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I’m inclined to think the EU are more concerned with the Good Friday Agreement than this government is.
100%
I mean, I'm sure Liz Truss is very interested in the GFA right now. But only as a means to her own ends. The whole Tory party are really playing the whole 'power hungry sociopath' role beautifully.
Hopefully the BJ fiasco is a lesson in populism. Maybe some good will come of all this.
If the GFA collapsed under the weight of Brexit unicorns tomorrow, I don’t think any of this lot would care less
Hopefully the BJ fiasco is a lesson in populism. Maybe some good will come of all this.
Hah, yeah. You've met, you know, the public, right?
interesting that Domonic Cummings has been silent on the no10 garden pic. It's unlike him not to stick it to the johnsons at the first opportunity.
I assumed it was Cummings opposite Alexander in the picture.
I made the same joke as NRC *checks Fb feed* on 10th May 2020.
Where do I claim my royalties?
He’s lost the darts fraternity
Fun unrelated to thread fact....
Pro darts players drink during their game because it steadies their hands.
I assumed it was Cummings opposite Alexander in the picture.
It is Cummings, but only the organiser is at any risk from plod (not that there's any chance of that)
It may well be that the Biden administration also pays attention to the GFA. She's drawn the shit stick.
He’s lost the darts fraternity
Yeah... But I imagine only because he might threaten their freedom to gather in massive crowds, indoors, to drink and shout and generally infect one another as thoroughly as possible? One of the rare occasions I might actually find myself on BJ's side!
If the GFA collapsed under the weight of Brexit unicorns tomorrow, I don’t think any of this lot would care less
We (the country/kingdom) will really be in the shit. The EU and both sides of the USA political mainstream will shun us. All bets would be off as unrest here may well kick off as food and essentials get tight and it's dark and cold in our houses at night.
If the GFA collapsed under the weight of Brexit unicorns tomorrow, I don’t think any of this lot would care less
Given the fact that Brexit was basically incompatible with GFA right from the start and yet it was so enthusiastically championed, I'm willing to bet that most of them don't even know the details of it, never mind care about it.
The levels of total utter ignorance and stupidity in charge of this country at the moment...?!
That Rees-Mogg cretin has been on again about listening to the will of the people rather than the scientists (Covid rather than Brexit admittedly).
We got where we are by the "will of the people", the last thing we need now is more of that.
So why is Sunak doing this? He gave the game away earlier this month, with a careful leak to the Times that he intends to cut income tax before the next election (due in 2024). He will only have room to do this if public spending – however valuable – has been tightly reined in. You don’t need to be a political genius to see that Sunak is positioning himself for the next Conservative party leadership election, as the tax-cutting, small-state heir to Margaret Thatcher so fervently longed for by the party’s MPs and members.
The Guardian: In an act of brazen treachery, Rishi Sunak is sabotaging Boris Johnson’s policies.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/dec/22/brazen-treachery-rishi-sunak-sabotaging-boris-johnson-policies
Sunak is effectively undermining every single one of Johnson’s policy priorities. It is surely as brazen an act of political treachery as modern times have seen.
The Tories truly have turned themselves inside out. They instinctively want to be the party of low tax, low state intervention, even when the country clearly needs more government investment which has to be funded by higher taxes. Covid has exploded this on a big scale.
Tax cuts are always the aim before an election, but if the spending at that point hasn't delivered any benefit in services, opportunities, "levelling up" etc, they are going to leave the opposition some big targets to hit.
leave the opposition some big targets to hit.
Methinks in this scenario Labour will give away an own goal.
But I imagine only because he might threaten their freedom to gather in massive crowds, indoors, to drink and shout and generally infect one another as thoroughly as possible?
It's OK they were all on the train I took to Macclesfield the other evening.
[url= https://i.postimg.cc/Y9XMwBtH/Screenshot-2021-12-22-at-22-Dec1258pm.pn g" target="_blank">https://i.postimg.cc/Y9XMwBtH/Screenshot-2021-12-22-at-22-Dec1258pm.pn g"/> [/img][/url]
His popularity among Conservative activists, according to an influential ConservativeHome survey, has slumped. It puts Johnson on minus 17 per cent, compared with foreign secretary Liz Truss’s plus 82.
"If Boris Johnson is ousted, who might replace him as UK prime minister? | Financial Times" https://www.ft.com/content/f6d9bafe-f5a9-4d63-a672-79949c7f2881
But imo the most serious contender is still Sunak
The 41-year-old has been quietly building up support among Tory MPs from the 2019 intake and listening to their concerns. “I’ve had four one-to-one meetings with him,” said one MP.
Sunak, through anonymous briefings, has “let it be known” to potential supporters that he opposed some of Johnson’s Covid restrictions and that he is frustrated with the lack of professionalism at Number 10.
This is a reasonable assessment imo of Truss though :
https://www.politico.eu/article/liz-truss-brexit-foreign-secretary-brexit-negotiator/
Sunak's not just on manoevres, he's conducting a full on campaign to oust Johnson, and is using Johnson's keynesian instincts against him..
and is using Johnson’s keynesian instincts against him..
Yep - there's a good summary, again in the Guardian, of how BJ's once popular traits are now his own downfall:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/dec/22/tories-cake-stuffed-boris-johnson-covid-restrictions-freedom
Given the fact that Brexit was basically incompatible with GFA right from the start and
Not all Brexits, or indeed any Brexits if appropriate arrangements were made.
Indeed. It’s been documented now that Johnson (somewhat unsurprisingly) didn’t really understand what he was signing (as that probably would have involved actually reading it)
He clearly didn’t understand the full implications of leaving the single market and customs Union and the need for a hard border.
He believed his own ridiculous cakist nonsense right up until the end. He still doesn’t get it
There will be no significant changes to the agreement no matter how much Liz Truss stamps her feet.
The incompatibility of Brexit promises with reality will mean it will continue to consume its own. Frost is gone, Johnson will be next, then Truss
It’s the rest of us left with their mess
It has been getting a bit quiet on the johnsonshambles front
Its been 24 hrs since a revelation of his unsuitability for office
They’re all at a 24 hour rave.
As @bruneep said, the rumours are that a certain Mr D Cummings has a collection of bombshell photos of Downing Street ‘gatherings’ and is just waiting for the moment of maximum damage to release them.
His Christmas present to the nation
I do find it quite amusing what a truly nasty, vindictive little shit he is, but then that seems to be main reason they gave him the job, so you reap what you sow and all that
It also explains why they all leapt to his defence over Barnard Castle too, lest he decided to reveal everyone else’s transgressions
the rumours are that a certain Mr D Cummings has a collection of bombshell photos of Downing Street ‘gatherings’ and is just waiting for the moment of maximum damage to release them.
Surely that's him in the original one though, sitting opposite BJ?
I'm sure of course that he was only attending because he was forced to as a senior aide.
He's a hypocritical little shit is Cummings - he had his fingers in most of the pies in Downing Street and now he's trying to come out of it all smelling of roses. Acted like he ran the place while he was there, breaking rules left right and centre; now he's on the outside he's turned into a smarmy git by slagging off everyone who's still there.
Brilliant isn't it? Let's hope it's not a damp squib. Hopefully he's got a video of them all doing the conga.
He’s a hypocritical little shit is Cummings – he had his fingers in most of the pies in Downing Street and now he’s trying to come out of it all smelling of roses.
He was busy defending one of the parties and saying it should be ignored since it was the leaving do of one of his cronies.
He is a great example of why the "enemy of your enemy is your friend" is a crap saying.
The GFA is an international treaty, if deemed to be breached we won't just be looking at bad trade deals, we could be looking at economic sanctions.
The Biden administration has made it pretty damn clear that any threat to the GFA will most definitely result in the UK entering a whole world of pain.
The EU is well aware of this. Thats why there will be no significant changes made to the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Plus the fact that despite the usual bellyaching from the DUP, the population of Northern Ireland can see that they're benefitting enormously, economically, from effectively remaining in the single market and customs union compared to the rest of the UK
crazy-legs
Full MemberSurely that’s him in the original one though, sitting opposite BJ?
Yup, but everyone already knows he's a rule-breaking little shit so he's got nothing to lose there.
Surely that’s him in the original one though, sitting opposite BJ?
TEXT: "oi, small person, go up to the balcony and take a photo of this for me"
Well I think we can dispense with any idea that there’s not an upcoming leadership election, because the front runners clearly have done already and are getting their backers in place and their campaigns rolling
https://twitter.com/thetimes/status/1473939078332784642?s=21
Those tweets are hilarious- it's a long list of things that make her appeal to a certain sort of tory and not a single thought to whether she'd actually be any good at the job.
Like, I hated Thatcher, she was a disaster for this country... but she was intelligent, fiercely capable, next-level driven, courageous, and held actual beliefs and convictions. None of those are exactly good traits when you use them for harm, but, they are everything that Truss doesn't have.
Good god. The very idea that Liz pork markets truss is an unstoppable political force is laughable and a bit scary.
Is this pic actually real? Not seen it before that thread on Twitter. If it is, genuine lolz!😁
Those tweets are hilarious- it’s a long list of things that make her appeal to a certain sort of tory and not a single thought to whether she’d actually be any good at the job.
People have been retweeting some of her stuff from years ago. It's not aged well. Loads of Remain posts, something about how she met Jimmy Savile, plus some more recent, more cringey tweets as she's trying to position herself as the new force to be reckoned with in the Tory party.
TBH I never really get the 'Action' shots..
Never quite sure what its supposed to get over...
Still at least she hasn't done a dance thing yet 🙂
She's having trouble with the Tory Power Pose too.
Is that a ferocious intellect staring at us or a packet of Senokot?
Looks like she's on the shitter. Surely she didn't want that photo out there.
I'm struggling to believe any of this is real. It's all baffling.
The phone photo is photoshopped - the other stuff appears real though. She looks plain weird with that “Thatcheresque” hairdo not to mention the odd poses and outfits.
Her old contacts might prove useful if she needs to form a coalition with the LibDems after the next general election in 2024.
Although as currently the LibDem seat prediction is less than 10 they may not have the same pivotal role as they had in 2010.
Well, the rolling stone is gathering momentum...
Wondering if Truss has perhaps gone in a bit *too* obvious, too desperate for the top job which might be why she's been palmed off with the Brexit negotiation job.
Like Northwind said above she's a helium weight Thatch. Looking forward to her solving the Northern Ireland protocol.
I stuck a fiver on her as next Tory leader at 4/1. Her and Rishi are the two favourites, but the membership all absolutely love her, whereas for their liking he’s a bit, well… you know…
The usual suspects are all there but in amongst them is Oliver Dowden at 15/1 so I stuck a couple of quid on him as well as that’s just the kind of weird thing the Tory party often does
Looking forward to her solving the Northern Ireland protocol.
To be fair to Boris, that’s a top notch hospital pass
Wondering if Truss has perhaps gone in a bit *too* obvious, too desperate for the top job which might be why she’s been palmed off with the Brexit negotiation job.
It's a poison chalice, she must know that.
Will be interesting to watch. If it weren't to important it would be funny.
Still, I can't wait for more of her on telly, she definitely just isn't made for the medium, or radio, or print news, or Twitter.
It’s a poison chalice, she must know that.
Were talking about Mrs pork markets so probably not.
The usual suspects are all there but in amongst them is Oliver Dowden at 15/1 so I stuck a couple of quid on him as well as that’s just the kind of weird thing the Tory party often does
Yup Dowden been positioning himself in the culture war for a while
I could definitely see him being the surprise PM
I am discombobulated by how intellectually feeble these people are on top of coming from supposedly smart institutions. It is an indictment/revelation of the whole system.
I am discombobulated by how intellectually feeble these people are on top of coming from supposedly smart institutions. It is an indictment/revelation of the whole system.
Yup.
Hardly a ringing endorsement of the most expensive education money can buy, are they?
he’s a helium weight Thatch
She is the perfect Thatcher wannabe follow up to Boris's failed Churchill tribute act.
She was a Lib Dem! Makes you think
Well indeed, you'd think the two parties were mutually exclusive, but she does look thirsty. So very very thirsty.
You could probably photograph her on a black leather sofa if she thought there would be a reasonable payout in it.
I never knew Frost's and now her actual, formal Brexit title is:
Chief Negotiator of Task Force Europe
I didn't even know we were at war yet?
We are at war. Sadly it's the Tory culture war on the poor, the needy, the disabled, the minorities, Jonny Foreigner, the North, Wales, Scotland, Norn Island etc. Etc.
Liz Truss singled herself out as all kinds of special when as Environment Secretary she turned up somewhere with terrible flooding, without a waterproof coat or an umbrella, and then wittered on about stuff not realising that summer floods come from rain. She promised to help and then a month later slashed the flood defence budget and blamed the EA (I'm paraphrasing but you get the gist).
The Thatcher-esque photoshoot was for the Only Fans subscribers. Can you imagine the levels of left-handed web browsing going on right now in the Tory heartlands?
but the membership all absolutely love her,
Jesus they must be more thick than I ever imagined.
That last photo is a masterclass in stupidly obvious symbolism that will nevertheless be lapped up by the target demographic.
Taken from a low viewpoint to make the subject appear powerful and dominant.
Direct gaze engaging and challenging the viewer.
Hair and overall look a knowing nod to Thatch.
The crouched hands on knees pose suggesting a 'let's get down to business' no nonsense attitude
The suit suggesting corporate efficiency, but just unconventional enough to be 'daring'
The colour symbolism- very blue, but the strong hint of green with obvious other connotations
PR by GCSE Media Studies student committee. Laughable if it weren't so scarily effective...
Could be worse they could choose someone who is capable.... a proper right wing nutjob.... and a proper deregulation visionary.
Are you suggesting that this is designed to appeal to an exclusively male, exclusively white audience of a certain age and class who’s utterly dysfunctional attitude to sexuality was formed by being spanked by matron then buggered senseless at boarding school?
If so, you’re probably bang on.
They used to refer to Theresa May as ‘Mummy’, which obviously isn’t in the least bit creepy and weird.
They’re all utter deviants and will elect her as the next leader in a heartbeat
Boris reminded them of their boyhood buggery, Liz (who they’ve all probably already started referring to as ‘matron’) reminds them of the spanking
oldmanmtb2
Free Member
Could be worse they could choose someone who is capable…. a proper right wing nutjob…. and a proper deregulation visionary.
Yeah, could be a sweet spot. Daft enough to damage her party further by, well speaking, but not clever enough to wreck the country much more than the Tories already have.
Never knew she was an ex Lib Dem... that's one hell of a flexible ideology she has there. Ditto the total about face over Brexit.
. Ditto the total about face over Brexit.
Boris was a remainer.
As a card-carrying Tory party member, I'm unsure whether to go Sunak or Truss
While Sunak seems competent, his priorities lie in a very "starve the country of money and blame it on the rules but I'm alright jack cos I'm a squilliionaire" way and he's likely adept enough to implement them and ruin the country.
Whereas Truss is obviously a chucklehead but is so bad that she could be a perfect way of making the country so ridiculously awful that Scotch Independence is baked in and I'll get to live in a country without perpetual Tory rule.....
Difficult one.
duckman
Boris was a remainer
Yep, they are both opportunist grifters and little else.
Boris was a remainer.
Johnson was/is an opportunistic bastard but unless my memory is fading I don't recollect him campaigning to stay in the EU in 2016
I think like Truss, Johnson has been entirely consistent in his approach. He can and will say anything to further his career. whether that's remain or leave is immaterial, his career is the important thing, not the message.
So, just as Truss was a cheer-leading remainer, it fits that she's now leading the negotiations of leave.
The Thatcher-esque photoshoot was for the Only Fans subscribers. Can you imagine the levels of left-handed web browsing going on right now in the Tory heartlands?
Not sure if I've just spat tea or thrown up a little
I am discombobulated by how intellectually feeble these people are on top of coming from supposedly smart institutions. It is an indictment/revelation of the whole system.
Wait until you realise the quality of the electorate...
@MCTD - sorry, I owe you a new keyboard
🙃
Johnson was/is an opportunistic bastard but unless my memory is fading I don’t recollect him campaigning to stay in the EU in 2016
Ok then, he was pro EU until there was a shot at the top job, and for a lot longer than the period he has not been. Does that satisfy your pedantry?
As a card-carrying Tory party member
How do you live with yourself?
I sleep like a log.
I paid 1 pence for the privilege of joining the Tory party and when they have a leadership election I, along with around c.60,000 others, get to choose the prime minister of the country while everyone else sits around gnashing their teeth.
Quite a good investment in my democratic power considering I live in Scotland and for most of my lifetime have had essentially no say in which party gets to rule the country and which person becomes prime minister.
Now that's what I call democracy!
Did it really cost 1p?
There is no cost to join the tory party, just a donation. They have a suggested donation of £25 or something, but you can paypal them 1p and still be a member. Definitely costs more in admin and posting you silly letters.
You have to have been in for at least 3 months to get to vote in leadership elections though. Rules is rules.
Are you sure? Their website says £2.09 per month, or maybe they put the price up if a leadership contest is approaching. Labour if more expensive at £4.42 per month.