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Post by lawrieleslie on Sept 17, 2024 16:42:29 GMT
Don’t believe anyone would begrudge doctors a pay rise. Think the reference is towards the government on one hand finding billions to fund doctors and train driver pay rises whilst in the meantime cutting winter fuel allowance to some of the most vulnerable elderly. It's a lazy conflation. If the previous governments had given junior doctors even an annual inflationary pay rise (ie remaining static in real terms) we wouldn't now be faced with double digit rises bringing them back to something approaching where they would have been. And it's dead right that benefits should be means tested. The most vulnerable are not having their winter fuel payments removed. Those who "give it to the grandkids" "use it for the holiday fund" etc are. And rightly so. Child benefit next please. It's ridiculous that that is currently universal, although I appreciate that receipt of it has tax implications for higher earners. I think most people would support payments of all kinds only going to those who really need them and the only way to do that is through some form of means testing. There will always be those at the cut-off points who the media focus on but, in the case of pensioners, the proportion of them who are asset rich has risen substantially recently. fullfact.org/economy/millionaire-pensioners/I’ve never argued that WFA shouldn’t be means tested. I was in receipt of it for several years but thought it madness given mine and my Mrs pensions income. It’s the way it has been done which is immoral given that millions of state pensioners will be just above the threshold for WFA. I have a colleague who is £4 above the threshold and is therefore losing out. The threshold should have been set so that pensioners in receipt of just the state pension as an income would get WFA. In addition the timing was spectacularly cruel given that many pensioners would have budgeted over summer to include a £200 or £300 fuel allowance in the autumn. Effectively they now have to find that from other means. Yes means testing was right but the execution is very very wrong. Asset rich is not a good way to means test either. Once again I have a couple of pensioner friends living in their own homes who are missing out. How do they turn their "asset riches" , ie their home, into money to provide heating?
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Post by mrcoke on Sept 17, 2024 16:58:59 GMT
The Junior Doctors pay settlement will cost the government 600 million. 25% of that will be taken back in tax and NI contributions so it will only cost 450 Million. That's a saving of a billion if the strikes continued without settlement. Ideologues are costing this country a fortune. OS. Not difficult to understand, although it seems it is for certain posters on here. What is difficult for me to understand is that since 2008 we have had- A major banking crisis due to lending out of control, An escalating balance of payments deficit since Maastricht, Poured money into the EU to benefit countries like Poland, A worldwide pandemic that shut industry down, huge shortages, and overloaded our NHS and record long term sick, All the above causing national debt to rise from c.30% to c.100% GDP, hence large government expense funding debt, and A war in Europe leading to an energy crisis and rampant inflation, and yet there are so many people who expect to carry on life as though nothing had happened, and enjoy the same level of income and living standards. Today we are blessed with a stable currency, low inflation, average wages increasing faster than inflation, lowest unemployment and redundancies for half a century, an economy that is growing faster than the other large European economy, the highest growing services exports in the G7, to list what comes immediately to mind. In 2019 we were blessed with a new government determined to get Brexit done and release this country from the shackles of the EU. Today we are blessed with a government to get finances in order (including getting the sick back to work) and tackling the main issue that had bedevilled this country since the 1980s, which is lack of investment.
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Post by oggyoggy on Sept 17, 2024 17:36:07 GMT
Not difficult to understand, although it seems it is for certain posters on here. What is difficult for me to understand is that since 2008 we have had- A major banking crisis due to lending out of control, An escalating balance of payments deficit since Maastricht, Poured money into the EU to benefit countries like Poland, A worldwide pandemic that shut industry down, huge shortages, and overloaded our NHS and record long term sick, All the above causing national debt to rise from c.30% to c.100% GDP, hence large government expense funding debt, and A war in Europe leading to an energy crisis and rampant inflation, and yet there are so many people who expect to carry on life as though nothing had happened, and enjoy the same level of income and living standards. Today we are blessed with a stable currency, low inflation, average wages increasing faster than inflation, lowest unemployment and redundancies for half a century, an economy that is growing faster than the other large European economy, the highest growing services exports in the G7, to list what comes immediately to mind. In 2019 we were blessed with a new government determined to get Brexit done and release this country from the shackles of the EU. Today we are blessed with a government to get finances in order (including getting the sick back to work) and tackling the main issue that had bedevilled this country since the 1980s, which is lack of investment. You forget the biggest negative economic event during that period which was Brexit. It devalued everything by 20% overnight!
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Post by Rednwhitenblue on Sept 17, 2024 17:49:15 GMT
It's a lazy conflation. If the previous governments had given junior doctors even an annual inflationary pay rise (ie remaining static in real terms) we wouldn't now be faced with double digit rises bringing them back to something approaching where they would have been. And it's dead right that benefits should be means tested. The most vulnerable are not having their winter fuel payments removed. Those who "give it to the grandkids" "use it for the holiday fund" etc are. And rightly so. Child benefit next please. It's ridiculous that that is currently universal, although I appreciate that receipt of it has tax implications for higher earners. I think most people would support payments of all kinds only going to those who really need them and the only way to do that is through some form of means testing. There will always be those at the cut-off points who the media focus on but, in the case of pensioners, the proportion of them who are asset rich has risen substantially recently. fullfact.org/economy/millionaire-pensioners/I’ve never argued that WFA shouldn’t be means tested. I was in receipt of it for several years but thought it madness given mine and my Mrs pensions income. It’s the way it has been done which is immoral given that millions of state pensioners will be just above the threshold for WFA. I have a colleague who is £4 above the threshold and is therefore losing out. The threshold should have been set so that pensioners in receipt of just the state pension as an income would get WFA. In addition the timing was spectacularly cruel given that many pensioners would have budgeted over summer to include a £200 or £300 fuel allowance in the autumn. Effectively they now have to find that from other means. Yes means testing was right but the execution is very very wrong. Asset rich is not a good way to means test either. Once again I have a couple of pensioner friends living in their own homes who are missing out. How do they turn their "asset riches" , ie their home, into money to provide heating? So you agree about means testing then complain about the means testing! As I said, with any cut off point there will always be those just over the threshold who miss out. What do you want? Keep raising the threshold so that no-one misses out? That's where we were! The most vulnerable will be protected and that's how it should be. Waste of taxpayers' cash to keep giving this to those who don't need it. Let's have more of it, I'm all for directing cash to where it's most needed. As you're a Tory I'd have thought you would be too. A bit of political point scoring, perhaps? I get the feeling you'd be as quiet as a mouse if this had been done by a Tory govt!
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Post by lawrieleslie on Sept 17, 2024 18:04:46 GMT
I’ve never argued that WFA shouldn’t be means tested. I was in receipt of it for several years but thought it madness given mine and my Mrs pensions income. It’s the way it has been done which is immoral given that millions of state pensioners will be just above the threshold for WFA. I have a colleague who is £4 above the threshold and is therefore losing out. The threshold should have been set so that pensioners in receipt of just the state pension as an income would get WFA. In addition the timing was spectacularly cruel given that many pensioners would have budgeted over summer to include a £200 or £300 fuel allowance in the autumn. Effectively they now have to find that from other means. Yes means testing was right but the execution is very very wrong. Asset rich is not a good way to means test either. Once again I have a couple of pensioner friends living in their own homes who are missing out. How do they turn their "asset riches" , ie their home, into money to provide heating? So you agree about means testing then complain about the means testing! As I said, with any cut off point there will always be those just over the threshold who miss out. What do you want? Keep raising the threshold so that no-one misses out? That's where we were! The most vulnerable will be protected and that's how it should be. Waste of taxpayers' cash to keep giving this to those who don't need it. Let's have more of it, I'm all for directing cash to where it's most needed. As you're a Tory I'd have thought you would be too. A bit of political point scoring, perhaps? I get the feeling you'd be as quiet as a mouse if this had been done by a Tory govt! Did you actually read what I wrote. I agree with means testing but don’t agree with how it’s been done. What bit don’t you understand?
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Post by mrcoke on Sept 17, 2024 19:15:49 GMT
What is difficult for me to understand is that since 2008 we have had- A major banking crisis due to lending out of control, An escalating balance of payments deficit since Maastricht, Poured money into the EU to benefit countries like Poland, A worldwide pandemic that shut industry down, huge shortages, and overloaded our NHS and record long term sick, All the above causing national debt to rise from c.30% to c.100% GDP, hence large government expense funding debt, and A war in Europe leading to an energy crisis and rampant inflation, and yet there are so many people who expect to carry on life as though nothing had happened, and enjoy the same level of income and living standards. Today we are blessed with a stable currency, low inflation, average wages increasing faster than inflation, lowest unemployment and redundancies for half a century, an economy that is growing faster than the other large European economy, the highest growing services exports in the G7, to list what comes immediately to mind. In 2019 we were blessed with a new government determined to get Brexit done and release this country from the shackles of the EU. Today we are blessed with a government to get finances in order (including getting the sick back to work) and tackling the main issue that had bedevilled this country since the 1980s, which is lack of investment. You forget the biggest negative economic event during that period which was Brexit. It devalued everything by 20% overnight! If you are referring to the value of the £ at the time of the referendum, the general concesus of opinion was the £ was over valued and it did not fall 20% anyway. What has happened since the UK left the EU in 2020? :- tradingeconomics.com/united-kingdom/gni-us-dollar-wb-data.html#:~:text=GNI%20(formerly%20GNP)%20is%20the,and%20property%20income)%20from%20abroad.
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Post by oggyoggy on Sept 17, 2024 19:49:43 GMT
Disaster after disaster after disaster.
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Post by oggyoggy on Sept 18, 2024 12:57:48 GMT
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Post by salopstick on Sept 18, 2024 13:05:09 GMT
The decision has ignited a row within government over Ms Gray, whose report while a senior civil servant into parties in Downing Street during the pandemic contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson.
She then went on to work as a Labour Party adviser.
Her Conservative predecessor Liam, now Lord, Booth Smith, who did the job under Rishi Sunak, was paid at the upper end of the highest pay band for special advisers, between £140,000 and £145,000 a year, external.
The boost in Ms Gray’s pay comes after the prime minister signed off a rebanding of the salaries for special advisers shortly after taking office.
The government says the rebanding was done by officials, not by Ms Gray herself, and her salary is not at the top of the new highest band for special advisers.
News of Ms Gray’s pay rise, briefed to the BBC by a number of Whitehall sources, is the latest in a line of leaks about her which paint a picture of fractious relationships at the very top of government, just months into Labour’s tenure.
“It speaks to the dysfunctional way No10 is being run - no political judgement, an increasingly grand Sue who considers herself to be the Deputy Prime Minister, hence the salary and no other voice for the Prime Minister to hear as everything gets run through Sue,” one insider told the BBC.
Labour, quickly trying to out tory the tories
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Post by Clayton Wood on Sept 18, 2024 15:11:31 GMT
The decision has ignited a row within government over Ms Gray, whose report while a senior civil servant into parties in Downing Street during the pandemic contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson. She then went on to work as a Labour Party adviser. Her Conservative predecessor Liam, now Lord, Booth Smith, who did the job under Rishi Sunak, was paid at the upper end of the highest pay band for special advisers, between £140,000 and £145,000 a year, external. The boost in Ms Gray’s pay comes after the prime minister signed off a rebanding of the salaries for special advisers shortly after taking office. The government says the rebanding was done by officials, not by Ms Gray herself, and her salary is not at the top of the new highest band for special advisers. News of Ms Gray’s pay rise, briefed to the BBC by a number of Whitehall sources, is the latest in a line of leaks about her which paint a picture of fractious relationships at the very top of government, just months into Labour’s tenure. “It speaks to the dysfunctional way No10 is being run - no political judgement, an increasingly grand Sue who considers herself to be the Deputy Prime Minister, hence the salary and no other voice for the Prime Minister to hear as everything gets run through Sue,” one insider told the BBC. Labour, quickly trying to out tory the tories My office must be opposite the gents toilet Dorothy Wainwright Sue Gray
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Post by gawa on Sept 18, 2024 16:35:33 GMT
The decision has ignited a row within government over Ms Gray, whose report while a senior civil servant into parties in Downing Street during the pandemic contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson. She then went on to work as a Labour Party adviser. Her Conservative predecessor Liam, now Lord, Booth Smith, who did the job under Rishi Sunak, was paid at the upper end of the highest pay band for special advisers, between £140,000 and £145,000 a year, external. The boost in Ms Gray’s pay comes after the prime minister signed off a rebanding of the salaries for special advisers shortly after taking office. The government says the rebanding was done by officials, not by Ms Gray herself, and her salary is not at the top of the new highest band for special advisers. News of Ms Gray’s pay rise, briefed to the BBC by a number of Whitehall sources, is the latest in a line of leaks about her which paint a picture of fractious relationships at the very top of government, just months into Labour’s tenure. “It speaks to the dysfunctional way No10 is being run - no political judgement, an increasingly grand Sue who considers herself to be the Deputy Prime Minister, hence the salary and no other voice for the Prime Minister to hear as everything gets run through Sue,” one insider told the BBC. Labour, quickly trying to out tory the tories Her son got parachuted into a labour seat too and is now a MP.
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Post by sticky on Sept 18, 2024 18:08:01 GMT
Has he smashed the gangs yet?
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Post by Clayton Wood on Sept 18, 2024 18:50:44 GMT
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Post by thehartshillbadger on Sept 18, 2024 19:17:54 GMT
Has he smashed the gangs yet? He’s got no intention of smashing the gangs. He’s pathetic and this country sinks deeper into no man’s land. He won’t last a term
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Post by oggyoggy on Sept 18, 2024 19:27:28 GMT
The decision has ignited a row within government over Ms Gray, whose report while a senior civil servant into parties in Downing Street during the pandemic contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson. She then went on to work as a Labour Party adviser. Her Conservative predecessor Liam, now Lord, Booth Smith, who did the job under Rishi Sunak, was paid at the upper end of the highest pay band for special advisers, between £140,000 and £145,000 a year, external. The boost in Ms Gray’s pay comes after the prime minister signed off a rebanding of the salaries for special advisers shortly after taking office. The government says the rebanding was done by officials, not by Ms Gray herself, and her salary is not at the top of the new highest band for special advisers. News of Ms Gray’s pay rise, briefed to the BBC by a number of Whitehall sources, is the latest in a line of leaks about her which paint a picture of fractious relationships at the very top of government, just months into Labour’s tenure. “It speaks to the dysfunctional way No10 is being run - no political judgement, an increasingly grand Sue who considers herself to be the Deputy Prime Minister, hence the salary and no other voice for the Prime Minister to hear as everything gets run through Sue,” one insider told the BBC. Labour, quickly trying to out tory the tories Labour are so bad at PR and knowing what does and does not look good.
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Post by sticky on Sept 18, 2024 19:29:16 GMT
Has he smashed the gangs yet? He’s got no intention of smashing the gangs. He’s pathetic and this country sinks deeper into no man’s land. He won’t last a term Thought it was oven ready so to speak.. so his plan was to do nothing.. brilliant 👏🏻
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Post by salopstick on Sept 18, 2024 19:30:12 GMT
The decision has ignited a row within government over Ms Gray, whose report while a senior civil servant into parties in Downing Street during the pandemic contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson. She then went on to work as a Labour Party adviser. Her Conservative predecessor Liam, now Lord, Booth Smith, who did the job under Rishi Sunak, was paid at the upper end of the highest pay band for special advisers, between £140,000 and £145,000 a year, external. The boost in Ms Gray’s pay comes after the prime minister signed off a rebanding of the salaries for special advisers shortly after taking office. The government says the rebanding was done by officials, not by Ms Gray herself, and her salary is not at the top of the new highest band for special advisers. News of Ms Gray’s pay rise, briefed to the BBC by a number of Whitehall sources, is the latest in a line of leaks about her which paint a picture of fractious relationships at the very top of government, just months into Labour’s tenure. “It speaks to the dysfunctional way No10 is being run - no political judgement, an increasingly grand Sue who considers herself to be the Deputy Prime Minister, hence the salary and no other voice for the Prime Minister to hear as everything gets run through Sue,” one insider told the BBC. Labour, quickly trying to out tory the tories Labour are so bad at PR and knowing what does and does not look good. It’s not just the look
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Post by thehartshillbadger on Sept 18, 2024 19:33:57 GMT
He’s got no intention of smashing the gangs. He’s pathetic and this country sinks deeper into no man’s land. He won’t last a term Thought it was oven ready so to speak.. so his plan was to do nothing.. brilliant 👏🏻 To be fair being complicit in killing off elderly British people probably takes up a fair bit of his time. He’ll get around to it I’m sure
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Post by sticky on Sept 18, 2024 19:35:08 GMT
Thought it was oven ready so to speak.. so his plan was to do nothing.. brilliant 👏🏻 To be fair being complicit in killing off elderly British people probably takes up a fair bit of his time. He’ll get around to it I’m sure maybe that his plan, straight out the boat and in a house
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Post by Gods on Sept 18, 2024 20:40:51 GMT
Sue Gray, 'I earn more than the PM'.
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Post by wannabee on Sept 18, 2024 20:59:46 GMT
The decision has ignited a row within government over Ms Gray, whose report while a senior civil servant into parties in Downing Street during the pandemic contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson.
She then went on to work as a Labour Party adviser. Her Conservative predecessor Liam, now Lord, Booth Smith, who did the job under Rishi Sunak, was paid at the upper end of the highest pay band for special advisers, between £140,000 and £145,000 a year, external. The boost in Ms Gray’s pay comes after the prime minister signed off a rebanding of the salaries for special advisers shortly after taking office. The government says the rebanding was done by officials, not by Ms Gray herself, and her salary is not at the top of the new highest band for special advisers. News of Ms Gray’s pay rise, briefed to the BBC by a number of Whitehall sources, is the latest in a line of leaks about her which paint a picture of fractious relationships at the very top of government, just months into Labour’s tenure. “It speaks to the dysfunctional way No10 is being run - no political judgement, an increasingly grand Sue who considers herself to be the Deputy Prime Minister, hence the salary and no other voice for the Prime Minister to hear as everything gets run through Sue,” one insider told the BBC. Labour, quickly trying to out tory the tories Sue Gray made no contribution to Johnson's downfall.... he managed to do that all by himself In 2021 when the Express tried to do a hatchet job on Gray (prior to her releasing her Report on No 10 Covid Party's) using her salary as part of its weaponry, had this to say However, her (Sue Gray) previous role as the Department of Finance Permanent Secretary in Northern Ireland was advertised with a salary of between £160,563 and £188,272 when she left the post in 2021.www.express.co.uk/news/politics/1556202/sue-gray-salary-how-much-evgI'm not aware of many people who take take on a more responsible Employment Position and expect to be paid less than they were paid 3 years previously in a less Senior position In any case there are 4 Salary Bands for Special Advisors who are appointed Temporary Civil Servants and her salary falls within the top Band Total non story
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Post by superjw on Sept 18, 2024 21:09:46 GMT
Sky reporting Starmer has received over £100k in gifts, donations and hospitality since 2019. The highest of any MP by a large margin.
A man of the people folks
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Post by wannabee on Sept 18, 2024 21:11:50 GMT
Thought it was oven ready so to speak.. so his plan was to do nothing.. brilliant 👏🏻 To be fair being complicit in killing off elderly British people probably takes up a fair bit of his time. He’ll get around to it I’m sure Matt Hancock didn't contest the last General Election - to be fair he did have some distractions going on in his life when he was doing the above
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Post by crouchpotato1 on Sept 18, 2024 21:22:49 GMT
Corporate box for Starmer when he wants it at Arsenal 🤔
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Post by wannabee on Sept 18, 2024 21:32:26 GMT
The decision has ignited a row within government over Ms Gray, whose report while a senior civil servant into parties in Downing Street during the pandemic contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson. She then went on to work as a Labour Party adviser. Her Conservative predecessor Liam, now Lord, Booth Smith, who did the job under Rishi Sunak, was paid at the upper end of the highest pay band for special advisers, between £140,000 and £145,000 a year, external. The boost in Ms Gray’s pay comes after the prime minister signed off a rebanding of the salaries for special advisers shortly after taking office. The government says the rebanding was done by officials, not by Ms Gray herself, and her salary is not at the top of the new highest band for special advisers. News of Ms Gray’s pay rise, briefed to the BBC by a number of Whitehall sources, is the latest in a line of leaks about her which paint a picture of fractious relationships at the very top of government, just months into Labour’s tenure. “It speaks to the dysfunctional way No10 is being run - no political judgement, an increasingly grand Sue who considers herself to be the Deputy Prime Minister, hence the salary and no other voice for the Prime Minister to hear as everything gets run through Sue,” one insider told the BBC. Labour, quickly trying to out tory the tories Her son got parachuted into a labour seat too and is now a MP. I'd love to know your reasoning on how Liam Conlon was parachuted into the newly created Beckenham and Penge Constituency where he lives and was Vice Chairman of Lewisham West and Penge Constituency Labour Party (CLP) and national chairman of the Labour Party Irish Society and a disabilities officer at the Communication Workers Union (CWU) before he won selection back in November 2023 Conlon has been a Labour Activist a lot longer than his Mother has been a Member
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Post by thehartshillbadger on Sept 18, 2024 21:34:23 GMT
To be fair being complicit in killing off elderly British people probably takes up a fair bit of his time. He’ll get around to it I’m sure Matt Hancock didn't contest the last General Election - to be fair he did have some distractions going on in his life when he was doing the above Good point but this is a thread about Starmer
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Post by adri2008 on Sept 18, 2024 21:34:52 GMT
I don't really understand why the tax payer picks up the tab for Special Advisors - aren't they political appointments? i.e. not providing impartial advise.
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Post by wannabee on Sept 18, 2024 22:00:09 GMT
Matt Hancock didn't contest the last General Election - to be fair he did have some distractions going on in his life when he was doing the above Good point but this is a thread about Starmer As you don't do Politics I thought you may have had a case of mistaken identity
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Post by oggyoggy on Sept 18, 2024 22:15:17 GMT
Labour are so bad at PR and knowing what does and does not look good. It’s not just the look It doesn’t surprise me that the most senior advisor to the PM gets paid a lot. It’s the timing that is bad. And the fact that someone is clearly leaking against Gray.
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Post by wagsastokie on Sept 18, 2024 23:45:47 GMT
Corporate box for Starmer when he wants it at Arsenal 🤔 Must admit I’m struggling at the moment to decide which is worse Being a lying piece of duplicitous shit or being a Arsenal fan
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