A thread to catalogue the eloquence, dignity, diplomacy and wisdom of Boris Johnson III

[Tony L]

Those endless puff pieces about Starmer's forensic skills and basic human decency? You must have imagined them!

In fairness every single Labour leader of my lifetime has failed to live up to any initial promise they may have had. It is just what they do. I suspect it is the party itself. By attempting to be everything to everyone they always end up being nothing to anyone. A timid fence-sitting zero conviction zone and I bet Wes Streeting would be more of the same. Another remastered Labour leader with zero dynamics.

 

[Darmok]

In fairness every single Labour leader of my lifetime has failed to live up to any initial promise they may have had. It is just what they do. I suspect it is the party itself. By attempting to be everything to everyone they always end up being nothing to anyone. A timid fence-sitting zero conviction zone and I bet Wes Streeting would be more of the same. Another remastered Labour leader with zero dynamics.

Remember those flexi one sided singles that never played properly cos they lacked enough mass.

 

[SteveS1]

Remember those flexi one sided singles that never played properly cos they lacked enough mass.

A pile of coins on the Dansette headshell and they played fine.

 

[SteveS1]

Meanwhile Bojo the clown thinks he's out of the woods thanks to the rather eccentric conclusions that a birthday gathering was worth a fine, but several more obvious booze ups were not. Not only is there Gray's report and a standards committee to come but I doubt some of the little people who were fined for attending the same functions as Big Dog will stay quiet.

 

[tiggers]

The scum laden Mail and Express both bemoaning how much of a waste of money the Met's investigation into Partygate is! A pity they didn't take a similar line on the amount of money wasted by their heroes on ill advised pandemic procurement processes and then of course there is the amount of money dishonestly diverted to their heroes' friends and chums under the same guise that any reputable and proper fit for purpose national journalistic outlet should be all over!

 

[TheDecameron]

Meanwhile Bojo the clown thinks he's out of the woods thanks to the rather eccentric conclusions that a birthday gathering was worth a fine, but several more obvious booze ups were not. Not only is there Gray's report and a standards committee to come but I doubt some of the little people who were fined for attending the same functions as Big Dog will stay quiet.

Hopefully they’ll release pics of Johnson not breaking any laws. No doubt the DM will be play this as “Johnson Exonerated by Met, Time To Silence Labour Trolls And Move On”.

 

[Joe Hutch]

The scum laden Mail and Express both bemoaning how much of a waste of money the Met's investigation into Partygate is! A pity they didn't take a similar line on the amount of money wasted by their heroes on ill advised pandemic procurement processes and then of course there is the amount of money dishonestly diverted to their heroes' friends and chums under the same guise that any reputable and proper fit for purpose national journalistic outlet should be all over!

Well, yes, but they also call for attention to be paid to 'the real issues', essentially runaway inflation and the consequent cost of living crisis, for which Johnson et al seem bereft of ideas. So, yes, let's focus on that.

 

[Tony L]

Meanwhile Bojo the clown thinks he's out of the woods thanks to the rather eccentric conclusions that a birthday gathering was worth a fine, but several more obvious booze ups were not. Not only is there Gray's report and a standards committee to come but I doubt some of the little people who were fined for attending the same functions as Big Dog will stay quiet.

I’m curious if there is scope for a class action for those who received really punitive and life-changing fines for arguably doing far less wrong, e.g. students, folk in poor working class areas where the fines were a hell of a lot more vindictive than fining some multi-millionaires and some of the highest paid office staff in the country just £50 a throw. IIRC there were fines of several thousands handed out to some party organisers, yet that doesn’t seem to have happened with the Conservative Party’s serial rule-breaking. Hopefully some highly damning pictures will be released as part of the Sue Gray report, though this corrupt government will obviously do everything they can to censor and redact. They only respect ‘free speech’ and transparency when it can be used as a tool to punch downwards.

 

[tiggers]

Well, yes, but they also call for attention to be paid to 'the real issues', essentially runaway inflation and the consequent cost of living crisis, for which Johnson et al seem bereft of ideas. So, yes, let's focus on that.

You really think that is what the likes of the Mail and the Express want? Oh dear.

 

[Joe Hutch]

It's what their front pages have been banging on about for the past few weeks. So, unless Boris and Rishi have a cunning plan, (which seems unlikely) their readers will start to wonder what they elected the Tories for. Partygate is being labelled as an 'unwelcome distraction'. So now that's out of the way, what else can be blamed for their inaction?

 

[TheDecameron]

I’m curious if there is scope for a class action for those who received really punitive and life-changing fines for arguably doing far less wrong, e.g. students, folk in poor working class areas where the fines were a hell of a lot more vindictive than fining some multi-millionaires and some of the highest paid office staff in the country just £50 a throw. IIRC there were fines of several thousands handed out to some party organisers, yet that doesn’t seem to have happened with the Conservative Party’s serial rule-breaking. Hopefully some highly damning pictures will be released as part of the Sue Gray report, though this corrupt government will obviously do everything they can to censor and redact. They only respect ‘free speech’ and transparency when it can be used as a tool to punch downwards.

Three women got £1000 fines in a Westminster court for parties on the same day as Boris’s. 371 people in England were fined £10,000 for holding parties of a similar size to the Downing St parties and if you’re black, you’re seven times more likely to be prosecuted for Covid breaches yet Bullingdon gets a single £50 ticket for multiple parties and “moves on”.

 

[Sonority]

https://www.theguardian.com/politic...er-stanley-johnson-secures-french-citizenship

 

[TheDecameron]

https://www.theguardian.com/politic...er-stanley-johnson-secures-french-citizenship

Wouldn’t it be fun if France and the EU announce a travel ban on Johnson’s family if he breaks his treaty obligations? Dublin should also publish the identity of all DUP members holding Irish passports.

 

[TheDecameron]

I’m reading a book called The Good Germans. It’s the story of a selection of Germans in the takeover of Germany by Hitler and fascism. I said to my wife the similarities with then and us now is unbelievable. Nice to hear a first class speech by a minister in parliament that is willing to tell the truth. It’s just a shame that someone in the Conservative party can’t own up to this shambolic government we have.

There’s no such thing as a good Gerry! The only good Gerry is a dead Gerry. Both of you- gerroverit.

 

[TheDecameron]

The great leader has moved on,

Partygate’s over.

Boris Johnson ‘grateful to Met’ for Partygate inquiry and says he hopes Sue Gray report will be published soon – as it happened.

The burglar thanks the police and the courts for taking the time to investigate and fine him for his crimes. A courteous offender.

A culture of criminality. The flask on the far left with the greatest infestation is Boris’s.

 

[Darmok]

Martin Rowson on Partygate and No 10 restructuring – cartoon

https://www.theguardian.com/comment...-on-partygate-and-no-10-restructuring-cartoon

I do hope those FPN recipients share their true stories.

 

[Sue Pertwee-Tyr]

Sad you feel that way. As far as I’m concerned there are good and bad in every nation.

Pretty sure it was an ironic joke at the expense of the members of our xenophobic community.

 

[TheDecameron]

GET IN THE BACK OF THE VAN!!!!

 

[billo]

GET IN THE BACK OF THE VAN!!!!

I wonder if he is going over there to say "My taxes pay your wages, you know"

I also read that he has had a private meeting with Sue Grey about her intentions of publishing that report

 

[The Far North]

A decent piece on Boris by Jonathan Freeland in the Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/may/20/boris-johnson-lying-pm-britain-tories

Fine legal brains have looked for small, technical loopholes that Johnson might just have slithered through, but there is a clearer explanation. Even though the police knew that Johnson attended six get-togethers, they only investigated two of them: the “ambushed-by-cake” birthday party and one other. By way of explanation, my colleague Vikram Dodd reports that the police only looked at cases where evidence was of the “slam-dunk” variety, which suggests they were only interested if there were photos. But that is odd. Why not just ask Johnson, via those notorious questionnaires, if he was present? As Wagner tells me: “The absolute best slam-dunk evidence is an admission.” But it seems Johnson was never asked.

Recall that Johnson was telling people a month ago that his first fine would be his last – it seems the Met had kindly tipped him off – and you can see why people start talking of stitch-ups and the like. But you don’t have to resort to conspiracy theory. As Dodd writes, “the Met has painful experience of tangling with politicians and the powerful”: perhaps doing as little as possible seemed the safest course.