Pinned
Peter Bale. Born Bristol, 12.7.1937 Scholarship boy. Aircraftman. Botanist. Biology teacher. Exercise physiologist. Wing three-quarter. Opera-lover. Sun-worshipper. Liberal-socialist. MS-patient. My Dad. Died Eastbourne, 15.7.2020.
Tim Bale
94K posts
Tim Bale
@ProfTimBale
aka @timbale.bsky.social Teach politics at @QMPoliticsIR. New book: "The Conservative Party After Brexit: Turmoil and Transformation"
- You're 23 (twenty-three) times more likely to be prosecuted for benefit than tax crime, even though tax fraud and error costs an estimated £20bn a year compared to £2bn in benefit fraud and error. (h/t @paulwaugh)
- Folk (including @BBCr4today) are (rightly!) celebrating diversity in the 'great offices of state'. But it's maybe worth noting that Kwarteng, Cleverly, and Braverman were all privately-educated. Fact is that, nowadays, the real lack of diversity in Parliament is class-based.
- I've got a great idea: let's abolish all speed limits on England's roads and just rely on people using their 'common sense'! Come on, who's with me?
- Anyone keeping a precise tally of how many MPs are prepared to debase themselves in order to save the PM’s skin?
- If only there were a bunch of people paid £81,932 a year by the UK taxpayer whose job it was to examine this stuff really, really carefully before the government committed to it.Replying to @MPIainDSTo avoid their own budget black hole, the EU gets £39billion as a “divorce payment” from us, reflecting our share of the current EU budget. But it gets worse. Buried in the fine print, unnoticed by many, is the fact we remain hooked into the EU’s loan book. (2/3)
- Bukayo Saka achieved four A*s and three As at GCSE. I'll just leave that there.Please remember, whenever you read a ‘heartfelt statement’ from a high-profile footballer, it has almost certainly been ghost-written by a press officer. Not a criticism, but we should recognise how these things work.
- We're at quite a pivot point/historic hinge here. If nothing happens and we all move on, then political accountability in this country - at least between, if not actually at, elections - is essentially over. Anybody in a position of power will be able to do pretty much anything.
- BREAKING: Bloke who reckons he can cut government waste by billions spaffs £144k on work that never got done.
- Highly misleading. Water’s the wrong colour and he still has a paddle.
- Frankly, I don't know why Labour, instead of continually talking bollocks about the Tories wanting to flog the NHS off to the highest bidder, don't just stick this on posters, leaflets and social media every week and leave voters to draw the obvious conclusion.
- Probably the most profound paragraph about British politics you'll read throughout this whole sorry election campaign. By Robert Crampton in the Sunday Times thetimes.co.uk/article/why-do…
- Of all the f*cking stupid quotes in a f*cking stupid year, this has to rank as one of the most f*ucking stupid.
- Something's changed - he sounds *way* better than usual.Today, Ofgem have announced an energy price cap rise that almost triples bills since last winter. This rise will be devastating to people across the country. Labour has a fully costed plan to freeze energy bills, meaning people won’t pay a penny more this winter.
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