The RW media has had the knives out for Angela Rayner since way before the election for all the reasons you mention - she's from a working class background who knows what it is to struggle and she's never been afraid to speak her mind. And the old boy network that controls the media was only ever going to see her as a mouthy bit of totty who needed to be put in her place. I'm sad to see her go, but there's no denying she's put many of her colleagues and former colleagues (most of them men) to shame today.
And Nadhim Zahawi had to be chased for years before he paid £5,000,000 in owed taxes and fines to HMRC. That comparison is typical of the U.K. standards. He was Party Chairman and refused to go so Sunak fired him. The U.K. press will never be fair because of who owns them.
Agree on all of this. But I can't believe we've seen the last of Angela Rayner, a brave, honourable and remarkable person. I feel that at some point if the probably not very distant future we'll see her back in government. Some element of hope, there.
Angela's departure is indeed a blow and undeserved. She accepted the "advice" at face value as she no longer had a stake in her constituency home having made sure her son had a home forever. That came first and foremost for her and demonstrates what a caring person she is.
A far cry from the money grabbing, tax avoiding individuals of the right wing parties.
I wish her all the very best for the future- her talent must not be wasted and I look forward to hearing from her in the near future.
I completely agree. I too have always rated Angela Rayner and we need many more like her. Just been laughed at and savaged for daring to say that on FB, even though I said she is taking the consequences of her wrongdoing, unlike those who have done and are doing so much more damaging things. The right wing media/press etc have done their best to whip up the hatred. I wish Angela Rayner the best in her future.
So endlessly sad and sorry that a much loved and respected warrior of a political figure as Angela Rayner has resigned. Sad as it surely is It eases the blow somewhat that I've heard it here first from The Bear. Thank you for your sensitive handling of it 👌.
You sum it up perfectly, Bear. She's someone I've always admired, got where she is despite the odds and knows, through experience, what she's talking about. The hypocrisy, particularly of the media regarding this, in the last few days, is disgraceful. Instead of admiring her for resigning, there'll be just much crowing and glee. I despair!
It is such a shame that Angela Rayner resigned. Thanks for the analysis and expressing the mixed emotions about her stepping down. The good ones make mistakes and leave, the bad ones commit fraude or worse and stay…
I am sure that she didn’t do this to knowingly evade tax. I doubt any of us can feel as bad about it as she does herself. I was also unimpressed by Kemi Badenoch coming out to try to take the moral high ground on this after such a short time since the tories were guilty of far worse.
As you say, Bear, it’s the double standards that anger me the most. Billions funnelled to companies unqualified to provide PPE? Oh, no worries, we’ll gloss over that. Johnson’s lies and Farage’s hypocrisy? Not a problem, we’ll magnify their voices. A working class woman fails - either on purpose or inadvertently - to pay £40,000 in tax? Happy days! We’ll hound her and her family to death. Classism and misogyny at its finest. I, like you, don’t agree with what she did but she acted with grace and dignity which has been so sadly lacking in politics in recent years.
I am also a fan of Angela, and wish her well for her future.
Angela's departure is indeed a blow and undeserved. She accepted the "advice" at face value as she no longer had a stake in her constituency home having made sure her son had a home forever. That came first and foremost for her and demonstrates what a caring person she is.
A far cry from the money grabbing, tax avoiding individuals of the right wing parties.
I wish her all the very best for the future- her talent must not be wasted and I look forward to hearing from her in the near future.
She was wrong, has resigned and she should be afforded the moral high ground. Unfortunately, our very biased media will continue to crow. The hypocrisy is off the scale compared to the (minimal) coverage given to Hunt and Zahawi’s tax affairs.
I’m so sad and angry about this.
Your piece sums it up completely Bear.
She didn’t deserve the feeding frenzy. At least she showed some dignity in the face of massive misogyny and hypocrisy
The RW media has had the knives out for Angela Rayner since way before the election for all the reasons you mention - she's from a working class background who knows what it is to struggle and she's never been afraid to speak her mind. And the old boy network that controls the media was only ever going to see her as a mouthy bit of totty who needed to be put in her place. I'm sad to see her go, but there's no denying she's put many of her colleagues and former colleagues (most of them men) to shame today.
Perfect if sadly correct post. If only Starmer would take it as a sign that they need to take the gloves off both policy wise and personality wise
And Nadhim Zahawi had to be chased for years before he paid £5,000,000 in owed taxes and fines to HMRC. That comparison is typical of the U.K. standards. He was Party Chairman and refused to go so Sunak fired him. The U.K. press will never be fair because of who owns them.
Absolutely this
Agree on all of this. But I can't believe we've seen the last of Angela Rayner, a brave, honourable and remarkable person. I feel that at some point if the probably not very distant future we'll see her back in government. Some element of hope, there.
Angela's departure is indeed a blow and undeserved. She accepted the "advice" at face value as she no longer had a stake in her constituency home having made sure her son had a home forever. That came first and foremost for her and demonstrates what a caring person she is.
A far cry from the money grabbing, tax avoiding individuals of the right wing parties.
I wish her all the very best for the future- her talent must not be wasted and I look forward to hearing from her in the near future.
I completely agree. I too have always rated Angela Rayner and we need many more like her. Just been laughed at and savaged for daring to say that on FB, even though I said she is taking the consequences of her wrongdoing, unlike those who have done and are doing so much more damaging things. The right wing media/press etc have done their best to whip up the hatred. I wish Angela Rayner the best in her future.
So endlessly sad and sorry that a much loved and respected warrior of a political figure as Angela Rayner has resigned. Sad as it surely is It eases the blow somewhat that I've heard it here first from The Bear. Thank you for your sensitive handling of it 👌.
You sum it up perfectly, Bear. She's someone I've always admired, got where she is despite the odds and knows, through experience, what she's talking about. The hypocrisy, particularly of the media regarding this, in the last few days, is disgraceful. Instead of admiring her for resigning, there'll be just much crowing and glee. I despair!
It is such a shame that Angela Rayner resigned. Thanks for the analysis and expressing the mixed emotions about her stepping down. The good ones make mistakes and leave, the bad ones commit fraude or worse and stay…
I am sure that she didn’t do this to knowingly evade tax. I doubt any of us can feel as bad about it as she does herself. I was also unimpressed by Kemi Badenoch coming out to try to take the moral high ground on this after such a short time since the tories were guilty of far worse.
As you say, Bear, it’s the double standards that anger me the most. Billions funnelled to companies unqualified to provide PPE? Oh, no worries, we’ll gloss over that. Johnson’s lies and Farage’s hypocrisy? Not a problem, we’ll magnify their voices. A working class woman fails - either on purpose or inadvertently - to pay £40,000 in tax? Happy days! We’ll hound her and her family to death. Classism and misogyny at its finest. I, like you, don’t agree with what she did but she acted with grace and dignity which has been so sadly lacking in politics in recent years.
I am also a fan of Angela, and wish her well for her future.
Well said Bear. I feel incredibly sad about Angela’s resignation but she has acted honourably.
Angela's departure is indeed a blow and undeserved. She accepted the "advice" at face value as she no longer had a stake in her constituency home having made sure her son had a home forever. That came first and foremost for her and demonstrates what a caring person she is.
A far cry from the money grabbing, tax avoiding individuals of the right wing parties.
I wish her all the very best for the future- her talent must not be wasted and I look forward to hearing from her in the near future.
Exactly that.
She was wrong, has resigned and she should be afforded the moral high ground. Unfortunately, our very biased media will continue to crow. The hypocrisy is off the scale compared to the (minimal) coverage given to Hunt and Zahawi’s tax affairs.