#frontbench

[ur-mag]

Frontbench MPs defy Keir Starmer to demand Gaza ceasefire | In Trend Today

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#Celebrities #Frontbench MPs defy Keir Starmer to demand Gaza ceasefire #Money #Motors #Politics #ShowBiz #Sport #Tech #UK #US #World

[ayeforscotland]

Westminster vote for a ceasefire fails with only 125 MPs voting for it.

293 MPs voted against.

232 MPs didn’t vote at all. Part of that will be votes cancelling each other out.

7 frontbench labour MPs have already resigned or been kicked out.

#ayeforscotland #british politics #uk politics

[probablyasocialecologist]

Many on the right have sought to depict the protesters as extremists, but the sheer scale and regularity of the protests and actions are in fact a sign of how mainstream pro-Palestinian feeling is within British society. The question, assuming the movement succeeds in ending the Israeli assault, is where does it go next? What becomes of movements when they stop moving? Traditionally, social movements went through phases of emergence, coalescence, institutionalisation and decline, followed by dissipation and co-optation by mainstream parties. This usually took decades, the classic case being the US civil rights movement. Yet the era since “Occupy Wall Street” in 2011 has been one of so-called “flash movements”. From Black Lives Matter to the gilets jaunes, movements have coalesced around hashtagged slogans with astonishing celerity, producing deep political crises – and then subsiding. The Gaza campaign resembles a flash movement. It didn’t come out of nowhere. Palestine has been a cause of the international left since the six-day war in 1967, and the UK has seen repeated protests over Israel’s flattening of the West Bank, invasion of Lebanon and serial bombardments of Gaza. There is a network of organisations doing the groundwork, such as the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and Stop the War. But the turnout for these protests shows the virtues of the flash movement: it can rapidly mobilise masses of people, tolerate a diversity of tactics and keep focus on a simple, morally obvious demand. In many respects, it is succeeding. In the UK, despite efforts to demonise the protests as “hate marches”, and the then home secretary Suella Braverman’s inept provocation of the far right against the protests, the demonstrations brought up to 800,000 people to the streets on 11 November. This was the largest such demonstration since the invasion of Iraq. Nor was the UK alone. There have been mass protests everywhere from Tokyo and Kerala to Cairo, Washington DC and Rio de Janeiro. In France and Berlin, protesters have defied official bans. In the US, the Jewish left has led the movement and often engaged in the most militant tactics,including blockading Manhattan Bridge. The embattled Israeli left has also staged protests, despite a climate of police repression and mob violence. The movement has done what successful movements do: win over public opinion, catalyse cracks in elite consensus and expose divisions in the state. These splits were visible in the form of staffer dissent in the US state department, frontbench resignations in Labour over Keir Starmer’s refusal to support a ceasefire, protests by Dutch civil servants and EU employees, Macron’s ceasefire demand, and recently the call from Canada, Australia and New Zealand, three of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing coalition countries, for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire”. Only the US now vetoes UN ceasefire resolutions.

#israel #palestine #gaza #uk politics

[lesbiansandgayssupporttheminers]

Rumour is more Labour MPs are planning to resign- anyone who doesn't is just as complicit as the Tories.

Keep the pressure on.

I do actually believe Labour calling for a ceasefire would make a difference.

#uk politics #labour #gaza #israel #ceasefire

[becausegoodheroesdeservekidneys]

More on the whip… how do you get the job of the whip? Are they also MPs? How many are there in a party? When people talk about removing the whip does that mean you no longer get to hoard other people’s secrets? It sounds seriously messed up as a concept… When does it become blackmail!? Is this how a lot of votes on important meaningful laws go? Passing references to it never felt that bad before knowing what it is. It feels a lot more corrupt than it felt before (and it never felt great then)

Oh yeah you'll love this.

They are indeed MPs. Michael Gove was Chief Whip in 2014. Twas a dark time, although little did we fucking know, eh? You get a whole bunch per party - the Chief Whip, Deputy Chief Whip, and a family of smaller baby whips I suppose, all running around like scamps, pissing all over the concept of parliamentary privilege.

But, right, it's in a weird limbo state of THIS IS TOTALLY NOT A REAL JOB, HONEST, even though it is, and also literally everyone knows it is, so in order for them to be official and get paid they get given extra jobs. They do not actually do these extra jobs, you understand. They simply hold the titles so they can draw a wage, although, let's stress this again, they are also MPs and get an MP's salary as well.

These extra jobs come from two places: the first is the treasury. The Chief Whip gets to be Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury, which is actually a cabinet position, and means they get to live in Downing Street at number 12.

The other, I absolutely shit you not at all, is the Royal Household.

...

...

Yeah.

Anyway, fun fact: did you know that as long as a whip only tells you you'll be rewarded for a good vote, and doesn't tell you you'll be punished for a bad vote, it doesn't constitute blackmail? Amazing! What a thing to learn.

Somehow, that does not constitute bribery.

Another fun fact! They're not allowed to tell MPs how to vote, because that would violate parliamentary privilege. But, did you know that if they stand in the Commons and use hand gestures when the vote is called to indicate yes or no, that doesn't count as telling MPs how to vote? Amazing! What a thing to learn.

They also have scales of severity for whipping. An MP will receive a letter about an upcoming vote from a Whip. It will say something like 'Your attendance is required. If it's underlined once, then you probably have to show up, and are strongly encouraged to obey. Underlined twice, and you have to show up and obey, or shit will hit the fan. Three times, and there have literally been instances of MPs being wheeled out of ambulances and into the House to vote, and if you defy the whip you get kicked out of the party and all your secrets leaked to the press. You HAVE to obey.

(This vote of no confidence was a three line whip. This is funny, because it was a secret vote.)

There are a handful of things the whips aren't allowed to influence, and they're generally'matters of conscience' - religion and equality, for example. Adoption law is one, though, and famously, Iain Duncan Smith destroyed his own Tory party leadership this way: he imposed a three line whip to try and stop unmarried couples from adopting children (your likely suspicions are correct - there was no same-sex marriage in the UK at the time, so he wanted to stop those icky gay people from having kids. Iain Duncan Smith was many things and one of those was a gross homophobic toenail.) Anyway it went real bad and he basically nuked his own leadership by doing it.

And... yes, this is how a lot of votes on important meaningful laws go. There's also what's called the 'payroll vote' - frontbenchers, being cabinet members, are on the payroll, and are much more likely to obey the whip. They go with it like... 99% of the time. The vote of no confidence was 59% in favour of BloJo the Clown, but if you remove the payroll vote, something like 75% of Tories wanted Johnson's pissed-on corpse in a ditch.

Anyway, all parties do this. Whips don't speak publicly, but you can look up who they are at any time.

What else can I tell you... Eh, that's probably about it. I mean, there's also the absolutely horrific system of hoarding secrets and hiding scandals so they can apply pressure, but I've talked about that already.

So yes, that's the totally normal and not at all corrupt whip system.

#politik #long post #asks

[bahoreal]

rishi just sacked someone for condemning collective punishment of palestine

#palestine #gaza #the guardians language is so pro israel as well its sickening #but the way they wrote 'first to-' yeah. alright

[nothing-an-iratze-cant-fix]

Keir Starmer is in every possible way an utter piece of shit. Proud of the SNP today.

#uk politics #scottish politics #free palestine #free gaza #israeli genocide #fuck keir starmer

[18thcenturythirsttrap]

#respect #imran hussain mp #labour party #fuck keir starmer #uk politics #stand with palestine #ceasefire now #end the occupation

[eaglesnick]

“It's hard to tell who has your back, from who has it long enough just to stab you in it....” ― Nicole Richie

Keir Starmer’s seventh pledge when running for the Labour leadership was:

“Strengthen workers’ rights and trade unions

Work shoulder to shoulder with trade unions to stand up for working people, tackle insecure work and low pay. Repeal the Trade Union Act. Oppose Tory attacks on the right to take industrial action and the weakening of workplace rights.”

This promise has been broken again and again.

“Keir Starmer refuses to back striking NHS nurses.”  (Independent: 06/10/22

Siding with the Tory government, Starmer turned against striking teachers and recommended they accept a pay cut.

“Strikes: Keir Starmer 'disappointed' teachers have rejected government's latest pay offer."  (Sky news: 03/04/23)

But Starmer has gone further than merely supporting the Tory government’s expectation that workers should take yet more pay cuts. He has forbidden members of the Labour Party from joining striking workers picket lines.

“Keir Starmer tells Labour frontbench they should not join rail strike pickets."  (Guardian: 20/06/22)

Worse still, Starmer has actually sacked a Labour Party member who refused to follow his dictate.

“Keir Starmer sacks shadow transport minister who backed rail strikes." (BBC News: 27/07/23)

This comment from The Tribune magazine sums up Starmer’s true feelings towards workers and trade unions when it cited Sharon Graham of Unite:

“ …the Labour Party was rendering itself ‘irrelevant’ and that its refusal to back trade unionists engaged in industrial action, along with its abandonment of key policies on public ownership, effectively meant that it was ‘sticking two fingers up’ at struggling workers.”

Why Keir Starmer isn’t a member of the Tory Party is becoming more of mystery every day.

#uk politics #keir starmer #labour party #unions #strikes #workers #betrayal #class traitor #back stabbing

[ur-mag]

Frontbench MPs defy Keir Starmer to demand Gaza ceasefire | In Trend Today

Frontbench MPs defy Keir Starmer to demand Gaza ceasefire Read Full Text or Full Article on MAG NEWS

View On WordPress

#Celebrities #Frontbench MPs defy Keir Starmer to demand Gaza ceasefire #Money #Motors #Politics #ShowBiz #Sport #Tech #UK #US #World

[sadhgurujvquotes]

You do your best. It doesn't matter somebody approves or disapproves. No two human beings have come alike. Someone may be a back-bencher in school but a frontbencher in life. Exam is not a deciding factor. Strive relentlessly, result is a consequence #Sadhguru #SadhguruQuotes https://sadhgurujvquotes.com/quote/2070?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=tumblr

[lizardsexposed]

huge

#gaza

[beardedmrbean]

A SCOTTISH man has found himself stuck with a £20k hospital bill after suffering a heart attack on holiday in Tenerife – despite having insurance.

Graham Orr and his fiancée Julie Shirra were getting ready to go to a water park on May 28 when he began to feel pains in his arm and jaw.

Realising he had all the symptoms of a heart attack, they called a taxi and got the driver to take them to the nearest hospital.

The couple decided to stay in a private hospital for the treatment, while under the impression it would be covered by their insurance.

READ MORE: Scottish Labour frontbencher pulls out of gender critical event

However, as Graham forgot to mention he had asthma on his insurance form, the firm refused to cover his expenses.

After Graham was released from four days in the ICU, he was told that he owed the establishment £20,000.

He said: “We don’t know how long we’re going to be paying this for. Julie’s losing her wages by staying here which is going to mess us up with renting.”

Graham, who has never had prior heart problems, went for a health check-up four months ago, where he was told his heart and blood pressure were fine.

Since they’re unable to leave Tenerife, Julie’s missing one of her daughter’s graduation and her other’s wedding anniversary.

He’s currently attempting to contact his GP for proof to send to his job as he won’t get any wages without documentation.

The stress had such a strong effect on the pair that Julie’s daughter flew over out of worry and to help them cope.

In order to help manage the bill, Graham’s stepdaughter and daughter in Inverness have taken to GoFundMe to try and raise money to pay the bill.

Graham said: “I’ve got the feeling that if I can’t produce what they want me to produce, I’ll not get the ticket to fly me home. It’s not really sunk in yet. It still feels kind of surreal to me and I think when I get home, I’ll realise how close to death I actually was.

“At first I was really quite embarrassed about the fundraiser and getting paranoid that people would think I’m not legitimate.”

The fundraiser has restored his faith in humanity and if there is any money left over, he plans to put it back into the community to help others.

#nunyas news

[becausegoodheroesdeservekidneys]

Would you be willing to explain back bench vs front bench in Parlament? I admit all I know is from the tweets today and Harriet Jones the lifelong backbencher from Doctor Who.

Yes, okay, so a frontbencher is a cabinet member - they hold a ministerial position, like the Environment Minister or Foreign Secretary or what have you. The UK functionally has a two party system, so if you're in the Opposition (i.e. not in power) then you hold a Shadow Position. Shadow Environment Minister.

Backbenchers are just vanilla MPs. They hold little to no power in the party. As a very loose rule of thumb, they tend to be less centrist - Labour backbenchers are often much more left wing than party leadership, and Tory ones are often fucking lunatics who can be bribed with tax cuts and sweets.

Anyway the term comes from where they sit in the House of Commons - front bench by the leader, or back bench out of the way.

#politik

[master-john-uk]

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson will give evidence to the Privileges Committee investigation into the "partygate" allegations on Wednesday 22nd March, in front of television cameras.

I was a bit disappointed... a little miffed... or, maybe even extremely angry when I learned about the social gatherings in Downing Street that seemingly broke COVID legal restrictions.

I was contracted into an emergency committee to make plans on how to implement, and police the "worst case scenario" restrictions. Fortunately. none of these emergency plans were never needed. But, it slightly ruffled my feathers when I found out that our legislators were partying... and, I was not invited!

The main focus of the partygate investigation is whether, or not Boris Johnson deliberately misled Parliament when questioned about the allegations in the House of Commons. If found guilty of this, it will effectively put an end to Johnson's ambition of making a political comeback in 2024. (You may even hear a huge sigh of relief from PM Rishi Sunak.)

I briefly crossed paths with Boris Johnson at Eton College. He wants to be recognised and remembered in the same way as Sir Winston Churchill. Like Churchill, he tried to make a name for himself before entering government. Winston did this through his military career, and then subsequently returning to South Africa as a newspaper war correspondent. Boris did this by becoming Mayor of London, introducing Boris Bikes (common hire bicycles), and getting stuck on a zip-wire!

Boris wants to remembered in history. He took over as Prime Minister with the mandate of "Get Brexit Done". [Well, he nearly did that.] Then came the pandemic, a chance to make a real name for himself. [Unfortunately, he got the wrong name!]

Boris Johnson still wants to return to frontbench politics. He regularly makes statements on social media in regard to important issues. What happens next week could have a profound effect on our future Government.

[bahoreal]

8 frontbenchers and 56 mps total.

they're seeing the emails, dont stop sending them. just because they dont respond publicly and they send the same copy/paste bullshit back doesn't mean they arent seeing the sheer numbers of support for palestine.

article:

#the guardian has been generally shit about this in general but. gotta get news from somewhere #Palestine