The small boats crisis has gone on longer than WWII. I will always regret that I could not solve it.
We have to show people the journey is pointless. Rwanda was criticised as a fantasy, but the real fantasy is thinking you can stop the boats without it.
For some time I had said that if forced to choose between membership of the ECHR and our national and border security, I would pick the latter.
During my tenure, attempting to leave the ECHR with only two years left in the parliament and with no mandate to do so would have been a recipe for constitutional chaos. You couldn't resolve all the issues thrown up by leaving in 24 months with a fractious parliamentary party, a sceptical House of Lords and limited diplomatic capital. Other countries can read our opinion polls.
With the help of KCs, we'd done extensive work on leaving. The plan was to say in the election campaign that we'd seek radical reform of the convention and the court, and leave if that could not be achieved quickly.
Like so many things in that campaign, it didn't go to plan, and we dropped the idea after Nigel Farage entered the race, for fear it would be dismissed as a panic move and make it harder to focus the election on tax and the economy.
With a mandate, a majority and a five-year term, it would be very different, and worth doing.
My Sunday Times column today looks at how 👇
https://t.co/0JgAX59qVJ
@French___Tone@reformparty_uk These mad bastards will deliberately misunderstand due process until it affects someone who’s interest that they want to protect
When Anderson’s colleagues got filmed soliciting illegal donations, he called them “contractors”
@CitizenSuburbia They have just bought another franchise in another sport
They own Roma who’re now flying, they’re building a billion euro ground for them
Gulf states Toyota is faced with uncertainties due to local conflict
It all adds up, we are surplus to their requirements
Kemi wants to not buy on things we can’t afford with money we haven’t got, also build a floating vulnerability that can not protect us ? They spent 37B on an app that didn’t work
A conference speech of no policies and constant bitching !
Kemi today has doubled down that in an event of a Hung Parliament she WOULD NOT allow the Tories to support Reform to run the government.
By defacto that means she would happily allow Labour, Lib and Greens to run the country.
Let that sink in to anyone considering Tories
🔵 Everton are reportedly ready to ok Carlos Alcaraz's exit from the club in January to avoid losing him on a free transfer when his contract expires next summer. Despite a £13m move in 2025, the 23 year old has struggled for minutes under David Moyes due to injuries and the form of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, but a move to Fenerbahce hinges on the club signing a replacement first. (Via Football Insider) #EFC
@DPJHodges@CamillaTominey Look at the three of you, clambering for a return to the liberal centrism that got us into this mess.
Your time is up. You failed.
The pendulum is about to swing back hard in the other direction.
@TacticallyMatt He’s missed a lot of games either side of World Cup years
44 games in 2024/2025
Spat his dummy out when the issues were presented to him, agents inferred we were being under handed for trying to line up other signings
Not for me