Might we not leave it the voting public (the voters, NOT the opinion polls) to decide if Labour is a busted flush? I though you were pro-democracy. Or is waiting for the vote to pass judgment inconvenient? Whatever you think of Corbyn personally or politically, he is not yet a busted flush.

Sydenham by birth. Selhurst by the Grace of God.

Communist

What a pathetic speech that was.

The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.

I thought it was a very good speech and he did rather well. 95% of it was directed at the hall rather than country but there were a number of things that I thought were interesting.

One area that I think will strike a chord is the appeal to self employed people. This is something Labour have never been good at. In other countries the social democratic parties have managed to pursuad people that they are the friends of small business.

The people who will have winced the most during the speech will be the FCO. His swipe at Saudi Arabia is completely justified but sometimes the national interest means you have to hold your nose and deal with such people.

All the inclusive stuff and the appeal to young people will have gone down well more widely as will the environmentalism stuff.

I suspect we will hear some righteous indignation from the Tories about the accusations of gerrymandering.

Yes, I am an agent of Satan but my duties are largely ceremonial

Whilst the attack/mocking of the press was fair enough and fairly amusing I'm not sure that's going to do him any favours in the papers in the morning.

I've seen a few people moaning about a lack of detail in policies. FFS. He has been leader for 2 weeks. There are over 4 years till the election.

Yet many on this board have already said they found the speech inspiring and, quite possibly - even likely, many members of the public will have the same opinion (time, not you, will tell.) The fact is not everyone sees things the way you do.

With regard to the media, I am less sure than you that his attack will prove counter-productive. The public has tired of the dictats of the self-elected commentariat so let's see if the media continue to hold the sway and influence they have in the recent past. The timing of his attack on a bloated, convicted and dishonest media may prove impeccable.

This was a party convention and there was no intent to announce policies. You may disagree with using that platform for broader purposes but it is hardly sensible for criticising the absence of something that was never intended to be present.

Again, let's wait and see. I think you would agree that Thatcher caused a sea change in the direction of British politics. A few years before her election, her manifesto would have provoked the same sort of ridicule that you give Corbyn's. Has it ever occurred to you that times change and appetites evolve and Corbyn may just be representing something people do warm to in the same way Thatcher did years ago? Hers was an earthquake to the right. Perhaps Corbyn will give us a corrective earthquake to the left. Of course, that might not be the case but to dismiss the possibility of a shift of the kind you have already witnessed in your lifetime out of hand, simply because you personally dislike its direction and as if you know the result of the next election years in advance, is not a very substantive criticism of someone whose beliefs you dislike.

If we were talking about the Labour Party of 1989 I might agree with you. But we're not. It may be that Labour voters today have finally got a leader they can rally around, but you refuse to see it. Some of us think his approach and beliefs are good for the country. And some of us are just independent-minded enough to consider possibilities beyond our own narrow prejudices.

Sydenham by birth. Selhurst by the Grace of God.

There hasn't been a bearded Prime Minister for well over a hundred years now so I'd say the odds of him reaching the top of the greasy pole are somewhat against him.

As you well know, that's not a valid argument.

Sydenham by birth. Selhurst by the Grace of God.

For that to be true you would have to be able to demonstrate that voters have had a choice and, since Thatcher, we have not had a candidate with facial hair.

Sydenham by birth. Selhurst by the Grace of God.