Westministenders: High Drama at The Ok Coral

[RedToothBrush]

3:00 p.m. Wednesday, October 26, 1881, Tombstone, Arizona.

After months of death threats from the Cowboy Billys, their long simmering feud with the law thing came to a head. The Earp Brothers and Doc Holliday faced the criminals down in a shootout.

Tomorrow's 'sleepover' is starting to feel like the Gunfight at the OK Coral.

The outcome of the real story was three of the outlaws were killed. Another two claimed they were unarmed and ran from the fight. Virgil, Morgan, and Doc Holliday were wounded, but Wyatt Earp was unharmed.

How many Brexiteers can we expect to roll over and resign from the Cabinet and how many will surrender to May and the Pro-Business lobby? ONly time will tell.

Please place your bets for the number of resignations and the number of 'I support the PM' comments.

But don't get too excited. The showdown wasn't the end of the matter.

One of the outlaws who legged it, filed murder charges against the Earps and Doc Holliday. It took them some time for them to be acquitted.

Then Virgil Earp was ambushed and disabled in the arm later that year in December and Morgan Earp was assassinated in March 1882. Wyatt Earp, then thinking he had no other option, went on a personal vendetta to kill the outlaws and then fled the state.

Given the Tory Cabinet and the perchant for stabbing each other in the back and settling personal scores, a repeat of a wild west gun fight, really doesn't sound too wildly off the cards now does it?

Buckle up. Its time to play at Chequers.

Not sure if this is completely correct but 'immigrants' arriving at a port have to be 'accommodated' in some way by international law, hence The EU discussions last week to try to find a way to persuade potential immigrants from leaving their original countries. The 'removal' of Mr Gaddaffi from Libya was a key factor in the massive rise of potential immigration a few years back. 'Removing' him and Saddam created a lot of the mess we see now. I am not suggesting they were nice people but they did help in keeping some parts of the world a bit more stable, in a brutal sort of way.

New to the thread so apologies if it’s been discussed before. The Brexit Plan seemed vague on what kind of trade deal was being proposed for services. As a large proportion of U.K. employees are in the service sector this is kind of important. Does anyone have any insight into which way the government are trying to go on services?

They've not given many indications of what they're actually, realistically hoping to get I'm afraid. I would guess that they are thinking that being "free" in services allows them to try and cozy up to the US and cut a special deal with them (consulting firms, for example, have to be very careful about sending UK staff to work on US projects because US Immigration takes a very dim view of it). The thing is, I'm not sure why the US would agree to giving us fair shake at anything. Pushing all their services on US, on the other hand...

Place mat king. Thanks Red.

Hi @workshyfop
lawyersforbritain.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Chequers-Briefing-Memo.pdf

This piece referenced by BCF, a couple of pages back (this morning!) is a long read but an indication that a lot of serious thinking needs to happen especially when you factor in that the EU have to agree with whatever plan is put forward.

I suspect a lot of the Brexiteers acquiescence (real or pretend) is predicated on their belief that if they have their fingers crossed, they can water down the EU regs the UK is committed to in the future (back to cake and eat it).

Even if they themselves don't believe it themselves, it's entirely possible it's what they have sold to their paymasters.

It will be interesting to see what the response is from the EU.

Thanks for responding. I’ll take a look at that article @54321go

I know the EU still have a long way to go on harmonisation of services so the impact may depend a lot on which sector you’re in and the specific regulations that apply.

Robert Peston @ peston
Sources confirm letters calling for vote of confidence in @theresamay leadership going in to @GrahamBrady, chair of 1922. Tory Brexiters very unhappy - accuse PM of traducing those who voted to leave EU. This appears to be spontaneous, not coralled by ERG & @JacobRees_Mogg

Sam Coates Times @ samcoatestimes
Andrew Bridgen: "(Theresa May's EU deal) is probably worse than staying in the European Union."

He's waiting until Monday night to decide whether of putting in a letter of no confidence to the 1922

There is a rumour doing the rounds on twitter and doesn't seem to originate from someone well respected that May threatened Gove and Johnson with a full public enquiry into Vote Leave if they didn't tow the line.

Now this sounds interesting, but as I say, I can't see any source that's credible for it either.

The Express seems to have picked a line for now. Farage has apparently RIPPED (their capitals) into TM's plan for a soft brexit ... so it looks like they will go down the 'brexit betrayed' route... which is a risky strategy as a brexit betrayed is a pointless brexit and may as well be consigned to the dustbin of history.
I suspect an understanding of this is why the barmy arms lot are so desperate to be happy about any progress - as a united front is the only way they can keep momentum going. After all if 48% don't want any kind of brexit, and 52% don't want this kind of brexit... then what is brexit for?
I wonder if Farage hasn't worked this out and is now hoping to throw a spanner in the works - whilst still looking like he hasn't changed his mind.

Keir Starmer has apparently come out and said a) Labour won't be backing this plan and b) Labour might be willing to back a second referendum (though I wish he'd said people's vote - words matter) and has admitted that leaving the EU will 'make things worse.'

In non-brexit news Jezza has apparently come out and decided to support the Nordic model for prostitution. He has before been full in favour of decrim, but has had his mind changed. This is important as a) It appears he can change his mind b) it shows he is willing to declare an opinion that will annoy all the woke lefty dudebro momentumites. This of course bodes well for where he eventually decides to land on brexit.

In non-brexit news Jezza has apparently come out and decided to support the Nordic model for prostitution

It's amazing what removing the danger of being power can do (as the LibDems have shown). Labour are also jumping on the bandwagon calling for suggestions from it's members over drugs policy.

There is a rumour doing the rounds on twitter and doesn't seem to originate from someone well respected that May threatened Gove and Johnson with a full public enquiry into Vote Leave if they didn't tow the line.

If she believes there is something of interest that a public enquiry might uncover... doesn't she have a responsibility to hold the enquiry regardless of the stance Gove and Johnson take?

Interesting if true though - especially if a no-confidence vote is in the offing. Gove is desperately toeing the line (in order to keep his own shady dealings in the dark?) whereas Boris ... isn't. But if she goes for one - they both could fall. And of course it may reveal things about the nuttier back bench brexiteers that they might prefer to keep hidden. If she feels she has nothing to lose, she could blow the lid off the whole thing.

But surely this is a silly time for a no-confidence vote? the summer recess is around the corner - they can't install a new leader before then... and then they are in disarray all summer, leaving the political parties with leaders free to move in on the chaos. And then a new leader will be met by calls for a new election... the electorate won't treat the tories too kindly for wasting yet more valuable time when the crunch date is so close.
And if the tories are ousted in a new election ... then what for brexit? It's all a mess - but it looks to me like the brexiteers are having one last desperate roll of the dice in order to 'save' their brexit - in full knowledge that they have to 'save' it otherwise it won't happen.

Surely a public inquiry and even the 'plan' are just distractions kicking the can further away while the 'crash' looms rapidly?

I think it is unfortunate that the Mini is selling so well. If BMW would declare they are definitely leaving, and soon it would be a significant 'jolt' towards reality.
Airbus is mostly 'up North' and losing their workforce is sort of par for the course and not as noticeable.

If Goebels were in charge, he'd simply let us drift towards the cliff edge, then engineer some faux "crisis" and ensure Brexit was cancelled postponed until said crisis was dealt with. Obviously calling out anyone who dared to disagree as a traitor and an enemy of the people.

Of course such a play could work the other way ... carry on with the pretence of a soft Brexit until aforementioned "crisis" and then insist that crashing out would be the only way to proceed (keeping the same rhetoric for objectors).

It must be obvious, by now, that someone, somewhere is making an awful lot of money out of the zig-zagging course Brexit seems to be taking.

@DGR
It's not me, I'm losing quite a lot of money over this fiasco. It must be one of the other 58 Million of you that's getting it!

I do worry that this aiming for soft brexit is attempting to be something of a bait and switch to shut remainers up until it is too late - and over the cliff edge we go.
That is why it is so important to keep the pressure on right now. because there is no such thing as a 'good' brexit.

It's not me, I'm losing quite a lot of money over this fiasco. It must be one of the other 58 Million of you that's getting it!

No, it'll be someone who "knows" which way the wind will blow week from week, and who can make "insightful" investments based on that.

Surely it's obvious to those that look, that Brexit had very little to do with the UKs membership of the EU. That was just the stalking horse to unleash a generation of chaos on the country.

The EU can't 'give in' to Mrs May's so called 'demands'. The whole Brexit thing is a mere 'tiff' compared to the massive impact of the EU actually breaking apart.
The UK will hate to ever admit it but right now it actually does NEED to be part of the EU. The USA, Russia and China are not countries to do 'deals' with alone if your existence is dependent on them, unless you are happy to a 'lapdog'

I wasn't suggesting the EU will break, it certainly won't by being dependent on the UK staying or going, but dilution of the 4 principles would cause major rifts which would be very bad in a world that is getting increasingly more dangerous.

BBC website, Mr Gove WARNING the EU have to be more generous.
Why is it always tabloid 'extremist' language used for news headlines?

As many have already said, what's the effing point of all this anymore now?

It's as good as staying in the EU really, but the freedom of movement fudge could be the undoing. Either way the UK will become a vassal State of the EU, obliging them by proving they are abiding by the EU rules and so on. Ha. You could not make this stuff up really.

So all this to keep the foreigners out. Right.

BBC website, Mr Gove WARNING the EU have to be more generous.

EU: Why ?

DGR
That answer is more polite than the one I was thinking!

Wow - would they really throw her overboard now, at such a crucial juncture in negotiations and with the summer recess almost upon them?

And what would happen next? The prospect of the Tories tearing themselves apart is cheering until you realise that the candidates likely to feature in a leadership battle are Dreadful and Even More Dreadful and Holy Crap NOOOO. Andrea Leadsom redux, anyone?

The deficiencies of the expensive educations of Gove, Carswell and Hannan (and the ERG, and in fact most of the Tory front bench) are painfully obvious, and the machinations and manouvers of the Gove trio are a sad reminder that the Tories are currently (and for a long, long time now) operating in a vacuum very similar to Alice's rabbit hole.

Will Hutton has the only correct analysis of the situation.

Not sure this proposal will fly.
Emotive language all over. Brexiters saying we'll be 'a vassal state', a Remainer (Andrew Adonis) saying we'll be 'a rule taker, a colony of France & Germany in key respects.

No-one happy?

mobile.twitter.com/Andrew_Adonis/status/1015908383784951808