Tribal politics won the day again in the mother(fucker) of all Parliaments as 59 Labour MPs voted yesterday to defeat the Tory motion to stop the extradition of Gary McKinnon to the US (Thus passim). 84 Labour MPs had signed the motion to review the 2003 Extradition Treaty but under pressure from the whips (read [...]
Category Archives: Politics
Epitaph for a rump parliament
June 21, 2009 – 10:41 pm
Thus reader John Poole unearthed Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell’s speech upon dissolving the UK Parliament in 1653, which could be recycled as and when the current smelly rump parliament is dissolved – in a vat of Draino, perhaps? “…It is high time for me to put an end to your sitting in this place, which [...]
Don't Panic! Lord Sugar of Tut will save the economy
June 7, 2009 – 9:31 am
After 13 months of manufacturing decline and with unemployment heading towards 3 million, the unelected British PM has promoted the equally unelected Business Secretary, ‘Lord’ Peter Mandelson, to First Secretary of State in a clear signal that his ‘democratic renewal’ measures mean exactly the opposite. Mandelson, who is really calling the shots at the [...]
Update: Two Treasury Select Committee Members fiddled their expenses
May 21, 2009 – 3:01 pm
This morning The Telegraph reported that Conservative MP Sir Peter Viggers would stand down at the next election, at the request of David Cameron, having claimed over £30,000 in gardening-related expenses, including £1600.00 for a floating duck house. Some wags wondered whether it fell under the MPs’ second home category. Another Tory grandee, Michael Fallon, MP, overclaimed £8300.00 in mortgage [...]
No, Cameron, you can't have an election in our democracy – because you would win!
May 21, 2009 – 9:26 am
While the stench of corruption dissipates, like the fear of swine flu, because we’re all bored now and the Tories are just as culpable, there is a serious danger that Brown and his larcenous mates will get away with it. This vile jelly must be nailed to the wall. Let’s have an election – or [...]
Britain's corrupt politicians deserve a break – send them to prison
May 15, 2009 – 6:52 pm
Thus has steered clear of the Tsunami of revelations about abuse of UK MPs’ expenses and allowances, mainly because we predicted it several weeks ago: “It beggars belief that the Secretary for Employment and Welfare Reform should be found to be either incompetent in his interpretation of Parliamentary allowances rules, or disingenous in their interpretation. [...]
Random facts about funhouse Britain from Thus
April 14, 2009 – 12:30 pm
In no particular order, and with no special weighting, here are a few facts gleaned from the media with help from friends of Thus at Ten. Please feel free to send in your own facts. We need them in this era of spin and errant fantasy: 68% of Britons believe that MP’s salaries are ‘too [...]
Email update: Brown sends personal letters of apology and abdicates government blame
April 14, 2009 – 11:12 am
Over 72 hours after the McBride/Draper/Whelan poisoned email plot was revealed, and 12 hours after UK Government Minister Alan Johnson had denied the need to do so on national radio, Gordon Brown stopped saving the world for a minute and tried instead to save his own skin. The fact that he still refuses to issue [...]