Et tu Dominic? Political loyalty that didn’t last.,,

[VaVaGloom]

So Johnson and Cummings are at each other’s throats. Anyone else think that it’s karma for them being such self serving, conniving, utter shit weasels last year? It’s so fitting that they are self destructing their own abominable empire.

United they stood, divided they fall.

Possibly something along the lines of 'do you know there's an IKEA just along the North Circular?"

@VaVaGloom

They managed to spend 2.3 million in that room for press conferences

Kitted out for the US style daily briefings with the PMs spokesperson that they no longer plan to hold. Paid a Russian company to do the 2million pound refit so didn’t even channel the taxpayers money into our own economy.

Allegra Stratton the PMs spokesperson recruited to hold the now defunct briefings is still on the public payroll though (as they’ve made her spokesperson for a summit).

Whatever happened to austerity? Johnson seems to haemorrhage money.

Are you unfamiliar with the garden bridge, or water cannons for the met police?

@Miasicarisatia

There's rumours Gove's shagging a female tory MP though Uuurgghhh How could anyone have sex with Gove with his big fleshy lady's bottom 😳

I know, it put me off my tea.

Please stop speculating about Slithy's possible extra-curricular entertainment, it really is too much to think about, shudder. But, if we must, I hope it's Therese Coffey who has irritated me a lot today. Or Ann Widdecombe.

@jgw1 oh I know Johnson has form for blowing money & getting what he wants. I live in an area where he used to be MP. A cycle track in the town was extended to the hamlet where his house was. There is nothing there other than a couple of houses. The cycle track then stops.

The much more useful cycle track that would mean cyclists don’t have to go on a hazardous road to the train station (that local campaigners have been pleading for for years) remains unbuilt.

Is there a name floating around for the female Tory mp?

@longwayoff it’s a miracle he found one woman willing to accept his advances. I simply can’t believe there is another woman out there who would accept physical proximity with him.

You wouldn't have believed it of David Mellor either.

Gove is apparently charming and well-mannered. And of course powerful.

But, if we must, I hope it's Therese Coffey who has irritated me a lot today. Or Ann Widdecombe.

Stop it! Some of us have to sleep tonight!

@CovidCorvid I hadn’t heard the rumours before today, but Gove appears to be leering down Lynne Truss’s top here, so who knows?

images.app.goo.gl/cNsoHTa56GMiMSKG9

Liz Truss! Not Lynne! I always get those two mixed up.

But Gove is Pob.

You wouldn’t have thought it of John Major either but there you go.

And of course we all know about Johnson in that regard.

‘I’m a naughty Tory’ seems rife among MPs

So to summarise from the papers today:

Johnson and Symonds commissioned the flat to be redecorated. They didn't discuss budget beforehand like normal people do.

Work was underway and Boris realised he couldn't afford the nearly 60k bill. (30k already covered by public funds so this was a very extravagant revamp) He went around cap in hand to Tory donors - begging financial favours. This is clearly not what the PM should be doing to business people. It was/is an ongoing distraction to him during the time he should have been sorting out the pandemic.

It shows BJ and CS are a pair of idiots. I don't think he'll go as PM over it.

Not quite. This article from Sky News covers it from a different angle. Initially, an ex-Labour chancellor (Alistair Darling) was approached last July to help set up a 'trust' that would oversee the refurbishment of the Downing Street estate (the whole building, not just the flat).

Darling said no, and 'is thought to have argued that the government, rather than a trust, should maintain government buildings, and that the project could attract the unwanted attention from donors who might want favours from the PM or a peerage.'

So this initiative started before a Trust was set up (the idea was abandoned) and donors were approached to give money to the hypothetical trust before it was finalised.

news.sky.com/story/downing-st-approached-ex-labour-chancellor-for-help-setting-up-trust-to-oversee-pms-flat-refurbishment-12288748

Alistair Darling? Bloody cheek, seeking to get Labour to give approval to obvious dodginess then take the blame for it later. Transparent, and glad he saw it for what it is.

Didn't Carrie Symonds leave a previous job due to financial irregularities?

That was an alleged story in the red tops MilkyWayStars , although I don't think it was reported in the more serious papers but I could be wrong. Something about her allegedly being sacked for allegedly inflating expenses when she worked in a PR role for Tory HQ, specifically, taxi fares. And there was something about an alleged holiday that allegedly left the office understaffed. CS claimed the latter was nonsense because a senior member of staff was allegedly present at the holiday and her story was that certain factions were allegedly briefing against her for political reasons. We will probably never know because it was reported that both she and her employers allegedly signed an NDA , so the speculation is that something allegedly happened, but we don't know quite what. And to be fair to CS, there have been lots of negative stories about her in the tabloids, about her allegedly clashing with other female !members of staff, and about her dog Dilyn who is allegedly destructive, which she alleged originated from Dominic Cummings (allegedly!). So who knows?

[Hopes sufficient "allegedlys" in previous post.]

@QuantumofSolace it wasn't tax payers money though ever that isn't whats being disputed about it at all

@QuantumofSolace all pm get a £30000 allowance and many have used it , so have you complained about this before
To me its a huge amount that should be scrapped but then again what a PM earns is actually not that much in my opinion for running a country and all the shit that goes with it

Also comparing to football is silly
Most of us know whatever party os in they will screw us over , I have lived under labour , conservative , etc and neither have been great and the vast majority don't care that much about politics you only have to look at the turnout for most local elections rtc
Football fans do care about football and thats why there was an outcry , there was also only 2 sides to choose from and owners misjudged fans hugely
Football fan have passion for the game
Very few have passion for politics ,

worriedatthemoment

Eh? I was replying to MilkyWay's specific question about CS allegedly being sacked for allegedly mishandling expenses (not sure if this story is true or not but it's out there). No it did not involve tax payers money and no one is alleging it did. It's a separate story to the PM's flat renovation story. But MilkyWay's question is pertinent in that it relates to an alleged lack of transparency around money.

@worriedatthemoment I’m either misunderstanding you or you have misunderstood the issue. It’s not the £30,000 refurbishment allowance that is under scrutiny /complaint. It’s the additional money (nearly 60k)that Johnson, the PM, was asking party donors to gift/lend him & trying to hide /not disclose it. Lots of organisations have policies that you should not accept / seek gifts as it can be seen as influencing policy making & work decisions. It’s the type of behaviour that is not just frowned upon but can be illegal - that is why this is in the spotlight. If a football manager accepts a bung (financial incentive) they face scrutiny and the sack - same applies here.

You say very few people have a passion for politics and that’s true, very few follow the nitty gritty of decision-making. However, most people are bothered about how much they have in their wage slip at the end of the month/ whether there is public transport to make a journey/ whether their child can get a school place or a job or if they can get a free hospital appointment quickly when needed - this is all down to politics, so yes people do care.

@worriedatthemoment politicians may all ‘screw us over’ but the extent to which depends on the Government and this particular Government are reaching new depths, especially the PM.

@worriedatthemoment politicians may all ‘screw us over’ but the extent to which depends on the Government and this particular Government are reaching new depths, especially the PM.

...and so blatantly!