Agenda 2019

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/labour-ukip-byelection-win-results-stoke-copeland-what-it-means-these-by-elections-make-corbyn-s-a7596796.html That is the end of Jeremy Corbyn, then.  says John Rentoul of the Independent. John Rentoul: "Journalist" Rentoul has been agitating, pushing and encouraging the removal of Jeremy Corbyn since the day following the Labour leadership election of September 2015. As perhaps the most high-profile defender of Tony Blair, Rentoul describes himself as "having a slavish admiration" for the former Prime Minister, which probably explains his constant and usually distorted reporting on the Labour leadership. Rentoul was a vocal and enthusiastic supporter of Liz Kendall in the first leadership election and supported Owen Smith in the 2016 election, thus is it not difficult to see where his political preferences lie. The article contains the usual distortion and biased slant as is common in the vast majority ...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-tony-blair-labour-leadership-win-general-election-comres-poll-a7363306.html Labour would have a better chance of winning if Tony Blair came back as leader. The Independent exceeds even its own standard of truth distortion. As a "newspaper" (even an exclusively on line version because it did not sell on the news stands) the Independent is famous for manufacturing "facts" and producing concocted "opinion polls" to suit whichever line of rubbish it is currently peddling. This week, it is Blair. Last week it was Milliband Major who the Independent sought to promote as the saviour of the British people. Blair, the hypocritical war monger, exposed (eventually) in the Chilcot report as a puppet of Bush and the American neocons, would never be trusted to run a whelk stall let alone have another stint at destroying this country. They say that in war, truth is the first vic...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-corbyn-labour-whips-quit-parliament-walkout-a7352806.html Jeremy Corbyn hit by new parliamentary walkout as two MPs quit as party whips Conor McGinn and Holly Lynch We can always rely on the "Independent" to find the most lurid phraseology with which to headline their rather feeble "stories", over emphasising , "a furious reaction from Labour MPs". The reality is of course that had Winterton together with Conor McGinn and Holly Lynch been more successful in maintaining discipline within the Parliamentary Labour Party over the last 18 months, we would not have been subjected to another party Leadership contest and the constant sniping, p lotting and media briefings against the leadership that has been filling the media and television news or the very audible insults and jibes thrown at Jeremy Corbyn by his own MP's during Prime Ministers Questions.  I am sure that the departure of McG...

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/aug/22/corbyn-v-smith-labour-leader-voting-system-democratic-car-crash Corbyn v Smith for Labour's next leader, but being a winner is not enough.  Says Anne Perkins. Jeremy Corbyn and Owen Smith The Guardian continues on its compulsive campaign to undermine and remove Jeremy Corbyn from the Labour party leadership. In this self appointed role as the "Champion of the Parliamentary Labour Party", the Guardian will, and does, use any tool available to it or any argument, no matter how tenuous such argument may be, as the media mouthpiece for any disaffected MP with their own agenda, or for individuals who seek to erode support for the Corbyn leadership. The tool for tod ay’s assault is the "Opinion" section of the newspaper, where the editorial staff and the proprietor can shelter behind the shield of denial that the "Opinion" as printed is that of the writer, not necessarily of the paper. A v...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/corbyn-labour-leadership-rebel-mps-a7202641.html Labour MPs plan for Corbyn victory  and plot how to confront an emboldened leader Even for the "Independent", the number and use of unnamed anonymous "sources" in this article is quite astonishing. However, amongst all the usual speculative delusion, there is one factor which causes concern to anyone who believes in the Labour Party, its principles and in he democratic process of the Labour movement. It is abundantly clear that elements within the Parliamentary Labour Party, are even now, planning another coup in the event that Jeremy Corbyn should emerge as winner in the current ballot. The failed coup of earlier this year, has now descended into a sham leadership election, because the conspirators still fail to accept the democratic decision of the Labour party membership and cling to ...

   http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/chuka-umunna-john-trickett-labour-eu-referendum-campaign-leaked-emails-confusion-a7194566.html Labour MP claims leaked emails show ‘in technicolor’, confusion of party’s EU referendum campaign Chukka Umunna  You remember Chucka Umunna. He was the one who dropped out of the Labour party leadership contest just 4 days after declaring his intended candidature, because he could not bear the level of media attention. Chucka Umunna has probably been regretting that decision ever since and seems to have spent most of his time during the months since then, dreaming up ways to undermine Corbyn and to conspire with others in the Parliamentary Labour Party, to remove Corbyn from the leaders hip. In this pantomime of orchestrated resignations from Shadow Cabinet, through the farce of a No Confidence motion, Umunna has maintained a low profile, presumably waiting for the right moment to draw his dagger. It a...

https://www.crowdpac.co.uk/campaigns/23/luke-akehurst Luke Akehurst for Labour NEC says Luke Akehurst Luke Akehurst. Standing for election to NEC Luke Akehutst, firmly clutching his begging bowl, wandering around the pages of social media, (and elsewhere no doubt), seeking donations to support his campaign for a place on the Labour party National Executive. This duplicitous individual should have been expelled from the Labour Party months ago, rather than now seeking election to the NEC. Akehurst you will recall, agitated against Jeremy Corbyn during the leadership election ,with smears and distortions, urging members to vote for anyone except Corbyn, and is a typical example of the rotten rump within the Labour Party who, despite all the evidence to the contrary, clings to the delusion that Labour should seek a return to the Blairite policies of the discredited “New Labour” Not that that in itself is justification for expulsion. The actions of Akehurst and his ...

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/apr/30/uk-throes-of--housing-crisis Revealed: UK ‘is in the throes of a housing crisis’ Revealed: UK ‘is in the throes of a housing crisis’. Revealed!? Many of us have been shouting from the rooftops for years that this country has a housing crisis. That crisis has become even worse over the past 20 years and now rates as an national outrage which should not be tolerated by any decent society in this 21st Century. It is a crisis brought about by decades of neglect and indifference by successive governments who have viewed "housing" as a manifesto topic where they can make all sorts of promises and when elected, find all sorts of "reasons" why they are only able to build a fraction of the number of houses and flats actually required.   Over the past 6 months, house building organisations, economists and housing charities, have identified contributory factors to the growing crisis. The "right to buy" ...

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/video/2016/apr/28/john-mann-calls-ken-livingstone-a-nazi-apologist-video?CMP=share_btn_fb John Mann chased Mr Livingstone up the stairs at the BBC's offices in Millbank, shouting and calling him a "f****** disgrace". In an extraordinary outburst of venom, questionable language and clearly stage managed indignation, John Mann “confronts” Ken Livingstone in the street and on the stairway of the BBC's offices in Millbank. It is perhaps by coincidence that the witnesses to this verbal assault were, apart from the passing public, cameramen, reporters and hacks from the Mail, Telegraph, Independent and all the usual suspects from the television media and newspapers, eager to grasp any opportunity to attack and discredit the Labour party no matter how tenuous the link may be. The allegation is already doing the rounds that this whole altercation was no more than an opportunistic stunt engineered for the invited audienc...

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/apr/26/hillsborough-families-27-year-struggle-for-truth-vindicated Hillsborough families' 27-year struggle for truth vindicated After 27 years, the families of the victims achieve justice as the truth is finally revealed. South Yorkshire police, the South Yorkshire ambulance service, Sheffield Wednesday football club and its engineers, Eastwood and Partners, Sheffield city council and other authorities are all criticised in the jury verdicts, particularly the West Yorkshire police and , South Yorkshire Chief Superintendent  David Duckenfield. The conspiracy of lies, cover up and perversion of the course of justice is a scandal of colossal proportions, which demands speedy investigation and prosecution of those individuals, organisations and public bodies involved.Notwithstanding the apologies already made in some sections of the press, the role of the media and the part they played, particularly Kelvin McKenzie and the Sun new...

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/apr/25/junior-doctors-strike-defeated-jeremy-hunt#comments Hospitals braced for walkout as Hunt says doctors' strike must be defeated Hunt says doctors' strike must be defeated. At the general election, o nly 11.3 million people voted conservative out of the 30.6 million people casting a ballot (66.1%). To state that, “the British people”, voted for the manifesto promise, is stretching the boundaries of legitimacy a bit far . H ow many manifesto promises have been abandoned by governments the day after polling day should it be expedient to do so in any case . ? There have been two recent opportunities for Hunt to avert this strike and to resume negotiations, but both have been dismissed with the same arrogance and inflexibility on the part of the Secretary of State for Health that has been the case since this dispute started. A dispute created and engineered by a government with a hidden agenda. T he real reason...

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/apr/24/nhs-hospitals-finalise-plans-to-cope-with-unprecedented-strikes?CMP=share_btn_fb#_=_ Jeremy Hunt rejects  another compromise Last week, Hunt dismissed a proposal from the BMA to call off the strike in exchange for the removal of the threat to impose the new contracts. I noted at the time that " As if his handling of this dispute were not incompetent enough already, Hunt compounds his ineptitude by rejecting a proposal from the BMA which would have allowed them and the Health Secretary to step back from an all out strike." Hunt now rejects a compromise proposal by an all party group of MP's ,which includes  the Lib Dem MP and former coalition health minister Norman Lamb; Dr Dan Poulter,(like Lamb a member of Hunt’s ministerial team until last May); and Dr Philippa Whitford, an SNP MP who is also an NHS breast cancer doctor. and which would have led to the strike being called off, with the extraordinary remark t...

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/apr/22/barack-obama-brexit-uk-back-of-queue-for-trade-talks “The UK is going to be in the back of the queue.”  "go to the back of the queue" Barack Obama, has gone too far in this latest outpouring of support for Cameron and the "Remain in the EU" campaign. There is a very fine line between a Presidential personal opinion and a United States Presidential instruction to the people of another country to "do the right thing" and vote in a particular way. Coupled with the threat that the United Kingdom would "go to the back of the queue" (a strangely "English" word not usually used by Americans who prefer "the line"), Obama has thrown his weight into the into the remain lobby, with a script which could and probably was influenced if not written, by Cameron and his team. The British people do not respond well to threats and intimidation from what ever source, but the e...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/junior-doctors-strike-bma-tells-jeremy-hunt-walk-outs-will-be-scrapped-if-contract-imposition-halted-a6991101.html Jeremy Hunt rejects BMA offer to cancel walk-out if he halts contract imposition Jeremy Hunt: How long can he avoid the blame? As if his handling of this dispute were not incompetent enough already, Hunt compounds his ineptitude by rejecting a proposal from the BMA which would have allowed them and the Health Secretary to step back from an all out strike. However, Jeremy Hunt continues on the course which he has pursued from the beginning of this dispute. He has demonstrated a determination to pick a fight with the BMA and Junior Doctors and to take the most provocative position available to him on all of the disputed points. The latest aggressive miscalculation emanating from the Department of Health and seeking to impose by force, new contracts which had already been rejected by the BMA, was guaranteed...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/does-the-treasurys-brexit-equation-stand-up-to-scrutiny-a6989356.html Does the Treasury's Brexit equation stand up to scrutiny? Osborne looking puzzled? Osborne forecasts that families will be £4300 by 2030. He also announces that wages will be lower, prices will be higher and living standards will fall. To "prove" this highly speculative piece of nonsense he points to  The Treasury's "Brexit" equations, which seems to be little more than Algebraic gobbledegook, scribbled on a  "Post it" pad page and offered to the British people as irrefutable evidence that everyone should vote "Remain" in the forthcoming referendum. (How many people actually understand the Algebra in any case?) The Treasury "Brexit" equation. During his tenure as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Osborne's (and the Treasury's), "forecasts" have been wildly ...

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/today-we-took-a-step-towards-mob-rule-and-the-only-thing-we-learned-is-that-politicians-tax-returns-a6979496.html Today we took a step towards mob rule – and the only thing we learned is that politicians' tax returns are dull Dodgy Dave Journalistic nonsense from Oliver Wright who either does not understand the issues or perhaps more likely has his own agenda for defending the indefensible. Elected representatives of the people of this country forfeit the right to secrecy of their tax returns and sources of income when they become elected and become part of the process of implementing the rules and changes to them.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/david-cameron-says-it-is-unfair-to-criticise-british-controlled-tax-havens-a6982186.html David Cameron has defended British-controlled tax havens, arguing that criticism of their offshore regimes is “unfair”.  criticism of offshore regimes is “unfair”. Dodgy Dave thinks that criticism of British-controlled tax havens is “unfair” .What is unfair Dave is that the vast majority of people in this country have no choice but to pay their PAYE, while very rich individuals can salt money away in numerous schemes run by at best, dubious and often criminal organisations, sheltering in the secrecy of some tax haven around the world. Avoiding (and often evading) taxes while the rest of us pay is unfair, particularly so when the government creates the "loop holes" in the first place and then defends the resultant tax avoidance. The adverts in the video are irritating, but I suppose that this wretched, (now o...

http://www.theguardian.com/news/2016/apr/03/panama-papers-money-hidden-offshore?CMP=share_btn_fb A network of secret offshore deals and vast loans worth $2bn has laid a trail to Russia’s president,  Vladimir Putin . Sky New, BBC news and the rest of the British media have been running this story since last night. All share the same slant in that they all repeatedly stress the connection of Vladimir Putin with Mossack Fonseca and the sleasy dealing in offshore bank accounts and money laundering What they also share, is a complete disregard of the names or suggestions of the identities of the British politicians and their connections with money laundering and other distasteful financial activities referred to in the millions of files leaked. Former Tory MPs, donors and David Cameron's father among those named If the media must respond to government "guidelines" to ramp up the anti Russian/anti Putin propaganda and play down any suggestion of sleaze ...

  http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/emb-0000-eu-referendum-david-cameron-closes-in-on-deal-to-allow-red-card-veto-on-eu-laws-a6847636.html David Cameron closes in on deal to allow 'red card' veto on EU laws Cameron with the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk Cameron, pushing out more meaningless rhetoric for consumption by the Euroskeptiks or so he would like. The EU is never going to agree for 1 country (the UK) to be able to "opt out" of European rules, regulations and laws when the objective of the EU is for greater political and economic integration.   Cameron, is seeking a way to present his "deal" as salvation for Britain, allowing the UK to remain part of the European Union. He would claim the same "victory" even if the "deal" was no more than a blank sheet of A4 paper, which of course it actually is.