Despite More Attacks On Working From Home, Boris Johnson Is To Wind Down At Chequers

Posted on 22/08/2022 by Boris Clair

Boris Johnson’s final fortnight in office will see the departing PM divide his time between No. 10 and his country retreat Chequers this week, after returning from a Greek holiday.

The prime minister’s increasingly relaxed approach to leadership – revealed on the day an economist predicted inflation could jump above 18% in the new year for the first time since 1976 – is in stark contrast to the comment made by one of his outriders a day earlier.

On Sunday, Brexit opportunities minister Jacob Rees-Mogg hit out at the “rotten culture” of working from home as he claimed the number of staff in Whitehall was down five per cent last week against the previous week, despite his crackdown on the practice.

In comments reported by the Mail on Sunday, he added: “Even accounting for summer holidays, this is hopeless.”

The prime minister’s successor will be confirmed on September 5, when either Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak emerges as the victor in the Tory leadership race, with the formal handover of power due to take place the following day.

Rees-Mogg was defending Truss for her widely criticised comments that British workers need to display “more graft”.

The loyalist minister said her remarks heard in a leaked audio recording were “sensible” as he hit out at what he called “confected political criticism” of the foreign secretary.

Truss, now the Tory leadership frontrunner, also attempted to explain the lower productivity seen outside London as being due to “a mindset and attitude thing”, in the comments from recent years.

Labour said Truss’s remarks made while she was a Treasury minister were “grossly offensive”, saying that she had effectively branded British workers “lazy”.

Boris Johnson’s spokesperson repeatedly refuses to say whether he will be staying in Downing Street this week, telling me only that: “He will be working in a mixture of Downing Street and Chequers.”

Johnson has zero public engagements listed for Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday.

— Adam Bienkov (@AdamBienkov) August 22, 2022

Last week, removal vans were pictured collecting Johnson’s possessions as he headed to Chequers with his wife Carrie and their two children.

Johnson’s last days will include restating support for Ukraine and highlighting measures to address the cost-of-living crisis, Downing Street said.

Ukraine’s independence day on Wednesday will be marked with a series of events, in a sign that the UK’s support will continue beyond the close link forged between Johnson and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“A large focus this week is on reiterating our support for Ukraine, and that is an unwavering commitment that we have to supporting Ukraine in the face of an illegal war,” a No. 10 spokesperson said.

“The government is also focused on supporting people with the cost of living and making sure that those who are eligible for the £37 billion of support that’s already available through our phased-in plan are availing themselves of it.”

But no more help is expected to be announced before the new prime minister takes office, with major policy decisions postponed until that point.

The prime minister visited the Security Service’s headquarters in London on Monday to pay tribute to the work done by MI5 in keeping the country safe.

Since standing down as Tory leader and effectively becoming a caretaker prime minister, Johnson has also gone on visits to a special forces base, flown in a Typhoon jet and met soldiers training Ukrainian counterparts.

With Ukraine and high inflation set to dominate his final days in office, No 10 denied that a war in Europe and a cost-of-living crisis were the main features of Johnson’s legacy.

The spokesperson said: “I would point you to his own words in the house where he has spoken more about the record of this government. That includes getting Brexit done and leaving the EU, leading the country through the greatest public health emergency in a generation, protecting lives and livelihoods.

“And that is alongside, yes, supporting Ukraine in the face of an illegal war and supporting people through the current cost-of-living challenges.”

The prime minister has been accused by critics of leading a “zombie government” with major decisions deferred until the new occupant takes over in No 10.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer told reporters on Monday the government was doing “absolutely nothing” to resolve industrial disputes and help ease the cost-of-living crunch ahead of the announcement of the increased energy price cap on Friday.

3 Things You Ought To Question About How Tories Vote For The Next PM

Posted on 22/08/2022 by Boris Clair

There are just two weeks left in the race to be the next Conservative Party leader – and the next prime minister.

Liz Truss, the current foreign secretary, is the frontrunner to replace Boris Johnson, but former chancellor Rishi Sunak remains optimistic that he might have a chance of securing that seat in No.10.

Either way, the country will have a new leader by September 6.

As the Tories remain the party with the majority of seats in the House of Commons and this is not a general election, only Conservative Party members get to choose who leads them (and the rest of the UK) until the next election.

Understandably, this has thrown up some questions about this process.

1. What do we really know about Tory Party members?

The Conservative Party will not reveal how many members it has, although the most common estimate is 160,000. A briefing paper from the House of Commons library in 2019 suggests there are 180,000 members – still a tiny fraction of the general population.

According to news outlet Tortoise, the party’s headquarters will not give away details of their membership for “GDPR reasons”, although the news organisation later sent a letter to CCHQ pointing out that knowing the membership make-up was an essential part of the UK democracy.

The news outlet is still waiting for a response from the party about just who is an official member.

2. Are there any restrictions over who can vote?

People cannot vote unless they’ve been a member of the Conservative Party for three months prior to September 2, when the election closes.

But, foreign nationals can vote if they’re a member. They do not have to have a British citizenship, or any link with the UK, to vote in this race.

Those under 18 who cannot legally vote in a general election are also permitted to cast a vote in the Tory leadership election.

3. How secure are the votes?

Members can vote via post or online, but security worries did actually force the party to drop preliminary plans which would have allowed members to change their cast votes at the start of August.

Now, if a duplicate vote is recorded, the second one will be counted.

The original plan was dropped after the National Cyber Security Centre announced: “As you would expect from the UK’s national cybersecurity authority we provided advice to the Conservative party on security considerations for online leadership voting.”

Lord Cruddas, who led the campaign to put Johnson back on the ballot paper, suggested that hacking fears mean the Conservatives “should reject the resignation of the prime minister and ask him to stay on board whilst the board fixes any cyber issues and the leadership campaign can be revisited”.

Sky News also revealed at the start of August that the Conservatives were posting out the leadership ballots “a little later than we originally said” because they had to add some extra security measures to the process.

At the moment, voting more than once in the process is also considered an “offence” and anyone found doing so would have their membership withdrawn.

However, according to Tortoise’s reporting, there are few checks that voters are who they say they are.

Government Slammed As Energy Summit Ends With No New Help For Struggling Customers

Posted on 11/08/2022 by Boris Clair

Boris Johnson has been slammed after a crunch meeting with energy bosses ended with no new help for people struggling with the cost of living crisis.

The prime minister, chancellor Nadhim Zahawi and business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng held talks with energy and gas executives this morning amid dire warnings that energy bills could reach an eye-watering £5,000 next April.

But despite calls for government action, Johnson told the companies that any “significant fiscal decisions” would be for the next prime minister to take after they take office on September 6.

Shadow climate change secretary Ed Miliband said: “Britain faces a national emergency with rising energy bills and a cost of living crisis. Families are worried about how they will pay their bills.

“But instead of showing leadership, the Conservatives are missing in action. The prime minister and chancellor have gone AWOL, whilst the candidates for the leadership have no substantive ideas about how to help working people meet the challenges they face.”

Following today’s meeting, the PM said: “We will keep urging the electricity sector to continue working on ways we can ease the cost-of-living pressures and to invest further and faster in British energy security.”

The Treasury said that Zahawi and the energy firms agreed to “work closely” over the coming weeks to ensure that the public, including vulnerable customers, are supported in the face of rising costs.

“In the spirit of national unity, they agreed to work with us to do more to help the people who most need it,” Zahawi added.

In response, Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said it was “appalling that the Conservatives still haven’t announced any extra support for families and pensioners facing the hardest winter in decades”.

“The cruellest element of this chaos is that those who could actually help, Truss and Sunak, are more interested in speaking to their party than taking the action our country needs,” he added.

“Whether it’s Johnson or Zahawi, Truss or Sunak, not one of them has a big enough plan to help millions of families cope with soaring energy bills.

“That is why the Liberal Democrats are calling on the government to cancel the energy price hike to avoid a country-wide catastrophe.”

The Tories have come under increasing fire for failing to take action until either Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss is elected to replace Johnson.

The meeting comes as forecasts released today by energy consultancy Auxilione predicted that the energy price cap could increase to £5,038 per year for the average household in the three months beginning next April.

It is an even worse than a forecast provided by Cornwall Insight earlier this week which said energy bills could hit £4,200 per year in January.

Rishi Sunak Promises To Keep ‘Brexit Safe’ In Mysterious New Promo Video

Posted on 08/08/2022 by Boris Clair

Rishi Sunak’s latest PR efforts have once again been ripped apart, this time because he has promised to “keep Brexit safe”.

The Tory leadership hopeful is currently behind Liz Truss in the polls among Conservative Party members.

He has therefore felt the need to bolster his pro-Brexit credentials – despite being a Brexiteer and his opponent originally campaigning for Remain.

On Monday, he released a new campaign video – significantly less slick than his previous PR work – which follows a person around as they dump huge stacks of paper into one small room with a paper sign on the door saying: “Brexit Delivery Department.”

The papers are labelled “EU red tape”, and for half of the one-minute video, the person moving the documents around can be seen gathering all of the documents together (although their face is never shown).

Then, they crack their fingers and start shredding the papers.

It is part of Sunak’s promise to build a new Brexit delivery unit which “in his first 100 days as prime minister” would see him review or repeal post-Brexit EU laws. There are 2,400 at the moment.

It is worth noting that there is already a Brexit opportunities and government efficiency department, headed up by Jacob Rees-Mogg.

The words “Keep Brexit safe, vote Rishi Sunak today” appear across the screen in the last 10 seconds, as triumphant orchestral music plays.

It is an especially bold claim as Brexit has been under more criticism than ever in recent months due to delays at the Dover port for passengers going to France, problems with the Northern Ireland protocol and questions over exactly what Brexit advantages the UK is able to enjoy right now.

The video also comes two and a half years after Boris Johnson, the outgoing Tory prime minister, promised that he “got Brexit done” by securing a deal with the EU.

With the cost of living crisis worsening, a second summer heatwave around the corner and increasingly worrying reports emerging about the state of the NHS, Sunak’s new video was not an instant success.

Here’s how people responded to his efforts:

It has been a long, long six years. I will inevitably have forgotten a lot. But even with those caveats,
I still say, with a fairly large amount of confidence, that this is the shittest thing I’ve ever seen. https://t.co/9UMJ3OHy04

— Tom Peck (@tompeck) August 8, 2022

Absolutely desperate. And the irony of using Beethoven’s Ode to Joy — official anthem of the EU — as backing music. https://t.co/4DZnhVR9lV

— Simon O’Hagan (@SimonOHagan) August 8, 2022

This is so embarrassing

— Hannah Jane Parkinson (@ladyhaja) August 8, 2022

This is just stupid.

You’re a fool, Rishi Sunak – and an increasingly desperate one at that.

— Mike Galsworthy (@mikegalsworthy) August 8, 2022

Look forward to having our third post-referendum prime minister trying to trying to come up with a single fucking benefit of brexit

— James Felton (@JimMFelton) August 8, 2022

Keep Brexit safe from what – reality?

— Parody Boris (@Parody_PM) August 8, 2022

I see we’re still in the “I’m more Brexity than you” phase of batshit crazy denial of reality.

— Dominic Minghella (@DMinghella) August 8, 2022

There are no EU laws. We left the EU. These are the laws we copy and pasted from the EU to ensure our country kept functioning.

No way those laws could be replaced in 100 days. No need for it to happen.

But they think you’re stupid. https://t.co/BBAC4FuF1e

— Otto English (@Otto_English) August 8, 2022

It may be a naff, embarrassing video that makes him look half-witted but what he’s doing is declaring that he’s INTENTIONALLY going to make any return to viable trading with the EU -for all export sectors- more difficult, more costly, or impossible. In a recession. #Ready4Ruin https://t.co/2uGfQha5Cz

— Howard Goodall (@Howard_Goodall) August 8, 2022

Apparantly it has taken Rishi Sunak and the conservatives six years to realise, that outside the EU the U.K. can actually scrap EU legislation.
Maybe they didn´t realise it earlier because somebody had told them, that Brexit was already done 🙂 #Brexit #eudk https://t.co/HOl25RkV5C

— Ole Ryborg (@OleRyborg) August 8, 2022

Rishi Sunak Promises To Keep ‘Brexit Safe’ In Mysterious New Promo Video

Posted on 08/08/2022 by Boris Clair

Rishi Sunak’s latest PR efforts have once again been ripped apart, this time because he has promised to “keep Brexit safe”.

The Tory leadership hopeful is currently behind Liz Truss in the polls among Conservative Party members.

He has therefore felt the need to bolster his pro-Brexit credentials – despite being a Brexiteer and his opponent originally campaigning for Remain.

Then, they crack their fingers and start shredding the papers.

It is worth noting that there is already a Brexit opportunities and government efficiency department, headed up by Jacob Rees-Mogg.

The words “Keep Brexit safe, vote Rishi Sunak today” appear across the screen in the last 10 seconds, as triumphant orchestral music plays.

The video also comes two and a half years after Boris Johnson, the outgoing Tory prime minister, promised that he “got Brexit done” by securing a deal with the EU.

Here’s how people responded to his efforts:

It has been a long, long six years. I will inevitably have forgotten a lot. But even with those caveats,
I still say, with a fairly large amount of confidence, that this is the shittest thing I’ve ever seen. https://t.co/9UMJ3OHy04

— Tom Peck (@tompeck) August 8, 2022

Absolutely desperate. And the irony of using Beethoven’s Ode to Joy — official anthem of the EU — as backing music. https://t.co/4DZnhVR9lV

— Simon O’Hagan (@SimonOHagan) August 8, 2022

This is so embarrassing

— Hannah Jane Parkinson (@ladyhaja) August 8, 2022

This is just stupid.

You’re a fool, Rishi Sunak – and an increasingly desperate one at that.

— Mike Galsworthy (@mikegalsworthy) August 8, 2022

Look forward to having our third post-referendum prime minister trying to trying to come up with a single fucking benefit of brexit

— James Felton (@JimMFelton) August 8, 2022

Keep Brexit safe from what – reality?

— Parody Boris (@Parody_PM) August 8, 2022

I see we’re still in the “I’m more Brexity than you” phase of batshit crazy denial of reality.

— Dominic Minghella (@DMinghella) August 8, 2022

There are no EU laws. We left the EU. These are the laws we copy and pasted from the EU to ensure our country kept functioning.

No way those laws could be replaced in 100 days. No need for it to happen.

But they think you’re stupid. https://t.co/BBAC4FuF1e

— Otto English (@Otto_English) August 8, 2022

It may be a naff, embarrassing video that makes him look half-witted but what he’s doing is declaring that he’s INTENTIONALLY going to make any return to viable trading with the EU -for all export sectors- more difficult, more costly, or impossible. In a recession. #Ready4Ruin https://t.co/2uGfQha5Cz

— Howard Goodall (@Howard_Goodall) August 8, 2022

Apparantly it has taken Rishi Sunak and the conservatives six years to realise, that outside the EU the U.K. can actually scrap EU legislation.
Maybe they didn´t realise it earlier because somebody had told them, that Brexit was already done 🙂 #Brexit #eudk https://t.co/HOl25RkV5C

— Ole Ryborg (@OleRyborg) August 8, 2022

UK Government In Limbo As No.10 Says Boris Johnson Won’t Make Any Fiscal Interventions

Posted on 08/08/2022 by Boris Clair

Boris Johnson will not intervene in the cost of living crisis this summer, Downing Street has said.

The prime minister’s official spokesman said it was up to his successor to make policy and he would not make any “new fiscal interventions”.

It means another four weeks of paralysis until the next prime minister is announced on September 5.

Former Labour prime minister Gordon Brown claimed there is a “vacuum” at the centre of government which has stopped it tackling the cost of living crisis.

He has called on the UK government’s emergency response committee, Cobra, to come together to tackle the looming crisis.

Brown warned that the country was facing a “poverty time bomb” and added: “Even if Boris Johnson has gone on holiday, his deputies should be negotiating to buy new oil and gas supplies from other countries and urgently creating the extra storage capacity we currently lack.

“We should be persuading homes and buildings – as Germany is now doing – to cut back on energy usage wherever possible in the hope we can prevent formal rationing.”

But Downing Street rejected his calls saying they introduced a number of measures to help the public at the start of the summer.

The prime minister’s official spokesman said Johnson – who is back in No.10 following his holiday in Slovenia – would be speaking to chancellor Nadhim Zahawi to ensure that support measures due to come into effect later in the year remained on track.

However, the spokesman said that any further measures would be a matter for the next prime minister.

“Clearly these global pressures mean challenging times for the public. The government recognised that the end of the year will present wider challenges with things like changes to the [energy] price cap,” the spokesman said.

“That is why, at the start of the summer, we introduced a number of measures to help the public. Clearly some of the global pressures have increased since that was announced.

“By convention it is not for this prime minister to make major fiscal interventions during this period. It will be for a future prime minister.”

The prime minister returned from his holiday today after facing accusations he had been “missing in action” while the UK was mired in political and economic crisis.

The Labour Party has attacked the prime minister for presiding over a “zombie government” just as the Bank of England warned of a looming recession and energy bills are expected to rise to almost £4,000 in October.

According to The Telegraph Johnson and his wife Carrie stayed at an eco-hotel in Jezersko in the remote Kokra Valley in Slovenia following their delayed wedding celebration.

The Vila Planinka, where rooms range from £242 to £542 per night, is a five-star boutique hotel which promises guests they will “slow down, harmonising your rhythm with your inner balance”.

Rachel Reeves MP, Labour’s shadow chancellor, said: “People are worried sick about how they’ll pay their bills and do their weekly food shop, and all this Tory prime minister does is shrug his shoulders.

“An economic crisis like this requires strong leadership and urgent action – but instead we have a Tory party that’s lost control and are stuck with two continuity candidates who can only offer more of the same.

“Labour would start by scrapping tax breaks on oil and gas producers and providing more help to people who are struggling to pay their energy bills. Only a Labour government can tackle this crisis and deliver the stronger, more-secure economy that Britain needs.”