Concern within the Labour Party that Jeremy Corbyn is doing well

TriciaF you don't need to be a party member, just pay £3 and you get to vote for the next Labour leader.

I've been more politically active, attended the hustings locally and heard Carolyn Flint speak and answer questions in support of her bid to be deputy leader. Whatever people's views on Jeremy C, it seems he's livened up the leadership debate. He's also encouraging a wider debate about the need for Labour to be clear about its principles and beliefs, rather than come over as tory lite.

Only those new members who also have ties to other political parties e.g. Tory party membership are being g revoked, not if you don't belong to anything at the moment that wouldn't be sensible.
You can still join no reason not to. Costs me a couple of quid a month.

I didn't realise that all members have a right to vote now, so that's the reason for a sudden surge in applications to join.
Used to be a different method. I wish I'd renewed my membership now.

There's no reason why anyone cannot join the Labour party having been a member of another party previously, is there?

He not it.

There were large numbers joining straight after the election too. This was before details on the leadership election were released. This was the guy who made the most noise on Any Questions.

"Toby Young, who is the author of How to Lose Friends & Alienate People and the co-founder of several free schools. In addition to being an associate editor of the Spectator, he writes a regular blog for the Telegraph".

It didn't sound as if he is a friend of the Labour Party did he? No only on this question but he was pretty far to the right on the others too. He certainly made the most noise.

Difficult one that as I am sure there are absolutely genuine new members who want to get democratically involved in the say of a new leader, and I wouldn't want to stop their enthusiasm, we need people like that who take a lively and intelligent interest.

It's a bit surprising that the Labour Party didn't see that one coming.
Why not restrict votes to people who were members prior to a certain date?

Not most people Margaret but a small minority. Most are young people looking for something that resonates with their belief in a fairer society.

About 1000 are going to have their recent membership revoked as they are members of other political parties. They are not required.

According to Radio4 Any Questions, most people joining the Labour party online are not labour voters but people who want to put themselves into a position to get Corbyn in, hoping that that will mean the end of the Labour party.

Gracesgran. Stupid of Southend here. How does the ignore button work.
I am trying, honestly I am. But the little devil just jumps out.
You have no idea how much I keep it zipped.

Good to all the last few posts.

Everything is all there to read in chronilogical date order.

Petra. - re 14.53 post

On one site I was on there were "ignore" buttons Jen. It made for a peaceful life .

"So I will put you on mental 'ignore' from now on. A lot less hassle"
I keep trying, must try harder.

Soon, you seem to be the one who is lecturing others. I do not have a school.
You were the one who asked me for a link, so I reminded you of the one on here already. You have not bothered reading the link you asked for, so why did you bother asking for one in the first place.

Richard Murphy has an ignore button, too, Gracesgran, for people who argue without knowing the facts.

Yesterday - the post you quoted - was not back in July soon. I have realised I rarely understand what you are talking about - however hard I try - so will put you on a mental "ignore" from now on. A lot less hassle.

John Major attempted to join the euro remember Black Wednesday and then it all went e ven more pear shaped, so he was given the boot by the voter.

Admittedly, I was barely in my 20s at the start of the Thatcher years. So my memory is likely to be a bit more rosy [I enjoyed my 20s!] than some. Plus a 20 year old's recollection and perspective is different to someone in say their 40s at the same time.

|No I dont remember businesses going to the wall at all in the 80s.

And my further memory and perspective was that Thatcher left because she basically went too far, as in wasnt listening to anyone else much at all in the last couple of years.

Also that the economy somewhat stalled under John Major.

I am quite happy for others, to correct me on the above.

soon It definitely didn't thrive under Thatcher quite the opposite in fact. Don't you remember the huge amount of businesses going to the wall? Our main shopping area in Brighton looked like war had been declared with every other shop boarded up and unemployment reaching enormous levels.

It was only when it became clear that this relentless pursuit of monetarism was a disaster that the foot was quietly taken off the brake and the economy gradually recovered.

Bellanonna. Apology accepted. I'm not clever enough to be a troll.
What you see is what you get with me.

You also compared it to businesses in the next sentence.
You were the one who brought the whole comparison bit up.

I am not going to look back, but I dont think anyone else had mentioned it in ages.
And I wasnt on the thread since mid July!

I am so glad sometimes that the internet has it all down in black and white.

So this would be the post where I said

Everyone has been brainwashed by the idea that austerity is how you would run a household budget and it is not.

Plainly saying that I do not think you can compare a household budget to running a country.

I still feel you were the one who kept making the comparison to households which, I think, two of us tried to use - as it seemed to be your default - to help to show you what we were arguing.

Not that it's really very important.

I would say that it thrived under Thatcher!
Not sure about the deregulation of the financial sector though, or whether that was even part of monetorism.

I dont think that GO is following economics either much. Not sure whether there have been new theories in recent years though.

soon but you must know that classical economics is much older than Keynsianism, which came about as an answer to the classical theories fai!ure during the great depression of 30 s, and that is the basis of my argument.

The Tories have a tendancy to follow (classical) monetorism, which failed under Thatcher and is now clearly failing under Osborne.

I go further though and argue that GO s theory has nothing to do with economics and everything to do with a small state, something I think with which you agree, the relentless pursuit of which has caused untold misery, which we are witnessing day after day, the latest being the underprivileged children being so badly let down.