Might Starmer gets his Man after all?

 So last week I wrote about how Boris would survive, undeservedly, due to Ukraine and Labour being so weak. However, today he came to Parliament to apologise and was defenestrated by Keir Starmer. 

Not that in the long term this should matter, but the way the whole partygate story is unfolding may well end up doing for Boris. Firstly, on his own terms, he has lied and been fined. For me this is a very confected story for now, but still. he was guilty as charged. 

The bigger issue is that Priti Patel was also woeful before in defending the Rwanda policy; a policy which needed much better communications than it has had. it would always be controversial but the way it was announced does seem like a dead cat to distract from partygate. Which is a shame, as doing something about illegal immigration should be very popular and is needed after generations of politicians ignoring it as too difficult. 

The real mess will be if Boris gets more fines. Keir has laid the marker now that he is a convicted liar. Apparently Boris is under investigation by the Met Police for six more potential breaches. I can see him hanging on for one more, but after that the litany of abuse will be to  much and he will resign or be forced to face an internal election at best. 

So the odds on the Survivor appear to have come in shorter during the week!

Gloves Coming Off

I have no special insight into the alleged or assumed Great National Security Council Leak, BUT: if such it be, then the gloves are really coming off.

As citizens we all sleep more soundly when our politicians routinely stick to certain conventions concerning the really heavy stuff, however staid and boring and limiting that may be.  When Michael Heseltine brandishing the Mace counts as outrageous conduct.

If we are moving towards times when that's no longer the case, well, a very different sort of politician can thrive where the 'conventional' ones are left floundering.  Politicians with capacity for the same kind of untrammelled initiative as an imaginative military commander on a long leash, a pirate, or a mafia don.  What they call in Russia absolut banditi.  I mentioned Lenin the other day ...

A bracing prospect?  Oh yes.  Brace yerselves.

ND

Autumn Statement; Are the Tories and Labour working together on it?

Watching the media being generated at the moment around the total non-event that is the Autumn statement it is hard not to believe that finally Labour and the Tories have united for a national coalition.

The contents of the Autumn statement are bordering on non-existent. New roads that have already been announced, £2 billion in spare change for the NHS that is only £1.3 billion really. Flood defence spending allocated, but was announced in the Budget. These are not even worthy of a mention in reality but because we need an Autumn statement have been cobbled together as some sort of 'event.'

What is even weirder for those who can still be bothered to pay attention is that Labour and the Tories have exactly the same policies on everything that is important.

Europe, stay in,
Immigration, shrug shoulders,
Taxes, raise a bit via leaving thresholds under inflation
Deficit, ignore
Debt, increase hugely
Health, spend like billio
Welfare, pretend reform but ignore the Pensions issue
Defence, cut spending
Education, stop reforms

They are literally the same. As for the Lib Dems, well who cares anymore, I doubt even they do.

Yet in the media Labour criticise every Tory cut and the Tories lambast Labour for their economic profligacy. In reality, the debt and deficit position of Osborne is identical to that which would have occurred under Alistair Darling. There is not one iota of difference in the real world.

In fact, bar some educational changes, the Tories have achieved nothing at all that Labour would not have done of any major significance.

This is the real cause of the rise of UKIP, SNP and Greens. Sections of the population are slowly realising the Westminster/Civil service consensus is wrong on many of the major issues that face the Country.

Interestingly, the media have yet to cotton on. Swayed by their Westminster lunches and connections they see small divisions where there are none. They allow the manufactured differences to be perpetuated.

It's a sad state of affairs but I doubt the next election will see the real sea change, not enough people will have braved the change away from their tribal loyalties to recognise the problems. Perhaps the one after that when serious events will have concentrated minds somewhat more.