Snap General Election called

[Sandydragon]

Bad news:
Study shows that direct and indirect consequences of lockdown may cause 200,000 extra deaths in the long term
Good news:
erm...that is worst case scenario.

I am disapproving of how this is being presented in the press (I know, press not being trustworthy in reporting on science ) as that figure is including the deaths due to all of the jobs and economic growth lost in lockdown, without taking into account that a "no lockdown" scenario would cause massive economic disruption through 1-4% of the population dying and almost certainly result in a worse hit than a lockdown did.

Puja

If you lock down or don't lock down, there will be an economic impact, plus a hit on other areas, cancer treatment for example. An uncle of mine is effectively waiting to die from cancer after not being able to get help when symptoms first appeared (just before lockdown).

But the consequences of not locking down would have been far worse and we would still have had an economic impact. That's the key message, but the media doesn't really go for that level of nuance.

[Digby]

What the actual bleep happened in PMQs today?

Has Boris had a stroke, which is possible during his Covid recovery, was he drunk, or have they decided the only message which works for him/them is 'get Brexit done'? Boris needs to get some serious work done during the holiday on how he responds to Starmer, yes most of the population probably pay no attention week to week, but plenty of the PCP and PLP do if not all, and the messaging around competency (or really a lack of) will spread

[Sandydragon]

What the actual bleep happened in PMQs today?

Has Boris had a stroke, which is possible during his Covid recovery, was he drunk, or have they decided the only message which works for him/them is 'get Brexit done'? Boris needs to get some serious work done during the holiday on how he responds to Starmer, yes most of the population probably pay no attention week to week, but plenty of the PCP and PLP do if not all, and the messaging around competency (or really a lack of) will spread

It absolutely would not surprise me if Johnson doesn't lead the Conservatives into the next General Election.

Once Brexit is done and any fall out can be pinned on him and his current team of cretinous ministers, I think there will be a putsch. Johnson has never been that popular with MPs.

[Digby]

What the actual bleep happened in PMQs today?

Has Boris had a stroke, which is possible during his Covid recovery, was he drunk, or have they decided the only message which works for him/them is 'get Brexit done'? Boris needs to get some serious work done during the holiday on how he responds to Starmer, yes most of the population probably pay no attention week to week, but plenty of the PCP and PLP do if not all, and the messaging around competency (or really a lack of) will spread

It absolutely would not surprise me if Johnson doesn't lead the Conservatives into the next General Election.

Once Brexit is done and any fall out can be pinned on him and his current team of cretinous ministers, I think there will be a putsch. Johnson has never been that popular with MPs.

I don't know if Boris is still struggling with Covid, some people are reporting ongoing issues arising in a number of ways, but right now he doesn't seem right even for Boris. Today was a mix of a little bit shocking in his ineptitude, and depressing that this is our leader. About the best you can say is it wasn't the utter car crash of Trump trying to answer questions

[fivepointer]

We shouldnt be surprised by just how appalling Johnson is. We've been given plenty of evidence before he was PM.

John Crace nails it - https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... etty-sight

"The only person unable to see quite how damaged Boris is, is Boris himself. He is the emperor with no clothes and it’s not a pretty sight. Even when he’s losing badly, he imagines himself to be a winner. The Tory MP Nusrat Ghani suggested he might care to spend his staycation recess reading Winnie the Pooh. Boris’s eyes lit up. There were too many Eeyores on the Labour benches. What the country needed was a Tigger like him. Except it doesn’t. What the UK really needs is a grown-up in charge. And what we’ve got is an infantile narcissist"

[Digby]

I'm not surprised he's a lazy, incompetent spoofer when it comes to policy and detail, I am surprised he's proving this ineffective as a public speaker. Given it's a very limited audience he speaks to in PMQs maybe he survives, but he's putting a lot of extra pressure on himself with these performances

[Stones of granite]

I may be being a little dense here, but I’m a bit confused by Boris Bunter’s flying visit to Scotland to “boost support for the Union”. Can anyone explain how a visit to a thinly populated archipelago 250 miles North of Scotland’s population centres followed by a visit to a military base populated by mainly English servicemen was intended to achieve this?

Surely an open-topped Boris-mobile procession through the industrial Central Belt to receive the acclamation of a populace grateful for the handouts of borrowed money would have been a better plan.

[Puja]

I may be being a little dense here, but I’m a bit confused by Boris Bunter’s flying visit to Scotland to “boost support for the Union”. Can anyone explain how a visit to a thinly populated archipelago 250 miles North of Scotland’s population centres followed by a visit to a military base populated by mainly English servicemen was intended to achieve this?

Surely an open-topped Boris-mobile procession through the industrial Central Belt to receive the acclamation of a populace grateful for the handouts of borrowed money would have been a better plan.

They want to boost support for the Union. Avoiding any Scots coming into contact with Boris is the best way of doing this.

Puja

[Stones of granite]

The Scottish Parliamentary elections are due in 9 months time, and the Scottish press has been making a lot out of divisions within the independence movement within the country. However, the other parties are clearly considering their strategies for this too, and there have been calls for Richard Leonard to step down as leader of Scottish Labour.

More dramatically, though, Jackson Carlaw, who became Scottish Conservative leader a mere six months ago after Ruth Davidson resigned following her inability to work with Boris Johnson, has suddenly resigned. It is strongly rumoured that this was not entirely of his own choosing, and that the Tories have been less than impressed with his performance.

Strangely, the rumoured leader-in-waiting, Douglas Ross, has also crossed swords with Central Office, having resigned his Government office in protest at the Cummings-Barnard Castle fiasco. He is, however, a hardcore Brexiteer. The biggest problem is that he is a Westminster MP rather than an MSP, so expect some chair shuffling to find him a “safe” Scottish seat.

[Banquo]

The Scottish Parliamentary elections are due in 9 months time, and the Scottish press has been making a lot out of divisions within the independence movement within the country. However, the other parties are clearly considering their strategies for this too, and there have been calls for Richard Leonard to step down as leader of Scottish Labour.

More dramatically, though, Jackson Carlaw, who became Scottish Conservative leader a mere six months ago after Ruth Davidson resigned following her inability to work with Boris Johnson, has suddenly resigned. It is strongly rumoured that this was not entirely of his own choosing, and that the Tories have been less than impressed with his performance.

Strangely, the rumoured leader-in-waiting, Douglas Ross, has also crossed swords with Central Office, having resigned his Government office in protest at the Cummings-Barnard Castle fiasco. He is, however, a hardcore Brexiteer. The biggest problem is that he is a Westminster MP rather than an MSP, so expect some chair shuffling to find him a “safe” Scottish seat.

Not paving the way for a Ruth comeback?

[Stones of granite]

The Scottish Parliamentary elections are due in 9 months time, and the Scottish press has been making a lot out of divisions within the independence movement within the country. However, the other parties are clearly considering their strategies for this too, and there have been calls for Richard Leonard to step down as leader of Scottish Labour.

More dramatically, though, Jackson Carlaw, who became Scottish Conservative leader a mere six months ago after Ruth Davidson resigned following her inability to work with Boris Johnson, has suddenly resigned. It is strongly rumoured that this was not entirely of his own choosing, and that the Tories have been less than impressed with his performance.

Strangely, the rumoured leader-in-waiting, Douglas Ross, has also crossed swords with Central Office, having resigned his Government office in protest at the Cummings-Barnard Castle fiasco. He is, however, a hardcore Brexiteer. The biggest problem is that he is a Westminster MP rather than an MSP, so expect some chair shuffling to find him a “safe” Scottish seat.

Not paving the way for a Ruth comeback?

It has been mooted. Tories interviewed on BBC Scotland yesterday afternoon were mischievously suggesting her as an option, but when pressed, admitted that she unlikely to want the job. She is anti-Brexit and has a strong dislike for Johnson. Personally, I think she has rather too much integrity to want to deal with the current set of shysters.

[Banquo]

The Scottish Parliamentary elections are due in 9 months time, and the Scottish press has been making a lot out of divisions within the independence movement within the country. However, the other parties are clearly considering their strategies for this too, and there have been calls for Richard Leonard to step down as leader of Scottish Labour.

More dramatically, though, Jackson Carlaw, who became Scottish Conservative leader a mere six months ago after Ruth Davidson resigned following her inability to work with Boris Johnson, has suddenly resigned. It is strongly rumoured that this was not entirely of his own choosing, and that the Tories have been less than impressed with his performance.

Strangely, the rumoured leader-in-waiting, Douglas Ross, has also crossed swords with Central Office, having resigned his Government office in protest at the Cummings-Barnard Castle fiasco. He is, however, a hardcore Brexiteer. The biggest problem is that he is a Westminster MP rather than an MSP, so expect some chair shuffling to find him a “safe” Scottish seat.

Not paving the way for a Ruth comeback?

It has been mooted. Tories interviewed on BBC Scotland yesterday afternoon were mischievously suggesting her as an option, but when pressed, admitted that she unlikely to want the job. She is anti-Brexit and has a strong dislike for Johnson. Personally, I think she has rather too much integrity to want to deal with the current set of shysters.

Surely in politics you sometimes have to hold your nose and try and change from within. See Starmer.

[Puja]

Not paving the way for a Ruth comeback?

It has been mooted. Tories interviewed on BBC Scotland yesterday afternoon were mischievously suggesting her as an option, but when pressed, admitted that she unlikely to want the job. She is anti-Brexit and has a strong dislike for Johnson. Personally, I think she has rather too much integrity to want to deal with the current set of shysters.

Surely in politics you sometimes have to hold your nose and try and change from within. See Starmer.

Given Scotland's current lack of power in both the UK generally and the Conservative party specifically, what change do you think she could accomplish by lending her face and reputation to this lot?

Puja

[Digby]

The messaging by Boris, Hancock and Agent Cummings has gone from god awful to much worse over the last 24 hours, it's almost impressive to be this inept

[Banquo]

It has been mooted. Tories interviewed on BBC Scotland yesterday afternoon were mischievously suggesting her as an option, but when pressed, admitted that she unlikely to want the job. She is anti-Brexit and has a strong dislike for Johnson. Personally, I think she has rather too much integrity to want to deal with the current set of shysters.

Surely in politics you sometimes have to hold your nose and try and change from within. See Starmer.

Given Scotland's current lack of power in both the UK generally and the Conservative party specifically, what change do you think she could accomplish by lending her face and reputation to this lot?

Puja

Well it might help quell independence calls for a start. It would also be a welcome addition to 'this lot' who like it or lump are likely to be in power for at least 4 more years.

[Puja]

Surely in politics you sometimes have to hold your nose and try and change from within. See Starmer.

Given Scotland's current lack of power in both the UK generally and the Conservative party specifically, what change do you think she could accomplish by lending her face and reputation to this lot?

Puja

Well it might help quell independence calls for a start. It would also be a welcome addition to 'this lot' who like it or lump are likely to be in power for at least 4 more years.

But on the flip side, she would be effectively endorsing the policies of 'this lot' without having any measurable power or influence (beyond the threat of resigning, which would lose some of its sting the second time around) and I don't know how much she would influence the calls for independence if she just came back to be the face of Boris's Conservatives.

Puja

[Banquo]

Given Scotland's current lack of power in both the UK generally and the Conservative party specifically, what change do you think she could accomplish by lending her face and reputation to this lot?

Puja

Well it might help quell independence calls for a start. It would also be a welcome addition to 'this lot' who like it or lump are likely to be in power for at least 4 more years.

But on the flip side, she would be effectively endorsing the policies of 'this lot' without having any measurable power or influence (beyond the threat of resigning, which would lose some of its sting the second time around) and I don't know how much she would influence the calls for independence if she just came back to be the face of Boris's Conservatives.

Puja

Her choice, but public service is just that and one assumes she entered it to make a difference rather than watch from the sidelines.- its a moot point in all likelihood- my personal preference would be to have her back more prominently in UK politics. Mind, I've only just spotted she remains an MSP!

Just read she is to receive a peerage and will stand in at FMQ's, not sure if true.

[Digby]

Ian Botham, the famous idiot and tax dodger extraordinaire, is to head to the Lords

[Stom]

Ian Botham, the famous idiot and tax dodger extraordinaire, is to head to the Lords

You forgot the reason he's heading to the Lords...

Lives in Spain, is a Brexit supporter...

[Digby]

Ian Botham, the famous idiot and tax dodger extraordinaire, is to head to the Lords

You forgot the reason he's heading to the Lords...

Lives in Spain, is a Brexit supporter...

Doesn't avail himself of the facts, prefers to bumble on stating a belief in a positive outcome no matter the situation. Almost reminds of someone.

[Puja]

Ian Botham, the famous idiot and tax dodger extraordinaire, is to head to the Lords

You forgot the reason he's heading to the Lords...

Lives in Spain, is a Brexit supporter...

Doesn't avail himself of the facts, prefers to bumble on stating a belief in a positive outcome no matter the situation. Almost reminds of someone.

Stuart Barnes is yet to acquire any honours though.

Puja

[Stones of granite]

Well it might help quell independence calls for a start. It would also be a welcome addition to 'this lot' who like it or lump are likely to be in power for at least 4 more years.

But on the flip side, she would be effectively endorsing the policies of 'this lot' without having any measurable power or influence (beyond the threat of resigning, which would lose some of its sting the second time around) and I don't know how much she would influence the calls for independence if she just came back to be the face of Boris's Conservatives.

Puja

Her choice, but public service is just that and one assumes she entered it to make a difference rather than watch from the sidelines.- its a moot point in all likelihood- my personal preference would be to have her back more prominently in UK politics. Mind, I've only just spotted she remains an MSP!

Just read she is to receive a peerage and will stand in at FMQ's, not sure if true.

Yes, she’s going to the Lords. A cynic might suggest, to get her out of the way.
It has been confirmed that Douglas Ross is to stand for election as Carlaw’s replacement, but so far he is the only candidate to declare, making it look even more like Central Office is pulling the strings. I expect they will get a couple of other willing hands to stand so that they can have something that looks like an election.

[Banquo]

Ian Botham, the famous idiot and tax dodger extraordinaire, is to head to the Lords

Tax dodger?

[fivepointer]

Hard to see what Botham could contribute to the HoL.

How can you give someone a gong for supporting a deeply divisive policy, where the full impact is yet to be felt and may turn out to be hugely damaging?

Sporting deeds and raising money for charities is one thing, but this??

And what has Jo Johnson done to get a Lordship? PM's brother is surely incidental.....

If it wasnt clear before, it should be clear by now. Johnson & Co are basically taking the piss. They can do it so they will.

[Digby]

Ian Botham, the famous idiot and tax dodger extraordinaire, is to head to the Lords

Tax dodger?

Living abroad to reduce tax liability. Hardly new thinking, but an odd thing to promote into the House of Lords, or at least it should be