Owen Paterson

[Francescaisstressed]

Political parties aside, surely Owen Patterson avoiding suspension and the Tory party changing the rules for the mates goes against the very core of democracy?

When the people in power can bend the rules when they seee fit, and have noone to hold them to account I find it incredibly troubling.

Ironically this Tory mess suggests the Tories are more in favour of workers' rights than Labour, which goes against what I'd traditionally expect.

What an embarrassing display of bootlickery.

@StrychnineInTheSandwiches

Ironically this Tory mess suggests the Tories are more in favour of workers' rights than Labour, which goes against what I'd traditionally expect.

What an embarrassing display of bootlickery.

Indeed - no doubt they support the "right" of a single Mum on a zero hours contract to supplement her meagre income by being paid to lobby government departments.......oh wait.

MP's are NOT employed by Parliament and it's a nonsense to suggest otherwise. That's why they don't have to wear masks - all employees do within the grounds. Conservative MP's have literally argued that they aren't employees very recently.

This about face by Leadsom is purely to get Johnson off the hook regarding the Commitee's outstanding investigation regarding the flat redecoration - and all the other dodgy Covid related deals.

Journos now reporting on Twitter that the Tories are planning a u-turn on this matter. Poor little loves felt the heat of the backlash...

@PippaCrerar
BREAKING: Massive U-turn as Jacob Rees-Mogg appears to ditch plans for new Tory-led standards process in favour of working cross-party.

"I fear last night's debate conflated the individual case with the general concern," he tells MPs.

"While there is a v strong feeling on both sides that there is a need for an appeals process... this should not be based on a single case or applied retrospectively. I fear last night's debate conflated the individual case with the general concern. This link needs to broken."

Will Owen Paterson be suspended now then?

@EvilPea

This whole pandemic has been a complete shit show. They’ve gone from scandal to scandal not giving a shit as they know tomorrow we will have all “moved on” to the next scandal. We never have time to deal or be properly outraged as they fuck up something else. They shrug and that’s it. There’s no accountability No fucks given, at all.

This, 100%. I can't understand why folks aren't rioting in the street and trying to burn down Parliament.

They really are letting us (the proletariat) eat cake, aren't they?

Just had a bbc news alert saying they’re “rethinking”

Once upon a time, the media used to be unbiased...

O look Harriets, Bozo and Smugg have had a rethink. Can u do a quick reverse. Explain it

@kirinm

Will Owen Paterson be suspended now then?

Sam Coates Sky

NEW: There WILL be a vote, probably before recess, on Owen Paterson being suspended for 30 days

This is a "full fat" uturn, I understand

I think they really thought no-one would notice. Astonishing they've caved quite so quickly. It does seem social media is the way to get this government to change its mind. Their majority means they get to do some really stupid things that they then have to rethink. Like the sewage bill last week.

I love that Owen Paterson's embarrassing speech yesterday about how he would clear his name and how Kathryn Stone should resign is now worth nothing at all. A bit of heat from the public and they're not your friends anymore.

Chris Bryant’s statement to the House yesterday is worth a listen.

parliamentlive.tv/event/index/be47898e-2937-495e-a050-1cb40148deeb?in=15:15:30

Bryant states that the Committee heard Paterson’s appeal in writing and in person, and Paterson’s witnesses submitted written testimony.

Paterson is still being paid £8333 per month by Randox and £2000 every other month by Lynn’s Foods.

@HarrietsChariot

Seems fair enough to me, effectively Parliament is a workplace and if you are sanctioned or disciplined in any other workplace you have the right of appeal - if you are not allowed to appeal, the sanction will usually be automatically ruled invalid.

Most people who are up in arms about this won't have heard of this guy until yesterday, I certainly hadn't. He may well be guilty of what he's accused of doing, but that doesn't mean he should not have the right to appeal against the decision.

Yes it looks bad that the Tories have decided to do this now, but it also reflects badly on the opposition that they are so opposed to justice being done. If Labour want there to be no right of appeal in one workplace, what's to stop them stripping away the rights and employment standards of workers generally, as they did during the Blair/Brown years?

Ironically this Tory mess suggests the Tories are more in favour of workers' rights than Labour, which goes against what I'd traditionally expect.

That's lovely, but if he and other MPs felt so strongly that the rules were wrong and needed changing then they have had plenty of time to get them changed when it wasn't at the same time as trying to protect someone who is guilty of wrongdoing.

You may well not have heard of him before, but I and others who have are not the least bit surprised that he is corrupt.

Rather than just looking corrupt Johnson and his cohorts now look inept and corrupt.

Thanks for clearing the no voters up.

Just seen you could scroll across and see who didn’t vote.
Matt Hancock and Theresa may didn’t.

Love the spin “oh the individual case got mixed up with reviewing the whole thing”.

@EvilPea

Thanks for clearing the no voters up.

Just seen you could scroll across and see who didn’t vote.
Matt Hancock and Theresa may didn’t.

Love the spin “oh the individual case got mixed up with reviewing the whole thing”.

They still think that a significant proportion of the electorate pay little enough attention to believe stuff they say.

They still think that a significant proportion of the electorate pay little enough attention to believe stuff they say.

Unfortunately that’s probably a reasonable assumption for them to make.

Questions now then about PM’s reported dinner with Paterson ally Charles Moore, right before the three line whip.

www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/boris-johnson-daily-mirror-london-labour-glasgow-b964284.html

@SickAndTiredAgain

They still think that a significant proportion of the electorate pay little enough attention to believe stuff they say.

Unfortunately that’s probably a reasonable assumption for them to make.

But just occasionally with Hancock, and perhaps now with this the mud seems to be sticking enough to have to make a u-turn.

Can I hope that the accumulation of mud and slime eventually drowns them?

All Boris Johnson wants is to be liked. It's pathetic really.

Therefore if enough fuss is made, he will u-turn. The problem is, the majority of the media won't make a fuss because they'll lose access (or funding, in the case of the BBC). Hence why social media campaigns work.

As much as I don’t like saying this. Johnson stuck by Hancock. The most honourable (

@SickAndTiredAgain

They still think that a significant proportion of the electorate pay little enough attention to believe stuff they say.

Unfortunately that’s probably a reasonable assumption for them to make.

I sadly agree.

@EvilPea

There’s a few that haven’t voted? Why might that be?

Important to distinguish between:

• abstained as a personal choice
• did not vote as paired

Vital to understand the role of pairing in the UK system