Thought Id start this one going because its rather dead on this board at the moment and I suppose all my usual muckers are either at the Stella tennis event watching Dim Tim (lose again) or at Henly Regatta eating cucumber sandwiches (they wish,...NOT).

Anyway please feel free to just talk to yourself blast away and let it go on any company or subject you wish. Just wish Id thought of this one before.

cheers GF.

Aye cricket, just another sport the Welsh are shite at.

Hays hays hays................

Ashcroft National Poll: Con 29%, Lab 35%, Lib Dem 8%, UKIP 15%
Monday, 16 June, 2014 in The Ashcroft National Poll

Chart 140616
By Lord Ashcroft

Labour lead by six points in the Ashcroft National Poll, completed yesterday. Ed Miliband’s party are on 35%, up three points on last week, with the Conservatives up one on 29%, the Liberal Democrats unchanged on 8%, and UKIP down two points at 15%.

Year to go!

So what is Big Dave going to do? .... same as usual, fuck all!



'Die is cast' for Jean-Claude Juncker to take the EU's top job as defeat looms for David Cameron

The "die is cast" for Jean-Claude Juncker's appointment as European Commission president after Angela Merkel turns on David Cameron amid British warnings of a looming political "train crash"



Mr Juncker was chosen as the leading candidate by the European People's Party Photo: BLOOMBERG



By Bruno Waterfield, in Brussels and Peter Dominiczak

16 Jun 2014


British diplomats have warned that a "battle royal is coming" that could hasten a British referendum on Europe if the former prime minister of Luxembourg is installed in the European Union's top job.


After talks between Herman Van Rompuy, the German Chancellor and Britain last week, Angela Merkel has decided "to proceed as soon as possible with the appointment" of Jean-Claude Juncker, inflicting a humiliating defeat on David Cameron at a meeting of EU leaders on June 27.


"As matters stand now, Van Rompuy sees no alternative to the appointment of Juncker," said a confidential report, seen by The Telegraph of talks that took place last Wednesday. "Short of a complete U-turn by the Chancellor, the die is cast in Berlin."




More: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/eu/10902893/Die-is-cast-for-Jean-Claude-Juncker-to-take-the-EUs-top-job-as-defeat-looms-for-David-Cameron.html

"After talks between Herman Van Rompuy, the German Chancellor and Britain last week, Angela Merkel has decided "to proceed as soon as possible with the appointment" of Jean-Claude Juncker"


"Short of a complete U-turn by the Chancellor, the die is cast in Berlin."

It is clear that Merkel doesn't want him either.

Is that supposed to be an excuse for Dave's failures?

There is not much Cameron can do about it. It has nothing to do with Cameron's abilities. A different Prime Minister would have the same problem. The dominate political grouping in the EU has decided who they want. Even Merkel has to go along with it. The same is true of other leaders. The rules are that even if the leaders choose a different candidate the dominant political groups has a veto on the appointment. If it goes ahead then it looks like Cameron would announce a referendum at an earlier date. That could well be of benefit to the Conservatives at the GE.

And pigs might fly, but they wont!

Unfortunately the power of veto was granted as part of the Lisbon treaty that Labour signed. The very same treaty that took away our veto.

bad defeat for DC, but certainly nothing he could do about before or after the event
next move for tories in Europe?
hard to know, but then the intricacies of the political "behind the scenes" manoeuvring are unkown to us all

does this benefit labour?
probably not directly, though it may mean that more remain loyal to ukip at GE

Captain Marvel succeeds again and Goebbels propaganda can't defend the captain!

Barking toothless dogs comes to mind!

8-)

The true picture of the con party leadership;

Just to put "fings" in perspective!

Sometimes I wonder about certain Nations but in the last week or so I'm thinking that the leaders of these Nations are the ones to have great doubts about.

Political class ignore strength of feeling on immigration 'at their peril'

The 'liberal political class' dominating Britain is out of step with the mass of the electorate on immigration, major study warns





By John Bingham, Social Affairs Editor

10:00PM BST 16 Jun 2014



http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/10904177/Political-class-ignore-strength-of-feeling-on-immigration-at-their-peril.html



Politicians have contributed to a rise in anti-immigrant sentiment because of a widening “disconnect” between the “liberal political class” and public opinion, the UK’s most authoritative barometer of public opinion suggests.


Almost half the population now believes that a decade of mass migration has not only harmed the economy but undermined “British culture”, the annual British Social Attitudes survey shows.


The “persistent public anxiety” over immigrant numbers is something the main political parties “ignore at their peril”, the Government-funded study warns.


Significantly, the study — which has been charting public opinion for more than 30 years — found signs of a rejection of a multicultural notion of Britishness.


In striking contrast with a decade ago, when the survey showed rising acceptance of minorities, increasing numbers now single out factors such as being born in the UK or having “British ancestry” as important elements of “British” identity.

The news led to warnings on Monday that a failure to slow the pace of immigration to Britain will increase racism.

The apparent reversal in attitudes comes after a decade of mass immigration following the expansion of the European Union.

There are now around 2.5 million more foreign-born British residents than 10 years ago, including just over a million people from Poland and the seven other countries which joined the EU in 2004.

More than eight out of 10 people now support a major tightening of rules on access to benefits and curbs on overall immigration — but the study points out that EU rules would make it “very hard” for the Government to deliver on this.

“There is a clear, and intense, demand for action on the issue from one section of the electorate, a demand politicians ignore at their peril,” it concludes.

“Yet responding to the concerns of the voters worried about immigration today risks alienating the rising sections of the electorate whose political voice will become steadily louder in elections to come.”

The warning comes after the UK Independence Party’s triumph in the recent European elections, a development the study said had been influenced by a serious “disconnect” between the wishes of voters and the positions of the main parties.

It also comes amid a political row over moves by Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, to require schools to teach “British values”.

When asked what made people “truly British” the survey’s participants singled out distinct characteristics. While the importance of speaking English has long been strong, support has now reached a level of near unanimity.

The number of people citing it as a key ingredient in Britishness rose from 85 per cent to 95 per cent between 2003 and 2013.

The number citing being born in Britain as an important or very important element, edged up from 70 per cent to 74 per cent, reversing a downward trend in the previous decade. Almost eight out of 10 said it was important for people to have lived most of their life in the UK before being included — up more than a tenth in a decade.

Meanwhile, just over half (51 per cent) said it was important to have British ancestry to be considered British, up from 46 per cent in 2003.

Overall, the study, published by NatCen, an independent social research group which is funded by the Government, found that 77 per cent of people want immigration to be cut, including 56 per cent backing a large reduction.

The study said 47 per cent believe immigration has had a negative economic impact, compared with only 31 per cent who see it as positive. Forty-five per cent said they thought immigration had “undermined British cultural life”, compared with only 35 per cent who believe it has enriched British culture.

Almost one in five people believe immigration has been “very bad” both culturally and economically — outnumbering those who say it had been “very good” economically by six to one.

The study warned: “Policymakers and the interest groups they deal with regularly tend to be drawn heavily from the liberal end of the spectrum, creating a potential for disconnect and distrust between a more liberal political class which accepts immigration and an electorate among whom many find it intensely threatening. This combination of persistent public anxiety, the disconnect in attitudes between political elites and voters, and constraints on policymakers’ ability to respond have helped to fuel the rise in support for Ukip.”

It added: “In many areas of migration policy, constraints on current policy mean it is more liberal than even the most pro-migration parts of the public would like, generating widespread public discontent which is hard to address.

“For example, EU rules make it very hard for the government to restrict migrant numbers, or regulate migrant access to the welfare state, in accordance with the wishes of most of the public.”

Frank Field, the former Labour work and pensions secretary, said the shift in attitudes was a “huge condemnation” of the immigration policies of successive governments and said it would be “unforgivable” for politicians not to respond.

“One of the things we must do in drawing up our red and blue lines for renegotiating in Europe is that we have to have control of our borders again.”

Didn't the Archbishop of C suggest we take more immigrants in yesterday , no thoughts at the cost or implications whatsoever.

UKIP and the BARMY CON right wing have stirred a hornet's nest, which "may" backfire on them!

House inflation rates at record levels.

Watch out tory boys this is last chance hotel before interest rate rises and cost of living getting worse and worse.

Davy as depleted his gravy.