Labour forces final humiliation on Johnson as Sunak looks weak and feeble

Published

2 years ago

June 19, 2023

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To the very end, Boris Johnson and his dwindling band of supporters – and Rishi Sunak and the Tory high command – were outwitted by the Labour Party in the parliamentary battle over partygate.

At the beginning of the Privileges Committee process, back in April 2022, the Tories failed to spot the trap being laid when an Opposition motion to launch the inquiry was allowed to go through unopposed, “on the nod”.

And at the end, after Mr Johnson “called off the dogs” last Friday and ordered his supporters to abstain at the end of the marathon debate on the committee’s report, Labour sprang another trap.

Mr Sunak – who now looks weak and feeble after skipping the debate and the vote – had desperately wanted the report to go through “on the nod” as well, in a bid to conceal the bitter Tory divisions.

But as Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle called the vote after more than five hours of acrimonious debate, Labour’s wily chief whip Sir Alan Campbell bellowed “No! No! No” in Sir Lindsay’s ear to make sure there was a division.

Then he and his deputy, Lilian Greenwood, acted as tellers so the division would go ahead.

And Mr Johnson’s humiliation was complete when just seven Conservative MPs voted against the committee’s damning report.

It was just the outcome Mr Johnson and his close allies didn’t want.

An overwhelming majority backs the report

It was after The Daily Telegraph reported on Friday that only seven MPs were set to vote against the report that he “called off the dogs”.

And indeed there were just seven votes in Mr Johnson’s defence when it came to the vote. No wonder Mr Johnson asked his allies to stay away.

But 118 Conservative MPs voted to damn him, including several government ministers and senior backbenchers, led by former PM Theresa May and including 1922 Committee chairman Sir Graham Brady.

Cabinet ministers and those who attend cabinet voting for the largely symbolic punishment of denying Mr Johnson a Commons pass available to ex-MPs were Alex Chalk, David TC Davies, Simon Hart, Gillian Keegan, Chloe Smith, Penny Mordaunt, Andrew Mitchell and Tom Tugendhat.

The Johnson diehards were Sir Bill Cash, Nick Fletcher, Adam Holloway, Karl McCartney, Joy Morrissey, Sir Desmond Swayne and Heather Wheeler. But many of the former PM’s cheerleaders did indeed abstain.

Johnson’s reputation shredded

The marathon debate saw speaker after speaker – mostly opposition MPs, it must be said, but including several Tories – trash Mr Johnson’s reputation even more than it has been already.

Now he’s out of parliament and has been condemned by a report by a senior Commons committee, they were free to call him a liar. No worries about unparliamentary language. And they did, at every opportunity.

The stars of the debate were Mrs May and Harriet Harman, who made towering, blockbuster speeches early on.

Mrs May made the statesmanlike speech about the public’s trust in politics that Mr Sunak should have made.

The case for the defence was later led by knights of the shires Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg and Sir Bill Cash, but their attacks on the committee were too lawyerly and got bogged down in detail.

And a red wall backlash backfired after Lia Nici, MP for Great Grimsby, made a defiant speech in which she said she would vote against the report and then didn’t. Who nobbled her?

At least fellow red waller Nick Fletcher, from Don Valley – who made a good speech defending Mr Johnson, pointing out that he almost died from COVID – was true to his word and voted against.

While the drama was unfolding in the Commons chamber, in the VIP gallery for the early part of the debate was screen and stage legend Sir Ian McKellen, best known for his role of Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

That story is, of course, a fantasy.

Now Boris Johnson has paid the price for his fantasy claims about no lockdown rules being broken in Downing Street during the COVID pandemic.

World

Why Putin won’t agree to latest Ukraine peace plan

Published

5 hours ago

December 3, 2025

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Why Putin won't agree to latest Ukraine peace plan

The Americans were given the full VIP treatment on their visit to Moscow.

There was a motorcade from the airport, lunch at a Michelin-starred restaurant, and even a stroll around Red Square.

It felt like Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were on more of a tourist trail than the path to peace.

They finally got down to business in the Kremlin more than six hours after arriving in Russia. And by that point, it was already clear that the one thing they had come to Moscow for wasn’t on offer: Russia’s agreement to their latest peace plan.

According to Vladimir Putin, it’s all Europe’s fault. While his guests were having lunch, he was busy accusing Ukraine’s allies of blocking the peace process by imposing demands that are unacceptable to Russia.

The Europeans, of course, would say it’s the other way round.

But where there was hostility to Europe, only hospitality to the Americans – part of Russia’s strategy to distance the US from its NATO allies, and bring them back to Moscow’s side.

Putin thinks he’s winning…

Russia wants to return to the 28-point plan that caved in to its demands. And it believes it has the right to because of what’s happening on the battlefield.

It’s no coincidence that on the eve of the US delegation’s visit to Moscow, Russia announced the apparent capture of Pokrovsk, a key strategic target in the Donetsk region.

It was a message designed to assert Russian dominance, and by extension, reinforce its demands rather than dilute them.

…and believes US-Russian interests are aligned

The other reason I think Vladimir Putin doesn’t feel the need to compromise is because he believes Moscow and Washington want the same thing: closer US-Russia relations, which can only come after the war is over.

It’s easy to see why. Time and again in this process, the US has defaulted to a position that favours Moscow. The way these negotiations are being conducted is merely the latest example.

With Kyiv, the Americans force the Ukrainians to come to them – first in Geneva, then Florida.

As for Moscow, it’s the other way around. Witkoff is happy to make the long overnight journey, and then endure the long wait ahead of any audience with Putin.

It all gives the impression that when it comes to Russia, the US prefers to placate rather than pressure.

According to the Kremlin, both Russia and the US have agreed not to disclose the details of yesterday’s talks in Moscow.

I doubt Volodymyr Zelenskyy is filled with hope.

World

FIFA backs away from dynamic pricing for all World Cup 2026 tickets

Published

8 hours ago

December 3, 2025

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FIFA backs away from dynamic pricing for all World Cup 2026 tickets

FIFA has backed away from using dynamic pricing for all 2026 World Cup tickets amid concerns about the cost of attending the tournament in North America.

The organisers insisted they always planned to ring-fence tickets at set prices to follow your own team.

But the announcement comes just days ahead of Friday’s tournament draw in Washington DC, which Donald Trump plans to attend.

Fans will have to wait until Saturday to know exactly where and when their teams will be playing in next summer’s tournament.

Variable pricing – fluctuating based on demand – has never been used at a World Cup before, raising concerns about affordability.

England and Scotland fans have been sharing images in recent days of ticket website images highlighting cost worries.

But world football’s governing body said in a statement to Sky News: “FIFA can confirm ringfenced allocations are being set aside for specific fan categories, as has been the case at previous FIFA World Cups. These allocations will be set at a fixed price for the duration of the next ticket sales phase.

“The ringfenced allocations include tickets reserved for supporters of the Participating Member Associations (PMAs), who will be allocated 8% of the tickets for each match in which they take part, including all conditional knockout stage matches.”

FIFA says the cheapest tickets are from $60 (£45) in the group stage. But the most expensive tickets for the final are $6,730 (£5,094).

There will also be a sales window after the draw from 11 December to 13 January when ticket applications will be based on a fixed price for those buying in the random selection draw.

It is the biggest World Cup with 104 matches after the event was expanded from 32 to 48 teams. There are also three host nations for the first time – with Canada and Mexico the junior partners.

FIFA defended using fluctuating pricing.

“The pricing model adopted for FIFA World Cup 26 reflects the existing market practice for major entertainment and sporting events within our hosts on a daily basis, soccer included,” FIFA’s statement continued.

“This is also a reflection of the treatment of the secondary market for tickets, which has a distinct legal treatment than in many other parts of the world. We are focused on ensuring fair access to our game for existing but also prospective fans.”

The statement addressed the concerns being raised about fans being priced out of attending.

FIFA said: “Stadium category maps do not reflect the number of tickets available in a given category but rather present default seating locations.

“FIFA resale fees are aligned with North American industry trends across various sports and entertainment sectors.”

Ireland, Northern Ireland and Wales could also still qualify.

World

Why Putin won’t agree to latest Ukraine peace plan

Published

8 hours ago

December 3, 2025

admin

The Americans were given the full VIP treatment on their visit to Moscow.

There was a motorcade from the airport, lunch at a Michelin-starred restaurant, and even a stroll around Red Square.

It felt like Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were on more of a tourist trail than the path to peace.

The Europeans, of course, would say it’s the other way round.

But where there was hostility to Europe, only hospitality to the Americans – part of Russia’s strategy to distance the US from its NATO allies, and bring them back to Moscow’s side.

Putin thinks he’s winning…

Russia wants to return to the 28-point plan that caved in to its demands. And it believes it has the right to because of what’s happening on the battlefield.

It’s no coincidence that on the eve of the US delegation’s visit to Moscow, Russia announced the apparent capture of Pokrovsk, a key strategic target in the Donetsk region.

It was a message designed to assert Russian dominance, and by extension, reinforce its demands rather than dilute them.

…and believes US-Russian interests are aligned

It’s easy to see why. Time and again in this process, the US has defaulted to a position that favours Moscow. The way these negotiations are being conducted is merely the latest example.

With Kyiv, the Americans force the Ukrainians to come to them – first in Geneva, then Florida.

As for Moscow, it’s the other way around. Witkoff is happy to make the long overnight journey, and then endure the long wait ahead of any audience with Putin.