Tomorrow's front page i is very interesting and not going to be pleasant viewing at No.10. It says that the contenders to replace Johnson are starting to circle. Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss in particular.
It bemuses me when loyalists try to defend the indefensible. Johnson's position is rapidly becoming untenable. His serial lying, dishonesty and chaotic living is catching up with him.
John Major was nowhere near as bad a prime minister as Johnson, and the chaos nowhere near as acute, but all of this reminds me of the 1992-7 government.
The longer Johnson continues like this the more a repeat 1997 General Election result is likely.
I find it quite interesting how close some at the i must be to certain members of the government. They always seem to get the briefed inside track on what is next in terms of COVID vaccines / plans before others.
Tomorrow's front page i is very interesting and not going to be pleasant viewing at No.10. It says that the contenders to replace Johnson are starting to circle. Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss in particular.
It bemuses me when loyalists try to defend the indefensible. Johnson's position is rapidly becoming untenable. His serial lying, dishonesty and chaotic living is catching up with him.
John Major was nowhere near as bad a prime minister as Johnson, and the chaos nowhere near as acute, but all of this reminds me of the 1992-7 government.
The longer Johnson continues like this the more a repeat 1997 General Election result is likely.
What rubbish, Starmer can only get a 6% poll lead tonight. Even Ed Miliband and Kinnock managed 10%+ leads, Blair had 20%+ leads.
Plus unless polling comes out showing Sunak or Truss well ahead of Starmer, Boris will be going nowhere
Kate Ferguson @kateferguson4 · 3h Pressure on Keir Starmer to tear up his usual caution and order his MPs to unite with Tory rebels and vote against vaccine passports to try to topple No10.
Labour MP tells me: "We've a duty to oppose No10 - we should try to defeat the PM and then call a no confidence vote"
But he previously backed vaccine passport++ approach, where we all had to do tests and have our vaccine passport every time we wanted to go out.
And why would Starmer want to get rid of Boris at the moment, he is doing a great job for Labour's ratings. And lots of the public seem to be very happy for vaccine passports etc, especially from the left of centre. Its the Tory backbench / Talk Radio / GB News lot that are in the minority opinion.
Plan B going though because of Opposition votes would make the Tory rebels even more mutinous. It would weaken Johnson and make him Starmer's plaything. Its a No Brainer.
BUT THAT WAS MY POINT...The quote was from a Labour person to vote down the Plan B.
Voting it through is a) inline with Starmer wanting to seem "tough" on COVID and consist that he called for vaccine passports++ before and b) as you say piss of the Tory backbenchers.
“It is with great regret that we are unable to support the proposal in its current form, as it lacks the substantial financial support for businesses whose earnings would be severely hampered by its imposition.”
Big discussion at work today about the Christmas lunch - not "do" or "party" just a lunch. Oddly enough, the older members who have had the three vaccinations were much more positive about going than the younger double jabbed who felt very insecure.
I can only go by what my colleagues tell me but the perception (yes, the "p" word again) created by the media is those who have had only two vaccinations are much more at risk from Omicron than those with three. Everyone in the room had two vaccinations and six of us had had the booster.
We fought off a move to cancel the whole thing but a table for 14 will now be a table for 6 - for a couple of the team this will be their main social outing before Christmas. I was reminded of the classic lyric from Eleanor Rigby:
"All the Lonely People, Where do They all Belong?"
It's not just about the partying, the drinking, the "carousing" (as @Leon would say) but for a worryingly large number of people, it's about the minimum of social contact.
I’d normally be doing a boozy night in town with mates before Xmas. But not this year. Seeking to preserve Xmas day for the kids at whatever personal cost is needed. Can’t have two in a row fucked by this.
Yes, I have a friend who isn't too bothered if she gets the bug - triple vaccinated, mwahaha - but is scared of being pinged and spoiling a reunion next week.
Again, the pinging isolation isn’t happening any more - it’s being replaced by daily tests
I'd missed that, and so evidently has she. I'll tell her. That said, it's not the ping per se that worries her, as the possibility of carrying the bug to her friends, who are more vulnerable than she is.
But on that point she is at materially no greater risk than when she was looking forward to her party a fortnight ago. So it makes no sense on any rational reading of her decision.
It is perfectly rational. A fortnight ago the chances of a double or triple vaxxed person testing covid positive were slim to none. In the run up to Xmas, that is no longer the case. Testing positive a week before Xmas will lead to all guests and plans that weekend being cancelled.
Kate Ferguson @kateferguson4 · 3h Pressure on Keir Starmer to tear up his usual caution and order his MPs to unite with Tory rebels and vote against vaccine passports to try to topple No10.
Labour MP tells me: "We've a duty to oppose No10 - we should try to defeat the PM and then call a no confidence vote"
But he previously backed vaccine passport++ approach, where we all had to do tests and have our vaccine passport every time we wanted to go out.
And why would Starmer want to get rid of Boris at the moment, he is doing a great job for Labour's ratings. And lots of the public seem to be very happy for vaccine passports etc, especially from the left of centre. Its the Tory backbench / Talk Radio / GB News lot that are in the minority opinion.
Plan B going though because of Opposition votes would make the Tory rebels even more mutinous. It would weaken Johnson and make him Starmer's plaything. Its a No Brainer.
BUT THAT WAS MY POINT...The quote was from a Labour person to vote down the Plan B.
Voting it through is a) inline with Starmer wanting to seem "tough" on COVID and consist that he called for vaccine passports++ before and b) as you say piss of the Tory backbenchers.
“It is with great regret that we are unable to support the proposal in its current form, as it lacks the substantial financial support for businesses whose earnings would be severely hampered by its imposition.”
I honestly don't see it as a big Labour victory one way or the other. From the publics perspective, it will be seen as dicking about. We are told the majority are still very much "harder sir, harder" when it comes to things like these restrictions.
I am interested in what works, vaccine passports won't. I don't even believe they will really drive much uptake among the "state injectable" antivaxxers, especially if you can still claim you did a LFT.
i doubt a change of leader will make a difference. The whole party look as sleazy as the leader. They've been queuing up to laud him so they've all tarred with the same brush. The only one with the tiniest it of integrity still standing is Jeremy Hunt.
And the big irony is when he was in office Hunt was considered a dork.
It just goes to prove that compared to Johnson average performers look impressive.
Who are these people who are cancelling all their social events? I was out Tuesday and Wednesday this week and in both cases every pub I visited was packed.
What is materially different now compared to a fortnight ago? Other than the fact that ping isolation has been replaced by daily tests - which *reduces* the risk of socialising.
In Scotland it's still 10 days self-isolation if a contact of a suspected Omnicron case.
It is here. Just sent off my family's PCR tests. The 2 still negative don't need to isolate now. But they do for 10 days if either of the positives comes back omicron. AIUI at least.
NEW: Lord Christopher Geidt, Boris Johnson’s ministerial standards advisor is considering quitting or reopening an inquiry into the refurbishment of his flat.
Whitehall insiders said Geidt was “deeply unhappy” that he may have been misled.
Tomorrow's front page i is very interesting and not going to be pleasant viewing at No.10. It says that the contenders to replace Johnson are starting to circle. Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss in particular.
It bemuses me when loyalists try to defend the indefensible. Johnson's position is rapidly becoming untenable. His serial lying, dishonesty and chaotic living is catching up with him.
John Major was nowhere near as bad a prime minister as Johnson, and the chaos nowhere near as acute, but all of this reminds me of the 1992-7 government.
The longer Johnson continues like this the more a repeat 1997 General Election result is likely.
What rubbish
By all means keep banging the drum in public HYUFD. But do, please, in private have a little quiet reflection. Trust me, being on the wrong side of public opinion when it gathers pace like this isn't funny. You should reflect on what's happening and why it is.
Labour should vote *against* on the grounds that a decent case for the various measures actually has not been made.
(As opposed to anti-NPIs on principle, which is motivating some Tory votes).
How can they when Starmer uses Drakeford as his example of dealing with covid and his support for vaxports
Sadly, outside Wales, nobody cares what Drakeford does.
Starmer does and it is on record
I know you'd much rather that Johnson was a paragon virtue and honesty compared to Starmer but I'm afraid it ain't so Big_G.
Starmer may well duck and weave, and spin a bit, as most politicians do, but Johnson trashes the truth completely and seems to believe the normal rules of probity don't apply to him.
'No worst, there is none. Pitched past pitch of grief.' BY GERARD MANLEY HOPKINS
No worst, there is none. Pitched past pitch of grief, More pangs will, schooled at forepangs, wilder wring. Comforter, where, where is your comforting? Mary, mother of us, where is your relief? My cries heave, herds-long; huddle in a main, a chief Woe, wórld-sorrow; on an áge-old anvil wince and sing — Then lull, then leave off. Fury had shrieked 'No ling- ering! Let me be fell: force I must be brief."'
O the mind, mind has mountains; cliffs of fall Frightful, sheer, no-man-fathomed. Hold them cheap May who ne'er hung there. Nor does long our small Durance deal with that steep or deep. Here! creep, Wretch, under a comfort serves in a whirlwind: all Life death does end and each day dies with sleep.
Not so comforting.
Could I offer Lear
I eat my peas with honey I've done it all my life It makes the peas taste funny But it keeps them on the knife
Shakespeare was a versatile fellow.
Or a woman?
This is Shakespeare. Lucy Shakespeare I used to go camping with.
There was a lady called Alice Who used dynamite stick for a phallus, They found her vagina In North Carolina And her arsehole in Buckingham Palace.
I’m here all week (unless banned)
Another Alice one...cos I'm bored...
There was a young lady called Alice Who peed in the Catholic chalice. She said "I do this Out of great need to piss, And not from sectarian malice."
There was a young man from Khartoum Who took a lesbian up to his room But they argued all night As to who had the right To do what, and with which, and to whom
the reality cannot work like this even if still fluid person learning the way, but at least it scans proper more than some of the others
NEW: Lord Christopher Geidt, Boris Johnson’s ministerial standards advisor is considering quitting or reopening an inquiry into the refurbishment of his flat.
Whitehall insiders said Geidt was “deeply unhappy” that he may have been misled.
"Conservative party history is littered with ruthlessness on these occasions, but I am confident Boris will get a grip," Birmingham Tory MP Andrew Mitchell tells #bbcnews. "Ruthlessness" is a reference to Tory MPs deposing their leader, ie he's suggesting Boris could go https://twitter.com/jonwalker121/status/1469066772263362571
What difference did that do? Howard still lost in 2005 having replaced IDS and after Thatcher was toppled in 1990 the Tories lost 3 out of 4 general elections following. May being replaced by Boris in 2019 the only one which made a major difference
Labour should vote *against* on the grounds that a decent case for the various measures actually has not been made.
(As opposed to anti-NPIs on principle, which is motivating some Tory votes).
How can they when Starmer uses Drakeford as his example of dealing with covid and his support for vaxports
Sadly, outside Wales, nobody cares what Drakeford does.
Starmer does and it is on record
I know you'd much rather that Johnson was a paragon virtue and honesty compared to Starmer but I'm afraid it ain't so Big_G.
Starmer may well duck and weave, and spin a bit, as most politicians do, but Johnson trashes the truth completely and seems to believe the normal rules of probity don't apply to him.
It's a different level of dishonesty altogether.
I agree with you but believe you me if Starmer plays politics with these restrictions which have huge public support he risks damaging his own credibility at a time of national crisis
Boris is persona non grata to me now and as I said earlier today I am politically homeless for the first time in 60 years
Who are these people who are cancelling all their social events? I was out Tuesday and Wednesday this week and in both cases every pub I visited was packed.
What is materially different now compared to a fortnight ago? Other than the fact that ping isolation has been replaced by daily tests - which *reduces* the risk of socialising.
In Scotland it's still 10 days self-isolation if a contact of a suspected Omnicron case.
It is here. Just sent off my family's PCR tests. The 2 still negative don't need to isolate now. But they do for 10 days if either of the positives comes back omicron. AIUI at least.
I think that's right. Pretty sure not every PCR is checked for Omicron though, so chances of it being the big O are slim to none.
Big discussion at work today about the Christmas lunch - not "do" or "party" just a lunch. Oddly enough, the older members who have had the three vaccinations were much more positive about going than the younger double jabbed who felt very insecure.
I can only go by what my colleagues tell me but the perception (yes, the "p" word again) created by the media is those who have had only two vaccinations are much more at risk from Omicron than those with three. Everyone in the room had two vaccinations and six of us had had the booster.
We fought off a move to cancel the whole thing but a table for 14 will now be a table for 6 - for a couple of the team this will be their main social outing before Christmas. I was reminded of the classic lyric from Eleanor Rigby:
"All the Lonely People, Where do They all Belong?"
It's not just about the partying, the drinking, the "carousing" (as @Leon would say) but for a worryingly large number of people, it's about the minimum of social contact.
I’d normally be doing a boozy night in town with mates before Xmas. But not this year. Seeking to preserve Xmas day for the kids at whatever personal cost is needed. Can’t have two in a row fucked by this.
Yes, I have a friend who isn't too bothered if she gets the bug - triple vaccinated, mwahaha - but is scared of being pinged and spoiling a reunion next week.
Again, the pinging isolation isn’t happening any more - it’s being replaced by daily tests
I'd missed that, and so evidently has she. I'll tell her. That said, it's not the ping per se that worries her, as the possibility of carrying the bug to her friends, who are more vulnerable than she is.
But on that point she is at materially no greater risk than when she was looking forward to her party a fortnight ago. So it makes no sense on any rational reading of her decision.
It is perfectly rational. A fortnight ago the chances of a double or triple vaxxed person testing covid positive were slim to none. In the run up to Xmas, that is no longer the case. Testing positive a week before Xmas will lead to all guests and plans that weekend being cancelled.
Eh? Show your working. Why were the chances slim to none a fortnight ago. They weren’t slim to none, they were materially similar to what they are now!
Tomorrow's front page i is very interesting and not going to be pleasant viewing at No.10. It says that the contenders to replace Johnson are starting to circle. Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss in particular.
It bemuses me when loyalists try to defend the indefensible. Johnson's position is rapidly becoming untenable. His serial lying, dishonesty and chaotic living is catching up with him.
John Major was nowhere near as bad a prime minister as Johnson, and the chaos nowhere near as acute, but all of this reminds me of the 1992-7 government.
The longer Johnson continues like this the more a repeat 1997 General Election result is likely.
What rubbish, Starmer can only get a 6% poll lead tonight. Even Ed Miliband and Kinnock managed 10%+ leads, Blair had 20%+ leads.
Plus unless polling comes out showing Sunak or Truss well ahead of Starmer, Boris will be going nowhere
Fair point- there's a bit in Alan Clark's diary account of 1990 where he bumps into Bob Worcester(?) with some polling on how well John Major was going down with the public. That mattered. And one thing that saved JM in 1995 was that there was nobody else who looked like winning either- certainly not Redwood.
But you and Boris should also see a warning there. We're a long way from that point now, but BoJo needs to be alert to the possibility that he hangs around stinking up the place so much that there's no point anyone else taking over because it's too late to turn the ship round.
I know there have been plenty of approved drugs that have later proved to have very unfortunate side effects, but has that actually been the case with any vaccines?
I remember the whole MMR causing autism rubbish, but I can't think of any real vaccine scandals. I don't want to google it because I know I'll find mostly antivax bullshit.
I don't understand the whole antivax movement at all.
Vaccination, along with the discovery of penicillin, is probably the greatest advance in medical history. I'm sure a lot of anti vaxxers are mentally ill.
They're also indulged too much. If we do end up back in lockdown or something like it this Winter, it won't so much be the fault of the new variant as it will the reservoir of individuals who put the healthcare system in continuous jeopardy by their stubborn refusal to have a scratch on the arm every few months. If the hospitals scream that they're completely unable to cope with more Covid patients then you can be almost certain that most of them will be unvaccinated.
It's time to treat this pandemic how it should be treated: as a war in which the socio-economic survival of the nation is at stake. Vaccination should be thought of as analogous to conscription: mandatory and unavoidable, unless there is a sound medical reason why an individual should be excused it. Sound medical reasons do not include needle phobia, veganism, not trusting the Tories, or having read something scary that's been promulgated by some charlatan on WhatsApp.
Those who draft dodge should not continue to be tolerated and ought, if necessary, to have their lives made unbearable to force them to give in. If vaccination for pretty much everyone, save a handful of medical exemptions, is all that is going to get us out of an endless cycle of restrictions then that is what must happen, and it must happen as quickly as possible.
Who are these people who are cancelling all their social events? I was out Tuesday and Wednesday this week and in both cases every pub I visited was packed.
What is materially different now compared to a fortnight ago? Other than the fact that ping isolation has been replaced by daily tests - which *reduces* the risk of socialising.
In Scotland it's still 10 days self-isolation if a contact of a suspected Omnicron case.
It is here. Just sent off my family's PCR tests. The 2 still negative don't need to isolate now. But they do for 10 days if either of the positives comes back omicron. AIUI at least.
I think that's right. Pretty sure not every PCR is checked for Omicron though, so chances of it being the big O are slim to none.
Labour should vote *against* on the grounds that a decent case for the various measures actually has not been made.
(As opposed to anti-NPIs on principle, which is motivating some Tory votes).
How can they when Starmer uses Drakeford as his example of dealing with covid and his support for vaxports
Sadly, outside Wales, nobody cares what Drakeford does.
Starmer does and it is on record
I know you'd much rather that Johnson was a paragon virtue and honesty compared to Starmer but I'm afraid it ain't so Big_G.
Starmer may well duck and weave, and spin a bit, as most politicians do, but Johnson trashes the truth completely and seems to believe the normal rules of probity don't apply to him.
It's a different level of dishonesty altogether.
I agree with you but believe you me if Starmer plays politics with these restrictions which have huge public support he risks damaging his own credibility at a time of national crisis
Boris is persona non grata to me now and as I said earlier today I am politically homeless for the first time in 60 years
Paging Anabobazina - Officials drawing up Plan C for after Christmas.
On the latter point - if they're panicked enough to move on to this purported "plan C" then we'll be back to full lockdown about a week later, because it will do no good. Bringing back ridiculous Covid theatre mask pantomimes in restaurants, and trying to reimpose contact isolation rules (when trying to identify contacts outside of households is difficult, and a large fraction of those actually found will doubtless ignore orders,) will do the square root of naff all to suppress something that looks like it is even more transmissible than Delta.
The only thing that might work is a return to the lockdown rules from a year ago, i.e. house arrest for the whole population for months on end, including a total shutdown of the schools and shitty remote learning. And, given that a substantial chunk of the population is forced to go to a physical workplace to do their job, many people are so exhausted of the whole thing that they will ignore further entreaties not to socialise at each others' homes, and that most of us will still have to go grocery shopping at regular intervals, even that might not be enough.
Indeed, for the long-term good of the nation as a collective (as distinct from all the poor bloody individuals who became ill whilst all the hospitals were burning down,) it would probably be for the best if Omicron transpired to be completely unstoppable. We can't keep going on as we are forever. If all restrictions became useless then they would necessarily come to an end, and we wouldn't have to spend the rest of our lives wondering what we will and won't be allowed to do from one minute to the next.
The stupid thing with the wallpaper story is why would anyone want to spend so much money redecorating a flat you don't even own? With a 30k allowance couldn't they just do one room a year?
It definitely feels if Boris goes that Carrie will have played a big part in it (and getting rid of Cummings)
Labour should vote *against* on the grounds that a decent case for the various measures actually has not been made.
(As opposed to anti-NPIs on principle, which is motivating some Tory votes).
How can they when Starmer uses Drakeford as his example of dealing with covid and his support for vaxports
Sadly, outside Wales, nobody cares what Drakeford does.
Starmer does and it is on record
I know you'd much rather that Johnson was a paragon virtue and honesty compared to Starmer but I'm afraid it ain't so Big_G.
Starmer may well duck and weave, and spin a bit, as most politicians do, but Johnson trashes the truth completely and seems to believe the normal rules of probity don't apply to him.
It's a different level of dishonesty altogether.
I agree with you but believe you me if Starmer plays politics with these restrictions which have huge public support he risks damaging his own credibility at a time of national crisis
Boris is persona non grata to me now and as I said earlier today I am politically homeless for the first time in 60 years
4 point poll lead after all this? That is all Starmer has got?
The trend, my friend, the trend. Boris has fucked it all up. Very difficult to see how he charts a path back from here
The shame of it is he had the seeds of greatness in him. He is defeated by his own flaws - the laziness, the inability to obey rules, the willingness to let others do stupid things because he likes them. Also a total lack of strategic nous
He's a tactician. He's a superb electoral campaigner. The best the Tories have. Also their best communicator. I can see why you want to cling on to him. But at some point he begins to drag all the Tories down and that moment is very close
The stupid thing with the wallpaper story is why would anyone want to spend so much money redecorating a flat you don't even own? With a 30k allowance couldn't they just do one room a year?
It definitely feels if Boris goes that Carrie will have played a big part in it (and getting rid of Cummings)
People who cannot afford wallpaper shouldn't be having kids.
Tomorrow's front page i is very interesting and not going to be pleasant viewing at No.10. It says that the contenders to replace Johnson are starting to circle. Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss in particular.
It bemuses me when loyalists try to defend the indefensible. Johnson's position is rapidly becoming untenable. His serial lying, dishonesty and chaotic living is catching up with him.
John Major was nowhere near as bad a prime minister as Johnson, and the chaos nowhere near as acute, but all of this reminds me of the 1992-7 government.
The longer Johnson continues like this the more a repeat 1997 General Election result is likely.
What rubbish, Starmer can only get a 6% poll lead tonight. Even Ed Miliband and Kinnock managed 10%+ leads, Blair had 20%+ leads.
Plus unless polling comes out showing Sunak or Truss well ahead of Starmer, Boris will be going nowhere
Fair point- there's a bit in Alan Clark's diary account of 1990 where he bumps into Bob Worcester(?) with some polling on how well John Major was going down with the public. That mattered. And one thing that saved JM in 1995 was that there was nobody else who looked like winning either- certainly not Redwood.
But you and Boris should also see a warning there. We're a long way from that point now, but BoJo needs to be alert to the possibility that he hangs around stinking up the place so much that there's no point anyone else taking over because it's too late to turn the ship round.
Any comparison is, however, invalid. Major was seen as an honest sort trying to control a cretinous and corrupt bunch. The current incumbent isn't. Nor is he trying to.
France has no plans to join a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, President Emmanuel Macron has said. Mr Macron said any such move would be insignificant and merely symbolic. The US, UK, Canada and Australia have said they will not send government representatives to the February games because of concerns over China's human rights record.
Labour should vote *against* on the grounds that a decent case for the various measures actually has not been made.
(As opposed to anti-NPIs on principle, which is motivating some Tory votes).
How can they when Starmer uses Drakeford as his example of dealing with covid and his support for vaxports
Sadly, outside Wales, nobody cares what Drakeford does.
Starmer does and it is on record
I know you'd much rather that Johnson was a paragon virtue and honesty compared to Starmer but I'm afraid it ain't so Big_G.
Starmer may well duck and weave, and spin a bit, as most politicians do, but Johnson trashes the truth completely and seems to believe the normal rules of probity don't apply to him.
It's a different level of dishonesty altogether.
I agree with you but believe you me if Starmer plays politics with these restrictions which have huge public support he risks damaging his own credibility at a time of national crisis
Boris is persona non grata to me now and as I said earlier today I am politically homeless for the first time in 60 years
Do you support these restrictions?
Not vaxports for pubs and restaurants
I don’t agree i think with Starmer’s desire for tougher restrictions, but he can legitimately oppose Plan B on the grounds that it there is a lack of supporting info (and finance).
Three quarters of people believe that there was a Christmas party in which coronavirus rules were broken and 68 per cent of those polled believe Johnson was not telling the truth when he denied it. Two thirds think that Johnson himself has probably not followed the rules.
One in five Conservative voters said that the government’s response to the allegations made them trust it less. Almost 60 per cent of voters said they had personally watched the clips, with 61 per cent of those saying the video had made them feel angry and 44 per cent saying they felt betrayed.
I know there have been plenty of approved drugs that have later proved to have very unfortunate side effects, but has that actually been the case with any vaccines?
I remember the whole MMR causing autism rubbish, but I can't think of any real vaccine scandals. I don't want to google it because I know I'll find mostly antivax bullshit.
I don't understand the whole antivax movement at all.
Vaccination, along with the discovery of penicillin, is probably the greatest advance in medical history. I'm sure a lot of anti vaxxers are mentally ill.
They're also indulged too much. If we do end up back in lockdown or something like it this Winter, it won't so much be the fault of the new variant as it will the reservoir of individuals who put the healthcare system in continuous jeopardy by their stubborn refusal to have a scratch on the arm every few months. If the hospitals scream that they're completely unable to cope with more Covid patients then you can be almost certain that most of them will be unvaccinated.
It's time to treat this pandemic how it should be treated: as a war in which the socio-economic survival of the nation is at stake. Vaccination should be thought of as analogous to conscription: mandatory and unavoidable, unless there is a sound medical reason why an individual should be excused it. Sound medical reasons do not include needle phobia, veganism, not trusting the Tories, or having read something scary that's been promulgated by some charlatan on WhatsApp.
Those who draft dodge should not continue to be tolerated and ought, if necessary, to have their lives made unbearable to force them to give in. If vaccination for pretty much everyone, save a handful of medical exemptions, is all that is going to get us out of an endless cycle of restrictions then that is what must happen, and it must happen as quickly as possible.
No
Yes. If the alternative is perma-lockdown then they should be made to suffer until they give in. End of.
One of my fears is a wounded Johnson could be very unpredictable. If after a sleep deprived night he wakes up having thought of a wizard wheeze to rekindle his popularity, and by lunchtime we are at war with China
France has no plans to join a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, President Emmanuel Macron has said. Mr Macron said any such move would be insignificant and merely symbolic. The US, UK, Canada and Australia have said they will not send government representatives to the February games because of concerns over China's human rights record.
Labour should vote *against* on the grounds that a decent case for the various measures actually has not been made.
(As opposed to anti-NPIs on principle, which is motivating some Tory votes).
How can they when Starmer uses Drakeford as his example of dealing with covid and his support for vaxports
Sadly, outside Wales, nobody cares what Drakeford does.
Starmer does and it is on record
I know you'd much rather that Johnson was a paragon virtue and honesty compared to Starmer but I'm afraid it ain't so Big_G.
Starmer may well duck and weave, and spin a bit, as most politicians do, but Johnson trashes the truth completely and seems to believe the normal rules of probity don't apply to him.
It's a different level of dishonesty altogether.
I agree with you but believe you me if Starmer plays politics with these restrictions which have huge public support he risks damaging his own credibility at a time of national crisis
Boris is persona non grata to me now and as I said earlier today I am politically homeless for the first time in 60 years
Do you support these restrictions?
Not vaxports for pubs and restaurants
Well they aren’t in this bill, so irrelevant to the question. Do you support Plan B?
4 point poll lead after all this? That is all Starmer has got?
The trend, my friend, the trend. Boris has fucked it all up. Very difficult to see how he charts a path back from here
The shame of it is he had the seeds of greatness in him. He is defeated by his own flaws - the laziness, the inability to obey rules, the willingness to let others do stupid things because he likes them. Also a total lack of strategic nous
He's a tactician. He's a superb electoral campaigner. The best the Tories have. Also their best communicator. I can see why you want to cling on to him. But at some point he begins to drag all the Tories down and that moment is very close
Once something as serious as this cuts through then there is no way back as happened with Ratner
Boris has been found out and no longer it Is Boris being Boris and his charisma will not save him
I really hope he takes the decision to stand down
As I have said I am politically homeless but with a new leader I would rejoin the party
Tomorrow's front page i is very interesting and not going to be pleasant viewing at No.10. It says that the contenders to replace Johnson are starting to circle. Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss in particular.
It bemuses me when loyalists try to defend the indefensible. Johnson's position is rapidly becoming untenable. His serial lying, dishonesty and chaotic living is catching up with him.
John Major was nowhere near as bad a prime minister as Johnson, and the chaos nowhere near as acute, but all of this reminds me of the 1992-7 government.
The longer Johnson continues like this the more a repeat 1997 General Election result is likely.
What rubbish, Starmer can only get a 6% poll lead tonight. Even Ed Miliband and Kinnock managed 10%+ leads, Blair had 20%+ leads.
Plus unless polling comes out showing Sunak or Truss well ahead of Starmer, Boris will be going nowhere
Fair point- there's a bit in Alan Clark's diary account of 1990 where he bumps into Bob Worcester(?) with some polling on how well John Major was going down with the public. That mattered. And one thing that saved JM in 1995 was that there was nobody else who looked like winning either- certainly not Redwood.
But you and Boris should also see a warning there. We're a long way from that point now, but BoJo needs to be alert to the possibility that he hangs around stinking up the place so much that there's no point anyone else taking over because it's too late to turn the ship round.
Somehow doubt that Boris Johnson much cares what happens after he leaves center stage.
He's an "après moi, le déluge" kind of guy. Like You-Know-Who in Mar-a-Lardo.
Paging Anabobazina - Officials drawing up Plan C for after Christmas.
On the latter point - if they're panicked enough to move on to this purported "plan C" then we'll be back to full lockdown about a week later, because it will do no good. Bringing back ridiculous Covid theatre mask pantomimes in restaurants, and trying to reimpose contact isolation rules (when trying to identify contacts outside of households is difficult, and a large fraction of those actually found will doubtless ignore orders,) will do the square root of naff all to suppress something that looks like it is even more transmissible than Delta.
The only thing that might work is a return to the lockdown rules from a year ago, i.e. house arrest for the whole population for months on end, including a total shutdown of the schools and shitty remote learning. And, given that a substantial chunk of the population is forced to go to a physical workplace to do their job, many people are so exhausted of the whole thing that they will ignore further entreaties not to socialise at each others' homes, and that most of us will still have to go grocery shopping at regular intervals, even that might not be enough.
Indeed, for the long-term good of the nation as a collective (as distinct from all the poor bloody individuals who became ill whilst all the hospitals were burning down,) it would probably be for the best if Omicron transpired to be completely unstoppable. We can't keep going on as we are forever. If all restrictions became useless then they would necessarily come to an end, and we wouldn't have to spend the rest of our lives wondering what we will and won't be allowed to do from one minute to the next.
I believe that is what is headed our way. A wave so powerful any lockdown is pointless. And lockdown will do great economic and psychosocial damage and yet won't save many lives (if any, it might even kill more that it saves).
That doesn't mean governments, including our own, won't try for a lockdown. They very possibly will. Because it is seen as "doing something". But Omicron looks so transmissible the only way to stop it is a mixture of New Zealand and China, and that is just not do-able in the UK (or much of the world)
The stupid thing with the wallpaper story is why would anyone want to spend so much money redecorating a flat you don't even own? With a 30k allowance couldn't they just do one room a year?
It definitely feels if Boris goes that Carrie will have played a big part in it (and getting rid of Cummings)
People who cannot afford wallpaper shouldn't be having kids.
4 point poll lead after all this? That is all Starmer has got?
The trend, my friend, the trend. Boris has fucked it all up. Very difficult to see how he charts a path back from here
The shame of it is he had the seeds of greatness in him. He is defeated by his own flaws - the laziness, the inability to obey rules, the willingness to let others do stupid things because he likes them. Also a total lack of strategic nous
He's a tactician. He's a superb electoral campaigner. The best the Tories have. Also their best communicator. I can see why you want to cling on to him. But at some point he begins to drag all the Tories down and that moment is very close
The trend? You would have thought Starmer would have a double digit poll lead from this without problem.
When ungrateful Tory MPs who owed their seats to Maggie removed her the Tory party lost 3 out of 4 of the following general elections. If ungrateful Tory MPs who similarly owe their seats to Boris, our greatest election winner since Thatcher, remove him our party could be out of power for a generation and if it is one could say deservedly so
One of my fears is a wounded Johnson could be very unpredictable. If after a sleep deprived night he wakes up having thought of a wizard wheeze to rekindle his popularity, and by lunchtime we are at war with China
Do you often fear a wounded Johnson? Have you considered therapy?
4 point poll lead after all this? That is all Starmer has got?
The trend, my friend, the trend. Boris has fucked it all up. Very difficult to see how he charts a path back from here
The shame of it is he had the seeds of greatness in him. He is defeated by his own flaws - the laziness, the inability to obey rules, the willingness to let others do stupid things because he likes them. Also a total lack of strategic nous
He's a tactician. He's a superb electoral campaigner. The best the Tories have. Also their best communicator. I can see why you want to cling on to him. But at some point he begins to drag all the Tories down and that moment is very close
The trend? You would have thought Starmer would have a double digit poll lead by this without problem.
When ungrateful Tory MPs who owed their seats to Maggie removed her the Tory party lost 3 out of 4 of the following general elections. If ungrateful Tory MPs who similarly owe their seats to Boris, our greatest election winner since Thatcher, remove him our party could be out of power for a generation and one could say deservedly so
The stupid thing with the wallpaper story is why would anyone want to spend so much money redecorating a flat you don't even own? With a 30k allowance couldn't they just do one room a year?
It definitely feels if Boris goes that Carrie will have played a big part in it (and getting rid of Cummings)
People who cannot afford wallpaper shouldn't be having kids.
Labour should vote *against* on the grounds that a decent case for the various measures actually has not been made.
(As opposed to anti-NPIs on principle, which is motivating some Tory votes).
How can they when Starmer uses Drakeford as his example of dealing with covid and his support for vaxports
Sadly, outside Wales, nobody cares what Drakeford does.
Starmer does and it is on record
I know you'd much rather that Johnson was a paragon virtue and honesty compared to Starmer but I'm afraid it ain't so Big_G.
Starmer may well duck and weave, and spin a bit, as most politicians do, but Johnson trashes the truth completely and seems to believe the normal rules of probity don't apply to him.
It's a different level of dishonesty altogether.
I agree with you but believe you me if Starmer plays politics with these restrictions which have huge public support he risks damaging his own credibility at a time of national crisis
Boris is persona non grata to me now and as I said earlier today I am politically homeless for the first time in 60 years
Do you support these restrictions?
Not vaxports for pubs and restaurants
Well they aren’t in this bill, so irrelevant to the question. Do you support Plan B?
The stupid thing with the wallpaper story is why would anyone want to spend so much money redecorating a flat you don't even own? With a 30k allowance couldn't they just do one room a year?
It definitely feels if Boris goes that Carrie will have played a big part in it (and getting rid of Cummings)
People who cannot afford wallpaper shouldn't be having kids.
I've started building up small stakes on anti-lockdown Tories. One of them will make it through to the final two against a better established candidate IMO and once we get to a final two a slick MP like Mark Harper could actually win against someone dull like Javid.
I do care what all this is doing to Daughter's business. It has a feel of that week in March just before lockdown when people stayed away because of government messaging but there was no support. The Xmas season really matters to hospitality. Damaging it and providing no support is really malicious. And that applies to the SNP as well.
Labour should demand financial help as a condition of its support.
It won't. So while I am not a Boris supporter the prospect of Starmer in power doesn't enthuse me either, frankly.
Labour should vote *against* on the grounds that a decent case for the various measures actually has not been made.
(As opposed to anti-NPIs on principle, which is motivating some Tory votes).
How can they when Starmer uses Drakeford as his example of dealing with covid and his support for vaxports
Sadly, outside Wales, nobody cares what Drakeford does.
Starmer does and it is on record
I know you'd much rather that Johnson was a paragon virtue and honesty compared to Starmer but I'm afraid it ain't so Big_G.
Starmer may well duck and weave, and spin a bit, as most politicians do, but Johnson trashes the truth completely and seems to believe the normal rules of probity don't apply to him.
It's a different level of dishonesty altogether.
I agree with you but believe you me if Starmer plays politics with these restrictions which have huge public support he risks damaging his own credibility at a time of national crisis
Boris is persona non grata to me now and as I said earlier today I am politically homeless for the first time in 60 years
Do you support these restrictions?
Not vaxports for pubs and restaurants
Well they aren’t in this bill, so irrelevant to the question. Do you support Plan B?
“He's on his way to the fires of Mount Doom if things don't improve dramatically.” Tory MP ahead of a torrid seven days for @BorisJohnsonhttps://on.ft.com/31DSKE2
Previous generations of Conservative Party MPs probably quoted TS Elliott, thing, something I can’t remember, rising up from a abyss and slouching to Bethlehem, that if he doesn’t put his house in order. They only aspect is alpha mail perhaps, they can’t get head round he is not the one wearing the trousers, because all of it, wallpaper, dogs rescue, parties in the the flat, it’s all because of that isn’t it? And girls are to be pretty, and good at organising dinner, and presenting their arse for a whack as they sit down. And all of that together is pretty much how it has been for too long now isn’t it?
Three quarters of people believe that there was a Christmas party in which coronavirus rules were broken and 68 per cent of those polled believe Johnson was not telling the truth when he denied it. Two thirds think that Johnson himself has probably not followed the rules.
One in five Conservative voters said that the government’s response to the allegations made them trust it less. Almost 60 per cent of voters said they had personally watched the clips, with 61 per cent of those saying the video had made them feel angry and 44 per cent saying they felt betrayed.
One of my fears is a wounded Johnson could be very unpredictable. If after a sleep deprived night he wakes up having thought of a wizard wheeze to rekindle his popularity, and by lunchtime we are at war with China
The stupid thing with the wallpaper story is why would anyone want to spend so much money redecorating a flat you don't even own? With a 30k allowance couldn't they just do one room a year?
It definitely feels if Boris goes that Carrie will have played a big part in it (and getting rid of Cummings)
People who cannot afford wallpaper shouldn't be having kids.
That's a bit of an old school tory attitude....
I'm a proper Tory, the only true Tory here.
No. You're a Remainer
Not only that but a Remainer republican who voted LD in 2019 and 2017, he is now as Tory as Ed Davey
Starmer so rubbish he’s 6 points ahead and positive on approval
Perceptions of Starmer lag the movement in the polls.
Much of Starmer's substantially negative approval stemmed simply from a proportion of Labour supporters being aware of and dismayed that Labour was still behind in the polls over the Summer. If you can't get overwhelming approval from your own side, then once the other side is added in of course you're going to be in strong negative territory.
As the realisation grows that Labour is actually ahead, then Labour supporters will question the "Starmer is crap" narrative. I expect Starmer's approval rating to improve further even if Labour sustains only a modest poll lead.
“He's on his way to the fires of Mount Doom if things don't improve dramatically.” Tory MP ahead of a torrid seven days for @BorisJohnsonhttps://on.ft.com/31DSKE2
Previous generations of Conservative Party MPs probably quoted TS Elliott, thing, something I can’t remember, rising up from a abyss and slouching to Bethlehem, that if he doesn’t put his house in order. They only aspect is alpha mail perhaps, they can’t get head round he is not the one wearing the trousers, because all of it, wallpaper, dogs rescue, parties in the the flat, it’s all because of that isn’t it? And girls are to be pretty, and good at organising dinner, and presenting their arse for a whack as they sit down. And all of that together is pretty much how it has been for too long now isn’t it?
A week is a long time in politics. Bloody hell
The one thing Boris has on his side - the only thing - Is the overwhelming cascade of events as we hurtle towards Christmas. For sure we are facing a reckoning from OMICRON THE RATNERISER, but we might also see an actual war in Eurasia.
Either or both of these would be sufficient to blot out the immediate stench of sleaze and lies coming from Number 10. At the other end of the crisis, where will we be? Living in smoking, irradiated ruins? Cui bono then?
Boris' hope must be that he lasts the next week and then the world will be distracted by new horrors.
4 point poll lead after all this? That is all Starmer has got?
The trend, my friend, the trend. Boris has fucked it all up. Very difficult to see how he charts a path back from here
The shame of it is he had the seeds of greatness in him. He is defeated by his own flaws - the laziness, the inability to obey rules, the willingness to let others do stupid things because he likes them. Also a total lack of strategic nous
He's a tactician. He's a superb electoral campaigner. The best the Tories have. Also their best communicator. I can see why you want to cling on to him. But at some point he begins to drag all the Tories down and that moment is very close
The trend? You would have thought Starmer would have a double digit poll lead by this without problem.
When ungrateful Tory MPs who owed their seats to Maggie removed her the Tory party lost 3 out of 4 of the following general elections. If ungrateful Tory MPs who similarly owe their seats to Boris, our greatest election winner since Thatcher, remove him our party could be out of power for a generation and one could say deservedly so
We can but hope.
Says it all, leftwingers on here are as desperate for the Tories to get rid of Boris as rightwingers were for Labour to get rid of Blair.
As they knew that once the charismatic leader and election winner was toppled the remaining pygmies could easily be ripped to pieces and so it proved
I've started building up small stakes on anti-lockdown Tories. One of them will make it through to the final two against a better established candidate IMO and once we get to a final two a slick MP like Mark Harper could actually win against someone dull like Javid.
Mark Harper is available at 50 on BF, I got on at 55.
And just to speak in his favour, state school educated at a comprehensive, went to Oxford under his own steam, became a chartered accountant, had a hugely successful career outside of politics in the tech industry.
The stupid thing with the wallpaper story is why would anyone want to spend so much money redecorating a flat you don't even own? With a 30k allowance couldn't they just do one room a year?
It definitely feels if Boris goes that Carrie will have played a big part in it (and getting rid of Cummings)
People who cannot afford wallpaper shouldn't be having kids.
That's a bit of an old school tory attitude....
I'm a proper Tory, the only true Tory here.
No. You're a Remainer
Until 2016 that was Tory policy, and what could be more Tory than turning the clock back?
4 point poll lead after all this? That is all Starmer has got?
The trend, my friend, the trend. Boris has fucked it all up. Very difficult to see how he charts a path back from here
The shame of it is he had the seeds of greatness in him. He is defeated by his own flaws - the laziness, the inability to obey rules, the willingness to let others do stupid things because he likes them. Also a total lack of strategic nous
He's a tactician. He's a superb electoral campaigner. The best the Tories have. Also their best communicator. I can see why you want to cling on to him. But at some point he begins to drag all the Tories down and that moment is very close
The trend? You would have thought Starmer would have a double digit poll lead by this without problem.
When ungrateful Tory MPs who owed their seats to Maggie removed her the Tory party lost 3 out of 4 of the following general elections. If ungrateful Tory MPs who similarly owe their seats to Boris, our greatest election winner since Thatcher, remove him our party could be out of power for a generation and one could say deservedly so
We can but hope.
Says it all, leftwingers on here are as desperate for the Tories to get rid of Boris as rightwingers were for Labour to get rid of Blair.
As they knew that once the charismatic leader and election winner was toppled the remaining pygmies could easily be ripped to pieces and so it proved
HYUFD, sometimes we disagree. Particularly when you are wrong like on IHT.
But I do appreciate the fair way that you deal with all of the nastiness on here so you are a good person.
One of my fears is a wounded Johnson could be very unpredictable. If after a sleep deprived night he wakes up having thought of a wizard wheeze to rekindle his popularity, and by lunchtime we are at war with China
I've started building up small stakes on anti-lockdown Tories. One of them will make it through to the final two against a better established candidate IMO and once we get to a final two a slick MP like Mark Harper could actually win against someone dull like Javid.
Mark Harper is available at 50 on BF, I got on at 55.
And just to speak in his favour, state school educated at a comprehensive, went to Oxford under his own steam, became a chartered accountant, had a hugely successful career outside of politics in the tech industry.
4 point poll lead after all this? That is all Starmer has got?
The trend, my friend, the trend. Boris has fucked it all up. Very difficult to see how he charts a path back from here
The shame of it is he had the seeds of greatness in him. He is defeated by his own flaws - the laziness, the inability to obey rules, the willingness to let others do stupid things because he likes them. Also a total lack of strategic nous
He's a tactician. He's a superb electoral campaigner. The best the Tories have. Also their best communicator. I can see why you want to cling on to him. But at some point he begins to drag all the Tories down and that moment is very close
The trend? You would have thought Starmer would have a double digit poll lead from this without problem.
When ungrateful Tory MPs who owed their seats to Maggie removed her the Tory party lost 3 out of 4 of the following general elections. If ungrateful Tory MPs who similarly owe their seats to Boris, our greatest election winner since Thatcher, remove him our party could be out of power for a generation and if it is one could say deservedly so
I am not going to have a go at you again, but can you not see how much damage this has done to Boris personally and his authority is draining away minute by minute
You want a conservative government but the polling evidence quoted by @TheScreamingEagles at 10.32 should make you realise just how much damage goods Boris now is and is making it more unlikely as he continues in office
4 point poll lead after all this? That is all Starmer has got?
The trend, my friend, the trend. Boris has fucked it all up. Very difficult to see how he charts a path back from here
The shame of it is he had the seeds of greatness in him. He is defeated by his own flaws - the laziness, the inability to obey rules, the willingness to let others do stupid things because he likes them. Also a total lack of strategic nous
He's a tactician. He's a superb electoral campaigner. The best the Tories have. Also their best communicator. I can see why you want to cling on to him. But at some point he begins to drag all the Tories down and that moment is very close
The trend? You would have thought Starmer would have a double digit poll lead by this without problem.
When ungrateful Tory MPs who owed their seats to Maggie removed her the Tory party lost 3 out of 4 of the following general elections. If ungrateful Tory MPs who similarly owe their seats to Boris, our greatest election winner since Thatcher, remove him our party could be out of power for a generation and one could say deservedly so
We can but hope.
Says it all, leftwingers on here are as desperate for the Tories to get rid of Boris as rightwingers were for Labour to get rid of Blair.
As they knew that once the charismatic leader and election winner was toppled the remaining pygmies could easily be ripped to pieces and so it proved
Winning elections without Blair is a rareity for Labour. The Tories have won with plenty of different leaders.
I've started building up small stakes on anti-lockdown Tories. One of them will make it through to the final two against a better established candidate IMO and once we get to a final two a slick MP like Mark Harper could actually win against someone dull like Javid.
Mark Harper is available at 50 on BF, I got on at 55.
And just to speak in his favour, state school educated at a comprehensive, went to Oxford under his own steam, became a chartered accountant, had a hugely successful career outside of politics in the tech industry.
Steve Baker is worth a punt on the same basis.
Not sure he's really considered as a serious figure with fellow MPs
I've started building up small stakes on anti-lockdown Tories. One of them will make it through to the final two against a better established candidate IMO and once we get to a final two a slick MP like Mark Harper could actually win against someone dull like Javid.
Mark Harper is available at 50 on BF, I got on at 55.
And just to speak in his favour, state school educated at a comprehensive, went to Oxford under his own steam, became a chartered accountant, had a hugely successful career outside of politics in the tech industry.
Steve Baker is worth a punt on the same basis.
Maybe, but probably won't be as popular with the rank and file, he's also unlikely to run.
Comments
Tories = England
I am interested in what works, vaccine passports won't. I don't even believe they will really drive much uptake among the "state injectable" antivaxxers, especially if you can still claim you did a LFT.
It just goes to prove that compared to Johnson average performers look impressive.
But they do for 10 days if either of the positives comes back omicron.
AIUI at least.
Whitehall insiders said Geidt was “deeply unhappy” that he may have been misled.
https://www.ft.com/content/c2c52638-b8f1-4efb-9019-db6b785b47a8
Starmer may well duck and weave, and spin a bit, as most politicians do, but Johnson trashes the truth completely and seems to believe the normal rules of probity don't apply to him.
It's a different level of dishonesty altogether.
I’ve drunk too much red wine again 🤦♀️
Last week the Tories had a 3 point lead.
What did he expect talking to Johnson?
It makes every tory in a marginal seat start to think about other riders and runners.
Boris is persona non grata to me now and as I said earlier today I am politically homeless for the first time in 60 years
Ratner.
But you and Boris should also see a warning there. We're a long way from that point now, but BoJo needs to be alert to the possibility that he hangs around stinking up the place so much that there's no point anyone else taking over because it's too late to turn the ship round.
Total cut through.
Only could be worse if Rose Ayling-Ellis says she is voting Starmer.
Lab 37 (+4)
Con 33 (-3)
The only thing that might work is a return to the lockdown rules from a year ago, i.e. house arrest for the whole population for months on end, including a total shutdown of the schools and shitty remote learning. And, given that a substantial chunk of the population is forced to go to a physical workplace to do their job, many people are so exhausted of the whole thing that they will ignore further entreaties not to socialise at each others' homes, and that most of us will still have to go grocery shopping at regular intervals, even that might not be enough.
Indeed, for the long-term good of the nation as a collective (as distinct from all the poor bloody individuals who became ill whilst all the hospitals were burning down,) it would probably be for the best if Omicron transpired to be completely unstoppable. We can't keep going on as we are forever. If all restrictions became useless then they would necessarily come to an end, and we wouldn't have to spend the rest of our lives wondering what we will and won't be allowed to do from one minute to the next.
It definitely feels if Boris goes that Carrie will have played a big part in it (and getting rid of Cummings)
The shame of it is he had the seeds of greatness in him. He is defeated by his own flaws - the laziness, the inability to obey rules, the willingness to let others do stupid things because he likes them. Also a total lack of strategic nous
He's a tactician. He's a superb electoral campaigner. The best the Tories have. Also their best communicator. I can see why you want to cling on to him. But at some point he begins to drag all the Tories down and that moment is very close
Major was seen as an honest sort trying to control a cretinous and corrupt bunch.
The current incumbent isn't. Nor is he trying to.
Within 3 years Boris will lead CON to another GE win, not necessarily with a 'majority increase' but enough for a full term.
If I'm not banned I hope to be here, let's see how many of Boris' detractors today will be here.
Anyway GN all enjoy the cricket.
👍
If I were a Tory MP with a majority short of 10 000, then I would be getting a bit sweaty though.
Mr Macron said any such move would be insignificant and merely symbolic.
The US, UK, Canada and Australia have said they will not send government representatives to the February games because of concerns over China's human rights record.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-59599063
One in five Conservative voters said that the government’s response to the allegations made them trust it less. Almost 60 per cent of voters said they had personally watched the clips, with 61 per cent of those saying the video had made them feel angry and 44 per cent saying they felt betrayed.
YouGov
Some people liked that, but it's not great communication.
Boris has been found out and no longer it Is Boris being Boris and his charisma will not save him
I really hope he takes the decision to stand down
As I have said I am politically homeless but with a new leader I would rejoin the party
He's an "après moi, le déluge" kind of guy. Like You-Know-Who in Mar-a-Lardo.
That doesn't mean governments, including our own, won't try for a lockdown. They very possibly will. Because it is seen as "doing something". But Omicron looks so transmissible the only way to stop it is a mixture of New Zealand and China, and that is just not do-able in the UK (or much of the world)
But he is able to achieve amazing reach. He has a showman’s flair for publicity.
When ungrateful Tory MPs who owed their seats to Maggie removed her the Tory party lost 3 out of 4 of the following general elections. If ungrateful Tory MPs who similarly owe their seats to Boris, our greatest election winner since Thatcher, remove him our party could be out of power for a generation and if it is one could say deservedly so
Have you considered therapy?
I do not like restrictions and on balance no
I do care what all this is doing to Daughter's business. It has a feel of that week in March just before lockdown when people stayed away because of government messaging but there was no support. The Xmas season really matters to hospitality. Damaging it and providing no support is really malicious. And that applies to the SNP as well.
Labour should demand financial help as a condition of its support.
It won't. So while I am not a Boris supporter the prospect of Starmer in power doesn't enthuse me either, frankly.
https://twitter.com/AllieHBNews/status/1469073924965244938?s=20
They only aspect is alpha mail perhaps, they can’t get head round he is not the one wearing the trousers, because all of it, wallpaper, dogs rescue, parties in the the flat, it’s all because of that isn’t it? And girls are to be pretty, and good at organising dinner, and presenting their arse for a whack as they sit down. And all of that together is pretty much how it has been for too long now isn’t it?
A week is a long time in politics. Bloody hell
Much of Starmer's substantially negative approval stemmed simply from a proportion of Labour supporters being aware of and dismayed that Labour was still behind in the polls over the Summer. If you can't get overwhelming approval from your own side, then once the other side is added in of course you're going to be in strong negative territory.
As the realisation grows that Labour is actually ahead, then Labour supporters will question the "Starmer is crap" narrative. I expect Starmer's approval rating to improve further even if Labour sustains only a modest poll lead.
Either or both of these would be sufficient to blot out the immediate stench of sleaze and lies coming from Number 10. At the other end of the crisis, where will we be? Living in smoking, irradiated ruins? Cui bono then?
Boris' hope must be that he lasts the next week and then the world will be distracted by new horrors.
Great!
As they knew that once the charismatic leader and election winner was toppled the remaining pygmies could easily be ripped to pieces and so it proved
And just to speak in his favour, state school educated at a comprehensive, went to Oxford under his own steam, became a chartered accountant, had a hugely successful career outside of politics in the tech industry.
But I do appreciate the fair way that you deal with all of the nastiness on here so you are a good person.
❤️
Good Sun front cover, incidentally.
You want a conservative government but the polling evidence quoted by @TheScreamingEagles at 10.32 should make you realise just how much damage goods Boris now is and is making it more unlikely as he continues in office