Scrutable

This feels like it should be a bigger deal than is being said. Julian Lewis has had the whip removed for ensuring Chris Grayling didn’t get the chairmanship of the ISC. Now he’s released a statement:
So a defined democratic process has been undermined by the government.

Also, the ISC has said the following:

The Committee has unanimously agreed this morning that it will publish the Report on Russia prepared by its predecessor before the house rises for the summer recess.

There will be no further comment

Can open, worms everywhere. Or at least they should be.

Vertigowooyay wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:57 pm
So a defined democratic process has been undermined by the government AGAIN.

FTFM

I assume this is what #takingbackcontrol from out of touch, undemocratic EU apparatchiks looks like.

This is exactly the kind of fast-and-loose backsliding that was going on when I lived in Brazil in 2015-16. You're right to take it seriously, but at least it's good news that somebody on the committee was principled enough to say "not this time, pal".

I may sh.t on conservatism a lot, but fair's fair - the current crop of Conservatives would certainly be preferable if they were more conservative.

Bird on a Fire wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 10:41 pm This is exactly the kind of fast-and-loose backsliding that was going on when I lived in Brazil in 2015-16. You're right to take it seriously, but at least it's good news that somebody on the committee was principled enough to say "not this time, pal".

I may sh.t on conservatism a lot, but fair's fair - the current crop of Conservatives would certainly be preferable if they were more conservative.

The major problem is the number of self-declared conservatives that are actually radical right wingers.

See the US for details.

Vertigowooyay wrote: Thu Jul 16, 2020 9:57 pm This feels like it should be a bigger deal than is being said. Julian Lewis has had the whip removed for ensuring Chris Grayling didn’t get the chairmanship of the ISC. Now he’s released a statement:

72A73ADE-A73E-4251-8C02-AB0AF4E61C23.jpeg91074AA2-7169-4FD5-B36C-56AC62FA3C23.jpeg

So a defined democratic process has been undermined by the government.

Also, the ISC has said the following:

The Committee has unanimously agreed this morning that it will publish the Report on Russia prepared by its predecessor before the house rises for the summer recess.

There will be no further comment

Can open, worms everywhere. Or at least they should be.

That's amazing. The PM doesn't get to choose the candidate, but MPs get pressed to confirm they will vote for the PM's choice. No.10 denies they're imposing a candidate, but the eventual winner gets thrown out of the party for standing against the candidate the PM wasn't imposing.

Yes, this absolutely does feel like it should be a bigger deal than is being made of it.

Lewis comes out of this looking like a hero; the only one who displays integrity. Boris looks both corrupt and weak. Grayling looks utterly helpless; whatever is the exact opposite of the master of his fate.

A figure of pure bathos?

This looks like further evidence for my theory that Grayling was actually invented by Marina Hyde and John Crace as a drunken bet on a Guardian works night out.

Really this sort of thing makes "Yes, Minister" and "The Thick of It" look more and more like documentaries...

murmur wrote: Fri Jul 17, 2020 11:19 am This looks like further evidence for my theory that Grayling was actually invented by Marina Hyde and John Crace as a drunken bet on a Guardian works night out.

Really this sort of thing makes "Yes, Minister" and "The Thick of It" look more and more like documentaries...

This sort of thing makes "Yes, Minister" and "The Thick of It" look like "The West Wing".

murmur wrote: Fri Jul 17, 2020 11:19 am This looks like further evidence for my theory that Grayling was actually invented by Marina Hyde and John Crace as a drunken bet on a Guardian works night out.

Really this sort of thing makes "Yes, Minister" and "The Thick of It" look more and more like documentaries...

The script writers of both would have rejected the Failing Grayling character as far too implausible.

Grayling wrote to Julian Lewis saying he no longer wanted to serve on the body when parliament resumes next week.

“off in a sulk”

Makes me glad that some of these senior politicians haven't actually matured since they were 12: anything which keeps Grayling away from any class of position of authority is A Good Thing.