Government Watch - 2

Started a new game, chasing Ashcroft.

The Paradise Papers released now, showing how the super-rich hide earnings overseas.
Tories on by-election alert in case any MPs have to resign.
Theresa May must be lying down in a darkened room by now......

Just watched Rudd defending Crabb. Said that he should keep his job, because “this goes on in other work places”. WTF!!

I see Maybot has agreed to a 53bn divorce bill.

Thanks gg yes that’s what I meant.

People keep saying that they think the government is in the middle of a nervous breakdown. I think they are simply headless chickens, worrying about the next revelation.

It feels as if the government is like an elastic band at the moment and everything is about to go 'ping'.

I think this is it whitewave. Boris Johnson in spotlight as questions raised over Russian influence on UK

Will Patel be forced to resign over her undisclosed visit to Israel?

Guardian reporting that Johnson amongst a couple of others has been named in the FBI Papdopolous indictment.

4th November 1839 was the date of the people's charter riots, the Chartists.

cdn3.bigcommerce.com/s-y3dqjref7c/images/stencil/1000x1000/products/242/1477/tea-towel-peoples-charter__13468.1495644441.jpg?c=2

Still haven't got them all, have we?

I have a feeling that much of the squawking from others in the CP are because they now know that 'last chance' has disappeared. I don't know much about these people (who does?) but they are next generation and not from London and south-east. I think these are both good things. The rest I will judge by what they do as I have nothing really to judge them on at the moment.

She's chosen a good new chief whip to replace him, too, someone who wanted to prosecute the Guardian for publishing the Snowden papers.

www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/nov/02/julian-smith-profile-chief-whip-remainer-who-once-called-for-guardian-to-be-prosecuted

She must be having problems finding people who want to work for her.

A letter in today's Guardian.

"I would like to reassure readers that Sir Humphrey would have enthusiastically approved the appointment of Gavin Williamson as defence secretary. In his opinion, the ideal ministerial appointee should have little or no previous knowledge of his new brief. Another triumph for the prime minister! "

What's the alternative, though, GracesGran?
Old joke, I know.

Fewer GP, fewer nurses, no care service - getting old looks less and less attractive.

There was quite a bit about the shortage of nurses on various news programmes early in the day Welshwife. One of the problems is a drop of 90% of nurses and midwives coming from the EU.

There is a secondary problem that there is a shortage of nurses around the world but this country is no longer as attractive as it was for nurses and is likely to become less so.

I see a report today that Health Boards are actively recruiting for nurses in India and the Phillipines.

I doubt that a single Tory will worry about the trainee GPs not being able to pay their mortgages Jen. Their ethos - and 'there is no alternative' - is privatisation, outsourcing and profit for the shameless people running these companies. Never mind that there is no sense in trying to create competition within a monopoly or that we may be very short of GPs because of it.

The reply I usually get from people like this is "well it's how it is, isn't it."

www.theguardian.com/society/2017/nov/02/hundreds-of-trainee-gps-facing-hardship-as-outsourcing-firm-capita-fails-to-pay

I hope they didn't vote Tory.

The worst of it is that I wonder how many people are really surprised.

I do think they need to move them out of the Palace of Westminster, into the middle of the country and in normal offices - with a block of rooms and flats for their use when needed. Let them work in a more open atmosphere.

Previous attempts to clean things up blocked by tory back benchers.
www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/revealed-backbenchers-blocked-bid-to-shield-staff-from-sex-pest-mps-a3671276.html

Either you couldn't make it up or someone did.

Of the three promotions two are from Yorkshire and one from Liverpool so some good. Oh and they are from the younger section of the Tory party (under 60!)

There is something about him in a drunken brawl with a blond Russian ????????

It's politics so that could be true. On the other hand perhaps Fallon just wanted out before the papers put anything else on their front pages. Apparently - who knows? - there is more.

Killer move by Gavin then. He had the dirt, took Fallon down and then jumped up wagging his tail to replace him.

Some are saying that; some are saying they are from the next generation (good thing). I imagine May is lying down in a darkened room.