I know I should have "moved on" but Cummings...

[1stV45]

I do think the government's handling of that sorry business is, in large part, responsible for where we are now.

I know there were always rumblings of complaints about "others" not following the rules but ever since we were told people must do what's right for their families it seems widespread. Before that the majority were complying and there was a general feeling of at least wanting to be seen to do the right thing. Even now with tightening restrictions, lots of people just simply seem to be saying they're not prepared to do it. People who want to stick to things to the letter face derision.

I don't understand why he didn't just say "I made a poor decision, I was wrong" which would have enabled him to stay in his job and everyone to move on, instead of that ridiculous justification which lead everyone to question why they had been stupid enough to follow the rules.

I get the feeling, from taking to colleagues and what's going in on SM, that it doesn't matter what the restrictions are, there won't be enough people sticking to them to make a difference. And I do think Cummings was the turning point.

[vera99]

I used to think he was evil but clever but after that, I realised they were all a bunch of lying incompetent fools just that he has a superficial patina of intelligence. Hence that's where we are now. Most telling idiot factor (apart from Barnard Castle which I had thought was an arrogant troll ) trying to reverse engineer his blog to agree with his new position - world beating track and trace anyone!

[StealthPolarBear]

If he'd actually said the words "fuck you" in his rose garden it wouldn't have been a bigger fuck you

[Watermelon999]

I do agree with you @1stV45.

Do you feel the same about Margaret Ferrier?

In some respects she was even worse as she travelled on public transport knowing that she had it. And went to parliament. And had previously castigated Dominic Cummings.

I have lost respect for them all tbh.

[tobee]

The collective electorate gave this government the thumbs up to do what they like, who cares what people think, for 4 years.

This lying shit that they are the people's government etc is exposed over and over when they dole out uncontested contracts and jobs to their mates worth £millions shows us this again and again.

[Clavinova]

EU subsidies/plebs

In fact DC's argument against EU farming subsidies is echoed by many and in support of smaller farmers. The Dutch Green Party also called the subsidies "absurd" in a recent election campaign;

“80 PERCENT OF THE EUROPEAN MONEY FOR AGRICULTURE GOES TO THE 20 PERCENT LARGEST FARMERS.”

"Dutch Green party [called it] absurd that a small number of large farms receive such a large part of the European agricultural budget. GroenLinks believes that the EU should give more support to farmers who want to make their business more sustainable, who invest in animal welfare or who expand their business with farmers’ camping sites, heritage shops, care farms and other forms of rural development. In short, with the statement Bas Eickhout and GroenLinks want to show that they think the distribution of the agricultural money is unfair;"

eufactcheck.eu/factcheck/true-80-percent-of-the-european-money-for-agriculture-goes-to-the-20-percent-largest-farmers/

[Marmalade3]

I'd read about the council tax fraud but wasn't aware of the EU subsidies. I really hate this man. I have always voted conservative but will never again so long as he's hanging around.

[Peregrina]

Another squirrel from Clavinova - the argument wasn't about the size of farms that EU subsidies should go to. It was about the hypocrisy of the Vote Leave champion happily taking money from the EU.

[Clavinova]

His family own a farm - the amount they received from EU farming subsidies would have been a below average amount - the bulk received between 2000 and 2009 (from the link). Lots of small farmers voted to leave the EU because they were unhappy with the Common Agricultural Policy and the distribution of farming subsidies - nothing unusual there.

And his £50,000 in unpaid council tax

"potentially between £30,000 and £50,000" - we don't actually know the correct figure - the family may have paid business rates some years instead for example.

[Clavinova]

His family own a farm - the amount they received from EU farming subsidies would have been an average/below average amount - the bulk received between 2000 and 2009 (from the link). Lots of small farmers voted to leave the EU because they were unhappy with the Common Agricultural Policy and the distribution of EU farming subsidies - nothing unusual there.

And his £50,000 in unpaid council tax

"potentially between £30,000 and £50,000" - we don't actually know the correct figure - the family may have paid business rates some years instead for example.

[Clavinova]

Oops - double post.

[Peregrina]

Nothing unusual in that Cummings and the Govt he advises are the biggest hypocrites going.

[Clavinova]

"The one good thing about Brexit? Leaving the EU’s disgraceful farming system." George Monbiot

"I’m a remainer, but there’s one result of Brexit I can’t wait to see: leaving the EU’s common agricultural policy. This is the farm subsidy system that spends €50bn (£44bn) a year on achieving none of its objectives"...

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/oct/10/brexit-leaving-eu-farming-agriculture

[TaintForTheLikesOfWe]

@StealthPolarBear

If he'd actually said the words "fuck you" in his rose garden it wouldn't have been a bigger fuck you

I'd almost have more respect .

[ClaireP20]

@Youandmeareluckytobeus

What rubbish. If people have started to behave irresponsibly it is because they are fundamentally irresponsible. Just because one Govt advisor travelled when he shouldn't have done does not make sensible people do the same. Otherwise they'd all be copying the stupid former SNP MP who travelled on a train after testing positive for Covid. People are just using his behaviour as an excuse for theirs.

Agree with this. X

[DuncinToffee]

Johnson got asked a question from Mary Foy about the way Dominic Cummings has undermined public trust at todays PMQ's
So no, it is not going away.

[ClaireP20]

@Watermelon999

I do agree with you *@1stV45*.

Do you feel the same about Margaret Ferrier?

In some respects she was even worse as she travelled on public transport knowing that she had it. And went to parliament. And had previously castigated Dominic Cummings.

I have lost respect for them all tbh.

Margaret Ferrier was much worse...because she travelled with fucking symptoms on a packed train..!! At least Cummings had his 5 year old child to think about and get childcare for. The drive to the castle though...of course at that point all respect went..
However, the shite he put up with from the lefty nutters here in London was horrific. I'm talking things thrown at his house, speakers set up outside slagging him off at full volume all day and night. All in front of his family. If you think he deserved all that then you are a moron...

[ClaireP20]

Sorey Watermelon I wasn't calling you a moron x

[Orcus]

Margaret Ferrier's behaviour was appalling and if she were my MP I'd sign a recall petition, but no, actually, it doesn't necessarily follow that it was as influential as Cummings and the aftermath. Because she's simply not as important. Or even in the same league. I'm fairly politically aware and I still had to google her.

Additionally, her actions weren't pathetically defended by the PM and half the Cabinet, nor did the AG undermine her office minimising what Ferrier did. There isn't a rule that says all instances of rule breaking have to be as influential as each other.

In summary, as with most of the people who have disputed what OP said: just because you don't like something, doesn't make it untrue.

[Blibbyblobby]

Daily Mash on Tuesday

www.thedailymash.co.uk/politics/politics-headlines/dom-cummings-announces-lockdown-2-tour-dates-20201102202127

So no, not going away. It's becoming the thing DC is known for in the popular imagination.

[SerendipityJane]

.

[DuncinToffee]

.

[GrumblyMumblyisnotJumbly]

@Blibbyblobby he will never live it down!

@ClaireP20 well he could have avoided outraged protesters by apologising for upset caused.

Or he could have avoided any protests entirely by following the ‘Stay at Home’ instruction he helped create rather than travelling in an enclosed car with a child & a symptomatic adult for 4 hrs (which did not follow the PHE guidelines to self-isolate at home) to stay at a second home (also not permitted) leaving the epicentre of a disease to travel to an area where there were few cases (which was known to have spread the disease in Italy) where they then used a hospital coming into contact with medical staff and potentially other patients (when there were still PPE shortages). Then putting his child in a car to see if his self-proclaimed ‘weird’ vision would impair his ability to drive (coincidentally on his wife’s birthday) to a beauty spot when the Government messaging was no non- essential journeys. Then he and his wife did not mention any of the above in their published accounts of having Covid19. I’d say that puts him firmly in the category of moron.

Margaret Ferrier is also a moron.
Neither of them showed any integrity by resigning from post but at least Sturgeon condemned her actions, Johnson condoned Cummings!

[vera99]

I had wondered where @Clavinova had been - I wonder no more! Hello again I missed your robust defence of the indefensible - could I just make one please to you and others of that stripe that "but, but, but Jeremy Corbyn" is outlawed and replaced with "if Johnson act of utter opportunism and perfidy hadn't triumphed we would still have Theresa May. " How good would that have been.

yours sincerely Lance Corporal Hindsight (second class).

Latest Cold War Steve

[SerendipityJane]

Are those gallows or crucifixes ?

They should suffer death by ATOS.

[vera99]

They are gallows - a bigger version is here. Matt Hancock and Jacob Rees-Mogg and the braying mob led by Cummings are looking to put Harold Shipman on the third whilst Gove skulks in the background and Chris Whitty looking disgusted walks away.

twitter.com/Coldwar_Steve/status/1322853385633226753/photo/1

Great fan of his savage Hogarthian photo-montages and Phil Mitchell appears in everyone as a sort of everyman.
twitter.com/Coldwar_Steve