Friday 22 March 2019

Theresa May Zig-Zagging: Don't be Fooled

Update:

The situation changes by the hour. As soon as I write a blog entry, there is a development! The announcement by the Democratic Unionist Party of not only no support for the May agreement with the EU, but a devastating criticism of her approach, means that Theresa May is now finished as a Prime Minister. The only route ahead now is that of indicative votes requiring a long extension that she said she would not countenance.  The DUP statement is almost an invitation for a confidence vote where they would vote against the government. Without that being explicit, Theresa May has to go.

Original Entry:

The European Union at the recent summit looked over the cliff edge and decided to do the opposite of coastal erosion.

Don't be fooled by Theresa May's sudden change of tone: how wonderful MPs are doing their jobs and a reference even to alternatives to her deal. She zig zags and we have seen it too often: she will revert to type regarding this deal. The bunker mentality is still there.

She has to go. David Lidington could become a caretaker Prime Minister but he would be like the Fuhrer after Hitler: in the sense of chaos in defeat after political suicide and an inability to hold a divided Cabinet together. So half the Cabinet could walk out, presumably the harder exit half, and thus instead mean a Hammond or Rudd leadership and reference to other party personnel - to facilitate navigating the process through of indicative votes. This would complete the Cabinet coup I expected long back.

The Tory Party will then tear itself apart. It deserves all that comes to it. The good news should be that the Tory right is sidelined and at the moment it thought it had won it loses. Unless, of course, we fall over the delayed cliff edge. It is still possible.

The simplest solution is to revoke; it would allow pause, time for other necessary political actions for social needs, and a debate without pressure about the relationship wanted with the EU. There isn't the vote for that yet, beyond the SNP, Liberal Democrats, Green and The Independent Group (the latter need to come on board). Labour might, most of them, but I wouldn't trust Corbyn to do anything. Walking out before engaging in opposition talks with the Prime Minister because Chuka Umunna was present displays nothing more than sectarian party politics when the pressing need was to contribute. Corbyn shows many parallels with Theresa May, including party over country, and a chaos in running his office, and tensions with shadow ministers, and therefore shows why he would be an inadequate Prime Minister.

A General Election of confusion beckons: candidates not lined up on the basic present political question of the moment. It may not resolve anything on this basic issue, but at least the Tory Party would be a leaderless divided entity that could be much diminished as a result. Hopefully the Liberal Democrats can get on with choosing a new leader, and work with the Independent Group if it wants a future as a Reform Party (?) in parliament in any numbers - or it will vanish as limited to this parliament alone.

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