The shit has hit the fan as Argentina pulled out of talks (just like they pulled out of the Falklands in 1982) with British Foreign Secretary William Hague after the UK Government suggested that the people of the Falkland Islands should be able to take part in the talks and tell them to piss off voice their concerns, but the Argies won’t have a bar of it:
The Tory old guard are flexing their arms over marriage equality…all 20 of them.
Senior local Conservatives have accused Prime Minister David Cameron of “betraying” the grassroots of their party, as they deliver a last-ditch attempt to delay the vote on same-sex marriage.
A group of 20 senior local Conservatives have today written to Mr Cameron imploring him to delay a vote on same-sex marriage until after the next election.
It came as William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, said he became a supporter of gay marriage “over the last couple of years”.
He said he considered whether it was right in principle, if there was enough public support and if there were protections for people who did not agree with it.
“I think as times have changed, civil partnerships came in, within a remarkably short period of time those things become accepted,” he told BBC 1′s Sunday Politics. “I think the same will happen with this.”
The “strongly-worded letter”, delivered personally to Downing Street by a delegation of six members this afternoon, protests against the proposals being made “without adequate debate or consultation”.
According to its content, the passing of the Bill will lead to “long-held religious and personal freedoms and the right to free speech” being “adversely affected”, as well as “significant damage” to the Party in the 2015 election. Read more »
David Shearer must be dumber than a sack of hammers. Labour has constantly bashed up the government because of the alleged brain drain to Australia but yesterday he was lobbying the UK government more relaxed visa requirements:
Labour leader David Shearer would like to see visa restrictions for skilled Kiwi workers heading to the United Kingdom relaxed.
Mr Shearer has raised the issue in a meeting with British Foreign Secretary William Hague in Auckland on Tuesday.
Mr Hague is in the country for two days – his second visit to New Zealand in two years.
As well as formal bilateral talks with Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully, Mr Hague has met with the Labour leader.
Mr Shearer said he talked to Mr Hague about the possibility of the UK relaxing some of the restrictions for skilled workers from New Zealand. Read more »
The Green Taliban are attacking George Osborne, from the evidence supplied so far it looks like he is a top bloke:
The peer, a Government minister until September’s reshuffle, was secretly videoed by green campaigners suggesting that Mr Osborne was behind the about-turn.
Eco-campaigners have been alarmed by an apparent policy shift, with sceptic Tory ministers like Environment secretary Owen Paterson and energy minister John Hayes appointed to key positions in the Government.
In a seven-minute long video posted by Greenpeace on the internet on Wednesday, Lord Howell said that it was Mr Osborne, not Prime Minister David Cameron, who was behind the changes.
He said: “The Prime Minister is not familiar with these issues, does not understand them. Osborne is of course getting this message and is putting pressure on.”
Lord Howell, the father of Mr Osborne’s wife Frances, was a foreign office minister until September’s reshuffle and is an adviser to foreign secretary William Hague.
The peer also was recorded suggesting that Britain was relying too heavily on Qatar in the Middle East for liquid gas supplies.
He said: “Qatar is a great place and it’s full of skyscrapers and rich people. But it’s also rather near to a lot of Jihadists … If Qatar was just to – it’s about the size of Guildford – go into chaos, we would be up s— creek we really would.”
While the left moans about a situation where around 93% of the population are gainfully employed and speak like it is the end of the world have a thought about what their plans for the economy, printing money and more debt, would do to the economy.
Fortunately we do not have to look that far to see what happens when a country becomes addicted to debt and does not face up to reality:
Greek unemployment rose to 25.4pc in August. Youth unemployment rose to 58pc.
Under the official forecast, the economy will contract by a further 4.5pc next year, so it fair to assume that lots more people are going to lose their jobs. It is certainly not going to improve in any meaningful way for years to come.
This is what happens when you lock into the wrong currency and block the escape routes – or join a “burning building with no exits” in the words of William Hague.
Even if Greeks comply with all demands, public debt will reach 179pc of GDP next year. Perhaps there will be some sort of formula to cut debt service costs by shaving 50 basis points off interest on rescue loans, and persuading the ECB to forgo “profits” on its estimated €40 billion holdings of Greek bonds (though unrealised profits would seem be courting fate).
Yet it is hard to see how the salary and pension cuts, etc, pushed through the Greek parliament last night with enormous difficulty can do any more than buy a few months’ delay. The protests on Wednesday bordered on urban guerrilla warfare. It will not take much to cross that line.
Even if the EMU machine succeeds in keeping Greece in the system, is this any longer a remotely desirable goal? Has it not become a vicious and immoral policy in itself?
Two world wars and one world cup, England, England…tell the Krauts to get stuffed.
Public unhappiness with the European Union is “the deepest it has ever been”, William Hague will say on Tuesday.
The Foreign Secretary will warn European governments, including Germany, that British opinions over the EU are hardening, suggesting the current settlement is becoming “unsustainable”.
Mr Hague will make his comments in Berlin, amid tensions between Britain and Germany over Europe and in particular the EU budget. Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, is said to be irritated by the increasingly strident stance of David Cameron’s administration. The Prime Minister yesterday insisted Britain would “stick to our guns” on his promise to freeze the EU budget.
The European Commission has asked for a budget that would cost Britain an extra £10 billion over seven years.
Mr Cameron’s approach has pleased Conservative MPs but irritated some EU leaders. Reports from Berlin suggest Mrs Merkel is prepared to call off a planned EU summit to discuss the budget next month unless he changes his tone.
German officials played down that threat but made clear that Mr Cameron’s budget stance and his recent hints of an eventual British referendum on Europe are unwelcome in Berlin.
Mr Hague will use his speech today to warn that British hostility to the EU has grown and will deepen without fundamental reforms.
“This Coalition government is committed to Britain playing a leading role in the EU but I must also be frank: public disillusionment with the EU in Britain is the deepest it has ever been,” he will say.
Colonel ‘H’ Jones’ widow would like to think they would do it all again if the Argies attacked the Falkland Islands:
The widow of Lt Colonel ‘H’ Jones has spoken of her hope that Britain would “do it all again” if Argentina launched a new occupation of the Falklands.
Lt Col Herbert Jones, universally known as ‘H’, died leading a charge against an Argentine machinegun post at Goose Green while commanding 2 Battalion, the Parachute Regiment.
Speaking ahead of the 30th anniversary of the Argentine invasion today (Monday), Sara Jones, 70, said: “We stood up for what we believed in. We didn’t like to see a small country overrun by somebody who had very little claim to it.”
She told The Daily Telegraph: “The islanders have always been fiercely British and want to stay that way. I would like to believe that we would, if we could, do it again.”
Her comments come as William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, accuses Argentina of intimidating, harassing and threatening Falkland islanders.
In a strongly-worded article for The Daily Telegraph he describes the South American country’s recent aggressive actions as “deeply regrettable.” Mr Hague pledges to defend the sovereignty of the islands and says the combative policies adopted by the Argentine government have “impressed few people, including in South America.”
It might be from a Tory Mp but William Hague has some good advice for governments and parties, especially the Labour party.
Mr Hague went onto defend Government cuts and warned 30,000 protesters outside the conference venue in Manchester: “The money you were promised by the last Labour Government never existed, it was never there and we have been left with the task of telling you the truth.
“A government betrays instead of serving its people if it allows them to live on a delusion and that we will not do.
Why were Shane Jones and Maryan Street literally pushing people out of the way to stand next to William Hague?
Isn’t William Hague a Tory politician?
Why would two Labour politicians spend taxpayers money to go to a Tory function filled with National party illuminati?
Is Stuart Nash going to give Princess Sarah a royal wedding or is she still only concubine status?
Which two Labour MPs are doing the horizontal tango and want it all kept on the down low?
Is it true that an internal National party poll showed Simon Power has a negative 23.4% approval rating for leader?
Has National ever had a nicer grandma than Maggie Barry stand for selection?
Boy don’t those photoshop guys know their stuff?
Isn’t Martin Devlin brave for facing up to his f*ck-wittery?
Andi Brotherston really knows how to hose down an issues, doesn’t she?
