The commentators                    13-10-14

...on British politics

Britain is now the America of the EU; the place people want to come; the magnet for the hordes at Calais. It is only reasonable for us to have some kind of further protections – involving points or even quotas, agreed with business – so that we can manage this pressure. It would be madness to close our borders to talent; but it is also madness to continue with a system that means we have no idea how many are coming or what burdens they may place on the state.
- Boris Johnson, Daily Telegraph
Ukip was 600 votes away from taking a working-class Labour seat last week. A discredited political elite that unleashed the beast of rightwing populism is not going to defeat it. For those of us who think politics should be about hope, about satisfying people’s needs and aspirations: well, it’s soul-searching time. 
- Owen Jones, The Guardian
Yasmin Alibhai Brown
There is an unspoken gagging order on those of us who are not bewitched by Ukip: never say its supporters are “racist”. We are expected instead to repeat some mantras about the failures of the political classes and to understand why so many have turned to Farage. Well I don’t care for gags or this unconvincing script. Ours is still an open society. We must not be censored or pressed into a chorus of approval for what is the British version of the US Tea Party.
- Yasmin Alibhai Brown, The Independent
One or two more Conservative MPs may defect to Ukip but that should not be the Tory whips’ biggest fear. Much more dangerous — and more likely — is that a small number of Tory MPs seek local arrangements with Nigel Farage or even become joint Tory/Ukip candidates.
- Tim Montgomerie, The Times

If in May's general election Ukip replicates its success in Heywood, Labour will never govern independently again. Over great swathes of the country last Thursday's message is "Vote Tory, get Labour". Vote Ukip and you can get Ukip.
- Neil Hamilton, Daily Express
Thursday 25 September Judges for the Editorial Intelligence comment awards announced their shortlists today, with ten nominations for the FT, nine for the Times, five for the Guardian, four for the Independent - and two for SubScribe. 
The Times and Sunday Times scored a clean sweep in nominations for the main award of commentariat of the year, which will be decided between David Aaronovitch, Camilla Cavendish, Daniel Finkelstein and last year's winner Caitlin Moran.
Guardian's Jay Rayner was shortlisted in the food writer category, but said that he did not wish to be considered as that award is sponsored by Tesco. 
The awards will be presented on November 25. See the full shortlists here
Once again we are being told that we are all going to have to work until we're much older. We also learn that fiftysomethings now have to wait longer for their inheritance windfall to help them into retirement. In other words, those even older pesky parents are refusing to die. There's no mention of the millions who will never receive an inheritance, however delayed, from parents who have spent a lifetime living hand-to-mouth. 
Nor, of course, are there any suggestions about where these "older people" are supposed to do their longer working, a key point when go-getting companies (especially national newspapers) make it a point of honour to shove desk-blockers out of the door as soon as is decently possible after their fiftieth birthdays.
- Press review
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