Mailwatch(ed) Forum

I haven’t seen this much bottle since united dairies still did morning milk rounds.

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Wed May 13, 2026 9:27 pm You know I'm not convinced this woman was a great loss as an MP. Streeting did grow up in a single parent family in Stepney.

She knows full well that Redbridge Council had big cuts from central government and couldn't raise rates.

As a son of Redbridge, there are working class bits, and plenty of extremely gentrified bits.
You wouldn't expect an outer London borough with 320,000 people to be any different.
Fucks-sake Ian Duncan Smith is one of the MPs in Winston Churchill's old Constituency.

I find Wikipedia's "Famous people from ..." an interesting insight into an area's social mix.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_p ... _Redbridge

Warning: list includes "Friend of the forum" Richard Littlejohn.

Abernathy wrote: ↑Thu May 14, 2026 1:07 pm Wes has now resigned. Didn't mention a leadership challenge apparently, but that's what's next.

Oh shit: #1 son is/was chief economist on one of his pet health initiatives.

I wonder what that means for that job.

I can't get over that Faiza Shaheen tweet. What's a "caricature" about growing up in a single parent family in Stepney, in the 80s-90s. Having spent some time in the area from 2001 onwards, it looked like a pretty working class area to me. By all means say that you don't like his politics, but that's not a caricature.

I have in the past defended Wes Streeting and, on balance, I think he's done a good job at Health, but he's lost me now. I think his behaviour this week is both despicable and inept.
Moreover, I've been forced, for the first time, to imagine Streeting in the situations Starmer has recently been in - Oval Office pressers, EU/NATO summits and negotiations and he's not a comfortable fit. Ukraine, Iran, Greenland, Russian ships sniffing around cables in UK waters - I'm far happier with those issues on Starmer's desk than I would be if they were on Streetings.
Finally his 500 seat majority indicates his constituents aren't exactly brimming with enthusiasm for him.

Tubby Isaacs wrote: ↑Thu May 14, 2026 3:57 pm I can't get over that Faiza Shaheen tweet. What's a "caricature" about growing up in a single parent family in Stepney, in the 80s-90s. Having spent some time in the area from 2001 onwards, it looked like a pretty working class area to me. By all means say that you don't like his politics, but that's not a caricature.

I think there's a touch of The Four Yorkshiremen about Faiza Shaheen, HER tough backstory is the only one that counts.