IdleRich

IdleRich
Personally I would ban MPs from having any other job while they hold office and strictly enforce the rules which are supposed to prevent an outgoing defence secretary, say, working in the arms sector for, well, make it ten years.
If you have to raise their pay to compensate for this and continue to attract people of the calibre of Grayling, Fox and Bozza then so be it. I don't mind MPs earning a decent whack but I would rather they earned it working for the country instead of their MP status merely being a springboard to lucrative lobbying roles which are effectively working against the country's interests.
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
At least we finally have a definitive answer to the millennia old question Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Turns out it's Boris Johnson.
 

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Well-known member
"MPs have backed Boris Johnson's plans to overhaul disciplinary process in a move which blocks the suspension of Owen Paterson; Leadsom amendment passes by 250 votes to 232."
 

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Well-known member
I'm surprised they've bottled it and he's resigned instead. It seemed so brazen a move I couldn't see how they could have gone ahead with it if there were any doubts. I suppose it should be reassuring to think public outrage still carries enough clout to scare them like this, if that is what scared them and it wasn't just the press, but I don't feel reassured, just unsettled by the whole thing.
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
I'm surprised they've bottled it and he's resigned instead. It seemed so brazen a move I couldn't see how they could have gone ahead with it if there were any doubts. I suppose it should be reassuring to think public outrage still carries enough clout to scare them like this, if that is what scared them and it wasn't just the press, but I don't feel reassured, just unsettled by the whole thing.
Just another example of how conventions no longer matter... they will happily do anything they can get away with if the law doesn't literally prevent them. OK on this occasion the individual still resigned but we can all see the intention of Johnson to ride roughshod over the spirit of the rule regardless of the rights and wrongs. And perhaps more worrying is the way that virtually the whole Tory party went allowing it, either able to lie to themselves that it was somehow ok, or else they just didn't care.

Tribalism trumps everything now. I saw arguments on twitter with people saying "what about Labour donors?" which I find very illustrative in two ways; firstly, there is no possible positive argument here, it is so obviously wrong that the only moves available to those seeking to defend it are deflection, whataboutery, changing the subject etc, and secondly, those who support the Tories still feel they must defend it although they have no proper argument and must know it is wrong.

It's a totally shameful episode all round.
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
Poor guy, he's really been through the wringer on this one...

the former Northern Ireland secretary said he would step aside rather than face a 30-day suspension and the prospect of a byelection in his North Shropshire constituency, saying, “I will remain a public servant but outside the cruel world of politics.”

He's really seen the brutal side of politics; all of this huge and unfair kerfuffle sprang up out of nothing, entirely because for years he accidentally and innocently, secretly took money to work for several companies' interests even if they went against the interests of the constituents who were selfishly and meanly expecting him to represent them, simply because he was elected to do that, swore he would and was being paid to do it too.

Some joyless tattle-tale clearly grassed on him for committing this 'crime' which - if you discount all the people it affects - is completely victimless, and then the committee for investigating this sort of thing spitefully investigated it and vindictively applied the rule which completely forbids him from doing it - but which he had only broken in a specific and limited way - leading to his suspension.

Then although a load of his mates tried to save him by retroactively making this kind of corruption legal it was too late, the court of public opinion had already decided that he was guilty, just because he definitely was.

Another good man chewed up and spat out by the machine. How will we attract decent people to politics they get treated like this?
 
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IdleRich

IdleRich
Not sure I have much sympathy here, any one of the backbenchers could have avoided being caught up in today's incompetent mess by simply doing the right thing yesterday and sticking to their supposed principles.

Backbench Conservative MPs, many of whom who had reluctantly supported the government’s extraordinary bid to reopen Paterson’s case on Wednesday, reacted with anger, calling it an “own goal” and “a masterclass in how to turn a minor local crisis into a disaster”.

Basically they voted for something they KNEW was a hundred percent wrong and now they are moaning that they look stupid cos the people they thought would back them have changed their minds.

As usual they're only worried about how their actions look rather than the actual corruption inherent in what they did.
 
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IdleRich

IdleRich
Owen Paterson(@OwenPaterson)
Thank you to the many people who have sent their kind wishes to me and my family this week. At this difficult time, I will be stepping aside from my current consultancy work to focus on my family and suicide prevention.

So are you happy now everyone who hounded this man? Yes, he may have technically "broken" the so-called "law" but the upshot is that the man on the street loses the access they once had to his brilliant (I imagine) consultancy.

I'm glad he is still working to prevent suicide at least, apparently he actually answers the phone to people at their lowest ebb

"Don't do it, you have so much to live for! Are you telling me that you have never even tried Lynn's Country Foods? OK, the second you get off the phone you need to put in a huge order with Lynn's and that will get you back on your feet and turn your life around. Yes I know it's hard to see the connection between your feelings relating to your collapsed marriage and food, but trust me it always works. But it has to be Lynn's right, got that, it's L-Y-N-N apostrophe S. And then, find out what Randox do and spend some money with them. It's the tried and tested method that I use with everyone. It's actually best to set up a standing order just in case anything does happen to you, that way they will still get the money, which is the most important thing here, I'm sure you will agree. Good luck mate. And tell all your friends about Lynn's Country Foods!"
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
These Tory Bastards are living up to their name so fast I can't keep up with it all...

Johnson - Arcuri has revealed a load of hitherto unknown stuff about Johnson telling her he wanted to be "the thrust for her career" and that he bragged to her about over-ruling (in fact, I think he said "crushing") all his advisors who told him that he shouldn't speak at an event organised by her company as it would be a massive and obvious conflict of interests - and just loads of stuff he said about how he really wanted to fuck her and wanted to know how he should abuse his position to help her.

That cunt Mogg - turns out he didn't declare six million in loans at favourable interest rates from the company of which he was a director.

And this one is my favourite of the day

Grant Shapps - BREAKING: Transport Secretary Grant Shapps is using PUBLIC MONEY on lobbyists to oppose the government’s own plans to build on a private runway which he uses.

Plus some backbencher called Brine is also being investigated

Trickle becoming a flood...
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
Johnson is now saying that he is proposing this

"1) The Code of Conduct for MPs is updated
2) MPs who are prioritising outside interests over their constituents are investigated and appropriately punished
3) MPs are banned from acting as paid political consultants or lobbyists"

3 particularly looks like a good and unequivocal rule. I can't believe I'm saying this but us Johnson actually considering doing something I have wanted parliament to do for years?
 
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