General election latest: Rishi Sunak to call election for 4 July - after 'long' discussion in No 10
Rishi Sunak will be calling a general election, to be held on Thursday 4 July, Sky News understands - watch and follow live updates in the Politics Hub.
Apparently Tories are sending letters to the 1922 Committee over this. God, please let the Tories have a leadership election now. It would be so funny.
Maybe the lettuce will get a go this time
tory moment *
It would be hugely entertaining. However, the 1922 committee bend the rules when it suits them. There's no way they'll admit in public that the threshold has been reached even if it does, and I don't think it will because even the loony right has a majority who have a sense of self interest. It's too late politically now that the general election has been announced, and there'll be a leadership election after the general election anyway, even if something remarkable happens and they keep a slim majority or achieve a coalition.
@flamingos@feddit.uk That's why the sudden rush-move. Calling the election before enough letters can arrive to have him kicked out.
Probably goes without saying in a politics community, but:
Everyone go and double check that you're registered to vote at your current address and make sure you arrange for a postal/proxy vote if you're gonna be on holiday or otherwise away (particularly students who may have registered at their uni addresses, this date is almost certainly partly chosen to disenfranchise students)
Don't ever believe polls no matter how safe things look, surprises on polling day are not uncommon.
You'd hope after AV and Brexit, people would know better.
And 1992. Labour started off way ahead in the polls but they narrowed and then one poorly conceived party political event knocked them into second place. Labour have a big lead now in the polls, but they're coming from a long, long way behind.
AV was a different kettle of fish. Garbage turnout and masses of undecideds in polling. I don't think anyone ever thought it was nailed on even if technically AV was ahead in some polls. Point stands though.
Also make sure you have voter ID!
Yay! HANG THE TORIES!!!
Oh wait. Sorry. Not like that.
But then again…
Hang them out to dry
🚨 GENERAL ELECTION 🚨
It's happening
Febrile atmosphere here for the first Lemmy ukpol election
The Tories absolutely need to go the way of the Whigs, but it's all just window dressing until money is removed from politics.
Gonna be great to exist as a trans person the next month...
HIGNFY is going to be interesting!
And just after Private Eye was printed!
I'm not saying I'm going to spam this every day but, you know. I am.
Why would I want to disgrace myself by volunteering for a political party?
Think less of it as volunteering for a political party and more as volunteering for ideological pragmatism. You don't have to have cloned sensibilities to work with someone or some organization to better your country/county/city.
Is it really that disgraceful?
About bloody time.
It’s been raining hard nearly all day today, only just stopped. But I guess it’s true that every cloud has a silver lining.
July 4th is going to be a double British thanksgiving!
An election to change governments away from one that I feel has been greatly damaging to the nation and my life should be a happy occasion.
Yet, I look at the alternative in our two party system, the new government, Labour, that will undoubtedly get voted in (unless they somehow catastrophically implode within the next few weeks, getting caught sacrificing goats during an orgy at Stonehenge or something)... is basically just a slightly different shade of Tory.
That's not to say everyone in the party is, or that they're identical, but enough are, especially the ones in power, and while small things will change for the better, Labour, like the Tories, are too far gone to actually fix any of the underlying issues we face.
Are they going to reverse privatisation of the failing NHS, failing water suppliers, failing rail infrastructure, etc etc? Of course not. Are they going to stand up for unions, workers rights, and our rights to protest? Of course not.
Are they going to begin the long slow process of rejoining the EU, which was such a huge benefit to the UK and yet was taken away through brainwashing, misinformation, and good ol' right wing racism, a process that I will only see come to fruition within my lifetime if started right now? Of course not. They can't anger the right wing portion of their following that they've been slowly building since dropping the guise of being an even slightly to the left of centre political party.
They're certainly not going to go against big what big business and the rich want, because those are the groups keeping the ruling class of the nation - including the government - in power, and in the lap of luxury, both now and when they leave office and move on to a private paycheque full-time.
Notice how both parties harp on about "the economy", (as well as the media that tells us all what to think - owned by the rich), and do everything they can to make it happy and healthy, but do nothing at all to address the growing - now utterly gigantic - distribution of wealth gap between the rich and the majority of us, which stretches much further than simply poor wages - it affects what we have access to, what job and education opportunities we have, how healthy we are, who we're able to meet and spend time with....it affects everything, and it's all being ignored in favour of helping "the economy".
They tell us that a strong economy will bring us all prosperity, that somehow the billions in profits made by the rich will drip down into our teacups for us to lick up, but the reality is that the businesses they serve just find more ways and excuses to raise prices, reduce service quality, cut wages, and get more payouts.
The current government is the worst of the lot, to be sure, and I'm glad they're going soon. But I'm sad, because I know we won't get any real change in this election. Just a chance of colour scheme, and a shuffling around of minor priorities and allocations for services, which will make some people happy, as it will appear as if the new government are truly changing things...
But it's akin to rearranging the furniture in a house that's on fire. It might feel fresh and better for a few people for a short time, but the whole thing is still burning down in the background.
Probably because the heat from the fire will keep "the economy" nice and warm.
:-(
"Less shit" is better than "total shit".
This, this is what the left wing never seem to get! They'd rather stand on principle and let the Tories stay in power.
Incidentally, I actually think Starmer's Labour will be a very positive government, but even if they were just 'better than Sunak', they would be better than Sunak so let's get them into power.
Labour, like the Tories, are too far gone to actually fix any of the underlying issues we face.
The only way this is ever true is because people refuse to accept that change is possible. Even Tories could be reformed if enough people of conscience stood up and made their voices heard. Remote as that possibility is... it's still a possibility.
The truly irredeemable only exist in fantasy, as a cheap source of righteous fury for the heroes. The real world is far too grey to accept such absolutes.
When's the Stonehenge orgy? Asking for a friend.
Are they going to reverse privatisation of the failing NHS,
Not really, but they'll stop speeding it up.
failing water suppliers,
Only partly and not very effectively, but they'll strengthen regulation
failing rail infrastructure, etc etc?
Yes they will
Are they going to stand up for unions,
Partly in terms of legislation, but they'll be terrified of picket lines and press coverage, so very little in terms of mood music.
workers rights,
Actually, yes, just not as much as we want
and our rights to protest?
I hope so.
Are they going to begin the long slow process of rejoining the EU
Absolutely not. But they might well strengthen common regulation and win concessions for trade with the single market.
Post 2019. When starmer was living to us. Was when we needed to do more. And unfortunately failed.
Now we have to accept the simple choice. Vote for the lesser of to evils. Or get the greater.
Because not voting really is just favouring the incumbent party. Hell that's why the work to make it harder.
Ignore polling. It really only takes some crap lie for it to swap. And sunak is really trying to come up with any crap he can. Interpreting Starmers comment as refusing to debate.
The bacon sandwich event is going to happen. He has too much media support for it not to.
And only one party is using outright cruelty to the disabled and trans rights. To desperatly try and launch a culture war.
@obinice @PeteBauxigeg @Sarahw well, if you want all that lot, there’s likely to be one candidate where you are offering pretty much that. #VoteGreen
Before you vote green, please make sure your vote isn't needed elsewhere to dislodge a Tory.
Great, the next round of distraction theatre is here sooner than expected, and no one is even questioning what this is serving as cover for.. 🎉🙄
Either way, it achieves its goal - get/keep the public riled up in its division and focused entirely on the next round of blue v red, while those who control both (and who exist outside of the party system, and therefore completely outside of voter control, by design of course) continue to relentlessly fuck us over.
Labour have been declaring loud and clear who they are and what they stand for (lmfao, as if spineless Starmer can even "stand" for anything), anyone who still believes they offer an alternative at this point is as gullible as a tory voter.
I will continue to vote none as long as I am forced to pick between one evil and another, there is no "lesser" when they both play for the same team (and it isn't team working class).
You have a choice, to see this for what it is and not participate in their divisive charade. Be brave enough to see solutions outside of the narrow system those in power have created for you to feel like you are participating in the decision making (like the pretend wheel you might give a toddler to play with in their car seat so they feel like they're driving), and instead start making decision for yourself, that will actually impact your life and the lives of those around you - start consciously unlearning the lies you've been indoctrinated with all your life (like that parliament has or ever will serve the people and not for those who own the land and hoard the money), spread this information to others, and start organising alternatives to the bullshit we're expected to keep putting up with (namely the continued extraction of resources from the people upwards, or "reverse trickle down" which is how the system was designed to work, and the aforementioned division of the people in to blue v red instead of haves v have-nots. E: and that isn't just a money thing, it's a privilege thing, too) because it's the easiest way to keep us from revolting.
Fucking revolt.
Or just vote. It's easier, less risky and more likely to make a real difference in the country if we succeed in changing the government.
If you protest in any way that's even slightly inconvenient, you'll just go to prison, having been disallowed from even explaining why you were protesting and then be forgotten to everyone except your family.
The Conservatives have made it very very easy to lock you up and silence you in the process. So step 1 is to change the government to someone who is less likely to outlaw holding a sign in a street.
So, you're saying vote lib dem?
/S for good measure