the dont mention gordon brown thread

el guapo · Post by **el guapo** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 4:42 pm

jimbo;1113672 wrote: it seems to me unless you love the much troubled gordon brown ,the overly sensitive oscar has a tantrum :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

so here is the thread not to mention gordie boy :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

i mentioned him once i think i got away with it :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

remember dont mention you know who especially in a negitive way :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

but who would want to talk about that tosser

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 4:53 pm

Britain, and the British people as a whole, will continue to remain this Government's top priority. As we build on the future, we must continue to look to the challenges of the past. The British people are remarkably resourceful.

To help capitalise on these resources, we plan to press forward with our new 10p Resource Tax.

This way, we will release hope from the many, not just the few.

More Bobbies on the Beat

The international fuel shortage has forced us to think long and hard about the need for putting policemen in cars. I immediately set up - and chaired - an independent review body.

Our conclusion? To MODERNISE our police force and - as important - to make it CARBON NEUTRAL.

How did we achieve this? By doing away with old-fashioned, gas-guzzling motor vehicles.

We are now well on our way to achieving our target of 95 per cent of our bobbies on the beat. I am determined that never again will they be stuck behind the wheels of cars.

Of course, for many vital operations - chasing stolen vehicles, getting swiftly from A to B - cars may still be needed.

We intend to solve this problem by INVESTING in the "pedal car" of the future.

These innovative cars afford police officers the look and feel of driving in FAST CARS, whilst at the same time making 100 per cent savings on damaging fuel emissions - and, as importantly, helping our police officers in their FIGHT AGAINST OBESITY.

More People behind Bars

My New Labour Government has MET ALL ITS TARGETS for doubling the number of offenders. And we EXPECT to double that number again in the next few years.

It is our solemn aim to detain as many potential offenders as possible. In pursuit of this, we aim to double the amount of offences by 2012, and again by 2016.

At the end of 2008, the independent review body set up under my jurisdiction concluded that a period of 42 days detention without trial was certainly a move in the right direction - but it didn't go far enough.

We found that the vast majority of ORDINARY, DECENT law-abiding Britons felt that those who had yet to be convicted of perpetrating guilty of HIDEOUS AND COWARDLY ACTS against innocent citizens should be locked up immediately and for a very long period of time.

The next year, we increased the period to 420 days, and the year after to 4,200 days. The move has been welcomed by all those innocent folk who remain at large. The ordinary, decent citizen can now wander down our streets without bumping into others.

And we PROVED WRONG all those who said the cost of building extra prisons would be ruinous.

How did we ACHIEVE this? By taking BOLD and imaginative action. At minimum cost to the taxpayer, we converted Milton Keynes to a maximum security prison for career smokers, and the Isle of Man to a penal colony for all those who have exceeded - or are planning to exceed - 12 points on their driving licences.

Furthermore, we have come down hard on youth offenders, making it A CRIMINAL OFFENCE to be aged between 16 and 21 without a valid reason.

A Government that Listens

Under my predecessor, we were often accused of being a government that wouldn't listen.

We've changed all that. We are now listening to the people. In fact, we now have more listening devices in place than at any other time in our history.

And we don't just listen. We are also committed to watching.

In the past few years, we have successfully installed 24-hour CCTV cameras in more than 32 million family kitchens, lounges and bedrooms, leaving the way open to TACKLE HOUSEHOLD CRIME TOGETHER.

In that period of time, we have succeeded in prosecuting a whole range of new offenders - offenders against basic food hygiene, offenders against anti-smoking legislation, offenders against basic safety procedures.

These criminals can no longer place their own homes in jeopardy. Instead, they are behind bars - where they belong.

Inflation under Control

Inflation is now firmly under control. Last year, it was set at 15 per cent and rising six per cent a year. But now, thanks to the BOLD AND DETERMINED efforts of this New Labour Government, it is set to rise at a rate of no more than 5.4 per cent over each six monthly period.

From now on, the pound abroad is worth 14 per cent or so less in terms of other currencies. It does not mean, of course, that the pound here in Britain, in your pocket or purse or in your bank, has been devalued.

International Relations

Troop withdrawal from Iraq remains high on our list of priorities. But common sense tells us that only by first expanding our troops can we ever hope to withdraw them. We will therefore continue to prepare the way for FULL TROOP WITHDRAWAL by doubling the number of our troops in Iraq over the next four-year period.

In accord with President McCain's plans for WORLD PEACE at all costs, we will continue to press forward with our plans to pursue the war on terror.

All the experts tell us that terror is at its most dangerous when it manages to fool us into believing that the world is at peace. Accordingly, through a process of intensive aerial peacekeeping involving all our troops, we will continue to support the President's successful initiative World Peace I, sometimes known as The Great Peace.

With President McCain, I look forward to tidying up new and unexpected trouble-spots such as Russia and China.

An End to Dither

This Government has been accused of dithering. More than ever, or almost ever, I am determined, or at least pretty determined, to bring an end to dither.

I have accordingly set in process a feasibility study to examine the possibility of forming a special committee to look into the LONG-TERM VIABILITY of setting up a panel to appoint an Anti-Dither Commission to be chaired by myself or a member of my Cabinet or a senior judge, or possibly a panel of all three, depending on circumstances prevailing, or not prevailing, at the time; it is frankly far too early to say.

el guapo · Post by **el guapo** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 5:35 pm

jim ya had to start her off didnt ya

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 5:38 pm

The Labour Party is a political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century, it has been since the 1920s the principal party of the left in Great Britain—that is, England, Scotland and Wales, but not Northern Ireland, where the Social Democratic and Labour Party occupies a roughly similar position on the political spectrum (although people in Northern Ireland are eligible to join the Labour Party). Under the Third way, the party's position has moved towards the Centre.

Labour surpassed the Liberal Party as the main opposition to the Conservatives in the early 1920s. It has had several spells in government, first as minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-31, then as a junior partner in the wartime coalition from 1940-1945, and then as a majority government, under Clement Attlee in 1945-51 and under Harold Wilson in 1964-70. Labour was in government again in 1974-79, under Wilson and then James Callaghan, though with a precarious and declining majority.

The current national Labour government won a landslide 179 seat majority in the 1997 general election under the leadership of Tony Blair, its first general election victory since October 1974 and the first general election since 1970 in which it had exceeded 40% of the popular vote. The party's large majority in the House of Commons was slightly reduced to 167 in the 2001 general election and more substantially reduced to 66 in 2005. Labour is also the leading partner in the coalition Welsh Assembly Government, is the second largest party in the Scottish Parliament, and has representation in the European Parliament. The current party leader is Gordon Brown.

Odie · Post by **Odie** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 5:50 pm

jimbo;1113672 wrote: it seems to me unless you love the much troubled gordon brown ,the overly sensitive oscar has a tantrum :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

so here is the thread not to mention gordie boy :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

i mentioned him once i think i got away with it :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

remember dont mention you know who especially in a negitive way :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

OMG, please don`t say that name, it might get you banned!:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 5:56 pm

[edit] Party ideology

The Labour Party grew out of the trade union movement and socialist political parties of the 19th century, and continues to describe itself as a party of democratic socialism.[2] Labour was the first political party in Great Britain to stand for the representation of the low-paid working class and it has traditionally been the working class who were known as the Labour Party grassroots and traditional members and voters.[2] Traditionally, the party was in favour of socialist policies such as public ownership of key industries, government intervention in the economy, redistribution of wealth, increased rights for workers and trade unions, and a belief in the welfare state as well as publicly funded healthcare and education.

Since the mid-1980s, under the leadership of Neil Kinnock, John Smith and Tony Blair the party has moved away from its traditional socialist position towards what is often described as the "Third Way" adopting some free market policies.

This has led many observers to describe the Labour Party as social democratic or even neo-liberal rather than democratic socialist.[3] Blair himself has described New Labour's political position as a "Third Way". The current Labour government have brought in policies such as introducing a minimum wage and increasing the spending on the NHS and education. It also has been credited with reducing the gap between the rich and poor.[4] The current Labour government also introduced Train to Gain in 2006, which provides publicly funded, specific and flexible education and training, in co-operation with business owners, to the employees of those businesses.[1] This is a typical "Third Way" policy as it uses education as a tool to pursue social justice and economic growth.

The 2008 Labour Party Conference, for some, represented closer ties with big business and away from workers as Gordon Brown proclaimed "we are, we always have been and we always will be a pro business government".

[edit] Party constitution and structure

Main article: Labour Party Rule Book

The Labour Party is a membership organisation consisting of Constituency Labour Parties, affiliated trade unions, socialist societies, and the Co-operative Party, with which it has an electoral agreement. Members who are elected to parliamentary positions take part in the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) and European Parliamentary Labour Party (EPLP). The party's decision-making bodies on a national level formally include the National Executive Committee (NEC), Labour Party Conference, and National Policy Forum (NPF) — although in practise the Parliamentary leadership has the final say on policy. Questions of internal party democracy have frequently provoked disputes in the party.

For many years Labour has held to a policy of uniting Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland by consent, and had not allowed residents of Northern Ireland to apply for membership,[5] instead supporting the nationalist Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) which informally takes the Labour whip at the House of Commons.[6] Yet Labour has a unionist faction in its ranks, many of whom assisted in the foundation in 1995 of the UK Unionist Party led by Robert McCartney.[citation needed] The 2003 Labour Party Conference accepted legal advice that the party could not continue to prohibit residents of the province joining,[7] but the National Executive has decided not to organise or contest elections there.

The party had 198,026 members on 31 December 2005 according to accounts filed with the Electoral Commission which was down on the previous year. In that year it had an income of about £35 million (£3.7 million from membership fees) and expenditure of about £50 million, high due to the general election.[8]

Party electoral manifestos have not contained the term socialism since 1992, although when Clause 4 was abolished the words "the Labour Party is a democratic socialist party" were added to the party's constitution.

Internationally, the Labour Party is a member of the Socialist International, and in Europe it is member of the Party of European Socialists.

Labour is not strictly a political party, but instead a composition of trade unions and various political organisations. Labour defines a difference between the leading Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP), Constituency Labour Parties (CLP), Socialist Societies, Trade Union affiliates and various political parties that choose to affiliate to Labour known as entryist groups, though the Communist Party of Britain has been refused affiliation on occasion. Lenin argued that socialist parties should affiliate to Labour to influence the PLP. Source: The Labour Party: A Marxist History by Tony Cliff, Cliff in the same book argued Labour was a bourgeois, capitalist party.

[edit] History

Main articles: History of the British Labour Party and History of socialism in Great Britain

[edit] Founding of the party

The Independent Labour Party, founded in 1893The Labour Party's origins lie in the late 19th century when it became apparent that there was a need for a political party to represent the interests and needs of the urban proletariat which had increased in numbers, and of working-class males who had recently been given franchise.[9] Some members of the trade union movement became interested in moving into the political field, and after the extensions of the franchise in 1867 and 1885, the Liberal Party endorsed some trade-union sponsored candidates. In addition, several small socialist groups had formed around this time with the intention of linking the movement to political policies. Among these were the Independent Labour Party, the intellectual and largely middle-class Fabian Society, the Social Democratic Federation and the Scottish Labour Party.

In the 1895 General Election the Independent Labour Party put up 28 candidates but won only 44,325 votes. Keir Hardie, the leader of the party believed that to obtain success in parliamentary elections, it would be necessary to join with other left-wing groups.

[edit] Labour Representation Committee

Keir Hardie, one of the Labour Party's founders and first leaderIn 1899 a Doncaster member of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, Thomas R. Steels, proposed in his union branch that the Trade Union Congress call a special conference to bring together all the left-wing organisations and form them into a single body which would sponsor Parliamentary candidates. The motion was passed at all stages by the TUC, and this special conference was held at the Memorial Hall, Farringdon Street, London on 26 and 27 February 1900. The meeting was attended by a broad spectrum of working-class and left-wing organisations; trade unions representing about one third of the membership of the TUC delegates. [10]

After a debate the 129 delegates passed Hardie's motion to establish "a distinct Labour group in Parliament, who shall have their own whips, and agree upon their policy, which must embrace a readiness to cooperate with any party which for the time being may be engaged in promoting legislation in the direct interests of labour." This created an association called the Labour Representation Committee (LRC), meant to coordinate attempts to support MPs, MPs sponsored by trade unions and representing the working-class population.[11] It had no single leader. In the absence of one, the Independent Labour Party nominee Ramsay MacDonald was elected as Secretary. He had the difficult task of keeping the various strands of opinions in the LRC united. The October 1900 "Khaki election" came too soon for the new party to effectively campaign; total expenses for the election only came to £33.[12] Only 15 candidatures were sponsored, but two were successful: Keir Hardie in Merthyr Tydfil and Richard Bell in Derby.[13]

Support for the LRC was boosted by the 1901 Taff Vale Case, a dispute between strikers and a railway company that ended with the union ordered to pay £23,000 damages for a strike. The judgement effectively made strikes illegal since employers could recoup the cost of lost business from the unions. The apparent acquiescence of the Conservative government of Arthur Balfour to industrial and business interests (traditionally the allies of the Liberal Party in opposition to the Conservative's landed interests) intensified support for the LRC against a government that appeared to have little concern for the industrial proletariat and its problems.[13]

Labour Party Plaque from Caroone House 8 Farringdon Street (demolished 2004)In the 1906 election, the LRC won 29 seats — helped by the secret 1903 pact between Ramsay Macdonald and Liberal Chief Whip Herbert Gladstone, which aimed at avoiding Labour/Liberal contests in the interest of removing the Conservatives from office.[13]

In their first meeting after the election, the group's Members of Parliament decided adopt the name "The Labour Party" (15 February 1906). Keir Hardie, who had taken a leading role in getting the party established, was elected as Chairman of the Parliamentary Labour Party (in effect, the Leader), although only by one vote over David Shackleton after several ballots. In the party's early years, the Independent Labour Party (ILP) provided much of its activist base as the party did not have an individual membership until 1918 and operated as a conglomerate of affiliated bodies until that date. The Fabian Society provided much of the intellectual stimulus for the party. One of the first acts of the new Liberal government was to reverse the Taff Vale judgement.[13]

[edit] Early years, and the rise of the Labour Party

The December 1910 General Election saw 42 Labour MPs elected to the House of Commons.

This was a significant victory since a year before the election the House of Lords had passed the Osborne judgment which ruled that Trades Unions in the United Kingdom could no longer donate money to fund the election campaigns and wages of Labour MPs. The governing Liberals were unwilling to repeal this judicial decision with primary legislation. The height of Liberal compromise was to introduce a wage for Members of Parliament, to remove the need to involve the Trade Unions. By 1913, faced with the opposition of the largest Trade Unions, the Liberal government passed the Trade Disputes Act to once more allow Trade Unions to fund Labour MPs.

During the First World War the Labour Party split between supporters and opponents of the conflict and opposition within the party to the war grew as time went on. Ramsay MacDonald, a notable anti-war campaigner, resigned as leader of the Parliamentary Labour Party and Arthur Henderson became the main figure of authority within the Party and was soon accepted into H. H. Asquith's War Cabinet, becoming the first Labour Party member to serve in government.

Despite mainstream Labour Party's support for the Coalition, the Independent Labour Party was instrumental in opposing mobilisation through organisations such as the Non-Conscription Fellowship and a Labour Party affiliate, the British Socialist Party, organised a number of unofficial strikes.

Arthur Henderson resigned from the Cabinet in 1917 amidst calls for Party unity, being replaced by George Barnes. The growth in Labour's local activist base and organisation was reflected in the elections following the War, with the co-operative movement now providing its own resources to the Co-operative Party after the armistice. The Co-operative Party later reached an electoral agreement with the Labour Party.

Following the war, the Liberal Party went into rapid decline. With the party suffering a catastrophic split between supporters of leader David Lloyd George and former leader H. H. Asquith. This allowed the Labour Party to co-opt much of the Liberals' support.

With the Liberals in disarray, Labour won 142 seats at the 1922 General Election making it the second largest political group in the House of Commons and the official opposition to the Conservative Government. After the election, the now rehabilitated Ramsay MacDonald was voted the first official leader of the Labour Party.

[edit] First Labour governments under MacDonald (1924 and 1929-1931)

Ramsay MacDonald, the first Labour Prime Minister, 1924, 1929–31 (National from 1931-35)

[edit] First Labour government (1924)

The 1923 general election was fought on the Conservatives' protectionist proposals; although they got the most votes and remained the largest party, they lost their majority in parliament, requiring a government supporting free trade to be formed. So with the acquiescence of Asquith's Liberals, Ramsay MacDonald became Prime Minister in January 1924 and formed the first ever Labour government, despite Labour only having 191 MPs (less than a third of the House of Commons).

Because the government had to rely on the support of the Liberals, it was unable to get any socialist legislation passed by the House of Commons. The only significant measure was the Wheatley Housing Act which began a building programme of 500,000 homes for rent to working-class families.

The government collapsed after only nine months when the Liberals voted for a Select Committee inquiry into the Campbell Case, a vote which MacDonald had declared to be a vote of confidence. The ensuing general election saw the publication, four days before polling day, of the notorious Zinoviev letter, which implicated Labour in a plot for a Communist revolution in Britain, and the Conservatives were returned to power, although Labour increased its vote from 30.7% of the popular vote to a third of the popular vote - most of the Conservative gains were at the expense of the Liberals. The Zinoviev letter is now generally believed to have been a forgery.[14]

In opposition, Ramsay MacDonald continued with his policy of presenting the Labour Party as a moderate force in politics. During the General Strike of 1926 he opposed strike action arguing that the best way to achieve social reforms was through the ballot box.

[edit] Second Labour government (1929-1931)

At the 1929 general election the Labour Party for the first time became the largest grouping in the House of Commons with 287 seats, and 37.1% of the popular vote (actually slightly less than the Conservatives). However, MacDonald was still reliant on Liberal support to form a minority government.

the original "liberty" logo, in use until 1983The government however, soon found itself engulfed in crisis; The Wall Street Crash of 1929 and eventual Great Depression occurred soon after the government came to power, and the crisis hit Britain hard. By the end of 1930 the unemployment rate had doubled to over two and a half million.[15]

The government had no effective answers to the crisis. By the summer of 1931, a dispute over whether to introduce large cuts to public spending split the government. With the economic situation worsening, MacDonald agreed to form a "National Government" with the Conservatives and the Liberals.

On 24 August 1931 MacDonald submitted the resignation of his ministers and led a small number of his senior colleagues in forming the National Government with the other parties. This move caused great anger within the Labour Party and MacDonald and his supporters were then expelled from the Labour Party and formed the National Labour Party. The remaining Labour Party, now led by Arthur Henderson, and a few Liberals went into opposition.

Soon after this, a General Election was called. The 1931 election resulted in a landslide victory for the National Government, and was a disaster for the Labour Party which won only 52 seats, 225 fewer than in 1929.

[edit] Opposition during the 1930s

Arthur Henderson, who had been elected in 1931 as Labour leader to succeed MacDonald, lost his seat in the 1931 General Election. The only former Labour cabinet member who survived the landslide was the pacifist George Lansbury, who accordingly became party leader.

The party experienced a further split in 1932 when the Independent Labour Party, which for some years had been increasingly at odds with the Labour leadership, opted to disaffiliate from the Labour Party. The ILP embarked on a long drawn out decline.

Lansbury resigned as leader in 1935 after public disagreements over foreign policy. He was replaced as leader by his deputy Clement Attlee. The party experienced a revival at the 1935 General Election, winning a similar number of votes to those attained in 1929 and actually, at 38% of the popular vote, the highest percentage that Labour had ever achieved, securing 154 seats.

With the rising threat from Nazi Germany in the 1930s, the Labour Party gradually abandoned its earlier pacifist stance, and came out in favour of rearmament. This shift largely came about due to the efforts of Ernest Bevin and Hugh Dalton who by 1937 also persuaded the party to oppose Neville Chamberlain's policy of appeasement.[15]

[edit] Wartime coalition

The party was brought back into government in 1940 as part of a wartime coalition government: When Neville Chamberlain resigned as Prime Minister after the defeat in Norway in spring 1940, and incoming Prime Minister Winston Churchill decided that it was important to bring the other main parties into the government and have a Wartime Coalition similar to that in the First World War. Clement Attlee became Lord Privy Seal and a member of the War cabinet, and was effectively (and eventually formally) Deputy Prime Minister for the remainder of the duration of the War in Europe.

A number of other senior Labour figures took up senior positions: the trade union leader Ernest Bevin as Minister of Labour directed Britain's wartime economy and allocation of manpower; the veteran Labour statesman Herbert Morrison became Home Secretary; Hugh Dalton was Minister of Economic Warfare and later President of the Board of Trade; and A. V. Alexander resumed the role of First Lord of the Admiralty he had held in the previous Labour government. The party generally performed well in government, and its experience there may have been partly responsible for its post-war success.

[edit] Post-War victory under Attlee

With the end of the war in Europe in May 1945, Labour resolved not to repeat the Liberals' error of 1918, and withdrew from the government to contest the 1945 general election (5 July) in opposition to Churchill's Conservatives. Surprising many observers, Labour won a landslide victory, winning just under 50% of the vote with a majority of 145 seats.

Clement Attlee: Labour Prime Minister 1945-51Clement Attlee's government proved to be one of the most radical British governments of the 20th century. It presided over a policy of selective nationalisation of major industries and utilities, including the Bank of England, coal mining, the steel industry, electricity, gas, telephones, and inland transport (including the railways, road haulage and canals). It developed the "cradle to grave" welfare state conceived by the Liberal economist William Beveridge. To this day, the party still considers the creation in 1948 of Britain's publicly funded National Health Service under health minister Aneurin Bevan its proudest achievement.

Attlee's government also began the process of dismantling the British Empire when it granted independence to India in 1947. This was followed by Burma (Myanmar) and Ceylon (Sri Lanka) the following year.

With the onset of the Cold War, at a secret meeting in January 1947, Attlee, and six cabinet ministers including foreign minister Ernest Bevin, secretly decided to proceed with the development of Britain's nuclear deterrent,[15] in opposition to the pacifist and anti-nuclear stances of a large element inside the Labour Party.

Labour won the 1950 general election but with a much reduced majority of five seats. Soon after the 1950 election, things started to go badly wrong for the Labour government. Defence became one of the divisive issues for Labour itself, especially defence spending (which reached 14% of GDP in 1951 during the Korean War).[16] These costs put enormous strain on public finances, forcing savings to be found elsewhere. The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Hugh Gaitskell introduced prescription charges for NHS prescriptions, causing Bevan, along with Harold Wilson (President of the Board of Trade) to resign over the dilution of the principle of free treatment.

Soon after this, another election was called. Labour narrowly lost the October 1951 election to the Conservatives, despite their receiving a larger share of the popular vote and, in fact, their highest vote ever numerically.

Most of the changes introduced by the 1945-51 Labour government however were accepted by the Conservatives and became part of the "post war consensus", which lasted until the 1970s

[edit] The "Thirteen Wasted Years"

Following their defeat in 1951 the party underwent a long period in opposition lasting thirteen years. The party suffered an ideological split during the 1950s, and the postwar economic recovery meant that the public was broadly contented with the Conservative governments of the time. Attlee remained as leader until his retirement in 1955.

His replacement Hugh Gaitskell struggled with internal divisions within the party in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and Labour lost the 1959 general election. Gaitskell's sudden death in 1963 made way for Harold Wilson to lead the party.

[edit] The 1960s and 1970s

[edit] Labour in government under Wilson (1964-1970)

Harold Wilson, Labour Prime Minister 1964–1970 and 1974-1976A downturn in the economy, along with a series of scandals in the early 1960s (the most notorious being the Profumo affair), engulfed the Conservative government by 1963. The Labour party returned to government with a wafer-thin 4 seat majority under Wilson in the 1964 election, and increased their majority to 96 in 1966 election.

Events derailed the wave of optimism which swept Labour to power in 1964. Wilson's government inherited a large trade deficit, which led to a currency crisis and an ultimately doomed attempt to stave off devaluation of the pound.

Wilson's government however was responsible for a number of social and educational reforms such as legalisation of abortion and homosexuality, and the abolition of the death penalty for murder. The 1960s Labour government also expanded comprehensive education and created the Open University.

Labour unexpectedly lost the 1970 general election to the Conservatives under Edward Heath. Heath's government however soon ran into trouble over Northern Ireland and a dispute with miners in 1973 which led to the "three-day week".

The 1970s proved to be a very difficult time to be in government for both the Conservatives and Labour due to the 1973 oil crisis which caused high inflation and a global recession.

Labour returned to power again under Wilson a few weeks after the February 1974 general election, forming a minority government with Ulster Unionist support. The Conservatives were unable to form a government as they had fewer seats, even though they had received more votes. It was the first General Election since 1924 in which both main parties received less than 40% of the popular vote, and was the first of six successive General Elections in which Labour failed to reach 40% of the popular vote. In a bid for Labour to gain a majority, a second election was soon called for October 1974 in which Labour, still with Harold Wilson as leader, scraped a majority of three, gaining just 18 seats and taking their total to 319.

[edit] Labour in power 1974-1979

In government, the Labour Party's internal splits over Britain's membership of the European Economic Community (EEC) which Britain had entered under Edward Heath in 1972, led to a national referendum on the issue in 1975, in which two thirds of the public supported continued membership.

James Callaghan: Labour Prime Minister from 1976 to 1979.The Labour Government struggled for much of its time in office with serious economic problems and a precarious and declining majority in the commons. Fear of advances by the nationalist parties, particularly in Scotland, led to the suppression of a report from Scottish Office economist Gavin McCrone which suggested that an independent Scotland would be 'chronically in surplus' and to secret collusion with Margaret Thatcher's Conservatives[citation needed]. Harold Wilson unexpectedly resigned as prime minister in 1976. He was replaced by James Callaghan.

The Wilson and Callaghan governments were hampered by their lack of a workable majority in the commons. At the October 1974 election, Labour won a majority of only three seats. Several by-election losses and defections to the breakaway Scottish Labour Party meant that by 1977, Callaghan was heading a minority government, and was forced to do deals with other parties to survive. An arrangement was negotiated in 1977 with the Liberal leader David Steel known as the Lib-Lab pact, but this ended after one year. After this, deals were made with various small parties, including the Scottish National Party and the Welsh nationalist Plaid Cymru, which prolonged the life of the government slightly longer.

The nationalist parties demanded devolution to their respective countries in return for their support for the government. When referendums for Scottish and Welsh devolution were held in March 1979, the Welsh referendum was rejected outright, and the Scottish referendum had a narrow majority in favour but did not reach the threshold of 40% support of the electorate, a requirement of the legislation. When the Labour Government refused to push ahead with setting up the Scottish Assembly, the SNP withdrew its support for the government, which brought it down when they lost a vote of confidence.

The Wilson and Callaghan governments in the 1970s tried to control inflation (which had reached 26.9% in 1975) by instituting a policy of wage restraint. This policy was initially fairly successful at controlling inflation, which had been reduced to 7.4% by 1978.[13] However it led to increasingly strained relations between the government and the trade unions.

Callaghan had been widely expected to call a general election in the autumn of 1978, when most opinion polls showed Labour to have a narrow lead.[13] However instead, he decided to extend the wage restraint policy for another year in the hope that the economy would be in a better shape in time for a 1979 election. This proved to be a big mistake.

During the winter of 1978-79 there were widespread strikes in favour of higher pay rises which caused significant disruption to everyday life. The strikes affected lorry drivers, railway workers, car workers and local government and hospital workers. These came to be dubbed as the "Winter of Discontent".

The strikes made Callaghan's government unpopular. After the withdrawal of SNP support for the government, the Conservatives put down a vote of no confidence, which was held and passed by one vote on 28 March 1979, forcing a general election.

In the 1979 general election, Labour suffered electoral defeat to the Conservatives led by Margaret Thatcher. The numbers voting Labour hardly changed between February 1974 and 1979, but in 1979 the Conservative Party achieved big increases in support in the Midlands and South of England, mainly from the ailing Liberals, and benefited from a surge in turnout.

[edit] The 'Wilderness Years' (1979-1997)

Following their defeat at the 1979 election, the Labour Party underwent a period of bitter internal rivalry as it became increasingly divided between the ever more dominant left wingers under Michael Foot and Tony Benn (whose supporters dominated the party organisation at the grassroots level), and the right under Denis Healey.

The election of Michael Foot as leader in 1980 dismayed many on the right of the party, who believed that Labour was becoming too left-wing. In 1981 a group of four former cabinet ministers from the right and centre of the Labour Party (Shirley Williams, William Rodgers, Roy Jenkins, and David Owen) issued the "Limehouse Declaration" and formed the breakaway Social Democratic Party.

Margaret Thatcher's government was initially deeply unpopular due to high unemployment and inflation but the success of the Falklands War in 1982, her success in controlling inflation and the right to buy revived her popularity, while the formation of the SDP split the opposition vote. The Labour Party was defeated by a landslide in the 1983 general election winning only 27.6% of the vote, their lowest share since 1918. Labour won only half a million votes more than the SDP-Liberal Alliance which had attracted the votes of many moderate Labour supporters.

Michael Foot resigned as leader and was replaced by Neil Kinnock, who progressively moved the party towards the centre. Labour improved its performance at the 1987 general election, gaining 20 seats and reducing the Conservative majority to 102 from 143 in 1983 despite a sharp rise in turnout.

Neil Kinnock was seen as too right wing for much of the Labour Left, especially the so-called Militant Tendency. Kinnock later forced this group out of the party, and they would later become the Socialist Party of England and Wales.

Margaret Thatcher was replaced as prime minister by John Major in 1990. By the time of the 1992 general election, the economy was in recession and, despite the personal unpopularity of Neil Kinnock, Labour looked as if it could win. The party had dropped its policy of Unilateral Nuclear Disarmament, and had tried to present itself as a credible government-in-waiting. Most opinion polls showed the party to have a slight lead over the Conservatives, although rarely sufficient for a majority. In the event the Conservatives were returned to power but with a much reduced majority of 20. Although Labour's support was comparable to the February and October 1974 and May 1979 General Elections, the overall turnout was much larger.

Kinnock resigned as leader and was replaced by John Smith. Soon after the 1992 election, the Conservative government ran into trouble, when on Black Wednesday it was forced to leave the European Exchange Rate Mechanism. After this, Labour moved ahead in the opinion polls as the Conservatives declined in popularity. John Smith's sudden death from a heart attack in May 1994 made way for Tony Blair to lead the Party.

[edit] New Labour

"New Labour" redirects here. For other uses, see New Labour (disambiguation).

Recent logo of Labour PartyTony Blair moved the party further to the right, adopting policies which broke with Labour's socialist heritage at the 1995 mini-conference in a strategy to increase the party's appeal to "middle England".

Tony Blair, Labour Prime Minister 1997-2007"New Labour" was first termed as an alternative branding for the Labour Party, dating from a conference slogan first used by the Labour Party in 1994 which was later seen in a draft manifesto published by the party in 1996, called New Labour, New Life For Britain. The rise of the name coincided with a rightwards shift of the British political spectrum; for Labour, this was a continuation of the trend that had begun under the leadership of Neil Kinnock. "New Labour" as a name has no official status but remains in common use to distinguish modernisers from those holding to more traditional positions who normally are referred to as "Old Labour". New Labour has been used a derogative term by some to separate the "Thatcherite" policies adopted by Tony Blair and Gordon Brown to that of Old Labour and the old Clause 4.

New Labour's apparent abandoning of working class supporters has resulted, some argue, in the Campaign for a New Workers' Party, the Respect Coalition, the rise in the Scottish National Party and the British National Party, revival of the Conservative Party, questioning of capitalism and trade union activity that has not been seen since the 1980s.

[edit] In government

Main articles: Current Labour government (UK), Premiership of Tony Blair, and Premiership of Gordon Brown

With the unpopularity of John Major's government, the Labour party won the 1997 election with a landslide majority of 179.

Among the early acts of Tony Blair's government were the establishment of the National minimum wage, the devolution of power to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and the re-creation of a city-wide government body for London; the Greater London Authority. In 2006, Tony Blair's Government introduced the Train to Gain scheme, which offers publicly funded flexible and specific training and education to businesses and their employees, in order to boost the success of the businesses that use it, the economy and the wages and career prospects of the individual employees who use it. This can be seen as creating social justice and pursuing economic growth.

Labour went on to win the 2001 election with a similar majority to 1997. Tony Blair controversially allied himself with President George W Bush in supporting the Iraq War, which lost his government much support.[17] The UN Secretary-General among many, considered the war illegal[18].The Iraq war was unpopular in most western countries, with Western governments divided in their support.[19]. At the 2005 election, Labour was returned to power with a much reduced majority.

The party lost power in Scotland after losing the 2007 Scottish Parliament election. In the same year, Tony Blair stood down as prime minister and was replaced by Gordon Brown. Although the party experienced a brief rise in the polls, the party's popularity soon slumped to its lowest level since under Michael Foot. During May 2008, Labour suffered heavy defeats in the London mayoral election, local elections and the Crewe and Nantwich by-election, culminating in the party registering its worst ever opinion poll result since records began in 1943, of 23%.[20] In June 2008 Labour suffered another poor result in the Henley by-election, coming in fifth place behind the Green Party and the British National Party.[21] In July 2008 Labour lost another by-election in the Glasgow East by-election to SNP by 365 votes but with a swing to the SNP of 22.5%.

Finance has proved a major problem for the Labour Party in recent years. A "cash for peerages" scandal under Tony Blair resulted in the drying up of many major sources of donations. Declining party membership, partially due to the reduction of activists' influence upon policymaking under the reforms of Neil Kinnock and Tony Blair, has also contributed to financial woes. Between January and March 2008, the Labour Party received just over £3 million in donations and are £17 million in debt; compared to the Conservatives' £6 million in donations and £12 million in debt, the Electoral Commission declared on 22 May 2008.[22]

Gordon Brown's Labour government suffered its first significant defeat in the House Of Lords on 15th October 2008, when the Lords rejected proposals to allow police to hold terror suspects for 42 days without charge.Gordon Brown was accused of a "tax bombshell" by opposition leader David Cameron, who argued that the "tax cut" of vat by 2.5% and the overall tax cut package was funded by debt which would lead to future tax increases.[23] The economic crisis in late 2008 boosted Gordon Browns popularity[24]. Over 70% of the population have confidence in Mr Brown with the Economy. In the final weeks of 2008 and beginning of 2009 the Labour Party are regaining some of the popularity they have recently lost and are on aim to take the lead again towards a 4th term in office. Making Labour the first British party to dominate in three decades.

[edit] Electoral performance

This chart shows the electoral performance of the Labour Party in general elections since 1900. (Source [2])

A graph showing the percentage of the popular vote received by major parties in general elections, 1832-2005. The rapid rise of the Labour party after its founding during the Victorian era is clear, and the party is now considered as one of the dominant forces in British politics.Election Number of votes for Labour Share of votes Seats Outcome of election

1900 62,698 1.8% 2 Conservative Victory

1906 321,663 5.7% 29 Liberal Victory

1910 (January) 505,657 7.6% 40 Hung parliament (Liberal minority government)

1910 (December) 371,802 7.1% 42 Hung parliament (Liberal minority government)

1918 2,245,777 21.5% 57 Liberal/Conservative Coalition Victory

1922 4,076,665 29.7% 142 Conservative Victory

1923 4,267,831 30.7% 191 Hung parliament (Labour minority government)

1924 5,281,626 33.3% 151 Conservative Victory

1929¡ 8,048,968 37.1% 287 Hung parliament (Labour minority government)

1931 6,339,306 30.8% 52 National Government Victory

1935 7,984,988 38.0% 154 National Government Victory

1945 11,967,746 49.7% 393 Labour Victory

1950 13,266,176 46.1% 315 Labour Victory

1951 13,948,883 48.8% 295 Conservative Victory

1955 12,405,254 46.4% 277 Conservative Victory

1959 12,216,172 43.8% 258 Conservative Victory

1964 12,205,808 44.1% 317 Labour Victory

1966 13,096,629 48.0% 364 Labour Victory

1970 12,208,758 43.1% 288 Conservative Victory

1974 (February) 11,645,616 37.2% 301 Hung parliament (Labour minority government)

1974 (October) 11,457,079 39.2% 319 Labour Victory

1979 11,532,218 36.9% 269 Conservative Victory

1983 8,456,934 27.6% 209 Conservative Victory

1987 10,029,807 30.8% 229 Conservative Victory

1992 11,560,484 34.4% 271 Conservative Victory

1997 13,518,167 43.2% 419 Labour Victory

2001 10,724,953 40.7% 413 Labour Victory

2005 9,562,122 35.3% 356 Labour Victory

The first election held under the Representation of the People Act 1918 in which all men over 21, and most women over the age of 30 could vote, and therefore a much larger electorate.

¡The first election under universal suffrage in which all women aged over 21 could vote.

[edit] Leaders of the Labour Party

See also List of United Kingdom Labour Party leaders

[edit] Deputy leaders of the Labour Party since 1922

See also Deputy Leader of the Labour Party (UK)

[edit] Leaders of the Labour Party in the House of Lords since 1924

Richard Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane 1924-1928

Charles Cripps, 1st Baron Parmoor 1928-1931

Arthur Ponsonby, 1st Baron Ponsonby of Shulbrede 1931-1935

Harry Snell, 1st Baron Snell 1935-1940

Christopher Addison, 1st Viscount Addison 1940-1952

William Jowitt, 1st Earl Jowitt 1952-1955

Albert Victor Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Hillsborough 1955-1964

Francis Pakenham, 7th Earl of Longford 1964-1968

Edward Shackleton, Baron Shackleton 1968-1974

Malcolm Shepherd, 2nd Baron Shepherd 1974-1976

Fred Peart, Baron Peart 1976-1982

Cledwyn Hughes, Baron Cledwyn of Penrhos 1982-1992

Ivor Richard, Baron Richard 1992-1998

Margaret Jay, Baroness Jay of Paddington 1998-2001

Gareth Williams, Baron Williams of Mostyn 2001-2003

Valerie Amos, Baroness Amos 2003-2007

Catherine Ashton, Baroness Ashton of Upholland 2007-2008

Janet Royall, Baroness Royall of Blaisdon 2008-

[edit] See also

Co-operative Party

Labour Co-operative

History of British Socialism

Labour leadership election

List of organisations associated with the British Labour Party

List of Labour Party (UK) MPs

List of other Labour Parties

Politics of the UK

Labour Party (UK) leadership election, 2007

Welsh Labour

Scottish Labour Party

Social Democratic and Labour Party

Liberal Democrat Party

Conservative Party

Socialist Party (successor to Militant)

Socialist Labour Party (Arthur Scargill's breakaway party)

Labour Students

[edit] References

^ Clause IV of Labour Party Constitution

^ a b "Labour's policies". Retrieved on 2007-07-21.

^ New Labour and Thatcherism: Political Change in Britain, Richard Heffernan, 2001; New Labour has picked up where Thatcherism left off, Stuart Hall, The Guardian, 6 August 2003; From Thatcherism to New Labour: Neo-Liberalism, Workfarism and Labour Market Regulation, Professor Bob Jessop, Lancaster University; New Labour, Economic Reform and the European Social Model, Jonathon Hopkin and Daniel Wincott, British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 2006.

^ Guardian Unlimited, Wealth Gap Narrows faster in UK

^ Labour Party membership form at the Internet Archive, ca. 1999. via Internet Archive. Accessed 31 March 2007. "Residents of Northern Ireland are not eligible for membership."

^ Understanding Ulster by Antony Alcock, Ulster Society Publications, 1997. Chapter II: The Unloved, Unwanted Garrison. Via Conflict Archive on the Internet. Accessed 31 October 2008.

^ Labour NI ban overturned, BBC News. 1 October 2003. Accessed 31 March 2007.

^ "The Labour Party - Financial Statements for 2005" (PDF).

^ See, for instance, the 1899 Lyons vs. Wilkins judgement, which limited certain types of picketing

^ Mortimer, Jim, ‘The formation of the labour party - Lessons for today’ 2000 Jim Mortimer was a General Secretary of the Labour Party in the 1980s

^ History of the Labour Party - The Labour Party

^ Wright T. & Carter M,(1997) "The People's Party" Thames & Hudson, ISBN 0-500-27956-x

^ a b c d e f Thorpe, Andrew. (2001) A History Of The British Labour Party, Palgrave, ISBN 0-333-92908-x

^ "The truth about Churchill's spy chief and the Zinoviev Letter".

^ a b c Davies, A.J. (1996) To Build A New Jerusalem: The British Labour Party from Keir Hardie to Tony Blair, Abacus, ISBN 0349 108099

^ Clark, Sir George, Illustrated History Of Great Britain, (1987) Octupus Books

^ European Opposition To Iraq War Grows | Current Affairs | Deutsche Welle | 13.01.2003

^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3661134

^ Unlikely alliance built on opposition to Iraq war now raises questions - International Herald Tribune

^ Lovell, Jeremy (2008-05-30). "Brown hit by worst party rating", Reuters. Retrieved on 28 June 2008.

^ "Labour fifth as Tories win Henley", BBC News (London), British Broadcasting Corporation (2008-06-27). Retrieved on 28 June 2008.

^ "New figures published showing political parties’ donations and borrowing". The Electoral Commission (2008-05-22). Retrieved on 2008-07-02.

^ Cameron predicts £1,500 'tax bombshell' - UK Politics, UK - The Independent

^ Guardian Newspaper December 2008

[edit] Further reading

Davies, A.J, To Build A New Jerusalem (1996) ISBN 0349108099

Geoffrey Foote, The Labour Party's Political Thought: A History, Macmillan, 1997 ed.

Martin Francis, Ideas and Policies under Labour 1945-51, Manchester University Press, 1997. ISBN 0719048338

Roy Hattersley, New Statesman, 10 May 2004, 'We should have made it clear that we too were modernisers'

David Howell, British Social Democracy, Croom Helm, 1976

David Howell, 'MacDonald's Party, Oxford University Press, 2002.

Ralph Miliband, Parliamentary Socialism, Merlin, 1960, 1972.

Kenneth O. Morgan, Labour in Power, 1945-51,OUP 1984.

Kenneth O. Morgan, Labour People: Leaders and Lieutenants, Hardie to Kinnock OUP, 1987.

Henry Pelling and Alastair J. Reid, A Short History of the Labour Party, Palgrave Macmillan, 2005 ed.

Ben Pimlott, Labour and the Left in the 1930s,Cambridge University Press, 1977.

Raymond Plant, Matt Beech and Kevin Hickson (2004), The Struggle for Labour's Soul: understanding Labour's political thought since 1945, Routledge

Clive Ponting, Breach of Promise (1964-70), Hamish Hamilton 1989.

Greg Rosen, Dictionary of Labour Biography. Politicos Publishing, 2001. ISBN 1902301188

Greg Rosen, Old Labour to New, Politicos Publishing, 2005. ISBN 1842750453

Eric Shaw, The Labour Party since 1979: Crisis and Transformation, Routledge, 1994

Andrew Thorpe, A History of the British Labour Party, Palgrave Macmillan, 2001

Phillip Whitehead, The Writing on the Wall Michael Joseph, 1985.

Patrick Wintour and Colin Hughes, Labour Rebuilt Fourth Estate, 1990.

John Pilger, Freedom Next time Bantam Press 2006. ISBN 0593055527.

[edit] External links

[edit] Official party sites

Labour

Scottish Labour

Welsh Labour

London Assembly Labour

Young Labour - Party youth wing

[edit] Other

Unofficial website with an archive of electoral manifestos and a directory of related websites

Labourhome - unofficial Labour Party grassroots

Labour History Group website

Unofficial history website

Guardian Unlimited Politics — Special Report: Labour Party

Labour Party aggregated news (multilingual)

Labour History Archive and Study Centre holds archives of the National Labour Party

(French)"Déroute historique des travaillistes", L'Humanité (2008-05-05). ((English) Translation accessible on L'HumanitÃƒ© in English)

[show]v • d • eLabour Party

Leaders Keir Hardie · Arthur Henderson · George Nicoll Barnes · Ramsay MacDonald · Arthur Henderson · William Adamson · J. R. Clynes · Ramsay MacDonald · Arthur Henderson · George Lansbury · Clement Attlee · Hugh Gaitskell · George Brown (acting) · Harold Wilson · James Callaghan · Michael Foot · Neil Kinnock · John Smith · Margaret Beckett (acting) · Tony Blair · Gordon Brown

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Leadership elections 1922 (Macdonald) · 1935 (Attlee) · 1955 (Gaitskell) · 1960 · 1961 · 1963 (Wilson) · 1976 (Callaghan) · 1980 (Foot) · 1983 (Kinnock) · 1988 · 1992 (Smith) · 1994 (Blair) · 2007 (Brown)

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Constitution and structure Constitution · Rule book · Constituency Labour Parties · Affiliated trade unions · Socialist societies · Parliamentary Labour Party · National Executive Committee · Labour Party Conference · National Policy Forum · Clause IV · General Secretary · Treasurer

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Related organisations Affiliated trade union · Christian Socialist Movement · Compass · Co-operative Party · Fabian Society · Grassroots Alliance · Labour Campaign for Electoral Reform · Labour CND · Labour Friends of Israel · Labour Party Irish Society · Labour Party Young Socialists · Labour Representation Committee (2004) · Labour Students · League of Youth · LGBT Labour · Labourhome · Militant tendency · National Union of Labour and Socialist Clubs · Progress · Scottish Labour Party · Socialist Education Association · SERA · Socialist Campaign Group · Socialist Youth Network · Wales Labour Party

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History and related topics History of the British Labour Party · History of socialism in Great Britain

[show]v • d • ePolitical parties in the United Kingdom

House of Commons (646): Labour (352) · Conservatives (194) · Liberal Democrats (63) · DUP (9) · SNP (7) · Sinn Féin (5)# · Plaid Cymru (3) · SDLP (3) · Independent Conservative (2) · Independent (2) · Ind KHHC (1) · Independent Labour (1) · UKIP (1) · Respect (1) · UUP (1)

House of Lords (738): Labour (211) · Crossbencher (207) · Conservatives (205) · Liberal Democrats (77) · UKIP (2) · Bishops (26) · non-affiliated (12) · Conservative Independent (1) · Plaid Cymru (1) · Independent Labour (1) · Independent (1)

Scottish Parliament (129): SNP (47) · Labour (46) · Conservatives (17) · Liberal Democrats (16) · Scottish Greens (2) · Independent (1)

National Assembly for Wales (60): Labour (26) · Plaid Cymru (15) · Conservatives (12) · Liberal Democrats (6) · Independent (1)

Northern Ireland Assembly (108): DUP (36) · Sinn Féin (28) · UUP (18) · SDLP (16) · Alliance (7) · Greens (NI) (1) · PUP (1) · Independent (1)

London Assembly (25): Conservatives (11) · Labour (8) · Liberal Democrats (3) · Greens (E&W) (2) · British National Party (1)

European Parliament

(78 of 732): Conservatives (EPP-ED, 28) · Labour (PES, 19) · Liberal Democrats (ELDR, 11) · UKIP (ID, 9) · Greens (E&W) (EGP, 2) · SNP (EFA, 2) • Plaid Cymru (EFA, 1) · Sinn Féin (EUL-NGL, 1) · UUP (EPP-ED, 1) · Independent (ADIE, 1) · Independent (NA, 1) · Independent (NA, 1) · Independent (NA, 1)

Minor parties: Co-operative Party · English Democrats · Forward Wales · Liberal · Mebyon Kernow · Scottish Senior Citizens Unity Party · SSP · Socialist Labour · Solidarity · Veritas

Notes:

#Although Sinn Féin have five elected members and have offices at Westminster, they are abstentionist and therefore do not take their seats

Co-operative candidates stand jointly with the Labour Party as “Labour and Co-operative Party candidates.

Portal:Politics - List of political parties - Politics of the United Kingdom

Carolly · Post by **Carolly** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 5:57 pm

This Forum is turning into a joke with that persons name and people are getting fed up with it now.Enough is enough fgs.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 6:01 pm

Carolly;1113723 wrote: This Forum is turning into a joke with that persons name and people are getting fed up with it now.Enough is enough fgs.

On the contrary Carolly. I thank jimbo for posting me a thread just for Labour Party manifesto. I fear your irritance is directed at the wrong person. You should be shooting the messenger.

Why on earth would you view a thread about the man if you are sick of the name?

Why post on the very thread where his name is likely to be mentioned?

Carolly · Post by **Carolly** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 6:02 pm

el guapo;1113705 wrote: jim ya had to start her off didnt yaI agree Jess and dont find this Thread amusing one little bit.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 6:05 pm

Carolly;1113726 wrote: I agree Jess and dont find this Thread amusing one little bit.

Did i post the thread?...... No

If you find it so unfunny..... why are you on it??

Me thinks the lady doth protest too much!

Odie · Post by **Odie** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 6:38 pm

oscar;1113729 wrote: Did i post the thread?...... No

If you find it so unfunny..... why are you on it??

Me thinks the lady doth protest too much!

I would have thought you had more respect for Carol, she is a wonderful and caring person and one of our top mods.

and, anyone can post where they want.

Kathy Ellen · Post by **Kathy Ellen** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 6:46 pm

Odie;1113757 wrote: I would have thought you had more respect for Carol, she is a wonderful and caring person and one of our top mods.

and, anyone can post where they want.

What's happening to you Oscar

Carolly · Post by **Carolly** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 6:49 pm

Odie;1113757 wrote: I would have thought you had more respect for Carol, she is a wonderful and caring person and one of our top mods.

and, anyone can post where they want.:DForget it Odie as ive been called worse...my mistake for coming onto a thread that by the title I thought would be fun and dont worry it wont happen again;)

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 6:51 pm

Carolly;1113769 wrote: Forget it Odie as ive been called worse...my mistake for coming onto a thread that by the title I thought would be fun and dont worry it wont happen again;)

Sorry Carolly but it's another attempt by Jimbo to mock anyone he likes with threads such as 'Don't mention the war'. But crack a few jokes here and there and you get away it and everyone thinks your just the 'fun guy'.

Odie · Post by **Odie** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 7:00 pm

Carolly;1113723 wrote: This Forum is turning into a joke with that persons name and people are getting fed up with it now.Enough is enough fgs.

OMG, you have that right, enough already!:-5:-5

AussiePam · Post by **AussiePam** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 7:01 pm

There are people who just do not know when to stop, back off, be silent, take time out. It's difficult to tell if they insensitive to everyone else's feeling because they are just thick, or whether they act out of calculated unpleasantness. Those of you whom the cap fits -please give the rest of us a break!!

Odie · Post by **Odie** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 7:08 pm

AussiePam;1113787 wrote: There are people who just do not know when to stop, back off, be silent, take time out. It's difficult to tell if they insensitive to everyone else's feeling because they are just thick, or whether they act out of calculated unpleasantness. Those of you whom the cap fits -please give the rest of us a break!!

amen Pam!

Kathy Ellen · Post by **Kathy Ellen** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 7:13 pm

Carolly;1113769 wrote: Forget it Odie as ive been called worse...my mistake for coming onto a thread that by the title I thought would be fun and dont worry it wont happen again;)

Sorry Carol....You deserve only the best:-4:-6

Odie · Post by **Odie** » Mon Jan 19, 2009 7:17 pm

Kathy Ellen;1113801 wrote: Sorry Carol....You deserve only the best:-4:-6

yes, she does hun!:-4:-4

gmc · Post by **gmc** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 2:48 am

Poor jimbo. He posts a thread clearly meant to wind up oscar, succeeds and then gets criticised for winding up oscar by people that think oscar should not be wound up. I spotted the intent straight away and could have avoided it if I wanted or if I found it annoying.

Taking the **** out of daily mail readers is a national sport and oscar-also known as daily mail reader women- probably takes it in good part. Just as I don't take it personally when she uses the most derogatory and insulting terms to describe me.

It gives her an opportunity to expound on the virtues of Gordon Brown.

However, to introduce a serious note in to a jimboesque thread. (as we all know he lives in the jimbo universe and only puts on his slaphead disguise to honour us with his presence)

posted by oscar

The Labour Party is a political party in the United Kingdom. Founded at the start of the 20th century, it has been since the 1920s the principal party of the left in Great Britain—that is, England, Scotland and Wales, but not Northern Ireland, where the Social Democratic and Labour Party occupies a roughly similar position on the political spectrum (although people in Northern Ireland are eligible to join the Labour Party). Under the Third way, the party's position has moved towards the Centre.

Labour surpassed the Liberal Party as the main opposition to the Conservatives in the early 1920s. It has had several spells in government, first as minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-31, then as a junior partner in the wartime coalition from 1940-1945, and then as a majority government, under Clement Attlee in 1945-51 and under Harold Wilson in 1964-70. Labour was in government again in 1974-79, under Wilson and then James Callaghan, though with a precarious and declining majority.

The current national Labour government won a landslide 179 seat majority in the 1997 general election under the leadership of Tony Blair, its first general election victory since October 1974 and the first general election since 1970 in which it had exceeded 40% of the popular vote. The party's large majority in the House of Commons was slightly reduced to 167 in the 2001 general election and more substantially reduced to 66 in 2005. Labour is also the leading partner in the coalition Welsh Assembly Government, is the second largest party in the Scottish Parliament, and has representation in the European Parliament. The current party leader is Gordon Brown.

What a pity then tony blair and his moronic sidekick gordon brown have effectively destroyed the labour party as a viable political force and throughly pissed off grass roots support destroyed any trust that might have remained in the political system of this country and the smug bastard (gordon that is) thinks he is some kind of suoperhero that has saved the world's banking system.

Sing along now oscar. (don't look if you are easily offended.)

YouTube - Gordon Brown: I'm A Wanker

Can't say i didn't warn you.

gmc · Post by **gmc** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:53 am

jimbo;1113970 wrote: cheers gmc :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

there are loads of threads on fg that i have no interest in or maybe one or two i find annoying .... you know what i do i dont post in them

:)

i really think gordie boy has done a dreadfull job but we are in shyt now and calling gordon names and posting bad stuff about him is only going to serve one purpose ....... thats right annoy that pesky oscar :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

job done :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

Who knows maybe it will get through to her. Even daily mail readers are worthy of help and understanding. One day we may see a thread by oscar-"I was a daily mail reader but now I'm cured"-where she can offer help and support to others going through the trauma of realising gordon is a moron and help with daily mail withdrawal symptoms as they start going through the pain of thinking for themselves. It's like all cults-don't look to understand just be there to help when they come to their senses.

I did think about sending her a free subscription to private eye for christmas but I was worried the postmark might give her clues as to where I live. I'm scared she's one of those demented people that likes to stalk people. I'm scots and from fife-just like gordon brown but far better looking-at least he has security around him to protect him from her.

Mind you she's hanging out with a tory now I see. Not sure that is actually an improvement:-3

Ever seen chronicles of riddick or firefly? I have an image of you living in your own jimboverse. Which is funny imo but only if you get the allusion in the first place.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 2:02 pm

gmc;1113981 wrote: Who knows maybe it will get through to her. Even daily mail readers are worthy of help and understanding. One day we may see a thread by oscar-"I was a daily mail reader but now I'm cured"-where she can offer help and support to others going through the trauma of realising gordon is a moron and help with daily mail withdrawal symptoms as they start going through the pain of thinking for themselves. It's like all cults-don't look to understand just be there to help when they come to their senses.

I did think about sending her a free subscription to private eye for christmas but I was worried the postmark might give her clues as to where I live. I'm scared she's one of those demented people that likes to stalk people. I'm scots and from fife-just like gordon brown but far better looking-at least he has security around him to protect him from her.

Mind you she's hanging out with a tory now I see. Not sure that is actually an improvement:-3

Ever seen chronicles of riddick or firefly? I have an image of you living in your own jimboverse. Which is funny imo but only if you get the allusion in the first place.

My senses, you bearded, kilt tosser will never come to me.

It is only the minority that need to come to their senses.

We all know your bitterness is down to being a Scottish Party of one who got trounced in Glenrothes by the Great Gordon.

What are you going to do now my little Braveheart after your dear Alex Salmond is going to be out of a job and Gordy boy will become King of Tartan land?

Yes, i am hanging out with a Junior Tory, it is true. The Labour MP around here has been in for 19 years, is a tosser and it is Oscar's duty to oust him. Besides, he's paying me to attend meetings with him on acoount of my celeb status in the constituancy. Maybe i should just stand as an independent instead?

Don't worry about the postmark as i would no rather stalk you any more than i would vote SNP.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 2:12 pm

[QUOTE=gmc;1113966]Poor jimbo. He posts a thread clearly meant to wind up oscar, succeeds and then gets criticised for winding up oscar by people that think oscar should not be wound up. I spotted the intent straight away and could have avoided it if I wanted or if I found it annoying.

Taking the **** out of daily mail readers is a national sport and oscar-also known as daily mail reader women- probably takes it in good part. Just as I don't take it personally when she uses the most derogatory and insulting terms to describe me.

To clear up any mis-understanding, i am not critising Jumbo kebab and it was not him or his thread that wound me up.

What perplexed me, is members complaining they are sick of hearing GB's name and then going into a thread and posting for the very man who they are sick of. Rather similar to my-self claiming to be sick of the mention of Bush and then posting in a thread with his name in the title and posting that i am fed up hearing his name. Or similar to knowing a spoonfull of arsenic is going to harm your health and then deliberately eating it. You hit the nail on the head when you said 'I spotted the intent straight away and could have avoided it if i wanted or if i found it annoying'. That was the point i was trying to get across.

As i've told you before sporran fiddler... I am allowed to use the most derogatory and insulting terms to describe you because i am British and it is the law. No, you don't take it personally or scream anti-Scottish biased at me, but then that's because you know i'm right all along.

You are correct that i do take it in good part.. some just assume i do not.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 2:15 pm

jimbo;1113970 wrote: cheers gmc :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

there are loads of threads on fg that i have no interest in or maybe one or two i find annoying .... you know what i do i dont post in them

:)

i really think gordie boy has done a dreadfull job but we are in shyt now and calling gordon names and posting bad stuff about him is only going to serve one purpose ....... thats right annoy that pesky oscar :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

job done :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

You carry on like that and not only will i throw your battered body in the Thames at the FG meet, I shall visit Bracknell and cover the lens of your telescope that you use to spy on your neighbours with.

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:16 pm

This is a true story.

The 7 dwarves are in a cave when it suddenly collapses.Snow white is worried for their lives,until she hears a voice from inside the cave saying "I think Gordon Brown is a great prime minister".She says,"thank heavens,at least dopey's all right!"

Must be true, fat bloke down the pub said.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:20 pm

Leave me alone;1114540 wrote: This is a true story.

The 7 dwarves are in a cave when it suddenly collapses.Snow white is worried for their lives,until she hears a voice from inside the cave saying "I think Gordon Brown is a great prime minister".She says,"thank heavens,at least dopey's all right!"

Must be true, fat bloke down the pub said.

Your Mexican i believe?

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:21 pm

I know this one is true.

An Old priest lay dying in hospital. For years, he had faithfully served the people of London. He motioned for his nurse to come near.

"Yes, Father?" she said.

"I would really like to see Tony Blair and Gordon Brown before I die," whispered the preist

"I'll see what I can do, Father," said the nurse. The nurse sent the request to the House of Commons and waited for a response. Soon the word arrived that Tony and Gordon would be delighted to meet the priest.

As they went to the hospital, Gordon commented to Tony: "I don't know why the old priest would want to meet us, but it certainly might help our images and even get me elected for Prime Minister for another term. Tony agreed that it was a very good especially if they got press coverage.

When they arrived at the hospital bed the old priest took Gordan's hand in his right hand and Tony's Hand in his left.

There was a silence and the look of serenity on the priest face.

Finally Gordon spoke. "Father, of all the people you could have chosen why choose us to be with you as you near the end?"

The Old preist replied slowly: "I have always tried to pattern my life after our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ."

"Amen" said Gordon.

"Amen" said Tony.

The old priest continued: "He died between two lying bastards. I would like to do the same."

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:23 pm

oscar;1114542 wrote: Your Mexican i believe?

Do a Gordon and believe whatever you like.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:23 pm

Leave me alone;1114544 wrote: I know this one is true.

An Old priest lay dying in hospital. For years, he had faithfully served the people of London. He motioned for his nurse to come near.

"Yes, Father?" she said.

"I would really like to see Tony Blair and Gordon Brown before I die," whispered the preist

"I'll see what I can do, Father," said the nurse. The nurse sent the request to the House of Commons and waited for a response. Soon the word arrived that Tony and Gordon would be delighted to meet the priest.

As they went to the hospital, Gordon commented to Tony: "I don't know why the old priest would want to meet us, but it certainly might help our images and even get me elected for Prime Minister for another term. Tony agreed that it was a very good especially if they got press coverage.

When they arrived at the hospital bed the old priest took Gordan's hand in his right hand and Tony's Hand in his left.

There was a silence and the look of serenity on the priest face.

Finally Gordon spoke. "Father, of all the people you could have chosen why choose us to be with you as you near the end?"

The Old preist replied slowly: "I have always tried to pattern my life after our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ."

"Amen" said Gordon.

"Amen" said Tony.

The old priest continued: "He died between two lying bastards. I would like to do the same."

Your Mexican i believe?

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:32 pm

This is the true moron brown.

While on his morning walk, Prime Minister Gordon Brown falls over, has a heart attack and dies because the accident and emergency dept at his nearest hospital is too understaffed to treat him in time.

So his soul arrives in Heaven and he is met by Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates.

"Welcome to Heaven," says Saint Peter, "Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem. We seldom see a Socialist around these parts, so we're not sure what to do with you."

"No problem, just let me in; I'm a good Christian; I'm a believer," says the PM.

"I'd like to just let you in, but I have orders from God Himself. He

says that since the implementation of his new HEAVEN CHOICES policy, you have to spend one day in Hell and one day in Heaven. Then you must choose where you'll live for eternity."

"But I've already made up my mind. I want to be in Heaven," replies Brown.

"I'm sorry .. But we have our rules," Peter interjects. And, with that,

St. Peter escorts him to an elevator and he goes down, down, down ...all the way to Hell.

The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a lush golf course. The sun is shining in a cloudless sky. The temperature is a perfect 22C degrees. In the distance is a beautiful club-house. Standing in front of it is Harold Wilson and thousands of other Socialist luminaries who had helped him out over the years --- John Smith, Michael Foot, Jim Callaghan, etc. The whole of the Labour Party leaders were there .. Everyone laughing, happy, and casually but expensively dressed.

They run to greet him, to hug him and to reminisce about the good times they had getting rich at the expense of 'suckers and peasants.'

They play a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster and caviar.

The Devil himself comes up to Brown with a frosty drink, "Have a tequila and relax, Gord!"

"Uh, I can't drink anymore, I took a pledge," says Brown, dejectedly.

"This is Hell, son. You can drink and eat all you want and not worry and it just gets better from there!"

Brown takes the drink and finds himself liking the Devil, who he thinks is a really very friendly bloke who tells funny jokes like himself and pulls hilarious nasty pranks, kind of like the ones the Labour Party pulled with the European Constitution and the Education, Immigration, Tough on Crime promises.

They are having such a great time that, before he realises it, it's time

to go. Everyone gives him a big hug and waves as Brown steps on the

elevator and heads upward.

When the elevator door reopens, he is in Heaven again and Saint Peter is waiting for him. "Now it's time to visit Heaven," the old man says, opening the gate.

So for 24 hours Brown is made to hang out with a bunch of honest,

good-natured people who enjoy each other's company, talk about things other than money and treat each other decently. Not a nasty prank or short-arse joke among them. No fancy country clubs here and, while the food tastes great, it's not caviar or lobster. And these people are all poor. He doesn't see anybody he knows and he isn't even treated like someone special!

"Whoa," he says uncomfortably to himself. "Harold Wilson never prepared me for this!"

The day done, Saint Peter returns and says, "Well, you've spent a day in Hell and a day in Heaven. Now choose where you want to live for Eternity."

With the 'Deal or No Deal' theme playing softly in the background, Brown reflects for a minute ... Then answers: "Well, I would never have thought I'd say this -- I mean, Heaven has been delightful and all but I really think I belong in Hell with my friends."

So Saint Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down, all the way to Hell.

The doors of the elevator open and he is in the middle of a barren

scorched earth covered with garbage and toxic industrial wasteland,

looking a bit like the eroded, rabbit and fox affected Australian

outback, but worse and more desolate

He is horrified to see all of his friends, dressed in rags and chained

together, picking up the roadside rubbish and putting it into black

plastic bags. They are groaning and moaning in pain, faces and hands black with grime.

The Devil comes over to Brown and puts an arm around his shoulder." I don't understand," stammers a shocked Brown, "Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and a club-house and we ate lobster and caviar and drank tequila. We lazed around and had a great time. Now there's just a wasteland full of garbage and everybody looks miserable!"

The Devil looks at him, smiles slyly and purrs, "Yesterday we were campaigning; today you voted for us!"

gmc · Post by **gmc** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:38 pm

Leave me alone;1114540 wrote: This is a true story.

The 7 dwarves are in a cave when it suddenly collapses.Snow white is worried for their lives,until she hears a voice from inside the cave saying "I think Gordon Brown is a great prime minister".She says,"thank heavens,at least dopey's all right!"

Must be true, fat bloke down the pub said.

:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

I know this one is true.

An Old priest lay dying in hospital. For years, he had faithfully served the people of London. He motioned for his nurse to come near.

"Yes, Father?" she said.

"I would really like to see Tony Blair and Gordon Brown before I die," whispered the preist

"I'll see what I can do, Father," said the nurse. The nurse sent the request to the House of Commons and waited for a response. Soon the word arrived that Tony and Gordon would be delighted to meet the priest.

As they went to the hospital, Gordon commented to Tony: "I don't know why the old priest would want to meet us, but it certainly might help our images and even get me elected for Prime Minister for another term. Tony agreed that it was a very good especially if they got press coverage.

When they arrived at the hospital bed the old priest took Gordan's hand in his right hand and Tony's Hand in his left.

There was a silence and the look of serenity on the priest face.

Finally Gordon spoke. "Father, of all the people you could have chosen why choose us to be with you as you near the end?"

The Old preist replied slowly: "I have always tried to pattern my life after our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ."

"Amen" said Gordon.

"Amen" said Tony.

The old priest continued: "He died between two lying bastards. I would like to do the same."

:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

You've made my evening-wish I'd posted these.

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:44 pm

Hey GMC, dont laugh, these are true stories.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:49 pm

Leave me alone;1114564 wrote: Hey GMC, dont laugh, these are true stories.

Your Mexican i believe?

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 3:59 pm

oscar;1114570 wrote: Your Mexican i believe?

:yh_rotfl:yh_rotflSquawk Squawk pretty Gordon.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 4:29 pm

Leave me alone;1114581 wrote: :yh_rotfl:yh_rotflSquawk Squawk pretty Gordon.

Did you hear the one about the Mexican?

NO?

No, you won't either due to the fact that no-bodys ever heard of them except when their slipping under chicken wire to get in the US for a job. :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 4:32 pm

oscar;1114618 wrote: Did you hear the one about the Mexican?

NO?

No, you won't either due to the fact that no-bodys ever heard of them except when their slipping under chicken wire to get in the US for a job. :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

Squawk Squawk lick yer arse Gordon:yh_rotfl

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 5:09 pm

When Moron Brown was told the polls were looking bad he replied, "I dont know, they are doing a lovely job of my kitchen".

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 5:12 pm

Leave me alone;1114668 wrote: When Moron Brown was told the polls were looking bad he replied, "I dont know, they are doing a lovely job of my kitchen".

I've heard better drivel from a 2 yr old. Why don't you act your age

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 5:18 pm

oscar;1114671 wrote: I've heard better drivel from a 2 yr old. Why don't you act your age

There Ladies and Gentleman is a typical intelligent labour response, thank-you for not letting me down:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 5:21 pm

Leave me alone;1114678 wrote: There Ladies and Gentleman is a typical intelligent labour response, thank-you for not letting me down:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

Even the Labour party can't help you.

:yh_loser:yh_loser:yh_loser:yh_loser:yh_loser

Barman · Post by **Barman** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 5:24 pm

oscar;1114683 wrote: Even the Labour party can't help you.

:yh_loser:yh_loser:yh_loser:yh_loser:yh_loser

They have never helped anyone yet.

:yh_wave:yh_wave:yh_wave:yh_wave:yh_wave

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Tue Jan 20, 2009 5:26 pm

Leave me alone;1114689 wrote: They have never helped anyone yet.

:yh_wave:yh_wave:yh_wave:yh_wave:yh_wave

:yh_glasse:yh_glasse:yh_glasse:yh_glasse:yh_glasse

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Wed Jan 21, 2009 3:05 am

jimbo;1114911 wrote: fantastic :yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

good sport oscar for not sgreaming this thread is anti british :rolleyes::rolleyes:

sgreaming????? Is that screaming in dutch???

I must admit that I'm a little unhappy with his lovliness this morning.

Post by **Oscar Namechange** » Wed Jan 21, 2009 3:11 am

jimbo;1114920 wrote: what has peter lake done now:yh_rotfl:yh_rotfl

Mr Lake is wonderful as ever :-6

No, I was refering to his lovliness or as gmc affectionately calls him.. Gordy Boy.