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Original poster

What hope do we have when MPs can't follow the rules?

253 replies

mrshoho · 01/10/2020 19:57

www.bbc.co.uk/news/amp/uk-scotland-54379026

She travelled from London by train from Scotland to London and back knowing she was positive! And visited parliament! no excuse for this.

OP posts:
ssd · 01/10/2020 23:05

Mps can't follow the rules because they don't know rhem

Johnson had to apologise for mistakenly quoting the rules incorrectly the other day

If he doesn't know them, who does?!?!

middleager · 01/10/2020 23:08

Indefensible.

Tangledyarn · 01/10/2020 23:23

Beyond outrageous. Theres breaking the rules eg forgetting to put a mask on, having a group of 7 people together and then there is travelling on public transport for hours after a positive test. Unlike a lot of people she has the means to support herself whilst isolating and isolating whilst testing positive is the very least we are expecting of people.

TBHno · 01/10/2020 23:30

I may be missing the point, but how did she get found out?

GrumblyMumblyisnotJumbly · 01/10/2020 23:34

She should resign. Glad Sturgeon has swiftly denounced her although its obvious to everyone that travelling on public transport when you are aware you have Covid is reckless and beyond stupid.

I wonder which other Parliamentarians will now have to self-isolate?

I do despair - the PM can't describe the rules, his chief aide can't follow them, Corbyn can't count at a dinner party, Stanley Johnson swans off defying the travel ban and doesn't see fit to wear a mask in the shop. Now an MP travelling between London and Scotland knowing she had the disease. Setting the benchmark very low and yet so quick to criticise the public.

Treesofwood · 02/10/2020 00:16

I bet she wishes she never bothered with the test! Wonder if she actually had proper symptoms, or just a sore throat and runny nose? Certainly wasn't ill in the commons.

Wonder if the delay in this going public was to get her a retest? SNP knew yesterday about this but sat on it.

notangelinajolie · 02/10/2020 00:40

Does this now mean that all those MPs in the chamber with her will all have to self isolate?

SheepandCow · 02/10/2020 00:48

Her behaviour was appalling but it shouldn't encourage the rest of us to follow suit, putting even more passengers and train staff at risk. Just because someone else behaves badly doesn't mean we all have to.

MPs committing crimes or behaving badly isn't anything new. Should we all drive dangerously and commit fraud or perjury, because a few MPs have done so?

I think it's also worth bearing in mind that if an MP becomes seriously ill they're more likely to get a hospital bed than the average Joe - even if beds are filling up.

Defenbaker · 02/10/2020 02:16

@rookiemere I agree, she should have known better. She took a gamble with the first journey, hoping the test would be negative. That was bad enough, but making the return journey to Scotland with the knowledge that she had Covid was even worse. She knowingly put others at risk. It was probably cold on the train, so I doubt there were many windows open. The only hope is that perhaps she booked a first class seat and the carriage was fairly empty, but anyone who was on the same train as her would probably feel pretty angry about her actions, especially if they end up seriously ill with the virus. I wonder if people would be able to prosecute her for damages to health/compensation for loss of earnings, in such circumstances? I guess it would be a very difficult case to prove, unless somebody was sat in a nearby seat and could evidence that fact. Pointless to speculate, but maybe somebody will bring such a case, before this pandemic is over?

Sobeyondthehills · 02/10/2020 02:28

I think I am surprised by the amount of people that are surprised by this, she didn't follow the rules because (I presume) she didn't think the rules applied to her.

As someone else has mentioned, you have Cummings, Johnson can't get his own rules right, his Dad is finding loopholes to travel, or just not knowing the rules, the scientist that met up with his lover, I think there was an MP from Wales who broke lockdown rules, Corbyn meeting up in a group more than 6.

I get these are always going to be highlighted more because they are in the public eye, but also they should be held to a higher standard as they are the ones setting the rules, getting all the information etc. Just accept that its one rule for us and another rule for them and they really don't give a shiny shit about anything other than making more money for themselves

ShortFatandDumpy · 02/10/2020 02:30

What a stupid cow.

Becuna · 02/10/2020 02:36

As a PP said, they don’t think the rules apply to them. I am Scottish, not that it means anything but I am really, really raging about this. We have been very restricted for ages now (Aberdeen) and she thinks it’s ok to travel with symptoms then double down and travel with a positive test.
She must resign immediately.

RoseGoldEagle · 02/10/2020 05:12

Got DS tested a few weeks ago as he had a temp and new persistent cough- 24 hours later he was fine. 3 days later still no result, I was so sure it wasn’t Covid, and the thought crossed my mind that he had no symptoms now and I’m sure the test will be negative so I could send him to nursery....but I couldn’t do it, and kept him off nursery and took time off work while waiting for the result, because if it HAD come back positive I’d have felt terrible for sending him in, and the rules are to wait for the result, obviously. (He was negative). In her case, she was obviously also ‘sure the test would be negative’, and rather than thinking ‘ugh, it’s annoying but I’ve taken the test now so I’ll just have to wait’, she arrogantly went anyway. That in itself is bad. But then later KNOWING she had the virus and travelling on a train, that is just completely unforgivable. Absolutely no time or respect for people like this, she should absolutely lose her job over it.

Othering · 02/10/2020 05:42

@ShortFatandDumpy

What a stupid cow.
Do you really have to lower yourself to vile misogynistic insults?
Othering · 02/10/2020 05:45

On top of everything else, we are also being told to work from home if you can. She did a 800 mile round trip to speak for a few minutes in the commons. What an utter waste of time and money. She could quite easily have zoomed in to say her piece.

Rosehip10 · 02/10/2020 05:48

@othering Probably some expenses related reason!

joystir59 · 02/10/2020 05:54

They do what the fuck they like but I couldn't sit at the bedside of my lovely wife when she was terminally ill in hospital.

JamieLeeCurtains · 02/10/2020 05:57

Why did a relatively obscure MP think that her in-person contribution to the furlough debate in Parliament was so indispensable? I mean, it was hardly four minutes of genius rhetoric.

Did she have another reason for 'needing' to be in London overnight?

And as a pp said, how did she get found out?

Seems a bit of a tangled web.

RaggieDolls · 02/10/2020 06:02

@joystir59 I'm sorry. It's so awful Thanks

I am absolutely raging about this. My eldest is out of school and under house arrest for the next 2 weeks along with 60 other children on the off chance they've been exposed. Of course, we will follow the rules even though that means a very young child not being able to leave the house at all, not seeing anyone and missing all activities and education. I will also have to work around this and home educate her.

I am furious that I have to cope with the above and this person has made two train trips. It's absolutely disgraceful. I hope she loses her seat. It makes Cummings look reasonable.

Rushjob · 02/10/2020 06:16

Whilst we are talking about Scottish politicians breaking rules. Did we ever establish who was cutting Ms Sturgeons hair during lockdown. It either didn’t grow the whole time or she wears a wig.....

QueenStromba · 02/10/2020 06:57

Have people who are disgusted with Whitty actually been outside? In London at least, it's absolutely impossible to stay 2m away from everyone else at all times as people will walk right up to you at pedestrian crossings, stand too close to you in queues, walk right at you when you can't avoid them without getting close to someone else. He was probably thinking about situations like that when he said he tried to follow the rules.

SeaMayweed · 02/10/2020 07:33

Swift condemnations, suspension from her party, NS tweeting that the actions are indefensible and her anger, and the MP's own admission -I think resignation is very likely.

yeOldeTrout · 02/10/2020 07:54

Not allowed to Zoom in to contribute to HoC debates, afaik?

notevenat20 · 02/10/2020 08:04

It might be worth mentioning that she didn’t actually break the law.

Othering · 02/10/2020 08:47

@yeOldeTrout

Not allowed to Zoom in to contribute to HoC debates, afaik?
Ah right, OK, well I take the zoom comment back then but there must be a way of beaming them in virtually. Like someone else said, it was hardly an important statement and could have been read out on her behalf.