Saint86

Grim. People like that are a great argument for why we need migrants... we've got a thick underclass of absolute bitter morons that have wasted / taken for granted all of the advantages that being born in Britain afforded them, and are nothing but a net drain on the economy and society as a whole. Any chance we can deport that lot?

He's the preffered candidate for the blairite wing of labour, but not for the left of labour. I think labour are almost as ungovernable now as the Tories were post Brexit. Corbyn/sultana's new party and rayners fall from grace could now split the labour party by the next GE.

I agree. The outlook is depressing. I think most people could sense labour were going to be a car crash (their GE campaign was to keep stum and just let public sentiments on the Tories win it for labour), but they have been terrible since getting in office. Considering they haven't had a major external issue jump out of them, I do think it's the worst year a government has had (that I can recall) for what are essentially self inflicted domestic issues / politics. The freebies they've been getting, the lying about qualifications, the winter fuel payments and grooming enquiry fiascos (complete political suicide on both fronts), they seem weaker on illegal migration than the Tories (in so much as the numbers have gone up), we've seen real regression on the free speech front, and whether rightly or wrongly - the 2 tier Keir moniker will remain with him for life. But then look around - the response to labour (and the Tories) is to apparently now just vote reform - and a large part of that seems to be a similar attitude of "they aren't the other 2" or to punish lab/con. Reform may have a few good individuals/policoes in their mist, but is any of it really costed? Do they know how to implement any of it or work with the civil service? Or will they just been an even bigger car crash?! And in all seriousness (and taking politics out of it), I cannot ever see farage as PM and being the leader of the UK on the world stage... Like FFS. He is genuinely a guy who would just be happier in a pub with a pint talking to disgruntled locals about issues he knows they'll agree with him on... Not dealing with international sanctions or weapons deals, or hosting international figures to encourage business investments. And ed Davey is no better... Running around baking and doing slip and slides is about as far removed as possible from what the country needs from the leader of a party who could well form the next (coalition) government or be the official opposition to a reform one. UK politics is a shit fest - and a very bleak and depressing decade lies ahead. Are we doomed to cycle through the Tories, labour, and reform - before realising they're all shit and finally having some kind of political renaissance in a few years. Grim if so.

Semmens had no investment behind him, he and Ralph kept the club going and in the top flight on a relative shoestring, they also made the most out of a lot of players we had in place. The likes of ings, kwp, livramento were all good buys. The lavia leg work was done on their watch. JWP saints' career was basically saved by Ralph etc. There were some duff buys in that time as well though, particularly earlier one... But absolutely nothing in comparison to the absolute shitfest that was sports republic's (rasmus') first year in recruitment duties 😅 (Bet semmens thought he was onto a winner when he SR turned up and wanted to put money into investments... Little did he know that we were going to rip up the entire established recruitment system and he was going to have little control 😄).

The crocodile tears can't hide the fact that after this shit storm was discovered, she's tried to claim that she was given financial advice that said she was paying the correct amount and scapegoat the conveyancers. This was something she's claimed retrospectively and is a lie, especially as she's sought advice and was actually advised to speak to a specialist tax adviser. I get it, that was probably a desperate attempt from her to try and save her career at at stressful time, but just another example where she's failed to show adequate integrity. She's gone now - that will satisfy most interested parties and stop people looking further into whether this was deliberately done, why she lied about the advice she was given after the fact, and why she sold her house to her son's care trust for an inflated amount. Has she accepted the ghost is up and is falling on her sword to escape greater scrutiny? Probably.

Interested to see what happens now, and whether Streeting fills the void or someone more on the left of Labour. Streeting has been very quiet until now, but potentially stands to gain a lot from this whole thing.

And to come back to my point and the linked article...

Is it not fraudulent tax evasion where you lie about you living arrangements/finances etc to get out of paying tax... or is lying in fact a legal form of tax avoidance?

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/feb/13/tax-authorities-should-prosecute-evaders-keir-starmer Based on the fact that Rayner has clearly lied and can't decide which property she lives in... Starmer is going to have fun with this one 😄

Starmer would have you know that tax evasion should be considered as fraud and punishable as such (unless ofc its Rayner, in which case its fine as she holds his labour party leadership balls in a vice). Edit - the legal/conveyancing firm have now come out denied entirely that they gave her (or any other clients) tax or trust advice, have accused her of trying to scapegoat them, and have therefore now added a pretty serious accusation of lying at Rayner. Wonder if they'll also pursue her for reputational damages.

Robinson has the potential to be a good prem player for saints imo, someone of the JWP/Schneiderlin style level. Dibling has Bale level potential (i.e., to become one of the best players in the league/europe etc) - although i'm doubtful as to whether he can realise that potential as there does seem to be something else going on with him from a mentality perspective. Eitherway, both are great talents and success stories for the academy.

Quite something to have the rangers sporting director come out and speak on behalf of the manager over what Martin will be doing to get Raskin back on side 😬

I'd be dropping Downes for Jander for the derby. Its no place for someone who is seemingly as fairweather as he is atm, similarly he is constantly getting needless bookings or giving away fouls all the time atm - don't know whats up with him, maybe its because his mate russel has left or because we blocked his move to Ipswich, but whatever it is his head doesn't seem fully focussed and putting him in CM for the skates would worry me a bit.

Yeah, plenty of good MPs in it for the right reason - that's true enough. But Rayner is very clearly just another corrupt hypocritical pig with no integrity and her snout in the trough.

So wait, Rayners blatant tax avoidance is okay because she's not as bad as the Tories. They're just as slimy as the last lot 😆 I guess by the end of this, she'll at least know where she lives (even if its not her own constituency) and pay the right tax 🙄

She received financial advice to avoid paying tax.... The rules are the rules and she wants to get around them and dodge tax... be it having one primary residence to avoid paying double council tax, and one to avoid double stamp duty... Whether her financial adviser fucked up or not - she still went t them for advice to avoid tax. She has still consciously dicked about with her addresses to dodge tax. And she's now gone and got a primary residence thats not in her constituency (when it suits for tax purposes) to avoid paying tax whilst not knowing that she was doing that. Old saggy chops would be proud. Its utterly irrelevant whether the advice she then got is incorrect - she still actively sought financial advise to avoid paying taxes after zealously attacking better off people for avoiding taxes. She's also got a party leader / PM who is on record saying tax evasion is fraud, and should be prosecuted as such, and she's in a party that has campaigned to clamp down on tax avoidance whilst also hiking council taxes and supporting 100% increases on council tax for 2nd homes(which she's loop holed her way out of) etc.

Mate, she's either incompetent, or a hypocrite of no integrity who has committed tax avoidance. I very much doubt she sought financial advice without the intention to minimise tax in this instance - you'd just pay the default (dare we just say correct) tax otherwise.

Separate issue, but why did she need a court injunction for an amicable divorce from a husband and the setting up of shared trust? 🙄 End of the day, she's paid for legal advice to minimise stamp duty and council tax, changed her residences around to suit both stamp duty and council tax payments across her 3 properties, at best - her solicitors have fucked it all up, and she's got caught, and is now having to hold her hands up. Will be her dog's fault next... Lets ignore the fact that that would mean she is also ignorant about the implications of council tax, primary residences, and stamp duty, whilst at the same time publicly vowing to clamp down on tax avoidance and hike taxes on property and council tax.

Mate, she has actively tried to dodge a 40k tax bill and fiddled her primary residences to dodge both stamp duty taxes and increased council taxes. This from a government that is going after every form of tax they bloody can under a leader who has called tax evasion fraud. Now she's trying to go, "oops, I haven't paid the right tax, but whilst trying to actively avoid paying taxes I made a mistake and shouldn't have done that". It ain't gonna wash. If she somehow survives she'll be damaged, Starmer will be damaged, and labour will be damaged.

Rayner surely in trouble here... she's essentially admitted to deliberately avoiding 40k tax and the 2nd home council tax hike. Starmer / Labour have (rightly) banged the tax avoidance consistently over the years in opposition and government... which makes it all the more disappointing to see one of their key figures mired in one of the worst examples of it that i can recall from a minister. It is an utterly appalling lack of integrity and hypocrisy from Rayner given the various tax hikes and general policies of the government to date. I see Clive Lewis has been trying to defend/excuse her over lunch today, acting like this was a minor misdemeanour and an error on her part... i'm sorry, but i think its just straight up inexcusable - reeks of one rule for the elites (tax is optional unless caught out) and one rule for the rest of us, and its mental how detached some of them seem to be from the rest of the country where people are really starting to struggle now from general costs hikes over the years and economic stagnation. Rayner/Starmer/Lewis can't just get a pass because they aren't Tories. Some choice quotes on it... Starmer as PM in the 2024 Labour party conference - "we will go after tax avoiders" and "introduce a new fraud, error, and debt bill" (to help recover fraud and tax evasion). Guardian Starmer interview in the guardian - "tax evasion involving dishonest fraud is not a sort of fraud, it is fraud. It is criminal and it should be treated as all other fraud is treated". Labours' 2024 policy document, "plan to close the tax gap", states "labour will relentlessly pursue the money that is owed", and "directly tackle tax avoidance and evasion" - guessing Rayner somehow avoided inputting or reviewing that document 😄 Starmer speech 2024 - One of the ways his labour government would reduce NHS waiting times is "by cracking down on tax avoidance and non-doms"... just not his deputy PM i guess.

As our dear deputy prime minister is ofc counting on to keep her job 😄

Close control, improvisation, carrying the ball, direct running.... Its like a whole bloody reunion of lost friends.

Demolition of the Skates incoming? 👀

I was going to post something something something "never seen this much excitement over a winger's youtube highlgihts since de ridder" something something. Then i watched that clip. The long range attempt is ridiculous, and his goals are also both quite tasty.

Reminds me of Koeman's first window - came in after the squad was ripped apart with loads of players leaving and having to make a load of new signings - most of which were quality for where we were at and created the foundations for the best saints side in the past 30-40years.