Is Boris sh*tting himself?

[Kermit power]

paulrockliffe said:

Fittster said:

These chaps don't think so.

https://ukconstitutionallaw.org/2016/06/27/nick-ba...

Gove can't just get the keys to number 10 and put his signature on Article 50 even if he wanted to. The process will tie up and government (which may well require an election) for years to come,

Edited by Fittster on Thursday 30th June 12:33

You can tell that article is probably wrong because the key bit, who can pull the trigger, is only mentioned in the first paragraph, then there is pages of waffle about other things.

Right or wrong, it's a formality. We may well need an act of parliament to invoke the clause, but I would assume the only sensible thing that MPs could do would be to vote yes or no in line with how their constituency voted, and the bill would go through. Granted, it can take a fair amount of time to go through, but it could be done in a matter of days...

[glazbagun]

What a cock. Spewed a load of total st and helped fk the country over and won't stand for the lead role in cleaning his mess up. Throw him in a cell with Blair. He should be banned from politics and have his assets donated to the civil service. Parasite.

[Mr_B]

glazbagun said:

What a cock. Spewed a load of total st and helped fk the country over and won't stand for the lead role in cleaning his mess up. Throw him in a cell with Blair. He should be banned from politics and have his assets donated to the civil service. Parasite.

Again, another post on PH which I'm not sure is meant to be ironic comedy or your real view. Can you clarify for me please ?

[Bradgate]

RYH64E said:

If I had to guess, there were too many skeletons in the Boris cupboard that would have come out in the leadership election. The press would have had a field day.

Agreed,

Mrs Gove is a senior journo at the Fail, so it looks like Gove has told Boris that if he ran for PM, several of those skeletons would end up on the front page.

[Granfondo]

The PM job is like the Manchester United job after Sir Alex Ferguson you don't want to be the next one or maybe even the one after that!
Mayb BoJo is pulling a flanker of his own!

[Starfighter]

Would it not depend on the EU? If the PM wrote a letter or made a speech being explicit that the UK was invoking Article 50 and that this has the backing of the people then I would expect them to accept it and start the clock. I would doubt to EU would ask for convent from parliament as that is not a stated requirement in the treaty. That would leave smeins to object in the Europan Court which would likely say tough.

[Diderot]

Fact is the are 16 million voters blaming Boris on Brexit; he knew he'd be unelectable in general election. It's that simple.

[MarshPhantom]

Diderot said:

Fact is the are 16 million voters blaming Boris on Brexit; he knew he'd be unelectable in general election. It's that simple.

Exactly, he's made himself very unpopular. He's gone from lovable fool to village idiot.

[RizzoTheRat]

MarshPhantom said:

But Tory MPs are overwhelmingly pro-remain, roughly 180 vs 130 according to Conservative Home. Why would they vote for a leader that will do the opposite of what they want.

Interesting point. Given that something like 60% of conservative voters voted to leave, will the MP's go the way they want or the way their constituents want?

[Flip Martian]

Bradgate said:

Agreed,

Mrs Gove is a senior journo at the Fail, so it looks like Gove has told Boris that if he ran for PM, several of those skeletons would end up on the front page.

British politics at its finest.

[terry tibbs]

Greg66 said:

turbobloke said:

Greg66 said:

Ahem. Boris has just pulled out.

Yes he has - that's politicians for you. There's no trusting a word they don't say.

As per my recent post, it turns out Boris was stting himself. Which is a pity for the Tories in terms of 2020.

It seems clear to me now that the reason they were all so quiet over the weekend was that they were all binge-watching Game of Thrones S1-6, and getting some strategy ideas.

pity no one in the tories looks like Daenerys Targaryen

[Lucas Ayde]

Tuna said:

Boris can't win:

"He only led Leave so he could become Prime Minister"

"He's not Prime Minister material - he shouldn't be allowed"

.. Boris doesn't stand for PM

"How dare he not be Prime Minister!"

Some people are so desperate for the bad dream to go away that they're imagining invoking Article 50 is so scary that no-one will dare do it. I can see at least two candidates who look like they are absolutely committed to making it happen.

Truth.

But don't expect the media to acknowledge that. They are already framing it as him pulling back from Brexit.

You can see the full apparatus of the establishment setting up the pieces - BBC at the front of course. Brexit will not be allowed to happen - either parliament will refuse to trigger Article 50 or there will be a second referendum with the dice pre-loaded for doom (as it happening) if the result is not 'correct' this time. It's the EU way, it has happened every other time a nation has stood up against what the EU wants (usually in a referendum).

[Lucas Ayde]

RizzoTheRat said:

Interesting point. Given that something like 60% of conservative voters voted to leave, will the MP's go the way they want or the way their constituents want?

They'll go whichever way gives themselves the most benefit and then try to sell that to the plebs, like they always do.

Given the massive trough of cushy, well paid, largely unaccountable jobs available for compliant politician types in the EU, it's not hard to see which way the average backbencher is going to go.

The mainstream media is already softening up the populace for a political rogering - witness the scare stories about the economic wobbles (falls given blanket coverage, subsequent recovery given far less prominence) plus a stream of regretful Brexit voters who are recanting their decisions. And the continuing vilification of the Brexit leaders - Boris (now toxic) and Farage (continually depicted as a modern Oswald Mosely).

[WestyCarl]

MarshPhantom said:

Diderot said:

Fact is the are 16 million voters blaming Boris on Brexit; he knew he'd be unelectable in general election. It's that simple.

Exactly, he's made himself very unpopular. He's gone from lovable fool to village idiot.

Kind of messed up logic as there are 17m voters celebrating him in leading the leave campaign.........

[anonymous-user]

I'm not at all surprised. I've long since wondered if Boris wasn't a willing sacrifice in a game he was never supposed to win. The Tories have controlled both sides of the Brexit debate; stay or leave that guaranteed the Government would have MP's 'with a mandate' to take charge post referendum. I wonder if Boris ever wanted the top job. Far too much like hard work, I certainly wouldnt want it...

[Dr Jekyll]

I see Richard Dawkins is reported to have endorsed Boris.

[Sam All]

MarshPhantom said:

Diderot said:

Fact is the are 16 million voters blaming Boris on Brexit; he knew he'd be unelectable in general election. It's that simple.

Exactly, he's made himself very unpopular. He's gone from lovable fool to village idiot.

He has not done badly for himself so far. His story is far from over. He just does not want to be at front, knowing there are many land mines strewed all over the place.

[405dogvan]

Boris is nowhere near as stupid as he looks/behaves, he lacks a thick skin tho and has a knack of shooting himself in the foot (such as this week's column which almost certainly led Gove to decide to stab him)

At this stage I suspect he's waiting for lots of people to say "Hey Boris PLEASE stand" - he needs a cuddle before he takes his kills y'see...

I dislike him personally but as the major figure of Leave I expect him to throw his hat in - if he stands-aside, he really is looking at a new career (people say that a lot about him but this would be hard to come back from!?)

Gove's only role in life is being the man with the most punchable face on earth (yes, even more than Farage) - he's a slimy weasel married to a slimier weasel so probably ideal for the job of Tory Leader but disastrous for the country and absolutely unelectable in a GE if Labour appoints an actual human being as their leader this time.

This leaves Theresa May - a best worst candidate for sure, a not-quite-Thatcher and a not-quite Leaver (which is a problem in my eyes). I have no idea how electable she is but I know her face and voice will significantly reduce my consumption of political TV because 'nails' and 'blackboard'.

[turbobloke]

Sam All said:

MarshPhantom said:

Diderot said:

Fact is the are 16 million voters blaming Boris on Brexit; he knew he'd be unelectable in general election. It's that simple.

Exactly, he's made himself very unpopular. He's gone from lovable fool to village idiot.

He has not done badly for himself so far. His story is far from over. He just does not want to be at front, knowing there are many land mines strewed all over the place.

Reports of his demise from his main fan club member MP as above are greatly exaggerated.

It's disappointing not to have him in the mix and after his role in the referendum he should have been prepared to front up. Given a week is a long time in politics, he'll do an Arnie as you suggest.

[TTwiggy]

terry tibbs said:

Greg66 said:

turbobloke said:

Greg66 said:

Ahem. Boris has just pulled out.

Yes he has - that's politicians for you. There's no trusting a word they don't say.

As per my recent post, it turns out Boris was stting himself. Which is a pity for the Tories in terms of 2020.

It seems clear to me now that the reason they were all so quiet over the weekend was that they were all binge-watching Game of Thrones S1-6, and getting some strategy ideas.

pity no one in the tories looks like Daenerys Targaryen

Nicola Sturgeon to come riding in on Nessie?