Neverending Story 3: The Ongoing Brexit Thread

Perfectly reasonable.

My dad's old mate who got a 12 stretch inside for armed robbery had a meeting with the arresting officer to discuss how to handle it.

Oh... no... actually, he didn't.

 

Sanctioned by Canada, son given a Lordship in the UK.
Definitely not dodgy.

1527970699696082946 is not a valid tweet id

 

At last Johnson has realised heads must roll for the party culture inside No, 10. Unfortunately, not his...

Boris Johnson to sacrifice top official over Partygate to save himself
Civil service head will carry the can, amid row over claims that No 10 tried to interfere with Sue Gray’s findings​

...

It is understood Gray and Johnson met earlier this month, although a Whitehall source said the report’s contents were not discussed at any point. Downing Street said that the meeting had taken place at Gray’s request, although accounts differed yesterday.

Angela Rayner, Labour’s deputy leader, called on the PM to “urgently explain” why the “secret meeting” had taken place. She said public confidence in the process had already been damaged.

“Boris Johnson must urgently explain why he held a secret meeting with Sue Gray to discuss her report despite claiming her investigation was completely independent,” she said. “Public confidence in the process is already depleted, and people deserve to know the truth.​

Clearly nothing untoward in someone having a secret meeting with someone he employs at a time when she's investigating him. I expect that always happens

 

"When posh boys get in trouble, they sack the servants". Dennis Skinner.

 

Wow, one would think this Brexit thing gets less and less important with time ticking away, but hey ... it's a gift that keeps on giving.
Just what we need to be kept from idle time naughtyness.

 

There are many mysteries in this world. Men have speculated about the affairs of the heart, the deepest understandings of religion and the wonders of science. Who built Stonehenge and why. How did the Turin Shroud come to exist.

But, to top them all, there's the mystery of how Boris Johnson came to have a meeting with Sue gray...

https://www.theguardian.com/politic...ho-called-boris-johnson-meeting-with-sue-gray

 

At about 7:50...



Nothing to see here. Move along,

 

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/may/22/boris-johnson-to-stress-work-as-the-fix-for-cost-of-living-crisis

Two things:

1) What an asshole

2) The job market in the UK is not healthy. There is an unprecedented skills shortage.

 

You know it makes sense

Westminster Seat Projection (Labour, Lib Dem and Green Electoral Pact):

LAB: 393 (+154)
CON: 101 (-206)
LDM: 71 (+46)
SNP: 48 (=)
GRN: 17 (+8)

Labour majority of 136.

via @FindoutnowUK / @ElectCalculus, 9-12 May

(Changes with Jun 21)

— Opros Politics 🇺🇦 (@OprosUK) May 23, 2022

 

There'll be an issue in some constituencies with who is selected to be the 'anti-tory' candidate. With some it's probably easy but I'd be interested to see the breakdown of the places in that survey.

If I look at my own labour is clearly the best candidate because we've had labour MP's in recent years and it was only in the last one, (the 'brexit' election IOW), that it went majorly for the tory. Even in the one before, (also a 'brexit' election but one where it was raised as a way of stopping it altogether), we only lost by a whisker.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telford_(UK_Parliament_constituency)#Elections

But in the neighbouring SHrewsbury constituency the situation, (which I also know quite well), the situation is more complex...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrewsbury_and_Atcham_(UK_Parliament_constituency)#Elections



IMO it's probably similar to the north Shropshire constituency that, until recently, had been held by a tory for over 100 years...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Shropshire_(UK_Parliament_constituency)#Elections



In places like Ludlow, (where my mate stood a few years back just to have a 'warm body' to offer up), like Telford, it's pretty straightforward.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludlow_(UK_Parliament_constituency)#Elections

That's why I say, AV or similar is needed because it should be the PUBLIC that decides. Not people like me in smoke-filled rooms.

Well, OK... they're not smoke-filled, are they because nobody's allowed to smoke but y'know what I mean.

 

Daily Hate-Mail...

How email trail 'leads to Sue Gray': Whitehall chief asked for meeting with Boris Johnson to update him on report, sources say

• A senior official told the Daily Mail that an 'email trail' would demolish Opposition claims that the PM had demanded a meeting to 'fix' Gray's report
• The source said Whitehall ethics chief emailed PM to arrange the meeting in May

A ‘secret’ meeting between Boris Johnson and Sue Gray was requested by her and did not discuss her detailed findings about Partygate, Whitehall sources said last night.

A senior official told the Daily Mail that an ‘email trail’ would demolish Opposition claims that the Prime Minister had demanded the meeting in order to ‘fix’ Miss Gray’s report before publication.​

Reality...

No 10 admits PM meeting with Sue Gray was instigated by Downing Street – UK politics live

Oops!

Also, regarding whether partygate was discussed, (which the hate-mail and Nadhim Zahawi says it wasn't)...

This morning Simon Clarke, the chief secretary to the Treasury who was doing the morning interview round on behalf of the government, said he thought Sue Gray had instigated the meeting with Boris Johnson a few weeks ago at which the Partygate report was discussed.​

That's why it's important, if you're going to lie, to have a good memory... so you can remember which lies people have told.

Incidentally, it's also why the hapless Simon Clarke still has his mummy sew his name and address into his clothes like a small child before he leaves the house every morning.

 

Alternatively, don't lie and then you only have to remember what actually happened. But asking Johnson to not lie.....

 

If some of the lightweight political interviewers we have now can tear these guys a new one, what would someone like pazza do with them...

 

Well, that's just crazy talk!!!

 

Having said that JoCO is pretty good.

 

Not sure what all the fuss is about - this is clearly a work event.

EXCL: @ITVNews has obtained pictures of Boris Johnson drinking at a No10 party during lockdown in November 2020.

The photos cast fresh doubt on the PM's repeated claims he was unaware of rule-breaking in No10 during the pandemic.

See all images here:https://t.co/sUJiWpxqmm pic.twitter.com/iXopuPIQu7

— Paul Brand (@PaulBrandITV) May 23, 2022

This was two days before he had to isolate after coming into contact with someone who had tested positive.

 

Agreed.
Marr was always a soft touch, but it feels like Sophie Ridge has upped her game a lot recently.

 

The latest photo also drops the Met clearly in it. The rules at the time were near total lockdown and "rule of two" outside. How this can not be construed as a social activity, given the amount of empty bottles, is damning. Time for an independent investigation of the Met's conduct throughout.

 

I guess that when you try to pin all the blame on your junior staff, don't be surprised if the junior staff then send photos to journalists.

 

He was asked in parliament if there was a party on 13th November, and his response was "No. But but I’m sure whatever happened the guidance... and the rules were followed at all times.". On the record with a provable lie.

 

He's lost the Mail readers

The best rated comments on the @dailymailuk’s partygate story this afternoon https://t.co/xkRkwk0roG pic.twitter.com/m5qpWe5gPY

— James Johnson (@jamesjohnson252) May 23, 2022

 

You think?

Gosh - former deputy assistant commissioner of the met has just told@LBC the force might not have investigated Partygate as hard as they could have - to avoiding upsetting Number 10

— Ava-Santina (@AvaSantina) May 23, 2022

 

When even the stupidest man in Britain has figured out you might have done something wrong, maybe you've done something wrong...

Can we just be clear. The issue is no longer whether Boris broke the law. Or if he thought he’d broken the law. It’s about whether he seriously stood in the middle of a leaving party, with booze cluttering every surface, raised a glass and thought “this is not a leaving party”.

— (((Dan Hodges))) (@DPJHodges) May 23, 2022

 

Be interesting to see where that came from. As you say, maybe a member of junior staff? Maybe someone within the enquiry?

Bascially, just someone who despises Boris Johnson so, y'know... that narrows it down to about 55 million people

 

So let me get this straight. The meeting he didn't area he, but later turns out he did, was to ask for the report he said he would publish in full to be dropped. And still the vast majority of Tory MPs will defend him.

Exclusive with @oliver_wright

Boris Johnson suggested Sue Gray should drop her full report given police investigation during secret meeting earlier this month, Times told

He is said to have asked her if there was much point in publishing it given that ‘it’s all out there’ https://t.co/Zv3sYHcl5I

— Steven Swinford (@Steven_Swinford) May 23, 2022