Lady Hermon's title was a courtesy title, because her husband ( a former cheif constable of Northern Ireland) was knighted. Knighthoods/ damehoods are not titles of nobility, nor are baronets, so they don't have to be renounced. A number of sitting MPs have such titles,
For example - Sir Keir Starmer!
In fact, since all hereditary peers are now excluded from the House of Lords, I think nobody can actually renounce a title for the purposeof enteringthe House of Commons, there's no mechanism to renounce life peerages
So I assume that hereditary peers can now stand for election to the House of Commons? Also, it seems wrong that life peerages cannot be renounced - why not? If you can renounce a hereditary title, why not a life one?
Lady Hermon's title was a courtesy title, because her husband ( a former cheif constable of Northern Ireland) was knighted. Knighthoods/ damehoods are not titles of nobility, nor are baronets, so they don't have to be renounced. A number of sitting MPs have such titles,
For example - Sir Keir Starmer!
In fact, since all hereditary peers are now excluded from the House of Lords, I think nobody can actually renounce a title for the purposeof enteringthe House of Commons, there's no mechanism to renounce life peerages
So I assume that hereditary peers can now stand for election to the House of Commons? Also, it seems wrong that life peerages cannot be renounced - why not? If you can renounce a hereditary title, why not a life one?
Because the hereditary title was gained involuntarily; a life peerage had to be accepted in the first place.
If Count Binface won it could be a big boon for the town of Clacton.
The world's media would descend on them, tourists would flock there, local businesses would be able to dine out on this for many years to come. It could be a powerful move.
Not so much for the country, sadly Farage would be back in some way - like a bad smell.
Be careful what you wish for - bear in mind that the Count is, in fact, an alien, and may well be planning World Domination.
From his website:
I’m an intergalactic space warrior and leader of the Recyclons from planet Sigma IX.
I like his motto Make Earth Great Again...
It's all a bit silly, I know, but Farage will always be remembered for being opposed by a Bin, just as Liz Truss is remembered for being less resilient than a Lettuce.
Re. whether or not he will wear his bin in Parliament: I saw a YouTube video of Binface being interviewed by Andrew Marr, including an exchange like this:
Marr: "I have the House of Commons rules in front of me and they are quite clear - you cannot sit in the House with a face covering."
Binface: "And the House of Commons rules are quite clear about what you can and can't do with donations."
Re. whether or not he will wear his bin in Parliament: I saw a YouTube video of Binface being interviewed by Andrew Marr, including an exchange like this:
Marr: "I have the House of Commons rules in front of me and they are quite clear - you cannot sit in the House with a face covering."
Binface: "And the House of Commons rules are quite clear about what you can and can't do with donations."
I hope he keeps saying things like that.
Farage took about 48% of the vote at the 2024 general election and combined with the Conservatives the political right won three quarters of the vote. If Farage gets less than that in the by-election then it cannot be regarded as the endorsement he desires.
Lady Hermon's title was a courtesy title, because her husband ( a former cheif constable of Northern Ireland) was knighted. Knighthoods/ damehoods are not titles of nobility, nor are baronets, so they don't have to be renounced. A number of sitting MPs have such titles,
For example - Sir Keir Starmer!
In fact, since all hereditary peers are now excluded from the House of Lords, I think nobody can actually renounce a title for the purposeof enteringthe House of Commons, there's no mechanism to renounce life peerages
So I assume that hereditary peers can now stand for election to the House of Commons? Also, it seems wrong that life peerages cannot be renounced - why not? If you can renounce a hereditary title, why not a life one?
I suspect it's an oversight rather than deliberate, because even if you knowingly accept a life peerage, it seems wrong in principle that you should be eternally barred from standing as an MP. Those disbared from Parliament for other reasons, such as criminal convictions can stand once the sentence is served, similarly those who accept a Crown appointment can stand once they've resigned office, hence the current by-election.
It seems likely, if not inevitable, that in the future a life peer will want to renounce their peerage, and the law will be ammended, as it was when hereditary peers decided they'd rather be MPs, or just leave Parliament entirely. Some of those former hereditaries went on to have important careers in the Commons; Tony Benn, former Viscount Stansgate, Quentin Hogg, former Viscount Hailsham and of course Alec Douglas-Home, former Earl Home ( but pronounced ' hume'). Douglas-Home outdid even Andy Burnham by becoming Prime Minister before becoming an MP - he was appointed while still a peer, renounced the peerage and then stood in a conviently engineered by-election, but was Prime Minister for brief period while not being a member of either House
Re. whether or not he will wear his bin in Parliament: I saw a YouTube video of Binface being interviewed by Andrew Marr, including an exchange like this:
Marr: "I have the House of Commons rules in front of me and they are quite clear - you cannot sit in the House with a face covering."
Binface: "And the House of Commons rules are quite clear about what you can and can't do with donations."
Snappy comeback, but it's not gonna make a difference as to how the Speaker rules on his right to sit in parliament with a bin over his head.
Re. whether or not he will wear his bin in Parliament: I saw a YouTube video of Binface being interviewed by Andrew Marr, including an exchange like this:
Marr: "I have the House of Commons rules in front of me and they are quite clear - you cannot sit in the House with a face covering."
Binface: "And the House of Commons rules are quite clear about what you can and can't do with donations."
Snappy comeback, but it's not gonna make a difference as to how the Speaker rules on his right to sit in parliament with a bin over his head.
The point of satirical candidates standing in elections is not to get elected but to point out the utter poverty of the ideas of the establishment candidates.
If he ever gets elected then he is going to have a whole lot of other problems other than what to wear - problems that he likely does not need to think about at all.
Re. whether or not he will wear his bin in Parliament: I saw a YouTube video of Binface being interviewed by Andrew Marr, including an exchange like this:
Marr: "I have the House of Commons rules in front of me and they are quite clear - you cannot sit in the House with a face covering."
Binface: "And the House of Commons rules are quite clear about what you can and can't do with donations."
Snappy comeback, but it's not gonna make a difference as to how the Speaker rules on his right to sit in parliament with a bin over his head.
The point of satirical candidates standing in elections is not to get elected but to point out the utter poverty of the ideas of the establishment candidates.
If he ever gets elected then he is going to have a whole lot of other problems other than what to wear - problems that he likely does not need to think about at all.
Farage’s father was a stockbroker, he attended Dulwich College a premier public school (in the United Kingdom sense) and after that he became a city trader, like his father.
He doesn’t have a title, but he’s very much establishment.
I note that Farage has been unusually quiet today, following the announcement that counter-terrorism police are now involved in the Ann Widdecombe investigation, having previously trumpeted his view that the murder was politically motivated.
No doubt he wishes to justify the £5 million he was given to ensure his personal security, but fears to say too much.
Farage's toadies OTOH have been shouting about how dangerous it is to be a Reform politician, and how nobody cares about them...
Farage did say something about it being unlikely to be a burglary the other day and The Times has reported that friends of Ann Widdecombe have asked that the murder not be 'politicised'.
His supporters are saying it justifies the donation for his security as the 'establishment' isn't making provision for that.
Tice is saying that it's as if the rest of us 'want them dead.'
Reform contra mundum.
I've heard of some social media posts suggesting that Reform arranged the murder themselves to deflect attention from the donation controversy - which seems pretty sick and paranoid to me.
The interweb breeds such things ...
But when you hear of crackpot posts about this being a 'false flag' attempt by Reform to deflect attention you can understand how they can get paranoid.
I suspect Farage is wisely keeping schtum now though. A police investigation is in progress. Speculation causes upset to families and friends and can impede the investigation itself.
On the 'establishment' thing ...
As I've attempted to suggest upthread, Farage and his followers are using the term 'establishment' in a way that is different to how most Shipmates understand it.
Which is: The Establishment capital E - which includes the monarchy, public schools, the City and so on and so forth.
Reform are using it to refer to what they see as a 'woke' establishment which includes the BBC and most mainstream media, the arts and humanities, academia and anything they suspect off having a liberal or left-leaning agenda.
Most Shipmates would fall into that 'establishment.' They support political parties other than Reform, tend to be university educated and liberal to left in politics.
Therefore, in Reform terms, they are part of the 'establishment.'
Clacton needs to seize tha day, start an annual 'binfest' and put themselves on the map. It could become the comedy place to go, like Glastonbury is for music
"There is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries."
Clacton needs to seize tha day, start an annual 'binfest' and put themselves on the map. It could become the comedy place to go, like Glastonbury is for music
"There is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries."
An excellent idea - if only the people of Clacton could summon up enough of a sense of humour!
A police investigation is in progress. Speculation causes upset to families and friends and can impede the investigation itself.
That being the case, why include examples of such speculation in your post?
I s'pose I was illustrating how harmful such speculation can be and how it can come from any direction on the political spectrum, but yes, I take your point and I could have made mine without giving examples.
I'm not a massive fan of "comedy" political candidates. People died for the right to vote, it's not a fucking comedy bit to be made into a viral clip.
As the root cause of the Clacton by-election was Nigel Farage’s attempt to delay investigations, he alone should be held responsible. If others want to stand then that reflects our democracy.
The facts are already known. Just tell us the results.
1. I will hold weekly constituency surgeries
2. I will answer all letters and emails within three days
3. For every day I spend overseas, I will spend ten in Clacton
4. Any outside earnings will be donated to Clacton charities
5. On a postcode lottery basis, I will help one family per week put their bins out
There are 30+ other candidates in this by-election. Which did not initially make much sense, the Monster Raving Loony Party has 3!
But on reflection it is a genius move. Farage thought he would be able to capture the media narrative, but instead election impartiality rules means that nobody can interview him for broadcast without also interviewing the others. Farage has been silenced by his own hubris.
Comments
For example - Sir Keir Starmer!
So I assume that hereditary peers can now stand for election to the House of Commons? Also, it seems wrong that life peerages cannot be renounced - why not? If you can renounce a hereditary title, why not a life one?
Because the hereditary title was gained involuntarily; a life peerage had to be accepted in the first place.
The world's media would descend on them, tourists would flock there, local businesses would be able to dine out on this for many years to come. It could be a powerful move.
Not so much for the country, sadly Farage would be back in some way - like a bad smell.
From his website:
I’m an intergalactic space warrior and leader of the Recyclons from planet Sigma IX.
I like his motto Make Earth Great Again...
It's all a bit silly, I know, but Farage will always be remembered for being opposed by a Bin, just as Liz Truss is remembered for being less resilient than a Lettuce.
https://share.google/hpdAnCHu3wW7FqQUZ
Marr: "I have the House of Commons rules in front of me and they are quite clear - you cannot sit in the House with a face covering."
Binface: "And the House of Commons rules are quite clear about what you can and can't do with donations."
I hope he keeps saying things like that.
Farage took about 48% of the vote at the 2024 general election and combined with the Conservatives the political right won three quarters of the vote. If Farage gets less than that in the by-election then it cannot be regarded as the endorsement he desires.
I suspect it's an oversight rather than deliberate, because even if you knowingly accept a life peerage, it seems wrong in principle that you should be eternally barred from standing as an MP. Those disbared from Parliament for other reasons, such as criminal convictions can stand once the sentence is served, similarly those who accept a Crown appointment can stand once they've resigned office, hence the current by-election.
It seems likely, if not inevitable, that in the future a life peer will want to renounce their peerage, and the law will be ammended, as it was when hereditary peers decided they'd rather be MPs, or just leave Parliament entirely. Some of those former hereditaries went on to have important careers in the Commons; Tony Benn, former Viscount Stansgate, Quentin Hogg, former Viscount Hailsham and of course Alec Douglas-Home, former Earl Home ( but pronounced ' hume'). Douglas-Home outdid even Andy Burnham by becoming Prime Minister before becoming an MP - he was appointed while still a peer, renounced the peerage and then stood in a conviently engineered by-election, but was Prime Minister for brief period while not being a member of either House
Snappy comeback, but it's not gonna make a difference as to how the Speaker rules on his right to sit in parliament with a bin over his head.
The point of satirical candidates standing in elections is not to get elected but to point out the utter poverty of the ideas of the establishment candidates.
If he ever gets elected then he is going to have a whole lot of other problems other than what to wear - problems that he likely does not need to think about at all.
Fair enough.
farage is arguing with a bin to get the job he already had. At great expense to the taxpayer.
It's just a lie. There's nothing to understand, Farage is the establishment in every sense that matters.
He doesn’t have a title, but he’s very much establishment.
No doubt he wishes to justify the £5 million he was given to ensure his personal security, but fears to say too much.
Farage's toadies OTOH have been shouting about how dangerous it is to be a Reform politician, and how nobody cares about them...
His supporters are saying it justifies the donation for his security as the 'establishment' isn't making provision for that.
Tice is saying that it's as if the rest of us 'want them dead.'
Reform contra mundum.
I've heard of some social media posts suggesting that Reform arranged the murder themselves to deflect attention from the donation controversy - which seems pretty sick and paranoid to me.
The interweb breeds such things ...
But when you hear of crackpot posts about this being a 'false flag' attempt by Reform to deflect attention you can understand how they can get paranoid.
I suspect Farage is wisely keeping schtum now though. A police investigation is in progress. Speculation causes upset to families and friends and can impede the investigation itself.
On the 'establishment' thing ...
As I've attempted to suggest upthread, Farage and his followers are using the term 'establishment' in a way that is different to how most Shipmates understand it.
Which is: The Establishment capital E - which includes the monarchy, public schools, the City and so on and so forth.
Reform are using it to refer to what they see as a 'woke' establishment which includes the BBC and most mainstream media, the arts and humanities, academia and anything they suspect off having a liberal or left-leaning agenda.
Most Shipmates would fall into that 'establishment.' They support political parties other than Reform, tend to be university educated and liberal to left in politics.
Therefore, in Reform terms, they are part of the 'establishment.'
Tice's partner is retweeting complaints that a Nigel Farage is being harassed .. by a Daily Mail journalist .. because he's posted 'too much' on x.
"There is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries."
A police investigation is in progress. Speculation causes upset to families and friends and can impede the investigation itself.
That being the case, why include examples of such speculation in your post?
An excellent idea - if only the people of Clacton could summon up enough of a sense of humour!
https://youtu.be/z5A0qpWUrfg?is=ubzDf2rsKjCI71Z6
I s'pose I was illustrating how harmful such speculation can be and how it can come from any direction on the political spectrum, but yes, I take your point and I could have made mine without giving examples.
I will do so no longer.
I note that in Starmer’s last PMQs Count Binface got a number of name checks and endorsements. So now he’s in Hansard !
Isn't that what the thread "Can Count Binface Save us from Farage?" is about?
(Hid tangent, DT)
(Hid tangent, DT)
1. I will hold weekly constituency surgeries
2. I will answer all letters and emails within three days
3. For every day I spend overseas, I will spend ten in Clacton
4. Any outside earnings will be donated to Clacton charities
5. On a postcode lottery basis, I will help one family per week put their bins out
I have a hope he'll win!
But on reflection it is a genius move. Farage thought he would be able to capture the media narrative, but instead election impartiality rules means that nobody can interview him for broadcast without also interviewing the others. Farage has been silenced by his own hubris.