Labour now

The Government is getting bollocked by the press to-day. Isn't that good enough for the Socialists!

You should watch the 10.30pm newspapers review Trisher , you will see the front pages then can buy the newspaper which you think will criticise as harshly as you want. Blogs are useless , just opinions of Jo Bloggs .

Expect so Beam, but claiming it isn't so is a good diversion

Trisher the govt. has been heavily criticised by the press over the budget. No question. The fact that corbyn has also taken some stick is neither here nor there.

As was said yesterday under any other circumstances Hammond would have had to resign but he is a good friend of Theresa. Of course the government should be criticised nothing to do with socialism , It is the job of a free press. (or should be)

As Diane Abbott is a very close friend of Corbyn

She will move Hammond in the next re-shuffle. So relax.

trisher

" POGS what is interesting about Mrs May is that no-one now brings up her inadequacies "

Flipping heck have you counted how many thread do exactly that!
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" I'm ignoring the posts about Corbyn, those who want to spend their time in idle and inane gossip, and character assassination, are welcome to carry on supporting each other. As the woman said to the drunk and the pig in the gutter "You can tell...etc"

Would you ever consider posting those ' wise words ' on one of the copious threads concerning the Tories? No because you happily 'Do as you tell others not to do'..

I think you are making it evident you and a few other posters only want posts of a negative/at times vicerol nature on the Conservative Party but only happy clappy , favourable views on the Labour Party but if that happened GN would ' definitely ' be nothing more than a platform for professed left wing activists.

You have your opinions , others have theirs, plain and simple.

" as was said yesterday under any other circumstances Hammond would have had to resign"

Did you think the same when Gordon Brown did u turns for example?

I get the feeling that the biggest crime this government is committing, to some, is being there! Oppositions tend to be bitter, so I suppose it is understandable.

Trisher No way should he resign. if ministers had to resign every time they have to change their minds we would either have new ministers every week or no changes in policy under any circumstances. He may well be replaced at the next reshuffle but that's a vwmery different thing.

It's a shame that the media and politicians (and some of the public, so it seems) don't have a grasp of NICs or understand the implications of them.

There are four different categories of NICs:

Class 1: paid by most employees and their employers as a percentage of earnings. Employee pays 12% up to a cap and the employer pays approximately the same.

Class 2: £280 a year. Paid by self-employed earning less than £8,060 a year. Contribute towards state pension. They are being abolished.

Class 3: Can be paid by anybody to fill gaps in NI contributions record. £750 a year. Contribute towards state pension.

Class 4: Paid by self-employed earning over £8,000 a year. 9% of earnings. Do not contribute towards pension,so self-employed can also pay Class 2.

Osborne had already announced that Class 2 are to be abolished. This means that any self-employed person making less than £8,060 has to lose pension or pay voluntary Class 3 contributions, which are £470pa more expensive than Class 2.

Hammond's U-turn means that the better-off self-employed will not pay the increase announced in the budget, so it's hardly surprising that it was Conservative MPs who rebelled.

However, those earning less that £8,060 are being left high and dry. They now have no choice except to pay Class 3 contributions, unless they are prepared to lose about £4.40 a week pension for each year they have a gap in their records.

Those with gaps will not necessarily receive Pension Credit to make up the difference, if they have savings or any other pension or income which takes them above the level of the new state pension.

Ironically, the unemployed receive NIC credits, so will receive better pensions than those who have tried to make their own money.

Strangely enough, the Conservative NIC rebels and media are silent on this - as is the Labour Party.

Hammond shouldn't resign. May would have known the contents of the budget beforehand and approved it. In any case, Hammond's reforms were actually a progressive tax. May has given into pressure from her own back benchers. Apparently the Brexiteers in the party don't like Hammond, because he's not letting them have it their own way.

Sorry! Meant to post those last two posts on the budget thread.

In any event DD what you say is absolutely right. The NI increase was a very sensible move. I've little doubt that at some point in the future it will be bright back. I heard a number of self employed people on a radio phone in this morning saying they thought supported the increase. He had to back down though pressure from MPs who were more concerned about a few votes, and maybe their own standing with their constituency members.

Threads don't really count POGS I am talking about mainstream media (as I think you know). By all means dismiss my comments as "grudging socialist" What you will finish up with is incompetent government with no criticism or calling to account. I don't mind anyone criticising Labour or a Labour government, but at present the criticism seems to be mostly of the opposition which might be valid but doesn't help in the crisis we are now facing. I could just as well criticise some posters as willing to accept complete ineptitude as long as it is Conservative ineptitude but I prefer to look at what is really happening than mud-sling. I'm not sure that changing the Labour leader would result in any improvement. Whatever weaknesses they have would be immediately exploited by the press.

I just had a quick flick through the news and comments section of the times. I found 10 articles I considered to be critical of the govt. in one way or another.

I don't think anyone is assassinating Corbyn's character. Even those who think he's useless as the leader of the opposition seem to think he is a good and earnest man. What's being "assassinated" is his role as a parliamentary party leader. His role is not his character.

As far as I'm concerned people can criticise the actions of any and all politicians as much as they like. It simply isn't the same as assassinating their characters.

So, for example, however much people think Theresa May is not a good prime minister, or has messed up various things she has been in charge of politically, I doubt if many people would describe her as a nasty woman. You don't have to agree with someone's politics to think them capable of being a good and decent person, however 'misguided' you may think them in political terms.

I am a strong critic of Corbyn , all I have said of him is truth , actions he has chosen to carry out and cocked up .

It is for the oposition to challenge the government , fact.

People did't think Thatcher was much cop, but she is seen worldwide as the saviour of modern Britain. Time will tell with TM. I only know, at this precise time, I prefer her to be leading Brexit than the so-called leader of the Opposition.

thatbags, I think May is a decent person,

What is annoying is we heard over and over to give Corbyn time to get into the roll of leader yet not the same said for May.

Women do what has to be done and men do what they like.

May is getting on with the job. Corbyn of the Momentum Party is still playing the anarchist back-bencher,lover of the girlies, political game he has always played.

Spot on posts, ab and beammeup.

It's very difficult to separate the man from his actions when he acts in such an irresponsible and cavalier fashion towards his supporters and those whom he claims to support. A very recent example of this was his failure to attend a rally in support of EU workers being able to remain in the UK post Brexit. He let himself, the party and the meagre crowd of people who turned up to listen to him speak. He seems almost unaware that his actions or lack of them have consequences. No matter how good his intention are, he's failing to demonstrate that he will do what he promises to do and that's reflecting on the LP.