Boris Johnson, former Prime Minister

[tobyjugg2]

Couldn't be organised as Johnson the crim would have withdrawn the whip from anyone caught doing that. and theres too many who owe their position to Johnson .. no-one half way competent would have them.

[honeybee13]

Even the deputy pol ed of the Spectator thinks Johnson has a problem.

 

Opinion | Boris Johnson Is Fatally Wounded - The New York Times

WWW.NYTIMES.COM

---

The prime minister’s moment of reckoning has arrived at last.

 

[theoldrouge]

seems to me what might happen , is everything goes quiet until after the two by election likely defeats
then either the "men in grey suits" give Johnson a tap on the shoulder (which he would likely ignore anyway)
or we have a Thatcher moment when the cabinet troop in one by one and tell him his time is up (though he'd probably sack the lot and carry on anyway )

[honeybee13]

That's the thing isn't it, TOR? The PM doesn't 'do' conventions or sage advice.

 

David Allen Green of the FT wrote this article about it possibly being difficult to get the PM to resign. He has another column on Al Jazeera as well.

 

archive.ph

ARCHIVE.PH

 

[honeybee13]

This is interesting on Murdoch, seems to be from the BBC.

 

 

[tobyjugg2]

the main 'unfit to hold office' person who empowered the others now unfit in office

- not that we had much choice or chance at the time of actually getting anyone 'fit for office'

 

- and even now the alternative options are really mainly for people fit for office rather than outstanding inspiring leaders - but I'll take that hoping it will reverse the downwards trend we've been seeing

 

 

 

[tobyjugg2]

Starmer needs to watch this and grow some

 

 

[honeybee13]

So the government are already threatening to call an early election. It was also Smug who came up with proroguing Parliament.

 

From the Times: 'He said that because the fixed-term parliaments act had been revoked, Johnson could turn any vote in the Commons into a confidence vote. If he lost, it would trigger the dissolution of parliament and an election. A source who was at the meeting said: “Jacob was making the point that this was something nobody, even the rebels, wants.” '

 

Never mind that on the latest figures Johnson would lose his seat.

[honeybee13]

And here are Martin Kettle's thoughts on the current situation.

 

A smart cabinet would be plotting to get rid of Johnson. This one is neither smart nor brave | Martin Kettle | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

---

The PM has picked ministers who owe him everything and do his bidding. They have a duty to the country but are shirking it, says Guardian columnist...

 

[unclebulgaria67]

Government will start to throw money around it has not got.  See todays story about people on benefits being enabled to take out mortgages. No doubt with Government subsidy and guarantor financial backing.

 

This is just the start. Get ready for cuts in some taxes and announcements of money to be spent on supporting communities (red wall seats won in 2019).

 

 

[theoldrouge]

Absolutely UB, Rishi  has already started, expect another handout next year Joe Biden style (though its not done him much good so far)
But I still think if he throws enough  money at people the Tories will be the largest party at the next GE , regardless of By election results

[honeybee13]

I'm not sure a handout next year is going to cut it, people are having problems already.

 

Meanwhile two other rail unions are threatening to join the RMT this summer in timing that could affect the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. As they're already 5,000 people short to run the games and are talking about the army for that, I don't see them being available to help with the railways.

 

Summer of Discontent, anyone?

[theoldrouge]

Quite likely, discontent always rears its head during periods of high inflation
especially with fuel heading towards £2 per litre (sorry for betraying the metric martyrs on this occasion)

[tobyjugg2]

8 hours ago, unclebulgaria67 said:

Boris the liar and pals will say they will start to throw money around it has not got, and wouldn't deliver in any way that helps ordinary people anyway

 

 

 

Corrected there Unc

[honeybee13]

David Allen Green has a fascinating new blog trying to disentagle the stofy on the legal advice taken or not taken for the forthcoming bill for NI. He thinks there's a huge row going on within the government.

 

The odd and worrying situation of the legal advice on the Northern Ireland Protocol – The Law and Policy Blog

DAVIDALLENGREEN.COM

---

9th June 2022 Something odd – and worrying – is happening. Of course, there are always odd and worrying things happening – increasingly in the...

 

[unclebulgaria67]

There is nothing wrong with NI protocol, but there is a problem with the DUP.

 

Even if UK Government managed to agree revised processes with the EU, so there were no significant delays for 99% of goods at the border in Belfast, the DUP would not be happy. The problem for the DUP is that NI is being treated differently than England, Scotland and Wales.

 

I understand the difficulties the Government is having as legally they cannot break protocol terms, but don't understand why they think clever tactical maneuvers are going to change the position of the DUP.

 

Government could end up breaking the law and not really changing much.

[honeybee13]

You're right UB. The DUP seem to have the same mindset as the ERG in that nothing is ever good enough and every time there is a concession, they move the goalposts and want more.

 

There must be a trust issue after Johnson stitched up the DUP with the border in the Irish Sea and then lied about it. In fact, I don't ever remember him admitting he knew what he was doing to NI border checks.

[tobyjugg2]

The problem is Johnson ....

 

i was going to type more about his promising/lying/talking doodoo on the fly/waffling all sorts of conflicting things to different factions .. but line 1 covers that and far more

Edited June 10, 2022 by tobyjugg2

[honeybee13]

I don't know if the food policy announcement is being made on Monday now, as it looks as if the NI bill is ready with the Truss/Frost/ERG amendments in it. The papers today are saying that's out on Monday.

 

Anyway, the food strategy hasn't gone down well with some.

 

‘Worse than half-baked’: Johnson’s food strategy fails to tackle cost or climate | Green politics | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM

---

Labour says leaked white paper suggesting more fish farming and venison ‘borders on preposterous’

 

[tobyjugg2]

Been following those as well as the rises in Covid cases with the spread of Omicron v4 + v5 and bread prices are rising as Ukraine and Russia are literally 2 of the main 'bread basket' regions of Europe.

 

How anyone can claim inflation is only 9/10% i have no idea .. oops - that its boris the Liar influenced claims of course explains it.

 

 

[tobyjugg2]

Partygate/Metgate concise summary

 

 

[tobyjugg2]

I see Tossus-Potus has replaced the prior lead bonus of brexit - delaying any implementation to prevent collapse of UK business

- with a new one - reintroducing more powerful vacuum cleaners ..

 

err .. No one can afford to run vacuums that use double the electricity except your servants using your 3,500 pound MPs 'energy expense allowance' Tossus 

 

and as pointed out by Tom Peck:

"Who is going to manufacture these vacuum cleaners? And are they going to bother producing a more powerful version solely for the UK market?

The answer to that is no. If the UK were a big enough vacuum-cleaner market on its own, one suspects that leading Brexiteer and vacuum magnate James Dyson might not have relocated his company to Singapore."

 

 

Edited June 14, 2022 by tobyjugg2

[honeybee13]

There seem to be an awful lot of downsides and hardly any upsides, TJ.

 

For the legal side, David Allen Green has done a blog with some good observations. He thinks the government's legal position makes no sense.

 

The bare “necessity” – how the legal position of the United Kingdom on the Northern Irish Protocol Bill makes no sense – The Law and Policy Blog

DAVIDALLENGREEN.COM

---

13th June 2022 The government of the United Kingdom published this evening the Northern Irish Protocol Bill. This Bill is so the government can...

 

[tobyjugg2]

In simple terms (as I understand it) 

The liar + sweller the rubber stamper (plus the numpty brigade) are relying on the “doctrine of necessity” which apparently can ONLY be invoked when a country’s interests are in

1. “grave and imminent peril”

2. for reasons to which it has not contributed

 

Seems to me that

* Johnson et arses al are the ones who negotiated and forced through the protocol in full awareness of the implications however much they may have simply hoped or even (unreasonably) expected that they wouldn't have to deliver (strike one)

* Johnsons populists and the DUPs political wants (and the political aims of the DUP as a now minority party) is what is causing grave and imminent peril to the UK rather than the protocol (strike two)

* NI largely has the best of both worlds (cake and eat it) and is actually prospering beyond the overall UK under the protocol  (strike three)

* Breaching the agreement with the EU is likely to cause considerably more issues for NI than there are with it in place (strike four)

Edited June 14, 2022 by tobyjugg2

[honeybee13]

It sounds tenuous to me but we may never find out unless there's an international court case over this.

 

Just saw this in the Guardian live feed.

 

46m ago 14.37

Boris Johnson has floated the prospect of the UK pulling out of the European convention on human rights if that turns out to be necessary to allow the Rwanda deportation policy to continue, the Mail’s Jason Groves reports.

Here we go again. Rather than get a decent policy, let's wreck the institution/convention that's standing in our way. Baby out with the bathwater in my view and the British public will be the losers.