UK General Discussion:The Rt. Hon Alex Boris de Pfeffel Johnson, Populist Hero

[Lord Halifax]

Politicians right now are all feining shock at this government's corruption - and they're not wrong because it is a real problem.  But as someone who works with local government every day and in an industry adjacent to *construction* no less - the UK is not the nation of upstanding hard workers we like to think it is.  It's corrupt from the bottom to the top and frankly the rot is what helps the wheels go round.  Not fun for those of us in the industry however that try not to be corrupt.

The evangelical says that but the evangelical will still put a cross next to his godless, hooker-hiring, shyster Tory MP because its better to "own the left" and "be a winner" than it is to have a satanic Labour government.

Its why the evangelical will burn in hell.

This seems a bit personal.

FWIW American style political Evangelicalism isn't really a thing in the UK.  I think the two Evangelicals I know best both voted Lib Dem in the last election.  (One told me he did, and the other very much hinted at it.  And they don't know each other and live in different constituencies, in neither of which were the Lib Dems competitive.)

Is it at all a thing outside of the US?

Brazil?

[YL]

Politicians right now are all feining shock at this government's corruption - and they're not wrong because it is a real problem.  But as someone who works with local government every day and in an industry adjacent to *construction* no less - the UK is not the nation of upstanding hard workers we like to think it is.  It's corrupt from the bottom to the top and frankly the rot is what helps the wheels go round.  Not fun for those of us in the industry however that try not to be corrupt.

The evangelical says that but the evangelical will still put a cross next to his godless, hooker-hiring, shyster Tory MP because its better to "own the left" and "be a winner" than it is to have a satanic Labour government.

Its why the evangelical will burn in hell.

This seems a bit personal.

FWIW American style political Evangelicalism isn't really a thing in the UK.  I think the two Evangelicals I know best both voted Lib Dem in the last election.  (One told me he did, and the other very much hinted at it.  And they don't know each other and live in different constituencies, in neither of which were the Lib Dems competitive.)

Is it at all a thing outside of the US?

Brazil?

I'd definitely got the impression that something similar was part of Bolsonaro's support base, yes.

[CumbrianLefty]

Apparently a trio of MP's were caught getting drunk on a visit to troops in Gibraltar and have been called out by Ben Wallace.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace will write to Labour and the SNP to express disappointment over the alleged poor behaviour of some of their MPs on a visit to troops in Gibraltar.

A witness told the BBC two SNP MPs drank very heavily on the journey and were inebriated on arrival.

The account was rejected by the SNP, who called the accusations "false".

A Labour MP has also been accused of drinking with the two SNP MPs. The party hasn't yet commented.

Mr Wallace said the alleged conduct "risks undermining respect for Parliament".

.....

The witness said the three MPs in question drank in the airport lounge before departure then drank heavily on the flight.

There were two Tory MPs on the flight too, who also imbibed hop derived beverages it is believed.

Transparent dead cat, especially since the actual details about the Labour MP are now emerging.

[Blair]

It’s also very clearly a sloppy effort too. Tories are usually better than this.

And as someone said do we really want to start exploring foreign trips- especially those funded by certain regimes through APPGs?

Also it’s hardly as if the MOD can lecture- it was reported in the Times that they had to remove a wire gate at a Nairobi hotel as British soldiers were being stimulated through it.

[Blair]

Time to camp outside Brady’s office again.

https://mobile.twitter.com/BritainElects/status/1458811870803017731

[Pericles]

Time to camp outside Brady’s office again.

https://mobile.twitter.com/BritainElects/status/1458811870803017731

It's beautiful.

[CumbrianLefty]

Some on the Labour left (or rather "left") trying to imply Starmer is as bad as Cox - all because he did a bit of tidying up on his legal work immediately after becoming an MP in 2015.

They really should leave the glue huffing to the Neil Kinnock Re-enactment Society.

[Blair]

Some on the Labour left (or rather "left") trying to imply Starmer is as bad as Cox - all because he did a bit of tidying up on his legal work immediately after becoming an MP in 2015.

They really should leave the glue huffing to the Neil Kinnock Re-enactment Society.

He clearly should have been paid by Press TV.

It’s been weird to see the second jobs row turn into this- the issue was the fake jobs that MPs were being given were they were being paid for their letterhead and ability to nobble ministers (hence why it was new Labour grandees caught in late 000s!)

[Statilius the Epicurean]

https://twitter.com/BritainElects/status/1459281591738540035?t=KM1njS2SvdIJi_iIW...

https://talkelections.org/FORUM/GALLERY/13203_10_01_20_7_27_34.png

And all it took was for the government to repeatedly shoot itself in the head over the past week.

[CumbrianLefty]

Yes, but leading indicators in polling show this has been building for a while and just needed a spark.

Too many are transfixed by VI in opinion surveys, to the exclusion of all else.

[afleitch]

Yes, but leading indicators in polling show this has been building for a while and just needed a spark.

Too many are transfixed by VI in opinion surveys, to the exclusion of all else.

Sleaze, or accusations of are the only thing that really shifts polling, from Major to the expenses scandal of 2010. The key is trying to maintain it. There isn't quite a stench of death around the government yet, but when the PM is not only involved, but already known for being shady when he became PM, that's still historically untested.

[Blair]

Yes, but leading indicators in polling show this has been building for a while and just needed a spark.

Too many are transfixed by VI in opinion surveys, to the exclusion of all else.

Sleaze, or accusations of are the only thing that really shifts polling, from Major to the expenses scandal of 2010. The key is trying to maintain it. There isn't quite a stench of death around the government yet, but when the PM is not only involved, but already known for being shady when he became PM, that's still historically untested.

I think it would, in a weird way, be easier for Boris to get away with his personal corruption rather than the type of antics we’ve seen over the past two weeks. I’m not sure if to because it’s already factored in, or because he has a weird amount of hyper partisan loyalists but I’m still unsure if the next round of wallpaper gate will have a fatal impact.

Either that or I’m just numb after the 15 other things he’s managed to shamelessly get away with.

[Pericles]

Matt Hancock in talks over Covid book deal

Why would he write this while he's still in politics? He could make himself look better by making the somewhat true case that he was ahead of the curve more than Boris and Sunak. However, he can't afford to undermine them because he's still trying to get back into cabinet.

[Torrain]

Williamson is now the numbers man for Jeremy Hunt, according to the Mirror. Probably tabloid gossip to some extent, but just about the only thing Williamson is good at is Tory parliamentary arithmetic - he was a pretty good Chief Whip and ran the campaigns of both May and Johnson.

Who the heck is going to prefer Jeremy Hunt (a man most known for an unfortunate rhyme with his name) over Boris ?

I don't think Hunt is seriously expected be a contender, but he might make an effective stalking horse (think Sir Anthony Meyer challenging Thatcher in 1989, or Heseltine undermining her in 1990, paving the way for Major).

He's got enough credibility to be a protest vote for jumpy Tory MPs in swing seats who think Boris is going to screw up the next election (whether that's because of sleaze, COVID, or get another scandal is yet to be seen). But once the contest is officially open, I'd expect consensus to converge around a slightly more charismatic/popular figure.

My money is still on Rishi Sunak. He's got the No. 2 job, with significant experience at the helm during a crisis, but he's also a fresher face than most in the cabinet.

Also, if YouGov is anything to go by, he's the only member of the cabinet with an approval rating that isn't underwater (Approve -36%, Disapprove -33%, Neutral - 27%)

[CumbrianLefty]

Sunak's ratings have dropped a lot in the past 18 months, though.

[Blair]

The current expectation is for a final two between Truss & Sunak- ironically Truss who was the Cameronite remainer appears to be playing for the lane further to the right. (See her work as Women & Equalities around trans rights & the fact it was briefed that she opposed the tax hike)

Of course there is always mischief making by Tory MPs with who gets through.

I think Sunaks biggest issue is that his political fate is tied to the Prime Minister; if the tax rises & cost of living continues to be an issue then Sunak's stock will continue to fall (as it has done over the last 6 months) He's the one who will benefit from Boris just deciding he's had enough before 2024.

It's very early days but I am bizarrely picking up some grassroots discomfort that the Government is 'too focused on the green crap' and not 'sorting out the boats.'- both from friends who've doorknocked & from the stuff reform UK are putting out.

[Alcibiades]

The current expectation is for a final two between Truss & Sunak- ironically Truss who was the Cameronite remainer appears to be playing for the lane further to the right. (See her work as Women & Equalities around trans rights & the fact it was briefed that she opposed the tax hike)

Truss may have been a Remainer, but she has always been considered pretty far to the economic right within the party. She was part of that section of the 2010 intake who were much more openly economically libertarian/Thatcherite than the image Cameron was trying to project; she, along with Raab, Kwarteng, Patel and Skidmore, was one of the authors of the 2012 polemic Britannia Unchained, which infamously asserted that “the British are among the worst idlers in the world.”

[rc18]

It's very early days but I am bizarrely picking up some grassroots discomfort that the Government is 'too focused on the green crap' and not 'sorting out the boats.'- both from friends who've doorknocked & from the stuff reform UK are putting out.

Don't know why it's bizarre. Notice that, apart from that SavantaComres, generally Labour VI hasn't been benefitting that much from the average decline in the Tory share since the summer. Much of the discontent with the Tory party right now is from so-cons.

[afleitch]

We're getting close to what could potentially be the mid-point of the Parliament.

The story I think is this; the Tories get a very historic boost with COVID but as 2020 dragged on they ended up neck and neck with Labour by the end of the year. As 2021 begun there was a bit of 'rally round the government' with the second lockdown and then the rollout of the vaccine and the opening up of the country.

But since June, the Tories have been been dropping and Labour rising, even as at the moment, the UK is perhaps not quite looking like it will have a bad winter this year. So I don't think there's much hay to be made out from 'the COVID response' being linked to government fortunes.

There are a variety of different possibilities going forward in the two or three years left. It's entirely possible that the arse completely falls out of the government as the p r o b l e m s start to be associated with a sh-tty Brexit outcome rather than COVID.

[Meclazine for Israel]

Liverpool Hospital bombing.

Great effort from the taxi driver to keep the ISIS dude locked in the car.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-16/heroic-cabbie-praised-for-actions-after-deadly-liverpool-blast/100622794

[Silent Hunter]

Taxi passenger doors are generally locked automatically when the vehicle is in gear in newer models, I believe. Certainly, while in motion.

I am not sure whether they can be kept locked from the inside while parked without someone keeping their foot on a pedal.

[ingemann]

One of the few good thing about suicide bombers is that they tend to not learn from their mistakes. I also doubt this guy acted alone, he seemed to stupid to do so and his incompetence have likely resulting in his entire network being caught.

[afleitch]

Terrorist was a Christian convert. Which turns things on it's head somewhat if correct.

[CumbrianLefty]

Christopher Chope - simply LOL.

[Blair]

Another day where lobby brain means certain people think that Boris has played a master stroke.

I mean it was pretty obvious they’d do this to avoid labours trap tomorrow around second jobs.

Some journalists like Sam coates at at sky responded by quite smartly asking well what are the specifics of Johnson’s proposals what are the impacts who enforces it where as Laura K as per usual jumps on the usual rubbish.