wbo
Free Member
I think the friends thing would vary politician to politician. Years ago when I lived in London I went running with people who were MP’s, mostly conservative, and they were pretty normal people generally. I’ve also met junior ministers, and usually ditto but some were not. I can imagine Gove having friends, Boris… hmmm…. people he’s known a long time , but acquaintances rather than friends. I have a friend of a friend who was at school with Boris, but I haven’t spoken to him for the best part of 20 years, and he was pretty similar to Boris – nice to go drinking with, but interested in selling you shares in his tech startup at the time…
This - it varies. I've met Boris and have friends who worked for him while he was Mayor. None of them have anything good to say about him (and all know of a lot of stories that he has managed to keep out of the press).
Other MPs and even ministers are genuinely good people, doing it for the right reasons. My MP is Ben Wallace and, even though I didn't vote for him, I'm impressed. I've never seen him playing politics, he's a decent local MP, he seems to be doing a decent job of defence and, having met him a few times, he's a nice guy.
However there is also the old adage ” Never interrupt your enemy when he is
making a mistakebeing ambushed by cake.”
Stolen shamelessly from Twitter.
Edit: Sue Gray is known for doing everything by phone not destroying evidence. She should be disciplined for failing to document her decisions and processes as every other civil servant has to.
I’ve met Boris and have friends who worked for him while he was Mayor. None of them have anything good to say about him (and all know of a lot of stories that he has managed to keep out of the press).
Wasn't it one of his former aides when he was mayor who famously said:
"Everyone loves Boris...
apart from those who know him"?
Meanwhile all the tories think he’s Jeremy Corbyn in disguise..
Well... there are plenty of Conservative MPs now calling for this year's tax (NI) tax rise to be changed to reduce the impact on the lower paid. They don't think he's a Jeremy Corbyn, they think he's increasing taxes on the less well off just when they can afford it least. I think it's fair to say that, right now, there's very little that "all the tories" agree about as regards Johnson & Sunak's leadership. Some MPs are waiting for their constituents to see some levelling up, and their lives improved in some financial way... and the exact opposite is coming down the tracks at them.
She should be disciplined for failing to document her decisions and processes as every other civil servant has to.
This is certainly the view of civil servants I work with. I miss my old Perm Sec, but he got the sack a year or so ago because he was decent and principled.
It's already clear what Johnson's tactics are for PMQs... "obviously I can't say anything about that". And lots of "Captain Hindsight" comments.
"But imagine if the story of any of these parties and broken in the days after they took place"
Theres never a drone when you need one!
I've seen a few visceral shudders from civil servants when Truss or Gove are mentioned. The closer they are to the action the more difficult it is to get a story.
Watching PMQs again. Same old shite from Johnson again.
The man is a total ****.
It’s already clear what Johnson’s tactics are for PMQs… “obviously I can’t say anything about that”. And lots of “Captain Hindsight” comments.
Is anyone else of the view that the reason that the no10 parties are now a criminal investigation is probably so BJ can carry on for another few weeks?
Some potential criminality, leaked by civil servants on Sue Grey's team to the MET?
His pmq reference to KS lawyer so "he knows I can't say anything", and "criminal investigation so I can't say anything", tactical politics if ever I saw it.
I'd expect the out come will be minimal fines for some poor civil servants and a sacking of quite a few and that'll be about it.
It's interesting how many conservative voters I've spoken too now have a heavy dislike of BJ - not enough to change their political following though.
I do think that Kier misses a trick by focusing on one area, he should ask 4 different questions to highlight their incompetence, e.g. Police investigation, plan for Ukraine, COVID, Brext, cost of living, energy crisis, levelling up... thus disarming any of BoJo's typical diversionary responses
Not as good as last week from Starmer but what a shambolic performance from Johnson. Not as coked up as last week but looked shifty and mendacious
It's very hard to get anything to escape parliament and reach the public. PMQs is a rare chance... and if you want one thing to escape the bubble of Westminster, then repeatedly hammer it home at PMQs... Johnson lied to parliament. Johnson lies to the public.
I agree @pieface
more lies surfaceing though:
https://twitter.com/jessicaelgot/status/1486314413040844812
Not as coked up as last week but looked shifty and mendacious
https://twitter.com/BBCLauraKT/status/1486316686055772164?t=ylyYeom9MzVQrxcpRm6pzA&s=19
I’ve seen a few visceral shudders from civil servants when Truss or Gove are mentioned. The closer they are to the action the more difficult it is to get a story.
Same goes for those working under Priti Patel...
Is anyone else of the view that the reason that the no10 parties are now a criminal investigation is probably so BJ can carry on for another few weeks?
Some potential criminality, leaked by civil servants on Sue Grey’s team to the MET?
I think that is probably the case, let the Met know just enough to make sure they have to investigate then claim that the report cannot be released. It seems to have backfired though now that the Met have said the report can still be released.
I thought Kirsty Wark missed a trick last night when JRM used a word to describe the situation that I'd never even heard or new existed. He was obviously using it to show how clever he was and using it as a put down to the rest of us.
She should of asked him what the word meant. He would have undoubtedly explained it.
She should of then put it to him that he was using it in the wrong context, to which he would have replied he wasn't. At which point Kirsty Yoing should have said she was talking about the context of people actually understanding what he was saying.
She probably knew what the word in question meant so thus fell into the trap of not wanting to appear ignorant in front of JRM. That's not doing her job, her job is to communicate information to the public. She let her ego get in the way and thus made herself look like one of the elite, an insider, not one of us. It would have been better for her if she 'pretended' not to know what the word meant.
Peston wouldn't have let him get away with it. Newsnight really isn't very good.
What was the word inkster?
Was it ambuscade, or something? In place of ambush?
ambuscade
Yes. He was just making pointless noise to distract and to help fill the time to avoid answering any questions.
Now caught out about lying RE prioritising the evacuation of animals from Afghanistan. He said at the time 'Complete nonsense.' Email released today says otherwise...
I'm still awaiting a reply from my local MP, James Daly, on the whole Partygate thing. He, like Boris, goes to ground at times like this.
However, he's covered himself in glory today. He has just publicly invited a colleague to visit Bury Magistrates court! Absolutely unbelievable! The problem for Mr Daly is that Bury’s court was closed in 2017 by the Tory government as part of their cuts!
As a solicitor of 16 years, and a member of the Justice Committee you'd like to expect he might have known this
It probably tells you all you need to know about how much time he actually spends in his constituency
We are governed by utter ****ing morons!🙄
He said at the time ‘Complete nonsense.
Not his fault. He was being threatened by a chocolate eclair that if he didnt deny it the doughnuts would be round for a chat.
It always surprises me that for someone who lies so much he is so crap at it. Then again I guess he has been allowed to get away with it in the past so never actually needed to develop the ability to lie well.
He was being threatened by a chocolate eclair that if he didnt deny it the doughnuts would be round for a chat.
Presumably they'd all be wearing baklavas?
I thought Kirsty Wark missed a trick last night when JRM used aword to describe the situation that I’d never even heard or new existed.
Kirsty work is a friendly shill for the current government,
Ah, Perchy, how we've tira-missed-u.
From what I’ve read on the BBC site and those emails, he hasn’t prioritised the evacuation of animals over humans, he’s just approved for them to be evacuated. Or am I missing the point?
Doesn’t the email just say the vets and their dependents should be considered at risk?
Doesn’t the email just say the vets and their dependents should be considered at risk?
There are a couple of emails which arent overly clear especially as they also refer to other charities.
Its this one which says "their staff and animals"
It always surprises me that for someone who lies so much he is so crap at it. Then again I guess he has been allowed to get away with it in the past so never actually needed to develop the ability to lie well.
I honestly don't believe he even thinks before opening his mouth.
He doesn't listen to the question, he just knows that when the person opposite him stops talking, it's Boris Time. Previously, Boris Time would involve him propping up the bar at uni or at some posh after-dinner do where he could say anything he wanted and get guffaws of sycophantic laughter.
He doesn't have a clue what he's talking about, he doesn't care. He doesn't answer the question, he says what he wants to say regardless of whether it's the truth, some sort of Boris version of the truth or complete fabricated bollocks and regardless of what relevance it has to the question.
Hmmm, I’m all for Boris being taken to task for his lies, but not sure this isn’t a case of trying to jump on a bandwagon.
There is nothing in that last email either that says prioritise animals other humans.
The tweet saying PM authorised pets before people, but the email doesn’t say that.
I’d rather not dilute the real lies with what appears to be something that can be proven to be a witch hunt.
he’s just approved for them to be evacuated. Or am I missing the point?
A bit - last month the official line was "At no point did the prime minister intervene."
Now we see it was actually: "In light of the PM’s decision earlier today to evacuate the staff of the Nowzad animal charity...."
So it doesn't necessarily prove he wanted to prioritise one over the other, but it does show that he did intervene, and lied about it.
he’s just approved for them to be evacuated
Which, he said he didn’t do.
It's just an illustration of how lying is reflexive for him. He just says the first thing that comes into his head to deflect.
eg
https://twitter.com/Kishan_Devani/status/1486330132226887680
Yeah sorry, I can see that now.
But think we should be clear on the wording, it’s not that he prioritised pets, it’s the fact that he had said he did not intervene when he did.
It seems the tweets are saying the issue isn’t just the lie, it’s the fact he prioritised the animals.
Ah, a man whose grasp on reality is so tenuous that he even lies when telling the truth would be the best course of action for him.
Was it ambuscade, or something? In place of ambush?
Close. It was Ambushcake.
👏🏼
I’m sadly coming to the conclusion that delay & obfuscation has worked & he’s going to get away with this.
If you mean keep his job title for now... absolutely. But his own popularity with the public, and voting intentions as regards his party, are damaged for good. He can recover... but he'll never have a huge lead over the alternatives again. If he can win the next General Election with a majority of one, rather than 80.... he'll be doing very well.
The entire political arena in the uk is a complete joke now. there is no honour.
But its not really about how disreputable the average lying brass necked politician is. The real issue in this is how the police choose to act. It's their reputation thats on the line from where im sitting.
They and the prosecution service cannot claim that although the law has been broken, it is not in the public interest to charge,try and convict Johnson, when the public are outraged by his(and others) actions.
They do nothing is tantamount to the police and prosecution services saying there's a law for the elite and a law for everyone else.
It is throwing the "Nobody is above the law" straight down the toilet.
You have a better opinion of the public than me………
Once this is off the front pages, it’s just normal business.
They are already claiming that only BoJo could have lead us so spectacularly through Brexit & Covid.
