Westministenders: Gin O'Clock

[RedToothBrush]

After disaster after Salzberg and a very predictable humilation over the Chequers Deal which the ERG reject, moderate Brexiteers reject, Remainers reject and the EU reject....

May does a press conference...

...which is delayed by a power shortage inside No. 10.

And....

He/she was quite cute. I want 'roboscorpion' to get all of them.

Apparently that bit wasn't in the pre approved speech, he just added it in.

Really? He's going out on a limb, no? I mean, clearly it played well to Labour members, but presumably JCorb won't have liked it.

I joined Labour to vote for JC to become leader, you know.
Hows that working out for you then ?

Given that my next sentence was "At this point I wish to goodness KS would mount a leadership challenge", I think you can probably work that out for yourself.

CHILLI I wonder if that has anything to do with Brexit, because I can't imagine this useless shower planning anything so elaborate
Also, I suspect any Brexit changes probably wouldn't be showing up in road infrastructure yet - too much lead time for scoping, tendering, bidding etc

If that poor damn scorpion had bitten any of the delegates, it would have died of poison

Can we play who would you most like the scorpion to have got?

Far too difficult, with only one scorpion.

DG. Can we play who would you most like the scorpion to have got?

Boris ? (Remember him ?)

There's something terribly classical about being offed by a scorpion ... sort of thing you'd think features in Homer, or Virgil. (Or Ovid, if you're feeling a bit racy).

MN Leavers seem to be getting rather tense and ill-tempered as their long-awaited Unicorn Day approaches. I'm seeing increasingly prolific posting, with lots of really convincing and uplifting slogans like "life will go on," "the world won't end" and "if the unicorns don't come it's the fault of Remoaners for not Pulling Together."

I'm a bit 🤨 about the scorpion "story" tbh.

Hard to believe it wasn't tweeted about on the day it was found (nearly two weeks ago).

Also, the willingness of the authorities to suggest they believe it "must have come out of some hand luggage" is hardly reassuring. Although if they genuinely believe that, I have a bridge for sale ...

In fact, given how things are these days, I am more prepared to believe that it was Putin warning to the Tories to stick to the plan. Which is no more far fetched than the Skripal affair.

MN Leavers seem to be getting rather tense and ill-tempered as their long-awaited Unicorn Day approaches.

I know. It's good isn't it ?

I dread to think how bad they'd have been if they had won.

There's a white whale heading up the Thames. Really.
I bet it's sign or something.

I think you should have a recount, or if the vote papers have been destroyed, rerun the vote. It would be interesting to see if there are still 17 Million who voted leave.
Or, to really have some fun, say that you know exactly who did vote leave as it wasn't secret and they have been tagged in some way.

There's a white whale heading up the Thames. Really. I bet it's sign or something

Well, it's a beluga whale, apparently ... found in Northern Russia ?

Once again, Putin just making sure people remember who's boss.

I have spent a date night in that hotel once. It is quite nice. [sigh]

Or, to really have some fun, say that you know exactly who did vote leave as it wasn't secret and they have been tagged in some way

Speaking of fun, I did have an urge to see if i could start a viral rumour that Farage was renouncing his EU pension in disgust at being part of an organisation that dared to treat Theresa May with such disrespect.

That's the problem with weaponing "news". It can be turned against you ....

Trump gets laughed at in the UNGA when he says that his administration in less than 2 years has achieved more for all of humanity that almost any previous US administration

@faisalislam
52s53 seconds ago
NEW: Corbyn accepts Starmer on Remain option in @Skynews interview ... doesn’t dispute that Brexit might not happen in March 2019, though only after Deal falling and GE push

Jane Bradley @jane_bradley
Wow: The Swiss authorities refused Russian Abramovich residency after police reported that he was known for “suspicion of money laundering and presumed contacts with criminal organisations”. Britain didn't have the same qualms about his money it seems.

www.theguardian.com/world/2018/sep/25/roman-abramovich-posed-threat-to-public-security-swiss-police-said?CMP=share_btn_tw
Roman Abramovich posed threat to public security, Swiss police said
Police reported ‘suspicion of money laundering and presumed contacts with criminal organisations’

You might, of course remember this from Sunday:

Bill Browder @billbrowder
BREAKING: Bosses at UK’s NCA ordered most senior money laundering investigator in the country NOT to investigate $30m of Russian money laundering in UK banks from Magnitsky case. This reeks of a full scale cover-up

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/09/22/national-crime-agency-ordered-stop-investigating-russian-money/amp/?__twitter_impression=true
Russian money laundering investigation was ordered to stop, says former head of corruption unit

Thats one hell of a coincedence.

Do you think dots will start getting joined somehow?

Did you follow the Finnish one too? And Danske red?

www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/20/chelsea-owner-roman-abramovich-is-without-a-uk-visa
Abramovich if you remember DID lose his visa in May as it wasn't renewed by the Home Office.

At the time it was largely put down to the Skripal incident damaging relations.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-44332603
Abramovich then withdraw his application, because to renew it he might have to prove the origins of his wealth under new rules that came into force in 2015.

My point being, this is starting to really smell.

And now stuff is starting to come out.

Got to be honest, neither are on my radar as much as they should be. Danske is rattling around my brain. Would need to do some googling...

Not liking the look of it though.

Merkel's view:

http://www.finanztreff.de/news/merkel-haben-zum-brexit-wochen-haertester-arbeit-vor-uns/13981704

[My transl]
"Such an agreement must be, considering the state of affairs, a very, very intensive Free Trade Agreement.
In essence this still depends on what Great Britain really wants.

The discussion on this appears not to be entirely unambiguous“

< transl = Lieber Gott, the Brits still haven't made up their effing minds^ !^ 🤦🏽‍♀️>

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-45626881

According to Airlines UK, which represents 13 UK-registered carriers,

the European Commission has said it would put in place a "bare bones" aviation agreement with the UK to keep planes flying and to cover safety issues.

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/jeremy-hosking-s-leaver-poll-finds-voters-happy-to-keep-remain-mps-f8dgmfln9?shareToken=ea223e7e07477de89d70a94b3ee60179
Leaver poll finds voters happy to keep Remain MPs

A poll funded by a Brexit-backing multimillionaire has failed to find evidence of widespread support for deselecting Remain-backing Conservative MPs among their constituents.

Jeremy Hosking, a City financier who has threatened to launch a breakaway party to deliver Brexit as swiftly as possible, commissioned a survey of 4,110 voters in 13 constituencies that are home to MPs who voted to remain part of the EU in the 2016 referendum.

These included Broxtowe (Anna Soubry), Loughborough (Nicky Morgan) and Beaconsfield (Dominic Grieve). The poll found that 62 per cent of respondents disagreed with the option that Remain MPs who represented Leave-voting seats should step down, and 61 per cent disagreed that those MPs should face deselection.

Nicky Morgan MP @nickymorgan01
Presumably not quite the result those who commissioned the polling in 13 carefully selected Conservative-held constituencies expected

I would take that to mean that lots of leavers are simply not extremists and obsessives like Brexiters. And just don't care that much.