The man is mad!

I tend to agree with those who think a bridge will not be built and that there are better ways to spend £20bn; but, at this stage, it is just an idea that is being considered. Boris may be bonkers but he would not be alone in considering the idea. Professor Alan Dunlop of Liverpool University supports the project; and, last year, it was thought worthy of consideration by Irish Premier Leo Varadkar if, of course, the UK paid for the project. One wonders what impact the curent shift in politics in Ireland will have on attitudes by both sides to the building of a bridge. It wouldn't be the longest bridge in the world. According to the BBC, 'that honour goes, according to Guinness World Records, to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge which has 48.3km (about 30 miles) of its span over water'. I don't imagine that stretch of sea is immune from tempests.

I don't think Johnson is bonkers. He (and his chief advisor) know perfectly well that discussion about the bridge will distract from what his government is doing to really affect people's lives.

When things go wrong, people just shrug their shoulders and say stuff like "Ah well! That was Boris just being a clown". They don't take him seriously. Unfortunately, he's deadly serious - or, at least, the people he's chosen to appoint are deadly serious and he's appointed the spin doctors to make sure that the "public" supports him. All he cares about is that he stays in power. It's a carefully manufactured image.

The people who voted for him must not take their eyes off the ball. Whatever tricks he tries, they need to judge him against their long-term and sustainable expectations. If he doesn't deliver what they were hoping for, they must vote him out at the next election.

Did you read the letter from the offshore engineer that I posted, Cunco?

Cunco Professor Dunlop's design for the bridge was featured in The Architects' Journal, I remember seeing it.

grow stuff, a good post and I agree. Boris wants power and he will throw just enough crumbs from the table to satisfy people for a while - in my view until he gets another five years. Then he will find a reason to step down leaving others to clear up the mess. I've worked with loads of 'whiz kids' like that. Full of ideas which work short term rather than long term and who then got themselves promoted out of it. Oh well, we have to have something to occupy us now Brexit is 'done', so Boris Watch it is.

There is a proposal to create two dams across the North Sea (Norway to Scotland) and the English Channel (Cornwall to France) to control higher sea levels which will result from the melting of the polar ice caps. This seems to me to be a much better idea than Johnson's bridge across the Irish Sea.

Yes, very good post*growstuff*.
This thread has made me re-think, but I don't want to face the political future here.

The honeymoon will be over one day. People need to ask themselves whether the government has really made any difference to the very real problems this country is facing, such as housing, the NHS, social care, neglected former manufacturing towns, etc etc.

grow the honeymoon is far from over for DT so I doubt it will be for BJ.

It depends on who becomes Labour leader.

In the US, the Democrats aren't doing a very good job of finding a realistic leader. I fear that Labour could go down that road.

I think we're going to see a realignment of political party loyalties.

IMO

Sajid Javid has resigned because he refused to sack all his advisers. Interesting!

Wasn't it Boris who wanted a new airport in the Thames estuary/Isle of dogs?

A bridge to Ireland is not feasible in my lifetime but who knows what they are capable of . Doesn't seem like a priority to me.

On the other hand, the drive home from Cairnryan recently was awful. That road needs some serious upgrading to reach the ferries to Ireland, never mind a bridge.

The recent airport plan was Foulmere on the north Kent coast but imagine the cost of a new build airport plus transport links. I know expanding Heathrow is unpopular but it is the sensible option because all the infrastructure is already there.

MaizieD I have now read the letter from the retired engineer. Apart from the political invective, it is very interesting. Like you, I was just adding information along side an opinion. For lots of reasons, I doubt that the bridge will be built.

Growstuff Whether voters vote out the Conservatives next time will depend, not only on their record, but whether there is a credible alternative. The Conservatives hardly had a great record leading into December 2019 but the prospect of Corbyn and McDonnell, fortified by the SNP and other minor parties, was just too terrible to contemplate. Who knows who will be the party leaders and the policies at the next election? You may be keeping a tally of missed targets but I suspect most people are getting on with their lives and will make a decision when the time comes.

but the prospect of Corbyn and McDonnell, fortified by the SNP and other minor parties, was just too terrible to contemplate.

Oh dear......

Who paid for Boris's holiday is becoming a real question! He's claiming David Ross of Carphone Warehouse only Ross said he didn't and it's not his house. So whose £15K was it?

Yes of course it is an important question, but will we ever get an honest answer? I doubt it.

We still haven't got to see the report on Russian interference in the fraudulent referendum of 2016.

The ordinary BJ voter doesn't care.

So MPs having to declare any bungs or benefits they receive is just a bit pointless. and all they have to do is lie, because no one really cares. Well we have moved on from the expenses scandal haven't we?

How much would it cost to properly fund a good social care system? We need this a whole lot more than a bridge to NI.

We need a good social care system, massive provision of new homes, real investment in the NHS, education, crime prevention and criminal justice.

How much would all that cost and what could be the benefit compared to this fantasy bridge?

When the large 'red' contingent understand how Boris has fooled them , what might they do about it?

MaizieD Oh dear, indeed. Here are five reasons why Labour lost the election. The first two are the leader and the manifesto. It's not me. This is The Guardian.

www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/dec/13/five-reasons-why-labour-lost-the-election

This thread has already forgotten the bridge (what bridge?) so I will leave it there.

He’s off again. The fantasist who loves producing ridiculous ideas worthy of a schoolboy. No real knowledge, not thought through and certainly not costed. To think his decisions are going to influence our ability to survive Brexit is laughable if It wasn’t so horrifying.

A bridge over troubled waters Cunco
Seems to be sorely needed.

Actually, to be fair to Boris (someone has to be sometimes ), he did not devise the concept nor design fhe bridge - that has been discussed by experts and designed by an architect Lovetopaint.

Links in my post above if you are interested.