Brexit & Britain

[LFC]

Oh SNAP! (Old, from 2019, but still funny.)

France’s EU minister names her cat ‘Brexit’ because ‘he meows loudly to be let out but won’t go through the door’

[AnBr]

Terry Gilliam
2h ·
Congratulations Boris! You've done it again!

[RichTBikkies]

2 718 281 828 nonlike Likes.

[RichTBikkies]

After Theresa May and Boris Johnson, I find I need a phrase from the Soviet Union days to describe how I feel in England (NOT Britain) today: "Internal Exile".

[AnBr]

[LFC]

Looks like Boris Johnson's burning of bridges took its toll on any good will coming out of Europe.

The sight of enraged Brits lining up for hours at gas stations as panic-buying grips the nation has united Europe in schadenfreude.

Chaos has descended on Britain’s urban areas over the past few days after a severe shortage of truck drivers made it impossible for gas to be delivered as normal, sparking a mass national freakout. On Monday, BP confirmed that a third of U.K. gas stations had run out of fuel and news crews showed scenes of red-faced anger in miles-long lines of vehicles, including one report from the aptly-named BBC reporter Phil McCann.

The problem, according to the gas companies, is not supply—it’s people panic-buying after a lack of delivery drivers made it seem as if gas was running out across the country. Shell, ExxonMobil and Greenergy said in a statement that the disorderly scenes throughout Britain are down to “temporary spikes in customer demand—not a national shortage.”

And that’s where Brexit comes in.

Over the past few months, Brits have noticed massive gaps appearing on supermarket shelves, restaurants have been shutting down after running out of chicken, and there’s even been ominous warnings of an imminent national beer shortage. That’s all due to a huge 100,000-strong shortfall in truck drivers, in large part due European drivers leaving the country behind following its withdrawal from the European Union.

Things have gotten so bad that the British government, led by the man who spearheaded the Brexit campaign, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, announced last week that it will beg 5,000 European drivers to come back with the offer of temporary visas lasting until Christmas Eve. But, after the past five years of anti-EU rhetoric, they seem in no mood to help.

Edwin Atema, a boss at the Netherlands-based FNV Union which represents drivers across Europe, turned the air blue on British breakfast radio Monday morning when he was asked if the EU workers he represents might be tempted to take up Johnson’s offer of a three-month visa.

The union rep hit back: “The EU workers we speak to will not go to the U.K. for a short-term visa to help the U.K. out of the shit they created themselves.” After a little gasp, the BBC Radio Four host responded: “Thank you. Not ideal language but we get the message.”

Government officials have also not wasted any time getting their digs in. French European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune said Monday that the national shortages in Britain were proof that voters were misled when the decided to leave the EU five years ago. “Every day, we see the intellectual fraud that was Brexit,” Beaune told a news network in France.

[goldenvalley]

"not ideal language". Love the understatement.

Someday I want to read an expose of how disinformation led to Brexit. Hmmm I wonder what entity was creating the most disinformation?

[AnBr]

Sept 27, 2021 18:21:21 GMT goldenvalley said:

Hmmm I wonder what entity was creating the most disinformation?

Russia and Putin had a hand in it.

[LFC]

Boris Johnson is in political trouble. I wonder if public shaming still has an effect in Britain or if Johnson is going to be able go full on Trumpian and dismiss any and all scandals as "fake news." Their Conservative Party clearly has not gone full blown Republican.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is having a terrible day at work. First, one of his members of Parliament quit his Conservative Party to join the opposition Labour Party; then one of his most well-known colleagues humiliated him with a very public call for his resignation. Johnson’s position as PM is looking increasingly shaky as more and more revelations are spilled about the lockdown-breaking parties he attended or hosted—one of which was held hours before Prince Philip’s socially distanced funeral last April. On Wednesday, rumors swirled in Parliament that Conservative MPs were getting closer to triggering a no-confidence vote to remove Johnson. Then came the twin blows of a defection and a public call to resign. Former minister David Davis told the PM to his face: “You have sat too long here for any good you have been doing. In the name of God, go.” BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg said the intervention “massively upped the ante,” adding: “For such a prominent and well known MP to add his voice is a huge moment.”

[goldenvalley]

Jan 19, 2022 16:56:16 GMT LFC said:

Boris Johnson is in political trouble. I wonder if public shaming still has an effect in Britain or if Johnson is going to be able go full on Trumpian and dismiss any and all scandals as "fake news." Their Conservative Party clearly has not gone full blown Republican.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is having a terrible day at work. First, one of his members of Parliament quit his Conservative Party to join the opposition Labour Party; then one of his most well-known colleagues humiliated him with a very public call for his resignation. Johnson’s position as PM is looking increasingly shaky as more and more revelations are spilled about the lockdown-breaking parties he attended or hosted—one of which was held hours before Prince Philip’s socially distanced funeral last April. On Wednesday, rumors swirled in Parliament that Conservative MPs were getting closer to triggering a no-confidence vote to remove Johnson. Then came the twin blows of a defection and a public call to resign. Former minister David Davis told the PM to his face: “You have sat too long here for any good you have been doing. In the name of God, go.” BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg said the intervention “massively upped the ante,” adding: “For such a prominent and well known MP to add his voice is a huge moment.”

Gee he's not Donald Trump--British version...he doesn't have enough loyalists in the general population that would say "yeah let the man party! He can do anything he wants as long as he rails against the people we hate..."  

[LFC]

The wave is building against Boris the Buffoon. It looks like Britain's experiment with Trumpism may be collapsing.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is on the brink of facing a leadership challenge, according to reports, after an angry backlash over claims parties were held at his residence during coronavirus lockdowns.

After Johnson denied an accusation by his former adviser that he had lied to parliament about one party, the Daily Telegraph and ITV News, citing sources, said the required number of letters from his own lawmakers calling for a no-confidence vote in his leadership could be reached on Wednesday.

As many as 20 Conservative lawmakers who won their seats at the last general election in 2019 plan to submit letters of no confidence in Johnson, the Telegraph reported.

Johnson's office did not respond to a request for comment.

Just two years ago, Johnson was the darling of his party after he secured the biggest Conservative majority since Margaret Thatcher in 1987, allowing him to deliver on promises to finally steer Britain out of the European Union.

But the relationship is rapidly souring under the impact of a steady stream of revelations about Downing Street's apparent flouting of strict lockdown rules.

To trigger a leadership challenge, 54 of the 360 Conservative lawmakers in parliament must write letters of no confidence to the chairman of the party's 1922 Committee.

[Bact PhD]

Jan 19, 2022 21:17:55 GMT LFC said:

The wave is building against Boris the Buffoon. It looks like Britain's experiment with Trumpism may be collapsing.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is on the brink of facing a leadership challenge, according to reports, after an angry backlash over claims parties were held at his residence during coronavirus lockdowns.

After Johnson denied an accusation by his former adviser that he had lied to parliament about one party, the Daily Telegraph and ITV News, citing sources, said the required number of letters from his own lawmakers calling for a no-confidence vote in his leadership could be reached on Wednesday.

As many as 20 Conservative lawmakers who won their seats at the last general election in 2019 plan to submit letters of no confidence in Johnson, the Telegraph reported.

Johnson's office did not respond to a request for comment.

Just two years ago, Johnson was the darling of his party after he secured the biggest Conservative majority since Margaret Thatcher in 1987, allowing him to deliver on promises to finally steer Britain out of the European Union.

But the relationship is rapidly souring under the impact of a steady stream of revelations about Downing Street's apparent flouting of strict lockdown rules.

To trigger a leadership challenge, 54 of the 360 Conservative lawmakers in parliament must write letters of no confidence to the chairman of the party's 1922 Committee.

The author’s assessment is a bit hyperbolic based on the presented info. I’ll believe it when the math adds up (bold mine):

What’s required:

To trigger a leadership challenge, 54 of the 360 Conservative lawmakers in parliament must write letters of no confidence to the chairman…

What’s in hand, or more accurately, in the works:

As many as 20 Conservative lawmakers who won their seats at the last general election in 2019 plan to submit letters of no confidence in Johnson, the Telegraph reported.

Unless some sort of “piling on” effect is anticipated, this is so much blowing smoke.

[LFC]

What in the actual hell?

For decades, politics-watchers have speculated that Boris Johnson’s ramshackle appearance and oafish manner is all an act. That, underneath it all, he was actually a calculated political operator with a unique ability to charm the public and rise above scandal to cling to power. Over the past few weeks, that theory has been quite spectacularly obliterated.

His latest unprecedented humiliation came Thursday following a plot to get rid of him that was cooked up by his own lawmakers who were outraged over a string of revelations that he attended or hosted boozy parties while the rest of Britain was in lockdown—even Queen Elizabeth, who sat alone at her husband’s funeral hours after one Downing Street bash.

It looked like that plot had been seen off, at least for the time-being. But then a member of the British prime minister’s Conservative Party went public with an extraordinary allegation—that Johnson’s government was blackmailing lawmakers in a potentially illegal attempt to stop them from joining rebels who were trying to oust Johnson from office.

The lawmaker, William Wragg, went so far as to encourage his colleagues to contact the police if they had been subjected to the alleged threats, which Wragg claimed included withholding government money for local projects and leaking damaging stories about rebels to the press.

[LFC]

Daaaaamn, Boris is a party ANIMAL! Seems especially when it's a government party meaning it's on the taxpayers' bill, not his own.

For months, barely a day has gone by in Britain without the press exposing another party held in Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s official residence while the rest of the country was in lockdown. On Tuesday, police finally confirmed they’ll investigate if any of those parties broke the law.

The announcement of the investigation came the morning after arguably the most egregious report of a lockdown-busting party yet. On Monday, ITV News reported that a “birthday bash” was held for Johnson during the first nationwide lockdown on June 19, 2020. It allegedly saw around 30 people gather in 10 Downing Street for finger food and singing.

Before that, there was the boozy party reportedly held in Downing Street on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral, where the queen sat alone due to the government’s distancing rules. Overall, the number of parties alleged to have been held by the government is well into double figures.

[LFC]

Wait, I thought Brexit was going to be wooooonderful. Anyone care to explain? Boris? Nigel?

A report from parliament's spending watchdog, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), said it "was clear" that leaving the EU was having an impact on UK trade volumes.

It also warned things could worsen this year as new import controls come in.

The government said it continued to ensure businesses "got the support they need to trade effectively with Europe".

"One of the great promises of Brexit was freeing British businesses to give them the headroom to maximise their productivity and contribution to the economy - even more desperately needed now on the long road to recovery from the pandemic," said PAC chair Meg Hillier.

"Yet the only detectable impact so far is increased costs, paperwork and border delays."

While it was hard to disentangle the impact of Brexit from the effects of Covid and wider global problems it was "clear that EU exit has had an impact" on UK trade volumes, the committee said.

[LFC]

On the old TRS Brexit thread we discussed financial firms at least partially leaving London for cities in the EU, most notably Amsterdam but others as well. Here's a bit of an update from December.

Now, post-Brexit, early signs suggest the bluffing is over. Last week, data from the Chicago Board Options Exchange, the world’s largest options trader, reported that Amsterdam surpassed London in daily trading in January, pushing London, the continent’s financial leader since the days of Empire, into second place.

More ominous still for the United Kingdom’s financial sector, which represented nearly 7 percent of the country’s GDP in 2019, is it’s starting to see real evidence of job loss. A modest 7,500 jobs left the United Kingdom for European Union cities by October 2020, with Dublin the most popular new location, according to the Ernst & Young Financial Services Brexit Tracker. About $1.5 trillion in assets held in the United Kingdom were also moved abroad, amounting to about 14 percent of the total assets of British-based institutions.

To name just a few examples, just before the Jan. 31, 2020 Brexit deadline, Barclays, a quintessentially British firm, sent nearly $265 billion of its assets to Ireland. JPMorgan Chase pushed $230 billion to Germany. And on Feb. 21, the Financial Times reported that HSBC, Britain’s largest bank by far, was relocating most of its revenue-producing divisions to Hong Kong as part of a larger pivot to Asian markets, where HSBC has traditionally been strong.

What’s more, British headhunting and tax advisory firms that typically work with London banks have reported a downturn in business. Some of this could be a result of the United Kingdom’s worst-in-class performance on COVID-19 and the economic damage it wrought. But financial services firms should be riding relatively high thanks to the resilience of their global share prices and would normally be preparing for the post-coronavirus rebound with recruitment.

Yet Morgan McKinley, a leading recruitment firm for the British financial sector, noted in January that London firms advertised 49 percent fewer openings in 2020 than in 2019. In a survey of financial services professionals done as the Brexit talks were winding down last year, the firm found some clear-eyed realism about London’s future. An Armageddon scenario whereby all the big banks jump ship for the continent appears unlikely. But after polling, the firm concluded that European financial capital and its job benefits “will be spread among the other major financial hubs of Europe.” Frankfurt and Paris, the report said, “were ahead of the rest (with 24% and 27% of the votes respectively), followed by Dublin and London (both receiving 18% of the votes).”

The pandemic has only deepened the gloom. The United Kingdom was one of the hardest hit countries of any major European economy by COVID-19, suffering a GDP decline of 9.9 percent in 2020—as many analysts noted, the worst fall in more than 300 years. What’s more, once a playground for the world’s rich, London has seen some 700,000 foreign-born residents leave the country since the pandemic began, according to the British government.

Interestingly it seems that the movement of operations and assets was likely slowed by COVID.

City firms are likely to revive plans to shift staff to the EU once Covid-related travel restrictions ease next year, a financial sector report has said, as the number contemplating such moves continues to rise.

Of the 222 largest UK financial services firms monitored by accountancy firm EY since the 2016 referendum, 97 of them (44%) have confirmed they are relocating staff or operations to the continent, or are considering it – up from 41% in January 2020.

While announcements regarding Brexit-related relocations have slowed in recent years, EY suggested further moves had probably been delayed, rather than reversed, over the past year because of Covid lockdowns and concessions on home working.

“It’s been nearly a year since the UK officially left the European Union, but the financial sector is still working through the hangover of Brexit,” said Omar Ali of EY. “While the majority of operational moves were made well ahead of the 2020 Brexit deadline – and before the pandemic – travel restrictions over the last two years have challenged the practicalities of relocation.”

He said firms were likely to ramp up their relocation plans over the next 12 months, assuming the number of Covid cases falls back, amid pressure from EU authorities who have railed against “brass plate” access to their markets, where companies maintain just a token staff presence in the bloc.

“Depending on the trajectory of the Omicron variant and its impact on international travel in the short term, delayed moves should pick up over the coming year, not least due to ongoing pressure from EU regulators,” Ali said.

So Britain took the hit of a 9.9% decline in GDP. They are now less able to compete in the EU. The EU wants to keep companies with sham-esque branches in the continent from enjoying the full benefits of EU membership. Financial firms still plan on taking more good jobs out of London and moving them to the EU. So once COVID settles the Brexiteers may have managed to badly hamstring their recovery. Welcome to conservative promises.

[LFC]

Boris lives to rule another day.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has won the backing of a majority of Tory MPs in a confidence vote despite a significant revolt against his leadership.

The PM won 59% of the vote, meaning he is now immune from a Conservative leadership challenge for a year.

In all, 211 Tory MPs voted they had confidence in the PM's leadership while 148 voted against him.

Mr Johnson described his confidence vote win as "decisive".

[LFC]

W...T...F, Chuck?

Charles’ judgment under fresh scrutiny over bags of cash

The cartoon image of Prince Charles rubbing his hands with glee while chucking shopping bags stuffed full of banknotes into the back of his wine-powered Aston Martin like something out of the irreverent British comedy The Windsors is on the Royalist’s mind today.

The image follows the astonishing revelation that the heir to the throne was personally handed a suitcase containing €1m (just over $1.05m) by a politician representing a rich oil-producing Arab statelet.

“It was one of three lots of cash, totaling €3 million ($3.2m), which Prince Charles personally received from Sheik Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, the former prime minister of Qatar who is nicknamed ‘HBJ,’ between 2011 and 2015,” the London Sunday Times reports.

The story, described as “truly shocking” by a senior ethics official, will cement in many minds Charles’ reputation for financial indiscipline. While it may be a little too much to say it jeopardizes his succession, it certainly poses urgent and new questions about the judgment of the heir to the throne when it comes to money matters.

Late last year, Charles lost his key aide Michael Fawcett, who was forced to stand down from Charles’ foundation after it was revealed he arranged an honor for a billionaire Saudi donor, explicitly in return for donations. Charles denied any knowledge of the transactional arrangement but a reported police investigation into the matter has provided no answers, being discreet to the point of invisibility. Prince Harry pointedly accused his father of being involved in what he described as a “scandal” over the affair.

[pnwguy]

Jun 27, 2022 16:58:28 GMT LFC said:

W...T...F, Chuck?

Charles’ judgment under fresh scrutiny over bags of cash

The cartoon image of Prince Charles rubbing his hands with glee while chucking shopping bags stuffed full of banknotes into the back of his wine-powered Aston Martin like something out of the irreverent British comedy The Windsors is on the Royalist’s mind today.

The image follows the astonishing revelation that the heir to the throne was personally handed a suitcase containing €1m (just over $1.05m) by a politician representing a rich oil-producing Arab statelet.

“It was one of three lots of cash, totaling €3 million ($3.2m), which Prince Charles personally received from Sheik Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, the former prime minister of Qatar who is nicknamed ‘HBJ,’ between 2011 and 2015,” the London Sunday Times reports.

The story, described as “truly shocking” by a senior ethics official, will cement in many minds Charles’ reputation for financial indiscipline. While it may be a little too much to say it jeopardizes his succession, it certainly poses urgent and new questions about the judgment of the heir to the throne when it comes to money matters.

Late last year, Charles lost his key aide Michael Fawcett, who was forced to stand down from Charles’ foundation after it was revealed he arranged an honor for a billionaire Saudi donor, explicitly in return for donations. Charles denied any knowledge of the transactional arrangement but a reported police investigation into the matter has provided no answers, being discreet to the point of invisibility. Prince Harry pointedly accused his father of being involved in what he described as a “scandal” over the affair.

And why not?  His mother has been running her international drug syndicate for decades 

[LFC]

Jun 27, 2022 18:49:23 GMT pnwguy said:

And why not?  His mother has been running her international drug syndicate for decades 

I don't understand the reference.

[pnwguy]

Jun 27, 2022 19:50:23 GMT LFC said:

Jun 27, 2022 18:49:23 GMT pnwguy said:

And why not?  His mother has been running her international drug syndicate for decades 

I don't understand the reference.

One of Lyndon LaRouche's conspiracy theories.  Trump before Trump?

[goldenvalley]

Jun 27, 2022 19:57:17 GMT pnwguy said:

Jun 27, 2022 19:50:23 GMT LFC said:

I don't understand the reference.

One of Lyndon LaRouche's conspiracy theories.  Trump before Trump?

Trump is in a category all by himself...a man who is completely driven by his self interest and his obsession with "winning" and a complete con man. Nixon was pretty paranoid and grievance driven but he respected in some ways, the position he was elected to.  LaRouche...always struck me as just plain nuts.  I remember him going on and on about Cargill Grain owning the Ag Department.

[AnBr]

Jun 27, 2022 18:49:23 GMT pnwguy said:

Jun 27, 2022 16:58:28 GMT LFC said:

W...T...F, Chuck?

And why not?  His mother has been running her international drug syndicate for decades 

Bawhahahaha!!! I have not been reminded of this for a very long time.

[LFC]

Boris seems to be floundering, which I guess is pretty much what was predicted. Two of his senior people resigned and made it clear he's the problem.

Britain's finance and health ministers resigned on Tuesday, in what looked to be the final blow for Prime Minister Boris Johnson's premiership after he had tried to apologize for the latest scandal to dog his administration.

Both finance minister Rishi Sunak and health minister Sajid Javid resigned in what appeared to be a choreographed release of letters to the prime minister, in which both took aim at his ability to run an administration that adhered to standards.

The resignations came as Johnson was apologising for what he said was a mistake for not realizing that a former minister in charge of pastoral care was unsuitable for a job in government after complaints of sexual misconduct were made against him.

Both had formerly publicly supported Johnson during months of scandal over his administration's conduct and a damning report into parties at his Downing Street office and residence that broke strict COVID-19 lockdown rules.

Sunak, who had reportedly clashed with the prime minister in private about spending, said: "For me to step down as Chancellor while the world is suffering the economic consequences of the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and other serious challenges is a decision that I have not taken lightly."

"However, the public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously. I recognize this may be my last ministerial job, but I believe these standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning."

Javid said many lawmakers and the public had lost confidence in Johnson's ability to govern in the national interest.

"I regret to say, however, that it is clear to me that this situation will not change under your leadership - and you have therefore lost my confidence too," Javid said in a letter to Johnson.

[goldenvalley]

Jul 5, 2022 21:13:18 GMT LFC said:

Boris seems to be floundering, which I guess is pretty much what was predicted. Two of his senior people resigned and made it clear he's the problem.

Britain's finance and health ministers resigned on Tuesday, in what looked to be the final blow for Prime Minister Boris Johnson's premiership after he had tried to apologize for the latest scandal to dog his administration.

Both finance minister Rishi Sunak and health minister Sajid Javid resigned in what appeared to be a choreographed release of letters to the prime minister, in which both took aim at his ability to run an administration that adhered to standards.

The resignations came as Johnson was apologising for what he said was a mistake for not realizing that a former minister in charge of pastoral care was unsuitable for a job in government after complaints of sexual misconduct were made against him.

Both had formerly publicly supported Johnson during months of scandal over his administration's conduct and a damning report into parties at his Downing Street office and residence that broke strict COVID-19 lockdown rules.

Sunak, who had reportedly clashed with the prime minister in private about spending, said: "For me to step down as Chancellor while the world is suffering the economic consequences of the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and other serious challenges is a decision that I have not taken lightly."

"However, the public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously. I recognize this may be my last ministerial job, but I believe these standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning."

Javid said many lawmakers and the public had lost confidence in Johnson's ability to govern in the national interest.

"I regret to say, however, that it is clear to me that this situation will not change under your leadership - and you have therefore lost my confidence too," Javid said in a letter to Johnson.

At least their letters explain that the reason they leave is because of Boris...unlike those who left the Trump Admin.