Psychoactive Substances: Rolling UK Politics in The Neo-Con Era

re: Radio 5 Live are now broadcasting this news

to clarify this was a journalist? speaking to stephen nolan. I don't know who she was didn't catch her name.

Not mentioned in the news bulletin.

Last June

Universal Credit cost soars to £16billion: Watchdog sounds alarm bells over project set to take 9 years
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/universal-credit-cost-soars-16billion-5950976

what is it now?

latest
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/iain-duncan-smith-resigns-live-7587449

Cameron confirms u-turn on PIP cuts in "puzzled" response to IDS

David Cameron has replied to Iain Duncan Smith’s resignation, in a letter sent from Downing Street - appearing to confirm that he had agreed with the Work and Pensions Secretary that cuts to disabled benefits - which IDS blamed for his departure - would be shelved.

The PM said he was “puzzled and disappointed” at the welfare slasher’s decision.

He signs the letter off: Yours, David.

includes Cameron's Letter

Pip mentioned - "not to proceed with these changes"

Thanks, Stet. I'm not so sure they aren't that suicidal at the moment or at least I hope they are.

It's a foolish hope, I know.

context:

Fighting the ‘fortress mentality’ at DWP – my search for the truth about Universal Credit
IT programme manager and freedom-of-information campaigner John Slater reflects on his four-year battle to force the Department for Work and Pensions to release key documents
http://www.computerweekly.com/opinion/Fighting-the-fortress-mentality-at-DWP-my-search-for-the-truth-about-Universal-Credit

Such a strange feeling, to have a job, when IDS does not

I don't see any great change from cruelty to compassion here - it's more like it vaguely dawns on him that his schtick is not working and not popular, and he's associated with a troubled brand

Still good riddance, just not saying it attaches any virtue to him

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/george-osborne-forced-cancel-photoshoot-7586576#ICID=sharebar_twitter

Instead of the planned ‘walkabout’, the Millionaire MPs donned hard hats and hi-vis vests but hid from chanting protesters in a makeshift office in a metal container for two hours at Northumberland Park Station in Tottenham.

Tory aides then instructed Transport for London engineers to dig a hole for the photoshoot on industrial land out of shouting distance of the irate group.

Sources told the Mirror engineers even had to check the site for gas pipes before the “pointless hole” was dug.

IDS has always come across like the kind of person who likes to think of himself as compassionate but has no idea of what the praxis entails (cf "good lefties"). I tend to agree this is just a Brexit manoeuvre

Wonder how Labour will contrive to fuck up this golden opportunity

I think he is actually stupid enough to genuinely believe some of the moralising guff that comes out of his mouth.

This should be natural territory for Corbyn, although I'm guessing some disgruntled backbencher will start parping up about needing to show they can be tougher on welfare right about now.

This year there's been a conspicuous lack of Grauniad clapping seals praising Osborne for his supposed centrism and canny political operating. If anything it suggests that he perceived so little threat from Labour (and perceived more from the right of his party) that he got complacent about looking nasty.

This is probably a Brexit thing deep down, but I suspect IDS has been bearing a grudge for sometime about that Osborne quote about him being "just not clever enough", and waiting for a moment to try and humiliate him.

Tory fratricide is never not funny though.

Tory fratricide is never not funny though.

^^^^

The Cameron letter to IDS suggested the cuts to disability benefits simply weren't going to take place, which has to be one of the fastest reversals on record.

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/mar/19/iain-duncan-smith-quit-treasury-refusal-consider-pensioner-cuts

Cameron has pretty much hung his Chancellor out to dry here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwZciH3hx-A

Paul Mason, possibly exaggerating Corbyn's contribution somewhat?

at last a mainstream news source has caught up with this;

Iain Duncan Smith lost court battle to suppress publication of potentially embarrassing DWP memos, days before resignation
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/iain-duncan-smith-lost-court-battle-to-suppress-publication-of-potentially-embarrassing-dwp-memos-a6940881.htm

The Conservative politician announced his shock resignation last night, citing concerns over disability benefit cuts. However, a legal battle earlier this week has been cited as another possible explaination

In particular, the DWP has projected that the Universal Credit scheme would be extended to 12 million claimants by 2017. However, figures suggest that a mere 200,000 have joined the scheme, which would represent a gross failure to meet the target.

this has also cost nearly 16 Billion so far ! (according to 2015 reports)

source:
http://voxpoliticalonline.com/2015/12/17/universal-credit-15-8-billion-for-a-computer-system-that-isnt-needed/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Credit
As of 22 February 2016, 364,000 people have made a claim on Universal Credit,

There are 3 elements related to IDS resignation:
Universal Credit Fiasco
Tensions Between IDS and Osborne
see: http://www.resolutionfoundation.org/media/blog/universal-credits-future-depends-on-whether-its-the-economics-or-the-politics-that-comes-first-for-the-treasury/
Brexit situation: Leave / Remain

most of the mainstream media have overlooked the Universal Credit situation

Both IDS and Cameron's letters last night were a managed convenient smokescreen to hide from the real reason.

What IDS got out of the situation: seen in a good light as the person that managed to convince Cameron to ditch PIP disability cuts (within 2 hours?). Resigning now means he want be sacked when the Universal Credit fiasco gets exposed. Jump before you are pushed.

The friction between IDS and Osborne has been ongoing for years, this was IDS chance to inflict public humiliation on Osborne then retreat and resign from the tory front bench. This is obviously also tied with IDS being part of brexit campaign, if the brexit vote goes his way then Cameron/ Osborne will be toast and Boris will be in poll position.

What Cameron gets out of the situation: A convenient climb down on PIP backlash some tory MPS are losing their patron positions with charities (including Zac Goldsmith), mass naming and shaming on Twitter via photo captions, the growing internal conservative concern of the disability cuts during Friday (not just IDS), the polls with growing support for Corbyn due to public backlash against the tory disability cuts.

Cameron obviously knew of the UC court situation and realised why it was convenient for IDS to go now. He covered this up with puzzlement statement because he doesn't want the public to know about the fiasco and billions wasted on Universal Credit. He can't attack IDS now because that would highlight tory chaos and incompetence before the exposure of the UC fiasco. If Britain votes to remain, Cameron would have dispensed with IDS as political revenge and the eventual public exposure of UC fiasco.

re: The Cameron letter to IDS suggested the cuts to disability benefits simply weren't going to take place, which has to be one of the fastest reversals on record.

― On a Raqqa tip (ShariVari),

If Cameron agreed to these changes so quickly, why was there any need for IDS to resign then?

Goes back to the Universal Credit fiasco and the gambling which way the brexit will go and IDS inflicting damage on Osborne and removing himself from the impending UC exposure fallout.

That Mason piece seems to be based on a fairly dubious assumption that there are significant doubts about austerity lurking within the Cabinet. In turn, that seems to be based on the presumption of govt agreement that they are trying to improve the economy through austerity and debt reduction.

The elimination of the (non-state pension) welfare state is in and of itself the aim and any positive or negative effects on the economy are by the bye. They've already gone through a double-dip recession while only narrowly shifting course. As long as there isn't a major crash or anything else that may significantly affect them politically, they aren't really arsed. Just as Cameron isn't especially bothered about disabled people in and of themselves (although I sense a "how dare you!" coming), he's just worried that it looks bad.

Also Labour's extremely narrow poll lead means absolutely nothing, given they had a substantial one before the election. The only polls that really signal voting intention are the "who do you trust with the economy?" and "who do you think will make the best Prime Minister?" ones. The latter is tricky given we have no idea who will be standing for the Tories in the next election, and I'm guessing Labour are still way behind on the economic one.

I was reading this awful interview with Crabb. He was giving this working class Tory narrative about his mother working her way out of "benefits dependency" and how Thatcher's right to buy scheme in the 80's transformed his estate. I find him even more appalling than IDS tbh.

Working class Tories are the vilest creatures on God's earth.

Expect Crabb to run for leader now.

Also expect something major to crash - whether that's the economy, the NHS, or social services in a significant way to harm the govt. If its all three and Corbyn happens to survive I will laugh at Britishes as they either keeping voting Tory and hate doing so, or at least consider voting for something even vaguely left wing. xp

He knows a bit about handouts though:

During the 2009 parliamentary expenses scandal, it was revealed that Crabb claimed £8,049 on the refurbishment of his flat in London, including "£500 for a goose down duvet and corner TV unit."[24]. He then sold the flat for a profit and "flipped" his second home expenses claim to cover a house that was being purchased for his family in Pembrokeshire, allowing him to claim £9,300 in stamp duty and £1,325 per month in interest on its mortgage.[24] A room in another flat of a fellow MP was designated as his main home and he paid half of the rent there.[24] At the time he said, "I haven’t claimed for things like plasma TVs, even though the rules allow it. My claims were always within the letter and the spirit of the rules."[24]

fuck working class Tories obv but they're just fuckwits, generally, and lack the smug, oblivious belief in the natural disposability of the poor that yr thoroughbred toffs effortlessly convey

Well, it's looking down on people from a distance vs trying to fuck people over from close range isn't it

Also beware working class mannerisms and traits carefully preserved from two generations ago, and now employed by this generation of a now wealthy family to give themselves authenticity. 'I want to do up my bloody lounge' is harder to refute than 'I want another yacht' as far as 'reasons people give for not wanting to pay tax' go

Wondering how anyone could sell an expenses-fiddler called Crabb as a potential leader.

All journalists take note, he has a readymade nickname

Tory fratricide is never not funny though.

pensions minister Ros Altmann puts the boot into IDS:

http://www.genesysdownload.co.uk/rosaltmann/Personal_Statement_by_Pensions_Minister.pdf

Woah.

Weird they're all going "doesn't he realise we're rethinking this terrible policy?" like none of them thought it up.

New line from IDS camp is that cancelling the policy doesn't matter because he was being told to find a way to cut the same amount

Since they made £1bn cuts to working tax credits last week without a parliamentary debate and in spite of their "U turn" I dare say that line is very true.

there's something beautifully Duncan Smith-ish about the way nobody, even on his own side, believes he resigned because of principle or compassion

Shailesh Vara, who is pro-EU iirc, just released a statement of support for IDS contradicting Altmann, so idk what is going on at the moment.

the best we can hope for is some sort of breakdown that's going to transform him into a combination of Joseph Rowntree and David Icke

David Rowntree? Oh that's the Blur drummer.

there's something beautifully Duncan Smith-ish about the way nobody, even on his own side, believes he resigned because of principle or compassion

Sometimes I wonder if anyone even reads Julia Hartley-Brewer's Twitter account.

Still no mention of the UC court case from the BBC.

... instead it's all, "The interview with Andrew Marr showed conclusively that Iain Duncan Smith is a man of principle, who came into government to help the poorest and most disadvantaged in society".

Labour don't appear to be fucking this up (yet).

Goldsmith and Osborne's mayoral campaigning going about as well as can be expected:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/george-osborne-forced-cancel-photoshoot-7586576#ICID=sharebar_twitter

Instead of the planned ‘walkabout’, the Millionaire MPs donned hard hats and hi-vis vests but hid from chanting protesters in a makeshift office in a metal container for two hours at Northumberland Park Station in Tottenham.

Tory aides then instructed Transport for London engineers to dig a hole for the photoshoot on industrial land out of shouting distance of the irate group.

Sources told the Mirror engineers even had to check the site for gas pipes before the “pointless hole” was dug.

Eventually Osborne and a sheepish-looking Zac Goldsmith dashed out of the container in to a Range Rover Discovery which drove them just 100 metres to the hole as protesters shouted “shame on you”.

Superb.

Labour don't appear to be fucking this up (yet).

― jedi slimane (suzy), Sunday, March 20, 2016 Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

The Labour right are keeping quiet so far.

still mourning IDS/benefit cuts

Black day for them.

Who will tickle Frank Field under the chin now?

Is Chuka Umunna on the right, for the purposes of this exercise? because he's been giving IDS both barrels all weekend, and even before the resignation.

I am completely in agreement with what Chuka has been saying on IDS, but it is all a bit empty + lacking conviction coming out of his mouth.