The Resurgence of the Left in the UK

g5000

Diamond Member
Nov 26, 2011
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I would ask the moderators to indulge me and please not move this topic to the UK section of the forum for reasons which will be made apparent.

I thought it would be interesting for the American members of this forum to see what the Left in the UK looks like compared to the Left in America.

The UK recently had a snap election called by their Prime Minister, Theresa May. She was riding high in the polls at the time she called for the election, and she expected to gain a lot more seats in Parliament, thus giving her a mandate to enact some Tory (right wing) policies, particularly relating to the "hard Brexit".

But things took a very bad turn for the Tories in the interim and the Tories LOST a dozen seats.

So I thought it would be interesting to see what the Labour Party's candidate, Jeremy Corbyn (who some unoriginally call the Bernie Sanders of the UK) had in his platform which turned out to be far more popular than was expected.

It makes our Left wing here in America look pretty tame, though many will rush to claim our Left aspires to the same goals. :)

Everything Labour is promising you in its 2017 general election manifesto




The 45p income tax threshold will be lowered from earnings of £150,000 to £80,000 a year
That's a 45% tax rate on incomes above the equivalent of $102,000. Crikey!



A separate 50p band will be introduced on earnings of £123,000
50 percent tax rate on $157,000.



The minimum wage will rise to £10 an hour by 2020 and over-18s will have the same minimum as over-25s
$12.75 minimum wage.



Insurance premium tax will be hiked from 12% to 20% on private health plans
A dog's breakfast!



A 'Robin Hood Tax' will massively extend an existing 0.5% levy on each share trade
Paging Ragnar Danneskjöld...



Corporation tax will be hiked to 21% from 2018-19, 24% from 2019-20 and 26% from 2020-21
Way better than here!



But the lower rate for small businesses will be brought back
Yay!



Key businesses to be protected from hostile takeovers
Choosing the winners.



30 hours a week free childcare will be extended, costing £5billion a year to two-year-olds and ALL families, not just those in work



University tuition fees will be completely scrapped



Maintenance grants for university students will return
The government would not only pay your college tuition, but would also pay you an income while you go to school.



Adult education will be made free for all someone's life
Professional student.



Free school meals for all primary school children, funded by charging VAT on private school fees



Labour will 'move towards' extending maternity pay to 12 months



Reduce the voting age from 18 to 16 in general elections
Vote for me, here's a lollipop, kid.



A National Transformation Fund will plough £250billion into infrastructure over 10 years



The railways will be renationalised, with networks taken back into public ownership as operators' current franchises expire. The Railways Act 1993 which privatised the network will be repealed



The water industry will be nationalised costing billions of pounds



Zero-hour contracts will be banned
A zero-hour contract is one where the business owner can keep you on call 24/7, with no promise of a minimum number of hours he will use you.



Four new bank holidays on the four national patron saints' days
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!



The Tory Trade Union Act 2016 will be scrapped, returning strike thresholds to 50% of votes cast, not 50% of all union members
Don't tell Bob we're having a vote, mate.



A consultation will be launched on statutory bereavement leave for workers who lose a close relative
Bob's your uncle.



100,000 council and housing association homes will be built every year
The UK version of housing projects.



4,000 new homes for people with history of rough sleeping
I...have...no idea...what that means. Housing for hobos?



Developers will be told to build “zero carbon” buildings
"Okay, I will build zero buildings."



Four million homes will be insulated and 0%-interest loans offered to homeowners to make energy efficiency improvements



The Bedroom Tax will be scrapped
How could I not quote something about a "Bedroom Tax"?

If you live in the projects and have a spare bedroom, your government housing benefit is cut by 14%.



The 'rape clause' making women denied benefits for a third child prove it was non-consensual will be scrapped
OK...what?



A 'Post Bank' in every community will be owned by the Post Office and offering banking services
This idea is slowly gaining ground here in the US, too.



Banks will be banned from closing existing local branches “when there is a clear local need”
"We'll think twice about opening new branches then."



New powers to protect pubs, pharmacies and sports clubs that are a 'community asset'
I'll raise a pint to that!



Superfast broadband is promised for every home by 2022
Expect more posters on USMB with funny accents.



Fracking for shale gas will be banned
Vladimir Putin thanks you, comrades.



The maximum stake on fixed-odds betting machines will be cut from £100 to £2
You can currently bet up to £100 on a single pull of the lever on a slot machine and end up eating dog food to survive. Labor would limit the maximum bet to £2. The mere threat of this change caused the stock of gambling companies to plummet. But this idea seems to have pretty widespread support across the spectrum.



Free bus passes and the Winter Fuel Allowance will be guaranteed to all
Warm fuzzies!



The state pension age will be halted at 66 - for now - as Tory plans to increase it to 67 between 2026 and 2028 and 68 by 2046 are rejected
We're living decades longer than our ancestors did, but Labor doesn't want us working longer and adding more to the Treasury for some reason. They want you to live off the Treasury decades longer than our ancestors did.



A new “flexible” retirement age will be considered to reflect different types of worker and background
Yeah, because that worked out so well for Greece!



Britain will meet the Nato target of spending 2% of GDP on defence
Yes, but what about defense?



Arms sales to Saudi Arabia will be suspended
That leaves more for Clinton Trump to sell the Arabs. Winning!


  • 10,000 extra police officers

  • 500 extra border guards

  • 3,000 extra prison officers



No new private prisons or privatisations




A million trees will be planted
And hugged.




Football fans will get a grater say in how clubs are run through 'accredited supporters' trusts'
"You need to bench the wankers!"




The badger cull will be halted


 
Last edited:
That wouldn't have anything to do with Tories neutering themselves by giving into fearmongering about the "far right", right?

Enoch Powell destroyed the Labour Party over 50 years ago, but yet Tories turned on Powell and let Labour revive using a treasonous immigration policy.
 
Jeremy Corbyn: Empty homes owned by rich should be 'requisitioned' for Grenfell Tower residents

The "Bernie Sanders of the UK" thinks the government should seize homes owned by the rich and use them for the Grenfell Tower fire victims.

Whoa!


This is the thing....This country is far right and they still whine about funding national parks, libraries and school lunches. And busy themselves with protesting non-existent sharia law, public bathrooms used by transgenders and bakeries who refuse to bake a cake for a gay couple. They don't have a clue.
 
Jeremy Corbyn: Empty homes owned by rich should be 'requisitioned' for Grenfell Tower residents

The "Bernie Sanders of the UK" thinks the government should seize homes owned by the rich and use them for the Grenfell Tower fire victims.

Whoa!


This is the thing....This country is far right and they still whine about funding national parks, libraries and school lunches. And busy themselves with protesting non-existent sharia law, public bathrooms used by transgenders and bakeries who refuse to bake a cake for a gay couple. They don't have a clue.
The far left made big advances in this snap election. They took a big bite out of the Tory lead and gained some seats.
 
I would ask the moderators to indulge me and please not move this topic to the UK section of the forum for reasons which will be made apparent.

I thought it would be interesting for the American members of this forum to see what the Left in the UK looks like compared to the Left in America.

The UK recently had a snap election called by their Prime Minister, Theresa May. She was riding high in the polls at the time she called for the election, and she expected to gain a lot more seats in Parliament, thus giving her a mandate to enact some Tory (right wing) policies, particularly relating to the "hard Brexit".

But things took a very bad turn for the Tories in the interim and the Tories LOST a dozen seats.

So I thought it would be interesting to see what the Labour Party's candidate, Jeremy Corbyn (who some unoriginally call the Bernie Sanders of the UK) had in his platform which turned out to be far more popular than was expected.

It makes our Left wing here in America look pretty tame, though many will rush to claim our Left aspires to the same goals. :)

Everything Labour is promising you in its 2017 general election manifesto




The 45p income tax threshold will be lowered from earnings of £150,000 to £80,000 a year
That's a 45% tax rate on incomes above the equivalent of $102,000. Crikey!



A separate 50p band will be introduced on earnings of £123,000
50 percent tax rate on $157,000.



The minimum wage will rise to £10 an hour by 2020 and over-18s will have the same minimum as over-25s
$12.75 minimum wage.



Insurance premium tax will be hiked from 12% to 20% on private health plans
A dog's breakfast!



A 'Robin Hood Tax' will massively extend an existing 0.5% levy on each share trade
Paging Ragnar Danneskjöld...



Corporation tax will be hiked to 21% from 2018-19, 24% from 2019-20 and 26% from 2020-21
Way better than here!



But the lower rate for small businesses will be brought back
Yay!



Key businesses to be protected from hostile takeovers
Choosing the winners.



30 hours a week free childcare will be extended, costing £5billion a year to two-year-olds and ALL families, not just those in work



University tuition fees will be completely scrapped



Maintenance grants for university students will return
The government would not only pay your college tuition, but would also pay you an income while you go to school.



Adult education will be made free for all someone's life
Professional student.



Free school meals for all primary school children, funded by charging VAT on private school fees



Labour will 'move towards' extending maternity pay to 12 months



Reduce the voting age from 18 to 16 in general elections
Vote for me, here's a lollipop, kid.



A National Transformation Fund will plough £250billion into infrastructure over 10 years



The railways will be renationalised, with networks taken back into public ownership as operators' current franchises expire. The Railways Act 1993 which privatised the network will be repealed



The water industry will be nationalised costing billions of pounds



Zero-hour contracts will be banned
A zero-hour contract is one where the business owner can keep you on call 24/7, with no promise of a minimum number of hours he will use you.



Four new bank holidays on the four national patron saints' days
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!



The Tory Trade Union Act 2016 will be scrapped, returning strike thresholds to 50% of votes cast, not 50% of all union members
Don't tell Bob we're having a vote, mate.



A consultation will be launched on statutory bereavement leave for workers who lose a close relative
Bob's your uncle.



100,000 council and housing association homes will be built every year
The UK version of housing projects.



4,000 new homes for people with history of rough sleeping
I...have...no idea...what that means. Housing for hobos?



Developers will be told to build “zero carbon” buildings
"Okay, I will build zero buildings."



Four million homes will be insulated and 0%-interest loans offered to homeowners to make energy efficiency improvements



The Bedroom Tax will be scrapped
How could I not quote something about a "Bedroom Tax"?

If you live in the projects and have a spare bedroom, your government housing benefit is cut by 14%.



The 'rape clause' making women denied benefits for a third child prove it was non-consensual will be scrapped
OK...what?



A 'Post Bank' in every community will be owned by the Post Office and offering banking services
This idea is slowly gaining ground here in the US, too.



Banks will be banned from closing existing local branches “when there is a clear local need”
"We'll think twice about opening new branches then."



New powers to protect pubs, pharmacies and sports clubs that are a 'community asset'
I'll raise a pint to that!



Superfast broadband is promised for every home by 2022
Expect more posters on USMB with funny accents.



Fracking for shale gas will be banned
Vladimir Putin thanks you, comrades.



The maximum stake on fixed-odds betting machines will be cut from £100 to £2
You can currently bet up to £100 on a single pull of the lever on a slot machine and end up eating dog food to survive. Labor would limit the maximum bet to £2. The mere threat of this change caused the stock of gambling companies to plummet. But this idea seems to have pretty widespread support across the spectrum.



Free bus passes and the Winter Fuel Allowance will be guaranteed to all
Warm fuzzies!



The state pension age will be halted at 66 - for now - as Tory plans to increase it to 67 between 2026 and 2028 and 68 by 2046 are rejected
We're living decades longer than our ancestors did, but Labor doesn't want us working longer and adding more to the Treasury for some reason. They want you to live off the Treasury decades longer than our ancestors did.



A new “flexible” retirement age will be considered to reflect different types of worker and background
Yeah, because that worked out so well for Greece!



Britain will meet the Nato target of spending 2% of GDP on defence
Yes, but what about defense?



Arms sales to Saudi Arabia will be suspended
That leaves more for Clinton Trump to sell the Arabs. Winning!


  • 10,000 extra police officers

  • 500 extra border guards

  • 3,000 extra prison officers



No new private prisons or privatisations




A million trees will be planted
And hugged.




Football fans will get a grater say in how clubs are run through 'accredited supporters' trusts'
"You need to bench the wankers!"




The badger cull will be halted





They should call him jeremy Santa Claus.......with his policies, the British island will die a quick death...
 
Jeremy Corbyn: Empty homes owned by rich should be 'requisitioned' for Grenfell Tower residents

The "Bernie Sanders of the UK" thinks the government should seize homes owned by the rich and use them for the Grenfell Tower fire victims.

Whoa!


Yeah.....and the rich will move out..........then they will have to force them to stay...and then they will begin digging the mass graves that the left like to fill...
That's why a lot of wealthy British celebrities have made the US their home.
 

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