Thread 24, Sunak and the local elections aftermath

[DuncinToffee]

Previous thread

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/4793978-thread-23-sunak-unicorn-kingdom?page=1

And more from Swinford

https://twitter.com/Steven_Swinford/status/1661352445920813060?t=RLqzLxj2cNysI8e1a8a2mA&s=19

Govt is rejecting Covid Inquiry's demands outright - BUT ultimately it may have no choice but to hand over the Whatsapps and notebooks

Inquiries Act says explicitly that the decision ultimately lies with the head of the inquiry

So where does this end up? Judicial Review?

Given the ferocity of the Government's letter to the Covid Inquiry it appears ready to question the fundamental basis it's operating on

So could the Government mount a legal challenge against the Covid Inquiry to stop the information being released?

Extraordinary if so

So the Cabinet Office is carrying out a witch hunt against Johnson and withholding evidence?

Ye gods this is just mirroring Trump in every which way

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/may/24/covid-inquiry-threatened-legal-action-over-boris-johnson-whatsapp-messages

Let me get this straight:
Boris is being represented by tax payer funded cabinet lawyers for the covid inquiry.
Covid inquiry issued cabinet office an s21 for Boris’s WhatsApp’s and notebooks because they don’t think they have them all.
Cabinet office is saying no because in their opinion they are definitely not relevant.
meanwhile, Boris’s taxpayer funded lawyers pass on his ministerial diaries to their client the cabinet office who pass them to the Met and Thames Valley police because they think that they show rules were broken.
Boris flips his lid and fires the lawyers, threatening to sue the cabinet office
The time on the s21 is up and the covid inquiry don’t have the documents they want and are going to sue the cabinet office.
Lawyerless Boris says I don’t know what you are asking for because the mean cabinet office wouldn’t show me. By the way I have no lawyers can you give me 48hrs to find out. If not publish me letter so everyone knows this isn’t my fault. Then asks the cabinet office to find some more lawyers.
Covud inquiry says ‘lol no’ and publishes the letter.

And the privileges committee who are looking into Boris misleading parliament are looking on and going. This is very interesting. We’ll be taking it inuu to account.

Yep, pretty much @RafaistheKingofClay

It seems though that Johnson is now appointing his own lawyers, although the taxpayer is still picking up the bill, all while he is at a speaking engagement in Las Vegas, which I'm sure is very beneficial to his constituents.

Honestly, not enough eye rolls in the world 🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄

If the taxpayer is picking up the tab then surely the taxpayer is the client?

But if the tax payer (cabinet office) is paying the bill won’t they still be cabinet office lawyers? Unless Boris pays them himself someone else is still the client aren’t they? Or are they?

No doubt Johnsons whatsapps and note books will be laced with his usual disrespectful buffoonery in the vein of ''let the bodies pile high''

No wonder they don't want to release them unredacted

https://twitter.com/PolitlcsUK/status/1661367207723425793

Boris allies threaten to trigger at least 3 by-elections.

Does this relate to his honours list? It hadn't been signed off as far as I know.

Would be unfortunate to resign and then not get moved to the HoL.

And in amongst all that lot, Boris says he's always sought to comply with disclosure requests and hasn't been withholding evidence. So what's all the fuss about? Why doesn't he just tell the Cabinet Office he's happy for them to pass over unredacted documents?

The sooner we stop paying an MP's salary to Mad Nad, the better. Bring it on, I say.

By his hissy fit ditching the lawyers, Boris is effectively admitting that he's just realised that using Cabinet Office lawyers means allowing them access to his documents which they will pass on to police if they disclose anything criminal, and that he's done this because he knows that there's a whole heap of even more incriminating stuff yet to come.

I hope they tell him that, if he wants to change lawyers, he's paying for the new bunch himself. Apart from anything else, the new lawyers are going to have to spend a hell of a long time going through all the documents and their predecessors' correspondence etc, effectively duplicating work, and I'm guessing that that exercise alone will cost tens of thousands of pounds. Why on earth should the taxpayer fund that when it's solely caused by Boris's tantrum? And what happens when he falls out with the next batch of lawyers who insist on telling him what the law is rather than what he wants to hear, unlike that nice Suella? And the ones after that?

Oh please let the odious Bone join them. Three by-election defeats now would surely have to trigger a GE? Or is my incurable optimism getting the better of me again?

I'm afraid that's optimism, @Blossomtoes . This lot will have to be dragged from power kicking, screaming and clawing at the floor. When they lose the election they'll probably try to do a Trump.

Yes I think those are empty threats. Shame really.

I’m afraid that Boris allies threatening to resign if they don’t get what they want might not be the threat they think it is. But I’m happy for them to shoot themselves in the foot as a threat if they want.

Apparently the cabinet office is worried releasing g the WhatsApp’s would be a breach of Boris’s human rights. Watching them take the covid inquiry to the ECHR while Speedy Suella and her gang are trying to pull us out of it could get interesting.

This is an excellent point.

You'd have thought by now they'd understand that just because they say a matter is closed doesn't mean someone - somewhere doesn't have information to share about the gaps they left in their story.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2023/may/24/gary-lineker-accepts-human-rights-award-with-call-to-show-refugees-more-compassion

Net migration hits a record high of 606,000 in 2022.

A long way from long-standing Tory promise - eventually dumped by Boris Johnson - to bring it below 100,000.

Rishi Sunak committed last week to bringing it below level he inherited - 504,000 in year to June 2022.

Total long-term immigration is estimated at around 1.2m in 2022, while emigration was 557,000, according to ONS.

Most arriving to UK in 2022 were non-EU nationals (925,000), followed by EU (151,000) and Brits (88,000).

Separately, Rishi Sunak set target for 80% of asylum claims to be resolved within 6m of being lodged to clear backlog.

But number waiting for initial decision is up to 172,758 from 166,261, while number waiting more than 6m has increased by 10k to 128,812, acc Home Office.

Ironic that a big driver of the high immigration numbers is the success in achieving another policy target of 600k foreign students.

The Tories won't lose in Dorries land. They are deeply fed up with her but they remain fairly dyed in the wool Tories. If the LDs found a really string candidate they might challenge but the constituency has no large urban population and is relatively affluent. Brexit a minor concern for most.

I lost the thread!

I don't know if anyone listens to "The rest is politics" but there was some very interesting stuff on there this week about the NatCons and links to other far right governments/evangelical far right christian groups in the US. Was fascinating but a bit scary. So worth a listen if you haven't already

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/may/25/tory-pledge-to-build-40-new-england-hospitals-likely-to-be-delayed-until-after-2030

Instead, Barclay is expected to commit to prioritising five hospitals where roofs and ceilings are most at risk of sudden collapse because they are made from reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC).

so urgent repairs