Westminstenders: Blue Passports

[RedToothBrush]

Yay for the blue passports.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all

May next year bring us £350 million for the NHS, cake, unicorns, financial passporting, access to the single market, Irish love and of course control to the people.

(Apologies been up to my eyeballs. Normal service will resume after Christmas).

Just delurking to wish you all a Happy New Year. Also to say that I'm having my usual browse through DFs Terry Pratchett collection while we are at my parents house for NY, and Jingo appears to be describing Brexit to an uncanny level of accuracy.

The Truth is also a good apt Terry Pratchett one, all about the news...

@Frankiestein401

I'm aware of the official separation of powers, but it's the less visible connections that can influence justice. Starting with the fact that the judicial (and by extension penal) system need funding. Simple parsimony can lead to a very inconsistent justice experience.

Then you have the rights of the state to take over prosecutions - thus denying people direct access to justice. Plus the inverse ability of the CPS to pursue (or abandon) prosecutions "in the public interest" rather than based on the strength of evidence or chances of conviction.

I would also suggest that the recent near-abolition of recompense for wrongful conviction is hardly conducive to confidence in the criminal justice system.

And for ultimate taint of suspicion of political meddling in justice, teh ongoing furore over the lack of action on historic abuse cases suggests all is not well in the garden.

It is imperative that not only is justice done, but it is seen to be done. Or is that too old fashioned in the new millennium ? We should really be whooping for "Justice 2.0" rebranded, rebadged, and half as good ?

Some of May's executive attacks on separation of powers:
I'm not sure of the legal status of buying power with racists with a £1b bung, but it doesn't seem fantastically constitutionally hygenic;
Unilaterally triggering Article 50;
Repel Bill giving executive unaccountable power;
Illegal deportations;
Illegal DWP sanctions;
Tacit/overt support for attacks on judiciary;
Tacit/overt support for attacks on pro EU MPs;
On underfunding legal aid and lack of police funding, one has to wonder what access ordinary people have to legal recourse;
Impact statements; lack thereof and hence denying legislative information and oversight of 'brexit' decisions;
insistence on secrecy in trade negotiations on behalf of a democratic nation;
conflict of interest issues with too many cabinet ministers to mention.

Or it could be just good old fashioned totalitarian corruption; so difficult to tell these days, isn't it.

Happy Anniversary Bigly! 💐

Oh yes, and happy anniversary bigly

Happy anniversary to Bigly and a happy New Year to you all.

I can't think of many positives in my personal life this year, except perhaps the fact that I have found the strength to say 'enough!' and stick to that.

all bigly This year has brought lots of lovely things. This thread is one of them. Thanks again RTB

Happy anniversary to you and your spouse, bigly

We had another GF visitor, Eleanor, that's all.
Best to ignore those who don't want to engage sensibly.
It is strange that they have all had overtly male names and seem to feel we are Remoaning FemaNazis for meeting wild assertions with facts

However, LurkingHusband has never had this problem - as he likes facts
and we don't know which other Westministender regulars are male, so I really think we are factist, not sexist

Happy Anniversary, Bigly.

I have missed you all over Christmas.

2018 is the year of the Woman's Roar.

This year it was just a whimper.

That's my New Year's Eve Prediction for the year ahead.

Thank you everyone. I hope you all have lovely evenings even if it is just spent eating chocolate and watching films in bed like us.

You've just reminded me to get more choc from my cellar
I'm thinking of you now, woman < waves Lindt in celebration >

Enjoy NYE, everyone

What to expect in 2018 ....

Elena I like to touch base regularly with this thread too. It's reassuring to see that other people feel the same outrage as me!

I don't really do Twitter but I looked at Andrew Adonis' feed today and he's obviously decided to just go for it with the accusations. He clearly doesn't care if he's destroying his future career chances with this Govt.
It just made me start thinking... what if the whole house of cards started to fall? Maybe politicians would start leaping off the boat, covering their backs by trying to dob in other people in order to keep themselves out of the firing line...

I have no predictions for 2018, but I could envisage a time when lots of rats have secured their exit from the sinking ship, and TM is left alone holding the Bad Brexit Baby.

at BCF young people have gone a partying, leaving me with my quality street; it is not Lindt
All the best to all and yup RTB I feel a bit roarish.

Another UKIP seat gone at next local elections .....

UKIP councillor arrested on suspicion of murdering his wife

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5224261/Man-arrested-suspicion-murder-woman-dead.html

Heil on Sunday (Remain) claiming DD let slip that there is a chance that Brexit might not happen

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5223771/Theresa-David-Davis-rift-Brexit-wont-happen.html#comments

Timing is all BCF That type jump before they are pushed.

On that alleged murderer, so much could be written, and none of it legal.
Brexism is sexism and worse, that's for sure.

Happy anniversary bigly and happy new year to the rest of you!

I am aboard for the year of the Women’s Roar.

A year of new beginnings?

www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/dec/31/theresa-may-considers-move-for-boris-johnson-in-cabinet-reshuffle

Happy New Year everyone. I meant to go to bed early, but I didn't. This happens every year!

NoCrying and Cardinal if we are looking at Brexit through the lens of Terry Pratchett let's not forget Bloody Stupid Johnson.

Wishing all Westminstenders a very happy 2018 amd thank you all for the company during 2017 .