EU referendum, brexit and the aftermath

holy fuck the live show is better than anything on netflix. absolute batshittery.

It's not really his, and I'm not sure it undermines his points on subsidies.

Personally I think that giving tax breaks to married people and those with children is ridiculous, however that view wouldn't stop me using them.

Similarly, I know a few pensioners that don't feel entitled to their winter fuel allowance but they still claim it and donate it to charity.

vid of the Tory's majority vanishing https://twitter.com/davidschneider/status/1168900278374060034

What's happening? I've been "working"

/napping cos a meeting cancelled

Hypocrisy is an odd one. Does the fact that I used to smoke mean I loose all legitimacy when foraying that my children smoke?

(shit eg displaying my age as you now have to be 18, but you know what I mean)

see twitter link above.

I'm rarely logged into Twitter, as I only use it to complain about shit and get refunds. Plus, reading Twitter thread makes me angry/gives me a migraine.

Came to post an ID link too:

https://twitter.com/IanDunt/status/1168895769409130496?s=19

Philip Hammond, the Tory former chancellor, says Angela Merkel said on Friday that, nine days into the 30 days set aside for a new deal, she had yet to see any new proposals from the UK. Will Johnson publish any ideas he has?
Johnson says the UK will be able to get a deal within 30 days. But he says that cannot happen while parliament is threatening to block no deal. He says the first thing EU leaders ask is, ‘Will this get through parliament?”
(guardian)

His reasoning isn't even making any sense. Knowing that the opposite side in a negotiation doesn't want no deal doesn't discourage the finding of a deal! Just stops him getting the better-than-may deal he wants and believes he can get if he acts so prepared to go for no deal.

He's playing chicken with the EU, and now the US is weighing in with Pence re Ireland too. I think he doesn't believe the EU would be prepared to let an irish catastrophe happen and is counting on it.

^ Perfidious albion in action.

Making a mess and then daring the EU to not build a border.

The Irish/those who identify with Ireland/those with Irish ancestry have a lot of power in the USA, the EU said they will not ditch the backstop so I don't see how he will brag himself out of that.

Aside from (as others suggested) backstop for NI only (needs a GE and DUP tiddling off) OR a CU/SM Brexit (which didn't pass last time, but may this time and the EU will take that too I think, less hassle for everyone involved)

And as others already said...he just wants power. So if that is going to keep him in as a PM he may just do that (but not sure the ones around him will go for it)

I like what you say above but I think ‘he’ is a whole crew of people who have lots of plans and ambitions for what to do with power that are already being pursued. Privatisation, ‘crisis’ and deregulation means $$$

Oof.

https://twitter.com/IanDunt/status/1168909348543901696?s=19

Shortest PM reign ever?

Might be overstating the case there. Even if this level of pressure is kept up and he continues to blither in public view, the Brexiteer core just want to see him through to the promised leave date. It's when/if he has to roll back on that promise that they may turn.

Still, nice to see him on the back foot.

I can't say I know much about Philip Lee but him joining the Lib Dems has caused the chair of LGBT+ Liberal Democrats to resign.
https://miss-s-b.dreamwidth.org/2048873.html

He was pretty good in Dracula.

Oh wow, that sucks. I don't know anything about him, but he must hold pretty bad views for that to happen.

Will his defection be something that he discussed with the Lib Dems before crossing the house, or would they have known nothing about it?

Sarcasm?

Voting record https://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/24765/phillip_lee/bracknell/votes

Seems like a relatively standard Tory tbh... so not exactly my favourite type of person for sure (probably an understatement), but also not outstandingly horrible as Tories go?

That’s kinda what I thought but then maybe I’m just being lenient because of the defection.

He had an escort of two of his new colleagues. They knew.

Definitely. But amusing that the bunch already on the benches didn’t appear to want to budge up! Big middle finger to his local party who voted against him recently.

Also Jared O’Mara postpones resignation, presumably so the Tories don’t regain a working majority? (Or to collect his £40k after getting the hoof in any election?)