Do you feel sorry for Boris?

[User133847]

Seeing the headlines in the papers today and there seems a lot of sympathy for him. The front pages see him looking really forlorn and sorrow regarding the death toll.

When you think a year ago he was planning on ushering in what he deemed as a golden age of Britain. Now 12 months later it's in tatters.

I can understand the sympathy, but wonder whether a Labour PM would be offered the same.

So what about scotland and wales leaders ? Do you hold them to account as well, seeing as a lot if this is dissolved decisions and they could of done many things different ?

@lunapeace

I do yes, he's made mistakes but he's a human being. He's even admitted responsibility for the 100,000 deaths caused by a virus which he really didn't have to do. But he did. Give the man a break.

Genuine question. Do you really think he believes himself to be responsible, and do you think he is genuinely sorry?

@trulydelicious yes your right, I didn't even vote for him but I can see how some of these decisions would be hard , and I will personally await a public inquiry and proof before I go making serious accusations .
Whilst I do think they have mad mistakes so did the Who, maybe if they had recognised this sooner and advised closed borders etc , there are lots who get blamed ? Personally I would rather learn than just play the total blame game without all the facts and figures on front of me , its not like they have to take advice from just one advisor , its several and then has to be weighed up.
The Cummings incident he should of just got him to resign as was always going to be an issue.

@IncludeWomenInTheSequel yes I do believe he is genuinely sorry.
But none of us actually know him personally so doesn't make me right but doesn't make those who believe the opposite right.
I am even sure with hindsight he would make some decisions differently, but in reality we haven't had opposition leaders shouting for much different weeks before , maybe days and they have seen more of the reports than general public.

@lunapeace

I do yes, he's made mistakes but he's a human being. He's even admitted responsibility for the 100,000 deaths caused by a virus which he really didn't have to do. But he did. Give the man a break.

Of course he had to accept responsibility – he's the Prime Minister, these deaths happened on his watch and many of them could've been avoided had his handling of the pandemic been even a fraction more competent than it has been. Just one example (of many): he ordered elderly Covid-positive patients in hospital to be sent back into care homes last March to free up beds. Of the total deaths in that first wave, 30% were in care homes. He is totally responsible for that.

I'll give the man a break when he resigns from his job.

The whole problem is that the country should have come together. A coalition of politicians. Twitter and Piers Morgan should shut the fuck up as well. So many experts.

@IAmNotFatIAmUnderTall

No. He has blood on his hands, I do not know how he sleeps at night

This.

@IncludeWomenInTheSequel this has always been about protect the nhs to protect lifes, how do you think scotland and wales have handled it , do you hold their leaders to account ?

@thelmanotlouise did he make that decision of his own back ? Is that not something a lot of countries did ? Maybe due to lack of understanding of this virus at the time?

Yes

I do

@derxa yes too many have used this as a political gain , people like piers should stand for an mp as he has all the answers, funnily enough they never do though

No!

Not an ounce, though bizarrely I have some sympathy for Matt Hancock.

Although I am no fan I feel like Matt Hancock is genuine and doing his best.

Whereas Boris is a man who wanted the title of PM but not the job and has found himself profoundly lacking in the kind of leadership needed in the moment, without the humility to realise his failings.

No sympathy here.

I remember him shaking hands (or claiming to be) with all the covid patients.

I remember Dominic Cummings and that bullshit trip to barnard castle.

I remember the late lockdowns, the confusing about lockdown in March, the plan to keep schools open then not.

The eat out to help out, the silly tiers system, the billions spend on a stupid test and trace system. The complete and utterly appalling decisions to throw local government and schools under the covid bus.

The wasting of billions buying PPE and other stuff from their mates

Plus the pig headed plan to keep up with Brexit???? During a fucking pandemic?

Fuck that Boris. No sympathy here.

@derxa

The whole problem is that the country should have come together. A coalition of politicians. Twitter and Piers Morgan should shut the fuck up as well. So many experts.

A shame Boris doesn’t listen to the experts unless absolutely forced.

The Christmas thing is a case in point. The scientific advisors were saying they wouldn’t recommend it but Boris went ahead anyway! Create big bubbles over Christmas and mix households.

Why are people so reluctant to hold this government to account? So quick to paint Boris as a victim?

I also find it bit concerning that he is going to be the scapegoat for this. Not that I care about him personally, just unfortunate that his eventual resignation will be the Tory get out of jail free card.

There is another thread on here re: schools half are screaming he should open others are screaming not yet, then some saying not until sept.
So whatever he announces tonight some will be pleased and others will be going mad , you can't win either way in these situations .

He may say he takes responsibility for everything that's happened but that's just empty words. Same as when my kids say sorry and hang their heads in shame, but they're aren't sorry for what they've done, they're sorry for themselves because they got caught.

People have died because of his failure of leadership. He deserves jail not sympathy.

He also has had to deal with the arrival of a new baby .And on top of sleepless nights probably doesnt get as much time with his attractive fiancee as he would like .Pressures of office maybe ? Yes ,but also dont forget his nightly messages in the first LD leading to his own Covid infection .As my cousin says if we had had JC in then, and he had been ill we could have been left with the delightfully innumerate Diane Abbot!

@Iggly except he didn't as he pulled the plug on it, but you only had to read on here how many people wanted it and were struggling to cope and wanted something to look forward too.
Like with schools now screams to shut , now its screams to open.

@FatCatThinCat jail without a public enquiry ? What trial by public is that how we do things now?

Johnson (I refuse to call him Boris, he is our Prime Mister, not a fucking adorably dishevelled teddy bear) had delivered exactly what we should have expected of him based on his career up to this point.

I think the responsibility for this shit show goes far beyond him - it is the responsibility of the Conservative party who appointed him as leader, the opposition party who failed to deliver anything approaching a viable alternative, and the electorate who voted for him.

When someone tells you who they are, listen. Never has that been more true than for Boris Johnson.

@FatCatThinCat also how do you know they are empty , do you know him personally ? Thats your opinion yes , which you are entitled to but its not proof is it

[quote donewithitalltodayandxmas]@IncludeWomenInTheSequel this has always been about protect the nhs to protect lifes, how do you think scotland and wales have handled it , do you hold their leaders to account ? [/quote]
Well firstly this thread isn't about them but since you asked.

I only know about Scotland, and yes, things have gone wrong here too. But not as badly: I think over time the ScotGov has moved to an active suppression and prevention mode, whereas Westminster haven't ever subscribed to that. That's why although we've broadly taken similar measures the timings have been different, i.e. we were earlier to make mask-wearing mandatory, we knew schools would be closed after Christmas and didn't try to pretend otherwise.

I think it's also clear that Scotland would have closed its own borders last year had it had the legal basis to do so.

So perhaps this has been about 'saving the NHS' for Westminster (bollocks was it, with their unstaffed Nighintgale centres, privatised test and trace system and mates with no experience being handed PPE contracts) but I think ScotGov has moved more towards a strategy of saving lives. On Scotsnet that approach regularly has people who want the economy and schools opened again up in arms, so I'm not saying it's popular. But it's how I see the differing approaches.