Back into hiding
Missing for months as a Cabinet Office inquiry was busy finding that the bully had broken rules on ministers' behaviour. (Not the first time, of course, that she'd broken the Ministerial Code.)
She then creeps back out from wherever she was hibernating for a couple of weeks until her department accidentally wipes hundreds of thousands of fingerprint, DNA and arrest records.
Then what happens when it's time to report to the House on action the Home Office is taking to try to understand the extent of and ameliorate the issue? Policing Minister Kit Malthouse is wheeled out to take the heat. And surprise, surprise, the Home Secretary is nowhere to be seen.
To be very clear, the Police National Computer isn't managed and operated by the UK's police forces; it is operated by the Canadian company CGI Group on behalf of the Home Office. It is the responsibility of the Home Office and ultimately the Home Secretary, and not the forces or the Policing Minister, to manage CGI Group and hold them, the operation of the system, and the management of the data it stores to account.
In the meantime, The National Police Chiefs' Council has said that the lost data has already resulted in a couple of "near misses" for serious crimes when trying to identify an offender. And that's only those that they've actually caught.
Where is the incompetent, lying (on the record, repeatedly), bullying, smug, callous, tobacco industry lobbyist hiding now?
Priti Patel
posted on 19/1/21
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 1 minute ago
If some day an authoritarian, disinformation-spouting, Trump-like figure emerges on the mainstream Left (we don't have that problem at the moment but history demonstrates this is a real phenomenon) I have no doubt that Automatic For The People will be totally on side. Cult-like tribal behaviour is toxic, whatever the political content. I don't address this post to him because it's long clear that he has no interest in constructive advice from political allies.
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I don't want to make it personal with anyone either as it won't get us anywhere, but there are many people on this forum who behave like that.
I was once called Tory scuum because I criticised Corbyn for his handling of the antisemitism row, by someone who shall remain unnamed.
It's so sad that debate is stifled by this bizarre, binary view.
posted on 19/1/21
comment by Winston (U16525)
posted 2 minutes ago
I was once called Tory scuum because I criticised Corbyn for his handling of the antisemitism row, by someone who shall remain unnamed.
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That's unforgivable behaviour. Fair enough calling Winston scuum, but a Tory?
[I can't find how to add the winking emoji because I'm a borderline boomer]
posted on 19/1/21
comment by Winston (U16525)
posted 14 minutes ago
comment by Automatic For The People (U21889)
posted 1 minute ago
comment by Winston (U16525)
posted 32 seconds ago
comment by Automatic For The People (U21889)
posted 1 minute ago
comment by Winston (U16525)
posted 1 minute ago
Red Russian (U4715)
It's interesting that is your experience, I haven't seen Corbyn's name mentioned at all.
Time will tell and there will be far smarter people than me helping Starmer plan his approach.
But I certainly feel at this stage that he's not been strong enough.
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What do you want him to do, go against Public Health England?
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Eh?
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Do you want him to oppose the public health guidance?
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No, not particularly.
What guidance are you referring to?
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Stay home, help the NHS, save lives.
posted on 19/1/21
Automatic For The People (U21889)
Right, so what's that got to do with me saying that he hasn't been strong enough?
posted on 19/1/21
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 4 minutes ago
comment by Winston (U16525)
posted 2 minutes ago
I was once called Tory scuum because I criticised Corbyn for his handling of the antisemitism row, by someone who shall remain unnamed.
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That's unforgivable behaviour. Fair enough calling Winston scuum, but a Tory?
[I can't find how to add the winking emoji because I'm a borderline boomer]
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Superb!
posted on 19/1/21
comment by Winston (U16525)
posted 4 minutes ago
Automatic For The People (U21889)
Right, so what's that got to do with me saying that he hasn't been strong enough?
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Maybe he hasn’t.
I think he’s playing the long game.
posted on 19/1/21
comment by Automatic For The People (U21889)
posted 3 minutes ago
comment by Winston (U16525)
posted 4 minutes ago
Automatic For The People (U21889)
Right, so what's that got to do with me saying that he hasn't been strong enough?
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Maybe he hasn’t.
I think he’s playing the long game.
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Fair enough.
posted on 19/1/21
comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 58 minutes ago
Interesting debate since I checked in last night.
On Starmer I really don't know whether a different tactic or a different leader would make much difference. Tony Blair (many of whose decisions as a leader I profoundly disagreed with) was a genius as a communicator: had an ability to neutralise those right-wing attacks and present alternative policies as reasonable and moderate. "Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime" was an incredibly effective slogan, for instance. That said, he bought some of that middle-ground credibility by owning various Tory policies (extending the private sector in public services; tough rhetoric about immigration). I think Starmer, who lacks the charisma of Blair but probably has more deeply held social democratic convictions, is actively applying the lessons of the last Labour leadership to seize power from the Tories, by acting like a grown-up alternative government rather than a permanently outraged activist organisation, and by couching attacks on the government around competence and heartlessness rather than ideology. I think it's probably wise not to re-litigate the Brexit divide but rather criticise the negative impacts of the deal the government negotiated.
Would a different leader do better? Will Starmer's performance and strategy prove successful? Time will tell. One stat (telling? irrelevant?) is that he consistently polls significantly better than Boris Johnson as preference for PM, which perhaps suggests that he is on the right tracks but that hasn't (yet?) been reflected in party alignment. Meanwhile, the polls look a lot better than they did a year ago. We have no way of knowing whether that's an underachievement given the state of the government or a realistic one given the forces of political gravity. The other thing to bear in mind is that polls at this stage of the election cycle tend to be a poor guide to what happens during a campaign. Events tend to crystallise and voters' minds tend to focus and you often get some unexpected momentum in a certain direction.
My hunch is based on anecdotally informed impressions more than data. As the failures of the last year have been discussed on social media, I've very often seen people saying "Yeah, but imagine if Corbyn was in charge." And I see a lot of people who are very entrenched in their Leave-voting identity who certainly aren't budging from their position on Brexit and therefore aren't willing to contemplate the idea that their vote for a government which so explicitly instrumentalises the Brexit coalition and identifies itself as an expression of a will of the (Brexit) people is inherently dishonest, full of insubstantial charlatans. I take from that an inference that many Tory voters still have two feet in the past: Leave vs Remain, Tories vs Corbyn. And if that's correct, I think if we want to chip away at that coalition, it's sensible to play a long game, portray yourself as a competent and compassionate, sober alternative, rather than launch a full frontal attack that will be disingenuously portrayed as unpatriotic, unconstructive, etc. in ways that seek to reinforce those divisions that benefit the Tories.
But as I say, time will tell.
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Brilliant post
Would love to engage and dig a little further and may do later if I can squeeze a few mins, but just wanted to highlight one point:
“I think it's probably wise not to re-litigate the Brexit divide but rather criticise the negative impacts of the deal the government negotiated.”
Already looks like this is what they’re going to do. It’s a smart move; it should be relatively safe ground and an easy argument to make, and they’re going to have a lot of ammunition to support their argument.
posted on 19/1/21
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55722168
1610 Covid deaths in the past 24 hours.
posted on 19/1/21