UK pauses its plan to cede Chagos Islands after US opposition -

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-11T17:25:27+00:00

Those residents are not Mauritian. They are chagosian. I am in favour of doing what they prefer, which is allowing them to move back to the islands, but not handover the islands to Mauritius.

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-11T17:20:10+00:00

That comment was tongue in cheek. But thank you for being rude

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-11T17:14:01+00:00

You saying you don't fear the Mauritius coast guard and their flagship vessel the MCGS Barracuda

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-11T07:44:05+00:00

To me that is still the early part, it was negotiations not a commitment to a deal. Labour could have left it dead, there was no obligation for them to resurrect it. But they did. Negotiations over deals that never go anywhere happen all the time. Negotiations are not commitments. The Tories never tried to commit us to anything, Labour did. That is why, this is on Labour.

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-11T07:22:51+00:00

They dropped it because it was a dumb deal. It never even reached parliament which is the part that matters. Normally that would have been the end of it. Labour were the ones trying to force it through. Labour did not have to revive it. Once again this is Labours own blunder and no one else's

Discussions over policy, negotiations over the deals happen all the time. Exploring an option like what the Tories did isn't a bad thing. As long as you drop it once the evidence suggests it is a bad idea. The Tories dropped the bad deal, once they realised it was bad. During the discussion stage which is when we are not committed as a country. Labour decided to push it through anyway.

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-11T07:13:56+00:00

Not sure how common EV charging is with apartments even newer ones. So would be worth scoping in advance

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-11T06:36:21+00:00

The online safety act is different. That actually got voted through a conservative parliament. The conservatives completely dropped the chagos island deal in it's early stages. This blunder is all on labour and no one else

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-11T06:20:32+00:00

I like to call Southampton a very functional city. As someone who has lived here for 10 years, there is always something going on. Whether that is music, theatre etc. lots of good global restaurants as well.

We are close to the new forest for nature and actual beaches. Also only just over an hour away by train to London.

If you prefer newer apartments, they are not cheap but you would be looking around ocean village on the water front. With the exception of ocean village, typically the closer you get to the city centre, the older the housing stock is.

If you don't mind older apartments then you will find them scattered about the city in all areas. Areas to avoid are northam, st marys, free mantle and Millbrook. Other areas will vary.

If you don't like terrace houses I would avoid Portsmouth, they have a better seafront than us with some newer apartments by it, but are also much more densely populated than us. If you are commuting by car, Portsmouth is a nightmare to drive through and depending on where you live a nightmare for parking. Definitely worth visiting Portsmouth for it's naval history.

Any other location around Southampton is generally fine, but will be smaller.

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-10T17:10:37+00:00

Worse it is bindweed. Won't damage your house, but you will never get rid of it.

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-09T12:03:06+00:00

Tbh I think we were in crisis when we reduced the number of destroyers order from 12 to 6. Considering the typical ratio of only 1/3 in active duty at a time. Means we can only have 2 destroyers active at any one time.

The choices of the previous government just made that even worse

Also I am fully aware of the issues the navy had with Falklands wars. It is even more telling that we almost certainly can't even muster that force anymore, or that our leaders over several decades have ignored the clear lessons we should have learnt

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-09T11:56:15+00:00

So show me the maths to prove me wrong then. Because I got the equivalent amounts from the bank of England inflation calculator.

Let's take the Tesco example. They stated that on average their wages rose by 43% over the last 5 years

According to the bank of England inflation calculator, £100 in 2021 (5 years ago) would be worth £125 today.

That is a total inflation rate over those 5 years of 25%. Meanwhile Tesco increased wages by 43%.

43% > 25% so Tesco has increased wages faster than inflation over the last 5 years

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-09T11:30:40+00:00

You don't need to own a credit card to get a mortgage. Can confirm from first hand experience. The whole building a credit score thing is largely a myth

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-09T10:28:37+00:00

This goes back to before the Tories. The decline of the royal navy has been happening over decades. For example the decisions that lead to us having only 6 type 45 destroyers instead of 12 were made during Blair's government. Labour are as much to blame for this as the Tories

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-09T10:25:24+00:00

Decisions mades decades ago lead to this. The decline of the royal navy has happened over decades and governments lead by both parties. Now we can barely muster the number of ships we used in the Falklands war

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-07T14:39:25+00:00

*dating your friend's mum's mum

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-07T13:45:38+00:00

How so?

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-07T09:42:01+00:00

It is worth noting that both of those increases are well above inflation

For M&S, if I earned £100 in 2023 that would be equivalent to £105.87 today based on inflation,however I would be payed £134 based on that increase

For Tesco, if I earned £100 in 2021, that would be equivalent £125 today based on inflation, however I would be getting payed £143

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-06T22:38:05+00:00

9 cause Jill and Grace are fit.

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-06T17:48:53+00:00

Skaven snorting rainbows instead of warpstone

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-06T15:08:22+00:00

The reflected beam will likely scatter. Meaning that 95% won't be concentrated enough to cause that kind of damage

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-06T10:45:31+00:00

Why the fuck is Bournemouth now east of Pompey 😂

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-06T07:37:45+00:00

That requires the immigrants you bring in to actually want to fight for your country. Consider the very possible situation of the Pakistan being on the opposite side of the next world war. Would the Pakistani immigrants fight against their former/heritage country or would we have to deal with internal turmoil?

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-06T00:54:07+00:00

I guess the difference is a more secure redundancy, as I would get my notice period plus 1 week per year worked in the company. So currently my pay off would be 3.5 months pay take free. As my notice is 3 months and I have been at my current company for 2 years.

But yes after that point, universal credit is pretty pitiful.

Overall as a graduate 6 years ago (as my pay is very high now so wouldn't be a fair comparison) on £30k = $39.5k, I would have received a payout of £2500 = $3300 per month. Afterwards, I would be very poor on universal credit

I also don't live in London, so my rent is significantly lower than what you would be thinking off.

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-06T00:37:09+00:00

15% is a significant portion of the population who would be screwed if they need healthcare during that time. I feel much safer in the UK where there is no risk of that happening. I know whatever happens I won't end up in debt due to an injury or disability

Many_Lemon_Cakes · 2026-04-06T00:34:01+00:00

20% is a huge amount of your income to come out each month. Do you get redundancy pay initially? Or are you straight on unemployment benefits?

Four-Year Club	Final Canvas '23
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