The Westministenders Hunger Games continues. Boris still trying not to be outmanoevered.

[RedToothBrush]

Clearly Boris didn't get the memo, on when to quit the power games, even after Gove schooled him in the dark arts of the Tory Leadership....

So the Tory Smackdown rolls on whilst Corbyn STILL clings on. UKIP has now entered the race to make a challenge for who can make the biggest leadership contest shambles.

In The Blue Corner
May strikes fear into the hearts of EU citizens as she counts her bargaining chips.
Gove strikes fear into the hearts of humans, with his Martian twitch.
Loathsom strikes fear in the hearts of Britains by talking about babies brains.
Crabb strikes fear into the hearts of Torys by suggesting a plan that Corbyn might like. (and that beard doesn't help).
And Fox.
Well he just turned up.

Johnson is still waiting in the wings to stab Gove. He'd quite fancy a seat at the cabinet table too.
Osborne has gone quite again and we wait with baited breathe to see if he is the 'Charlie off Casualty' of the Tory Party (y'know whatever happens he somehow survives like a cockroach).

In The Red Corner
Corbyn apologies. So we know he's getting a bit desperate.
Will the Unions figure out something else to do other than sit with their head in hands.
Angela Eagle is still doing jellyfish impressions and hasn't found that backbone.
We STILL don't know who the fuck Owen Smith is?
Will Bliar's chicken's finally come home to roost?
The Cult of Momentum, rumbles on. We aren't quite sure who they actually vote for, but they seem to like their Dear Leader.
When will this country next have an opposition party?

Its kinda getting boring guys, we need some action now. End the Chicken Coup! The Tories are definitely out doing in the high drama stakes.

In the Purple Corner
Farage has gone! Hurrah. We hope only that he stays under that rock.
(Don't count on it. They'll wheel him out when they need publicity)
Will Leadsom be elected leader? Oh sorry, wrong party. I was getting confused for a second there.
Will they throw the cuckoo Carswell out? [:)]
Will they be able to find a less offensive leader than Farage who can unite them in their common goal of errrr..... yeah. That.
How long before one of their candidates has to apologise for something?

And I suppose I should ask, when will a50 be triggered....? And by whom?

All these questions and more.
Sense of humour compulsory. No experience necessary though

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/eu_referendum_2016_/2670552-Has-Boris-been-outmanoeuvred?pg=1 Previous thread 1

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/eu_referendum_2016_/2672388-Has-Boris-been-outmanoevered-Will-someone-please-tell-me-who-is-in-charge Previous thread 2

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/eu_referendum_2016_/a2673982-Have-Boris-and-Jeremy-been-stabbed-in-the-back-Please-can-we-have-some-leaders Previous thread 3

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/eu_referendum_2016_/2675432-Boris-outmaneovered-Et-tu-Gove-Corbyn-The-Westministenders-Hunger-Games-Continues? Previous thread 4

I worry about who will be doing this.

Arron Banks, by the looks of it. Worryingly, Ukip are also making sounds towards Labour, so could effectively have influence over our two major political parties.

It's a seriously unpleasant thought when you realise Murdoch might actually be the lesser of two evils

I'm certainly hearing noises about trying to get Gove on the ticket rather than Leadsom from May supporters.

I've decided just to wait and see at this point. Not hoping for any of them, to be honest. They all have definite negative points. I'll be disappointed no matter who wins, so I think it's best to just detach a little.

I'm waiting now to see how the Chilcott report implodes the government further and what develop will crop up in Labour. Will JC denounce TB and then step down??

Apparently there may be a legal problem with 'stripping UK citizens of their EU citizen status' and might violate rights.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-eu-referendum-36705580

I think there are a good few consequences that will need to be resolved in that one, though I'm not sure on exactly what it means and the scale of its implications (at this stage at least and I suspect even experts don't either).

Once Tony Blair hit the scene and did his stuff I realised that when it comes to politicians there's lying and there's lying. I no longer expect, or wish, politicians to tell the complete truth all the time but sometimes I hear a politician lying about an essential truth and I wrinkle my nose in disgust. One of these was the "tens of thousands" lie. My instant reaction was "you cynical cunt".

It's a seriously unpleasant thought when you realise Murdoch might actually be the lesser of two evils

Its bonkers.
I NEVER EVER thought that possible.

I agree with nauticant. I think Blair and Iraq (I know it's ancient history but just for today!) showed politicians that they could lie about the fundamental basis of a decision, completely cock ip the implementation of that decision and never have to deal with any consequences for it.

I think this made Brexit possible politically and the aftermath was inevitable. Particular when you add in ideology (God told me to FFS - or Momentum if you're Corbyn..)

The Times front page seems a bit got up to me. Note that they don't have a direct quote from Loathsome herself claiming that she managed billions of pounds or whatever - and you can bet that if she was ever on record as claiming such a thing then they would have quoted it.

The more interesting thing is that it looks like the Murdoch press have been given the signal to take her out.

www.conservativehome.com/thetorydiary/2016/07/its-not-brexit-that-threatens-the-economy-its-the-conservative-leadership-candidates.html
Its the economy stupid.

Interesting opinion piece from columnist from conservativehome.com relating to the economic challenges ahead and the tory leadership - and the fact that there has been so little debate on their economic plans.

I'm struggling to disagree with much of it.

YY @ Aaron Banks/Murdoch.

What a nightmare.

That was the nightmare scenario my friend was outlining: Leadsom as puppet/Trojan horse to manoeuvre UKIP/Banks into Parliament, with back-up plan of UKIP being 'detoxified' as populist party. Second option seems somewhat inevitable now.

The bizarre thing is that all of these utterly preposterous scenarios seem credible at the moment.

How on earth has it come to this?

Mark Urban (Newsnight) was pretty confident yesterday that the report would not reveal a smoking gun for Blair (that doesn't mean accounts won't show it is there) but would question how these decisions - including the role of the military in pushing for action - are taken at all.

Andrea Leadsom empty vessel - that is EXACTLY right and shows the arrogance of the Tories that this kind of candidate is what we deserve. Her wavers about joining the race clearly nothing to do with her family but the porkies on her CV that might come out. The sense of entitlement - that she and Jacob Rees-Mogg have the right to challenge 'experts' like Carney and say he's too 'political' and shouldn't be giving statements about the effects of BREXIT are crap.

Uhoh!!!!

As in SERIOUS Uhoh!

I think all the "economic rules", polls, protests in the world aren't going to stop Brexit now. It's just a matter ("just"!) of what deals we can make.

And maybe more long term, louder political activism if someone tries to destroy what we consider pretty basic rights like maternity leave or sick pay.

I disagree with almost everything in that ConservativeHome article, including the sexist digs at Leadsom.

Spending money in our own currency to stimulate domestic demand probably is the way out of Brexit recession.

Having policies of that sort says fuck all about how you will negotiate trade deals. Casting it merely as "giveaways" is asinine.

QE was necessary to keep the economy ticking over because of GO's pointless, damaging austerity of choice.

Low interest rates are good gor the middle classes who often have big mortgages.

They are bad for pensioners and bankers.

Disingenuous bollocks.

That is an interesting article, Red.

I wish that reputable media would establish a "Brexit economy-watch" section. I think it's needed - especially because we truly need information/pressure right there for any future deal; the pressure/focus needs to be maintained, not dissipated.

I'm pondering how Leadsom managed to get selected as a candidate with her fantasy CV hovering in the background.

It depends on whether you are talking about Low or Negative rates.

I think negative is potentially on the cards. Which sounds great in principle but isn't.

Robert Stephens worked with Leadsom but has anyone checked him out!
reaction.life/was-andrea-leadsom-really-such-a-city-hotshot/

DoInItFine I agree with much of what you say wrt investment in economy needed, and I'd say that it is needed to start now (what with all those deals needing to be made). However, it is well to think of the implicit hidden costs of all those deals - especially since we are almost certainly going to have a very right-wing group of people making those deals.

I think that the question - and it is a crucial question - that the ConservativeHome article is posing is this: are decisions being made now in the interests of short-term electorability or for mid- and long-term benefit -- and what does that bode for decisions made when negotiating Brexit?

That is a massively important question. It really needs to be asked in the mainstream press, not in the non-mainstream.

I'm actually furious about this lack of questioning. What did we learn from Brexit? I'd say one thing was that the mainstream media did not ask enough questions, the right sorts of questions, and searchingly enough; that the mainstream media abdicated a responsibility to inform their readership.

That abdication is continuing, in my opinion.

Can we get them all to do the interview process on The Apprentice please?

Imagine when Claude goes: 'This is your business plan for the Uk? A single sheet of paper with a logo on it'?

This is all very much which you'd rather have?

May or Leadsom?
Barrage or Banks? Or maybe Murdoch?
Smallpox or Ebola? Or an all inclusive holiday to Raqqa?

RedToothBrush

Andrea Leadsom wouldn't 'clarify her relationship with Arron Banks'. Blimey, what does THAT mean?

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/conservative-leadership-contest-andrea-leadsom-in-car-crash-performance-at-first-hustings_uk_577aaacae4b0f7b55795b23f

www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2016/jul/06/rupert-murdoch-and-paul-dacre-go-head-to-head-over-the-tory-leadership

Leadsom = Banks
Dacre = May
Murdoch = Gove

We need to re-name the thread as something like 'Right wing press Hunger Games.'

Which is depressing for what it says about UK politics.

I guess we'll see which of these 3 holds most power now, though.