m renters.) The last time I looked at this (to try and do some kind of data vis), there's still more landlords and homeowners that actually vote though. I might have to try and dig the stats up again, as it was difficult finding accurate and recent figures for both (as well as voting intention) though.
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May 1, 2014 11:09
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A major fraud trial has just been stayed because the defendants can't afford proper representation because of the legal aid cuts to very high cost crimes, which basically means that it is now impossible for the crown to prosecute in complex cases. Really Chris Grayling should be forced to resign over this but I doubt it will even make the lunchtime news. Also the defence barrister (working pro bono) is Alexander Cameron QC better known as the PMs brother. a pipe smoking dog fucked around with this message at 11:14 on May 1, 2014 |
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May 1, 2014 11:11
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I'm learning so much about racism from Top Gear scandals. I had no idea 'slope' was offensive before then, or that the n-word was in Eeny Meeny. Always thought it was 'catch a tiger'.
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May 1, 2014 11:14
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Shakespearean Beef posted:Oh come on, this is a complete non-issue, an actual case of PC gone mad. Most people these days realise that Political Correctness is more about controlling the cognitive behaviour of the masses than protecting minorities, a current example would be how UKIP is constantly spammed with racist accusations rather than well thought out policy alternatives. Clarkson is an intelligent man and I would think his politically incorrect slip ups are designed to be rebellious against this Frankfurt school style manipulation rather than be offensive to either minorities or in the case of Asian people who represent 60% of the global population majorities. You're a bit to good at this trolling stuff shakey, and welcome back.
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May 1, 2014 11:16
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Elfface posted:I'm learning so much about racism from Top Gear scandals. I had no idea 'slope' was offensive before then, or that the n-word was in Eeny Meeny. Always thought it was 'catch a tiger'. I'm not British so the slope thing went right over my head, although in hindsight it's obvious if you call a person a slope that it's a slur. Who said Top Gear isn't educational?
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May 1, 2014 11:28
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a pipe smoking dog posted:A major fraud trial has just been stayed because the defendants can't afford proper representation because of the legal aid cuts to very high cost crimes, which basically means that it is now impossible for the crown to prosecute in complex cases. Really Chris Grayling should be forced to resign over this but I doubt it will even make the lunchtime news. It is on the BBC frontpage. Hopefully it gets airtime. Antti posted:I'm not British so the slope thing went right over my head, although in hindsight it's obvious if you call a person a slope that it's a slur. Slope isn't a British thing either, the outrage over it was the first time I'd heard it. I thought they were just talking about their lovely bridge 
twoot fucked around with this message at 11:31 on May 1, 2014 |
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May 1, 2014 11:28
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notaspy posted:As much as I enjoy having a moment in the spot light, that voting guide isn't mine. And drat you for stealing the op, now next month's (that I here by bagsie) will be even more neo-liberal! Well no in the interests of competition you should set up your own thread and let the free market decide which one is better unless you want to be a shirker and not a striver  e: yaaay shakeybeef is back
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May 1, 2014 11:29
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Elfface posted:I'm learning so much about racism from Top Gear scandals. I had no idea 'slope' was offensive before then, or that the n-word was in Eeny Meeny. Always thought it was 'catch a tiger'. The 'friend of the family' version was quite widespread, back before the term had any negative connotations among white people. It was popularised in Britain by Rudyard Kipling (of course) in a story book for scouts and guides. 
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May 1, 2014 11:31
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a pipe smoking dog posted:A major fraud trial has just been stayed because the defendants can't afford proper representation because of the legal aid cuts to very high cost crimes, which basically means that it is now impossible for the crown to prosecute in complex cases. Really Chris Grayling should be forced to resign over this but I doubt it will even make the lunchtime news. This decision is both amusing and incredibly serious, and the fact the entire thing was pulled off by Cameron's brother working pro bono heads off all the "lefty liberal lawyer" rubbish. The last few paragraphs of the judgement have, essentially, made complex fraud de facto legal. If you can make your case complicated enough, the judicial system is now unable to prosecute you. The CPS cannot request eternal adjournments to wait until something changes so they can prosecute as this is against a defendant's right to a speedy trial. quote:84. Having considered all these matters I am compelled to conclude that, to allow the State an adjournment to put right its failure to provide the necessary resources to permit a fair trial to take place now amounts to a violation of the process of this court. Grayling has so hosed everything. Loonytoad Quack fucked around with this message at 12:01 on May 1, 2014 |
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May 1, 2014 11:40
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Another day another UKIP donor embarrassment. Today's pearls of wisdom include: - Women shouldn't be allowed to wear trousers because they discourage sex - Marital rape doesn't exist - Gay people go out at night and pick up 5, 10, 15 partners in a night. There's no such thing as fidelity in a gay relationship http://www.independent.co.uk/news/u...pe-9308272.html Now watch them clean up at the Euros because they're not afraid to speak their mind in-spite of PC and are only saying what everyone's thinking Also lol what a UKIP supporter thinks posted:I've been wondering why almost all the anti-UKIP comments on this site are so devoid of intelligent content. By and large all we get from these people is puerile name calling. Private Eye fucked around with this message at 11:53 on May 1, 2014 |
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May 1, 2014 11:45
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a pipe smoking dog posted:A major fraud trial has just been stayed because the defendants can't afford proper representation because of the legal aid cuts to very high cost crimes, which basically means that it is now impossible for the crown to prosecute in complex cases. Really Chris Grayling should be forced to resign over this but I doubt it will even make the lunchtime news. This really needs to be a major scandal.
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May 1, 2014 11:46
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Private Eye posted:Another day another UKIP donor embarrassment.
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May 1, 2014 12:18
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Can I just make sure my understanding's correct: David Cameron's brother has just successfully argued that it's impossible for a major fraud trial to go ahead, as the defendants cannot get fair representation due to legal aid cuts? So a Coalition policy has directly led to a huge loophole meaning major fraud cases are impossible to bring to trial? Because if so, loving hell.
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May 1, 2014 12:30
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Adrianics posted:Can I just make sure my understanding's correct: David Cameron's brother has just successfully argued that it's impossible for a major fraud trial to go ahead, as the defendants cannot get fair representation due to legal aid cuts? So a Coalition policy has directly led to a huge loophole meaning major fraud cases are impossible to bring to trial? Your understanding is pretty much spot on, except it applies to all complex cases in theory, it's just that white collar fraud tends to be more complex than other types of crime.
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May 1, 2014 12:35
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This UKMT is an imposter, where is the marxism tag?? On bloody May Day as well 
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May 1, 2014 12:40
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Nick Clegg is doing a Twitter Q&A today https://twitter.com/LibDems/statuses/461827742204715008
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May 1, 2014 12:46
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big scary monsters posted:Seems to me like a set of isolated views that are not in line with UKIP's policies or their vision for Britain. In isolation maybe, but in context with numerous other expressed opinions of the same dubiousness then you've got to wonder what's attracting them all to donating to UKIP.
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May 1, 2014 13:02
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I suspect bsm may have been a teensy bit sarcastic there.
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May 1, 2014 13:11
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As someone involved in the legal world, I can say that these cuts have completely and royally hosed the current graduating generation of Future lawyers. Worked for the last three years at an undergrad, or four if it's undergrad and conversion? That's nice. Aid has been slashed so if you want to be a criminal barrister LOL GOOD LUCK. Unless youre going into a City firm, it's hellish.
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May 1, 2014 13:12
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So how complicated are we talking about to make it impossible to prosecute?
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May 1, 2014 13:19
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I think it's rather sad that it's taken a case involving the Prime Minister's brother for legal aid cuts to become such a scandal. If Grayling goes, Cameron is going to be inundated with conflict of interest accusations.
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May 1, 2014 13:21
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