Theresa May’s lack of political acumen meant she wasn’t up for job“The only way to stop a new prime minister pushing for no-deal is a vote of no confidence followed by a general election. Would the DUP support a no-confidence vote or would they vote for no-deal?”Brian Feeney. Irish News. Belfast. Saturday, May 25, 2019 Cold, robotic, obsessive, devoid of emotional intelligence, and according to some, vengeful to people like George Osborne who’d disagreed with her or bested her in an argument, Theresa May is the past.
She failed in everything she set out to do, including reducing immigration to ‘tens of thousands’, just one of her preposterous slogans like ‘Brexit means Brexit’ or ‘strong and stable’ or ‘nothing has changed’.
Amid all the crocodile tears from colleagues who have striven to get rid of her, no-one expressed any affection – it was all about duty, public service, tireless efforts. They’re glad she’s gone. She wasn’t up to the job and her lack of charisma, but more importantly, lack of political acumen, led to 33 ministerial resignations and finally, complete, unprecedented indiscipline in her cabinet.
Best not to go back over the long list of mistakes and misjudgements she made. We are where we are and what a mess she left.
First, the collapse of her premiership means the Stormont talks are going nowhere. The only silver lining means that our current dreadful proconsul, umbilically linked to May, will be sacked, to the regret of no-one.
However, nothing will happen now before the autumn and the establishment of a new British administration. Will the confidence and supply deal with the DUP, which wrecked any prospects of agreement here, be renewed at the end of June? How can it be before a new prime minister is selected, and that won’t happen before July?
At present the favourite is Boris Johnson. Certainly he’s the favourite of the Conservative membership who have the final say.
People talk about his lack of support among Conservative MPs who initially whittle the contenders down to two. At present they look as numerous as a Grand National field, but Conservative members will be telling their MPs to vote for Johnson and if they don’t, asking why not.
In any case, all the contenders will be touting their hard-Brexit credentials, which makes no-deal a real threat. Lest you forget, there are only three legal options: May’s deal, no deal or no Brexit.
Two of those are non-starters. Whoever wins will certainly go to Brussels to demand the backstop be removed or Withdrawal Agreement reopened. They’ll be knocked back. It’s unlikely a hard Brexiteer will ask for another extension because that’s a confession of failure; it means Britain hasn’t left the EU.
There’s another problem with that. Several EU countries, led by President Macron, will oppose any extension as Macron did in April. He correctly predicted there would be an awkward squad of Brexit MEPs from the UK in the new European Parliament.
They will sit there unless and until the UK leaves, potentially obstructing the budget and election of the new Commission and Council presidents. If there’s no extension the UK will have to crash out on October 31.
With a new prime minister in the autumn there’s a new parliamentary session, so all bets are off; no meaningful votes, the resolution preventing no deal not binding.
The only way to stop a new prime minister pushing for no-deal is a vote of no confidence followed by a general election. Would the DUP support a no-confidence vote or would they vote for no-deal?
Remember, Deputy Dodds used to intone like Theresa May, ‘No deal is better than a bad deal.’ Does he still say that?
Now here’s the thing. If it’s Johnson, he won’t make a deal with the DUP until September and if you were the DUP would you trust him?
Theresa May he ain’t. You’re playing senior hurling now lads.
HANDBALL TOURNAMENT The 2nd annual FDNY Doubles Handball Tournament HAS BEEN POSTPONED. The tournament will now be held on Sunday, June 9, at Juniper Park in Middle Village (corner of 80th St / Juniper Blvd North.) The bracket drawing will begin at 8:15 AM, and the tournament will begin by 9:00 AM. To register, log in to PayPal at www.paypal.com/pools/c/8elfE7W2wX and provide names of players, along with payment of $50 per team and a contact number. The first 32 teams will be eligible. Must be an FDNY employee. 1st Prize is $500, 2nd Prize is $200, and 3rd Prize is $100. The rest of the proceeds will be donated to the EMS Health Fund to benefit members in need due to tragic events.
FDNY BARBELL CLUB The FDNY Barbell Club is currently seeking new members. All experience levels in CrossFit; Weightlifting and Powerlifting are welcome. Monthly meeting as well as training times and locations to be determined. Interested members may submit an email with their name; unit and phone number to FDNYBarbellClub@gmail.com. For questions or more information, contact Ricardo Roman at 347-583-1229 or Sasha Gomez at 917-627-3785.
FDNY TRIATHLON TEAM The FDNY Triathlon Team would like to invite any members interested in participating in the 2019 New York City Triathlon on Sunday, July 21, to contact Info@FDNYTri.com. All skill levels are welcome and there is still plenty of time to train! If you’re racing any other events this year, they want to hear from you, too.
FDNY GRAPPLING CLUB The FDNY Grappling Club is currently seeking new members. All experience levels are welcomed (beginner to seasoned grapplers). Training times and locations are to be determined. Interested members may submit an email with name, unit and phone number to fdnygrappling@gmail.com.
Theresa May’s voice broke as she reached the end of her resignation speech. Known as the ‘Maybot’ throughout her premiership her exterior finally cracked. She sounded close to tears as she said it had, ‘been the honour of her life’ to ‘serve the country that I love.’ She wasn’t this emotional during the Windrush scandal, a horrifying disaster of her own making.
May’s resignation starts the bell ringing for the Conservative Party leadership contest. Boris Johnson, Andrea Leadsom, Jeremy Hunt and Michael Gove are all jockeying for position. The winner gets to pretend to be sincere when they go back to Brussels to try to renegotiate the Withdrawal Agreement.
While the burr of the leadership contenders continues in the background, many in Northern Ireland will be wondering what is going to happen to Karen Bradley. A May loyalist, she is one the Prime Minister’s supporters in the cabinet. It’s doubtful whether she’ll survive the incoming change of office.
Theresa May is known for giving robotic answers to questions but Bradley turns it into a horrifying art form. Everything is a devolved matter. The Northern Ireland Office is a benign, powerless void, bravely buying lanyards to support the LGBT community while the natives fight amongst themselves.
The Supreme Court said, obiter, last year that Northern Ireland’s abortion laws breached the European Convention of Human Rights. Bradley said the British Government would only act if the European Court of Human Rights said there was a breach. Who knew the government in this country cared this much about the European Court? It only took twelve years for minor changes to be made to the the law regarding voting rights for prisoners.
The Secretary of State has still not implemented legislation to compensate victims of Historical and Institutional Abuse. Bradley is insisting that Northern Ireland’s political parties need to answer further questions before she can do anything. Victims, who have already had to face a grueling legal process, staged protests outside Castle Coole on the 21st May while Bradley was there for a royal garden party.
Only this week, Bradley told victims of the Blood Infection Scandal that devolution was the best way to resolve the difference between financial support between England and Northern Ireland. One victim said that they were being used as “political football.”
Even before her most recent comments, Bradley was already unpopular with the political parties. She was seen as uninterested, disengaged and unwilling to put the hard work in to get the talks process started. On this Northern Ireland’s politicians are united: Karen Bradley is a terrible Secretary of State.
Bradley is painted as a character from the Thick of It, incompetent rather than malicious. After the past few weeks I’m starting to doubt that assessment. I think the cruelty is the point.
We have long memories in Northern Ireland. The legacy Theresa May leaves behind will be picked over for generations. Do us all a favour, Prime Minster, take Karen Bradley with you on the way out.
Theresa May will step down as leader of the British Conservative Party
on 7 June and will remain in office as British Prime Minister until her
successor is selected, she announced today.
The British Prime Minister broke down as she said it had been “the
honour of my life” to serve “the country that I love”.
Mrs May faced calls for her resignation after her own party slumped to
10% in some opinion polls ahead of European elections in Britain and the
north of Ireland yesterday. Her latest plans to win support for Brexit
had also again been rejected by both the opposition and a number of her
own Cabinet Ministers.
Speaking at Downing Street today, Mrs May said she had “done everything
I can to convince MPs to back that deal but sadly have not been able to
do that”.
She added: “I tried three times. It is and will always remain a matter
of deep regret to me that I have not been able to deliver Brexit.”
May’s tentative steps towards allowing a second vote on Brexit, a move
which could have spelled the end of the project, was too much for senior
Tories who have been champing at the bit for the opportunity to replace
her.
Boris Johnson, the clownish former Foreign Secretary renowned for his
racist gaffes (pictured, inset), is tipped by bookies as the most likely
candidate to be the next Prime Minister.
After years of mechanically attempting to force an unpopular and
dangerous Brexit through parliament, May ironically advised her
successor that compromise will be key in the coming months to find a
solution to the Brexit impasse.
“To find a way forward, he or she will have to find a consensus in
parliament, where I have not,” May said. “Such a consensus can only be
reached if those on all sides of the debate are willing to compromise.:
She added: “For many years the great humanitarian Sir Nicholas Winton,
who saved the lives of hundreds of children by arranging their
evacuation from Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia, through the Kinder
transport, was my constituent in Maidenhead.
“At another time of political controversy before his death, he took me
aside at a local event and gave me a piece of advice, ‘never forget that
compromise is not a dirty word, life depends on compromise,’ he was
right,” an emotional Mrs May said.
She will stand down as Tory leader on June 7 and the process of electing
her successor will begin then.
Rioting took place in Derry on Thursday night as polls closed in the election to the European Parliament and as British Prime Minister Theresa May was said to be preparing to announce her resignation over the collapse of support for her party.
Petrol bombs were thrown at the PSNI police in Glengalliagh Park after they attended a bomb alert on Moss Road. The PSNI said the disorder had been “orchestrated”.
The riot, a repeat of one that took place during local council elections earlier this month, will increase pressure on multi-party talks taking place in Belfast. Negotiations involving the Dublin and London governments have so far failed to address the ongoing violence in Derry.
The trouble came as voting was winding down in a closely-fought election to elect three MEPs in the North and ahead of elections in the 26 Counties later today.
There is a chance that the Euro election could be the first in the North in which the number of elected unionists falls to parity with nationalists or even below, a result which could lead to renewed calls for a border poll on Irish reunification.
MAY HEADS FOR THE EXIT
In Britain, the ruling Conservative Party looks set for an unprecedented defeat, and British Prime Minister Theresa May is widely reported to be expected to announce a timeframe for her resignation later today [Friday].
It is reported that May will announce that she will quit as leader of the Conservative Party early in June, staying on until after a state visit by US President Donald Trump, and remaining as British Prime Minister until her successor is chosen.
May’s demise became more certain this week as potential successors forced her to postpone the planned publication of legislation for Brexit and clarify her resignation date.
There was further controversy during voting in Britain on Thursday as more than 500 EU citizens who believed they were registered voters were refused the right to vote on the basis of technicalities. That number included a small number of Irish people who fell foul of new, Brexit-related bureaucracy over the voting rights of EU citizens. Labour MP David Lammy said the development amounted to “ugly discrimination” for people who had endured “three years of being insulted, exploited and asked to apply to stay in their own homes”.
In the 26 Counties, voting begins later today in local and EU elections, as well as a referendum on making divorce easier. There are 31 local authorities, with a total of 949 seats. A total of 1,977 candidates are running for election.
There are three Euro constituencies — Dublin (four seats), Ireland South (five seats) and Midlands North West (four seats). The final candidate elected in both Dublin and the Ireland South constituencies must wait to take their seats until Brexit actually happens.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said that the elections are an opportunity to “pass judgment on an out of touch and incompetent government”, pointing in particular to the failure of the minority government on housing.
“Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael should not be rewarded for leaving a generation with no prospect of owning their own home, they should not be rewarded for 21st century tenements where 42 people are expected to share a kitchen,” she said.
Polls open at 7am this [Friday] morning and they will remain open until 10pm tonight. State-run broadcaster RTE says it will announce the results of an exit poll after voting closes.
Local election results from individual constituencies will start coming on Saturday afternoon but most will become known on Sunday. The referendum result will be revealed late Saturday or early Sunday.
Counting for the EU election will only commence in the 26 Counties on Sunday morning, though no results will be announced until polls have closed all over Europe at 10pm Sunday evening. Most results from Ireland’s three European constituencies will become available on Monday.
Counting for the EU election in the Six Counties will only begin on Monday morning and should be known by Monday evening. Results will be published here through the weekend and into Monday.
