Oops! Another Brexit deadline just slipped silently by us; ships that pass in the night as we remain on course for the ‘Titanic’ Brexit iceberg that will plunge the UK into an economic abyss! But thanks to our thoroughly untrustworthy Mainstream Media and a BBC blackout regarding the subject, no doubt ordered by the Tories, the British public were kept blissfully unaware of its passing. If the super contagious mutant strain of Covid hitting London and the southeast was just an overblown Tory scare tactic to terrify us into obedient compliance it has spectacularly backfired as borders at our ports have closed and the flow of goods from the EU has come to an abrupt halt well ahead of Brexit. Perhaps food shortages will shock the UK public out of their way too trusting stupor and the public clamour will cause cooler heads to prevail. It is hard to imagine any responsible political leader continuing on a path that will be so catastrophically damaging to the entire population of the nation they govern; we must Get The Tories Out!
Boris Johnson will try to slip crash-out Brexit through against the ‘will of the people’ using Covid and a holiday Parliamentary break as cover. In the London Economic Article entitled, “Virtual sittings ‘refused at every turn’ by Rees-Mogg as Brexiteer MPs demand Parliament recall,” Joe Mellor points to what could be yet another deliberate Tory attempt to exclude Parliamentary scrutiny. He says, “’All we need now is for Jacob Rees-Mogg and the Government to abandon their baseless and dangerous opposition to remote sittings and we can move forward without putting anyone at unnecessary risk.’ Parliament should be recalled to allow MPs to ‘hold ministers to account’ for the Government’s decision to bolster Covid-19 restrictions ahead of Christmas, a Conservative MP has said. Former Conservative chief whip, and chairman of the Covid Recovery Group, Mark Harper has led the calls for a recall, while Conservative former minister Sir Desmond Swayne has accused the Government of being ‘frightened’ of such scrutiny.”
However, Mellor reports that, “a trade union which represents parliamentary staff has said MPs should sit virtually if Parliament is recalled in order to protect workers. In a tweet, Mr Harper said: ‘The developing serious situation arising from the Government’s announcement yesterday reinforces why Parliament should be recalled to debate these matters and hold ministers to account on behalf of our constituents.’ Sir Desmond told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: ‘How convenient when Parliament went into recess on Thursday suddenly they were then able to produce this revelation. Let’s see the evidence then, let’s have Parliament back and show us and convince us, come clean. I want Parliament to be recalled so we can scrutinise properly in a democracy decisions that are being made which affect our economy radically and our liberty.”
Mellor said Harper continued, “The recall of Parliament requires a request by the Government to the Speaker, why would the Government be so reluctant to recall Parliament? ‘Is it that it’s not sure of the evidence that it has and that its case isn’t as convincing as it ought to be, what’s Government frightened of? Frightened of its Parliament?” He added: “The arrangements for Christmas were explicitly voted on by Parliament. If they’re to be changed then in my view, Parliament should vote again. Parliament voted explicitly for a certain set of arrangements, it seems to be perfectly proper therefore that Parliament should be consulted when those are changed, irrespective of the Government acting in an emergency, nevertheless it’s perfectly proper to recall Parliament at the beginning of this week to at least ratify those changes. Explain to us – we are after all a democracy, explain to the elected representatives the evidence that they have and why they’ve reached this decision.”
Mellor reported, “Mike Clancy, general secretary of Prospect, said: ‘Prospect and the other parliamentary staff unions have been calling for months for Parliament to move to a fully hybrid system before the situation in London got worse, (Commons Leader) Jacob Rees-Mogg refused at every turn. We are now in the situation where London and much of the South East have been effectively forced back into lockdown, yet staff are facing the potential full recall of Parliament either in relation to Covid or to approve a Brexit trade deal, if one is reached. Democracy must be allowed to continue but it must not be at the expense of the safety of parliamentary staff. Any recall must be done on a fully remote basis so that the numbers of people entering Westminster can be kept to an absolute minimum. Our professional staff have already proven that they can manage the technological challenge well.”
“All we need now is for Jacob Rees-Mogg and the Government to abandon their baseless and dangerous opposition to remote sittings and we can move forward without putting anyone at unnecessary risk.” Mellor reported that, “PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “If Parliament is recalled, it must be run as a fully hybrid system. Parliamentary staff have been doing an incredible job making sure our democracy functions during this unprecedented Covid pandemic. “However, they should not have to risk their health in order to oversee an unnecessary full re-opening of Parliament. Jacob Rees Mogg should reflect on unions’ concerns and if he fails to protect staff, we will not rule out balloting PCS members for industrial action.” To me the Mogg stubbornness is possible more about creating an extra stumbling block so that Parliamentarians do not have an opportunity to block crash-out Brexit.
There was ample warning that the PM was making the wrong decision, but his seemingly last ditch u-turn appeared equally pre-planned. In the Canary Article entitled, “Hospital bosses warn Boris Johnson that relaxing restrictions could ‘trigger third wave,’ they voiced concerns over the Christmas holiday reprieve. It’s worth noting that the customary socializing associated with non-Christian religious holidays, like Eid, Diwali and Hanukkah have required considerable sacrifices in diverse ethnic communities. They say, “NHS bosses have warned the prime minister that relaxing restrictions could trigger a third wave of coronavirus (Covid-19) at the busiest time of year for hospitals. In a letter to Boris Johnson, NHS Providers urged ‘extreme caution’ in moving any area of England to a lower tier, according to reports by the BBC. The first review of England’s tier allocation is due take place on Wednesday 16 December. This would be two weeks after the three-tier system was brought in after the end of lockdown.”
The Canary had reported that, “Areas should be moved into the highest tier of restrictions ‘as soon as this is needed, without any delay’, according to the letter from NHS Providers. The letter represents hospital trusts in England. Chief executive Chris Hopson told the BBC: We’re about to hit our busiest time of year so people are really worried that if we relax the restrictions now the NHS simply won’t be able to cope with all of the work that it needs to do in late December, January and February. While the letter didn’t call for a review of the temporary relaxation of measures over Christmas, NHS Providers said it was ‘vital’ the public understands the risks of extra social contact during the festive period. On Saturday 12 December, the government said a further 519 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for coronavirus in the UK. There were a further 21,502 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus.”
It was only last week that the Canary outlined the proposed plan that, “Social distancing rules will be relaxed for five days between 23 and 27 December.” This would have allowed multiple “households to mix over the Christmas holidays.” Not a good idea with regard to containing the spread of Covid; it was a relief when the plan was abandoned. They had said that, “A government spokesperson said ministers won’t ‘hesitate to take necessary actions to protect local communities’. She added that decisions are made based on the latest available data, going on to say: We have introduced strengthened local restrictions to protect the progress gained during national restrictions, reduce pressure on the NHS and ultimately save lives… On top of our record NHS investment, this winter we are providing an extra £3 billion to maintain independent sector and Nightingale hospital surge capacity and a further £450 million to upgrade and expand A&Es.” Which is ‘fxxk all’ good if you do not have the staff available to run them!
But as soon as the plan was announced there were serious concerns. The Canary reported that, “Meanwhile, mayor Sadiq Khan has urged Londoners to follow social-distancing measures and wear face coverings while Christmas shopping this weekend. Crowds descended on the shopping districts of major cities, including London’s Regent Street, on Saturday 12 December. This was the case for the second weekend in a row. Increased infection rates have led to fears the capital could be headed for Tier 3 restrictions. These would see hospitality settings closed except for takeaway.” The tide turned on Friday with leaked information on a tightening of restrictions including the possibility travel plans would need to be cancelled, that led to a panicked exodus from the capital in advance of the official call. London terminals became potential super-spreader events and dispersal of the new mutant strain is now guaranteed to have spread all over the UK on those outbound trains due to poor press management from the PM.
In the previously highlighted Skwawkbox Article, “Why does the new C19 strain matter? How do coronaviruses mutate?” Health adviser Adam Hamdy explains in this short video. Behaviour of coronavirus means government’s decision to ignore ‘zero COVID’ strategy increases UK’s risk of new strains.” I noted how, “Health adviser Adam Hamdy explained the significance of the new virus strain discovered in the south of England, how coronaviruses mutate as distinct from flu viruses – and why the Tories’ appalling handling of the crisis has put the people of this country at greater risk of new and more virulent variants.” This was the inevitable result of the ‘let it rip;’ strategy, but now other countries are closing their borders to us to contain the variant to the UK!
Byline Times describe the UK being “Herded out of immunity” saying, “The more the Coronavirus was allowed to run riot through Britain’s densely populated and highly mobile regions, the more likely an adaptive mutation was to occur.” For anyone who is not as passionately concerned about the welfare of people in the developing world as I am, this is an extremely important reason why vaccines must be readily available and affordable for entire populations in poorer nations as eradication must be global to eliminate the possibility of further mutations. This goal will be damaged by a disgraceful and vile Tory Government decision to slash our UK foreign aid budget commitment as it reduces the resources to accomplish mass vaccination. This budget was already less due to our lower GDP without dropping from .7% to .5%. This is especially damaging at a time when this reduction in funding is further compounded by the poverty of diaspora in Western Industrialized nations causing a drop in remittance money being sent overseas.
The unconscionable Tory selfishness, greed and lust for power is manifested closer to home in tough restrictions imposed with inadequate support in deprived northern areas. In the Skwawkbox Article entitled, “Exclusive: UK into ‘severe’ lockdown before New Year – Wales earlier – as new variant spreads faster and Tories aim to seize back devolved powers,” it explains how they intend to take advantage. They warn that the, “Tory planned power-grab will outrage independence parties…” They also claim that the breweries have been, “told to refuse orders for delivery before 1 Feb as Tories continue to target English pubs and ignore schools. Senior Whitehall sources say that the Tories are preparing to re-impose a ‘severe’ England-wide lockdown before New Year, with Wales entering a similar state a day earlier – and that Boris Johnson will try to exploit the situation aggravated by the emergence of a new coronavirus variant that appears to spread more rapidly, to seize back powers devolved to Scotland and Wales.”
The Skwawkbox report that, “The Tories also intend to continue to target the hospitality sector and to keep schools open, even though schools are by far the bigger driver of the spread of infection. The planned measures include:
• ‘Severe’ lockdown across the U.K. from 29 December
• Lockdown a day earlier for Wales
• Breweries have been informed they must not accept any orders until after 1 February
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon wants the lockdown to last until 31 March, but the Tories have been trying to blame Sturgeon and her Welsh counterpart Mark Drakeford for increased cases in their nations. Johnson aims to remove devolved powers and hopes to win back seats in Scotland and target Labour in Wales.”
In the London Economic Article entitled, “Top Tory joins Sturgeon’s call to extend Brexit transition over Covid chaos,” Henry Goodwin reports that, “A top Tory MP has joined Nicola Sturgeon in calling for an extension to the Brexit transition period, so that ministers can fully focus on tackling the coronavirus crisis. Simon Hoare, chair of the Commons’ Northern Ireland select committee, added his voice to growing calls to ‘stop the clock’ on post-Brexit trade talks with Brussels, claiming that it was ‘time for maturity’. His intervention comes after Sturgeon, the First Minister, said it was ‘imperative’ that Boris Johnson seeks an extension. ‘The new Covid strain – and the various implications of it – means we face a profoundly serious situation, and it demands our 100 per cent attention’ she tweeted on Sunday night. She added: it would be unconscionable to compound it with Brexit’.”
Goodwin continues, “With worsening Covid situation & time of the year I’d really like to see the clock temporarily ‘stopped’ on Brexit talks,’ Hoare said on Monday. ‘There’s no [parliamentary] time to scrutinise & agree a deal & daily clarity of the dangers to our already pressured economy of No Deal is alarming. Time for maturity,’ he added. ‘Talks on a post-Brexit trade deal look set to continue through to Christmas after another weekend of tense negotiations failed to achieve a breakthrough. The source said ‘significant differences’ remained over the key issues of fisheries and the so-called ‘level playing field rules’ on state aid for business. ‘Teams have been negotiating throughout the day and expect to continue tomorrow. Talks remain difficult and significant differences remain,’ the source said. ‘We continue to explore every route to a deal that is in line with the fundamental principles we brought into the negotiations’.”
Goodwin warned that, “The European Parliament had said the talks needed to be concluded by Sunday evening if it was to ratify any deal before the current Brexit transition ends on December 31. However, if there were to be a deal, under EU rules it could be provisionally signed off by leaders of the 27-member bloc with ratification delayed until 2021. Earlier Mr Barnier warned that Britain must be prepared to respect the EU’s sovereignty if the talks were to succeed. He said the EU remained committed to achieving ‘a fair, reciprocal and balanced agreement’ but said both sides needed to be able to act when their interests were at stake.” Barnier is catching on, the EU also has a unique sovereignty to protect so he too can dance the ‘Sovereignty’ tango! So where are we now that deadline has passed? Tories cannot wait to throw up their hands and say the EU abandoned negotiations and we were forced out of the EU by default and they are not to blame for the catastrophe, despite knowing it’s been a Tory goal right from the start.
This severe lockdown scenario will facilitate Tory Government control of the population during the anticipated period of maximum pushback from their catastrophic crash-out Brexit. Any hints of minor UK concessions will have been offered as ‘teasers’ to coax the EU team into thinking Boris Johnson was negotiating in good faith and should be allowed as much time as possible to arrive at a deal. Whatever he might have tossed into the talks will vanish as soon as he has met his ultimate goal of running down the clock till New Year. The EU has exposed the PMs concession, knowing he will be forced to confirm or deny it to the public: it’s gone. Any chance to gather at Christmas must be resisted as this offers the opportunity to both spread the virus and then get blamed for reckless behaviour, enabling the PM to inflict severe consequences. The Covid 19 mutation, if it actually exists, is the consequence of this Government’s chaotic handling of the Pandemic so far, but the British public are being set up to take the blame as usual.
We are losing the freedom to protest on mass now, but there is sufficient evidence already to challenge the legitimacy of this Tory Government even without a full Investigation of the Covert 2019 Rigged Election. Their use of public funds to pay for creation of defamatory smears fed to the media to destroy the reputation and trust in the Leader of the opposition to steal an election victory is serious corruption for which politicians are jailed in credible democratic countries. Evidence of Tory payments to the fake charity, ‘Integrity Initiative’, for this express purpose has already been exposed and documented. British people just have to care enough to want restored democracy for our outrage to translate into legal action that will add to the scandal of billions in squandered public funds as a reason to urgently ‘Get The Tories Out.” If our protests are large enough, loud enough and persistent enough, we stand a chance of having the EU halt Brexit talks and offer to help protect our human rights before our descent into the Tories ‘Sovereign Dictatorship!” DO NOT MOVE ON!