Serial Prime Ministers

Wyllow3

I think Boris is more concerned with popularity rather than policy. Soundbite man. Oven ready Brexit. Strong pledges when he came to power about Social Care as top priority, and not a thing done. Always ready for the photo op dressed in the right gear. Currently travelling in Canada and meanwhile attacking Sunaks' proposed legislation to increase the age to buy cigarettes with at knock out bit of Boris-eze

"Johnson said: “When I look at some of the things we are doing now, or that are being done in the name of conservatism, I think they’re absolutely nuts.
“We’re banning cigars. What is the point of banning – the party of Winston Churchill wants to ban cigars … Donnez moi un break, as they say in Quebec. It’s just mad.”

(there are no plans to ban cigars)

The proposed plan is to ban all tobacco products, cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos, loose tobacco and water pipes.

Penny Mordaunt has been photographed with Bill Gates. That's enough to put me off her for life.

Ciggies contain all sorts of additives put in by the manufacturers; cigars are pure tobacco.

I think Boris is more concerned with popularity rather than policy. Soundbite man. Oven ready Brexit. Strong pledges when he came to power about Social Care as top priority, and not a thing done. Always ready for the photo op dressed in the right gear. Currently travelling in Canada and meanwhile attacking Sunaks' proposed legislation to increase the age to buy cigarettes with at knock out bit of Boris-eze

"Johnson said: “When I look at some of the things we are doing now, or that are being done in the name of conservatism, I think they’re absolutely nuts.
“We’re banning cigars. What is the point of banning – the party of Winston Churchill wants to ban cigars … Donnez moi un break, as they say in Quebec. It’s just mad.”

(there are no plans to ban cigars)

Cossy

Sarnia

Love him or loathe him Boris was far more popular with the country than Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak. I don't think the gap would be so wide if Boris was still PM.

He was only popular because many members of the public were “taken in” by his so called charm and charisma. He was clearly better than Truss, but that’s not hard!

It would be fair to say that’s not true any more based on the latest Yougov poll, which was only two days ago. Only 24% even want him back as an MP, let alone PM.
yougov.co.uk/topics/politics/survey-results/daily/2024/04/12/85654/2
I’d suggest the public have seen the light.

Galaxy

I wouldnt worry what she says, she will backtrack on it after a period of time and try to pretend it never happened.

😂😂😂😂😂

Sarnia

Love him or loathe him Boris was far more popular with the country than Liz Truss or Rishi Sunak. I don't think the gap would be so wide if Boris was still PM.

He was only popular because many members of the public were “taken in” by his so called charm and charisma. He was clearly better than Truss, but that’s not hard!

I think the conservatives best bet is to keep Sunak.

Yet another leadership election will not I feel be appreciated by a long suffering electorate who will have clear memories of the disastrous Truss choice.

You're right Maize. The only suitable word for that speech is batshit.

Casdon

Freya5

MaizieD

New polling suggests that Penny Mordaunt is the only Conservative considered more of an asset to the party than a liability.

Has everyone forgotten the utterly batshit crazy speech she made at the last tory conference? Unhinged didn't seem to cover it. And this is thought to be a potential leader?

Such a charming way with words. Goes well with the Rayner mode of speech.

It wasn’t Angela Rayner who used the term batshit in Westminster, it was James Cleverly. I suspect MaizieD chose her words carefully.

Thank you Casdon. I did choose my word carefully, though not quite for the reason you imply😁

I chose it because it is an accurate descriptor of the speech in question... I do like to call a spade a spade...

If the Tories are considering Penny Mordaunt for party leader it's because they think that the electorate will remember her at the coronation and think they are voting for Britannia.

Freya5

MaizieD

New polling suggests that Penny Mordaunt is the only Conservative considered more of an asset to the party than a liability.

Has everyone forgotten the utterly batshit crazy speech she made at the last tory conference? Unhinged didn't seem to cover it. And this is thought to be a potential leader?

Such a charming way with words. Goes well with the Rayner mode of speech.

It wasn’t Angela Rayner who used the term batshit in Westminster, it was James Cleverly. I suspect MaizieD chose her words carefully.

MaizieD

^New polling suggests that Penny Mordaunt is the only Conservative considered more of an asset to the party than a liability.^

Has everyone forgotten the utterly batshit crazy speech she made at the last tory conference? Unhinged didn't seem to cover it. And this is thought to be a potential leader?

Such a charming way with words. Goes well with the Rayner mode of speech.

I think she has competition from Patel. If the Tories are wiped out they may amalgamate with Reform so then all bets would be off. Farage, Tice, Anderson anyone?

Lost me when she said Margaret Thatcher stood up to bullies. She WAS the bully.

Boris and Trump always make me think of tweedledum and tweedledee

Perhaps it is time for us to realise that our undemocratic outdated electoral system is making this country look ridiculous.

We have endured nine years of chaos, gross incompetence and corruption.

If it wasn't for Trump, we'd be the laughing stoch of the world.

Perhaps it's time for Tory innovation: Parallel Prime Ministers rather than Serial ones. Provides alternative policies minute by minute and lets more Tory MPs have a go at the top job.

Thanks for the Penny Mordaunt link. She sounds rabid. Scary stuff.

Indeed, Casdon. She won with a substantial 15,780 majority in 2019 taking 61.4% of the vote but Portsmouth North is considered a swing seat. She is predicted to see her vote share fall to 33% giving victory to Labour.

We really are in sore need of an election to get some legitimacy back into our democracy.

I was reading yesterday that if they change leaders again they will be on their 6th PM since they took office in 2010.

Labour have only had 6 prime ministers in their history.

Well from one point of view, revolving doors prime ministers are better than one staying on past their sell by date.
Who gets to decide when it’s time to dump one and replace? It’s not the electorate.

Isn’t there a fly in the ointment with the Penny Mordaunt plan, in that she isn’t in a safe seat, so there’s a significant chance that she won’t survive the next election? If they are going to replace Sunak, surely choosing a potential new leader who will definitely be there after the election would be a better strategy?

Regarding possible Falkland oil, in practice we would have to share any revenue with Argentina, it is impossible to sustain the oil production without substantial landward resources nearby.

Her conference speech sickened me. All that Thatcherite jingoism over the Falklands when Thatcher’s own government had considered transferring sovereignty to Argentina due to the sheer cost of maintaining the Islands.

The potential for oil revenue is what made the goverment want to keep control. Declassified files released in 2022 tell the story:

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/jun/14/declassified-files-reveal-british-interest-in-falkland-islands-oil

Norman Lamont:

“I have no doubt that in the event of a major oil find, tax revenues should accrue to the UK exchequer. That seems to me only equitable given the very substantial financial as well as other sacrifices that the UK has made … to secure the freedom of the Falkland Islands,” Lamont wrote to the then foreign secretary, Douglas Hurd, on 21 October 1991.

Lamont added: “We would not want to give credence to the accusation that our Falkland Islands operation was motivated by a belief that there was oil to be found in Falklands waters, which would be quite untrue.”

Nevertheless, he and other cabinet ministers, including the prime minister, John Major, and Hurd, agreed that Britain should get the bulk of any oil revenues, approving a 1991 overseas and defence policy cabinet committee paper that stated: “If oil were to be found in commercially recoverable quantities, HMG [Her Majesty’s Government] … should take such measures as are necessary to ensure that HMG can secure access to a substantial share of the concomitant revenues.”