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I know there is already a thread about Keir Starmer, but I just saw a headline about him 'tearing into' Dominic Raab, and it got me thinking about how we haven't had a genuinely effective opposition in parliament for a good few years.
That will come across as an anti-Corbyn statement per se, but I'm really thinking more broadly. Our system only works properly when there is an effective opposition, and on and off for the last fifteen, I would argue that it hasn't really.
For most of the Blair-Brown years, there seemed to be no opposition, as the Tories just fought themselves (if only they had have won!); then Labour succumbed to internal difficulty and left the Tories with a clear run. That just seems to be the way it is here.
But, as Starmer takes his first PMQs, I am feeling reinvigorated and optimistic. I hope he stands the test!
You are always optimistic 🙂
How effective can an opposition be in a FPTP system with an absolute majority?
Sadly I think its optomistic with our political system for any hope to come out of it.
Both parties are full of power grabbing back stabbing nutters. One party will claim its white, the other will oppose and say its black. Thats what political oppostion is sadly in our country.
If you look at who's backing him and who financed his campaigns he won't be very scary.
‘tearing into’ Dominic Raab
It was hardly tearing into him was it ?, just the usual pointing out the fscts, to which Raab had an answer to most of them. What I will say is that rather than the usual pantomime where they just stand there and trade insults, this seemed a more grown up affair
Doesn't look too evil Bill, can you explIn your comment?
How effective can an opposition be in a FPTP system with fixed term parliaments and an absolute majority?
How effective can an opposition be in a FPTP system with an absolute majority?
Well, that's the game that they are in, so they need to suck it up and work the system to their advantage
And they can't really moan about not having enough seats in parliament; if it was such a big deal they should have taken the last election more seriously.
And they can’t really moan about not having enough seats in parliament; if it was such a big deal they should have taken the last election more seriously.
They did, and achieved all their objective - they lost the election but apparently 'won the argument', whatever that means.
As they say, the problem with Labour is they have never forgiven Tony Blair for winning three elections.
They did, and achieved all their objective – they lost the election but apparently ‘won the argument’, whatever that means.
Presumably that Corbyn was unelectable, but they somehow thing that mandate the Tories got relies on things they would have agreed with anyway.
Corbyn: Cuts are bad
Borris : Cuts are over, we'll build hospitals
Corbyn : We'll build even more
Borris: We'll build 40 hospitals
Corbyn: Ok, go on then.
Argument won/election lost.
How effective can an opposition be in a FPTP system with an absolute majority?
If the opposition starts looking a bit more popular to voters then the main party have to take on some of their policy. It's an indirect mechanism, granted.
Don't forget we just had a one-issue GE, and as the Tories Got Brexit Done, that's that for that one. Now we can have government doing normal government stuff like dealing with a massive public health crisis.
Starmer will only take them to task on the implementation details of their failing system, not the system itself. This is why the Tories and the state sanctioned talking heads are all so pleased to see him.
Cynic-al - you and your actual verifiable facts! Are you new here?