(Times paywall) _ Secret diary of an MP: I want to help but it’s humiliating — a dead cat would be as useful_^
Corbyn is clearly not doing his job if his MPs feel so useless with nothing to do.
He should be leading them, with purpose, even if they don't have enough votes to win in the end.
Don't just sit back and let the Tories run riot with our future.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/secret-diary-of-an-mp-i-want-to-help-but-its-humiliating-a-dead-cat-would-be-as-useful-06sq2wll5
I am a Labour MP who voted Remain, representing a constituency that voted heavily to Leave.
I’m torn in two.
I want to be accountable, I want to be involved,
but I sit uselessly and helplessly, trapped in a Commons that’s falling to pieces at a time of national crisis.
This diary is my silent scream
I’m one of the 650.
We’ll all get the blame when the ship sinks,
but in truth you might as well have put a dead cat in there instead of me;
it would have had as much of a role as I’ve had in the Brexit discussions.
Want to know what that feels like? It’s embarrassing, humiliating and hugely, overwhelmingly frustrating." ...
"We’re not alone.
Most Tory MPs know nothing.
Right now it feels like most of the cabinet knows nothing.
It’s all about one woman, the prime minister, and she’s in a bunker so deep that no one can reach her."
"I sought out some Tory mates last week.
They’re very senior in the party.
I wanted them to tell me that despite appearances to the contrary, Theresa May was actually a fantastic poker player, that great minds were being consulted and the country was in safe hands.
Back came no reassurance whatsoever.
Her master plan, it seems, is to survive until the next day.
< that's been obvious since Dec 2017 >
If that doesn’t fill you with terror, nothing will."
"And it’s all so utterly exhausting, which is really weird because physically, obviously, you’re not doing anything, and intellectually you’re not doing anything because you’re not involved in any of the negotiations.
It’s more a spiritual weariness and it comes from a sense of foreboding, guilt and helplessness."
"What’s so frustrating is that I know I could contribute.
If they let me, I could work on this.
If they gave me a role, I’d work until I dropped down dead to try to get the best outcome for this country.
Instead you sit there, waiting, in a constant state of anxiety.
Because any moment now, something else might go wrong and make things even worse.
It’s on my watch but what can I do? Bugger all."
"The terrifying truth is that the democratic structures we all put our faith in have turned out to be made of sand.
Yes, I’m an MP.
There are hundreds of us here this week.
We’re supposed to be taking decisions that will affect our country for generations to come but you know what? Right now I don’t even feel like a tiny cog in this machine.
Most of us here are as bewildered as everyone outside the Commons.
That’s truly frightening