POLITICS CORNER

[Tizer]

What's most worrying about Abbott doing our trade deals is that he's a climate denier and steeped in the Aussie climate denial problem. Appointing him suggests the UK is switching to a Trump-like policy on climate.

Talking of the devil and denial... Trump denies this story but Associated Press have followed up the original report (in Atlantic Monthly) and confirmed it to be true...
`Trump panned over reports he called US war dead 'losers'' LINK

And this is where we're heading according to the former head of the World Bank...
`Ex-World Bank head Robert Zoellick: ‘The world could look like 1900 again’' LINK
`The former head of the World Bank has warned the world could look like it did in 1900 if countries don’t work together to tackle the current crisis. Robert Zoellick pointed to the rift between the US and China as a serious threat to the global economic recovery. Mr Zoellick, one of America’s most senior public officials, has advised six US presidents during his career. He told the BBC co-operation was “the only way the global economy will emerge from the recession”. Mr Zoellick, who was also the US deputy secretary of state, said his biggest concern was the escalating tensions between the US and China. “I think [the relationship] is in freefall today and I don’t think we know where the bottom is, and that is a very dangerous situation," he told the BBC’s Asia Business Report..'.

[Stanley]

Peter, I think anyone who has read and understood the history of that period will agree with Robert Zoellick. It was insularity and rivalry that led to two world wars (WW2 was an extension of WW1) and the principles of mutual respect and cooperation could have saved is from confrontation.
If we can't agree about cooperation in the matter of climate change that threatens the planet how can we expect it in anything else?
Meanwhile our 'leaders' are continuing to assure us that the economy and logistics after Brexit are safe so that's all right. Lord Frost, our new chief negotiator, tells the EU that the UK isn't frightened of a No Deal Brexit. I fear this indicates he is not fully aware of the dangers. Not reassuring.

[Tizer]

Defending the appointment of Tony Abbott as an advisor to the UK Board of Trade I read that `The Department for International Trade has stressed that advisers to the board will have "no direct role in striking trade deals". If he's going to be an advisor I can't see a character like him doing the job without having a direct role in the deals.

On a `no deal Brexit'...Back in the summer of 2019 there were many news reports and predictions of the dire consequences of leaving the EU without a deal. Among those was a report from the Commons Select Committee on Exiting the EU. I notice that report is no longer available on the present parliament.uk web site. Perhaps we're not meant to see it now? However, it's still on an old version of the web site and worth reading as we approach a Brexit without a deal...
`A ‘No deal’ Brexit would be the most economically damaging outcome for UK business' old.parliament.uk
Remember that these conclusions were published a year before our present covid pandemic and economic crash:
“And yesterday’s latest forecast from the independent Office for Budget Responsibility that a no-deal Brexit could cause a £30bn hit to the public finances, with an economy pushed into recession and asset prices and the pound falling sharply, will only add to the deep concerns of UK businesses. “A no deal Brexit, with no GATT XXIV agreement, would be at best a foolhardy gamble and at worst, lead to severe disruption, and it is neither desirable nor sustainable as an end state for our economic relations with the EU. “This clear evidence reinforces our previous conclusion that a ‘managed no deal’ cannot constitute the policy of any responsible Government.”

I'd love to know what the Select Committee would now conclude as we struggle with coronavirus and a failing economy.

[Stanley]

I have an idea that they daren't tell us what the latest assessments are Peter. Johnson fails to convince me that the end of the year will be the start of a golden age for the UK. As for Lord Frost's 'predictable and aggressive' language yesterday, that's not negotiation, it's foolishness and nothing like any negotiation I understand.
I note the arguments yesterday about the new chief of staff at Downing Street. Some very wild and opposing views. I don't know enough to judge but suspect that if Johnson approves he must be a yes man.
Later. I have said consistently that I believe this government has never been serious about Brexit negotiations and that the intention was always a No Deal Brexit at the end of the year. Read THIS and make your own mind up. Despite protests from Number 10 that is is just a safeguard, this new legislation has tossed a grenade into the talks. Looks like deliberate sabotage to me.

[Tizer]

If Richard Broughton were still posting his erudite thoughts in this thread I'm sure he'd be pointing out yet again that we need the EU but they don't need us. A large part of our exports go to the EU's 27 countries; only a small proportion of their exports come to the UK. And it's the UK that chose to leave the EU, not the EU deciding to throw us out - we're not in a position to make demands. And yet the Brexiteers carry on as if we were in a different universe where the converse of those two facts were true.

Let's not forget that Boris was quoted on the weekend as saying `A no-deal Brexit is a good outcome'. They're not even trying to hide the fact that we are going to leave the EU without a deal. Where are the business leaders, the CBI etc? A year ago they were making an almighty fuss about the possibility of no deal. Now, with covid, the prospect is even worse. Why have they gone quiet? Are they resigned to a no-deal Brexit and assume there's no way out of it?

[Stanley]

Peter,I think they have just recognised that No Deal is inevitable and instead of wasting time arguing with a bunch of bigoted idiots they are getting on with their survival plans.
A while ago when a Council Health Official coined the phrase 'Don't kill your Gran' I predicted it would go viral. It didn't but I note that Matt Hancock used it yesterday in the same context, urging young people to be more careful.
Why isn't Parliament in an uproar? Where are the Opposition Parties? Is everybody resigned to their fate?

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC account of the ramifications of the proposed new withdrawal view. Too early to make any judgements but it looks like a torpedo as far as ongoing negotiations are concerned and the markets are very jittery.

[Tizer]

They're doing a Trump...it looks remarkably like Trump issuing an Executive Order. Trying to justify the use of something that is intended only for dire emergencies such as war.

Coincidentally, our former ambassador to the US, Lord (Kim) Darroch, who resigned last year after criticising Trump is quoted in an article today as saying Trump `may be influencing Boris Johnson's current "negotiating style" over a post-Brexit trade deal with the EU'. LINK

[Stanley]

[Stanley]

See THIS for a BBC report on a furious Sir Lindsay Hoyle reprimanding Matt Hancock over his disregard of protocol and going down Twitter Lane before telling the House through normal governmental channels. Quite right, too much social media and not enough procedure. As I remarked in another post we are fast becoming a nation governed by social media and 'news conferences'.
On another matter PE reports that Sir Lindsay has refused requests to relax social distancing in the House. PE reckons that this comes from Johnson wanting his advisers to sit behind him and pass him notes when Keir Starmer asks awkward questions. It perhaps explains why, when confronted with a sticky question, he launches into bluster as happened yesterday.

[Tizer]

More from our former ambassador to the US, this time on Americast.
`Americast: Sir Kim Darroch' LINK
In an exclusive interview for BBC Newsnight, Maitlis speaks with the former UK ambassador to the US, Sir Kim Darroch, about the cables that led to his resignation. The ambassador quit last year after it emerged he described the US President's government as "dysfunctional", "inept" and "divided" in the private letters.

It's definitely worth listening to, not just for Darroch's comments but also Emily Maitlis and John Sopel analysing what went on. Towards the end they discuss who leaked the confidential Darroch communications. Was it someone who wanted him out of Washington, or Trump supporters, or someone wanting his job. Sopel thinks someone in the White House may have been behind it.

[Stanley]

I rate the man. My reading of what happened was quite simple, Trump decided he didn't like him and ordered it to be so. As Lord of the Known World he can do that. Plenty of experts in the dark arts in his entourage to spread the poison.
There used to be a concept of good advisers being the ones who 'spoke truth to power'. In global politics, not just the UK that is thin on the ground. Will Simon Case do it? On balance I think not. Cummings has the influence but his interest is in forwarding his own off-centre theories garnered from a set of oddball influencers. He may be intelligent but I fear his judgement is warped and he doesn't appreciate the basic reason governments are given power, to better the lives of the general population. Once that principle is abandoned anything goes.
For an example look at Johnson's 'Moonshot'. Glib references to hundred Billions of Pounds to be spent on something that doesn't even exist at the moment. Repeated 'proofs' of how well we are doing and a complete denial of the hard facts or any humility. Don't hold your breath for any improvements, either in health or economics.

[Stanley]

Well, it's all clear now. This is a law abiding government apart from the times when they feel international law should be disregarded. This has been noted by the US Congress as well as in the EU. No doubt intended to strengthen our position in any trade talks.
To quote David; "What could possibly go wrong?".

[plaques]

The logic behind the Irish border 'adjustment' somehow doesn't ring true. We are now being told that laws passed in Parliament have sovereignty and priority over international agreements. This being so why didn't we simply use this mechanism to override those areas of the agreement with the EU that we didn't like? In effect cherry picking the good bits without the restrictions of the nasty bits.

[Stanley]

And every time we get a 'spokes person' on the air they give a different version. The only clarity comes when you reckon up whether they are for or against.

[Tizer]

Even Conservative ex-ministers are pointing out the serious danger of Boris rendering the UK incapable of making treaties with other countries. They've asked how can the UK criticise China for breaking a treaty with us on Hong Kong when we are going to do something similar to the EU?

[Stanley]

The Brexit Bill is, from whatever angle you look at it, demented.
Equally as bad but in a different way is the Johnson 'Moon Shot'. Universal derision and it is excruciating having to listen to Tories avoiding the question when asked to defend it.
I have a suggestion. Instead of taking excursions to Planet Zog and La La Land why not use the money to fund social care and pay the care workers a proper wage?
Our version of governance is embarrassing. What must the world be thinking? What weight can we carry in World Councils? How long can we stay a member of the United Nations Security Council. Remember 'punching above our weight' and the 'special relationship'?
As for blaming the EU for the divisions in the Union that is pathetic as well. One of the advantages of having had Tory control since 2010 is that we all know exactly who is to blame. From Austerity to Brexit every policy is failing and now they have proved they can't run a campaign against a virus. Will the last person to leave please switch the lights off?

[Tizer]

It's a bad time to be leaving and annoying our European friends when we are in the middle of a world pandemic but it's also the wrong time when the world is becoming more politically volatile and dangerous. Read this article which is published in today's Telegraph under the headline `Russian missile could circle globe for years'. The screenshots below show the article on the PressReader web site and can also be viewed here: Russian missile

Russia_missile1.jpg

Russia_missile2.jpg

[Stanley]

As if we hadn't enough to contend with! It reminds me of a time long ago when Vera and I were mulling over whether we should have children or not because of the atomic threat. We made the right choice and had three daughters but it was a close run thing. Do young people today have to go through the same thought process?
[Significant that two of them migrated to Oz.]

[plaques]

Big day for Boris to see if the rest of the Conservatives will back his reneging of the fantastic EU deal he signed last year. It doesn't really matter what other countries think whether we can be trusted or not if everything goes down hill and trade suffers we can always borrow some more money off them because they know they will always get it back !!!

[Stanley]

See THIS BBC report on the debate yesterday. Does Johnson really believe we are all 'supremely relaxed'? If so, he is on another planet and has an extremely low opinion of all the public. We aren't all morons.
Meanwhile, reports of the failure of the present testing regime mount making the 'moonshot' promises look like la la land.
I heard an interesting comment this morning during an interview with a California journalist. He was scathing about Trump's opinion that the fires on the West Coast aren't climate change but bad forest management and it was down to the State of California to act. The journalist pointed out that the state of California only managed 3% of the state's forests, the Federal Government (ie. Trump) manages 60% and the rest are privately owned. Oh dear!

[Stanley]

See THIS news that the Scientific American has, for the first time in 175 years, endorsed a Presidential candidate, Joe Biden. They have done this because in their view Trump has ignored all scientific, environmental and medical evidence while Biden promises to to do the exact opposite.

[Stanley]

Later, Johnson says that we have the best testing in Europe. He evidently doesn't realise (Or is simply ignoring) that for a head teacher who is having to exclude kids because of lack of testing this isn't the point! Jollying us on and being optimistic doesn't cut it.

[Stanley]

Just realised this morning that almost all the ministerial team is in Grayling territory including Johnson.

[plaques]

On Johnson's latest bill to break international agreements. Can someone explain why its acceptable to pass a bill to break the law now providing the MP's get another chance to vote not to break it later. Meanwhile is the law broken or not? Confused??