to supect the timing of the announcement that Carrie Symonds is pregnant?t

[chomalungma]

Lovely news for them.

I am slightly suspicious of the timing of the announcement - on the same day that the Permanent Secretary to the Home Office resigned amid bullying claims by Priti Patel.

Maybe I am just a little cynical. But I do wonder if they were waiting for a time to announce it that could distract from some negative headlines.

David Schneider on Twitter..

twitter.com/davidschneider/status/1233842000811757568?s=20

Helena, that is truly awful.

What on Earth is she thinking?! Is she not very bright?

On the contrary, just think on the sum he must have paid his last wife to get to the decree absolut so relatively quickly, given they have 4 children together, or for his first wife to shut up, or his fiance's ex-partner. Not a dickie bird out of any of them.

I don't believe that No 10 actually cares enough about Priti Patel to try to deflect attention from her. She can be hung out to dry and replaced without consequence. It's not like she's a much admired member of the government. There will be other things coming up that matter more to them.

It must be a staggering amount. Even Arnie didn't get off so lightly once his love child was revealed, his half-Kennedy wife away keeping quiet and he's still working away . . .

£4 million, apparently.

twinkledag

A dead cat bounce is a financial term meaning a small, brief recovery in the price of a declining stock. It began in Wall Street set based ion the idea that "even a dead cat will bounce if it falls from a great height"

I'm not sure it's the right term to use here, if distraction technique is what is meant.

I read (and I might well be wrong) that although the financial settlement was agreed, he isn't yet divorced?

I am not sure he acknowledges all his children, he won't say how many he's go anyway.

A dead cat bounce is different to a dead cat strategy though.

In fact, in a rather delightful twist, it was described by Bozza himself in one of his Torygraph articles back in 2013:

There is one thing that is absolutely certain about throwing a dead cat on the dining room table – and I don’t mean that people will be outraged, alarmed, disgusted. That is true, but irrelevant. The key point is that everyone will shout, ‘Jeez, mate, there’s a dead cat on the table!’ In other words, they will be talking about the dead cat – the thing you want them to talk about – and they will not be talking about the issue that has been causing you so much grief.

So this explains where he’s been.

I know of CS, she seems a nice sensible woman what the hell shes done getting so mixed up with him though.

Remember folks......if you can be anything, be kind!!!!

I expect Johnson got her pregnant several months ago just on the off chance there would be a problem at this exact moment with Priti Patel and her chief Civil Servant.

Yes, that's clearly what OP was getting at. Alternatively, there's usually a window of at least a couple of weeks when it comes to announcing a pregnancy and they chose yesterday to try and detract from the Patel story rather than, say, next Friday.

This is such an obvious and well-worn political tactic that really the only reasonable argument that OP is BU is that actually he's not that arsed about Patel for whatever reason.

The left are so kind, aren’t they? I can see why they have kinder, gentler politics going by this thread

Have a word with yourself. It is clear that Boris Johnson is determined not to react to the news cycle in the same way as previous PMs. Even if he was this wouldn't be a story to bury. The vast majority of people don't care about whether someone they have never heard of resigned. Of those that do pay attention there are those who hate Boris Johnson and will not think positively of anything he does so why bother with them. Of the rest lots will think it's good that a civil servant who has a record of undermining home secretaries has resigned.

Sorry it was me that said dead cat bounce - I meant 'just' the dead cat!

I don't believe that No 10 actually cares enough about Priti Patel to try to deflect attention from her. She can be hung out to dry and replaced without consequence. It's not like she's a much admired member of the government. There will be other things coming up that matter more to them.

I'm half with you. I don't think that No.10 cares about anyone other than BoJo and Big Dom - as they essentially are No.10 these days!

However Priti Patel plays well to the grassroots conservatives. Don't forget there was also a significant swing of Labour supporters who held their noses and voted Tory because of Brexit and immigration issues. Her close the borders rhetoric will resonate with people who are - genuinely - concerned about the negative impact of free movement on their local community; some towns have struggled with the shift in population and nationalities. Plus Patel's self-declared 'daughter of an immigrant' status is a handy shield against accusations of racism and xenophobia.

I suspect that they will keep her in place for exactly as long as it suits them. Once she's served her purpose - or becomes too much of a liability - they'll cut her loose without a second thought.

The vast majority of people don't care about whether someone they have never heard of resigned.

I don't agree, the nature of the resignation is completely unheard of. Unprecedented is the word being used. For those not interested in politics, it will pass them by. That's understandable. For those who are interested, it is something to be discussed because it shows a shocking level of breakdown in the mechanics of government.

I mean.... this Senior civil servant with 33 years experience at a high level was offered money to keep his gob shut. Not good.

Tbh, whilst it should be shocking and taken seriously, every single person I know who has worked as a civil servant has experienced bullying. It is a toxic culture, even in Scotland, where everything is supposedly better. All the money in the world could not persuade me to work in that environment, under any government.

Fair point Baol about her being a shield for racism. I just don't believe the news about a baby is being used to help Patel. Cummings isn't that transparent surely?

every single person I know who has worked as a civil servant has experienced bullying

Every single person I know who has worked has experienced bullying. Which is why Rutnam is to be applauded for making a stand against it.

I just don't believe the news about a baby is being used to help Patel. Cummings isn't that transparent surely

TBF - Given all the stuff at the moment, any day they announced this could be used to say that they were trying to distract from something else.

Yuk
Stupid Carrie!!

She must truly love him. It won’t be for the money because he’s got to pay off his wife, hush money for affairs and support about 10 kids, maybe double that by the time he’s finished so there won’t be much in pot for her and her child.

TBF - Given all the stuff at the moment, any day they announced this could be used to say that they were trying to distract from something else.

True!