Brexit and the waning days of the United Kingdom

[Sheilbh]

Yeah I've said it before but energy is one of many issues where British people want the lights to stay on and they want net zero, but they don't want more fossil fuel extraction or storage in the UK, or more nuclear or renewables near them, or more interconnector infrastructure.

So instead we'll do/not do all of it for twenty years until we have a crisis - like when Russia invaded Ukraine.

Again I keep mentioning it but it's not building a reservoir (despite repeated attempts) since 1992 despite growing population and change in climate meaning we're realistically facing water shortages in a legendarily rained on country

The default position in British politics is: I want x and I will passionately campaign against all plausible ways of achieving it.

[Tamas]

The default position in British politics is: I want x and I will passionately campaign against all plausible ways of achieving it.

 

 

[Duque de Bragança]

Yeah I've said it before but energy is one of many issues where British people want the lights to stay on and they want net zero, but they don't want more fossil fuel extraction or storage in the UK, or more nuclear or renewables near them, or more interconnector infrastructure.

Which Tory baron was behind the last case? The one using NIMBY-ism since it was crossing his/her property.
You mentioned it earlier, but I forgot.
As for the renewables, the only comparable hysteria here is inland wind turbines.

[Gups]

Government's made the vote on lifting the fracking ban a confidence vote - which probably means they were going to lose it.

Labour already have leaflets ready for areas that might be suitable for fracking to target the Tory MPs in those areas (I think there's about 150 or so) and Truss has now removed the pressure valve of those MPs just voting against the government. That's because she'd lose but she's now putting her own MPs in a position where they either bring down the government and get the whip withdrawn, or they are even more likely to lose their seat.

And there's no real upside that I can think of because fracking isn't going to happen. I don't really get why they're taking so much pain on this issue given that you can allow fracking at a national level as much as you want but I think there's nowhere in the country where it would survive contact with local politics/planning permission.

That's not quite right. It's a Labour motion on banning fracking rather than a Givernment motion lifting the ban. The basis for the confidence motion appears to be that they can't have Labour putting forward its own legislation. But I agree, this seems very risky and politically inept.

[Gups]

Yeah I've said it before but energy is one of many issues where British people want the lights to stay on and they want net zero, but they don't want more fossil fuel extraction or storage in the UK, or more nuclear or renewables near them, or more interconnector infrastructure.

Which Tory baron was behind the last case? The one using NIMBY-ism since it was crossing his/her property.
You mentioned it earlier, but I forgot.
As for the renewables, the only comparable hysteria here is inland wind turbines.

Do you mean the Portsmouth one? It wasn't a Tory baron. The whole of Portsmouth was opposed, Council, residents, local MPs (including Penny Mordaunt and the Labour MP). It was ultimately rejected on national security grounds as the promoter was Russian and linked to Putin (and incidentally a big Tory donor). The project was also rejected by Normandy and by the EU.

I know we all like to laugh about British Nimbyism but, you know what, not all infrastructure is good and some projects just stink. This was one of them.

[Sheilbh]

Very normal headline from Metro:

BREAKING: Suella Braverman has either been sacked or quit as Home Secretary.

[alfred russel]

can we please bring back boris johnson?

[Sheilbh]

can we please bring back boris johnson?

Have you got a wager?

She really was fired and/or resigned - turned out she shared sensitive material on a private phone this morning so a security issue which she self-reported. Though in her letter she also says she has "grave concerns" about the direction of the government - not sure you get to be fired for incompetence and resign on principle

Edit:Worth saying she's been running a pretty blatant leadership campaign from the right and getting into big fights with Number 10 on various issues for the last few weeks so there is a political context.

[PJL]

Makes you wander whether she was angling for an excuse to leave anyway. It all seems very convenient.

[Josquius]

Very normal headline from Metro:

BREAKING: Suella Braverman has either been sacked or quit as Home Secretary.

Just after blaming all the problems on the guardian reading tofu eating coalition of chaos wokerati- my word order is out but word choice not.

[Sheilbh]

Just after blaming all the problems on the guardian reading tofu eating coalition of chaos wokerati- my word order is out but word choice not.

Yes. Never cross big tofu.

Makes you wander whether she was angling for an excuse to leave anyway. It all seems very convenient.

Yeah - especially this line: "Pretending we haven't made mistakes, carrying on as if everyone can't see that we have made them and hoping that things will magically come right is not serious politics. I have made a mistake, I accept responsibility- I resign."

But as I say I jut don't think "I'm incompetent, elect me as your leader" is as strong a pitch as she thinks. But who knows.

Separately, and more admirably, from someone who's very involved with the green Tory side of things/Conservative Environment Network:

Chris Skidmore
@CSkidmoreUK
As the former Energy Minister who signed Net Zero into law, for the sake of our environment and climate, I cannot personally vote tonight to support fracking and undermine the pledges I made at the 2019 General Election.

I am prepared to face the consequences of my decision.

Edit: Tracey Crouch also going to vote against the government. As people are saying party discipline is just gone. And the leadership needs to withdraw the whip from these MPs or they make all the others feel like dupes for backing the government on a confidence vote.

[Richard Hakluyt]

Not really a tofu eater, but I do use soya milk instead of dairy...hopefully that will count for membership of the wokerati 

[The Brain]

Soy! Soy!!!

Dairy of a madman.

[garbon]

I see Nigella has tweeted a recipe for agedashi tofu.

[Sheilbh]

It's Robert Peston so handle with care - but this is extraordinary if it's right. Goverment backing down on this being a confidence vote because of the scale of the rebellion - they've an 80 seat majority

Robert Peston
@Peston
Government announces the fracking vote is no longer a confidence vote - because of the scale of the expected rebellion by Tory MPs. Truss could not afford to expel them.  It is no longer clear what authority she has over her party. Extraordinary. Yes (yawn), another u-turn

I was wondering if she could survive for a while. I thought there was something to Stephen Bush's point that MPs are at the "this is awful, something needs to be done" but it wasn't clear if they were at the "and I have to do it" stage. But I'm with PJL now I think it's probably a matter of weeks (and possibly even less).