Can we still talk about Brexit and how we are being betrayed? Or is the sad and horrific destruction of one of the finest cathedrals, Notre Dame in Paris, the ‘shiny object’ to which we must pay attention, to the exclusion of everything else?
This introductory paragraph by Philip Johnston the DT says it all:
“What’s this? I awoke yesterday, turned on the radio and the first word to be heard was not Brexit, backstop or Jacob. In fact, partly because of the extensive coverage of the Notre-Dame fire, I am pretty certain that the entire 7am bulletin passed without a single mention of the B-word. I cannot remember when that last happened. It is like trying to recall life before the mobile phone or colour television. Has it all been a bad dream?” (paywalled link)
If one wants to be cynical, and given the way the Remain MSM have been reporting on Brexit and Ms May’s WA and the debates in the HoC, one is sorely tempted to look at this with a very jaundiced eye, one might be tempted to agree with Mr Johnston’s next paragraph:
“We are in a Brexit interregnum. The morning fix of indignation, frustration and sheer bemusement at what is going on (or not going on) has been suspended for Easter and/or until our hapless politicians work out what to do next. It is like giving up smoking – you know you would be better off without it and might have an apoplexy if it carries on; but there are some comforting certainties about Theresa May’s hopelessness, the Cabinet’s abject spinelessness and Parliament’s paralysis that are hard to give up.” (paywalled link)
However, when one digs a bit deeper, one finds some articles which the MSM seem to have published in order to provide some sort of Brexit continuity. After all, Brexit ain’t going away just because of Easter or Notre Dame.
The incessant propaganda to ‘get it over with’ and ‘vote for Ms May’s WA regardless’ continues, as does the uprising inside the Tory Party. Mark Wallace at ConHome lays out the ways in which Ms May could be made to go (here) while the DT reports (paywalled link) that Tory Party chairs are now petitioning to call an EGM (Emergency General Meeting):
“The petition, a copy of which has been seen by The Telegraph, says that it has been “almost three years since we voted to leave and after two extensions to the original departure date, we no longer feel that Mrs May is the right person to continue as Prime Minister to lead us forward in the negotiations. We therefore with great reluctance ask that she considers her position and resigns, to allow the Conservative Party to choose another leader, and the country to move forward and negotiate our exit from the EU”.
Good luck with that! We know about EGMs, don’t we …
There are two articles in The Express – not paywalled – which seem to aim for one and the same thing: to accept Ms May’s WA. The first (here) is a most dire warning about the consequences of ‘going with Labour’. Indeed, who would not agree! There’s one interesting remark though:
“Number 10 is said to be concerned the Labour Party will not support a plan for MPs to vote on amendments to the withdrawal deal in order to break the deadlock, according to The Guardian. If the withdrawal bill is voted down before the amendments, Mrs May would be forced to prorogue parliament and start again by bringing it forward with a new session and the Queen’s speech.”
Ah – so proroguing Parliament is being talked about en coulisse? Now that’s interesting! What I’d like to know is this: is it taken as a serious alternative, is it a ‘Project Fear’ item aimed at Labour and the pratfall of clowns generally, or is it aimed at the Tory ‘hardcore’ Brexiteers? These are of, course, still on the radar of the May-WA-supporters, see this extraordinary article in The Express.
To all those who declare that the ERG is the only ‘Brexit wrecker’, and to all those pundits in the MSM and to the Remain Tories ,given to promote themselves and their WA-Brexit dreams, I’ll say this:
You haven’t been paying attention. The WA is worse that BRINO, it’s Remain in another name. Worse – you’re also labelling all 17,4 million Leave voters as deluded. Thank you very much. The numerous articles by such ‘deluded’ people like Sir John Redwood (e.g. here, yesterday), by Martin Howe QC to name just two, seem to have passed you by, just as they haven’t impinged on the massed mighty (not!) minds of the Remainers in MSM and HoC.
Here’s one of the articles which probably wouldn’t have seen the light of day were it not for Notre Dame. It’s in RemainCentral, The Times, and is a defence of the nameless civil servants who’ve been working their socks off to prepare for a No Deal. So they have, I’m still getting all those Government papers. But when you delve deeper, you recognise which way the wind is blowing:
“The last few days have once again seen Tory ERG hardliners furiously attacking civil servants and demanding that they continue to spend precious time and effort preparing for a no-deal outcome that nobody outside of their tiny faction actually wants. In typical fashion, they are happy for others to do the work and pay the price for their own ideological obsessions. The prime minister has what might be her final opportunity to defy them and stand up for the people who have kept her government running for the last three years.” (link, paywalled)
Gawd, I had no idea that the ERG was so powerful! Obviously, since 2016 they’ve worked hard at thwarting Ms May’s and the Whitehell civil serpents attempts at keeping us in the glorious EU! After all, it’s for those serpents to ‘guide’ the PM who has to ‘guide’ us deluded voters …
They are now wasting their time – on our money – to make us accept that there’s only one ‘enemy’ and that is the rump ERG – ‘rump’ because prominent ERG members have caved already to Ms May’s demands.
Finally, let’s take a look at the contortions in Brussels and the EU – yes, they didn’t stop, Notre Dame notwithstanding. We read for example:
“Mr Verhofstadt responded [to Mr Tusk] by saying the decision by European leaders to allow Britain to stay in the EU had taken the pressure off cross-party talks between Conservatives and Labour to find a deal. “The pressure to come to a cross-party agreement disappears and is weaker in the last days,” he said. Both parties will run down the clock and the proof of this is that the first decision the House of Commons took after your decision was to go on holiday.” (link, paywalled)
How dare they! Wait – it get’s better:
“The former Belgian prime minister went on to hope that Mr Farage and his new Brexit Party would inflict a defeat on the Conservatives and Labour, prompting them to find a compromise to ratify the withdrawal treaty. “The only thing that can save us is Nigel Farage,” he said. “He is already campaigning, rallying with the Brexit Party, and Labour and the Conservatives risk getting wiped out in the EU elections.” (link, paywalled)
Goodness gracious me! I had to check today’s date to see if it’s still April 1st. You never know with the EU types, they’re good at stopping clocks … It couldn’t be, could it, that they are all very very fond of Nigel Farage and wish for his presence in the next EU Parliament, could it? No, it’s only about promoting BRINO, promoting ‘compromise’ and getting Labour into No 10 …
In a final twist to the Brexit tale, M Macron, who is riding very high on the back of the catastrophic fire destroying Notre Dame, has trained his now rather big EU guns on – Mr Verhofstadt:
“Mr Verhofstadt, a former Belgian prime minister who supports a united states of Europe, could find himself as the first high-profile casualty of the upcoming Parliamentary vote. According to an EU Parliament sources, the high-ranking MEP will be discarded by Mr Macron as he installs an En Marche candidate as the institution’s liberal leader. The French President’s party are set to merge with Mr Verhofstadt’s ALDE group in the new Parliament.” (source)
Yes, I’m grinning as well: M Macron the Verhofstadt slayer …! Since nobody knows the makeup of that new EU Parliament, it’s a bit like dividing the skin of the bear before you’ve killed it.
For us Brexiteers though it’s another day of holding firm, of confronting our constituency MPs and of relentlessly
KBO!
“I am pretty certain that the entire 7am bulletin passed without a single mention of the B-word. I cannot remember when that last happened. It is like trying to recall life before the mobile phone or colour television. Has it all been a bad dream?””
Not only do the BBC not like the b-word but also a certain c-word. it really was a remarkable feat for BBC’s News at Ten last night to get through the entire program about Notre Dame, without a single mention of any of these words: Christian; Christianity; Catholic; worship; worshipers; sacred; Mass; Holy Week.
The last thing the EUSSR wants is a parliament full of Brexiteers causing May-hem. Which is what they’re promising.
I don’t think there will be an EUSSR election for us.
It’s all BS.
May will try to cobble up some deal with Groucho Corbin.
No doubt it will involve giving the EUSSR wads of our cash.
The EUSSR just can’t keep any country in that doesn’t want to be in.
Their parliament would be full of disruptive Brit. EUSSR haters.
There will be wreckers from other countries too.
I look forward to the imminent collapse of the EVIL EMPIRE.
We need to be out before it happens.
More interesting and sensible comments from John Redwood:
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/JohnRedwoodsDiary/~3/gBpjIyi4O7g/
The French have far more important things to worry about than a smouldering heap of rubble. Quasi will be back at work. Ringing his bells in five months time. They will still have the eu, Macron and the Brussels road runner . Treason May. With little business on the streets of Londonistan she tries to woo the punters of Berlin, Brussels (three weeks every month) and Strasbourg (one week every month). How many of the shysters in the Palace of Westminster are moonlighting at other jobs over the past forty years. It is time to bring our government back to England Or reclaim London.
Everyone should read this excellent piece:
https://news.sky.com/story/labour-and-the-tiggers-need-to-get-real-11695821
Reminds me of Miss Jean Brodie’s new intake, ” her chosen few “.
In the end, the gals find her out…. of course.
-“Since nobody knows the makeup of that new EU Parliament, it’s a bit like dividing the skin of the bear before you’ve killed it.”
Viv, when it comes to the EU nothing surprises me any more. I bet they already know who the ‘elected’ MEPs are going to be.
John Redwoods Diary is interesting this morning as he muses on what political parties should write in their manifestos , obviously after the ‘hols’ the parties assume the ‘sheep’ will have gone back to sleep and Westminster can carry on as normal just as they did after the expenses ‘scandal’. Comments on the article are not particularly supportive though, Interesting too that there is virtually no comment anywhere on the provisions of the latest attack on ‘freedoms’ promulgated in the new Terrorism Act.
One can only assume that the ‘media’ has joined the masses of workers on the public payroll and gone on holiday.
“preparing for a no-deal outcome that nobody outside of their tiny faction actually wants”
Harrumph! Cough! Remember that other tiny faction outside of Westminster called The People?! 17.4 million would be very happy to leave with no deal now, today as that is effectively what we voted to do! (yes yes some have died since then etc. but some will have since seen the light)
Hear Hear! The remainers assume for some reason that none of their older voters have changed their minds or died , apparently that is reserved for the people that voted out but didn’t know why! Strange logic, but there we go.
A recent poll for EU election voting intentions puts the combined vote of the Brexit Party and UKIP at around 30%.
Both have as the priority the exit from the EU. The primary additional policy area is concern or not regarding Islam. If they could put this latter to one side for the purpose of the EU election then co-ordinate where each stands candidates, then the LibLabCon parties would be wiped out. The current divisiveness only helps the pro-EU side.
My suggestion, sent by email to key individuals is:
In those regions where there is a larger Muslim population, the Brexit Party stands candidates. Everywhere else UKIP stands candidates. An additional benefit of not standing against each other is that resources can be therefore focused on those regions targeted by each party.
I have also written to Nigel Farage regarding the seriousness of the threat from Islam. His party will have to address it at some point. Running away from difficult matters such as this will ultimately be to the benefit of Islam. It is incompatible with human rights and western values.
https://independencedaily.co.uk/human-rights-v-islam/
In the 2017 UKIP leadership contest several of the candidates were concerned about Islam. I urged them to join forces. Unfortunately none of them would stand down to support the others. And hence Henry Bolton won. Without a little pragmatism, a near disaster for UKIP occurred. Batten has done well to turn it around. Bolton did not answer questions regarding Islam. The fact of him not answering should have rung alarm bells.
https://independencedaily.co.uk/ukip-leadership-questionnaire-well-understand-islam/