So supposedly the delay has been agreed. But we know nothing about the legal status of this, and the media has been hopeless in investigating it. Is it all signed off according to EU and international law? Has every country done all the consulting it needs to do with its Parliaments, and passed any necessary […]
You know, I’d actually prefer a revocation of Article 50 to May’s WA. It’s May’s WA that I fear, because it’s so bad. Revoking Article 50 would be incredibly bad in its own way, of course, but it would have advantage that the country would erupt and the Conservatives and Labour and the civil service […]
So it looks like I was right about the government taking the view that May can sign us up to an Article 50 extension despite whatever our domestic legislation says: Hearing @RobbieGibb is briefing the Sunday papers that Government is planning on ignoring British law and will use international law to extend Art 50. What […]
A potentially nasty issue raises its head, which most people, including me, have had no clue about. In the Hansard Society blog post I mentioned in my last post it is noted that we have two distinct exit dates in play. One is the exit date in the international treaty between the UK and the […]
I’ve finally found something authoritative on the use of a Statutory Instrument (as opposed to a new Act of Parliament) to change the Brexit date. It’s from the Hansard Society blog. It’s all very complicated, but the short version seems to be that as long as all goes to plan and Parliament votes for it […]
This one is unbelievable. According to The Spectator: As we wait for the text of Theresa May’s letter requesting an Article 50 extension, it is worth remembering that once the UK government and the EU have agreed an extension then the UK will continue to be an EU member under international law—and international law trumps […]
Further to my post this morning on whether No Deal will win by time-out, and the inability of a no-confidence vote to stop the government putting in a Statutory Instrument to delay Brexit, another option is a direct Parliamentary vote for an early election, which requires a two-thirds majority in Parliament. But I’m not sure […]
So this is how it seems things stand to me. I’m not sure this is all completely right, so feel free to correct me, or take issue with any of it. (I don’t claim to be an expert on British Parliamentary procedure.) The media, I note, have failed to do any serious research on this […]
Imagine being so stupid that you get outwitted by Theresa May and her con game. Imagine being as stupid as the Tory MP (Esther McVey?), who said that May’s deal is worse than remain, but she was still going to vote for it now. Social media
Would anyone say, of the Christchurch killings, ‘Oh, that’s just part and parcel of living in a big city?’ Of course they wouldn’t. That would be an an outrage. So why is it all right for Sadiq Khan to say it of London terrorist attacks? Social media
I have been worried about John Bercow for a long time. He was placed at the heart of Parliament by Labour and some Tory elitists precisely because he was a weapon for them. The power an activist Speaker wields, especially in a Parliament which doesn’t have a large majority, and especially when Parliament is full […]
Bloke on the M4 in the comments at Tim Worstall’s blog: I want a delay because every day, every vote, the Conservatives are going to lose people who will never return. 2 years would be perfect. Give Farage a nice bit of breathing space to destroy Conservative councils up and down England and Wales. Really […]
John Duckett in the comments: Parliament rules because we give it consent through the electoral process. We gave quite clear instructions that the UK was to leave the EU. If they cannot or will not comply with those instructions then we must withdraw our consent to be governed by them. I am not advocating violence, […]
The vote to cancel No Deal changes nothing. It’s not binding. All it has done is revealed those MPs who have betrayed us. A nice little list of people who will be shortly be discovering some additional uses for piano wire.* Here is the traitor’s list: Guto Bebb Aberconwy Richard Benyon Newbury Nick Boles Grantham […]
Theresa May has no right to be anywhere near the Houses of Parliament, let alone to be pretending she is our leader. Most Conservative MPs, including most of those who make up the government, have no right to be there. The same applies to most Labour MPs. Not only have they tried to overturn the […]
If someone really is prepared to remove X from a contract then X gets crossed out. But if that person spends weeks and weeks resisting X’s removal, then it’s there for a reason. Even if that person says they’re not really that serious about X. If X stays in despite numerous attempts to get X […]
Here’s an awful possibility: suppose the Tory Remainers join forces with Labour? They get the no confidence motion passed first, with Labour’s help. There’s then two weeks in which any grouping has the chance to form a government. The Tory Remainers, along with TIG, then vote for a new coalition government made up of Labour […]
The Telegraph reports: a bill to change the day of our EU exit and bind the Government into a permanent customs union If I had any cartooning skill then right now I’d be drawing a cartoon of Parliament trying to force the UK into a customs union, while the ERG are about to yank the […]
Watch this clip of Will Self and Mark Francois. (Or don’t watch it. I won’t blame you if you just read a book instead.) Mark Francois: “A slur on 17.4m people…you should apologise on national TV….outrageous thing to say” Author @wself “You seem to find a lot of things outrageous…What I said was every racist […]
The Guardian: Tories are prejudiced against Islam, says council candidate Why is Islam a protected religion? Would there be any controversy if a political party didn’t like scientologists? Wouldn’t it in fact be a scandal if that political party was selecting scientologists? And why should a political party with a certain set of beliefs be […]