Labour in line to get the largest majority since 1832......

Aha, I've just walked a very grateful (3rd walk of the day!) dog past the polling station again, and it's still a blue rosette teller outside. So maybe they won't share their lists if they've put in all the effort!?

Joseann

Aha, I've just walked a very grateful (3rd walk of the day!) dog past the polling station again, and it's still a blue rosette teller outside. So maybe they won't share their lists if they've put in all the effort!?

Do you have a Conservative MP who is danger of losing Joseann? If the result looks as though it's going to be tight, it could be that the Conservatives are hoping to find a few more votes from those who haven't turned up.

The New York Times graphically sets out what the Tories have done for the UK over the past 14 years. Interesting when you see it like this.

Thank you for posting that Doodledog. Not that I was unaware, but it’s easy to forget. That why I’ve had such a trouble deciding where to put my vote.

As if the financial crisis, the pandemic, the war in Ukraine with resultant aid both to Ukraine and all of us here hadn’t happened, as if the doctors hadn’t been striking, etc etc …

Yes, growstuff, desperately so, especially after a change in boundaries. They might be very busy at HQ in a few hours time trying to chase votes.
Desperation or determination?!

Germanshepherdsmum

As if the financial crisis, the pandemic, the war in Ukraine with resultant aid both to Ukraine and all of us here hadn’t happened, as if the doctors hadn’t been striking, etc etc …

Oh absolutely. Covid where we rightfully paid people’s salaries for months. The energy crisis where every household in the country was given money (was it £400?) to offset energy bills. The cost of living crisis where all households below a certain limit of income received money for three years.Pensioners who received energy allowances beyond the usual for two or three years.
People remember what they want to remember, and forget what they want to forget.
It’s human nature.

people forget what they want to forget. How true. I remember some very dire times under a Labour government. I don't think this one will be any better.

maddyone

Germanshepherdsmum

As if the financial crisis, the pandemic, the war in Ukraine with resultant aid both to Ukraine and all of us here hadn’t happened, as if the doctors hadn’t been striking, etc etc …

Oh absolutely. Covid where we rightfully paid people’s salaries for months. The energy crisis where every household in the country was given money (was it £400?) to offset energy bills. The cost of living crisis where all households below a certain limit of income received money for three years.Pensioners who received energy allowances beyond the usual for two or three years.
People remember what they want to remember, and forget what they want to forget.
It’s human nature.

Nobody paid me any of the money I lost as a result of Covid. There were about three and half million people who didn't receive anything. The government knew about us, but ignored the petition which was handed to it.

I had to use my savings to survive Covid, which is why I now have almost nothing.

Joseann

Yes, growstuff, desperately so, especially after a change in boundaries. They might be very busy at HQ in a few hours time trying to chase votes.
Desperation or determination?!

That probably explains the teller. I would imagine it's desperation to try and save something.

Doodledog

The New York Times graphically sets out what the Tories have done for the UK over the past 14 years. Interesting when you see it like this.

They've left a few out of the list, Dd

How about pollution of rivers and seas by untreated sewage?
Huge backlog in criminal court cases? e.g. Rape trials taking up to 5 years to come to court.
Crumbling schools and hospitals
Declining life expectancy
Those ruddy food banks as the number of people (including people *in work*) falling into poverty increases...

i'm quite willing to hear of any pluses...

maddyone

Germanshepherdsmum

As if the financial crisis, the pandemic, the war in Ukraine with resultant aid both to Ukraine and all of us here hadn’t happened, as if the doctors hadn’t been striking, etc etc …

Oh absolutely. Covid where we rightfully paid people’s salaries for months. The energy crisis where every household in the country was given money (was it £400?) to offset energy bills. The cost of living crisis where all households below a certain limit of income received money for three years.Pensioners who received energy allowances beyond the usual for two or three years.
People remember what they want to remember, and forget what they want to forget.
It’s human nature.

Those things would all have happened during Covid whichever party was in power though, the Tories weren’t doing it out of the goodness of their hearts. Every country in Europe did similar, regardless of political bent.

Those things would all have happened during Covid whichever party was in power though, the Tories weren’t doing it out of the goodness of their hearts. Every country in Europe did similar, regardless of political bent.
Indeed. And a lot of money was wasted on ineptitude, corruption and cronyism. Striking doctors and the pandemic are things that governments are supposed to deal with. The fact that there would be a pandemic was well known, even though the timing wasn't certain. Cuts to NHS funding needn't have happened, so there needn't have been strikes. It's not sensible to use preventable events as reasons for the government to be excused - they needn't have let them happen.

Yes, Maisie there is a lot missing, but I suppose it's more difficult to show water pollution etc in graphical form. I would also be interested to see whether the fall in employment includes people on insecure contracts who still have to claim benefits to survive.

I would also be interested to see whether the fall in employment includes people on insecure contracts who still have to claim benefits to survive.

Do you mean the fall in unemployment?

I will once again point out the startling fact that when the figures for employment are prepared individuals are counted as being 'in employment' if they are employed for 2 hours a fortnight.

It's not my imagination, I have checked this figure so many times...

I should imagine that a big front page headline to that effect in today’s Times could be a bit worrying for Keir & co.

But at least it’s sunny today (it is here anyway) so at least rain won’t be putting anyone off bothering to vote.

Winterwhite, I agree with your post upthread about Keir Starmer not being able to keep a huge party under control.

That was my worry.

Does the chart indicate 54% less crime ? Or maybe that less is being reported?

For reasons I cannot comprehend, fraud, which is a huge and growing type of crime, seems to be excluded from the crime figures.

Turnout is apparently higher than expected

growstuff

maddyone

Germanshepherdsmum

As if the financial crisis, the pandemic, the war in Ukraine with resultant aid both to Ukraine and all of us here hadn’t happened, as if the doctors hadn’t been striking, etc etc …

Oh absolutely. Covid where we rightfully paid people’s salaries for months. The energy crisis where every household in the country was given money (was it £400?) to offset energy bills. The cost of living crisis where all households below a certain limit of income received money for three years.Pensioners who received energy allowances beyond the usual for two or three years.
People remember what they want to remember, and forget what they want to forget.
It’s human nature.

Nobody paid me any of the money I lost as a result of Covid. There were about three and half million people who didn't receive anything. The government knew about us, but ignored the petition which was handed to it.

Hear hear growstuff.

My daughter and s-i-l run their business exactly the way they should and as legitimately and sensibly advised, take a dividend. Some years it can be good, but other years not so good. They too received nothing - although their staff were furloughed. (And some took on supermarket delivery jobs temporarily so more income.)

My daughter was very instrumental in the "Excluded" campaign but apart from support from some excellent constituency MP's they were not listened to.

At one point I feared they would not only lose the business, but their home as well.

Recovery has taken a long time and further thwarted by a reduction of work in Europe due to Brexit.

The Company can no longer support her and she is doing temporary contract work (as long as she can get it).

My cost of living payment went toward paying their grocery bills.

Same with my self employed daughter growstuff, and her partner.
My dog trainer /boarder friends got no government support, they had to go into debt to keep their homes and are still paying off loans.

Not everybody benefitted. Worse, some made fortunes - Baroness Mone

Quite! I don't resent the help some people received, but I wish people would get their facts straight.

The issue for me was that I hadn't reached state pension age, but had been forced to retire early through ill health. I was in receipt of my teacher's pension, but it wasn't enough even to pay my rent, so I had been working as a private tutor, mainly with GCSE and A level students, to make up my income. That all stopped one evening when public exams were cancelled and there was no work.

In order to qualify for state help, I would have had to receive over half my income from self-employment, which I didn't - it was just under, so I wasn't eligible. Not only that, but I was classified as "vulnerable" (or whatever the classification was). This meant that I was advised not to leave the house, but I wasn't "clinically vulnerable", which meant I didn't qualify for food boxes. I had to spend the savings I had, just to survive.

I signed the "Excluded" petition. The government knew that there were about 3 and a half million of us, but just shrugged us off, claiming it didn't have any money to do any more.

Eventually, I did receive some Universal Credit, but because I was below state pension age, I was expected to live on just over £70 a week.

What a tough time growstuff. I was classed as clinically vulnerable but hadn’t expected food parcels. I was pleasantly surprised at the quality and quantity that arrived. We gifted the box via our local Labour group so a struggling local famiky got extra help. M
I cancelled the food parcel, we (mr I still alive then) had our l.a. Pensions and had arranged tesco deliveries. The system didn’t catch on quickly so two more good parcels arrived and were re-cycled then they stopped as requested.

MaizieD

^I would also be interested to see whether the fall in employment includes people on insecure contracts who still have to claim benefits to survive.^

Do you mean the fall in unemployment?

I will once again point out the startling fact that when the figures for employment are prepared individuals are counted as being 'in employment' if they are employed for 2 hours a fortnight.

It's not my imagination, I have checked this figure so many times...

Yes, I meant unemployment. I'll have lost the plot altogether by the time the election results are announced .

I thought it would be something like that, although not as bad as 2 hours a fortnight😲. I keep hearing that vacancies are hard to fill, but always assume that this is because people need jobs that give regular and predictable wages that allow them to pay the rent or get a mortgage and commit to nursery/childcare fees. I don't blame people for not applying for those that don't.

I think a more honest way to show unemployment would be to count anyone in a job that requires state subsidy to bring the wages to a minimum level as unemployed. That would show the true picture - many employers paying as little as possible whilst workers make profits for them that are subsidised by the taxpayer, and who are sanctioned if they don't take them. State-sponsored forced labour, really.