Appalling for public health and the fight against the virus.
Unless he goes, the government and the COVID strategy are going to be in rolling waves of trouble for a long time. Will these be sacrificed for one man?
Nice example of how important it is not to make a full statement in public until you know the case on the other side in full.
Read between the lines (and assume of course that most of his account is exculpatory nonsense).
Only yesterday the PM was not prepared to accept that DC had visited Barnard Castle. He evaded and was not pressed. At that point clearly they didn't know if it could be proved.
But today it was admitted and a weak explanation given. It has to be that even yesterday it was hoped that the the Barnard Castle thing could not be stood up and could be denied. And would have been denied if possible.
DC has done his best and it was quite well presented. The idea that it is a full and frank account is nonsense. The jigsaw has been carefully arranged to fit the shape of all the bits of evidence.
He'll survive unless and until some new data turns up.
The press didn't help themselves by running an account of a 19 April visit to Durham which rather looks as if it didn't happen.
Something does not smell right about the Barnard Castle story. There was a reason he went there and it’s not the one being given.
'Would X still be upset/not upset if was their side under focus?' is always a good test to undertake. Although it does so often require an implicit admission that, yes, some of the motivation for those angry this time is that partisan effect. No one's a saint.
This story has been an amusing diversion but nothing's been learned or much opinion shifted. Unless we're getting a last minute resignation/sacking or some fresh revelation there's not much fun left to be had with it.
Sir Keir will be delighted. An instant sacking - with it being spun that tough Boris takes no crap from anyone over this crisis, top aid or not - would have been his least preferred outcome. A wounded Dom still in place, questions still rumbling, the public unconvinced and Boris a shrunken figure is very handy for him however.
Appalling for public health and the fight against the virus.
Unless he goes, the government and the COVID strategy are going to be in rolling waves of trouble for a long time. Will these be sacrificed for one man?
Davey effectively calling on the PM to resign,
Johnson is going to regret trying to shield Cummings.
There must be some NHS and/or local council provisions for people in London who are ill and cannot manage to care for their child due to having Covid. But the real thing that will sink him is that he did not say sorry or that he had any regrets about what he did. An apology can go along way with a lot of people in the country but he didn't take the chance.
That reliable barometer of the nation, the Daily Mail best rated comments, are not favourable. At all.
If we governed the country according to the Daily Mail's top comments, we'd be parking the entire Royal Navy in the Channel and blasting everything in sight, so people should really be careful what they wish for.
Wish these idiotic journalists would stop calling Barnard Castle “Castle Barnard”.
The allegation was that Mr Cummings Drove to Castle Barnard. In actuality he drive to Barnard Castle. Thus absolutely exonerating him and proving all the people attacking him and the Blessed Prime Minister to be cads and bounders
Nice example of how important it is not to make a full statement in public until you know the case on the other side in full.
Read between the lines (and assume of course that most of his account is exculpatory nonsense).
Only yesterday the PM was not prepared to accept that DC had visited Barnard Castle. He evaded and was not pressed. At that point clearly they didn't know if it could be proved.
But today it was admitted and a weak explanation given. It has to be that even yesterday it was hoped that the the Barnard Castle thing could not be stood up and could be denied. And would have been denied if possible.
DC has done his best and it was quite well presented. The idea that it is a full and frank account is nonsense. The jigsaw has been carefully arranged to fit the shape of all the bits of evidence.
He'll survive unless and until some new data turns up.
The press didn't help themselves by running an account of a 19 April visit to Durham which rather looks as if it didn't happen.
Something does not smell right about the Barnard Castle story. There was a reason he went there and it’s not the one being given.
Sounds as if Dom stumbled his way through it and came out the other end bruised but still alive. The biggest loser in all of this is though is Boris. Much of the magic has faded.
It's a humungous amount of political capital that Boris has just expended.
I can remember when Gordon Brown blew all of his on the election that never was.
Tony Blair blew his on Iraq.
Margaret Thatcher blew hers on the poll tax.
John Major by the ERM debacle.
Neville Chamberlin on peace in our times.
Eden on Suez.
Heath on who runs the country
May on miscalculating the national mood on calling a GE
Harold Wilson on calling an election whilst England were in the throes of a world cup
James Callaghan by announcing his daughters wedding instead of a GE...
PM's have their blow outs when they fritter away their power and position on poor judgement....some issues are more consequential than others....
I think BoJo is now a busted flush and the power will start draining away from him....
On how I'd respond if it were Labour politicians, I seem to remember someone grassed up Diane Abbott for drinking alcohol on a London Overground (or Underground, can't remember which) train. I thought that was really harsh on Abbott. But then, I know, it's a lesser crime than what's happened with Cummings.
I am failing dismally to keep up with the Cummings story. I have already said my piece, the sun is shining and I have been lying in the back garden this afternoon watching swallows and House Martins wheel through the sky as if they are re-enacting the Battle of Britain.
One thing I would say on the fringes of the debate is I am genuinely surprised that PB folk are themselves surprised at the line taken by the Daily Mail. We all said this was coming in one form or another when the editor changed from the staunchly pro-Brexit Paul Dacre to the staunchly anti-Brexit Geordie Greig back in Spetember 2018. Why on earth is anyone surprised that he has leapt joyously at the opportunity to stick the knife firmly between the shoulder blades of the architect of Brexit. That he has been given a sitting target by Cummings' idiocy is irrelevant. Greig can always be relied upon to go for the jugular where Brexiteers are concerned.
Marks out of 10 for Dominic Cummings' performance this afternoon:
Probably a grudging 7/10
I'd give him 2
a. By his own admission he walked off his job, without consulting - or even informing - his boss, the acting PM or the Cabinet Secretary. He's clearly incapable of doing ANY real job in a complex organisation. b. At no stage did he admit remorse.
Whether that makes Johnson fire him is debatable. But both Johnson and Cummings are even less capable of doing their jobs than I'd have expected. Both have to go.
Sir Keir will be delighted. An instant sacking - with it being spun that tough Boris takes no crap from anyone over this crisis, top aid or not - would have been his least preferred outcome. A wounded Dom still in place, questions still rumbling, the public unconvinced and Boris a shrunken figure is very handy for him however.
The media focus on whether the scalp is taken but the effect is on Johnson's reputation and how the public think of him. I think that, for many more people, he will now be thought of as "them" and not "us".
I am failing dismally to keep up with the Cummings story. I have already said my piece, the sun is shining and I have been lying in the back garden this afternoon watching swallows and House Martins wheel through the sky as if they are re-enacting the Battle of Britain.
One thing I would say on the fringes of the debate is I am genuinely surprised that PB folk are themselves surprised at the line taken by the Daily Mail. We all said this was coming in one form or another when the editor changed from the staunchly pro-Brexit Paul Dacre to the staunchly anti-Brexit Geordie Greig back in Spetember 2018. Why on earth is anyone surprised that he has leapt joyously at the opportunity to stick the knife firmly between the shoulder blades of the architect of Brexit. That he has been given a sitting target by Cummings' idiocy is irrelevant. Greig can always be relied upon to go for the jugular where Brexiteers are concerned.
Marks out of 10 for Dominic Cummings' performance this afternoon:
Probably a grudging 7/10
I'd give him 2
a. By his own admission he walked off his job, without consulting - or even informing - his boss, the acting PM or the Cabinet Secretary. He's clearly incapable of doing ANY real job in a complex organisation. b. At no stage did he admit remorse.
Whether that makes Johnson fire him is debatable. But both Johnson and Cummings are even less capable of doing their jobs than I'd have expected. Both have to go.
Sir Keir will be delighted. An instant sacking - with it being spun that tough Boris takes no crap from anyone over this crisis, top aid or not - would have been his least preferred outcome. A wounded Dom still in place, questions still rumbling, the public unconvinced and Boris a shrunken figure is very handy for him however.
It's hard to imagine what he is offering as a service which is worth the jokes, criticisms and comments that he has always provoked to a point, but now seems to fully embody. It's clearly not that you never give in to a media/opposition storm, else no one would ever be sacked or resign, so what amazing service does he provide to make up for always getting so much attention?
Sir Keir will be delighted. An instant sacking - with it being spun that tough Boris takes no crap from anyone over this crisis, top aid or not - would have been his least preferred outcome. A wounded Dom still in place, questions still rumbling, the public unconvinced and Boris a shrunken figure is very handy for him however.
Certainly an instant sacking for any weak leader who is terrified of confronting bad media coverage. Theresa May would have sacked Cummings before the ink was dry on the first media report. I'm sure "Sir Keir" would have done likewise since his number one priority is "Sir Keir".
Especially since his wife had symptoms of nausea......
It was really lucky his car had a full tank of petrol by chance...I always leave my car full of petrol just on the off chance that I need to do a five hour long haul trip without needing to stop off to take a piss....
Appalling for public health and the fight against the virus.
Unless he goes, the government and the COVID strategy are going to be in rolling waves of trouble for a long time. Will these be sacrificed for one man?
Davey effectively calling on the PM to resign,
Johnson is going to regret trying to shield Cummings.
Oh no, is Davey really doing that? I'm not sure Boris can survive now.
It's definitely not up there with saying the Iraqis can launch a weapon in 45 minutes, nor that David Kelly was a whistleblower, that much is for sure Mr Campbell.
He comes across as sad and geeky and humble in a way I hadn't expected at all. I feel more sympathetic than I expected, but doesn't change my mind. I am a lot angrier with Johnson than with him but then I always was
I think he’s been warned he needs to cool it. Yesterday he just came across as mind bending ly arrogant.
But the admissions he has made are devastating.
Bit defensive, isn't he! Never seen him like that before.
He's cleared up a lot of the facts, but he still broke the guidelines, more than once. The 'reasonable excuse' defence doesn't really hold for someone in his position. He ought to resign, but he won't.
That's very bad for the Government, and for those trying to beat this Virus.
Reasonable excuse is the law. It applies to everyone.
I am failing dismally to keep up with the Cummings story. I have already said my piece, the sun is shining and I have been lying in the back garden this afternoon watching swallows and House Martins wheel through the sky as if they are re-enacting the Battle of Britain.
One thing I would say on the fringes of the debate is I am genuinely surprised that PB folk are themselves surprised at the line taken by the Daily Mail. We all said this was coming in one form or another when the editor changed from the staunchly pro-Brexit Paul Dacre to the staunchly anti-Brexit Geordie Greig back in Spetember 2018. Why on earth is anyone surprised that he has leapt joyously at the opportunity to stick the knife firmly between the shoulder blades of the architect of Brexit. That he has been given a sitting target by Cummings' idiocy is irrelevant. Greig can always be relied upon to go for the jugular where Brexiteers are concerned.
His jugular is between his shoulder blades? 😳
Well his arse is apparently quite close to his elbow so I suppose anything is possible
I am failing dismally to keep up with the Cummings story. I have already said my piece, the sun is shining and I have been lying in the back garden this afternoon watching swallows and House Martins wheel through the sky as if they are re-enacting the Battle of Britain.
One thing I would say on the fringes of the debate is I am genuinely surprised that PB folk are themselves surprised at the line taken by the Daily Mail. We all said this was coming in one form or another when the editor changed from the staunchly pro-Brexit Paul Dacre to the staunchly anti-Brexit Geordie Greig back in Spetember 2018. Why on earth is anyone surprised that he has leapt joyously at the opportunity to stick the knife firmly between the shoulder blades of the architect of Brexit. That he has been given a sitting target by Cummings' idiocy is irrelevant. Greig can always be relied upon to go for the jugular where Brexiteers are concerned.
Yes I've noticed a lot of pro-EU people are especially keen to cite the Daily Mail as an example to support their arguments, while pretending the circumstances haven't changed over there. "Even the Daily Mail...."
Especially since his wife had symptoms of nausea......
It was really lucky his car had a full tank of petrol by chance...I always leave my car full of petrol just on the off chance that I need to do a five hour long haul trip without needing to stop off to take a piss....
In fairness, that’s believable. I filled up both my cars at the start of lockdown, both as a precaution in case fuel ran short and because it was so damn cheap.
Marks out of 10 for Dominic Cummings' performance this afternoon:
Probably a grudging 7/10
I'd give him 2
a. By his own admission he walked off his job, without consulting - or even informing - his boss, the acting PM or the Cabinet Secretary. He's clearly incapable of doing ANY real job in a complex organisation. b. At no stage did he admit remorse.
Whether that makes Johnson fire him is debatable. But both Johnson and Cummings are even less capable of doing their jobs than I'd have expected. Both have to go.
And will within the next year
A few weeks ago, Boris overcame death itself.
I think he can handle this trumped-up bullshit
Whilst I am genuinely glad the PM survived this virus, I find that sort of language extremely distasteful.
Johnson received excellent NHS care and survived. 36,793 have also received (in most cases) excellent care and have sadly died. He's not strong because he recovered any more than they are weak because they did not. It's just the luck of the draw.
Appalling for public health and the fight against the virus.
Unless he goes, the government and the COVID strategy are going to be in rolling waves of trouble for a long time. Will these be sacrificed for one man?
Davey effectively calling on the PM to resign,
Johnson is going to regret trying to shield Cummings.
Oh no, is Davey really doing that? I'm not sure Boris can survive now.
The temp leader of the Minibus Party has turned against us? We're done for now, lads!
I am failing dismally to keep up with the Cummings story. I have already said my piece, the sun is shining and I have been lying in the back garden this afternoon watching swallows and House Martins wheel through the sky as if they are re-enacting the Battle of Britain.
One thing I would say on the fringes of the debate is I am genuinely surprised that PB folk are themselves surprised at the line taken by the Daily Mail. We all said this was coming in one form or another when the editor changed from the staunchly pro-Brexit Paul Dacre to the staunchly anti-Brexit Geordie Greig back in Spetember 2018. Why on earth is anyone surprised that he has leapt joyously at the opportunity to stick the knife firmly between the shoulder blades of the architect of Brexit. That he has been given a sitting target by Cummings' idiocy is irrelevant. Greig can always be relied upon to go for the jugular where Brexiteers are concerned.
His jugular is between his shoulder blades? 😳
Well his arse is apparently quite close to his elbow so I suppose anything is possible
He drove to the outskirts of the castle town, stopped briefly by a river and returned to his lodgings. Didn't go near the castle.
It doesn’t matter where he drove. If he drive just one foot on the public highway with reason to think his vision was insufficient to safely drive then he committed an offence.
How do PB Tories explain Cummings' trip test his eyesight on the same day as his wife's birthday, to a beauty spot that he just so happened to get out to look at
He comes across as sad and geeky and humble in a way I hadn't expected at all. I feel more sympathetic than I expected, but doesn't change my mind. I am a lot angrier with Johnson than with him but then I always was
I think he’s been warned he needs to cool it. Yesterday he just came across as mind bending ly arrogant.
But the admissions he has made are devastating.
Bit defensive, isn't he! Never seen him like that before.
He's cleared up a lot of the facts, but he still broke the guidelines, more than once. The 'reasonable excuse' defence doesn't really hold for someone in his position. He ought to resign, but he won't.
That's very bad for the Government, and for those trying to beat this Virus.
Reasonable excuse is the law. It applies to everyone.
That may well be the hook on which any defence applies, though as a news story I don't think it affects those who are angry from a 'one rule for them not us' perspective - that there were reasonable excuses or exceptional circumstances people could have used for various trips may well only make people angrier, since they either didn't take up those excuses voluntarily and regret that, or did not realise they could and will blame the messaging.
I am failing dismally to keep up with the Cummings story. I have already said my piece, the sun is shining and I have been lying in the back garden this afternoon watching swallows and House Martins wheel through the sky as if they are re-enacting the Battle of Britain.
One thing I would say on the fringes of the debate is I am genuinely surprised that PB folk are themselves surprised at the line taken by the Daily Mail. We all said this was coming in one form or another when the editor changed from the staunchly pro-Brexit Paul Dacre to the staunchly anti-Brexit Geordie Greig back in Spetember 2018. Why on earth is anyone surprised that he has leapt joyously at the opportunity to stick the knife firmly between the shoulder blades of the architect of Brexit. That he has been given a sitting target by Cummings' idiocy is irrelevant. Greig can always be relied upon to go for the jugular where Brexiteers are concerned.
Yes I've noticed a lot of pro-EU people are especially keen to cite the Daily Mail as an example to support their arguments, while pretending the circumstances haven't changed over there. "Even the Daily Mail...."
Isn’t the point that the folk commenting on the DM website are, generally, v supportive of the govt? They aren’t now. How much damage this causes as this rolls on remains to be seen.
Appalling for public health and the fight against the virus.
Unless he goes, the government and the COVID strategy are going to be in rolling waves of trouble for a long time. Will these be sacrificed for one man?
Davey effectively calling on the PM to resign,
Johnson is going to regret trying to shield Cummings.
Oh no, is Davey really doing that? I'm not sure Boris can survive now.
The temp leader of the Minibus Party has turned against us? We're done for now, lads!
This certainly could be the time for a government of national unity led by Davey.
Extraordinary choice of commentators on BBC News. A left-wing academic, then a New Statesman journalist, and now another academic whose is banging on about the working classes.
Marks out of 10 for Dominic Cummings' performance this afternoon:
Probably a grudging 7/10
I'd give him 2
a. By his own admission he walked off his job, without consulting - or even informing - his boss, the acting PM or the Cabinet Secretary. He's clearly incapable of doing ANY real job in a complex organisation. b. At no stage did he admit remorse.
Whether that makes Johnson fire him is debatable. But both Johnson and Cummings are even less capable of doing their jobs than I'd have expected. Both have to go.
And will within the next year
A few weeks ago, Boris overcame death itself.
I think he can handle this trumped-up bullshit
Whilst I am genuinely glad the PM survived this virus, I find that sort of language extremely distasteful.
Johnson received excellent NHS care and survived. 36,793 have also received (in most cases) excellent care and have sadly died. He's not strong because he recovered any more than they are weak because they did not. It's just the luck of the draw.
Please let's not add confected word-policing to the lockdown-policing at hand. Feel free to mentally replace 'overcame' with 'survived' if the former is not acceptable to you.
He drove to the outskirts of the castle town, stopped briefly by a river and returned to his lodgings. Didn't go near the castle.
It doesn’t matter where he drove. If he drive just one foot on the public highway with reason to think his vision was insufficient to safely drive then he committed an offence.
That’s what I cannot believe. Even if you accept his version of lockdown/quarantine, which the Attorney General does but a judge may not, he’s just freely admitted to a crime live on air.
Appalling for public health and the fight against the virus.
Unless he goes, the government and the COVID strategy are going to be in rolling waves of trouble for a long time. Will these be sacrificed for one man?
Davey effectively calling on the PM to resign,
Johnson is going to regret trying to shield Cummings.
Oh no, is Davey really doing that? I'm not sure Boris can survive now.
The temp leader of the Minibus Party has turned against us? We're done for now, lads!
You might find you lose 600 council seats to the minibus party next May
He drove to the outskirts of the castle town, stopped briefly by a river and returned to his lodgings. Didn't go near the castle.
It doesn’t matter where he drove. If he drive just one foot on the public highway with reason to think his vision was insufficient to safely drive then he committed an offence.
That’s what I cannot believe. Even if you accept his version of lockdown/quarantine, which the Attorney General does but a judge may not, he’s just freely admitted to a crime live on air.
What a numpty.
That was what I thought. Driving without care and attention.
He drove to the outskirts of the castle town, stopped briefly by a river and returned to his lodgings. Didn't go near the castle.
It doesn’t matter where he drove. If he drive just one foot on the public highway with reason to think his vision was insufficient to safely drive then he committed an offence.
I'm sure he believed his vision was more than sufficient, but his nagging wife wouldn't shut up so poor Dom had to try and find a compromise solution. It's just a coincidence that the compromise landed them on a test drive to a beauty spot.
Extraordinary choice of commentators on BBC News. A left-wing academic, then a New Statesman journalist, and now another academic whose is banging on about the working classes.
Not extraordinary at all. Perfectly normal in fact.
I actually think the most implausible bit (out of the many)...was Dom talking about his wife's symptoms at the outset.(yes but no but yes but no)....just to try and evade the quarantine rules.....
When I was much (much) younger, after accumulating numerous bumps on my car over a period, I had to construct a single insurance claim that explained all of them in one incident. It was like Dom's statement.....but I got the car fixed....
Marks out of 10 for Dominic Cummings' performance this afternoon:
Probably a grudging 7/10
I'd give him 2
a. By his own admission he walked off his job, without consulting - or even informing - his boss, the acting PM or the Cabinet Secretary. He's clearly incapable of doing ANY real job in a complex organisation. b. At no stage did he admit remorse.
Whether that makes Johnson fire him is debatable. But both Johnson and Cummings are even less capable of doing their jobs than I'd have expected. Both have to go.
And will within the next year
A few weeks ago, Boris overcame death itself.
I think he can handle this trumped-up bullshit
Whilst I am genuinely glad the PM survived this virus, I find that sort of language extremely distasteful.
Johnson received excellent NHS care and survived. 36,793 have also received (in most cases) excellent care and have sadly died. He's not strong because he recovered any more than they are weak because they did not. It's just the luck of the draw.
Please let's not add confected word-policing to the lockdown-policing at hand. Feel free to mentally replace 'overcame' with 'survived' if the former is not acceptable to you.
It's not "word-policing", and you're a dreadful snowflake for squealing that I am.
I am telling you, for your information, that I found your remark distasteful and explaining why.
I'm not trampling on your freedom of expression, and you can take it on board or not - do what your instincts tell you on this.
Extraordinary choice of commentators on BBC News. A left-wing academic, then a New Statesman journalist, and now another academic whose is banging on about the working classes.
It's like they're begging for a good old dose of government reform.
If only we had an adviser who might be up for that particular challenge...
Extraordinary choice of commentators on BBC News. A left-wing academic, then a New Statesman journalist, and now another academic whose is banging on about the working classes.
Along with Nicky Morgan and three Tory councillors from the NE.
He drove to the outskirts of the castle town, stopped briefly by a river and returned to his lodgings. Didn't go near the castle.
It doesn’t matter where he drove. If he drive just one foot on the public highway with reason to think his vision was insufficient to safely drive then he committed an offence.
That’s what I cannot believe. Even if you accept his version of lockdown/quarantine, which the Attorney General does but a judge may not, he’s just freely admitted to a crime live on air.
What a numpty.
That was what I thought. Driving without care and attention.
It’s actually a separate, specific offence under Section 96 of the RTA (1988) to drive with impaired vision.
(1)If a person drives a motor vehicle on a road while his eyesight is such (whether through a defect which cannot be or one which is not for the time being sufficiently corrected) that he cannot comply with any requirement as to eyesight prescribed under this Part of this Act for the purposes of tests of competence to drive, he is guilty of an offence.
Extraordinary choice of commentators on BBC News. A left-wing academic, then a New Statesman journalist, and now another academic whose is banging on about the working classes.
They'll have someone from the right on newsnight between 11:05pm and 11:07pm to ensure impartiality is preserved.
Marks out of 10 for Dominic Cummings' performance this afternoon:
Probably a grudging 7/10
I'd give him 2
a. By his own admission he walked off his job, without consulting - or even informing - his boss, the acting PM or the Cabinet Secretary. He's clearly incapable of doing ANY real job in a complex organisation. b. At no stage did he admit remorse.
Whether that makes Johnson fire him is debatable. But both Johnson and Cummings are even less capable of doing their jobs than I'd have expected. Both have to go.
And will within the next year
A few weeks ago, Boris overcame death itself.
I think he can handle this trumped-up bullshit
I know that you are BluestBlue diehard loyalist - I respect that. But in politics a little self-awareness is helpful. Your voters - your key voters especially in red wall seats - are absolutely fucking furious. I don't know how old you are or how long you've been interested in politics but there are plenty of examples of governments shitting the bed and never recovering.
You should be concerned that you consider this to be "trumped-up bullshit" when so many Tory voters do not. Why not go talk to a Tory MP about their email inbox. Or read the Daily Mail. Then tell us how it'll all be forgotten because its trumped up bullshit
Isn't the real issue here that, as Cummings said, the British government was grappling with an extremely serious crisis but most of the key players were isolating or incapacitated?
And it was so bad he considered it important to get back to London from Durham despite having felt seriously unwell albeit had consulted medical experts saying he could return to work?
Comments
What a moral vacuum she is.
https://twitter.com/philgyford/status/1264958968725676033
Bad for the government.
Appalling for public health and the fight against the virus.
Unless he goes, the government and the COVID strategy are going to be in rolling waves of trouble for a long time. Will these be sacrificed for one man?
Ouch.
Sir Ed Davey sounding rather underwhelmed too.
Dom, wife and child never actually came close to anyone else during the entirety of their trip, according to his account today.
This story has been an amusing diversion but nothing's been learned or much opinion shifted. Unless we're getting a last minute resignation/sacking or some fresh revelation there's not much fun left to be had with it.
Johnson is going to regret trying to shield Cummings.
But the real thing that will sink him is that he did not say sorry or that he had any regrets about what he did. An apology can go along way with a lot of people in the country but he didn't take the chance.
They can’t come out and say that though, hence the ludicrous dissembling.
No acknowledgement that its damaged the Govts message
Not even explored any London childcare options
Test drive
2/10
I can remember when Gordon Brown blew all of his on the election that never was.
Tony Blair blew his on Iraq.
Margaret Thatcher blew hers on the poll tax.
John Major by the ERM debacle.
Neville Chamberlin on peace in our times.
Eden on Suez.
Heath on who runs the country
May on miscalculating the national mood on calling a GE
Harold Wilson on calling an election whilst England were in the throes of a world cup
James Callaghan by announcing his daughters wedding instead of a GE...
PM's have their blow outs when they fritter away their power and position on poor judgement....some issues are more consequential than others....
I think BoJo is now a busted flush and the power will start draining away from him....
One thing I would say on the fringes of the debate is I am genuinely surprised that PB folk are themselves surprised at the line taken by the Daily Mail. We all said this was coming in one form or another when the editor changed from the staunchly pro-Brexit Paul Dacre to the staunchly anti-Brexit Geordie Greig back in Spetember 2018. Why on earth is anyone surprised that he has leapt joyously at the opportunity to stick the knife firmly between the shoulder blades of the architect of Brexit. That he has been given a sitting target by Cummings' idiocy is irrelevant. Greig can always be relied upon to go for the jugular where Brexiteers are concerned.
But it was already unravelling during press questions and tomorrow's papers will have had another few hours to detail all the holes in his story.
On the other hand, if you need a cover story for what you were really up to it’s exactly what you’d do.
Covid's over as a news story.
Next.
a. By his own admission he walked off his job, without consulting - or even informing - his boss, the acting PM or the Cabinet Secretary. He's clearly incapable of doing ANY real job in a complex organisation.
b. At no stage did he admit remorse.
Whether that makes Johnson fire him is debatable. But both Johnson and Cummings are even less capable of doing their jobs than I'd have expected. Both have to go.
And will within the next year
He drove to the outskirts of the castle town, stopped briefly by a river and returned to his lodgings. Didn't go near the castle.
I think he can handle this trumped-up bullshit
https://twitter.com/ElectionMapsUK/status/1264964304253706241?s=20
It was really lucky his car had a full tank of petrol by chance...I always leave my car full of petrol just on the off chance that I need to do a five hour long haul trip without needing to stop off to take a piss....
The Attorney General herself described that as legal and the PM as reasonable.
This is going to unravel quickly
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/52/section/96
He's at best endangered the public and his child with his actions.
I maintain it was a car crash
Johnson received excellent NHS care and survived. 36,793 have also received (in most cases) excellent care and have sadly died. He's not strong because he recovered any more than they are weak because they did not. It's just the luck of the draw.
Ba-boom Tish!
If that detail unravels, it's going to run and run.
https://twitter.com/Ianblackford_MP/status/1264965997590691840?s=20
What a numpty.
NEW THREAD
When I was much (much) younger, after accumulating numerous bumps on my car over a period, I had to construct a single insurance claim that explained all of them in one incident. It was like Dom's statement.....but I got the car fixed....
I am telling you, for your information, that I found your remark distasteful and explaining why.
I'm not trampling on your freedom of expression, and you can take it on board or not - do what your instincts tell you on this.
If only we had an adviser who might be up for that particular challenge...
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/52/section/96
96 Driving with uncorrected defective eyesight.
(1)If a person drives a motor vehicle on a road while his eyesight is such (whether through a defect which cannot be or one which is not for the time being sufficiently corrected) that he cannot comply with any requirement as to eyesight prescribed under this Part of this Act for the purposes of tests of competence to drive, he is guilty of an offence.
You should be concerned that you consider this to be "trumped-up bullshit" when so many Tory voters do not. Why not go talk to a Tory MP about their email inbox. Or read the Daily Mail. Then tell us how it'll all be forgotten because its trumped up bullshit
And it was so bad he considered it important to get back to London from Durham despite having felt seriously unwell albeit had consulted medical experts saying he could return to work?