The sober reality of Brexit once again showing it’s head as Thomas Cook look like going under, with Brexit being a major factor in it. 9,000 jobs going, 150,000 abroad and set to have a major impact on leisure industry.

Perhaps a little karma for some of those abroad who voted to leave, they can now see what their vote is doing.

Not really sure Brexit can be blamed for this one - the company has £1.7bn of debt. When you’re geared up to the eyeballs like this then any little thing going against you can send you over, and Thomas Cook has Brexit uncertainty, higher fuel and hotel bills and the super Euro heatwave of last year which put Brits off going to the destinations that they make their money from.

Didn't the Lib Dem surge just happen because people faced the reality of voting for a party with an ambiguous Brexit position, and not because Vince Cable was better than Jo Swinson.   Since she has taken over their support has remained at the level it was when she took over.

I don't realloy see why a 2nd referendum is so great, have people not learned anything from having one before?  And I don't see how a 1-1 score really helps.  I also don't think that there isn't much wrong in having a manifesto with a simple Brexit policy.   

Agree its legit fair etc to take this position into a GE and seek a mandate for it. Be interesting to see if it turns out to be a vote winner or loser

It’s fine to take the position, but it’s neither liberal, nor democratic.

But if the Lib Dem’s get voted into power on the basis of the position then it becomes democratic.

Pretty interesting article here which tries to explain why the polls are all over the place at the moment.

http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/blog/archives/10093

Seems a lot of it comes down to people either not remembering, or deliberately misstating, who they voted for at the last election. The polling companies try to correct for this in different ways, hence big difference in the numbers they report.

Given the world and his dog seem to know that the Dolphins are gonna shit the bed this season to build for the future what do Dolphins season ticket holders make of this? Will they still sell out their games?

Just read five pages on the tram back from the pub - I think this is the highlight.

Aarongry

Tikay: 1/12

Both sides in NI were killing each other for decades. Why did they stop because of the GFA?

Because the GFA allowed both sides to live their lives as if they'd won. Loyalists had it written down in law that the status of NI would never change unless it was the express wish of the majority of the people. The south changed their constitution to remove their claim on the north. On the other side Republicans could live their everyday lives as if they were living in a united Ireland. Cross the border at will, live on one side and work on the other - they could pretend the border wasn't there.

Whereas no deal Brexit brings the border back and removes one side from the carefully negotiated 'everyone wins' solution.

Former Northern Ireland Secretary tells Crick that troubles in Northern Ireland will return with No Deal Brexit

https://www.lbc.co.uk/radio/presenters/michael-crick-ireland-troubles-no-deal-brexit/

I really don't get this shit.

We have several Irish in our office from both sides of the border. Neither see any reason for this. What actually changes to prompt people to want to fight again, after peace for so long.....bar of course the media and remainers actually courting it........

They already are fighting again - there was violence at Loyalist bonfires last month and two people stabbed at a Republican one on Thursday night.

There are still enough prickly scumbags on both sides to kick it all off again

Have NZ been going full pelt at the Championship or have they been using it as prep for the WC - how much swapping players around and trying things out have they been doing?

Peadophiles - Daily Mail reported 71% support Brexit.

Some people don't realise that you don't have to tell the guy from Gallup everything about yourself when they phone up to do the poll.

Are you trying to call me a peadophile? I’ve screenshotted this, btw.,

Expect it to be take down before the morning.

Oh maaaaaaaate.

You just seem to have very little in the way of comprehension skills.

Peadophiles - Daily Mail reported 71% support Brexit.

Some people don't realise that you don't have to tell the guy from Gallup everything about yourself when they phone up to do the poll.

It won’t happen because Sinn Fein want a no-deal Brexit as the ensuing chaos will bring a united Ireland closer.

Yes ok

Why would you say therefore that the DUP are supporting a government who in current rhetoric (even if it is brinkmanship) are leading us down a no deal path that threatens the Union in Ireland and maybe in time the rest of the UK too?

The DUP propped up the Tories because to do otherwise risked Corbyn as PM, a man who has called for a united Ireland in the past. At least a Tory PM would resist calls for a border poll for longer than Corbyn would.

Also, it was a great victory for them in the short-term - a billion quid for Northern Ireland and a chance to punch above their weight at a national level. Maybe they just gave no thought to a no-deal Brexit - they have a long history of winning hard negotiations with intransigence and just assumed that at some point the EU would cave in.

It won’t happen because Sinn Fein want a no-deal Brexit as the ensuing chaos will bring a united Ireland closer.

In non-Brexit news here's Anna Soubry crying because Chuka Umunna doesn't phone her since he joined the Lib Dems

https://twitter.com/michaeljswalker/status/1151275615787585537

My enquiry on here last weekend as to whether the bbc (news/website/radio/tv) instinctively was pro-remain,pro-leave (i see it argued both ways) or balanced didn't receive a single response :-(

thought it was a genuinely interesting question too!

Whilst I don't think there's overt bias in their coverage, they'd be susceptible to the soft bias of the fact many of their employees are of a similar background (middle class, university types) and so would have a similar outlook on life - the main reason the Brexit result would have been such a shock to them.

Kukushin is right in that, in trying to be as impartial as they can, the BBC will instinctively avoid taking positions on issues at all, which inevitably leads to a pro-continuity/status quo position.