This time of year, when politicians are on holiday and there’s little going on in the news, I like many others can normally be found eagerly awaiting the return of the football season. I have written my predictions for the coming season for the last few years, usually with spectacular inaccuracy. Last season I correctly tipped Aston Villa would be relegated- me and everyone else in the country I know; I did balance that with predicting Jose’s Chelsea would retain the title though..

This summer we have had the added treat of the Euro’s, meaning only a couple weeks without the beautiful game on TV. Some might say it’s even more difficult to suggest who will be good or bad this year, with little activity in the transfer market and many of our superstars returning late for training after an exhausting summer tournament. At least English players should be fresh.

Middlesbrough fans will be excited for their team's long awaited return to the Premier League along with swifter returns for Hull and Burnley, but I think it will be a long hard season for all three. Aitor Karanka has made a few decent signings during the summer, strengthening his side while Hull manager Steve Bruce quit the club last week in protest at the lack of signings, leaving them managerless with a fortnight before the kick off. Burnley have also been relatively quiet in the markets as well, signing duo Nick Pope and Berg Gudmunsson from Charlton.

The biggest headline transfers have been in the dug outs, with Manchester United taking a gamble on the not as special as he used to be Mourinho, and City going with the talented Pep Guardiola. Guardiola has apparently banned the overweight players from training with the first team until they shed some pounds and is ready to pay £50m for Everton’s John Stones. Everton meanwhile seem to have been linked with almost every player in Europe since nicking Ronald Koeman from Southampton and Leicester’s Steve Walsh as director of football. Veteran keeper Tim Howard has been replaced by former Fulham goalie Maarten Stekelenburg and you can expect Koeman to make some shrewd signings in the coming weeks. Toffee’s fans will have high hopes after Koeman’s appointment but they will be a way off the top 5 this year.

Chelsea possibly have most to prove after last season’s disastrous self-destruction. Former Italy coach, Bruno Conte will be under huge pressure at the Bridge this year with Blues fans demanding some success instantly. Although I tipped them for success last season, I am more reluctant this term and will be surprised if they finish higher than third.

Last year’s shock package and suddenly everyone’s favourite second team, Leicester will bankrupt the bookies if they repeat last season’s miracle. Top half is more realistic for me, as the foxes struggle to hold onto their stars. Liverpool could push on this season as Klopp looks to assert his style on the team.

Arsenal’s reluctance to compete financially with their rivals could see the Gunners miss out again although a top 3 finish should be achievable. London rivals Spurs will need Harry Kane to be much more impressive than his form in the summer if they are to build on last season’s good work.

So here are my tips.

C. Manchester City

2 Manchester United

3 Arsenal

4 Chelsea

5 Liverpool

6 Spurs

7 West Ham

8 Everton

9 Stoke

10 Crystal Palace

11 Southampton

12 Swansea

13 Leicester

14 Watford

15 Bournemouth

16 Middlesbro

17 Burnley

18 Sunderland

19 West Brom

20 Hull

Place your bets !

Those who thought the dark days following the election defeats in 2010 and ’15 were as bad as it gets must be gobsmacked at how wrong they were.

Britain stands on the brink of leaving the EU with a new Prime minister set to negotiate Brexit following the disastrous referendum. It was a referendum that many feel should never have happened and few thought would result in us leaving. The in campaign clearly won the economic argument but failed to successfully respond to some of the outrageous immigration claims made by the out campaign.  Some it seems were completely fooled by claims for example that £350 million would be channelled straight into the NHS, only to see the reality just hours after the votes were counted.

Despite many of the predictions made by the remain campaign being proven; the pound at its lowest point for decades and the property funds being suspended for example, those in favour of leaving assumed these predictions were scare mongering. Cameron quit shortly afterwards in spite of his repeated promises to see it through and several high profile out Tories disappeared quickly too.

This should have given the Labour party  the opportunity to unite and challenge strongly. What followed has left the party in real danger of splitting, which of course would be an absolute disaster.

When Jeremy Corbyn was elected with a massive mandate there was new hope that a change was coming. There was real optimism that a nicer, kinder politics would ensue. In a letter sent to members during her deputy leadership bid, Angela Eagle wrote “I would happily serve under anyone the members choose to be our leader because I respect the wisdom of our members, supporters and affiliates and our party’s process of electing a new leadership team”. She even went so far as to add “talk of coups and remarks about not serving in a shadow cabinet needs to stop”.

Miss Eagle challenged the leadership after a mass exodus from the shadow cabinet. There have been reports for some time that sections of the Labour benches intended to over throw their leader. It is suggested that they intended to challenge him if he lost the Oldham by-election (he didn’t), they then planned a coup if he lost the London Mayoral race (he didn’t) and again if Labour suffered huge losses in local elections (they didn’t). Brexit then was pinned firmly on Corbyn and Hillary Benn started the chain of events by getting himself sacked in the middle of the night. The next day dozens of shadow ministers quit forcing a vote of no confidence which resulted in a massive defeat for the leader. Miss Eagle has since decided to step down from the leadership election, leaving Owen Smith as the sole challenger.

Tom Watson, deputy leader, said in a letter to members when he was chasing the job “I want members and supporters at the heart of an inclusive party.

I will drive culture change through this party from the bottom-up. I want a digital revolution to enhance policy making and improve our campaigns. I want local parties to come up with policy solutions to problems in their own areas. You should have a say in choosing the debates we hold in Westminster on 'opposition days’, for example".

It is claimed that Mr Watson orchestrated the coup to remove Corbyn from the safety of Glastonbury and many of his colleagues have tried to reclaim the party from its members, often being rather rude and derogatory about them and their opinions. Far from nicer, kinder politics the whole fiasco has descended into horrible hate filled slanging matches with neither side willing to back down.

The Labour membership has risen to over 600,000 since the coup began (although it is unclear whether the bulk of those support Corbyn) compared to only around 150,000 members in the Conservative party. What is clear is that many of those 600,000 grass roots members that were promised a say in the future of the party, feel that the political elite have conned them. The party itself actually tried to ban Corbyn from automatically making the ballot for leadership. When that failed the NEC decided to charge those members that originally joined for £3, a fee of £25 to vote in the election. That is not a challenge, it is a mutiny. When the country is crying out for an authentic, decent, fit and proper opposition they have watched a secret ballot fail to stop him defending himself. In spite of the cripplingly inhibitive fee, 180,000 Labour supporters have applied to pay it.  The trade unions appear to still support the leader and he is on the ballot (for now- legal challenge pending) but can he hang on? While the PLP have treated the electorate with utter contempt, it does appear that there are stories of bullying and poor leadership from Corbyn. Surely, in a democratic system we can be proud of, Corbyn must be allowed to defend his leadership. If the MPs are allowed to over-ride the wishes of the members and pick their own leader, there is little point in being a member. Of course, the counter argument to that is that we elect our MPs to make decisions on our behalf. 
What has left the members mystified is the lack of any real evidence to support Corbyns failure. He has undoubtedly increased the membership massively and in recent days the party coffers have swelled as well. He has enjoyed successes in opposition, forcing u-turns on several government policies. He has changed the style of debate in parliament and has refused to throw away his beliefs in the name of achieving power. MP's have lined up to tell us that he can't win an election but all the evidence I have just mentioned above suggests the opposite.
Politicians are expected to present a decent argument and persuade the public to think their way; now is their chance. I had hoped that candidates other than the unimpressive Miss Eagle would decide to stand and that at least one of them was a credible person from the left of the party. Andy Burnham would make an authentic candidate but seems determined to be Mayor of Manchester. Eagle crash landed and while Owen Smith has some interesting ideas and seems relatively charming, I'm still not sure he can get enough votes to oust Corbyn.

Teresa May says she will not rush a general election, suggesting she will wait until 2020. This must be music to the ears of the Labour MPs as going to the country now would be an absolute massacre.

Those men and women we elected as our members of parliament have a responsibility to form a credible argument that can get us elected to government. With Britain now free from the chains that the EU held over employment law and human rights, a Labour government is the only safety net available for many. There are many shared interests that Labour can and should unite on. Obviously, the majority of Labour supporters agree that we cannot be simply a party of protest or principle but it is vital that it does not throw away its principles entirely to gain that power.
The political tricks of parliamentary procedure and the dastardly antics of the NEC will undoubtedly leave a nasty taste in the mouth of many Labour members and supporters. The charge to the left from members is not a coincidence the parliamentary party can ignore. I wrote after the general election defeat that the mood among normal people was shifting. There is real anger at what they see as the establishment, which really means the rich and powerful (MPs included). Whether Jeremy Corbyn wins another victory or not that shift isn't going to stop. Owen Smith does not have the authenticity that a life long rebel and protestor such as Corbyn has, so whichever one wins I see another messy and costly leadership election coming before the general election. I and many others have said it before and will continue to say that one of the main reasons for these problems is the lack of opportunity in the party for normal working class people.
The disharmony within the party has reached such a level that branch meetings have been cancelled amid safety fears and MPs have stopped replying to their constituents, apparently.  UKIP, the Greens, and the Lib Dems must all be terribly excited at the number of potential new members they can target if those 600,000 activists turn their back on the party.