Sue Gray report

DiscoDancer1975 are you lemongrove? I think I must be really slow at catching on.

You’re doing well HolySox, but all to no avail I think with this crowd. Sheep come to mind.

Petera

Alegrias1

No, Boris takes responsibility for everything - good and bad. That's the job. A fact which he's never quite assimilated, has he?

I'd go further - all people that I know who are good managers and motivate their staff take responsibility when things go wrong and give their staff the credit when things go well.

I agree wholeheartedly but I'll go further still Petera. Those people are leaders, not just managers, and our PMs are meant to be leaders.

Holysox I presume you aren’t a religious person despite your user name, as I don’t understand how you could condone blatant lying from the PM if you were. That he lied on numerous occasions has been borne out by numerous sources, and is being investigated by the police. If anybody is guilty of bearing false witness it is he.

Alegrias1

No, Boris takes responsibility for everything - good and bad. That's the job. A fact which he's never quite assimilated, has he?

I'd go further - all people that I know who are good managers and motivate their staff take responsibility when things go wrong and give their staff the credit when things go well.

If I needed guidance, I followed information from other countries certainly not our government, I made that decision very early on.

Oh FFS Holysox.

Galaxy

Speak for yourself holysox. I wasnt safely in lockdown. I was working as a keyworker. No masks as working with children. No parties or drinks with colleagues either. Strangely enough my manager kept us motivated with zero piss ups. Perhaps she is more skillful than Johnson though.

Thank you. We are really grateful that keyworkers continued in their roles. Maybe you needed PPE and guidance to stay safe that the government strove to provide.

But I did say "majority of us". Most office workers worked remotely but the staff at No. 10 had to work in the office.

No, Boris takes responsibility for everything - good and bad. That's the job. A fact which he's never quite assimilated, has he?

Alegrias1

The Johnson supporters wax lyrical about the vaccine program (instigated by Patrick Vallance and with Kate Bingham in the lead, cheques signed by Hancock) and pretend its all down to Johnson. So something he handed over to other people is something we can praise him for, but him not knowing that there were parties in his house, and then actually attending at least one – well you can’t blame him for that, it was the Civil Service! Its doublethink worthy of George Orwell.

But then actually proposing that the party culture was a good thing because it kept the CS motivated. It’s just beyond belief – why do people want to protect him so much? If he was stamping on kittens in the HoC car park somebody would say there were too many kittens anyway, good for him.

So if its something good, like vaccines, someone else takes ALL the credit. Anything bad is wholly Boris's fault?

The Johnson supporters wax lyrical about the vaccine program (instigated by Patrick Vallance and with Kate Bingham in the lead, cheques signed by Hancock) and pretend its all down to Johnson. So something he handed over to other people is something we can praise him for, but him not knowing that there were parties in his house, and then actually attending at least one – well you can’t blame him for that, it was the Civil Service! Its doublethink worthy of George Orwell.

But then actually proposing that the party culture was a good thing because it kept the CS motivated. It’s just beyond belief – why do people want to protect him so much? If he was stamping on kittens in the HoC car park somebody would say there were too many kittens anyway, good for him.

Speak for yourself holysox. I wasnt safely in lockdown. I was working as a keyworker. No masks as working with children. No parties or drinks with colleagues either. Strangely enough my manager kept us motivated with zero piss ups. Perhaps she is more skillful than Johnson though.

As a friend said when listening to Johnson

“It was like watching a yuff under interrogation saying “No comment” and grinning because he thinks he has the police by the short and curly while adding the occasional insult about those questioning him.”

Urmstongran

Hmm. Even the lynch mob must surely weary of this soon?

The trouble with trumped up charges is that the longer they are discussed and raked over, the more evident becomes their lack of substance.

The accusers may squawk and howl as much as they wish but the 'charge' remains as unconvincing and irrelevant as it ever was.

The real outrage was the lockdown itself, the cause of so much misery and cruelty, but they can't protest about that now, because they were demanding ever harsher measures.

Quite right. "Lynch mob". Media circus over civil servants having a glass of wine at work, that apparently is/was the culture at No. 10. I imagine Boris was a motivational leader for his staff who at the time were under enormous pressure dealing with the pandemic (oh and the small matter of BREXIT ... let's face it the real reason there is a lynch mob as much of the establishment didn't want it). What did the country need at the start of the pandemic? Information, financial support during lockdowns, ventilators, PPE, hospital space ( and yes we did get it wrong moving bed blocking patients into care homes), investment into vaccines and anti-viral medicines... Boris not so much turned a blind eye but ensured his staff remained motivated and productive whilst the majority of us were safely in lockdown.
O.k. maybe some 'meetings' in No. 10 meant unnecessary numbers in close proximity that may have been in breach of regulations. If so this should have been addressed at the time. But no, Boris's enemies have waited until now, till the pandemic and the impact of BREXIT are easing, blue skies ahead. Cowards!

Although Sue Gray's report was redacted until the Met's investigations are complete, it still is pretty damning in what it does say. Like an awful lot of people, I am thoroughly fed up with this clown. Teresa May gave him a flea in his ear about the findings that have been published and asked whether he had read the rules that he and his party had set down for the country to follow. This chump sat there with a smirk on his face. He has zero respect for the people in the UK and he couldn't care less but then the vaccine programme has been a success so everything's ok.

Lucca

MayBee70

Johnson mentioned the Jimmy Saville case this afternoon. I’m writing to the speaker asking him to tell Johnson to publicly withdraw that comment.

I could honestly not believe my ears. Absolute disgrace. I would also write but don’t know how to phrase it ? Anyone up for letting me copy their homework ?!

I talked about parliamentary privilege and the fact that said outside of parliament it would be actionable etc. The comment should be withdrawn.

My mail was to The Speaker, so I kept it to just his remit.

Three cheers for Ian Blackford for telling the truth!

Was a also appalled at the Nadine Dorries interview.

MayBee70

Johnson mentioned the Jimmy Saville case this afternoon. I’m writing to the speaker asking him to tell Johnson to publicly withdraw that comment.

I could honestly not believe my ears. Absolute disgrace. I would also write but don’t know how to phrase it ? Anyone up for letting me copy their homework ?!

Starmer - yesterday was outstanding. His reply to Johnson’s statement was the most hard hitting I have ever heard from a parliamentarian.

More opinion ?

Rory Stewart
@RoryStewartUK
·
1h
The sheer tawdry Trumpian shabbiness of the whole thing - it is difficult to see how much more of this the party or our political system can survive.

Sebastian Payne
@SebastianEPayne
·
15h
I think it’s fair to say Boris Johnson’s Jimmy Saville reference is not going down well with Tory MPs. “Totally outrageous” one says.

Coastpath

The PM lied about the Keir Starmer /Jimmy Saville story today.

A bare faced lie that can be disproved in an instant by referring to the freely available facts. Johnson must know that but he still lied in front of the whole country. Why? How could he? What sort of man does that and believes it is acceptable and that he will get away with it? Just watch Jacob Rees Mogg's reaction to the lie too.

When Profumo resigned it wasn't because he slept with Christine Keeler, it was because he lied about it. That is how politics used to be. That is why Britain was respected and a decent place to live - because honesty and integrity counted for everything.

How can anyone who cares even the slightest jot about decency, honesty and the country's reputation be defending these people this evening?

Exactly!

It's not so much the deed, as the lying and obfuscating about it afterwards.

If Johnson had held his hands up right from the start and been honest, we probably wouldn't even be talking about this now.

His arrogant contempt for the principles of good government and integrity is really hard to swallow.

Even the Queen obeyed the bloody rules he imposed at a moment in her life when she probably would have really liked to have had family around her... and I say that as an anti-Monarchist.

Has the man ever had a moment of genuine remorse or care / consideration for anyone? I don't think so - it's all a game to him.

Same here Coastpath
But what can we oldies do about it !

The PM lied about the Keir Starmer /Jimmy Saville story today.

A bare faced lie that can be disproved in an instant by referring to the freely available facts. Johnson must know that but he still lied in front of the whole country. Why? How could he? What sort of man does that and believes it is acceptable and that he will get away with it? Just watch Jacob Rees Mogg's reaction to the lie too.

When Profumo resigned it wasn't because he slept with Christine Keeler, it was because he lied about it. That is how politics used to be. That is why Britain was respected and a decent place to live - because honesty and integrity counted for everything.

How can anyone who cares even the slightest jot about decency, honesty and the country's reputation be defending these people this evening?