If Lenny Henry had just arrived here then maybe he would be unjustified in his comments but he’s as British I am and has a right to state his opinion on the way his ethnicity is represented. What is newsworthy is the way some UKIP (ex-)candidates have chosen to pick on Lenny Henry’s comments in a particularly ignorant way.

Comparisons with Norway or Switzerland or Iceland are not particularly helpful. The UK economy is considerably larger than any of those and needs access to far larger markets. Unless of course UKIP’s plan is to make the UK economy the same size as Lichtenstein’s…

Anyone who has done business within the EU will know the clear advantages of the “level playing field” that membership brings. Why do UKIP want to put that at risk?

Nobody is ruled by Brussels; Full facts.org gives this:-

1: Acts put in place by UK Parliament with EU influence – accounts for 10-14%

2: Regulations influenced by or related to the EU – accounts for 9-14%

3. EU regulations and regulations influenced by or related to the EU – accounts for 53%

Hardly the 70% that Farage lied about and hardly being “ruled by Brussels”

Presumably the fact that the UK started its first steps towards metrication before we were even members of the EU is just trivia then. Have a continent and indeed worldwide (expect for the USA) set of weights and measures is good thing. If needs rules to make it happen then so be it.

Why should free born Englishmen and women many of whose families were represented on the battlefields of Europe during the last dog fight and fought to save us from tyranny, be subject to these wholly un-necessary acts of repression ?

I have read some fine sentences on this forum but I think that that might be the best yet. Superb piece of fictional prose. If I wore a cap I would doff it in respect. Total nonsense of course but a fine piece of prose anyway.

The fact remains that people are voting for Farage’s party because UKIP is perceived as a change from the other three. When is it going to dawn on voters that they are in fact the same as the other in lots of ways and worse in many others. What is the phrase? “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.”

The EU remains the UK’s best hope of competing in a world market. It isn’t perfect but the only way it will be changed is from the inside. Not from a petulant UK that doesn’t want to play any more. If the EU struggles to compete with China and India how on earth will the UK manage on its own? Farage will make the UK an isolated backwater.

Fortunately, UKIP may do well in the forthcoming EU elections (un-democratic was it ?) but even Farage knew he would lose a Westminster by-election and that is likely to repeated countrywide next year. Disgruntled, disgraced and disaffected ex-Tories is all UKIP mean to many.

This is pretty minor stuff. Clarkson has actually been much more offensive in the past and little has happened.

Dr Stangelove. I could choose to be offended by your little “lefty” rant but it’s pretty laughable. Not funny. Laughable. Nice try though:applause:

I like the idea that “lefties” understand what is offensive and what isn’t and “righties” don’t give a toss about who they offend and are just offensive. I think I’ll stick with that thought for now.

Interesting point. I was trying to think of a Tory voting comedian and for the life of me I can’t think of any (Jim Davidson doesn’t count as he isn’t funny).

Yes. It’s called an opinion. The move to globalization means a stronger EU is necessary not a weaker one. It’s the only way to compete with the strong emerging economies. We lose that at our peril.

The problem is that racial abuse, banter or whatever may be great fun for those involved in dishing it out. It is not so great fun for those on the receiving end and unless you have been on the receiving end then you will never know. Hiding behind your mates is no excuse either.
When men deliberate place nude calendars to embarrass female employees, how do you think the women feel about that? When women have to make long detours in order to avoid leering men. Is that right? When management turn a blind eye because they are as bad? Is that right.
What Clarkson did seems trivial compared to what others put up with but it is the thin end of a very fat wedge.
Have some respect for your fellows. Is that so hard?

Eh? we do what we do, I know little of these conditions & shorter hours of which you speak Del, again I live in the real world, based around the ‘operation requirements’ which you will be unaware of. So please do not make assumptions about our working patterns.

So don’t make assumptions about me and my life either then.