“Written Answers – Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Seahorses: Smuggling (8 Dec 2017)
https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2017-11-30.116795.h&s=speaker%3A11265#g116795.q0
Hugo Swire:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many prosecutions have taken place for the illegal sale of seahorses in the last five years.”
HONESTLY OWL HAS NOT MADE THIS UP!
East Devon Watch 
So it’s the “illegal appropriation and sale of seahorses is it …. or whatever it might be!
FFS , Owl, we live in a part of this great country where wastes of space like Swire are actually supported into Parliament.
What is wrong with the voters of East Devon?
He regularly comments about issues which intelligent constituents should consider totally irrelevant .
He supports, and is paid by , middle Eastern arms dealers (and/or their wives)
He doesn’t have a constituency home.
He is close chums with the man who gave him an undeserved knighthood, and stupidly screwed his own political life by giving the “ignorant masses” a choice of European inclusion or not…. the list goes on
What on Earth is there to like about this blob of conservativeness?
Vote the bast*ard out
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I met with someone today who thinks as I do that the country is going to rack and ruin under the Tories – but he is STILL a Tory voter.
Why?
In essence, because he doesn’t see a credible alternative.
In other words, Corbyn still has a lot of convincing to do to be seen as credible, not helped of course by media owned by moguls who financially benefit from Conservative policies.
Just in case someone influential in the Labour Party is reading this, here are my views about what they need to be more credible.
1. Take stronger stances on principle. Stick stakes in the ground on the things that people in the UK care about – NHS, Brexit, Education, Transport, Economy, Democracy (inc. PR), Transparency, Accountability, Fairness, Corruption – and stick with them because you believe in them passionately.
IMO, political credibility comes from have values and principles and sticking with them.
2. Get to understand what is really happening under the Tories – which in many cases is NOT what the Tories are publicly saying.
Academy Schools = Privatisation.
Fairer funding = Unfairer funding
NHS Sustainability = Privatisation.
Devolution = Privatisation and loss of democracy
CCGs = several £10bns PER YEAR wasted on administration.
Privatisation = loss of accountability and huge salaries paid for by us.
Removal of Social Care Grants to local councils = Government created Tax Rise for those in certain areas.
The “For the Many not the Few” is a great strapline. Go with it – and show again and again that the Tories are “For the Few not the Many”. Goodness knows there are enough examples.
Keep preaching about how Tories are the Nasty Party. Goodness knows there are enough examples – I see at least 1 new example every single day in the news.
Start collecting and publicising examples of what Tory policies are actually doing – the people dying, the people really suffering, the injustices, the inequalities. Shove 10 examples down the PMs throat at each and every PMQs. Goodness knows there are enough examples.
Start collecting and publicising examples of how democracy is being destroyed by lack of accountability, lack of transparency, lack of honesty, secret agendas. Goodness knows there are enough examples.
3. Get some cohesion and unity on these policies. Start improving national democracy by improving internal Labour Party democracy. One member, one vote. Boil down “For the Many not the Few” to a few fundamental basics that define what being a Labour politician actually means, and insist on Labour politicians (esp. MPs) signing or resigning. Set an example of how principles mean something, show leadership. A few by-elections might be a good thing if it means unity.
(It doesn’t matter whether you agree or disagree with Corbyn’s anti-nuclear beliefs. But you should at least recognise that he has the integrity to stick with them even when he knows they are unpopular because they ARE his beliefs – and recognise that he has the integrity to lead a party which has opposite policies because the Party as a whole voted for them and because he understands that is what democracy means.)
4. Start a campaign to bring back compassion – get people to start to care about their neighbours, to care about what is happening not only to them but also to others, to give rather than take. A lot of people would do more if they felt they could make a difference – encourage grass roots local politics.
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