Roll up, Roll up, place your money on the tory party donkey derby leadership race

[MisterMist]

big clown shoes to fill, who do you fancy

As is Priti Patel but that's too frightening a possibility 😱😱😱

Although I don't think the Conservatives would accept a none white prime minister to be honest. The most Liberal they could manage was a woman. I don't think the hardcore Conservatives voters would accept a leader of foreign decent & different skin colour to them.

Oh come on! People like Thatcher did absolutely nothing for women's rights. They are not allies. Similarly people like Priti Patel. The brown people BlowJo has put in government are harsher on minorities than the average white person

Useless Eustice doesn't stand a chance hopefully. He's my MP and fucking useless. Useless by name, useless by nature.

what?

who's the man at the bus stop?

am I being dim (again)?

David Paisley.

A lot of people would have said the same about a woman.
Don't underestimate how much they love voting in someone who will legitimise their prejudices by putting the boot into people from the same group.

If we're talking foreign descent, Johnson was born overseas (in the US), both Sunak and Javid were born in the UK. (Without wanting to split hairs, I also don't love being called 'non-white' any more than most women like being described as a 'non-male'. Asian, or BAME or Us style 'person of colour' probably all preferable, depending on the person. Though bet they get called all sorts in Tory land, and have to pretend it's all good banter...)

I'd rather not have a Tory prime minister at all, but all this is making me wish that Rory Stewart was still around. It's not that I necessarily agree with him on all the issues, and his past voting record, but it would be interesting to have someone in charge who seems to have a grasp of international issues and who doesn't come from the corporate world or professional politics. However, it's highly unlikely the Tories would see him as a Red Wall retainer even if he were still an M.P.

I hope the aggressive, inventive tax avoidance has done for Rishi's chances. There are some truly awful prospects. So many of them seem truly out of their depth or just complete hucksters.

I've noticed this too.

Not Rishi.

Too many dodgy dealings during Covid. Bounce back loans and contracts to his mates.

His family tax affairs need further scrutiny too.

I think it's likely that we will officially be in recession by October, Rishi will be blamed for that.

Can we have William Hague back..... not for his politics, but I love the way he speaks.

As long as it's not Rishi. He's only been Chancellor 3 years but has made a lot of incompetent decisions, not least the appalling way he treated the 3 million excluded self employed/contractors/freelancers who he basically accused of fraud and then subsequently lied about them. Then the eat out to spread covid initiative, and the stupid flip-flopping re furlough, tax rises/reductions, etc. I don't think we've ever had such an incompetent/negligent Chancellor in living memory.

I like Ben Wallace. Quietly getting on with various jobs in government that relate to his past experience (he was in the army beforehand - hence being so popular with the associations). You get a strong sense of "service" from him rather than glory-hunting.

He'd be stable and respected internationally which is important during the Ukraine crisis.

Aren't they all awful?

Oh come on! People like Thatcher did absolutely nothing for women's rights. They are not allies. Similarly people like Priti Patel. The brown people BlowJo has put in government are harsher on minorities than the average white person

My point isn't that they're allies. It's that the Labour Party clearly aren't, even though they say they are. They say the right things but can't elect one leader that's not pale, stale and male.

As a Labour voter Tom Tugendhat is the one that would worry me.

Has he met Braverman?

I’m a Labour voter but Tom Tugendhat seems competent from his CV and decent enough in not being in any scandals that we have heard about, from among the current options. The bar’s low at the moment, obviously.

The bar is set at 'can find arse with both hands'. Some of them would fail.

'I like Ben Wallace . . . You get a strong sense of "service" from him rather than glory-hunting.'

Yeah, and a good whiff of homophobia, as well . . .

Kemi Badenoch has put her hat in the ring. I’m a Labour voter but from what I know of her on women’s rights as Equalties Minister, I think she’s got the right, non-sexist sort of ideas.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-62103360

So many candidates! None of them appeal to be honest. Rishi is too smooth / slick and I think that will go against him.

Oh wait no. The Times reports that, ‘the former equalities minister Kemi Badenoch launches her campaign for the leadership with a pledge to radically cut the size and influence of the state and preside over a “limited government focused on the essentials”.She says that lower taxes will need to be accompanied by “tight spending”.’

OK sorry but anyone coming in with ‘low tax, low spend, small government’ as a principle is a bad prospect for women and children who need a well thought through pragmatic welfare state not an ideologically-led model.

I don’t like the look of any of Tory hopeful that holds these principles as their campaign pledge. This ideology always impacts more on women who have caring responsibilities, and on children, than it does on men who are freer to find whatever job is available. Especially it harms female-headed single parent households which is the vast majority of single parent households. Which is obviously sexist and unfair. But generations of Tories hold this up as the ideal model of the state and candidates who don’t promote it are viewed as radical, rather than fair or caring.

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/boris-johnson-news-resign-prime-minister-live-2nf28bptx

Big change with Ben Wallace not running. ReadyForRishi is strong favourite but I fancy Tom Tugendhat to be close.

I'm liking Liz 'Women do have vaginas, Nick' Truss, and Nadhim Zahawi, who will be saying in his speech on Monday that he wishes to protect schoolchildren from radical activists.