雷霆扫毒

2 special elections could bring more bad news for Britain's governing Conservatives_我的网站

一 |     LONDON -- Voters are casting ballots Thursday in two special elections in England that could add more misery to the beleaguered governing Conservative Party as it prepares to fight a national election next year.The Conservatives won both Tamworth in central England and Mid-Bedfordshire, north of London, by large margins during the last national election in 2019. But both constituencies’ lawmakers resigned under a cloud.Tamworth legislator Chris Pincher quit after Parliament’s standards watchdog recommended he be suspended for “completely inappropriate” behavior after groping two men at a London private members’ club. Then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson’ s reluctance to sanction Pincher when the allegations emerged helped trigger Johnson's ouster at the hands of his own party last year.Mid-Bedfordshire member of Parliament Nadine Dorries resigned over the treatment of Johnson and her own failure to be appointed to Parliament’s upper chamber, the House of Lords. Dorries is a strong ally of Johnson who has blamed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for helping to topple the former leader.The Conservatives acknowledge they face “difficult headwinds” in both seats. Polls close at 10 p.m. (2100GMT), with results announced early Friday.The main opposition Labour Party and the smaller Liberal Democrats hope to win the seats but have tried to manage expectations, noting that the Conservatives won substantial majorities in 2019. Labour has called both districts “super-safe Tory seats.”Losing either one would add to pressure on the governing party, which has lost several byelections since Sunak took office just under a year ago. He replaced Liz Truss, who quit in October 2022 after her plan for unfunded tax cuts sent financial markets into turmoil and rocked the economy.Truss spent just seven weeks in office after winning a party leadership contest to replace Johnson, who quit after three years in office when scandals over money and ethics turned party lawmakers against him.Sunak steadied the economy but has not managed to boost the party’s rating in opinion polls, where it consistently lags between 10 and 20 points behind Labour.The Conservatives have been in power nationally since 2010, years that saw austerity following the world banking crisis, Britain’s divisive decision to leave the European Union, a global pandemic and a European war that has triggered the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades.Polls show the Conservatives are losing support across the country, from affluent southern voters turned off by Brexit to working-class northern voters who switched from Labour in 2019 after Johnson promised to spread prosperity to long-neglected areas.Sunak has tried to rally support by arguing he has a long-term vision and is prepared to make tough decisions to change Britain.Earlier this month Labour won a special election victory over the Scottish National Party in Scotland. Winning seats in Scotland, where the pro-independence SNP has long been dominant, is key to Labour’s attempt to secure a majority in the next national election, due by the end of 2024.。    AI摘要      国台办驳斥陆委会谣言，称台胞来大陆无风险。批评民进党阻挠两岸教育交流及限制公务员探亲，指出其意在制造对立、谋取私利。

二 |          北京8月19日电（记者许晓静、尚昊）针对台陆委会造谣抹黑大陆即将施行的《国务院关于出境入境管理的规定》、误导岛内民众“进出大陆会有风险”，国务院台办发言人朱凤莲19日在例行新闻发布会上表示，台湾民众来大陆完全不需要担心有什么风险。广大台湾同胞来大陆旅游、探亲、参访、交流，一定会乘兴而来、尽兴而归。    她介绍，《国务院关于出境入境管理的规定》是为了规范出境入境管理，保障出境入境人员的合法权益，维护国家主权、安全、发展利益。

三 | 规定主要包括健全出境安全风险防范制度，明确出境入境申请事由应当真实、合法，规范出境入境中介服务等。

四 | 该规定有利于维护两岸民众往来的合法权益，为台湾同胞来大陆营造更好的法治环境。    朱凤莲指出，民进党当局不遗余力禁限两岸交流往来，千方百计阻挡两岸同胞走亲走近，打压、恐吓、造谣等手段花样百出，台湾陆委会更是冲在前面成为两岸交流交往的“绊脚石”。今年上半年台胞来大陆达到285万人次、同比增长24.9%，暑期来大陆观光参访的台湾同胞络绎于途，都是对民进党当局禁限阻挠最明确的回应。面对两岸交流交往滚滚潮流，民进党当局最害怕的是他们制造的“信息茧房”不断被戳破、构建的虚假“台独”叙事不断被揭穿，所以才会如此地信口雌黄。    据报道，民进党当局持续限缩两岸教育交流，台教育主管部门要求校方提供大陆研修生在台的每日行程、课程主题、参访地点等，并计划收紧审核大陆研修生和教师赴台申请，不少大陆研修生赴台项目被迫中断或彻底取消。对此，朱凤莲答问指出，这是民进党当局阻挠和禁限两岸正常交流交往的又一恶行。    她表示，两岸高校互派研修生行之有年，是两岸教育交流的重要组成部分，有利于推动两岸学术成果互学互鉴，促进两岸教育共同发展。民进党当局滥权妄为，无视岛内高校参与两岸交流的强烈愿望与现实需求，频繁将“黑手”伸向两岸教育交流，强行限缩大陆学生赴台研修，对台湾教育界威逼利诱，严重损害两岸教育交流和学生正当权益，令人不齿。    对于民进党当局有关台湾公务员赴大陆探亲的限制性规定，朱凤莲评论指出，民进党当局此前阻挠公职人员来大陆探亲、奔丧，如今又肆意侵犯台胞个人隐私，为的是阻挠台胞前来大陆，怕的是他们靠谎话欺骗、煽动“反中抗中”谋取政治私利的真实面目被更多台胞看穿。岛内的批评声音已经表明了广大台湾民众的强烈不满。

五 |

Current article:http://www.liangkuataosanxuanmiancen.sbs/list_vqqp/31bp9.html

Published on:05:07:44