General Election 2017

[Demitri_C]

1 hour ago, bobzy said:

I experience the exact same situation with most of my mates.  Nobody reads up on anything at all.

As an example, I'm in a "group chat" with two of my best mates - one lives in Manchester, one in Solihull.  I live in Nottingham and we had a county council election recently (as did many) so thought I'd message them asking if a] they have one too and b] if they're voting at all.  They both said they had one.  Manchester guy "probably just going to vote on the general election", Solihull guy "oh yeah, we've got one.  I need to have a look."  Votes Andy Street as "we just need consistency and the Tories will get the job done".  Not a county council election but a West Midlands mayoral one; didn't read up on what he was voting for - just stuck to that exact "job done", "strong and stable" soundbite.  Absolutely crazy.

The vast majority of the public do not care, will not read into policies but will happily, blindly vote - and, this time, the majority will vote for a Conservative government that will not do what's "right" for the vast majority.

Politics is hilarious like that, I guess.

My problem with Corbyn is he just doesnt seem like he can be  a leader. Seems like a nice enough bloke just that if shit hit the fan I would not have enough trust in him to do what was needed. 

[Davkaus]

He's had a pretty shit time as leader, but he's refused to cave in, stood his ground, and won a second leadership race and improved his mandate while doing so.

Compare and contrast that with a PM who won her leadership race because most candidates dropped out, and has had to u turn on half of the policies she's announced due to rebellion in her party. A remainer who's pushing for a hard Brexit. Theresa the **** weathercock. That's leadership is it?

[PompeyVillan]

There have been a lot of voter registrations since the general election was announced. Almost a million. Mostly younger people, the majority 18-25.

My only hope in this election is that young people vote en mass and halt a conservative landslide. 

I bang on about it all the time, but I am sick beyond measure of old people steering the direction of the country. And it's only because young people let them.

 

[Davkaus]

An interesting article in the Guardian today about junior NHS staff going to work on checkouts and stack shelves because supermarkets pay better than our health service.

We've had doctor's striking due to their contract changes, we've got nurses considering strike action. The entire NHS effectively being told to take a pay cut every year due to being restricted to 1% payrises for 7 successive years. The tories are starving the NHS until it collapses. Oh sure, they're "giving the NHS more money", while stealth slashing other services by more , and then adding the burden to the NHS. In the same way they're giving the police more money, while making them the de facto mental health support service. 

But Corbyn doesn't seem like much of a leader, so let's just keep voting against our best interests.

Edited May 8, 2017 by Davkaus

[PieFacE]

Yeah my main concern at the minute is the state of the NHS, Which is the best party to vote for to get further finding to it? Labour? If so, that's who I shall vote for. 

[dAVe80]

Did anyone see the pro Corbyn banner on the Kop yesterday? Going by this thread, I don't think we'll see a similar one on the Holte, will we!?  

[Chindie]

5 minutes ago, dAVe80 said:

Did anyone see the pro Corbyn banner on the Kop yesterday? Going by this thread, I don't think we'll see a similar one on the Holte, will we!?  

There'll be one very enthusiastic one for Corbyn.

And another huge black one that says 

'IT'S ALL SHIT AND WE'RE ALL ****'

[dAVe80]

Just now, Chindie said:

There'll be one very enthusiastic one for Corbyn.

And another huge black one that says 

'IT'S ALL SHIT AND WE'RE ALL ****'

"Why does Corbyn keep playing Abbott?"

"We always get shit ref(erendum)s!"

 

 

[ender4]

1 hour ago, Davkaus said:

An interesting article in the Guardian today about junior NHS staff going to work on checkouts and stack shelves because supermarkets pay better than our health service.

 

I assume thats not true though?  

Supermarket shelf stacker will be paid minimum wage on a zero-hour contract.

NHS staff will be getting at least more than minimum wage, plus regular employment, plus a decent pension, etc. 

[sharkyvilla]

6 minutes ago, ender4 said:

I assume thats not true though?  

Supermarket shelf stacker will be paid minimum wage on a zero-hour contract.

NHS staff will be getting at least more than minimum wage, plus regular employment, plus a decent pension, etc. 

I don't think supermarkets use zero-hour contracts but I may be wrong.  I'm not sure what kind of NHS staff would be getting that little but I can understand that the increase in stress and unsociable hours/shifts not being worth any small amount of extra money.

[ender4]

10 minutes ago, sharkyvilla said:

I don't think supermarkets use zero-hour contracts but I may be wrong.  I'm not sure what kind of NHS staff would be getting that little but I can understand that the increase in stress and unsociable hours/shifts not being worth any small amount of extra money.

Though the average NHS worker earns £31k (i think i read that in the Guardian).

Thats a lot more than minimum wage.

[dAVe80]

Labour have announced they'll abolish NHS parking charges for NHS staff, patients, and visitors. Works for me.

Edited May 8, 2017 by dAVe80

[Davkaus]

34 minutes ago, ender4 said:

Though the average NHS worker earns £31k (i think i read that in the Guardian).

Thats a lot more than minimum wage.

While you may have read it in the Guardian, you've both misremembered the stat, and disregarded the fact that it comes as a quote from Jeremy word removed.

He says  the average Nurse's salary is 31k (there are of course plenty of NHS staff who earn less than Nurses).

Obviously there are no details on how that number has been arrived at. It almost certainly includes band 6 and 7 nurses, who are management that are still registered and technically nurses, but have no active clinical role. It also includes overtime, nurses aren't exactly known for their 40 hour weeks, so while 31k sounds like a half decent salary, if they're putting in a lot of extra hours to earn that, it obviously drags the hourly rate down from what you might assume it is at first glance. Then there's the London weighting dragging the average up as well.

Most nurses will be somewhere in the low to mid 20s without putting in a lot of overtime, which is still noticeably above minimum wage, of course.

Edited May 8, 2017 by Davkaus

[blandy]

2 hours ago, Davkaus said:

He's had a pretty shit time as leader, but he's refused to cave in, stood his ground, and won a second leadership race and improved his mandate while doing so.

Compare and contrast that with a PM who won her leadership race because most candidates dropped out, and has had to u turn on half of the policies she's announced due to rebellion in her party. A remainer who's pushing for a hard Brexit. Theresa the **** weathercock. That's leadership is it?

They're both effing awful pretty much sums it up.

[Davkaus]

Just now, blandy said:

They're both effing awful pretty much sums it up.

I'm not a big Corbyn fan, really, but I'll take a man who I think is broadly looking out for those in society who need government most over a party that have demonstrated that they view society's most vulnerable with nothing but contempt. 

[blandy]

Just now, Davkaus said:

I'm not a big Corbyn fan, really, but I'll take a man who I think is broadly looking out for those in society who need government most over a party that have demonstrated that they view society's most vulnerable with nothing but contempt. 

That's fine. However it's not the choice on offer to you (or anyone).

[sharkyvilla]

2 minutes ago, Davkaus said:

While you may have read it in the Guardian, you've both misremembered the stat, and is regarded the fact that it comes as a quote from Jeremy word removed.

He says  the average Nurse's salary is 31k (there are of course plenty of NHS staff who earn less than Nurses).

Obviously there are no details on how that number has been arrived at. It almost certainly includes band 6 and 7 nurses, who are management that are still registered and technically nurses, but have no active clinical role. It also includes overtime, nurses aren't exactly known for their 40 hour weeks, so while 31k sounds like a half decent salary, if they're putting in a lot of extra hours to earn that, it obviously drags the hourly rate down from what you might assume it is at first glance. Then there's the London weighting dragging the average up as well.

Most nurses will be somewhere in the low to mid 20s without putting in a lot of overtime, which is still noticeably above minimum wage, of course.

Indeed, that's why I was wondering what was meant by junior NHS staff, as it didn't seem like even newly-qualified nurses would be on as little as supermarket staff.  I was guessing cleaners and receptionists etc might be included.  There'd be very few people across the country that wouldn't want better wages, free parking, better services in the NHS, it's a case of having a convincing plan for paying for it. 

[Chindie]

'Theresa May's Team'

*vomit*

[colhint]

43 minutes ago, dAVe80 said:

Labour have announced they'll abolish NHS parking charges for NHS staff, patients, and visitors. Works for me.

doesn't the money go straight back to the NHS?

[darrenm]

2 minutes ago, colhint said:

doesn't the money go straight back to the NHS?

I expect some of it does. But it shouldn't be the source of the funding. My wife pays loads to park at her hospital car park, effectively reducing her salary, which is already a pittance compared to what it should be due to her level and years of service. And she's had no pay increases for 5 years.