Don't know what to think about #traingate? Whether pro or anti-Corbyn, these are the views you can choose from

From photoshopped CCTV and #piggate to the fact that RAM-PACKED ISN'T EVEN A WORD, all bases are covered in this definitive list

Sameer Merali
Thursday 25 August 2016 10:59 BST
Comments
CCTV shows Jeremy Corbyn taking a seat on train after filming himself sitting on the floor

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What I absolutely love about #traingate is the multitude of viewpoints it has elicited. Usually we just have Corbyn lovers and haters, but this time there appears to be so many "bigger pictures". Because of the variety, I’ve taken the liberty of pulling all of them together. Choose your unique #traingate perspective exclusively here:

1. Jeremy lied. There were clearly seats available. He's just using this to further his agenda on public ownership of the railways

2. Establishment smearing

3. Owen Smith called Jeremy a lunatic and he's been let off for that. Imagine if it were the other way round

4. The people calling out #traingate were gladly lapping up #piggate without questioning its accuracy

5. Corbynistas will defend the indefensible

6. Blairites will never stop attacking the Labour leader until they displace him

7. Why did it take Virgin so long to respond? Seeking legal advice for the CCTV tape publishing? Whatever it is, it's certainly fishy

8. The CCTV is photoshopped. They changed the time stamp on the picture to look like Corbyn immediately took a seat after filming his video

9. Jeremy was just being childish. There were scattered single seats vacant but he just wanted to sit next to his wife

10. Surely the commonsense thing to do on a packed train is to sit on an empty reserved seat then move if/when said passenger arrives at their seat

11. If he had sat on a reserved seat, the media would have berated him for being a scrounger or self-entitled

Jeremy Corbyn reluctantly answers question about Virgin Trains CCTV

12. Isn't it impressive that he decided to decline an offer to sit in first class? He is definitely a man of the people

13. Why would you get on a three hour train journey without reserving a seat? This just screams incompetence

14. The pictures were obviously taken at different times. People must've got off the train later in the journey, but it was ram-packed at the start

15. Of course Virgin will stand up against the lies. Jeremy publicly gave the company negative press

16. Surely this brings up bigger issues about fewer services than required, lack of seats particularly at peak times and exorbitant rail costs

17. There are so many important things happening currently and this non-story is trying to deflect from that

18. Jeremy claims to be honest and genuine. Guess he's just like every other politician

19. I really don't care who did or didn't get a seat

20. This is obviously Branson trying to lay into Corbyn due to his vision of public ownership for the railways

21. The fact that Branson and Virgin have hit back about this suggests they are fearful that a Corbyn government is likely

22. There were passengers giving eyewitness accounts backing Corbyn. There are pictures to prove it

23. It's illegal for a company to release CCTV images of a public figure unless legally obliged

24. Just because those seats appear empty doesn't mean they are. People may have reserved them with bags, or they could have been occupied by children so we can't see their heads

25. If you can't ask people to move a bag or two you have no business running the country

26 Why couldn't he go on a peak time service and have indisputable imagery of its overcrowdedness?

27. All politicians spin/lie to an extent

28. RAM-PACKED ISN'T EVEN A WORD. It's either rammed or jam-packed

NB: There is no guarantee that more viewpoints won’t emerge after this piece is posted. After all, #traingate is the gift that just keeps on giving.

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