Westminstenders: What hangs in the balance?

[RedToothBrush]

Yellow Hammer (and Black Swan if it exists) and other documents the government itself has produced are our truths and our evidence.

I look to Thomas Jefferson quotes in trying to defend liberal democracy.

His most famous of quotes is

Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration states, “We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness….”

Self evident truths. These are the bedrock of democracy.

There are many more quotes from Jefferson which talk about the shining beacon of truth and the threats to liberty from falsehoods and those who tell them.

He argued that when the power of the state is used to avoid scrutiny we should be worried and afraid. As a leader he should never be afraid of the truth, because the truth always exists and you can only merely hide it before it makes itself apparent anyway.

“The care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only object of good government.”

Today I feel the need to dust off old Jefferson for my own sanity and to remind myself of what matters. Jefferson helps me focus on dangers and how you fight back. It always comes back to exposure to the truth - how do you work to expose this (and the role of journalism in this)

Seek the truth. Talk the truth. Even if that means being self critical and humble in admitting your mistakes and errors.

It is not your identity as Leaver, Remainer, Tory, Labour, LDer, SNPer, woman, man, English, Northern Irish, Scottish, Welsh or European right now.

These identities are harming us, by making us look at the wrong thing rather than see the real danger facing us. They divide us whilst they conquer us.

What you should be focusing on NOW is your commitment to democracy in the face of someone in power actively and explicity saying the rule of law does not matter and the courts are wrong. That is advocating mob rule.

Johnson stood and said threats to MPs were humbug. And refused to moderate his language despite so many (mainly female) MPs saying the threats they received were extremely serious (remembering we've even had a prosecution for a plot to kill Rosie Cooper as well as other successful prosecutions for threats to MPs)

This is where we are at.

Focus on it.

No Deal Brexit and the future of liberal democracy in this country are indivisible and inseparable. They are entwined by the rule of law.

Brexit is NOT in of itself a threat to liberal democracy. It is HOW we leave that is.

I wish this was being said and emphasised concisely and cleanly.

Just looked up the explanatory notes to the Civil Contingencies Act...

When will the electorate realise that oration and statesmanship should be a tools of government not artifice.

"Part 1 of the Act creates a new concept of an “emergency”. This term is broadly defined. It includes events which would have engaged the existing civil defence legislation (war or attack by a foreign power). It also includes terrorism which poses a threat of serious damage to the security of the United Kingdom and events which threaten serious damage to human welfare in a place in the United Kingdom or to the environment of a place in the United Kingdom.
6.
The Act imposes a series of duties on local bodies in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland (to be known as “Category 1 responders”). These duties include the duty to assess the risk of an emergency occurring and to maintain plans for the purposes of responding to an emergency. The range of Category 1 responders is broader than the range of local bodies which were subject to the previous legislation. It includes certain bodies with functions which relate to health, the Environment Agency and the Secretary of State, in so far as his functions relate to responding to maritime and coastal emergencies.
7.
The Act also provides the mechanism to impose duties on other local bodies (to be known as “Category 2 responders”) to co-operate with, and to provide information to, Category 1 responders in connection with their civil protection duties.
8.
Part 1 of the Act also enables a Minister of the Crown (or, for certain purposes in Scotland, the Scottish Ministers) to require a Category 1 responder to perform a function for the purposes of preventing an emergency, reducing, controlling or mitigating the effects of an emergency or taking other action in connection with an emergency."

A number of the Conservative Lords are absolutely ripping the Govt a new one (in a very polite Lord type way)....they are embarrassed about the actions of the Con Govt.

Like I say....these people (BJ and his puppet masters) aren't Conservatives, they are something different.

They only need it for a few days
It's all about using up about 11 days from 19 October

I don't think Jo Maugham & co have thought it through about what someone can do when they have no moral scruples .... and are in charge of the country

btw
I can think of one way to avoid jail: go to the USA on 19 December and stay there until 11pm 31 October
His chum Trump would be delighted to share in the glory

Cendrillon this silly fellow? A QC.

What's the song

'I fought the law and the law won'

This man believes in Democracy. And is trying to exhaust every legitimate avenue to ensure that we stay a Democracy.

What is your precious PM doing?

I can think of one way to avoid jail: go to the USA on 19 October and stay there until 11pm 31 October

Chapeau!

For once I agree with Cendrillon:

Although BJ may chicken out of jail, Cummings would be egging him on,
because it would probably produce a Tory landslide win, especially if it means No Deal happens on time

However, I suspect my idea

• spending 19-31 October in the USA - may appeal more to someone who enjoys his comfort as much as BJ

Steve Peers @stevepeers
Not just in the courts, as parliament can overturn government measures under the CCA.

The Civil Contingencies Act requires parliament to meet, even if it's prorogued 😀 (not that a further lengthy prorogation before Brexit Day would be legal)

Jo Maugham QC @jolyonmaugham
Yeah - although I think that if the emergency regulations fall they can just be made again.

Steve Peers @stevepeers
And Parliament votes them down again under s 27(2) CCA. But it might be an idea for a quick bill confirming that the CCA or Withdrawal Act can't be used to suspend Benn-Burt.

And there also appears there could be another way to bypass Benn

Tom Newton Dunn @tnewtondunn
Sir John Major has found a way around the Benn Act (an Order of Council from Privy Councillors) which he suspects Boris Johnson will use use to leave the EU on October 31 without a deal. His speech tonight:

Well now JM has spotted that route people can investigate what can be done about it.

I just saw the Brexit party political broadcast. Still spouting shit!

Pmk

Socks DH turned channel when it came on. I made him turn it back
Terrifying.

The red paint looking like blood was deliberate. Especially with the mention of war and surrender.

Very very scary.

I don't think Jo Maugham & co have thought it through about what someone can do when they have no moral scruples .... and are in charge of the country

Pretty sure people like Maugham and Cherry have. The problem to date has been persuading naive MPs that the government would be prepared to ride roughshod over tradition and propriety.

I imagine that the last two days have put any doubts to rest.

And there also appears there could be another way to bypass Benn

The twitter lawyers (real ones) seem to think this is not a go-er.

The thing about the British system is the govt has the power to pass any law by order in council. It could have the opposition locked up, the media shut down and fifty foot high golden statues of BJ put up in every town square by pressed local workers. It would all be entirely legal.

The whole system rests on the assumption that no one would dare, that the public would be outraged and come the election would make their views known. Govt could also abolish elections, but then you're into storming Downing St territory. And no one would be that daft.

Would they?

Still watching the Lords - their take on Saj's spending review: flimsy, fiscally irresponsible, missing any notable strategy, misleading.

The thing about the British system is the govt has the power to pass any law by order in council. It could have the opposition locked up, the media shut down and fifty foot high golden statues of BJ put up in every town square by pressed local workers. It would all be entirely legal.

Pshaw - as if the Lord President of the Council would stand for such a thing! Never!

...
...
...

He’d recline.

I see Boris' sister has now joined the Lib Dem's...

...and I know the polls aren't very reliable because of the level of change/complexity/moving situation but they are showing the LDs would unseat Dominic Raab which you have to admit would be good...

I’m coming out of lurkdom to say thank you for all the contributions and links on this thread. It’s been my go-to source of information.

Raab is my MP and we are a remain constituency. So much for MPs acting on behalf of their constituents, eh. His majority halved at the last election. I’ll be voting LibDem whereas I’ve usually voted Labour.

wheres wonder if that will be reported in the MSM 🤔

"He'd recline"

and complain to nanny that he didn't have statues too

"@KarlTurnerMP tells me when he complained to Dominic Cummings about an overnight death threat, the PM's adviser replied that he should 'vote for a Brexit deal then"

Um - what deal? I can't see a deal.

Good to hear from all the lurkers!

All this ‘well he said it first’, ‘she did it’ stuff - it’s like what children say when they’re being reprimanded. It’s often their only defence when they’ve been caught doing something wrong. It’s also deflection and ‘whataboutery’.

It means they have no defence, they know it was wrong and they can’t justify their poor behaviour.

We should all hold ourselves to the highest possible standards, regardless of others’ behaviour - especially public servants.