Liz Truss and a car crash

Parsley3

This is what happens when the PM bases his appointments on sycophancy over ability.

Quite.

Putin and Lavrov are steeped in geopolitics - and misogyny. Truss is naïve. Ambitious, but still naïve. Johnson doesn't have the intellectual capacity to understand that sending her to 'warn' Russia was doomed to end in failure - he threw her into the lion's den with the inevitable consequence. I almost feel sorry for her.

Manoeuvring with Russia requires skill, experience and a certain amount of cunning. They are past masters at this game.

Ability - along with the reputation of the UK and the welfare of its citizens - has been sacrificed on the altar of Boris Johnson's personal ambition.

He has bought their loyalty - for now. Does he understand that these individuals are also ambitious and will, when the time comes, distance themselves from him? Rishi Sunak has already done that. And others.

The moment hasn't yet arrived - but I think MPs are looking at the cabinet grandees, waiting for the 'nod' for the letters of no confidence to begin in earnest...

On a personal level I as a Remainer can live with a 'Brexit' / Tory government provided its leader has the welfare of the electorate, the country, at heart. Maybe that's not possible when personal ambition is the main driver, I just don't know.

It's all had the rather unexpected, and frankly unpleasant, consequence of making me feel a bit sorry for Liz Truss.

It was always going to be like that. Not that I don't think that almost anyone else would have done better.

vegansrock

Isn’t she supposed to be sorting out Northern Ireland as well?

I wonder what she will do in Northern Ireland cause another sectarian blood bath? Where have these politicians been if they do not realise that the sectarian divide has always been the trouble in Northern Ireland? Writing novels and promoting themselves.
Imagine the list of Christmas autobiographies that will be published in a few years time, they could all have the same title"My Time as an incompetent Minister".

I can read no more. The worst thing about it is that we are impotent to stop this crowd of buffoons. My vote in my constituency is a total waste of time - as they say, a monkey in blue rosette would get in. It makes me want to tear my hair out.

Too true Fanny, any of them would be fine with me.

Come back Mrs T / Major / Blair / Brown / even Cameron / indeed any other PM I can think of…

Gave her an excuse for a new outfit and a photo shoot, trying to perfect her Margaret Thatcher look. Thatcher would have eaten her for breakfast.

Did she really think the Russians were going to roll over at her behest. I don't really know why she went, specially if she didn't know where she was.

I thought her expression in that photo was a copy of the Silent Witness pathologist type gaze

I think Hancock was ok at his job, it was incontinence rather than incompetence that did for him. He did come across as wet though.

FannyCornforth

I remember hearing that Mrs May gave Johnson the role of Foreign Secretary because she knew what a difficult role which entailed a lot of hard work and diligence it was.
She gave it him as punishment, as she knew that Johnson wasn’t fond of hard graft!

I heard that as well Fanny. Though she knew Johnston is quite a linguist so at least knew what they were saying even if he chose not to comprehend or act on it. Max Hastings summed him up years ago when he sacked him and said he was a liar.
I agree with Maizies list and would add Mat Hancock as well.

Excuse me while I laugh.

Isn’t she supposed to be sorting out Northern Ireland as well?

I remember hearing that Mrs May gave Johnson the role of Foreign Secretary because she knew what a difficult role which entailed a lot of hard work and diligence it was.
She gave it him as punishment, as she knew that Johnson wasn’t fond of hard graft!

A whole list of embarrassing appointments there Maizie. Spot on.

Germanshepherdsmum

She’s a complete embarrassment. Why ever did Johnson think she was up to the job?

I have come to the conclusion that Johnson appoints these people for a laugh. To wind up all his detractors.

When you look at appointments like Nadine Dorries , Natalie Elphicke, Gavin Williamson and Liz herself, one can only think that he is hugely enjoying himself trolling the nation.

This is what happens when the PM bases his appointments on sycophancy over ability.

Surely he doesn’t fancy her Fanny? Mind you, anything in a skirt …

You’ve got to wonder what his motivation is Shep
I can’t think of anyone worse (unless you count Williamson )

She’s a complete embarrassment. Why ever did Johnson think she was up to the job?

She should have said she didn't know where Rostov and Voronezh are or thought of some oblique response. The system of Russian oblasts is quite complex.

I'm not making excuses for her, but the trick was childish and unwarranted given the seriousness of the situation. Teenage stuff. Then to walk off and leave her standing there was rude by any standards. Would he have done that to a man? Probably not.

She's off across the world one week doing trade deals then on a very delicate diplomatic mission to Moscow! How has she been promoted to this role when she's clearly not up to the job? I just glimpsed a headline that states she's been given new powers to sanction Russia. Heaven help us.

Truss has stated that Voronezh and Rostov will never be recognised by the UK as Russian territory. Even though they are.

James O’Brien

“Seeing Brexit Britain mocked & humiliated by Russia in front of the whole world is bad enough. Seeing it happen to politicians who swore blind that we’d somehow be stronger outside the EU is just tragic.”

Russian politicians have form for this behaviour - Truss is not up to such a senior role.

Politics can be a dirty business especially with war in the offing - it's not all back-slapping and diplomatic niceties.

GrannyGravy13

I have just seen an item on the ITV News on this and their opinion is that her Russian counterpart was being exceptionally misogynistic and rude.

He is renowned for it, so all the more reason for Truss to have been totally prepared and on top of her brief. Instead she showed herself up for the ignoramus she is.

Other politicians and diplomats from the USA under Obama knew what he was like and so although he was rude they showed that they knew what they were talking about, and got what they wanted.