UK Politics Thread 🇬🇧

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Spoiler: full text

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To be sworn in as an MP, you have to make an oath to the King.

This is what I decided to say, in protest.


To post tweets in this format, more info here: https://www.thecoli.com/threads/tips-and-tricks-for-posting-the-coli-megathread.984734/post-52211196

 

[bnew]

Nuisance YouTuber Elected to European Parliament

Fidias Panayiotou, the YouTuber notorious for his disruptive antics in Japan, has wormed his way into the European Parliament.

www.tokyoweekender.com

JAPAN LIFE NEWS & OPINION

Nuisance YouTuber Elected to European Parliament​

Fidias Panayiotou’s successful election is both a symptom and a symbol of our times

BY WAKABA OTO

JULY 11, 2024

Fidias Panayiotou, the Cypriot YouTuber notorious for his disruptive antics in Japan, has wormed his way into the European Parliament as an independent MEP. This is the same influencer who turned Japan into his personal playground last fall, dodging train fares and freeloading at hotels, all for the sake of content.

Panayiotou’s successful election is both a symptom and a symbol of our times. Here is a man whose primary ambition seems to be courting controversy and accumulating followers, now entrusted with a role that demands respect, responsibility and a modicum of seriousness.

This farcical twist of fate forces us to confront the unsettling reality: our political arenas are no longer reserved for the competent or the principled, but have become stages for digital caricatures whose main skill is manipulating the fickle algorithms of online fame.

LIST OF CONTENTS:

CONTROVERSY IN JAPAN ELECTION RESULTS DIRECT DEMOCRACY OR DIRECT MOCKERY? RELATED POSTS

Controversy in Japan​

Panayiotou embarked on a shameless quest to travel across Japan without paying for public transport last November. Competing against three fellow YouTubers for a $10,000 prize, he documented his fare-dodging exploits for his 2 million-plus subscribers.

One clip showed him hiding in a Shinkansen toilet to evade ticket inspectors, then faking illness when confronted. He repeated the trick on another train. The backlash was swift, with JR Kyushu launching an investigation and YouTube removing the video.

Another clip showed him sneaking into a hotel, posing as a guest to score a free breakfast. “I just (got) access to a five-star Japanese buffet. And we’re leaving the hotel without getting caught and without any problem,” he bragged to the camera.

His apology for these misdeeds was tepid at best, promising to “research cultures more.” Most saw this as a hollow gesture rather than genuine remorse.

Election Results​

Panayiotou, who has no political experience or party affiliation, secured nearly 20% of the vote in the June 2024 Cypriot European Parliament elections, ranking third behind the Democratic Rally (DISY) party and the Progressive Party of Working People (AKEL).

He announced his candidacy in January, confessing he had no idea about politics or the European Union, but claiming he was willing to learn.

“I am 23 years old, and I have never voted in my life, and I said to myself one night that if I never vote, and I never take an interest, the same nerds are always going to be in power, and I said ‘enough,’” he announced.

Members of the European Parliament are elected every five years.

When FNN inquired about the disturbances in Japan with the European Parliament’s Secretariat, the response was: “We cannot comment on individual cases.”

Direct Democracy or Direct Mockery?​

In true influencer fashion, Panayiotou took to social media on June 5 to flaunt his salary and the additional benefits that come with his position as a Member of the European Parliament.

“I get €8,000 a month in my pocket,” he said. “In addition to that, every working day I come here in the parliament and sign in, I get another €350. Apart from that, I have €30.000 per month for the salaries of my team. Also, I can have an office in my country, and they give me €5.000 a month for that. I have another €4.000 a month to promote my work that I’m doing here in the parliament.”

Yet again, on June 9, Panayiotou invited his followers to decide which party or group he should join in the European Parliament, dubbing it a “direct democracy.”

Panayiotou’s election is a sobering indicator of our times. His rise, fueled by social media clout rather than political acumen, highlights the erosion of genuine political discourse. The spectacle of his candidacy and subsequent victory raises unsettling questions about the future of governance in the age of the digital celebrity.

In a world where clicks and likes overshadow competence and integrity, the line between reality and performative farce has never been blurrier.

 

[DaRealness]

Dawn Butler apparently reported to police for celebrating ‘melanin’ in Labour government

MP says she ‘won’t be silenced’ after posting on social media to celebrate ethnic diversity of her Westminster cohort

uk.yahoo.com

Dawn Butler apparently reported to police for celebrating ‘melanin’ in Labour government​

Aletha Adu
Wed, 10 July 2024 at 6:40 pm BST·2-min read

One of the photos that Dawn Butler posted on X.Photograph: @DawnButlerBrent
Dawn Butler has said she “won’t be silenced” over celebrating ethnic minority representation after she appeared to have been reported to the police online for praising the Labour government “showing off the melanin”.
After Monday’s meeting of the parliamentary Labour party, attended by all 411 MPs, Butler posted the phrase with three photographs on X, one of which featured her with eight colleagues: Kim Johnson, Zarah Sultana, Bell Ribeiro-Addy, Apsana Begum, Florence Esholomi, Juliet Campbell, Miatta Fahnbulleh and Taiwo Owatemi.

Responding to the post, a user replied: “Just imagine if a white MP celebrated the lack of melanin in a group photo..?
“@Keir Starmer are you ok with party racism? @metpoliceuk how about you? You’ve just lost my respect because I thought you were about the UK not just one demographic.”
Butler told the Guardian: “We often talk about having to ‘see it to be it’, and how representation matters. But for some when colour is mentioned they get offended. And expect me to be silent. I celebrated that Rachel Reeves is the first female chancellor of our country, so why can’t black and brown people be celebrated too?”
After making the post, the following day Butler said on X: “This ruffled a few feathers someone even reported me to the police. Honestly I can’t stop laughing. My morning message to those people is, get used to me celebrating my greatness, I will not play small to make you feel better about yourself.”
The Metropolitan police have been contacted for comment.
It comes after Starmer unveiled his new cabinet, which has the highest number of state-educated and female ministers in history.
Overall, a record 89 minority ethnic MPs were elected to parliament but the foreign secretary, David Lammy, remains the only black cabinet minister in Starmer’s government, which has prompted concern on Labour benches.
Starmer’s cabinet will also have two ministers of Asian descent: Shabana Mahmood, one of the UK’s first Muslim female MPs, as justice secretary, and Lisa Nandy as culture secretary.
Diane Abbott, who officially became the new mother of the house on Wednesday, also celebrated the growing number of female MPs. “When I was a new member in 1987, there were only 40 female members of parliament. Today we have 264, and some of us are glad that we have lived to see this,” she told the Commons.
“And I can’t speak about the increased numbers of female members of parliament without referencing my predecessor, Baroness Harriet Harman, who did so much to work to have an equal and diverse house.
“We are going into very tumultuous times, and, historically, this house has played a role in these events both nationally and internationally. And I’m sure it will be the same going forward.”

 

[ADevilYouKhow]

 

[FAH1223]

 

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so "saviours" labour ain't shizzit either.

starmer (ex chief of the DPP) is not a principled good man.

the first step for any party that cares about normal people in the UK would be to dismantle the class system and empower the lower classes.

starmer (ex law chief) is not going to reverse the erosion of cvil liberties even though he of all people understands what damage it does.

 

[the next guy]

UK is so much brighter since Starmer got in.

 

[SlowPaceThrillah]

Vaughn Gethings needs to have played bass in a Miles Davis combo with a name like that

 

[FAH1223]

It’s like Sunak has a weight lifted

 

[The axe murderer]

One in six Tory voters likely to die before the next election

Demographic trends could add 29 seats to Labour’s total, highlighting the scale of the challenge facing the Conservatives in appealing to younger voters

www.thetimes.com

 

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[Heimdall]

‘Absolutely shameful’ UK ethnicity pay gap persists, figures show

Black people earn 5% less than white people

Labour's new Race Equality Act proposals draw scepticism from campaigners - Voice Online

THE LABOUR Party has announced ‘plans’ for a new Race Equality Act. It includes a...

www.voice-online.co.uk

Maybe something productive will come of this, but:

Critics however remain sceptical of Labour’s commitment to follow through, while arguing the planned legislation won’t go far enough to tackle the root causes of deeply entrenched inequality and racism.

Mish Rahman, members’ representative on Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC), told The Voice: “While collecting data and tackling pay is important, there seems to be nothing in place to end the hostile environment or plans for an independent review into hate crime, far-right extremism and how to tackle it.

“My concern has been that I do not believe that the Labour Party understands the real life practical impacts of race discrimination and inequality.

“When tackling and enhancing the Race Equality Act you have to have a strong focus on anti-racist education which includes the understanding and teaching of Britain’s colonial history. Only then will we be able to understand the injustices and racism in society.”

Rahman further added that “there is a glaring absence of understanding the causes of racism, not just the impact, while Labour shows off its patriotism, flags and Union Jack branding.”

 

[null]

Maybe something productive will come of this

the UK is not ever forcing the city/big-business to employ people of all types at all levels.

even the politicians themselves don't employ people of all types at all levels .



"vote mayor of london"

 

[null]

Starmer is c*nt, a Prick, and a Twat rolled into one.

 

[null]

Does Rishi count as DEI or whatever overused term

"Positive discrimination, known as affirmative action in the US, is the process of increasing the number of employees from underrepresented groups - such as ethnic minorities, women or disabled people - in workplaces from which they have been excluded, by preferentially selecting recruits with those characteristics.

Although many countries - including the US - allow the practice of positive discrimination, it remains illegal in the UK under the Equality Act 2010, on the grounds that the process does not accord equal treatment to all races."

What is positive discrimination - and does it solve inequality?

National Police Chiefs’ Council boss says urgent action needed to combat ‘unconscious bias’ among recruiters

theweek.com