UK British News Megathread - aka CWCissey's news thread

https://news.sky.com/story/row-over-new-greggs-vegan-sausage-rolls-heats-up-11597679 (https://archive.ph/5Ba6o)

A heated row has broken out over a move by Britain's largest bakery chain to launch a vegan sausage roll.

The pastry, which is filled with a meat substitute and encased in 96 pastry layers, is available in 950 Greggs stores across the country.

It was promised after 20,000 people signed a petition calling for the snack to be launched to accommodate plant-based diet eaters.


But the vegan sausage roll's launch has been greeted by a mixed reaction: Some consumers welcomed it, while others voiced their objections.

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spread happiness@p4leandp1nk
https://twitter.com/p4leandp1nk/status/1080767496569974785

#VEGANsausageroll thanks Greggs

7
10:07 AM - Jan 3, 2019
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Cook and food poverty campaigner Jack Monroe declared she was "frantically googling to see what time my nearest opens tomorrow morning because I will be outside".

While TV writer Brydie Lee-Kennedy called herself "very pro the Greggs vegan sausage roll because anything that wrenches veganism back from the 'clean eating' wellness folk is a good thing".

One Twitter user wrote that finding vegan sausage rolls missing from a store in Corby had "ruined my morning".

Another said: "My son is allergic to dairy products which means I can't really go to Greggs when he's with me. Now I can. Thank you vegans."

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pg often@pgofton
https://twitter.com/pgofton/status/1080772793774624768

The hype got me like #Greggs #Veganuary

42
10:28 AM - Jan 3, 2019
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TV presenter Piers Morgan led the charge of those outraged by the new roll.

"Nobody was waiting for a vegan bloody sausage, you PC-ravaged clowns," he wrote on Twitter.

Mr Morgan later complained at receiving "howling abuse from vegans", adding: "I get it, you're all hangry. I would be too if I only ate plants and gruel."

Another Twitter user said: "I really struggle to believe that 20,000 vegans are that desperate to eat in a Greggs."

"You don't paint a mustach (sic) on the Mona Lisa and you don't mess with the perfect sausage roll," one quipped.

Journalist Nooruddean Choudry suggested Greggs introduce a halal steak bake to "crank the fume levels right up to 11".

The bakery chain told concerned customers that "change is good" and that there would "always be a classic sausage roll".

It comes on the same day McDonald's launched its first vegetarian "Happy Meal", designed for children.

The new dish comes with a "veggie wrap", instead of the usual chicken or beef option.

It should be noted that Piers Morgan and Greggs share the same PR firm, so I'm thinking this is some serious faux outrage and South Park KKK gambiting here.

 

[Whoopsie Daisy]

I look forward to any response to the petition from Labour politicians.

Signing a petition is racist, as petitions are linked to white surpremacy where petitions were used to outcast minorities during the colonial years of the empire.

Everyone who has signed it is guilty of a non-crime hate crime and will be sentenced to a tenner in the Gulags.

 

[Snekposter]

You can't argue with the contribution of James Watt. The Scots may have been a pain in the arse on and off but let's give credit where it's due.

There's a reason Doohan pulled a Scottish accent for Star Trek, since as far as he was concerned Scotty could only be Starfleet's greatest engineer if he was also a Scotsman.

 

[protomartyr]

I look forward to any response to the petition from Labour politicians.

We'll get a generic one from the government because they have to respond to anything with over 10k signatures, but it'll be buried apart from that.

The petitions committee is 7/10 Labour so it'll never get taken up for a debate.

 

[Overly Serious]

with a fair amount of their voters jumping ship to the Lib dems.

Urgh. On second thoughts lets not have another General Election.

Joking though because there's zero chance they'd actually call one. This petition is just about causing 2-Tier Kier maximum possible embarrassment. It's now at the threshold it gets debated in Parliament so it's basically an opportunity for everyone to make fun of him. Every extra signature is one more paper cut, imo. Worth signing.

View attachment 6679794View attachment 6679795View attachment 6679803
Link to map: https://petitionmap.unboxedconsulting.com/?petition=700143
(please sign the petition)

It was interesting to look at the actual percentages that this map indicates. Although they're in the low digits that's actually pretty high for an online petition. I'm impressed. I hope it snowballs even more.

where is the key to the map please?

Top right and you can select by constituency as well. Signatures require a post-code so it's a pretty accurate break-down.

A very autistic powerlevel: In my teens I once forced my mother to help me search for Adam Smith's grave on the Royal Mile, so I could take a picture with it.

I'm curious to know whether she blamed herself or your father for this.

I am fairly young but I cannot recall a worse week, there are probably some like 9/11 but honestly those are different, once in a decade moments. He is going to try and hide Reeves away similar to Kamala Harris but it won't work her role is too important.

"Rachel Reeves. Putting the Chancer in Chancellor."

 

[the printer is outo fink]

It was interesting to look at the actual percentages that this map indicates. Although they're in the low digits that's actually pretty high for an online petition. I'm impressed. I hope it snowballs even more.


Top right and you can select by constituency as well. Signatures require a post-code so it's a pretty accurate break-down.

So I guess Stella Creasy must be feeling very popular, with her constituency of Walthamstow, having maybe the lowest amount of signatories, with only 0.371%

 

[teriyakiburns]

We'll get a generic one from the government because they have to respond to anything with over 10k signatures, but it'll be buried apart from that.

Over 100k and they have to at least consider it for debate in parliament.

1.2 million now and still racing upwards. It might make 2 million tomorrow.

 

[the printer is outo fink]

Over 100k and they have to at least consider it for debate in parliament.

1.2 million now and still racing upwards. It might make 2 million tomorrow.

It took very slightly over 2 hours to go from 1 million, to over 1.25 million and it's almost continuously accelerating. At the current rate it would hit 2 million around midnight. Though obviously it has to slow down at some point.

 

[EddyRooney]

Currently the petition is around 1.3mil.
Number of votes at the election above.
It's embarrassing already, but at what point does it reach a critical mass ?
Dictators don't give up power without a fight, but hypothetically, what if it reached 10mil ( more than voted Labour) ? Would Starmer still claim a huge mandate, he's probably deluded enough. I appreciate it only matters what happens on polling day, but how could he look anyone in the eye and claim his is a government of the people, working for them, with a massive vote of no confidence like this ?

 

[the printer is outo fink]

View attachment 6680538

The vote share to seat share ratio is genuinely nuts. Labour gets 1/3 of the votes but 2/3 of the seats. Reform gets a bit under half that amount of votes and 1% of the seats! The Lib Dems get nearly a million less votes than Reform, but 67 more seats. I know no system is going to be perfect but that is so uneven.

 

[The Gene Genie]

View attachment 6680538
Currently the petition is around 1.3mil.
Number of votes at the election above.
It's embarrassing already, but at what point does it reach a critical mass ?
Dictators don't give up power without a fight, but hypothetically, what if it reached 10mil ( more than voted Labour) ? Would Starmer still claim a huge mandate, he's probably deluded enough. I appreciate it only matters what happens on polling day, but how could he look anyone in the eye and claim his is a government of the people, working for them, with a massive vote of no confidence like this ?

Simple: he claims that the petition was unduly influenced by Elon Musk, there were Russian bots signing it, and it can be "safely ignored" or whatever.

 

[the printer is outo fink]

Simple: he claims that the petition was unduly influenced by Elon Musk, there were Russian bots signing it, and it can be "safely ignored" or whatever.

That doesn't really work looking at the breakdown of where the votes are coming from. You have to enter a postcode and if this was people world wide influenced by Musk or the work of bots, we wouldn't be seeing a consistent and very noticeable low proportion of signatories in London. We'd be seeing the opposite as most non-UK people trying to find a UK postcode, will end up choosing one in London due to that being the place they have most familiarity with through tourism or media. (Think of all the signatures we'd be seeing centered around Kings Cross Station!)

If it was bots, it would be an even spread, the likelihood of anyone programming the bots to think to not only avoid London postcodes but also those in nationalist areas of Northern Ireland, but to take a few more, but not too many, postcodes from DUP held areas, is minuscule. I don't think this can be dismissed as easily as Starmer would wish, tbh.

 

[Overly Serious]

So I guess Stella Creasy must be feeling very popular, with her constituency of Walthamstow, having maybe the lowest amount of signatories, with only 0.371%

Ah, Stella Creasy - I remember well her angry debate with a comely female economist with Stella getting increasingly irate, culminating in her mask off "Feminism isn't about women! It's about power!" moment.

Good times.

 

[Bloom Worm Cross Field]

So I guess Stella Creasy must be feeling very popular, with her constituency of Walthamstow, having maybe the lowest amount of signatories, with only 0.371%

I wouldn't if I were her. This petition is basically an unofficial "are you white" census.

Lo and behold, the 2021 census says Waltham Forest is only 34% white British. Her seat will be POC'd one way or the other in a couple of years, the ingroup preference demands it.

 

[HairyBadger]

It's a petition. The rules say it has to be debated. That translates to the Speaker, one for the proposal and one against. It will be ignored.

 

[the printer is outo fink]

I wouldn't if I were her. This petition is basically an unofficial "are you white" census.

Lo and behold, the 2021 census says Waltham Forest is only 34% white British. Her seat will be POC'd one way or the other in a couple of years, the ingroup preference demands it.

I was just hoping someone would come up with the East 17 joke that I'm sure is there somewhere because whenever I read "Walthamstow" Stay Another Day starts playing in my head, and that's the literal opposite of the point of the petition.

 

[The Gene Genie]

That doesn't really work looking at the breakdown of where the votes are coming from. You have to enter a postcode and if this was people world wide influenced by Musk or the work of bots, we wouldn't be seeing a consistent and very noticeable low proportion of signatories in London. We'd be seeing the opposite as most non-UK people trying to find a UK postcode, will end up choosing one in London due to that being the place they have most familiarity with through tourism or media. (Think of all the signatures we'd be seeing centered around Kings Cross Station!)

If it was bots, it would be an even spread, the likelihood of anyone programming the bots to think to not only avoid London postcodes but also those in nationalist areas of Northern Ireland, but to take a few more, but not too many, postcodes from DUP held areas, is minuscule. I don't think this can be dismissed as easily as Starmer would wish, tbh.

Doesn't matter at all. He will say it, the BBC will run with it, and they will not even bother to bring it up at Parliament besides whatever perfunctory formality is required to dismiss it out of hand. The point of any of this should, rather, demonstrate to the 1.5 million+ who sign it that the Government has no interest in you, in your wellbeing, and has no interest in obeying your desires, and that it must be replaced by any means necessary.

 

[isalaide]

I was just hoping someone would come up with the East 17 joke that I'm sure is there somewhere because whenever I read "Walthamstow" Stay Another Day starts playing in my head, and that's the literal opposite of the point of the petition.

Genuinely one of the greatest Christmas number ones ever. They had other bops but that's a genuinely brilliant piece of songwriting.

It was on the radio the other day (obvs) and it occurred to me it must be the single darkest Christmas number one we've ever had. No snowmen bringing the snow, no mistletoe and wine, but a song about Tony Mortimer's brother dying in the hospital after his successful suicide attempt.

And people thought the Mad World cover was a bit downbeat. Huh.

 

[the rat]

If it was bots, it would be an even spread, the likelihood of anyone programming the bots to think to not only avoid London postcodes but also those in nationalist areas of Northern Ireland, but to take a few more, but not too many, postcodes from DUP held areas, is minuscule. I don't think this can be dismissed as easily as Starmer would wish, tbh.

Not bots, actually misinformation spread to the idiotic masses who voted for brexit. They're so stupid that we have to tell them that we are doing a good job and dismiss their ill-informed opinions caused by Elon Musk's RIGHT WING disinformation platform.

I reckon it's going to be this but what are you all betting on?

 

[The Gene Genie]

Not bots, actually misinformation spread to the idiotic masses who voted for brexit. They're so stupid that we have to tell them that we are doing a good job and dismiss their ill-informed opinions caused by Elon Musk's RIGHT WING disinformation platform.

I reckon it's going to be this but what are you all betting on?

All of the above, and it will be dismissed completely on those grounds in conjunction with an all-hands media campaign to discredit the results. The question is: what will people do about it when the Government inevitably dismisses their demands? Arguably, one of the most effective tools could be a general national strike. But are there even people who could organize such a thing anymore?

 

[Overly Serious]

It was on the radio the other day (obvs) and it occurred to me it must be the single darkest Christmas number one we've ever had. No snowmen bringing the snow, no mistletoe and wine, but a song about Tony Mortimer's brother dying in the hospital after his successful suicide attempt.

Band Aid's Do They Know It's Christmas is the grimmest Christmas album the UK has ever seen. No, not because of the subject matter. But when you find out that nearly all the money they raised went into the pockets of African warlords. There's a black Christmas pill for people to swallow.