Current Affairs 2017 General Election

[tsubaki]

some more info here

An undercover investigation by the programme has found that the party used a market research firm to make thousands of cold calls to voters in marginal seats in the weeks before the election.

Call centre employees working on behalf of the party used a script that appeared to canvass for support rather than conduct market research. On the day of the election, call centre employees contacted voters to promote individual candidates, which may be a breach of electoral law, the investigation claimed.

At the start of the election campaign, the information commissioner, Elizabeth Denham, wrote to all the major political parties reminding them of the law around telephone calls and data protection. She said that calling voters to promote a political party was “direct marketing” and was regulated by law.


The government also announced during the campaign that it wanted to tighten up the laws on nuisance calls and a bill on the issue was included in the Queen’s speech.

The Channel 4 News investigation, which ran over several weeks, found that a team employed by the Conservatives rang voters from a call centre in Neath, south Wales.

Operating from a script, the staff carried out calls for “market research” and “polling”. Identifying likely Tory voters in marginal seats could be important for the get-out-the-vote operation on election day, and also enable a political party to better direct its canvassing operation.

On election day, undecided voters were told that “the election result in your marginal constituency is going to be very close between Theresa May’s Conservatives and Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party”.

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They were then asked: “So does knowing that you live in a marginal constituency that will determine who is prime minister for the Brexit negotiations, does that make you a lot more likely to vote for Theresa May’s Conservative candidate or a little more likely to vote for Theresa May’s Conservative candidate, or are you still unsure, or does it not make a difference?”

At an earlier stage of the campaign, the call centre staff said they were calling from a company called Axe Research, which does not appear to exist. Under the Data Protection Act, callers must disclose who they are and how the data will be used

 

[peteblue]

I dunno Andy. Presumably May has been trained to talk like an utter weirdo in interviews, but it's not just a Tory thing. Abbott had her nightmare interviews during the election, with Corbyn also fumbling on his figures. I just don't get it. I could understand if someone is a bit dull or uncharismatic, but knowing your brief inside out is your job, that should be the bread and butter, yet they seem hopeless at it.

It's hard to remember a time when we've had a worst set of politicians, and we're at such a crucial time in our history.

I've said it many times before, political pygmies the lot of them.......

 

[Walken]

some more info here

they got away with it last election, they will again, just have a look at the tories on here, there is no act no matter how vile they won't defend

 

[tsubaki]

they got away with it last election, they will again, just have a look at the tories on here, there is no act no matter how vile they won't defend

TBF the Tories on here are of a rather higher standard than the actual Tories.

For instance, I doubt (to use the nearest example) Peteblue would look to cheat electoral law by using a firm based in one of the most solid Labour seats in the entire world, which employed zero-hour labour, which was run by someone who was a failed Tory PPC - and then expect that it wouldn't come out.

 

[The binman chronicles]

Tonights question time is a bit lively. Not often DD asks someone to leave. Constant heckling in the crowd.

 

[tsubaki]

Tonights question time is a bit lively. Not often DD asks someone to leave. Constant heckling in the crowd.

Lunchtime O'Booze is in the panel, it seems

 

[Toast]

Andrew Neil snotted that intro to this week.
Super stuff.

 

[Tubey]

Gina Miller was very impressive on QT.

 

[hibbo'sclass]

Did you see the Theresa V Boris programme last Sunday, if not, it's on the iPlayer...

It also contained the answer to why Boris Johnson was made Foreign Secretary did it not?
Give him one of the big 3, but immediately undermine the office by taking away the Brexit and International Trade bits thereby humiliating him.

 

[AndyC]

It also contained the answer to why Boris Johnson was made Foreign Secretary did it not?
Give him one of the big 3, but immediately undermine the office by taking away the Brexit and International Trade bits thereby humiliating him.

Wasn't really necessary though, he's more than capable of humiliating himself.
It beggars belief, in my opinion, how anybody seriously imagines that Johnson could be a national leader.

 

[Gwladysstreetlad]

Wasn't really necessary though, he's more than capable of humiliating himself.
It beggars belief, in my opinion, how anybody seriously imagines that Johnson could be a national leader.

He's a lot more intelligent then you or others give him credit for pal, he just plays at being the fool so people underestimate him. When you look at the appalling standards that we have for leaders of major party's in this country right now, Johnson as national leader sounds less farfetched then you might think.

 

[Khalekan]

He's a lot more intelligent then you or others give him credit for pal, he just plays at being the fool so people underestimate him. When you look at the appalling standards that we have for leaders of major party's in this country right now, Johnson as national leader sounds less farfetched then you might think.

He should be an actor then because he keeps his intelligence well hidden.

Like you, I used to think he was a wise man acting as a buffoon.

Nowadays I think he is a buffoon acting as a buffoon.

 

[Gwladysstreetlad]

He should be an actor then because he keeps his intelligence well hidden.

Like you, I used to think he was a wise man acting as a buffoon.

Nowadays I think he is a buffoon acting as a buffoon.

I wouldn't call him wise at all mate. Sly and cunning enough to fool people is more close to what he is.

 

[Tubey]

I wouldn't call him wise at all mate. Sly and cunning enough to fool people is more close to what he is.

I really don't think that is the case. When you listen to him, he's actually awful. There's no hint of intelligence - just a stereotypical sheltered Eton mess.

He has a somewhat talented team behind him which cover his weaknesses and put forward his 'likeable' personality wherever possible, but he'd have no appeal beyond the south in a GE. The Tories would be mad to make him leader.

 

[JimmyJeffers]

I wouldn't call him wise at all mate. Sly and cunning enough to fool people is more close to what he is.

Why would a politician try and fool people into thinking he's an incompetent mess? Haha