UK General Discussion: Rishecession

[Joe Republic]

There are rumors that Shapps may also be bringing three new ministers into the Home Office with him; Michael Green, Corinne Stockheath and Sebastian Fox.

[Joe Republic]

https://twitter.com/MrKennethClarke/status/1582006856343769088


Big news

They must have got her confused with the lettuce.  Easy mistake to make.

[Joe Republic]

None of the tabloids led with "FRACKING HELL"??!  I thought Brits were meant to be the pun masters.

[Joe Republic]

"I am a fighter, not a quitter."

*U-turns again 18 hours later*

[Joe Republic]

So, how will history remember Liz Truss?

It won't.

[Joe Republic]

Summer 2022 leadership election: 60 days
Eventual winner's tenure as leader: 50 days

Autumn 2022 leadership election: 4 days
Eventual winner's tenure as leader:   7 hours?

[Joe Republic]

Summer 2022 leadership election: 60 days
Eventual winner's tenure as leader: 50 days

Autumn 2022 leadership election: 4 days
Eventual winner's tenure as leader:   7 hours?

https://twitter.com/Sansom_Rob/status/1583156024621805568

[Joe Republic]

This thread is just going to be funny tweets and memes until it’s locked in a few more days, isn't it?


https://twitter.com/a_drewsky/status/1583082040932474880?s=20&t=c04CRXWCoRuJ...

[Joe Republic]

This provides some more info on how the PM replacement affair will be handles for those like myself who are clueless.

https://time.com/6223524/who-replaces-liz-truss-uk-prime-minister/

I would strongly advise against reading any American sources on what's happening in the UK (or let's be honest, any other country).  Their explainers are generally written by people who just had it explained to them ten minutes earlier.

The BBC seems to be more or less adequate.

(Though to be fair, reading BBC analysis of political news in the US can also be a source of comedy.)

[Joe Republic]

So here’s a fun tidbit: Sunak is the second PM since 1900 (the other is Churchill) to take over from a predecessor of the same party but not serve in a Great Office of State under that predecessor.

Sunak is also the second PM ever, to go directly from the backbenches to Prime Minister (Johnson was the first). Before that when PM’s changed mid Parliament it was always a minister who took over.

The fact that Rishi Sunak was Chancellor of the Exchequer until only two and a half months before becoming PM, and that the above facts are still true, only shows what a bizarre period it's been.

[Joe Republic]

Some sad news: Sir David Butler, Britain's leading postwar psephologist and famous for being the numbers and analysis man on the BBC's election coverage for many decades, has died. He was 98.

He died the day after Leslie Phillips, also 98.

[Joe Republic]

Despite their continuing low profile, Reform UK now seem to be having a mini-surge in the polls - this could be another potential headache for the Tories.

But why?  They went from being a single-issue pro-Brexit party to a single-issue anti-lockdown party, to... what next?

[Joe Republic]

Obviously not the most important part of the services today - but 7 ex-PMs were present at the Cenotaph today, for the first time ever. It's going to be strange seeing Truss at all these national events for the next 40 years.

Very strange to think we could easily have 9 former prime Ministers living if both Sunak & Starmer are out of office in the next decade.

*** INANE TRIVIA ATLAS BRAIN ENGAGED ***

What's the record for most living former PMs?  Surely we're currently living in it?

[Joe Republic]

^ What ever happened to rejoining EFTA?

[Joe Republic]

Will King Charles open Parliament at the House of Commons instead?

The last time a king named Charles entered the House of Commons, things went a bit awry afterward.

[Joe Republic]

So, err, this doesn't seem great:

"Friday Night with Nadine"?  Indeed, it seems terrible.

[Joe Republic]

Last week was the one year anniversary of the last poll to show the Tories with any type of position of strength against Labour (both were tied at 36%).

They haven't actually led in any polls since December 2021.

[Joe Republic]

We truly are reliving the mid-1990s:

The Daily Mail reported that the incident happened in the later period of Boris Johnson’s time as prime minister, and it began when an unnamed Tory MP woke up a senior Conservative politician with a call at 4 a.m. The MP was described as “woozy-sounding” while telling his colleague “I’m in a brothel.”

“I don’t know how I got here,” the MP said, “and I can’t find my clothes.”

The Mail reported that they corroborated the story with a Tory source, though they couldn’t name names from the call. The development reportedly prompted new conversations in Parliament about toxic behavior and work culture among the United Kingdom’s top officials.

[Joe Republic]

Reporting in the Times shows that 55 local authorities have halted housing targets - with the number doubling after Theresa Villier’s Commons amendment killed government enforcement of housing targets last year.

Estimates are that at least 77,000 fewer houses will be built each year.

[Joe Republic]

[Joe Republic]

So that just leaves the Senedd.  How's life there?

[Joe Republic]

Mohamed Al Fayed has died, aged 94.

Reports indicate that he has already punched Prince Philip immediately upon entering the afterlife.

[Joe Republic]

Braverman is a fool if she thinks this sort of intrigue is a boon for her leadership.

Do you mean to tell me that the woman who announced her leadership challenge while still continuing to serve in the incumbent PM's Cabinet may not have the best political acumen?

[Joe Republic]

If Rishi Sunak thinks he can just put lipstick on a pig by bringing David Cameron back… wait, I'd better stop this analogy here.

[Joe Republic]

I thought the rumor was Halloween?