Westminstenders: Stuck in the twilightzone

[RedToothBrush]

Just want to remind everyone if what really matters and what the priority if Theresa May is.

May isn't interested in a new referendum. There is barely time to hold one, and anyone remotely interested in one, isn't named Theresa May. Forget it. Its not happening.

Nor are Brexit talks the most important thing. Whilst Jeremy Corbyn seems finally to be playing with some sort if EEA type solution he's not the one named Theresa May. If she doesn't want one, then it won't happen.

May does seem to favour something along these lines but she has to sell it to her party. If she ends up relying on the support of Labour to push it through against what her party want, then that doesn't end well for her or her party. So Corbyn seeming to squeeze her here isn't necessarily a good thing. It could push her to no deal.

Why?

Cos petty party politics.

THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT THING, and don't forget this, is the EU withdrawal Bill. As it stands, May has to concentrate her efforts on this. If it doesn't pass by the art 50 deadline then we have legal chaos. May isn't big on the courts, but I'm not sure she would want that situation either. It would be even more unthinkable than queues at Dover coupled with food shortages.

If it doesn't pass, and the Lords will do all they can to delay and obstruct as long as they can, May's only option is to beg for an art 50 extension. Which the EU might not be inclined to give. Which might leave us in a situation where our only option is to revoke a50.

The only predictable thing, is this will be last minute brinkmanship.

All the talk of a second ref is a distraction. Talk of Labour's position at this point, is all about positioning for the next election and not about Brexit at all.

So try to keep your eyes on what really matters and what battles are May's big ones and which are merely side shows.

I wonder who Side Show Bob will turn out to be.

No. It takes a lot of time and effort to build up support for a new party from scratch within the FPTP system

Er, UKIP ?

In Parliamentary terms, UKIP was never much of a threat. Their two MPs and a couple of Lords were initially obtained by Tories crossing the floor. One managed to hold on to his seat. Farage never made it, although there may have been some electoral irregularities which kept him out.

In EU Parliamentary terms, yes, they did phenomenally well, but how often did their MEPs attend and have an influence?

Local Government - yes a strong presence which immediately showed how incompetent the majority of them were.

But the Tories were scared rigid of them, hence the appeasement with the Referendum, and with 'The people have spoken' nonsense.

I am sure that future historians will look back and ask Why?

Shades of "we'll push him so far into the corner, he'll squeak" ....

Number of HoC seats won by UKIP candidates in a GE: 1.
Largest vote share achieved in a GE: 12.6%.

And they only achieved that because they were a protest party. Now that the Tories are the protest party, one suspects that Boris won't want to be outside the tent, pissing in, like Farage did, but inside the tent, pissing.

Integrity in local politics ?

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-berkshire-42791799

Two Tory councillors have quit the party in protest after a council leader called for rough sleepers to be cleared before the royal wedding in May.

(contd)

The leadership contest has begun.

Jeremy Hunt admits EU cancer drugs will not be available in Britain if Brexit talks break down

Health Secretary also throws doubt on Theresa May’s hopes of a transitional agreement before April - warning it 'may take a little bit longer'

Jeremy Hunt has admitted that EU cancer drugs may not be available to British patients after Brexit, describing the risk as “uniquely damaging”.

The flow of some medicines would be cut off if the withdrawal negotiations break down, the Health Secretary acknowledged – echoing fears raised by the pharmaceutical industry.

Drug giants have told of “significant disruption to the supply chain for medicines” and that customs delays would damage “time and temperature sensitive” materials, without a Brexit deal.

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/jeremy-hunt-cancer-drugs-eu-nhs-brexit-deal-healthcare-patients-health-secretary-a8174306.html

Hunt absolutely is the one to watch for a leadership bid.

May wanted to move him. She didn't.

Why?

For the same reason she won't sack Johnson....

Would Hunt be more or less damaging than Johnson or even May as PM? it's getting difficult keeping track.

Jeremy Hunt admits EU cancer drugs will not be available in Britain if Brexit talks break down

I would hope that some other papers splash this as headline news. Is this what Leavers voted for?

This is a serious question. Would Hunt be better as PM? At Health he's a disaster. Similarly Gove made the same sort of mess at Education and so far seems to be doing a better job at Environment.

Fuck "maybe", my medicine is already unavailable thanks to the cunting Brexiteers.

Apparently the Department of Health ("DH", as my MPs letter calls them) is aware and preparing to source it "from European sources".

(If you like playing foreign Bourses, then a few Euros into non-UK pharmaceuticals might be a tip. They're picking up a lot of work from the UK companies that can't afford to sell to the NHS anymore.)

Not sure what not being able to use it for almost a year (which it would be) will do - or not do - to my sight. I guess the upside of blindness is never seeing that cunt Farage ever again.

Funnily enough, the Brexit Arms have had some slightly serious conversations in the last few days. I never post there, but someone needs to tell them that not all of 65 and over voted for Brexit.

Jeremy Hunt admits EU cancer drugs will not be available in Britain if Brexit talks break down

I would hope that some other papers splash this as headline news. Is this what Leavers voted for?

My only worry would be that leavers would refuse to acknowledge that this was a natural consequence of their vote - and just assume it was the nasty EU out to punish us again - refusing to let us have the drugs for daring to Brexit.
Accepting that you, in essence, voted to kill cancer patients is not something many people will be will to take ownership of. They will pass the blame and it will further entrench their anti-eu views.

He did long lasting damage I think to education in this country.
Absolutely. Like Theresa May because of his blind prejudice as to what worked for him, was what everyone should have. Justine Greening was beginning to make attempts to repair the damage, so she had to go.

Jeremy Hunt admits EU cancer drugs will not be available in Britain if Brexit talks break down
It says everything about this current government when Hunt starts looking like the reasonable one. I need eye bleach.

My only worry would be that leavers would refuse to acknowledge that this was a natural consequence of their vote - and just assume it was the nasty EU out to punish us again - refusing to let us have the drugs for daring to Brexit.

That wouldn't explain why UK companies have stopped making some medicines, though, does it ? Nor why we now have to rely on EU companies to make and sell them to the UK.

However it would show that Brexiteers really are thick as pig shit.

Ben Bradshaw
@BenPBradshaw
Jeremy Hunt tells @CommonsHealth Home Office “very sympathetic” to the NHS & Social Care’s need for migrant labour in wake of #Brexit vote. Sounds like Govt’s net immigration target’s on the way out.

Sounds like Govt’s net immigration target’s on the way out.

But despite what some Leavers tell us on these threads, reducing immigration by preventing FoM was what a significant number wanted. I would hazard a guess to say that they were happy with White Commonwealth and US citizens coming here, but the rest, EU and black and brown Commonwealth citizens, were a big no-no for them.

Hunt has declared he is "very sympathetic" to a lot of things. Anyone in the NHS will tell you his sympathy means fuck all.

This is from the Brexit job loss Facebook group. At last a complete list of jobs already lost. I don't know if the link will work!

docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vTIPx0lI6pb-3Tn-3D6uNJNyKcCd-A8uPMxViagyJAR9T87ZmnSdAEPCzp5ljlNYoUNdxJiJqQdBm7b/pubhtml

Lurking why can't UK companies afford to sell to the NHS ?