Brexit and the waning days of the United Kingdom

[Syt]

I mentioned the latest China espionage scandal that a Labour MP's husband had been arrested on suspicion of spying for China. FT now reporting that the captain of one of the nuclear submarines has stepped back from his role after being investigated for a "relationship" with the MP.

The relationship was investigated last year but while it was inappropriate there was no rule breaking or discipline for the captain.  MoD say they've done security checks again I assume because the husband of the MP has been arrested on espionage charges. The MoD say they are confident there's no security risk, including no blackmail risk. Hopefully it was a different vetting team than we had on Lord Mandelson

Sounds like the setup for a great drama. Or rom com.

[HVC]

So starmer is looking at "closer economic cooperation and closer security cooperation" with the continental countries. If only there was some kind of union that made it simpler.

If Trump wasn't such a shit show the uk would be a contender for the worst politically run country in the last few decades

[Sheilbh]

I can't understand what went wrong with our vetting teams; these are all top people who did PPE at Oxford, who could have anticipated any problems?

The Times had a similar story about the MP behaving inappropriately to a Royal Navy nuclear submarine captain at Faslane.

I had assumed it was the same captain as the FT story but it turns out these are different incidents. I feel like being married to an alleged Chinese spy and having (or trying to have) inappropriate relations with one captain of a nuclear submarine could be unfortunate, with two captains of nuclear submarines...

[Tonitrus]

I can't understand what went wrong with our vetting teams; these are all top people who did PPE at Oxford, who could have anticipated any problems?

"But he was one of us!"

[Sheilbh]

"On the one hand, our American friends are concerned that the DC Embassy head of MI6 is an intemperate homosexual drunk prone to telling anyone how much he admires Stalin. On the other, I played rugby with his uncle, so probably nothing to worry about."