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'Russ in Cheshire's' latest update on what has been happening in the UK
Start
1. The govt said they had to "balance the nation’s health with our economy", and in that respect, they have succeeded: both are evenly balanced as the worst in the G7
2. So Boris Johnson went on holiday. See if you even notice.
3. Britain’s death toll, pretty much the worst per-capita in the developed world, rose again to the levels it was 2 months ago
4. Fortunately, the govt solved those deaths by the simple expedient of publishing the figures on a different website and not telling anybody
5. A mere 6 months into the Covid-19 crisis, the govt advertised for a "Head of Pandemic Preparedness" with a salary of – honest to god – less than mine. And I do colouring-in for a living.
6. In Feb the govt said "nobody will go hungry as a result of Covid-19"
7. The FSA said 7.8 million Britons had skipped meals or eaten unsafe food as a result of skyrocketing “food insecurity” since the outbreak
8. So the govt is planning to stop the furlough scheme to force us to go back to jobs that don’t exist
9. Britain’s GDP fell 21%, more than twice as much as Germany or the USA, and even more than Spain, which we keep telling ourselves is doing terribly, whilst avoiding mirrors
10. And an IFS study showed UK can expect to be permanently 9% poorer if we have no Brexit deal by Nov
11. So naturally, Liz Truss paused a £14bn trade deal with Japan over concerns for the fate of Stilton, which is 0.007% of the deal. But she’d made a big deal over Brexit saving Britain’s vast and vitally important Stilton industry, and everything else comes second
12. Liz Truss suggested increasing the speed limit to 80mph could be the solution to all our economic woes
13. And then The Express – yes, them – suddenly discovered the USA favour a deal with the EU over a deal with the UK because, and this will shock you, the EU is much bigger
14. Boris Johnson insisted the central Test and Trace system was "still world-beating" after it traced only 56% of cases
15. Local councils set up their own tracing in Lancashire, Liverpool and W Yorkshire and traced 98%. "World-beating" isn’t even beating Blackburn council
16. NHS Providers said Test and Trace is “not fit for purpose, let alone world class”
17. A month after knighting Sir Tom for raising £32m, the govt gave 10x as much to company valued at £100, and with no expertise in producing PPE, for 50m masks we can’t use
18. By one of those massively rare coincidences that happen 9 times out of 10, the owner is a close friend Liz Truss
19. And then it was revealed the govt didn’t just sign one inexplicable contract with a useless and inexperienced supplier: they had at least 20 contracts
20. One of the contracts is for £108m, paid to a pest control company with assets of just £18,000. The company is now using money from that contract to threaten legal action against a lawyer who asked what it is doing with the money. I kid you not.
21. Education news, and in the beginning, the govt opposed adjusting A-level grades
22. Then top fireplace salesman and irony no-fly-zone Gavin Williamson said “The danger is that pupils will be over-promoted into jobs that are beyond their competence”
23. And then the govt introduced a “moderating” algorithm to adjust grades
24. Then the Tories told the Scottish govt to abandon its own adjusted grades
25. And when the Scottish govt did Tories had asked, the Tories said it was a disgrace and they should resign
26. Then multiple Tories called for Gavin Williamson to do exactly the same thing
27. The Assoc of Headteachers said the govt’s handling of this is "a rolling disaster"
28. Things are moving fast. But not as fast as the contents Gavin Williamson’s small intestine
29. The govt’s algorithm awarded twice as many grade increases to pupils from private schools as it did to state schools.
30. And an Education Policy Institute report found wealthy pupils get 1/3 more funds from the "levelling up" budget as poor pupils get
31. Scrupulous honesty news: property developers gave the Tories £11m in the last year, and then, miraculously, the Tories relaxed rules on planning permission
32. Amongst the regulations they tried to scrap was the one requiring dwellings to have at least 1 window
33. Robert Jenrick said "you can trust me on housing", 3 weeks after he admitted wrongdoing in helping a Tory donor avoid £45m tax
34. To be fair, he then denied admitting wrongdoing, even though he had admitted it on camera, and that's always the mark of a man you can trust
35. The Royal Institute of British Architects said the reforms were "shameful" and would "lead to a generation of slum housing"
36. Housing charity Shelter said the reforms "will mean the end of affordable housing" and force more than 1m people onto housing waiting lists
37. But Priti Patel said Syrian refugees were the real cause of our national housing crisis
38. She asserted that people claiming asylum in the UK was illegal, which it absolutely is not, under any circumstances, ever
39. Then she appointed an excitingly-titled "Clandestine Channel Threat Commander" tasked with, amongst other impossible things, pushing migrant boats back out to sea, in direct contravention of international law and British Navy regulations
40. A leak from inside the MoD said Patel’s plans were "completely potty", "inappropriate, impractical and unnecessary” and had "more holes than a slice of Swiss cheese". I’ll put them down as a 'maybe'
41. Priti Patel then had an argument about this with some ice-cream
42. James Cleverley, a hugely successful one-man campaign against nominative determinism, joined in, but confused "virtue signalling" with "obeying the law"
43. Tory MP Sir Edward Leigh had a solution: "We should never have lost Calais in 1558. Why not take it back?"
44. Then Sir Edward, a vocal, life-long Brexit fan, said we should pay the EU to manage migration for us, but it has been very warm, and he does look like a man who has been in the sun far too long
45. Speaking of Brexit, it was revealed Tate and Lyle, Tory donors and No Deal cheerleaders, will gain £73m if we get No Deal, because they can import more of the very unhealthy sugar they supply
46. So obviously, the govt started a TV campaign telling us to stop being fat
47. The govt condemned the Russian state, which said it had a vaccine that hasn’t been approved by regulators
48. And then it was revealed UK’s much-vaunted 90-minute rapid Covid test has not been approved by regulators
49. The govt said children would be safe if we re-opened schools
50. And then Boris Johnson said he would "bulldoze schools" in which there were Covid outbreaks, which seems a smidge excessive if Covid can’t spread in schools
51. The govt said there was no evidence any children had caught Covid in school. Schools are closed, so it would be difficult right now, but let’s not try to apply logic any more
52. An international study found pupils over 12 are just as susceptible to Covid-19 as any adult
53. Scientists called for routine testing of teachers and pupils
54. The Schools Minister said no because, I’m sorry, I have no idea why the Schools Minister said no, and neither does he. People asked. He didn’t have an answer.
55. And then Immigration minister Chris Philp asked if he could re-record a live interview, after he forgot what country he was from
I’m sure it’ll be fine.
End
twitter.com/RussInCheshire/status/1293945209760423936
Maybe those who constantly criticise Starmer and yearn for the return of the Hopeless One need to consider whether they truly want this country to continue to be run by the Conservative party.
I really couldn't be bothered to read all that left wing drivel. If that's what the country had wanted, they would have voted for it at the last election!
How did I guess I'd get an answer from Grandad ? 
With an unnecessary 'parting shot'...
The TORIES didn't tell Scotland to adjust anything,Education is a devolved matter and outwith WM's powers.Scottish education is and always has been a different animal from Englands .The FM clearly said on the day the resultys came out.if she had got these resslts she would be standing alongside the rest of the stustudents and appealing BUT she said they would get it sorted and it was.
John Swinney met with the SQA and the downgraded results were dismissed in favour of teacher predictions.
MaizieD
How did I guess I'd get an answer from Grandad ?
With an unnecessary 'parting shot'...
You requested that forum members give you their views on Starmer MaizieD, I did.
You can engage with those views in a realistic manner or just post one line no consequence posts. That I believe is what it at the very base of the problems in the Labour Party under Starmer's leadership.
Many do not wish to discuss all that has happened in the Labour Movement and how the problems brought about can be resolved.
It has been the right in the Labour Party that has brought it to the edge of the financial abyss. Perhaps, therefore, it is understandable why they do not wish to discuss that matter.
I don''t particularly want to discuss it, Grandad; I really want to understand why Starmer is viewed as tory-lite.
I understand that his actions so far are leading you to this conclusion. I also understand that he is frustrating many left wingers because he's not breathing hell fire about whatever the tories do.
But I don't have any evidence that he is antipathetic to the policies set out in the last manifesto. That would be more convincing.
But of course many on this forum do not wish to see such matters really debated, and just wish to see all indulge in Starmer worship.
Snidey comments like this are playground stuff IMO. They alienate people, too.
grocery shopping gone sky high .am a lot poorer....yes i have a large breakfast of weetabix and fruit(oat milk) then water for lunch.... 2 litres ,dinner none .(maybe a banana) tea jacket potato and salad. toppings change from tuna/cheese/carrot.... managed to get 3 corgettes for 25p .so tonights tea will be grilled courgettes..oh and a tin of tomatoes that a neighbour gave me....
moggie please get yourself referred to a food bank! We are feeling the pinch too with my husband still furloughed but not to the point of going without meals. That's terrible
MaizieD, in regard to your post @13:18 today, why should anyone wish to explain their views to you when you then make post towards them in the manner of the above.
No one (especially me) has accused Starmer of being Tory lite. However, as Len McCluskey has advised no one in the Labour movement is aware of where the party is politically heading at this point in time as Starmer seems not to divulge what his thinking is to anyone in the broader movement.
In the above, his actions without explanation has caused ever wider divisions to open up in the party and broader movement, and that is not the performance of a good leader.
As McCluskey stated, Starmer, must not take anything for granted in regard to the affiliated membership, and that is very true and genuine advice.
Anyone know what qualifications Dido Harding has to run the new health agency, that has not yet been set up nor appears to want the best person for the job.
Another disaster waiting to happen. Is it even legal?
What a joke.
Dido Harding is a Tory peer & ran discredited, centralised test & trace. She has been appointed to run the body which will replace Public Health England (PHE).
She is married to Conservative Party Member of Parliament John Penrose, who sits on the advisory board of think tank 1828 which calls for "the NHS to be replaced by an insurance system and for Public Health England to be scrapped. Join the dots.
I fear we are becoming beyond being shocked by this government's behaviour. Dido Harding is a tory peer with no qualifications to run the body that will replace PHE. Its jobs for the gang isn't it.
I assume that Starmer will be speaking out loudly about this then??
Recently, trade minister Liz Truss was in Washington, negotiating a toxic trade deal with President Donald Trump’s administration. This deal could be devastating to our NHS, food, climate and more, and right now our MPs have no right to know what is even being discussed.
We might be able to change that, but we need your help.
A new law on the UK’s trade policy is going through Parliament at the moment which must be changed to bring about more transparency, democracy and accountability over the way the UK does its trade deals.
The Trade Bill is about to move on to the House of Lords. Will you write a letter to a member of the House of Lords to tell them how important this is?
You might have heard that this bill fails to protect the NHS. That’s true, but that’s not all it fails to do.
Without fixing this Trade Bill, we will have no way of stopping toxic trade deals, or ensuring our elected representatives have a say over what goes into deals that affect us in so many ways. Deals like that with the US will threaten food standards, hand over more power to tech giants like Amazon and drastically undermine the UK’s climate commitments under the Paris Agreement. We would have no way of keeping ISDS – corporate courts – out of our trade deals.
We have drafted a template email in our online tool, but please feel free to adapt it to voice your biggest concerns related to the absence of scrutiny of our trade deals – whether they are ISDS, food standards, the impact of our trade deals on Global South countries, or the NHS and public services.
secure.waronwant.org/page/65752/donate/1?en_chan=tw&locale=en-GB&ea.tracking.id=twitter&en_ref=150365925
Thanks Grany Done it!
That's good thank you trisher
There's another 'Week in tory' on its way
I'll post it tomorrow...
This looks interesting
Colin Blakemore
I am creating a group of like minded individuals to remove the government
remove-the-tory-government.mn.co/posts/7581420?utm_source=manual&fbclid=IwAR2Nii9jMWIx_P9tkGczfw0xXmVWo34lUDnUwoJ1IZiFSDanxeXmX1XyV5k
The DMs take on the Harding appointment.
t.co/nH5ze1AtS0?amp=1
"and this from the "i"-
Who is Dido Harding?
She came to prominence during the pandemic when she was put in charge of the NHS Test and Trace in England which has been widely criticised. The Conservative peer is chair of NHS Improvement and has been appointed the new interim chief of the National Institute for Health Protection following the scrapping of Public Health England. She will lead the search for a permanent successor.
She has made headlines in the past.
She was CEO of TalkTalk when in 2015 it fell victim to a data breach that led to nearly 157,000 people’s personal data being accessed by hackers. The company was fined £400,000 for “security failings”. During her time at TalkTalk she received two wooden spoon awards, in 2010 and 2011, for poor customer service dished out by the Daily Mail’s Money Mail section. There is a rather sullen photograph of her with one of the wooden spoons – according to the newspaper she would not pose with both “awards”. At the time she admitted that the company’s customer service was “not yet good enough”.
Wasn’t she a friend of David Cameron?
Yes, the pair were at Oxford together, where she studied PPE. She was appointed a member of the House of Lords by Cameron in 2014. She held senior roles at Tesco’s and Sainsbury’s and was made CEO of TalkTalk in 2010. In 2017 she was appointed chair of NHS Improvement. A horse racing enthusiast she has also been a jockey and is on the board of the Jockey Club which owns Cheltenham Racecourse. She is married to Conservative MP John Penrose who is on the advisory board of the think tank, 1828, which has published reports calling for Public Heath England to be “scrapped”. It has also called for the NHS to be replaced by an insurance system.
inews.co.uk/news/baroness-dido-harding-appointed-interim-chief-nihp-582711
Thanks, Grany. Done it and shared on FB.
Is Boris Johnson still on paternity leave or is he having another holiday?
I have totally lost count of the contracts that have been awarded to Cumming’s Gove’s et al friends without tender.
Does anyone have a list, just to make me even more depressed?
varian
Is Boris Johnson still on paternity leave or is he having another holiday?
Just read that there is a hint that he is trying to mend (marital) (partnership) discord.
We will soon find if he’s patched things up I guess.
Now Truss is trying to “hide” her discussions with a hard right think tank IEA, by reclassifying the discussions as “personal”
This has never ever happened in government.
“So Liz Truss has some of her meetings removed from the public record and reclassified as “personal”? This is absolutely outrageous. We are being ruled by dishonourable, corrupt people whose behaviour just gets worse every day. Time to take a stand. We cannot go on like this.“
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