Monday 27th April 2015 - GE minus 10 days

Spacedone · Post by **Spacedone** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 7:09 am

Morning everyone. Not long to go now.

Mike Smithson ‏@MSmithsonPB 23m23 minutes ago

Today's YouGov "absolutely certain to vote or already voted by post"
CON voters 81%
LAB voters 83%
LD voters 77%
UKIP voters 79%

Don't CON usually have a higher certainty to vote?

Mike Smithson ‏@MSmithsonPB 24m24 minutes ago

2010 voters still saying don't know in latest YouGov
2010 CON 7%
2010 LAB 8%
2010 LD 17%
These could be crucial to a late move

TheGrimSqueaker · Post by **TheGrimSqueaker** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 7:15 am

Morning Spacedone, morning all.

That Telegraph letter is funny, isn't it? Over at the Other Place NickyB insists that it is a 'FACT' that no businesses large or small support Labour, and this letter 'signed' by 0.1% of British businesses is proof of that. He really gets worse.

I'm off to work, but if anybody has some time on their hands today maybe they could have a dig through the list of businesses to see if any patterns emerge; just a quick glance revealed a fair number of building-related businesses in the Liverpool area where, of course, McVile's family operate - so, cronies or pressure exerted?

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/arc ... 81571a.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Spacedone · Post by **Spacedone** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 7:19 am

Guess what the Tories will be talking about today?

Len McCluskey says prime minister Ed Miliband would work with SNP
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/201 ... k-with-snp" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The general secretary of Unite, Len McCluskey, believes that Ed Miliband could work with Nicola Sturgeon after the election, while insisting it would be wrong for him to attack the SNP when the party currently has the support of half his membership in Scotland.

Spacedone · Post by **Spacedone** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 7:25 am

TheGrimSqueaker wrote:Morning Spacedone, morning all.

That Telegraph letter is funny, isn't it? Over at the Other Place NickyB insists that it is a 'FACT' that no businesses large or small support Labour, and this letter 'signed' by 0.1% of British businesses is proof of that. He really gets worse.

I'm off to work, but if anybody has some time on their hands today maybe they could have a dig through the list of businesses to see if any patterns emerge; just a quick glance revealed a fair number of building-related businesses in the Liverpool area where, of course, McVile's family operate - so, cronies or pressure exerted?

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/arc ... 81571a.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

There's something on Twitter where someone has looked at the metadata behind that PDF file (for non-techies, metadata means extra information about the file that is hidden in the background) and it states that the file was created by "CCHQ Admin".

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 7:45 am

Morning.

Something for the diary.
The Westminster Hour, on Radio 4 next Sunday (may be FM only) at 10pm, will be about the constitutional issues for hung parliaments.

It also includes 'What the Papers Say' at the end, with wonderful Malcolm Arnold music as its theme tune to send you to sleep with a smile.

tinyclanger2 · Post by **tinyclanger2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 7:53 am

Will Stott ‏@willstott77 2h2 hours ago
If snp cannot contribute to UK gov w/o causing constitutional crisis is it any wonder they seek independence? #WorstCrisisSinceTheAbdication

good point from my new favourite hashtag

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:03 am

I may be half asleep, but what happened to that 'million houses' Mark Ferguson was tweeting about ?
Was he just being sarcastic ?

Post by **refitman** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:15 am

yahyah wrote:I may be half asleep, but what happened to that 'million houses' Mark Ferguson was tweeting about ?
Was he just being sarcastic ?

I think he did 200k x 5 and got a bit giddy.

LadyCentauria · Post by **LadyCentauria** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:17 am

yahyah wrote:I may be half asleep, but what happened to that 'million houses' Mark Ferguson was tweeting about ?
Was he just being sarcastic ?

There's mention of it here but more details should come in Ed's speech, later today:

The biggest house building programme in a generation

Labour’s plan will start construction on 1 million new homes by 2020 to deliver our promise of getting 200,000 homes built a year, with “use or lose it” powers ensuring developers build on land rather than hoarding it via the right to levy council tax on sites which remains undeveloped, as well as plans for a series of new garden cities and wider reform of the housing market.

http://www.labour.org.uk/pages/news

Keeping the promise of building 200,000 (+) homes in each of the five years of the next Parliament comes to a million, overall.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:17 am

yahyah wrote:I may be half asleep, but what happened to that 'million houses' Mark Ferguson was tweeting about ?
Was he just being sarcastic ?

I'm not sure why he was so excited by something Labour has said for ages now - they would seek to build 200,000 homes per year. Maybe it's dawned on him that 200,000 x 5 = 1 million.

tinybgoat · Post by **tinybgoat** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:24 am

LadyCenturia asked:
* Can you recycle used polystyrene packaging into 'new' insulation panels? I
think it should be possible but I don't know whether or not it's being done.
Genuine question.

Think it's more common in u.s,
but found link for where it's done in uk:
http://www.eps.co.uk/sustainability/rec ... ction.html

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:27 am

refitman wrote:
yahyah wrote:I may be half asleep, but what happened to that 'million houses' Mark Ferguson was tweeting about ?
Was he just being sarcastic ?
I think he did 200k x 5 and got a bit giddy.

Just wondering how people feel about the £300,000 upper limit for Labour's first time buy stamp duty removal ?

I felt it was too high, but have been doing some internet browsing.
Flats in nice Edwardian houses, two beds, in the leafy North London suburb we moved from 26 years ago are selling for up to £450,000. Unbelievable.

& I think the policy is England only ?

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:27 am

Techs - I'm hoping you can help me.

Today, my computer mouse seems to have a mind of its own. It is highlighting sections of pages that I haven't selected; it is randomly dropping the cursor somewhere in a sentence so that I end up having to delete half of what I had typed & start again, hoping that it doesn't do it again; the merest delay in moving the bloody thing means inadvertently hovering over a link that then ends up with me looking at something I hadn't chosen to look at.

I've restarted my laptop & it's still doing it; I've disconnected then reconnected the mouse & it's still doing it.

It's driving me do-lally & I'm hoping some of you clever folks out there can help before I take the bloody thing & chuck it in the bin.

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:29 am

pk1 wrote:
yahyah wrote:I may be half asleep, but what happened to that 'million houses' Mark Ferguson was tweeting about ?
Was he just being sarcastic ?
I'm not sure why he was so excited by something Labour has said for ages now - they would seek to build 200,000 homes per year. Maybe it's dawned on him that 200,000 x 5 = 1 million.

It didn't dawn on me, but then I am not known for my speed of thought, particularly at this time of the morning.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:32 am

yahyah wrote:
refitman wrote:
yahyah wrote:I may be half asleep, but what happened to that 'million houses' Mark Ferguson was tweeting about ?
Was he just being sarcastic ?
I think he did 200k x 5 and got a bit giddy.
Just wondering how people feel about the £300,000 upper limit for Labour's first time buy stamp duty removal ?

I felt it was too high, but have been doing some internet browsing.
Flats in nice Edwardian houses, two beds, in the leafy North London suburb we moved from 26 years ago are selling for up to £450,000. Unbelievable.

& I think the policy is England only ?

Not sure if it is England only.

Press preview on Sky covered the announcement last night & apparently the average FTB home in London & the SE is £300k so I'd guess that why they set that as the rate.

Doubtless there will be those that say scoffingly that a FTB home near them is £40k or something & that they should move but London & the SE has a huge demand for key workers etc so they need to be considered & accommodated too.

tinyclanger2 · Post by **tinyclanger2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:32 am

Sorry PfY but boy does that Sturgeon woman irritate me:

graun blog wrote:Nicola Sturgeon says she hopes the SNP will “weild influence in the House of Commons”. People have to vote first. But she would expect the people of Scotland’s views to be taken into account at Westminster.

what is it about 59 Scottish seats already having their "voices listened to" and their "views taken into account", at least as much as, say the NW, which has more northwesterners living in it than Scotland has Scots, that she doesn't "blinking well" get?

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:39 am

tinyclanger2 wrote:Sorry PfY but boy does that Sturgeon woman irritate me:

graun blog wrote:Nicola Sturgeon says she hopes the SNP will “weild influence in the House of Commons”. People have to vote first. But she would expect the people of Scotland’s views to be taken into account at Westminster.
what is it about 59 Scottish seats already having their "voices listened to" and their "views taken into account", at least as much as, say the NW, which has more northwesterners living in it than Scotland has Scots, that she doesn't "blinking well" get?

It's b*****ks, but those taken in by their very own Lady Di (as one Nat described her) will have to see it in their own time.

If we are being

, This too will pass. All that is built up will fall down.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:40 am

Adblock Plus, which allows people browsing the internet to automatically hide adverts on pages that they’re visiting, has won a court case that two German news publishers hoped would have had it banned from working on their pages.

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style ... 95786.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Astonishing that companies think we ~~suckers~~ readers shouldn't be permitted to block their adverts on our screens & went as far as taking it to court ??

LadyCentauria · Post by **LadyCentauria** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:58 am

tinybgoat wrote:
Lady Centuries asked:
* Can you recycle used polystyrene packaging into 'new' insulation panels? I
think it should be possible but I don't know whether or not it's being done.
Genuine question.
Think it's more common in u.s,
but found link for where it's done in uk:
http://www.eps.co.uk/sustainability/rec ... ction.html

Smashing! Thanks @tinybgoat

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 8:58 am

Morning everyone.

Mehdi Hasan retweeted
Dean Burnett ‏@garwboy 23h23 hours ago
If Ed Miliband becomes PM, I hope his first press conference is just him eating a pile of bacon sandwiches while giving everyone the finger

A cheeky enjoyable thought.

I'm sure he'll be more prime ministerial than that.

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:03 am

pk1 wrote:
Adblock Plus, which allows people browsing the internet to automatically hide adverts on pages that they’re visiting, has won a court case that two German news publishers hoped would have had it banned from working on their pages.
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style ... 95786.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Astonishing that companies think we ~~suckers~~ readers shouldn't be permitted to block their adverts on our screens & went as far as taking it to court ??

Have you had the Guardian message yet ... goes something like 'We can see you're using an adblocker to block adverts. This is how we make our money and will affect our business. So perhaps you'd like to support us by taking out membership instead.'

That's a precis of what I can remember. Only had it once - and I declined. I heard a piece on Radio 4 about how the rise of people using adblockers is worrying those companies that rely on advertising clicks / views for their revenue. I suspect we haven't heard the last of this issue despite that court case.

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:03 am

rebeccariots2 wrote:Morning everyone.

Mehdi Hasan retweeted
Dean Burnett ‏@garwboy 23h23 hours ago
If Ed Miliband becomes PM, I hope his first press conference is just him eating a pile of bacon sandwiches while giving everyone the finger
A cheeky enjoyable thought.

I'm sure he'll be more prime ministerial than that.

Someone on the Westminster Hour last night said that there are no longer daily news conferences with the parties/leaders in this election campaign, and therefore less chance for real scrutiny.

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:09 am

Slow GDP growth in first quarter puts pressure on Osborne
Economists expect latest figures to show that growth has fallen from 0.6% to 0.5% since end of 2014
http://www.theguardian.com/business/201 ... chancellor" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Osborne in a hard hat / helmet picture alert.

What is it about those hard hats that politicians so like putting them on .... hmmmm?

Anyway ... it sounds as though the figures aren't going to be part of the 'miracle' ... spect Cameron will just have to ignore them if so.

George Osborne’s stewardship of the economy is expected to take a dent on Tuesday when the latest official figures show last year’s healthy growth has lost momentum.

With just over a week until the election, the chancellor will come under pressure from critics following a run of poor figures from the manufacturing and construction sectors that City economists predict have slowed growth in the first quarter.

Osborne has already come under fire for presiding over a recovery that has failed to lift living standards above pre-crisis levels despite creating more than 1.5m jobs. Until recently, businesses have relied on a growing workforce of low paid, self-employed and part-time workers that has left productivity growth lagging behind most industrial nations.

Economists expect Tuesday’s figures to show that GDP growth slowed to a quarterly 0.5% in the first three months of this year, down from 0.6% in the final quarter of 2014.

Weaker than expected industrial production, construction output and high street sales in recent months, have even encouraged some economists to pencil in a halving in the growth rate to 0.3%, according to a Reuters poll.

LadyCentauria · Post by **LadyCentauria** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:11 am

pk1 wrote:Techs - I'm hoping you can help me.

Today, my computer mouse seems to have a mind of its own. It is highlighting sections of pages that I haven't selected; it is randomly dropping the cursor somewhere in a sentence so that I end up having to delete half of what I had typed & start again, hoping that it doesn't do it again; the merest delay in moving the bloody thing means inadvertently hovering over a link that then ends up with me looking at something I hadn't chosen to look at.

I've restarted my laptop & it's still doing it; I've disconnected then reconnected the mouse & it's still doing it.

It's driving me do-lally & I'm hoping some of you clever folks out there can help before I take the bloody thing & chuck it in the bin.

If you unplug the mouse and use the track-pad on your laptop, instead, do you still have the same problems? And what sort of mouse are you using; ie., does it have a ball, and what make/model is it?

tinyclanger2 · Post by **tinyclanger2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:17 am

sturgeon on g blog about supporting a minority labour gvnt wrote:She indicated that she personally would take charge of such compromise talks, depsite not being an MP.

So, if I understand correctly, not so much the "voice of Scotland" but the "voice of Sturgeon".

Nice.

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:17 am

BBC Radio 4 Today ‏@BBCr4today 9m9 minutes ago
UK temps set to plummet as polar plume blows in from North Pole. Bank Hol weekend may see snow and gales

FFS - that's exactly what I don't need for my last week of canvassing ... or for work.

We're going to have a job and a half getting out the reluctant to vote on polling day if it's that parky. I think I'll have to have a spare set of gloves, hat and scarf with me ... and maybe operate a St Bernard scheme with brandy round my neck too. Oh ... no that will be seen as treating rather than emergency medicine ... have to jettison that thought. But I might need a nip myself by the sound of it.

yahyah · Post by **yahyah** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:21 am

rebeccariots2 wrote:
BBC Radio 4 Today ‏@BBCr4today 9m9 minutes ago
UK temps set to plummet as polar plume blows in from North Pole. Bank Hol weekend may see snow and gales
FFS - that's exactly what I don't need for my last week of canvassing ... or for work.

We're going to have a job and a half getting out the reluctant to vote on polling day if it's that parky. I think I'll have to have a spare set of gloves, hat and scarf with me ... and maybe operate a St Bernard scheme with brandy round my neck too. Oh ... no that will be seen as treating rather than emergency medicine ... have to jettison that thought. But I might need a nip myself by the sound of it.

Polar weather already here.

I left my Ammi Majus seedlings out last night, poor little blighters got frosted as the temperature fell to zero C. Have moved them into the shade to let them come round gently.

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:21 am

: Tory fingerprints on bosses letter.jpg (81.21 KiB) Viewed 11892 times

Gabriel Scally
‏@GabrielScally
Find Tory fingerprints on "bosses" letter to @Telegraph. First, see fabricated story here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politic ... tives.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; …

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:23 am

LadyCentauria wrote:
If you unplug the mouse and use the track-pad on your laptop, instead, do you still have the same problems? And what sort of mouse are you using; ie., does it have a ball, and what make/model is it?

Nope, track-pad is fine. It's a Logitech M185

http://www.logitech.com/en-gb/product/w ... mouse-m185" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have turned it off & restarted my laptop 3 times now & it seems to be resolved (for now......) but any tips are welcome in case it does it again

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:24 am

yahyah wrote:
rebeccariots2 wrote:
BBC Radio 4 Today ‏@BBCr4today 9m9 minutes ago
UK temps set to plummet as polar plume blows in from North Pole. Bank Hol weekend may see snow and gales
FFS - that's exactly what I don't need for my last week of canvassing ... or for work.

We're going to have a job and a half getting out the reluctant to vote on polling day if it's that parky. I think I'll have to have a spare set of gloves, hat and scarf with me ... and maybe operate a St Bernard scheme with brandy round my neck too. Oh ... no that will be seen as treating rather than emergency medicine ... have to jettison that thought. But I might need a nip myself by the sound of it.

Polar weather already here.

I left my Ammi Majus seedlings out last night, poor little blighters got frosted as the temperature fell to zero C. Have moved them into the shade to let them come round gently.

Thanks yahyah - not quite as cold as that here - but pretty nippy. I've got to start my Ammi and other annual flowers off today. I will be making sure they're going to be nice and cosy. I'm using coir jiffys this year - so have left them a bit later to start off - going to be interesting to see how they do.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:25 am

rebeccariots2 wrote:
BBC Radio 4 Today ‏@BBCr4today 9m9 minutes ago
UK temps set to plummet as polar plume blows in from North Pole. Bank Hol weekend may see snow and gales
FFS - that's exactly what I don't need for my last week of canvassing ... or for work.

We're going to have a job and a half getting out the reluctant to vote on polling day if it's that parky. I think I'll have to have a spare set of gloves, hat and scarf with me ... and maybe operate a St Bernard scheme with brandy round my neck too. Oh ... no that will be seen as treating rather than emergency medicine ... have to jettison that thought. But I might need a nip myself by the sound of it.

Got a text from my Mum who is in Scotland & she said that last week was like summer but last night they were white with snow

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:28 am

Tom Newton DunnVerified account
‏@tnewtondunn
CCHQ high priests give a letter from 5,000 small businessmen to the paper of big company bosses and colonels. Sums up all their problems.

TheGrimSqueaker · Post by **TheGrimSqueaker** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:34 am

Spacedone wrote:
TheGrimSqueaker wrote:Morning Spacedone, morning all.

That Telegraph letter is funny, isn't it? Over at the Other Place NickyB insists that it is a 'FACT' that no businesses large or small support Labour, and this letter 'signed' by 0.1% of British businesses is proof of that. He really gets worse.

I'm off to work, but if anybody has some time on their hands today maybe they could have a dig through the list of businesses to see if any patterns emerge; just a quick glance revealed a fair number of building-related businesses in the Liverpool area where, of course, McVile's family operate - so, cronies or pressure exerted?

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/arc ... 81571a.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
There's something on Twitter where someone has looked at the metadata behind that PDF file (for non-techies, metadata means extra information about the file that is hidden in the background) and it states that the file was created by "CCHQ Admin".

Oh, they've not tried to hide the fact (this time) that it is CCHQ driven. It has nominally been driven by Karren Brady but, as I think somebody pointed out last night, it is actually a petition that has been hanging around on the Conservative website for weeks. I particularly like the "Your data will not be shared with anybody" disclaimer, presumably Grant Shapps doesn't believe in data protection laws.

rebeccariots2 · Post by **rebeccariots2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:42 am

Matthew Champion ‏@matthewchampion 3m3 minutes ago
Matthew Champion retweeted Helen Belcher
well, this is going great

Helen Belcher
‏@Aurum_Boss
.@Telegraph My Sales Director did not sign "the letter" (at position 413). Please remove his name and our company details immediately.

LadyCentauria · Post by **LadyCentauria** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:43 am

pk1 wrote:
LadyCentauria wrote:
If you unplug the mouse and use the track-pad on your laptop, instead, do you still have the same problems? And what sort of mouse are you using; ie., does it have a ball, and what make/model is it?
Nope, track-pad is fine. It's a Logitech M185

http://www.logitech.com/en-gb/product/w ... mouse-m185" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have turned it off & restarted my laptop 3 times now & it seems to be resolved (for now......) but any tips are welcome in case it does it again

This page in the Logitech Knowledge Base might help - Erratic scrolling with SetPoint when using Chrome, Internet Explorer, or Windows 8 Start screen apps:
http://support.logitech.com/en_gb/artic ... 0069uzsAAA

That page should guide you through the process to correct the problem. If that doesn't help it's just possible that the batteries are getting low – you'll find a page to help you with replacing them in the Knowledge Base, too. Hope that helps!

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:45 am

AS blog:

And health spending per head is higher in Scotland, [Sturgeon] says.

I'm not surprised !

Anecdote alert:

My Uncle required a knee replacement. The waiting time for surgery at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary was iro 8 months but if he was willing to travel to Glasgow, he could have it done within 2 months.

He chose Glasgow & the arrangements were duly made. He needed to be at the hospital for 8.30am so the Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS Board paid for overnight accommodation at a hotel nearby !

My Uncle is not an impoverished man & could easily have paid for the hotel from his own funds but apparently the GGCNHSBoard routinely pay !!

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:48 am

LadyCentauria wrote:
pk1 wrote:
LadyCentauria wrote:
If you unplug the mouse and use the track-pad on your laptop, instead, do you still have the same problems? And what sort of mouse are you using; ie., does it have a ball, and what make/model is it?
Nope, track-pad is fine. It's a Logitech M185

http://www.logitech.com/en-gb/product/w ... mouse-m185" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have turned it off & restarted my laptop 3 times now & it seems to be resolved (for now......) but any tips are welcome in case it does it again
This page in the Logitech Knowledge Base might help - Erratic scrolling with SetPoint when using Chrome, Internet Explorer, or Windows 8 Start screen apps:
http://support.logitech.com/en_gb/artic ... 0069uzsAAA

That page should guide you through the process to correct the problem. If that doesn't help it's just possible that the batteries are getting low – you'll find a page to help you with replacing them in the Knowledge Base, too. Hope that helps!

I did replace the battery, thinking that was the problem alas it didn't help but I will certainly follow the instructions given on that webpage.

Thank you

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:50 am

Natalie Bennett cancels housing policy speech because she's lost her voice

Nope, you can't tempt me into saying anything about this.

*bites tongue*

tinyclanger2 · Post by **tinyclanger2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 9:53 am

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02q2lcs
"SNP can be trusted" - Nicola Sturgeon

"I'm very 'umble Master Copperfield" - Uriah Heep

OK. Was just having fun. Sorry. Am stopping before wrath of Paul descends.

Spacedone · Post by **Spacedone** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:00 am

yahyah wrote:
rebeccariots2 wrote:
BBC Radio 4 Today ‏@BBCr4today 9m9 minutes ago
UK temps set to plummet as polar plume blows in from North Pole. Bank Hol weekend may see snow and gales
FFS - that's exactly what I don't need for my last week of canvassing ... or for work.

We're going to have a job and a half getting out the reluctant to vote on polling day if it's that parky. I think I'll have to have a spare set of gloves, hat and scarf with me ... and maybe operate a St Bernard scheme with brandy round my neck too. Oh ... no that will be seen as treating rather than emergency medicine ... have to jettison that thought. But I might need a nip myself by the sound of it.

Polar weather already here.

I left my Ammi Majus seedlings out last night, poor little blighters got frosted as the temperature fell to zero C. Have moved them into the shade to let them come round gently.

Gloriously sunny and clear blue skies here.

Just sayin'

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:07 am

http://news.sky.com/story/1472834/why-g ... e-election" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It's not hard to see then why housing policy is a key focus for politicians and how "generation rent" could swing this election.

StephenDolan · Post by **StephenDolan** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:18 am

Spacedone wrote:Morning everyone. Not long to go now.

Mike Smithson ‏@MSmithsonPB 23m23 minutes ago

Today's YouGov "absolutely certain to vote or already voted by post"
CON voters 81%
LAB voters 83%
LD voters 77%
UKIP voters 79%
Don't CON usually have a higher certainty to vote?

Mike Smithson ‏@MSmithsonPB 24m24 minutes ago

2010 voters still saying don't know in latest YouGov
2010 CON 7%
2010 LAB 8%
2010 LD 17%
These could be crucial to a late move

I thought the reweighting factored in shy Tories? Promising figures anyway.

TheGrimSqueaker · Post by **TheGrimSqueaker** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:21 am

yahyah wrote:It's b*****ks, but those taken in by their very own Lady Di (as one Nat described her) will have to see it in their own time.

Probably best I don't give you my opinion of Lady Di then.

tinyclanger2 · Post by **tinyclanger2** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:24 am

TheGrimSqueaker wrote:
yahyah wrote:It's b*****ks, but those taken in by their very own Lady Di (as one Nat described her) will have to see it in their own time.
Probably best I don't give you my opinion of Lady Di then.

One suspects that to be a wise course of action.

Willow904 · Post by **Willow904** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:25 am

yahyah wrote:
refitman wrote:
yahyah wrote:I may be half asleep, but what happened to that 'million houses' Mark Ferguson was tweeting about ?
Was he just being sarcastic ?
I think he did 200k x 5 and got a bit giddy.
Just wondering how people feel about the £300,000 upper limit for Labour's first time buy stamp duty removal ?

I felt it was too high, but have been doing some internet browsing.
Flats in nice Edwardian houses, two beds, in the leafy North London suburb we moved from 26 years ago are selling for up to £450,000. Unbelievable.

& I think the policy is England only ?

As a first time buyer I didn't pay any stamp duty on my first flat and that would still be the case in many parts of the country, with flats still selling at under £125,000 in many places. So as a comparative, I wouldn't be bothered if someone in London didn't have to pay stamp duty on their first £300,000 flat. Of course, someone buying a £300,000 detached house in any other part of the country would be getting an extra helping hand that some may say they don't need, but how many first time buyers does that really apply to? That it's aimed at first time buyers only, makes it ok in my book. There are arguments that say stamp duty should be a sellers tax, rather than a buyers tax and if you don't pay it on your first purchase that's sort of what it becomes, but without the bill for the pensioner selling up to move into a retirement home at the end of the chain.

Like the tuition fee reduction, that Labour are being accused of aiming at wealthier students, the critics are missing the main point - these are policies aimed at people from all backgrounds, who are starting out in life.. It's a generational policy, not a rich v poor policy and because it comes alongside serious focus on regulation of the private rental sector, a landlord's register, support for social housing and changes to planning laws to encourage housebuilding, I have no problem with it as part of a rounded package. Allowing councils to charge council tax on banked land with planning permission that isn't being built on is the really interesting part of this package. The media haven't really focused on it - they should. It has huge implications.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:26 am

TheGrimSqueaker · Post by **TheGrimSqueaker** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:28 am

And the wheels fall off another Shapps-Green initiative. I wonder if there are any whelk stalls on the list?

http://politicalscrapbook.net/2015/04/t ... -business/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Willow904 · Post by **Willow904** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:35 am

StephenDolan wrote:
Spacedone wrote:Morning everyone. Not long to go now.

Mike Smithson ‏@MSmithsonPB 23m23 minutes ago

Today's YouGov "absolutely certain to vote or already voted by post"
CON voters 81%
LAB voters 83%
LD voters 77%
UKIP voters 79%
Don't CON usually have a higher certainty to vote?

Mike Smithson ‏@MSmithsonPB 24m24 minutes ago

2010 voters still saying don't know in latest YouGov
2010 CON 7%
2010 LAB 8%
2010 LD 17%
These could be crucial to a late move
I thought the reweighting factored in shy Tories? Promising figures anyway.

I don't think this has anything to do with weighting, that sometimes reallocates don't knows according to past data. I think the first is just the results from a straightforward set of questions - who are you going to vote for, how certain are you to vote. I've done a survey from Yougov with those questions myself. The second appears to be matching the don't knows with who they voted for in the last election. The fact that previous Libdem voters are less decided is maybe no big surprise and, as you say, shows that constituencies where Libdems and tactical voting could be significant, there is still a lot to play for.

citizenJA · Post by **citizenJA** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:38 am

Good-morning, everyone.
Bright sunshine & just a little cool - the sun is strong in Stoke.

pk1 · Post by **pk1** » Mon 27 Apr, 2015 10:40 am

Apparently today we are expected to get Populus, ICM/Guardian this afternoon, Ashcroft at 4, YouGov at 10:30pm

*deep breath*