Ha! I liked the comparison with the dazzle ships.

Yes, interesting days ahead, five years of it...perhaps.

4 years and 364 days methinks delcatto.

There will never agin be The Reform Effect, The Low Turnout / Disaffected Voter Not Voting Effect, and The Anything is (Temporarily) Better Than The Current Shit Effect.

Unless of course it all goes horribly wrong before then and they choose to bail early...

I agree about the Reform effect as the population ages but others may replace them as party politics fractures further into various factions.

Tough times ahead and little room for manouevre by the government as little money available.

Up here in the North, Reform voters are of all ages... the white working class young males of 'traditional views' are very scary.

I think there is plenty of money (or could be if tax loopholes were closed or even the existing rules properly applied to everyone not just those easy to intimidate): it's just (very) badly spent.

Many local projects are started, have huge amounts of money thrown at them, then never followed up to determine efficacy - often because the person who set up the project leaves or moves on.

It's been interesting seeing the difference in the sorts of things that are funded at a local level between N and S. But shocking.

Welcome back!

I'm in a new constituency, which the Greens decided to target. We've been bombarded with leaflets. it paid off for them and they won by about 7.000 votes. Alarmingly, Reform came 3rd, although to give the man credit, he was the only person in the town centre talking to people. Reform got in, in Great Yarmouth, only half an hour away, but there's not really much one can say that's good about Gt Yarmouth people.
I've also voted for all the major parties now. No one can ever count on my vote again.

Welcome back, BW. Our constituency has gone from blue to red, but I'm not hoping for much. I wonder if we might get some form of proportional representation next time. But I'm not hoping for much. It was fun to get so many Portillo moments on Friday morning. On principle I have always voted for the candidate I would like to win; but in all cases, they have never had a chance. Re the new opposition leader: I don't think it will make much difference who it is!

Relived to see you again BW.
I'm in Harrow East, one of the nine London Conservative seats. Returned mainly because the opposition was split and the only candidate making an effort was the sitting Conservative MP.

We've got the same MP as last time. I didn't vote for her last time but did this time (worried about splitting votes but doubt it made any difference).
Interesting what happened next door in Islington - Corbyn getting such a big majority. He's been a well liked and respected constituency MP for many years.

DGD and Mike R - thank you.

Z - the colour of the coastal constituencies all around the UK is very interesting. A Green constituency could be a good thing. Out Green CC is the hardest working councillor we have ever known.

Tim - yes agree about all the Portillo moments. Truss was the one that most amused me - actually side-stepped in 10 minutes after everyone else, after a slow hand clap, wearing dark navy, and not even a Tory Blue rosette. I've never lived in a Red area before. It will be interesting to see how that works out, but at least the elected person is a local. Your voting principle was mine until this election, when it became clear that Labour could win a staunchly Tory heartland for over 100 years, if those of us who wanted change voted Red rather than any other shade. PR isn't on Labour's cards, but Farage will be non-stop stirring for it.

Caroline - I like Corbyn and his allotment and jam principles. Just not as a leader.

Welcome back indeed BW. We’ve now got rid of the self serving useless Tory b who was famously absent during our major flood where the labour councillor from next constituency worked day and night helping where needed. Not for photo ops afterwards blowing his own trumpet as he did. Good riddance to the man

Long time, no see.

I think coastal communities tend towards right wing candidates because they are by definition less connected which leads to deprivation, and thus demographic change reducing the population of those more economically mobile, and simultaneously attracting those in their twilight years.

Farage is wrong about an awful lot of things, but he's right about PR. Labour got fewer votes this time than they did in 2019.

The thing that grieves me is the golden goodbyes given to the unseated MPs. A complicated formula, but I reckon somewhere between £60K and £100K per person. Where else would you get paid that amuont for being considered useless? Ah, wait... banking CEOs!

Ian - yes, just look at the number of votes each Party got cf the number of seats. Farage is right about a few things, it's just the way he puts it across that is antagonistic (and deliberately so methinks). At least the pubs and tobacconists in Clacton will do better trade now!