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.

http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-30556988

Stephen Crabb says Ed Miliband does not care about Wales

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2882176/Weak-Miliband-blasted-giving-immigration-rebel-plum-job-threatened-walk-Shadow-Cabinet.html

LOL HAYS............................................................

Labour races into seven-point lead as ratings for Nigel Farage show sharp fall
Observer/Opinium poll puts Labour on 36%, with the Tories on 29% and Ukip down three points to 16%21/12/2014


The figures provide a welcome boost for Labour and its leader, Ed Miliband. Photograph: Carl Court/Getty

Labour has opened up a seven-point lead over the Conservatives in the latest Opinium/Observer poll, which also shows a sharp fall in the personal approval ratings for the Ukip leader, Nigel Farage.

The survey will be a boost for Labour and its leader, Ed Miliband, who has endured a torrid time since the autumn conference season as the political parties prepare to enter a general election year.

It is the second poll in a week showing that the Tories have lost ground since chancellor George Osborne’s autumn statement earlier this month, in which he spelled out the need for several more years of deep cuts to public spending.

Labour has opened up a seven-point lead over the Conservatives in the latest Opinium/Observer poll, which also shows a sharp fall in the personal approval ratings for the Ukip leader, Nigel Farage.

The survey will be a boost for Labour and its leader, Ed Miliband, who has endured a torrid time since the autumn conference season as the political parties prepare to enter a general election year.

It is the second poll in a week showing that the Tories have lost ground since chancellor George Osborne’s autumn statement earlier this month, in which he spelled out the need for several more years of deep cuts to public spending.

The Opinium survey will also be worrying for Farage, as it shows his personal ratings diving to a level below those of David Cameron, following a series of controversies, including his public comments about the need for women to be discreet when breastfeeding. Farage’s rating has dropped to -17% (the percentage of voters who approve of his performance minus those who disapprove), a fall of eight points since a fortnight ago and the lowest score recorded for him by Opinium.

Although Cameron still scores best on this measure by some margin, Miliband has narrowed the gap. Cameron’s rating fell by two points to -11%, while Miliband’s improved by three points to -28%. Nick Clegg was on -48%.

Douglas Alexander, chair of Labour’s general election strategy, claimed that the Tories were alienating voters as they were intent on paring back public services. “In the final weeks of this year, the Tories have made a major error by exposing themselves as a party intent on slashing back public services to levels not seen since the 1930s, when we didn’t have the NHS. Theirs is a project motivated by ideology, not necessity,” he said.• Opinium Research carried out an online survey of 1,957 GB adults aged 18+ between 16 and 19 December 2014. Results have been weighted to nationally representative criteria.

Hays Hays Hays Hays .............

resistance is futile now.

The game is up, just accept it.

Your Tory cheats have been found out at last.

Opinium always flatter Labour's figures. Conservatives are same as last week, and Labour is up temporarily at the expense of UKIP. It won't last; a temporary blip.

Don't forget that Ipsos More have the Conservatives 3 points ahead.

The comment punters on this one are in heaven, their cups runneth over






comments: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/cartoon/2014/dec/21/christmas-davidcameron

Peter Mandelson and Ken Clarke on the Marr show this morning, that could be interesting.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/11305953/Trader-goes-missing-after-130m-of-clients-cash-disappears.html

DB4.

This more interesting.
=====

GF
Labour races into seven-point lead as ratings for Nigel Farage show sharp fall
Observer/Opinium poll puts Labour on 36%, with the Tories on 29% and Ukip down three points to 16%21/12/2014

http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2014/12/ashcrofts-polls-labour-will-not-win-majority-and-could-lose-four-seats-ukip

Ashcroft's polls: Labour will not win a majority – and could lose four seats to Ukip

Lord Ashcroft’s latest constituency polls have been released. He has already published more than 100 but these are his most important yet. (Track them all here.)

To predict who will this election we need to answer a few questions:

– Who will benefit most from the Lib Dem collapse (answer: Labour, slightly);
– How many seats will the SNP take from Labour in Scotland (national polls suggest dozens, but they could struggle);
– How many seats will Ukip win;
– And how many seats will change hands between Labour and the Tories.

Today’s polls help answer the final two questions.

First, Ashcroft’s polls show Ukip seriously challenging Labour in four seats: Great Grimsby, Dudley North, Plymouth Moor View and Rother Valley. Ukip are within 1, 3, 5 and 6 per cent in these four seats, and polling above 30 per cent in each of them.

From today

Labour lead at 2

Latest YouGov / Sunday Times results 19th December -

Con 32%, Lab 34%, LD 6%, UKIP 15%; APP

http://order-order.com/

http://news.sky.com/story/1395057/research-ukip-surge-wont-deliver-many-seats

Research: UKIP Surge Won't Deliver Many Seats

UKIP will struggle to convert its recent surge in support into a sizeable number of MPs at the General Election, new research suggests.

The Plymouth University analysis also says the Liberal Democrats could confound plummeting poll ratings and avoid the Parliamentary catastrophe some are predicting.

The research found that while Nigel Farage's party is winning a lot more votes, Nick Clegg's is much more effective at converting them into seats.

UKIP will get more support on May 7 but will end up finishing second behind the main parties in a large number of constituencies, it concluded.

Researchers examined the votes cast by over one and a half million electors in more than 1,000 local council by-elections since the 2010 general election.

Since its impressive showing at the 2013 local elections, UKIP candidates have contested 346 council by-elections, winning just 21 and coming second 150 times.

By contrast, despite garnering far fewer votes than UKIP, the Lib Dems have won more than twice as many seats - 53 from 318 contests.

Latest polls put support for Mr Clegg's party in single figures and predict they could lose at least 34 of their 57 MPs.

However, the Plymouth University data shows the party's national vote share is estimated at 14%, about six points higher than the pollsters' average.

Professor Michael Thrasher, of Plymouth University, said: "Support for the Liberal Democrats is 10 points lower than its 2010 vote and indicates losses of 17 parliamentary seats.

"But that situation is a lot better than if the polls are right.

"The Liberal Democrats have proved more successful than a small party should be under Britain's first-past-the-post system precisely because its support is concentrated in some areas.

"Relatively speaking, UKIP's support is evenly spread.

"This evidence points to UKIP doing well enough to win at best a handful of seats in 2015, but at the same time garnering enough votes to finish as runner-up in scores of constituencies."

Haze and DB4.


It is no use the public don't trust the Con party anymore.

They have seen through them as being a self serving bunch of incompetent liars.

You are clinging to straws.

I'm convinced you are on another planet Fred, EM will never be PM !

I can't see the public going to the polls and choosing Miliband to be their leader. It is going to be another Kinnock moment. Can anyone in their right mind see Miliband on the world stage meeting with world leaders? It is going to look like a scene from a Mr Bean film with him being ignored by one Prime Minister or President after another.

"Mr Putin, do you like my teddy bear friend?".

Labour races into seven-point lead as ratings for Nigel Farage show sharp fall
Observer/Opinium poll puts Labour on 36%, with the Tories on 29% and Ukip down three points to 16%21/12/2014


The figures provide a welcome boost for Labour and its leader, Ed Miliband. Photograph: Carl Court/Getty

Labour has opened up a seven-point lead over the Conservatives in the latest Opinium/Observer poll, which also shows a sharp fall in the personal approval ratings for the Ukip leader, Nigel Farage.

The survey will be a boost for Labour and its leader, Ed Miliband, who has endured a torrid time since the autumn conference season as the political parties prepare to enter a general election year.

It is the second poll in a week showing that the Tories have lost ground since chancellor George Osborne’s autumn statement earlier this month, in which he spelled out the need for several more years of deep cuts to public spending.

Labour has opened up a seven-point lead over the Conservatives in the latest Opinium/Observer poll, which also shows a sharp fall in the personal approval ratings for the Ukip leader, Nigel Farage.

The survey will be a boost for Labour and its leader, Ed Miliband, who has endured a torrid time since the autumn conference season as the political parties prepare to enter a general election year.

It is the second poll in a week showing that the Tories have lost ground since chancellor George Osborne’s autumn statement earlier this month, in which he spelled out the need for several more years of deep cuts to public spending.

The Opinium survey will also be worrying for Farage, as it shows his personal ratings diving to a level below those of David Cameron, following a series of controversies, including his public comments about the need for women to be discreet when breastfeeding. Farage’s rating has dropped to -17% (the percentage of voters who approve of his performance minus those who disapprove), a fall of eight points since a fortnight ago and the lowest score recorded for him by Opinium.

Although Cameron still scores best on this measure by some margin, Miliband has narrowed the gap. Cameron’s rating fell by two points to -11%, while Miliband’s improved by three points to -28%. Nick Clegg was on -48%.

Douglas Alexander, chair of Labour’s general election strategy, claimed that the Tories were alienating voters as they were intent on paring back public services. “In the final weeks of this year, the Tories have made a major error by exposing themselves as a party intent on slashing back public services to levels not seen since the 1930s, when we didn’t have the NHS. Theirs is a project motivated by ideology, not necessity,” he said.• Opinium Research carried out an online survey of 1,957 GB adults aged 18+ between 16 and 19 December 2014. Results have been weighted to nationally representative criteria.