Britain - The Official Thread

[Touring Mars]

Here's Trussy...!

...and her opening line is an allusion to her tough upbringing in Paisley

...meanwhile, growth, growth, Putin, growth, Jeremy Hunt (phew, that was close!!), growth and more growth.

And now she is taking questions from the press...

Jebus H. Crackers, the woman simply cannot answer a question - robot, robot, robot.

 

[Dennisch]

 

[merseyxshore]

I can see Boris coming back, or at least threatening to. (No facts here, just opinion) He won the last election by some margin and seems to be better able to blow through issues in his bubble of arrogance, until he couldn't any longer. Personally I am fed up of a prime minister getting the job and being back stabbed by their own party for what appears to be the stabees' own personal gain.
I don't support the conservatives and am at a loss as to who I think should run the place. Starmer seems alright, and with his background in law (I think), he seems better suited to make more educated guesses on policy.
We need a leader, that much is clear, who has a team of experienced people in the right areas, rather than someone who just wants to be popular.
So putting my money where my mouth is, I'd have:

Starmer up front.
Martin lewis as chancellor.
A recently retired nurse as health secretary.
The Dragons Den people as business secretaries.
Who ever is the Natural History Museum Director as cultural secretary.
A current or recently retired judge to do the justice bit.
Usain Bolt to do the sports engagement bit.

In short, people who has more than an interest in the section they are in charge of, people who care.

I've been saying this for a while, it should absolutely be a requirement to have an extensive background in the field that you're representing. How can you make decisions on health with no medical or related background? How can you make decisions on education if you've never taught?? Seems blindingly obvious really, it's insane that this isn't policy.

 

[Touring Mars]

I reckon Truss will be gone by 2023. And that's 24h clock notation.

 

[HenrySwanson]

 

[Tired Tyres]

I can't see how she can survive this. Maybe she's borrowed teflon Boris jacket?

 

[XJ40]

After another u-turn, it looks like the keys to Number Ten also come with a Forza style "rewind" button.

"That didn't work, let's try another way and hope nobody noticed"

 

[PeterJB]

"He [Kwarteng] is a great friend, and he shares my vision to set this country on the path to growth."

And apparently an even greater scapegoat.

I've been saying this for a while, it should absolutely be a requirement to have an extensive background in the field that you're representing. How can you make decisions on health with no medical or related background? How can you make decisions on education if you've never taught?? Seems blindingly obvious really, it's insane that this isn't policy.

I went through this a while back. Regarding Health Secretary, since 1848, only five of the 52 incumbents have had any kind of background in medicine or the healthcare industry; three Labour, two Conservative.

Skimming through Wikipedia's list of every Health Secretary (and equivalent positions) going back to 1848, the only ones with any kind of medical/healthcare background are Dr Christopher Addison (LAB, 1919-1921), who was a doctor and lecturer of medicine; Neville Chamberlain (CON, 1923, 1924-1929, 1931) who was founding member of the National United Hospitals Committee of the British Medical Association; Walter Elliot (CON, 1938-1940), who had a medical degree; David Ennals (LAB, 1976-1979), who was campaign director for MIND; and Andy Burham (LAB, 2009-2010), who was a parliamentary officer for the NHS Confederation. The other 47 ministers don't appear to have had any medical training or to have worked within some kind of administrative or business position within the healthcare industry.

----

On a completely different topic, and something which may interest any historians; it is believed that Charles III may allow the alledged remains of the Princes in the Tower unearthed in the Tower of London in the 17th century to be exhumed from Westminster Abbey and have DNA tests conducted to confirm whether or not they are actually Edward V and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York; something which Elizabeth II always blocked.

https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/who-kill...wer-500-year-old-murder-could-soon-be-solved/

 

[XJ40]

I had a look at the resignation letter supposedly from Kwasi and it looks like it was written by Truss, for the media.
Why on earth she thinks that she needs to remind him of the 'achievements' that were announced by him as chancellor, to the now ex chancellor, is beyond me.
It seems to me that it is a 'I made an arse of this, you are taking the fall, thank you kindly and let me remind the public of the great works we are continuing to do whilst trying desperately to get re-elected'

And that statistic from @PeterJB is shocking. 5.... Five people had any kind of training for the job that they are doing?!?

 

[Liquid]

With this many U-turns I'm surprised the government hasn't struck oil and solved the energy crisis.

 

[UKMikey]

Jeremy Hunt is to be the new Chancellor.

I wonder if they will try and get Tom Scholar back too. Scholar was the Permanent Secretary to the Treasury and was a highly respected civil servant, but he was unceremoniously sacked within 48 hours of the Truss-Kwarteng takeover. This is widely regarded as a very early and very large blunder by Truss and Kwarteng.

I mentioned this last month as he wasn't very "support"-ive of Truss's direction. Guess if she were to go then bringing this gentleman (and scholar) back would be a clear indication (were any needed further) of apparent party disapproval with Lizism.

 

[Touring Mars]

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has absolutely savaged Liz Truss in an interview with the BBC this afternoon.

And, for once, I can't say I disagree with a single word.

Some highlights: 'Truss must resign', 'the entire UK Government needs to go', 'This is now beyond a joke', 'Truss is unfit to hold the office of PM', 'Truss is incompetent'; and Sturgeon pointed out that Truss is the 4th Prime Minister since Sturgeon became First Minister of Scotland (ouch!) but hasn't even bothered to call the First Ministers of Scotland or Wales to establish a working relationship. Astonishing stuff.

-

I'm waiting to see who's the first TV talking head or politician to call Jeremy something other than Hunt... I'm not a religious man, but I am praying that it's Truss herself. It would be absolutely glorious.

 

[XJ40]

That song is in my head now.
Thanks @Touring Mars

 

[Moglet]

Savage

 

[Touring Mars]

That song is in my head now.
Thanks @Touring Mars

 

[Fezzik]

Savage

to be fair to the pig *****r, it was pretty stable after his big election win - right up until he gave in to the Eurosceptics, lost the referendum and ran for the hills Cotswolds.

 

[Touring Mars]

Brexit is the gift that keeps on giving for the Tories.

It cost Cameron his job, it cost May her job (and her sanity), and has ushered in the era of the ERG, the libertarian core of the Tory Party, who used Boris as their talismanic frontman, even knowing that he was a total clown. Truss is the unlucky sod left to pick up the pieces of the shambles of Boris Johnson's incompetence, and alas while she is somewhat less of an absolute clown, she is arguably even less competent, with zero charisma and seemingly unable to rouse herself out of robotic parroting of pure libertarian drivel.

It's becoming increasingly clear that the entire ERG/libertarian/Brexit project is hitting the buffers - hard.

 

[Scaff]

How to 'not answer' four questions and then run away...

 

[Famine]

 

[UKMikey]

Cancel culture strikes again 👍



[EDIT] and again from the looks of things.

 

[Touring Mars]

I've been saying this for a while, it should absolutely be a requirement to have an extensive background in the field that you're representing. How can you make decisions on health with no medical or related background? How can you make decisions on education if you've never taught?? Seems blindingly obvious really, it's insane that this isn't policy.

Not sure if you use Twitter, but do a search for Therese Coffey right now and weep...

-

The entire way the UK Government is selected and operates is broken.

The fact alone that Truss is the Prime Minister is clear evidence that something is fundamentally wrong.

 

[UKMikey]

Not sure if you use Twitter, but do a search for Therese Coffey right now and weep...

 

[Touring Mars]

I actually had a twinge of sympathy for Truss when I saw this - she is literally like a punch-drunk boxer who's corner is about to throw in the towel.

For context, this is from her press conference and she's scanning the crowd (of media) while taking questions - BUT, this was her big moment, designed entirely to reassert her authority and to help calm nerves of her party, the markets and the public - and yet this is what she could muster.

 

[UKMikey]

This came up in my YouTube feed recently. I won't make you watch the whole thing but have timestamped the video at 7'49".

From the smug expression on his face, I'm sure Karl McCartney really thought he had a killer "gotcha" question for Mick Lynch when he asked him why we can't have driverless trains "like on DLR". If only we had someone as calm and well-versed as Lynch seems to be overseeing our public transport infrastructure.

I don't think we'll see this making headlines in the Sun or Mail any time soon but I just subscribed to the channel.

 

[Moglet]

Faisal Islam on today's U-turn made me giggle a little

We may need new terminology. "U-turn" suggests a controlled manoeuvre. This is like a plane trying to do the jet engine equivalent of a handbrake turn.

 

[Tired Tyres]

Well she's convinced me and I'm a unionist.

 

[Touring Mars]

There's some speculation (and indeed some very strong implications based on what Penny Mordaunt has said in the Commons just now) that Liz Truss may have suffered a nervous breakdown...

 

[Famine]

based on what Penny Mordaunt has said in the Commons just now

She said that the PM is attending urgent business and isn't "under a desk".

Why she didn't use the obvious and much, much funnier "in a fridge" I'll never know. Apart from the fact Dead-Mother's-Sister has no sense of humour.

I also note that Jess Phillips is braying in her bizarre accent again. So weird how she sounds so southern and then so Manchester at the same time... almost as if one of them is contrived to appear working class enough.

 

[Touring Mars]

Liz Truss is "charmless, graceless, brainless and useless."

And that's coming from former Conservative minister Edwina Currie.

 

[Famine]

I have to say, considering that she has the valuable outsider's perspective of a south-east Asian, Mary's not doing well right now. The Cluster**** Clock has been reset twice today.

First, Suella Braverman quit after sending an official document via personal email (which is a big old no-no), then apparently roasted Truss in her resignation letter. Then, to stick with the holders of offices of state who go by different names theme (Braverman herself is actually named "Sue-Ellen Cassiana"), Truss appointed "Corinne Stockheath" (Grant Schapps) to succeed her just two days after he told the Matt Forde podcast that Mary could be gone in a week.

Finally there's just been the mother of all to-dos over a Labour vote to ban fracking, with all sorts of whippage going on (reportedly the chief whip has also resigned) to defeat the motion - with a really large majority, surprisingly... but which Truss didn't even vote in herself.

To say this is a car crash makes a car crash look like reverse cowgirl.