Westminster Politics

[africanspur]

Public-spirited professionals - police, scientists, healthcare workers etc - must be pretty pissed off at always being the government's scapegoats and whipping boys (and girls).

I don't know any police officers sadly @TheReligion but certainly amongst the doctors, nurses and teachers I know, morale has been persistently chipped away over the past 10+ years, made worse by the fact they and their attack dogs in the media have taken pot shots when needed as well.

I'm sure fire officers must feel the same post Grenfell too.

 

[SteveJ]

That's every broadcaster in the universe boycotted by the Tories then.

 

[africanspur]

They're going for the Trump response, just claim it's fake news from the fake media. Somehow a worse response than I expected and my expectations were low.

It's wrapped in a far more erudite way than Trump every would but the fundamental message is still:

FAKE NEWS!

 

[cyberman]

So now everything was fake even though they were excusing everything until now? So what was all the sick kid bollocks about?

 

[BobbyManc]

He needs to be sacked. Not because he broke Lockdown, but because he got outwitted by the Mirror.

Rather gratifyingly it’s been led by the same Mirror journalist who Johnson kicked off his campaign bus because she was the only one there not willing to lick the Tory boots.

 

[Mr Pigeon]

They're going for the Trump response, just claim it's fake news from the fake media. Somehow a worse response than I expected and my expectations were low.

It would be lovely if photos were uncovered...

 

[Pexbo]

It would be lovely if photos were uncovered...

I reckon they have got more lined up and the government suspect it too which is why they’re not going to defend with specifics anymore.

 

[Damien]

They're going for the Trump response, just claim it's fake news from the fake media. Somehow a worse response than I expected and my expectations were low.

Yeah, that doesn't surprise me at all. Only going to get worse from here. Problem for them is, even Tory newspapers are covering it



Though the Mail on Sunday has predictably defended it and put a picture of Cummings with his kid on the cover to be sympathetic

 

[Brophs]

I reckon they have got more lined up and the government suspect it too which is why they’re not going to defend with specifics anymore.

 

[FireballXL5]

God I hope this destroys the bald fascist cnut.

 

[Sir Matt]

What does Cummings have on Boris and the Tories that they're willing to go through all of this for him? He's like Boris' Rasputin.

 

[Pexbo]

 

[SteveJ]

God I hope this destroys the bald fascist cnut.

To be fair, he scored that cracking volley for West Ham.

 

[FireballXL5]

To be fair, he scored that cracking volley for West Ham.

 

[Grinner]

The journos must be delighted to finally have a real story and one that possibly brings down an odious cnut like him.

 

[Pexbo]

The journos must be delighted to finally have a real story and one that possibly brings down an odious cnut like him.

Not the ones on speed dial

 

[Hammerfell]

Laura's been very quiet since the second story broke. Waiting for instructions?

 

[sullydnl]

Why so incompetent in the lying? What possible rationale could there be in lying about the police having spoken to them and then doubling down?
They are all such amateurs in every sense.

I was just wondering the same thing. You'd think with all the experience they have in telling lies they'd know that one as basic as "the police never spoke to the family" would be easily contradicted.

Unless they've just become so used to people pointing out their lies that they think it holds no consequence for them any more. Tell a lie, ignore people when they prove you wrong, move on.

 

[Wolverine]

It would be lovely if photos were uncovered...

I mean they do have a school governor who let him name be put in print and says his search history shows him looking up the number plate but there could literally be CCTV now and they'd defend him, in too deep now

 

[SteveJ]

Laura's been very quiet since the second story broke. Waiting for instructions?

That in itself is telling - this is an extremely big & rapidly developing story now, so you'd think that a 'normal' political journalist would be glued to their keyboard.

 

[T00lsh3d]

What does Cummings have on Boris and the Tories that they're willing to go through all of this for him? He's like Boris' Rasputin.

He’s his brain and his iron will. You can’t rule with an iron will if you are actually a fluffy bunny that gets outwitted by things like a kettle or some freshly starched underpants

 

[Fluctuation0161]

This is him here

Haha. Good one.

 

[FlawlessThaw]

God I hope this destroys the bald fascist cnut.

It won't because Tom2782681 from Twitter spoke to 20 people in the queue at Sainsburys and none of them thought it was a big deal.

 

[BobbyManc]

More tweets from a few accounts, yet to be verified but ostensibly credible, suggesting a third trip from Cummings to Durham on 10 May. There’ll be more witnesses if true. Let’s hope journalists look into this and can confirm if it has any substance.

 

[TheReligion]

I don't know any police officers sadly @TheReligion but certainly amongst the doctors, nurses and teachers I know, morale has been persistently chipped away over the past 10+ years, made worse by the fact they and their attack dogs in the media have taken pot shots when needed as well.

I'm sure fire officers must feel the same post Grenfell too.

Yeah what the government did during austerity was hard to take and decimated services. On a side the supreme court has actually agreed that the changes made to the police and fire service pensions were discriminative and refused any right of appeal from the government. Hopefully that will be put right but yeah confidence is low and has been since May was home secretary.

 

[Hal9000]

 

[Pexbo]

There is definitely more releases to come on this story. As one of the comments says, they will probably release this afternoon ahead of the press conference.

 

[FireballXL5]

Good morning everyone, should be a fun day!

 

[Grinner]

oh we are all loving this, aren't we?

Has Laura been twattering yet?

 

[unchanged_lineup]

oh we are all loving this, aren't we?

Has Laura been twattering yet?

Nope, 24 hours silent so far.

 

[Grinner]

Nope, 24 hours silent so far.

She's the political editor of the BBC and has nothing to say about a huge political story?

Funny that.

 

[Vernon Philander]

 

[unchanged_lineup]

She's the political editor of the BBC and has nothing to say about a huge political story?

Funny that.

Read a tweet just there that she usually tweets loads before Marr etc are on, so another sign it's out of character.

 

[Adisa]

 

[Adisa]

She's the political editor of the BBC and has nothing to say about a huge political story?

Funny that.

Her "sources" are still fixing their story.

 

[unchanged_lineup]

@One Night Only come on over here so we can chat more about how Cummings was basically commuting between London and Durham while also regularly out and about the county and started doing it while symptomatic with Covid.

The radio silence from ministers and Kuennsberg since the second group of stories broke should be a pretty good clue that he was massively out of order.

 

[Pexbo]

Her "sources" are still fixing their story.

It’s the fact that she won’t comment on the story without getting her brief first that is an absolute scandal.

 

[Acole9]

This is hugely embarrassing for the government. If they can't cope without him then they should all go too.

 

[SilentWitness]

 

[Fluctuation0161]

It’s the fact that she won’t comment on the story without getting her brief first that is an absolute scandal.

Really highlights what has been quite obvious for a long time. But this particular example is probably the most obvious instance of her purely being an extremly biased Conservative government mouthpiece.