Westministenders: Conference Cult

[RedToothBrush]

Is it over yet?

The Tory Party Conference is in full swing in the Manchester Rain, and is proving to be its usual fun.

Johnson is caught up in all sorts of allegations of abuses of power - the non-declaration of his "friendship" to a busty blonde whom was getting a large tax payer grant, and then there the Odey question after his sister said he was under the control of the Hedge Funders.

And thats before we talk about the 40 hospitals, his provocative language and how many times he can say the word surrender.

There is lots of distancing from Lyton Crosby. And accusations that Johnson has gone 'rogue' only listening to the wisdom of Cummings and Symonds.

The Queen apparently has asked for advice as to under what circumstance she can dismiss a PM.

AND NO ONE IS EVEN TALKING ABOUT A DEAL.

He spent last night with his face stuffed in my neck and a paw on my face, snuffling.
Yeah, I'm well trained

I found the cartoon funny DGR - it was getting at Johnson and his shitty behaviour, which apparently the Tories think acceptable.

Re Govt of GNU - I would like to see Ken Clarke as PM. Then a two year extension with Parliament to run until 2022, and then Ken stands down as he plans to do anyway.

By which time, the other parties might have sorted themselves out. If the Tories sort themselves out by imploding, that would do nicely in my book.

Sooooo, back to business.....

Has there ever been an actual LOHMLO become PM once a VoNC has been passed.

Corbyn says it's convention, DGR says it's law.

Anyone?

The Peregrina Plan gets my vote please.

I admired Mr Tom too grinchly. Having two redheaded DDs I always wanted a ginger cat (last dog was a fox red lab) but alas it's not to be, so ours are black, black and white and black and white (3 of them), plus current black lab. What on earth was I thinking, there is black hair everywhere!

Just got back from having a molar extracted (too far gone for root canal) and feeling sorry for myself as no one around to give me sympathy at home (bar 3 useless guinea pigs). The cat photos are cheering me up!

Hmm the local anaesthetic is beginning to wear off....

MrPan afaik, there has never been a VoNC passed without the govt falling and then a GE

When Churchill took over from Chamberlain in 1940, the Labour and Liberal parties requested he be the PM, but there was no VoNC

So the purpose of a VoNC until now has been to force a GE and win power that way

Thank you BCF I didn't think so.

Convention and law are baseless arguments then? It really is what-works-best-and-will-last-long-enough-for-the-purpose-and-hopefully-for-long-enough-for-us-all-to-wake-up-from-this-nightmare.

Our Constitution depends a lot on precedent & convention, rather than being written down

However, afaik there is no precedent for an Opposition having the votes for a VoNC, but not wanting a GE

Convention is that the Leader of the Opposition would have the first go at forming a govt, but if he can't then the other party leaders can have a try

Any leader can propose another MP if they choose, instead of themsellf

Corbyn says it's convention, DGR says it's law.

I'll immediately caveat that by noting I am no lawyer. (Nor do I play one on TV).

Convention and law are baseless arguments then?

Yes, if something’s never happened before it can’t really be held to be conventional! As for ‘the law’....that’s nonsense too... the law is that the PM needs to be able to command a Government. If Corbyn can’t do that, he can’t be PM.

I don’t really see why Corbyn even wants to be PM of such a GNU, if it’s strictly non-partisan, which it would have to be realistically.

PMK

Oakenbeach I am proceeding stage-by-stage..carefully..like I am game planning a nationally-determining scenario....

Am having grandiose notions of being Shelley next week:

"As I lay asleep in Italy.."

Clarke/Beckett/Anyone.

Don't care.

I too don't see why anyone - apart from those who no longer intend to pursue a career in politics - would want to be PM in a caretaker GNU, which by definition would have no function other than to resolve Brexit without a no-deal.

the law is that the PM needs to be able to command a Government.

Is it ? Or is it "the confidence" ? There is a difference.

I am no expert on combustion control cherin but DH has a colleague who is, and who says that how the fire spread at Grenfell was entirely predictable and is very much related to how the Kings Cross fire spread but that the risks associated with external cladding are not accurately reflected in the building regs because chimney effects are associated with internal spaces. So the rules about wall coverings in a stair well (which even a non expert thinks of as a critical path for fire and escape) are stricter than for external cladding even though the same fire spread mechanism applies to both.

The regulations that came out of the 80s disasters won't make everything safe but the Exxon Valdees drove the move to double skin tanker hulls, the Herald of Free Enterprise and the the Estonia drove changes to the design and operation of RoRo ferrys and the Cullen Inquiry lead to the development of the Safety Case Regs (which are far from fool proof) but as designed require you to detail risks and how you will specifically control each one. Far more importantly it also led to the Stop Work principle, which is that if you have safety concerns it is your right and duty to stop the operation. As a step change in culture this one was massive. It's also arguably the one that failed during Deepwater Horizon as there was a control of SimOps failure that could have been stopped and should have allowed the well kick to be spotted earlier

Sorry for geekery. As you were.

Clarke/Beckett/Anyone.

Don't care.

Yes and quickly please, especially after the bollocks Johnson has been spouting about Ireland this morning.

It wouldn't look good if Corbyn didn't put himself forward. A choice of words would be needed to come up with why it would be someone else. Can't think what would work?

There's just as much no good if Labour MPs don't support whoever instead of Corbyn.

The Shelley quote. Masque of Anarchy. Creepy.

Sorry badly edited:- it's just as useless if Labour MPs don't support alternative to Corbyn

Apart of Hoey and Austen there is also Stringer who is a Nth Manchester PM and often looking to mess things up.

Cartoon does not offend me. I think it represents the sleaziness of the event that words can’t convey. I appreciate others feel differently.