zlacker

The labour government can not be challenged in any serious way until the next election in 4 years. Petitions don't really do anything, they will just say "no" to what the people ask for and move on with their agenda.

It is disheartening to see this country follow the same path the US took, it seems as our politics become more polarised, the team sports aspect means we start seeing parties push through agendas while putting their fingers in their ears. It's so easy for a politician to point score by shooting down dissent as "the other side thinks this is bad, so it means it's good".

The stated goal of Digital ID is to reduce illegal migrants from working, getting housing and using services. The obvious issue here is that they don't use traditional means to do this today, and it won't change with the introduction of this. They already hide from the state.

If we had decent opposition they'd try to kill this by mandating it HAD to be used for voting, which Labour will absolutely not want.

I would say 95% of my friend group were not born in this country, and the changes this government are making are pushing them to want to leave, and they are here legally, they have high paying jobs and skills and they feel unwanted.

For the first time in my life it seems like it makes sense to join them.

>>AJRF+(OP)
The most cynical part is that Labour spent years accusing the Tories of wanting to do this, then introduced it themselves, dressed up as a way to cut migration. And now, if you oppose the ID, they smear you as being pro–illegal immigration.

This is some very impressive politicking and exactly why many people don't trust the mainstream political parties.

>>AJRF+(OP)
Regarding tackling illegal immigration the issue is that there are already ample and sufficients checks mandated by law so this would not change anything. Indeed the main issue is that there are dodgy employers and landlords who simply flunk the law and would oviously continue to do so and ignore Digital IDs all the same.

Digital IDs would also be de facto mandatory for the majority of adult residents based on what they would be required for despite the government very clumsily saying otherwise.

The government is simply being dishonest here so that should arouse suspicion...

>>AJRF+(OP)
The really rough part is that while the Democratic Party in the US is a weak slightly-left-of-center party, the Labour Party in the UK is basically a right-of-center party with decreasing amounts of daylight between them and the Tories.

In particular, there is no major political party in the UK that supports trans rights, which is devastating to that community there.

(On the plus side, so far as I can tell, with the Reform party to absorb the true fascists, there are fewer of them in the two major parties in the UK. ...With the downside being that Reform is doing distressingly well these days.)

>>danari+A3
It's becoming increasingly confusing to me who any of the parties actually represent.

The more left leaning people I know are foaming at the mouth over how Labour have operated since being elected, all moderates (outside London) I know tend to lean Conservative (though that party seems to be AWOL since the election) and the only party I hear that is gaining any popularity is Reform, and they are doing so at an alarming pace.

4 years is a long time, but it seems inevitable its a two horse race between Reform (given polls I have to presume not everyone who votes for them is a racist twit) and Labour, and Labour seem hell bent on alienating any one who isn't centre-right, and they have to contend with Reform for those votes. Maybe it's politicking to a degree I don't understand, but it seems like a very odd strategy.

For those outside the UK look at this chart to see how fast Reform are rising:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_next_U...

>>poszle+l
The immigration angle is a total fraud. If they wanted to do any of the things being implied they could have done so ages ago, they don't care. it's true that the ease of accessing the grey economy is a pull to the country but you can just... not let them in.

edit: an interesting example of this that I find quite fascinating is that the amount of automation in things like car washing is declining because the automatic ones are being undercut by quasi unregulated alternatives that don't clean up the chemicals properly and so on

>>danari+A3
There are (almost) no fascists in reform. You think the fascists will join a party whose second in command is "Muhammad Ziauddin Yusuf"? They're all in Homeland or other serious nationalist parties if at all.

Reform are basically a joke amongst the "real" right (by which I don't mean neo-nazis but anyone with any actual beliefs)

>>danari+A3
The Liberal Democrats seem (from a quick read of just this article) to have thrown out a proposal to water down an existing trans rights policy.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy0vvle9w7zo

>>mytail+J
> Indeed the main issue is that there are dodgy employers and landlords who simply flunk the law

I'm surprised that this is your framing, I don't think I would hesitate to offer a willing tenant or otherwise good employee a job because of their legal status. Mostly just on principle, it's not my job to be an arm of the state and I resent being deputized. They're physically here in my town, better they have somewhere to live and a means of supporting themselves rather than being homeless. If the state wants to find and deport them they can do it themselves on their own time.

>>AJRF+(OP)
I mean, that's kind of how the political system works in both the UK and US, and is not exactly a new thing. Often the "real" opposition are the backbenchers of your own party, rather than the opposition party.

>>Spivak+1f
You have rushed into commenting without carefully reading what I wrote or knowing the context.

In the UK, by law employers must check that the people they hire have a legal "right to work", i.e. are citizens or foreigners with the relevant visa. In England, landlords must check that prospective tenants have a legal "right to rent", i.e. are lawful residents. Penalties are hefty fines and up to jail.

Hence "flunking the law".

>>danari+A3
> In particular, there is no major political party in the UK that supports trans rights, which is devastating to that community there.

I believe this is incorrect. No party has said they have any intention of removing "gender reassignment" as a protected characteristic from the Equality Act. This law provides protection and offers legal recourse from being discriminated against by employers, service providers, and so on. Which, to cover those individuals with this characteristic, is the most reasonable consensus interpretation of "trans rights".

>>AJRF+O5
> and Labour seem hell bent on alienating any one who isn't centre-right

Raising the deficit massively more than the predicted massive deficit raise is definitely not a centre-right-pleasing move. It's just to buy all the NHS worker votes.

>>poszle+l
The second most cynical part is that the Tories spent years trying to do this and now claim labour authoritarian dictators for doing it.