Johnson has to steady ship
BORIS Johnson’s currently like the captain of a stricken ship drifting aimlessly out to sea, and the latest catastrophic crisis is highlighted by a volcano erupting over the non-opening of pubs and restaurants linked to the two-metre safety social distancing.
There will be horrific unemployment if the country’s 26,000 restaurants can’t reopen soon, so the Government must overcome their weakness and indecision. France’s famous cafes on roadside pavements are open again with a one-metre rule. Italy, the first European country to capitulate to coronavirus, and Germany are enforcing 1.5 metres with a reduced number of tables.
Johnson’s priority must be to revive a disastrous economy, and apart from pubs and restaurants, must launch a major resurgence of Britain’s cultural institutions such as cinemas, theatres, cinemas, museums, concert halls, etc.
The slow start to stem the virus is well documented, but since there have been confusing and vague messages, with
Johnson’s recent TV address inexplicably changing the slogan from ‘Stay Home’ to ‘Stay Alert’, provoking widespread irritation.
With the plan to relax the lockdown Boris needed senior civil servants to deliver a clear common-sense scheme, but they failed and he’s also been let down by some of Whitehall’s perennial bunglers, who he failed to identify and remove, so he’s now lost his halo and a huge amount of public support.
Before the beginning of July, Boris needs to address Parliament, and then on TV the nation, to restore the country’s confidence that his Government machine will fire on all cylinders and ‘normality’ return as soon as possible.
I’ve never been a Boris fan, but if there’s further horrendous hiccups, the question must be asked: “Is he really up to the job?”and with that I include Brexit.
The public expects no less.
Their representatives ought not be spending time in internal hustings if there is a clear view that their performance merits continuing endorsement. If it does not, the open selection that Lesley is so keen on will take place. That is the clear benefit of the process, particularly during a crisis such as a pandemic.
To the best of my knowledge, Lesley offered no objection when she was judged to have performed well enough as a ward councillor in 2011 and 2015 to be re-selected without the need for a full open selection to distract her from her duties.
What is most distasteful about Lesley’s letter is the assertion that after eight years an incumbent should be looking forward to a rest. I would remind Lesley that the Labour Party stands for equality on the basis of sex, race, gender, sexual orientation and age.