JonnyF

So how will they be removed? You think they are going to call an election? ????

Depends which beat is being played. They love a good dance at the right time. Chasing criminals? Not so much...

I think she's doing fine. Tax cuts to help the rich AND poor. Help with energy bills. Finally, a Conservative PM, maybe the first since Blair with the added benefit of not being a war criminal ????. The icing on the cake? Labour are still the biggest threat. The party that cannot define a woman and describes Kwasi Kwarteng as "superficially black". With opposition like that, every crisis looks manageable.

I thought the BOE had admitted defeat on controlling inflation back in May? Sounds like he (and he's not the only one ????) is flogging the mini budget excuse for all it's worth. https://www.ft.com/content/0a8f0465-12ed-412b-94cb-571f9fb6f0d4

I'd say the Governor of the BOE. They seem to be working to counteract the government's plans at the moment. The BOE and the IMF need to stay out of politics. We had enough of that with Carney's ridiculous scaremongering during the build up to the Brexit referendum. The IMF's running commentary on the UK government's decisions is also unwelcome.

Stop bringing up Labour then....

Yes, I can see why you might not want to discuss Labour's "opposition" over the last 2.5 years. As for the mini budget, swings and roundabouts. Personally I got a pretty good rate when I sent home my annual bonus on Monday. Didn't quite catch the bottom, but close.

That was actually pretty funny. Not only is Thaksin better at running the country, he has a better sense of humour as well.

Another strawman. You really should start addressing points I actually make. Rather than creating and then attacking positions I do not hold. Instead of opposing the government by objecting to such strict lockdowns, Labour instead opted for oneupmanship and told them there should be even stricter, harsher lockdowns, sooner. They are as useless in opposition as they would have been in government. Fortunately they are too clueless to win elections so we didn't have to suffer even stricter lockdowns and even more economic damage. If you don't believe me, maybe a look at your favourite Communist tabloid will help? https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/jan/03/keir-starmer-calls-for-immediate-lockdown-in-england-as-covid-cases-soar

Not sure what you mean... But I prefer the Women's Beach Volleyball, I find the sand allows for better dives.

It's ridiculous to suggest that the current economic crisis and the Covid lockdowns are not intrinsically linked. So it's very much ON topic. With lockdown induced economic problems comes reduced health services. The Tories went too far with the lockdowns under immense pressure from the opposition and SAGE. I can only be thankful that Labour were not in power during the Covid crisis since they were constantly calling for even tighter lockdown rules. The UK population would probably still be locked in their homes now. The same left wing that were calling for tighter measures are now complaining about the economic meltdown caused by the lockdowns.

We called him PsychoKrueger. It's a bit of a mouthful so I normally just call him Psycho for short. Only kidding. His name is Franky. I trust that meets your approval? It's been really wet up on the farm so not much exercise for 2 weeks. As a result, he's been causing mayhem, as per usual. ????

Negotiations being done in public. A little classless if I may say so. But I have to admit, 200 Billion is one heck of a bribe to keep Italy on side. The EU clearly know what's at stake if they were to leave. The house of cards is clearly teetering on the brink of collapse. Bribes to dissatisfied nations will only delay the inevitable.

It is a problem because as a UK citizen I do not care what French, German, Spanish, Italian, Greek, Polish MEPs vote for, and I do not want their votes affecting legislation being implemented in the UK. Because I am a citizen of the UK. Not a citizen of Europe. I want legislation to be passed in the UK Parliament, not the European Parliament. It was supposed to be a trading bloc. Not the United States of Europe.

Italy is a net contributor. Meaning they put in more than they get out. I've already provided links to show this. Unless by support, you actually mean regulations banning them from acting autonomously... The Washington Post is a rag. It's the equivalent of quoting The Daily Star. But hey, if that's the only source you can find to back up your points...

That's an opinion, not a fact. Here is another opinion. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/8/30/italy-eu-face-big-risk-of-potential-far-right-victory-ex-pm Personally I believe that Italy will try to renegotiate their terms with the EU. A bit like Britain did. We all know how that went.

So now they are dressing up even tighter rules and regulations for Italy as 'protection' of Italy. Under threat of removing their funding (even though Italy is a net contributor to the federalist project as I have already demonstrated). Wow, Italy must be SO grateful. You gotta love the EU. ???? BTW, the Washington Post is notoriously ant British and anti Tory. I take their biased opinion pieces with a huge spoon of salt. Just one example of their nonsense below.

The chart shows the net contribution per year in Billions of Euros. That is what I am focusing on because that is what the EU will lose if/when Italy leaves. Per capita is not particularly relevant to the discussion. If the EU loses 7 Billion Euros per year net contribution I am not sure there will be particularly concerned about the 'per capita' amount compared to The Netherlands. They will be down 7 Billion Euros and 2 of the top 4 net contributors in terms of "Billions of Euros net contribution" will have left in under a decade. Of course, all of this talk of ranking and per capita contributions is your attempt to divert away from the fact that Italy is a large net contributor, and doesn't "need" the EU for grants as the other poster was trying to suggest. It's the old Europhile trick of claiming the EU 'gives them money', when in reality they are receiving back in funding much less from the EU than they put in (hence the term "Net Contributor"). Send me 1000 Baht, I'll return 400 and tell you to be grateful that I am "funding you" ????.

Let's look at net contributors then... Oh look, the UK moved up one place in the chart from 3rd to 2nd. Shame they left huh. Italy still in 4th place. https://www.statista.com/chart/18794/net-contributors-to-eu-budget/

I like Banksy's artwork, it's great. However, when you spray your art onto public walls, you kind of lose any rights to stop people looking at it without your consent. I'll go and take a look, assuming MOCA doesn't have a 10x for farang pricing policy.

Grants? Where does that money come from? You mean the EU is giving back some of the money Italy pays the EU every year... And for this, Italy should be grateful? EU logic... https://www.statista.com/statistics/316691/eu-budget-contributions-by-country/

Just because the removal of sovereignty is gradual, does not mean it is not occuring. Despite the EU's best efforts to pretend it wasn't happening, many of us could see the direction of travel and didn't like it one bit. Hence we voted to leave, and left. True Democracy in action.

The EU doesn't like anyone who opposes their failing federalist project. Giorgia Meloni isn't really far right though, she is centre right. The left love to label anyone to the right of centre as 'far right' or 'alt right' in at attempt to discredit them, simply because they fear them. In this case however, the EU is probably right to fear them. They are against the globalist agenda of the EU and many of it's prominent leaders such as Macron. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see Italexit back on the cards under Meloni. If that happened, it could well signal the end of the EU. And not a moment too soon IMO, had they remained a trading bloc it would have been fine but too many power hungry politicians saw it as an opportunity for empire building. Still, you live and learn.

Normally I step outside the back door and call the dog's name. It comes running to me, tail wagging. Sometimes I offer food as part of the deal, he's terribly partial to Pork Scratchings ????.

You're welcome.