The Westministenders / Media Baron Hunger Games continues. Who is trying to outmanoeuvre who?

[RedToothBrush]

Don't worry we've all lost track.

In the Blue Corner
It started out with Cameron and Osborne trying to win the battle of the Tories, but they got stung in a UK wide vote. Some of us thought it was about the 'EU'. Instead it has turned out it was an internal Tory Bitch fight between some old Oxford and Eton mates, whilst for others a protest vote at being disenfranchised.
Gove and Johnson stabbed Cameron & Osborne in the back to run for Team Leave. Then they won when they didn't expect to. And there was no Plan. Uh Oh. Then it all started to go really wrong.
Cameron quit in disgust. Johnson went all President Churchill, before he also got stabbed by Gove (possibly with the assistance of the dark influence of Osborne).
We now have a Tory Smackdown with the shadowy influence of the Media Barons in the background.

#Team Gove has been doing their best with the knives. This is a mission to stab as many Tory MPs in the back as possible in order to become PM. Sponsored and supported by Murdoch

#Team Leadsom has been selling more unicorns and trying to pretend her CV and tax return are completely transparent. Think positive and the economy will be just fine. She is the homeopathy of politics. Sponsored and supported by Arron Banks, Leave.eu, UKIP and Britain First.

#Team May has been threatening to deport everyone if the EU don't play nice. Sponsored and supported by The Daily Mail's Dacre

In The Purple Corner
Tragically, it appears that not only do UKIP have a Plan A, they also have outwitted everyone by having Plan B. Yes that’s right TWO plans.
Farage has swanned off –sacked—for a life on CBB so they are looking for a new leader.
The potential candidates are all equally loathsome. They include Arron Banks himself, a suspended member of the party and several other people with an uncanny ability to put their foot in their mouths.
If this wasn't horrible enough, Team Leadsom is increasingly starting to look like a UKIP take over bid of the Conservative Party, which might be a neat way of avoiding a leadership battle of their own considering the quality of the candidates on offer.

In short, its a bit like a Bad Dystopian Movie that invokes Godwin, set in 2016 Westminster. Except its real.
In the Red Corner
Meanwhile the WMD has finally gone off in the Labour Camp, as Chilcot has been published. However the Chicken Coup rattles on regardless.

Corbyn is STILL clinging on, putting in a good claim for the Westminster 'Charlie off Casualty' Award. He has however had his Big Moment in the Commons. Which was a bit of a let down really. ...

The Unions have been trying to talk some sense into everyone. Meanwhile everyone else is has given up and are now just praying for a ruddy miracle to end this torture and give the country an opposition party.

Angela Eagle is still outside for the 5th day in a row, going "I will stand. Soon. If he doesn't quit" The BBC now qualify for a discount deal at the local Travel Lodge.

We FINALLY know who the fuck Owen Smith is! He's a Welsh MP and sounds like he's not completely away with the political fairies.

George Galloway appears to be trying to make a late bid to be included on the ballot paper for any leadership election.
Bliar's cried. We didn't. Chilcot took over 2 million words to tell us everything we already knew. As well as the fact that Mi6 like Nicholas Cage a lot.

The Cult of Momentum are still worshiping their Dear Leader by sending death threats to PR companies they suspect of disloyalty. Somehow they still manage not to get the title of the most vile pressure group in the UK.

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


All these questions and more.
Tin foil hats now available upon request

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

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/eu_referendum_2016_/2678198-The-Westministenders-Hunger-Games-continues-Boris-still-trying-not-to-be-outmanoeuvred Previous thread 5

[TheBathroomSink]

YouGov poll of Tory members this week:
May 54%
Leadsom 20%
Gove 9%
Crabb 5%
Fox 5%

[DoinItFine]

The issue of when to invoke Article 50 is going to be big in this campaign.

Ultimately that's what these 100,000 Tories are getting to vote on - what kind of Brexit will we get.

It really is an outrageous situation.

[TheBathroomSink]

enochroot technically yes, it is not prohibited. Douglas-Home renounced his peerage just after he took office, so the last Lord who served as PM whilst still a Peer was Salisbury in 1902.

[RedToothBrush]

www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/2016/07/07/andrea-leadsom-gives-tories-a-chance-to-take-their-party-back/

[TheBathroomSink]

Yes, DoinIt, the choice is either now and it'll all be fine oh look a unicorn, or next year once we have a plan.

[NotDavidTennant]

'Electability'

This will be less important while Labour are still in the process of committing slow suicide. Even Loathsome could win a GE in the current circumstances.

[TheBathroomSink]

MrsLupo

Those new Labour members are a puzzle, aren't they? I can't see them all being Corbynites/Momentumers, I can't imagine there are many more of them who haven't already signed up. I struggle to see them as people going against Brexit though, given that Corbyn wants to enact a50 at the same pace Loathsome does (although, is anyone listening to anything he says at the moment?)
Best hope is they are refugees from Ukip, and perhaps new people who have been inspired by the whole referendum debacle and would like an actual Labour leader.

[TheBathroomSink]

Loathsome's immediate boss, Amber Rudd is teamMay and has just told the BBC she doesn't think AL has the ability to lead the government. Paraphrasing, she said:
this is a moving ship in choppy waters. It's a difficult situation and needs someone with depth of experience.
TM is very clear about her views and how she will deliver.
AL has questions to answer in a lot of areas but no time to do so.
Outside experience is good, but AL only has two years political experience and that is only as a junior minister, we need someone who can run with the ball straight away.

[squoosh]

I agree with Rudd. This is not the time to be giving some 'plucky' newcomer a whirl.

[MrsLupo]

I think it shows how desperate people are to have a proper Opposition though I have no idea how the Labour Party is going to pull itself together and achieve this. And I believe they want the Opposition to oppose Brexit.

I think people are desperate for someone to throw a spike strip in front of the Tory bulldozer, yes. And yet most labour members, and it's believed new joiners, are behind Corbyn, who is at best a bit on the Eurosceptic side - certainly Eurosceptic enough that he wouldn't halt Brexit, imo. None of it seems to make sense. I think people hate how the PLP is behaving, but most people wouldn't usually respond by joining up. It's a topsy turvy time, to be sure.

Constitutional question: Can a party leader be drawn from the House of Lords? (I'm old enough to remember Alec Douglas-Home.)

I think it must be possible, as Baroness Jenny Jones specifically ruled herself out of the Green leadership contest. Why? Who have you got in mind?

[TheBathroomSink]

Nicky Morgan is now supporting May, and yet her team and supporters still remain the lesser of two evils.
Weird.

[MrsLupo]

Sorry Bathroom, crossposted. I agree not all the newcomers can be Corbynistas. I suspect some people are positioning themselves to vote against Corbyn in a leadership contest...except they would mostly be £3 supporters (no?) - who are all the proper members? Most of the CLPs have come out for Corbyn. I almost wish someone would front up and challenge him so we knew for sure.

The more we carry on like this, the more I really think a general election is vital to clarify everyone's mandate, shake off any dead wood, and then be able to crack on. Not very optimistic though.

[TheBathroomSink]

More delightful bitchyness from Marina Hyde: www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jul/07/farewell-michael-gove-traitor-prime-minister

[MrsLupo]

I agree with Rudd. This is not the time to be giving some 'plucky' newcomer a whirl.

Unless it's one of us.

[TheBathroomSink]

Labour, whilst not being able to find a leader, have managed to comment on the Tory leadership:
"It would be churlish not to recognise the Tories are moving to elect a woman leader and now Britain’s second female prime minister. But let’s not forget both Theresa May and Andrea Leadsom are part of a government which has failed the British people for six years.

Whilst they continue their bitter infighting over whether they are qualified for the job or not, the only record the public should pay attention to is their record of failure.

They offer nothing new for working people, just more of the same."

Jon Ashworth, Shadow Minister without Portfolio.

You're wrong, though, Jon, you forgot the unicorns.

[TheBathroomSink]

The more we carry on like this, the more I really think a general election is vital to clarify everyone's mandate, shake off any dead wood, and then be able to crack on.

MrsLupo - my worry is, if they shake off all the dead wood, who the fuck is left??

[citroenpresse]

Could the HP not have a vote of 'no confidence' in Leadsom before she starts?

[TheBathroomSink]

ConservativeHome is backing May:
But either way, the plain fact now is that only May the Remainer can deliver Brexit through this Commons and Parliament. Leadsom cannot do so on a base of 84 votes. A win for her in the second stage of the contest would be a Jeremy Corbyn victory – in other words, an empty one. She might command the support of party members; she would already have been rejected by MPs, twice as many of whom would have voted for her opponent.

[TheBathroomSink]

citroenpresse - maybe. Stranger things have happened, and that's only in the last two weeks. I can barely remember before that...

Although, I'm not sure if Parliament is back from summer recess by then. That might be the only problem.

[Muddlingalongalone]

ABL - anyone but loathsome. Should be unabl really.
Just catching up after work. Numbers as expected - agree with the sentiment we're just fucked whatever happens

[officerhinrika]

mrs lupo I know of three new Labour joiners since the referendum they all support Corbyn and are livid with the PLP. I think they have all been Labour voters before galvanised into joining by the chaos. Two in their 20s and one nearly 40.
Yes I know anecdote doesn't prove anything but I think a lot of people suddenly feel the urge to get involved.
The invite to book a conference pass arrived today - I would love to be a ringside observer this year.

[MrsLupo]

I think the Labour party needs to do a bit of a cull through deselections tbh, Bathroom. It seems pretty clear that the members, and arguably also the country, want a more left wing alternative to the Tories.

One of the problems though is that many of the CLPs, while overall supportive of Corbyn, are themselves very divided. Interesting to hear about pro Corbyn joiners, officer, who hopefully may provide a critical mass which changes that. I think a lot of really long-term Labour members just can't get their heads round the fact that true left wingers can also be electable, because recent Labour history seems to say otherwise.

(I left in the Blair years and rejoined last year, in the interests of full disclosure btw.)

[DoinItFine]

Frances Ryan in the guardian suggests 5 stories that have been buried by Brexit: www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jul/07/stories-buried-brexit-child-poverty-un-austerity

On June 28th the UN released a report saying UK austerity policies breach our human rights obligations.

[merrymouse]

So as a result of giving power to the people, we are leaving the EU, but nobody really knows what that means, what the people want or whether the people know what they want.

We could have a PM in power for the next 4 years who wasn't elected by the electorate, and who the elected MPs don't support, facing a leader of the opposition who doesn't have the support of his MPs either.

The only party with a coherent voice is the SNP, but they want a referendum to leave. They might get a referendum, except honestly aren't we sick of referendums?

I don't know about anyone else but I think all this chaotic government has a very continental flavour.