politicalbetting.com » Blog Archive » There’s been definite damage to Boris Johnson in the polls following Dominic’s Cummings and Goings
New in the @SavantaGroup / @SavantaComRes #covid19 daily tracker:– Boris Johnson’s approval rating is now at -1%. It was at +19% four days ago.– Overall government approval is now at -2%, dropping 16 points in a day.More: https://t.co/5AzgxudsUl
UK supercar maker and Formula 1 team McLaren plans to cut more than a quarter of its workforce after the coronavirus crisis hit sales and advertising revenue.
Which means Boris must go. You have played the Cummings saga with integrity, but you can also see that that is the natural consequence of him going (and yes, when cabinet ministers - plural - are on the air defending him, it's got to be all over).
Whatever plan Dom has (as noted by @Monkeys, he certainly has some kind of plan), it's clear that Boris has none. Hence what would drive government? A sub-par PM who loses his strategic direction. Bad and bad.
Where does that leave government, and the country?
UK supercar maker and Formula 1 team McLaren plans to cut more than a quarter of its workforce after the coronavirus crisis hit sales and advertising revenue.
Ftp. Whilst my original comment 're NE was flippant... We are running at 1400 new confirmed cases yesterday. And everyone seems to have gone back to normal up here. Confirmed new cases on March 23 lockdown day...927.
Which means Boris must go. You have played the Cummings saga with integrity, but you can also see that that is the natural consequence of him going (and yes, when cabinet ministers - plural - are on the air defending him, it's got to be all over).
Whatever plan Dom has (as noted by @Monkeys, he certainly has some kind of plan), it's clear that Boris has none. Hence what would drive government? A sub-par PM who loses his strategic direction. Bad and bad.
Where does that leave government, and the country?
A Priti Patel-led ERG-ite administration negotiating Brexit?
UK supercar maker and Formula 1 team McLaren plans to cut more than a quarter of its workforce after the coronavirus crisis hit sales and advertising revenue.
No-one is buying fancy cars, and aren't going to be for a while yet. Meanwhile the F1 teams are in the process of agreeing budget caps which are going to effectively limit the number of people working in the sport.
McLaren have been a success story over the past decade though, their automotive division making more than 5,000 supercars last year, and the product being reviewed favourably against their Italian competitors.
Good luck to those affected, there's going to be a lot more announcements of redundancies coming down the line from many business sectors hit by the shutdown.
Which means Boris must go. You have played the Cummings saga with integrity, but you can also see that that is the natural consequence of him going (and yes, when cabinet ministers - plural - are on the air defending him, it's got to be all over).
Whatever plan Dom has (as noted by @Monkeys, he certainly has some kind of plan), it's clear that Boris has none. Hence what would drive government? A sub-par PM who loses his strategic direction. Bad and bad.
Where does that leave government, and the country?
A Priti Patel-led ERG-ite administration negotiating Brexit?
It may well be, although at least we would know where we stood (cf at least the trains ran on time...).
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Ftp. Whilst my original comment 're NE was flippant... We are running at 1400 new confirmed cases yesterday. And everyone seems to have gone back to normal up here. Confirmed new cases on March 23 lockdown day...927.
Its not just the number that is important, its the proportion and number of tests. Before the lockdown the testing was very limited. Now we are testing 70,000 or more people a day, open to everyone with symptoms, and only finding 1000-2000 new cases. In addition, many of these cases may well be mild (i.e. not just those admitted to hospital, but people with symptoms in the community).
Which means Boris must go. You have played the Cummings saga with integrity, but you can also see that that is the natural consequence of him going (and yes, when cabinet ministers - plural - are on the air defending him, it's got to be all over).
Whatever plan Dom has (as noted by @Monkeys, he certainly has some kind of plan), it's clear that Boris has none. Hence what would drive government? A sub-par PM who loses his strategic direction. Bad and bad.
Where does that leave government, and the country?
Frightened to death when they think of tbe possible replacements. Patel? Raab? Williamson?
Which means Boris must go. You have played the Cummings saga with integrity, but you can also see that that is the natural consequence of him going (and yes, when cabinet ministers - plural - are on the air defending him, it's got to be all over).
Whatever plan Dom has (as noted by @Monkeys, he certainly has some kind of plan), it's clear that Boris has none. Hence what would drive government? A sub-par PM who loses his strategic direction. Bad and bad.
Where does that leave government, and the country?
Frightened to death when they think of tbe possible replacements. Patel? Raab? Williamson?
UK supercar maker and Formula 1 team McLaren plans to cut more than a quarter of its workforce after the coronavirus crisis hit sales and advertising revenue.
No-one is buying fancy cars, and aren't going to be for a while yet. Meanwhile the F1 teams are in the process of agreeing budget caps which are going to effectively limit the number of people working in the sport.
McLaren have been a success story over the past decade though, their automotive division making more than 5,000 supercars last year, and the product being reviewed favourably against their Italian competitors.
Good luck to those affected, there's going to be a lot more announcements of redundancies coming down the line from many business sectors hit by the shutdown.
The thing about McLaren is: brilliant driving experience but miserable ownership experience. You only have to look at how many sub 1,000 mile used cars they have in their dealer network to see something isn't right.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
Calling one of your own ministers a NOBODY calls into doubt why he was appointed by the PM in the first place.
Which means Boris must go. You have played the Cummings saga with integrity, but you can also see that that is the natural consequence of him going (and yes, when cabinet ministers - plural - are on the air defending him, it's got to be all over).
Whatever plan Dom has (as noted by @Monkeys, he certainly has some kind of plan), it's clear that Boris has none. Hence what would drive government? A sub-par PM who loses his strategic direction. Bad and bad.
Where does that leave government, and the country?
Frightened to death when they think of tbe possible replacements. Patel? Raab? Williamson?
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
He's more sensible than I gave him credit for. He's sitting on a tiny majority in Angus Robertson's old seat in Moray. Whilst he personally is (he hopes) over 4 years from a GE, there are Scottish Parliamentary elections in under 12 months.
I see even Jackson Carlaw has managed to call for Cummings to go now, so the Scottish Tories must have been in open revolt.
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
"Dear Prime Minister. The furore over Dominic Cummings has made me realise how utterly unimportant and insignificant I am and always will be. I might as well resign now as it won't make any difference either way. Yours ever..."
UK supercar maker and Formula 1 team McLaren plans to cut more than a quarter of its workforce after the coronavirus crisis hit sales and advertising revenue.
No-one is buying fancy cars, and aren't going to be for a while yet. Meanwhile the F1 teams are in the process of agreeing budget caps which are going to effectively limit the number of people working in the sport.
McLaren have been a success story over the past decade though, their automotive division making more than 5,000 supercars last year, and the product being reviewed favourably against their Italian competitors.
Good luck to those affected, there's going to be a lot more announcements of redundancies coming down the line from many business sectors hit by the shutdown.
The thing about McLaren is: brilliant driving experience but miserable ownership experience. You only have to look at how many sub 1,000 mile used cars they have in their dealer network to see something isn't right.
There have certainly been loads of complaints about dealership service, and of treating engines, gearboxes and hydraulic suspensions as sealed units in the earlier cars, leading to some whopping bills.
That said, a 2 year old 720S went for £150k at auction a couple of weeks ago, which is a huge bargain for the new buyer if not the original owner.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Let's hope you are correct.
There is loads more bumbling ineptitude to come from Boris over the next few years. However I fear you are wrong, a lot of Tory MPs are not happy with things as they are, how long do you think they are going to sit back and watch Starmer hand him his arse on a plate every week at PMQ's?
Interestingly a lot of the unrest is coming from the new "red wall" Tory MPs because I suspect that the "one rule for the elite, one for the plebs" line is playing particularly badly in those areas.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
How much of an electoral weakness was he the last two times he ran an electoral strategy and the entire weight of establishment politics and media said he had no chance?
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
If every single time there was a controversial person you let them go you're just inviting further controversy, further manufactured outrage and further scalp hunting.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
Boris will look like a useless dick if Cummings does go.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
Calling one of your own ministers a NOBODY calls into doubt why he was appointed by the PM in the first place.
He was a PUSS rather than a minister, they're the guys who do extra work for a minister but don't get a government salary for it.
If I see cabinet ministers resigning, I'll believe Cummings is actually in danger, at the moment I think the over-reaction of the Lobby mob acts in his favour.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
So your man made "Mr. Nobody" a minister? And I'm sure our resident Scots posters will have views as to why he’d appoint such a "Mr. Nobody" as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland.
Can we not talk about Brexit again? You know, just for a bit of variety.
Cummings chat is deeply boring.
Innovative ideas for getting out of this horrible lockdown would be much more interesting.
Easy one this, Google/Apple track and trace.
There.
If the government has any sense someone is already working on that behind the scenes. No reason the app can't be patched to run on a new backend is there?
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
What percentage are we at now, and what measures are they going to take to enforce their will? Moaning on Twitter can just as easily be interpreted as saving face as a decision to challenge Boris directly.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
He's more sensible than I gave him credit for. He's sitting on a tiny majority in Angus Robertson's old seat in Moray. Whilst he personally is (he hopes) over 4 years from a GE, there are Scottish Parliamentary elections in under 12 months.
I see even Jackson Carlaw has managed to call for Cummings to go now, so the Scottish Tories must have been in open revolt.
He called for him to consider his position. Carlaw can't even be firmer than that.
Big Dom considered his position already and likes it.
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
How much of an electoral weakness was he the last two times he ran an electoral strategy and the entire weight of establishment politics and media said he had no chance?
He was an eminence grise previously. He has now become the story and hitched to BJ.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
Calling one of your own ministers a NOBODY calls into doubt why he was appointed by the PM in the first place.
It also reminds Conservative MPs and ministers that Cummings is openly contemptuous of the whole political class.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
Calling one of your own ministers a NOBODY calls into doubt why he was appointed by the PM in the first place.
Because he was in a nobody role? He wasn't a Secretary of State.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
Boris will look like a useless dick if Cummings does go.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
What percentage are we at now, and what measures are they going to take to enforce their will? Moaning on Twitter can just as easily be interpreted as saving face as a decision to challenge Boris directly.
If 50% of Tory voters and 50% of Tory MPs and a majority of voters think you are toast, you are toast
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
Boris will look like a useless dick if Cummings does go.
As opposed to now, where he looks like a very stable genius?
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
What percentage are we at now, and what measures are they going to take to enforce their will? Moaning on Twitter can just as easily be interpreted as saving face as a decision to challenge Boris directly.
If 50% of Tory voters and 50% of Tory MPs and a majority of voters think you are toast, you are toast
Yes, the only question for me: will he resign or will he have to be sacked?
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
Calling one of your own ministers a NOBODY calls into doubt why he was appointed by the PM in the first place.
He was a PUSS rather than a minister, they're the guys who do extra work for a minister but don't get a government salary for it.
If I see cabinet ministers resigning, I'll believe Cummings is actually in danger, at the moment I think the over-reaction of the Lobby mob acts in his favour.
I thought USS got extra pay and rations, albeit small, but I could be wrong.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
Calling one of your own ministers a NOBODY calls into doubt why he was appointed by the PM in the first place.
It also reminds Conservative MPs and ministers that Cummings is openly contemptuous of the whole political class.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
At what rate? So far very few have and those who have are a veritable "Who's That?" list of MPs.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
Boris will look like a useless dick if Cummings does go.
Yes, Boris now can't sack him, it will show up his own weaknesses and willingness to bend to the mob.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
What percentage are we at now, and what measures are they going to take to enforce their will? Moaning on Twitter can just as easily be interpreted as saving face as a decision to challenge Boris directly.
If 50% of Tory voters and 50% of Tory MPs and a majority of voters think you are toast, you are toast
And once the flash in the pan dies down, how many will it be? Boris would be utterly stupid to show weakness at this point - whatever damage is going to be done has already been done.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
Calling one of your own ministers a NOBODY calls into doubt why he was appointed by the PM in the first place.
Because he was in a nobody role? He wasn't a Secretary of State.
Yeah, because it makes everyone look classy, and could have no ill effects in Scotland, none at all.
Can we not talk about Brexit again? You know, just for a bit of variety.
Cummings chat is deeply boring.
Innovative ideas for getting out of this horrible lockdown would be much more interesting.
Easy one this, Google/Apple track and trace.
There.
If the government has any sense someone is already working on that behind the scenes. No reason the app can't be patched to run on a new backend is there?
Privacy requirements of the Google / Apple solution - you are fundamentally changing how it works so you can't patch it.
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
If every single time there was a controversial person you let them go you're just inviting further controversy, further manufactured outrage and further scalp hunting.
Yes of course you can't let the press hound you main man out of office because where does it end?
Unless that main man has become a vote-losing liability who rather than occupy a weird blue-sky thinking space in your government, now serves only to give your opponents ammunition against you.
Them and us.
Boris could reclaim the "we can't have people lording over us all" mantle, especially as he is a survivor and managed to follow the rules. He would be golden.
That said, what would happen to government policy without its policy-maker? Gawd knows but that's a different issue.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
Calling one of your own ministers a NOBODY calls into doubt why he was appointed by the PM in the first place.
He was a PUSS rather than a minister, they're the guys who do extra work for a minister but don't get a government salary for it.
If I see cabinet ministers resigning, I'll believe Cummings is actually in danger, at the moment I think the over-reaction of the Lobby mob acts in his favour.
You’re getting mixed up with PPSs who are the unpaid bag carriers. Parliamentary Under Secretaries of State are junior Ministers and get a salary.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
What percentage are we at now, and what measures are they going to take to enforce their will? Moaning on Twitter can just as easily be interpreted as saving face as a decision to challenge Boris directly.
If 50% of Tory voters and 50% of Tory MPs and a majority of voters think you are toast, you are toast
And once the flash in the pan dies down, how many will it be? Boris would be utterly stupid to show weakness at this point - whatever damage is going to be done has already been done.
With or without a second wave, further damage will be incurred from the loss of trust.
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
If every single time there was a controversial person you let them go you're just inviting further controversy, further manufactured outrage and further scalp hunting.
You're getting more and more ridiculous. This is about the most powerful political advisor demonstrating blatant contempt for
"Stay home. Protect the NHS. Save lives"
(then getting lost in a labyrinth of laughable excuses for it just makes it more politically damaging for Johnson).
It's not about sacking every "controversial person" because they are controversial.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
What percentage are we at now, and what measures are they going to take to enforce their will? Moaning on Twitter can just as easily be interpreted as saving face as a decision to challenge Boris directly.
I appreciate this post may not age well (and I only half apologise for using the language of the current vogue), but I agree he's OK for now as long as the coverage curve has peaked.
News of a ministerial resignation or doctored blogposts aren't great, but they probably only prolong the peak rather than ramp it up.
I'm not sure I agree that it's stubbornness in the face of whining, though. But having invested this much political capital in hanging on to him, Cummings and Johnson are IMO not about to shrug their shoulders and announce they can't be arsed any more so Dom's going to spend more time with behavioural scientists.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
So your man made "Mr. Nobody" a minister? And I'm sure our resident Scots posters will have views as to why he’d appoint such a "Mr. Nobody" as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland.
I am not a resident Scot but that comment about Douglas Ross, who is my Scots family's mp, and a very good one at that, is crass and ignorant nonsense.
It has no place in my conservative party and is most regrettable
A case of who reported to whom. Boris is a poor man manager if he was clueless as to Dom's whereabouts for those days before Boris became dangerously ill.
In my days in Senior Management, you were obliged to give details of your holiday hotel phone number so you could be contacted abroad, in the years before mobile phones became widely used. The barstewards weren't afraid to call you either.
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
If every single time there was a controversial person you let them go you're just inviting further controversy, further manufactured outrage and further scalp hunting.
Yes of course you can't let the press hound you main man out of office because where does it end?
Unless that main man has become a vote-losing liability who rather than occupy a weird blue-sky thinking space in your government, now serves only to give your opponents ammunition against you.
Them and us.
Boris could reclaim the "we can't have people lording over us all" mantle, especially as he is a survivor and managed to follow the rules. He would be golden.
That said, what would happen to government policy without its policy-maker? Gawd knows but that's a different issue.
Yes, of course we should torpedo government policy-making to avoid some bad headlines. What a ridiculous set of priorities that would be.
Does no one have the slightest particle of nerve? Just grow a spine and tough it out - no one's going to bite us.
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
If every single time there was a controversial person you let them go you're just inviting further controversy, further manufactured outrage and further scalp hunting.
Yes of course you can't let the press hound you main man out of office because where does it end?
Unless that main man has become a vote-losing liability who rather than occupy a weird blue-sky thinking space in your government, now serves only to give your opponents ammunition against you.
Them and us.
Boris could reclaim the "we can't have people lording over us all" mantle, especially as he is a survivor and managed to follow the rules. He would be golden.
That said, what would happen to government policy without its policy-maker? Gawd knows but that's a different issue.
Who cares about mantles? It's four years from the election and the election will be won or lost by being a good government or not and messaging next time etc
Getting rid of a key person involved with policies will make governance worse not better and that is the issue not a different issue.
The government needs to get on with the job. Not pander to witch hunts.
People on this site obviously follow the minutiae of politics closely. I can put my hand on my heart and say that not only did I not know that he was Under Secretary of State for Scotland, but I didn't know he was a Conservative MP and couldn't distinguish him from Adam if Adam turned up holding an apple.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
Calling one of your own ministers a NOBODY calls into doubt why he was appointed by the PM in the first place.
He was a PUSS rather than a minister, they're the guys who do extra work for a minister but don't get a government salary for it.
If I see cabinet ministers resigning, I'll believe Cummings is actually in danger, at the moment I think the over-reaction of the Lobby mob acts in his favour.
I thought USS got extra pay and rations, albeit small, but I could be wrong.
Also this great quote: "Of his tenure as an under-secretary in Macmillan's 1957–1963 Conservative government from the Lords, the Duke of Devonshire noted "No one who hasn't been a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State has any conception of how unimportant a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State is".[7]"
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
How much of an electoral weakness was he the last two times he ran an electoral strategy and the entire weight of establishment politics and media said he had no chance?
But he isn't running an electoral strategy. He's running an administration in a public health crisis. The two are entirely different.
Queue another thousand posts of Boris is so weak - who won't he give us the scalp we want?
Indeed. Neither Cummings nor Boris is going anywhere - and the louder the whining, the more firmly they're going to stand their ground, and the more immovable they'll be once this silliness dies down.
Cummings is going, at this rate over 50% of Tory MPs will have demanded his resignation by the end of the week, maybe even the end of the day
What percentage are we at now, and what measures are they going to take to enforce their will? Moaning on Twitter can just as easily be interpreted as saving face as a decision to challenge Boris directly.
If 50% of Tory voters and 50% of Tory MPs and a majority of voters think you are toast, you are toast
And once the flash in the pan dies down, how many will it be? Boris would be utterly stupid to show weakness at this point - whatever damage is going to be done has already been done.
If Boris sacks Cummings now, he may as well resign himself at the same time.
For the proverbially practical and hard-headed Cons MPs the simple fact is that Dom is an electoral weakness. Either now or in a few years time. To think he is not and that everyone will have forgotten is to misunderestimate Lab's attack lines.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
If every single time there was a controversial person you let them go you're just inviting further controversy, further manufactured outrage and further scalp hunting.
Yes of course you can't let the press hound you main man out of office because where does it end?
Unless that main man has become a vote-losing liability who rather than occupy a weird blue-sky thinking space in your government, now serves only to give your opponents ammunition against you.
Them and us.
Boris could reclaim the "we can't have people lording over us all" mantle, especially as he is a survivor and managed to follow the rules. He would be golden.
That said, what would happen to government policy without its policy-maker? Gawd knows but that's a different issue.
Who cares about mantles? It's four years from the election and the election will be won or lost by being a good government or not and messaging next time etc
Getting rid of a key person involved with policies will make governance worse not better and that is the issue not a different issue.
The government needs to get on with the job. Not pander to witch hunts.
Lost cause now. I`ll be surprised if he makes it to the end of the week.
If those MPs all go 'properly' public (no, moaning on Twitter doesn't count), they'll be engaging their own Prime Minister in a political fight to the death in the middle of a pandemic.
Comments
Whatever plan Dom has (as noted by @Monkeys, he certainly has some kind of plan), it's clear that Boris has none. Hence what would drive government? A sub-par PM who loses his strategic direction. Bad and bad.
Where does that leave government, and the country?
Might be one of my best threads.
We are running at 1400 new confirmed cases yesterday. And everyone seems to have gone back to normal up here.
Confirmed new cases on March 23 lockdown day...927.
The Prime Ministers’ decision.
!!!!!!
McLaren have been a success story over the past decade though, their automotive division making more than 5,000 supercars last year, and the product being reviewed favourably against their Italian competitors.
Good luck to those affected, there's going to be a lot more announcements of redundancies coming down the line from many business sectors hit by the shutdown.
Oh wait.
If Boris lets Cummings go (unless something new comes out) it will be out of weakness not strength.
Innovative ideas for getting out of this horrible lockdown would be much more interesting.
But apart from that, he's a really big fish
https://twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1265250693444706305
There.
I see even Jackson Carlaw has managed to call for Cummings to go now, so the Scottish Tories must have been in open revolt.
Them and us.
It was ever thus.
That said, a 2 year old 720S went for £150k at auction a couple of weeks ago, which is a huge bargain for the new buyer if not the original owner.
There is loads more bumbling ineptitude to come from Boris over the next few years. However I fear you are wrong, a lot of Tory MPs are not happy with things as they are, how long do you think they are going to sit back and watch Starmer hand him his arse on a plate every week at PMQ's?
Interestingly a lot of the unrest is coming from the new "red wall" Tory MPs because I suspect that the "one rule for the elite, one for the plebs" line is playing particularly badly in those areas.
If I see cabinet ministers resigning, I'll believe Cummings is actually in danger, at the moment I think the over-reaction of the Lobby mob acts in his favour.
https://twitter.com/ayhcheung/status/1265271635738755074
Big Dom considered his position already and likes it.
Them and us.
Which will look worse for Johnson?
Unless that main man has become a vote-losing liability who rather than occupy a weird blue-sky thinking space in your government, now serves only to give your opponents ammunition against you.
Them and us.
Boris could reclaim the "we can't have people lording over us all" mantle, especially as he is a survivor and managed to follow the rules. He would be golden.
That said, what would happen to government policy without its policy-maker? Gawd knows but that's a different issue.
https://twitter.com/tconnellyRTE/status/1265276233694101510?s=20
"Stay home. Protect the NHS. Save lives"
(then getting lost in a labyrinth of laughable excuses for it just makes it more politically damaging for Johnson).
It's not about sacking every "controversial person" because they are controversial.
News of a ministerial resignation or doctored blogposts aren't great, but they probably only prolong the peak rather than ramp it up.
I'm not sure I agree that it's stubbornness in the face of whining, though. But having invested this much political capital in hanging on to him, Cummings and Johnson are IMO not about to shrug their shoulders and announce they can't be arsed any more so Dom's going to spend more time with behavioural scientists.
It has no place in my conservative party and is most regrettable
In my days in Senior Management, you were obliged to give details of your holiday hotel phone number so you could be contacted abroad, in the years before mobile phones became widely used. The barstewards weren't afraid to call you either.
Does no one have the slightest particle of nerve? Just grow a spine and tough it out - no one's going to bite us.
Getting rid of a key person involved with policies will make governance worse not better and that is the issue not a different issue.
The government needs to get on with the job. Not pander to witch hunts.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parliamentary_Under-Secretary_of_State
Also this great quote:
"Of his tenure as an under-secretary in Macmillan's 1957–1963 Conservative government from the Lords, the Duke of Devonshire noted "No one who hasn't been a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State has any conception of how unimportant a Parliamentary Under Secretary of State is".[7]"
He's running an administration in a public health crisis.
The two are entirely different.
https://twitter.com/PaulBrandITV/status/1265282772412686339?s=20
https://twitter.com/PaulBrandITV/status/1265283659835363328?s=20
Hope someone else asks his questions:
https://twitter.com/Tobias_Ellwood/status/1265266323061424129?s=20
That would not be a wise decision on their part.