Matt Hancock not only a donkey but sexist and deeply unpleasant

[Theduchessstill]

So following on from the thread last week about his ''donkiness/ineptitude' he gives us this appalling response to Dr Rosena Allin-Kahn today:

twitter.com/DrRosena/status/1257644583158251522

What a disgusting way to speak to someone who is actually working as a Dr in A & E during this crisis. Nasty, lacking in empathy, just wrong.Just when you think these people can't sink any lower they do just that.

[ChipsyChopsy]

I personally didn't hear anything wrong with her tone, but I'm not privy to what is acceptable in the commons. I can see how it could be interpreted as sexist to tell a woman to watch her tone, yes. I don't really get that vibe from MH though. Although I could be wrong. And I suppose I'm erring on the side of cutting him some slack, I don't think it's time for a pile on.

[CuriousaboutSamphire]

What changed?

No changes were announced, that comes later this week, and will be Johnson.

[Womenwotlunch]

I actually think that Dr Khan was quite restrained tbh.
She could have used her own experience as a doctor to really hammer home her points. She did not

[Clavinova]

Just looking at recent contributions from Dr Rosena Allin-Khan in Hansard:

To Kevin Foster MP Sept 2019:

"I have only ever known a politics of division in this place. It is beyond embarrassing that the Prime Minister has sent a junior Minister with a folder full of rebuttals today, making every excuse in the book. So I ask the Minister this: what does it say in your little folder about the Prime Minister acknowledging that unless he dials down the tone, unless he watches his language and adopts the position of statesperson , the wounds that divide this country will turn into scars—permanent scars?"

Sexist language?

"While the Prime Minister suffers from a textbook case of moral bankruptcy, I believe the Minister to be a good man"...

"The poor lady has depression and is suffering so greatly"...

"I am here in my capacity as an MP and as a regular, ordinary girl from Tooting..."

hansard.parliament.uk/search/MemberContributions?memberId=4573&type=Spoken

[CuriousaboutSamphire]

Ah! So that is her normal manner of speaking then. Laden with those small stressors.

[JamieLeeCurtains]

Well, the bottom line is that Hancock has made a right tit of himself at a time when he should have been at least trying to exude gravitas.

And given the chief scientific officers' evidence to committee earlier in the day yesterday, it does look like he's sitting on a government shitshow, some of it inherited (from Hunt), some of it dumped on him (by Johnson), and some of it entirely of his own making.

[CuriousaboutSamphire]

After the SAGE publication and CSOs statements we can now start looking at what really was said and done with far less speculation.

I fully expect to have my current opinion changed by some of it as I become more informed. Hopefully the following threads will be more evidence based and we can hold the government to account for the errors they did make, and they wu have, that's unavoidable!

[1forsorrow]

Although it's often criticised when MPs make a lot of noise, I think it would have been good had there been a full house and her party could have voiced their support for her Isn't the Speaker there to speak up for parliament v govt? Couldn't he have said something? A Minister patronising a BAME woman in that way isn't great is it.

I felt sorry for MH a week ago as I felt his fellow ministers were getting ready to sacrifice him. No sympathy now.

[CrunchyCarrot]

Donkeys everywhere are deeply offended by this thread! They are thinking of self-isolating in protest.

[JamieLeeCurtains]

'Weird' Matt Hancock staring closely at Conservative candidate Wendy Maisey with an interesting trouser shadow or trouser crease or maybe something in his trouser pocket

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/so-weird-matt-hancock-branded-17401870

[B1rdbra1n]

Is Hancock taking a leaf out of trumps book? It seems a bit like a version of 'that's a nasty question'

[Theduchessstill]

And his stupid pointless badge can fuck off too.

[Clavinova]

A Minister patronising a BAME woman in that way isn't great is it.

Why does the BAME woman think it's ok to patronise a 40 year old (white male) junior minister with; "what does it say in your little folder"?

Isn't the Speaker there to speak up for parliament v govt? Couldn't he have said something?

In fact, Dr Allin-Kahn may not have been following procedure yesterday in any case;

"MPs' Guide to Procedure"
"Content, tone and form"

guidetoprocedure.parliament.uk/articles/QLjkOG2Y/content-tone-and-form

[CuriousaboutSamphire]

Thanks for the link, I had a vague memory of that guidance.

As far as I can tell MH responded tersely but within those guidelines when asked a fairly loaded non question. What was she actually asking and why did it need all of those odd little stressed?

[ssd]

@Clavinova, you have been on mn for years defending and apologising for the Conservative party.

I hope they are paying you well.

[CuriousaboutSamphire]

But I haven't. And I do agree with clavinova.

[wonderstuff]

I thought it was a thoroughly unpleasant response from Hancock. The irony of him clapping nhs workers on a Thursday and treating her with such contempt. Grim.

[JamieLeeCurtains]

Nevertheless, Hancock is the one who has come out of the Commons incident looking rattled, not Dr RA-K, so a bit of an own goal for him there.

[Clavinova]

Clavinova, you have been on mn for years defending and apologising for the Conservative party. I hope they are paying you well.

No, I do it for amusement.

[ssd]

@CuriousaboutSamphire, I'm sure you do.

[ssd]

@Clavinova, amusement? As if.

[CuriousaboutSamphire]

??? Was that meant to be meaningful?

I heard them both. He was terse, she was point scoring.

Neither came out of it well.

[DianaT1969]

Having read those HOC guidelines, I don't see how anyone could consider her question 'neutraly phrased' and therefore within the guidelines.

[Clavinova]

ssd
Clavinova, amusement? As if.

New found interest then. I had very little interest in party politics before the 2017 general election - the prospect of Jeremy Corbyn and Momentum changed all that - now I have an interest in politics.