3 December 2020
Diary of a Corbynista
Rishi not so dishy.
By Don Urquhart
25 November
The Chancellor presented his Spending Review. To a certain extent it was a George Osborne tribute act. Certainly his reference to Difficult Decisions was a cover version of one of his predecessor’s greatest hits. His backing group of Tory lobby fodder (the Rishiettes?) were all over the media singing the same song.
Personally I think he is misusing the term. A difficult decision is whether to feed the children or turn the heating on. Austerity never went away.
26 November
We will proudly maintain our commitment to spend 0.7 per cent of GNI on development, and do more to help countries receiving aid become self-sufficient.
Thus the Conservative Party manifesto in 2019.
In his Spending Review Mr Sunak told us that he would proudly be cutting our foreign aid commitment from 0.7% of GNI to 0.5%.
All over the media are the results of a Yougov poll telling us that 2/3 of Britons support the cut. It is a deeply reactionary policy which plays to the lowest common denominator of unenlightened opinion. And it is typical of this government. Sadly there would also be high approval ratings for deportation of asylum seekers. People like Johnson and Patel have told them these things are OK and it won’t stop there. Hanging and flogging next?
27 November
On Newsnight Helen Thomas reported on the state of Brexit negotiations. Apparently it was all down to fishing quotas. She said it would be difficult because detailed negotiations are going to be needed on sea areas and species; they are going to take more than 35 days.
Now it seems to me that both sides have had several years to work out every combination of deals related to sea areas and species. What has happened to our civil servants? Has Cummings turned them into zombies?
28 November
The Message Board humming again with reaction to Corbynista Shaw Sheet 257 among other things:
Sunlounger: A grey and rainy day in Spain brightened up with a pikelet for breakfast.
Smoothie: Just waiting to hear what Tier we will be in here; the rough end of Kent has got quite a high rate so we might get lumped in with them, if so disgusted from Tunbridge Wells will be writing to the Telegraph.
Walsall: Pikelet? Not a delicacy we get dahn Sahth, unless they are the feeble things called crumpets.
Smoothie: I thought we weren’t allowed to say ‘Pikey’ and ‘Crumpet’ these days but we should use ’Traveller’ and whatever the gender correct term is.
Walsall: The 2 are entirely unrelated.
“Pikelet – A crumpet or crumpet-like bread which is thinner than a traditional crumpet (Great Britain)”
Not sure I agree with this as the pikelets of my youth were definitely better than the crumpets of my current dotage.
Omicron: Our constituency (Dulwich and West Norwood) recently passed a motion calling for the sacking of David Evans with 2:1 majority, including my vote.
It is the croquet off season at the moment, so I have resuscitated my old Dawes Galaxy touring bike, and have become a flâneur (on wheels) of South East London, and an expert on where to find a decent flat white (note not a flat tyre) on a cycle route.
Sunlounger: Not to be confused with “Piker” who, in consultant speak, is a person with “sloping shoulders” or in American speak a “candy ass”.
29 November
With some time on my hands I threw my hat in the ring for the job of Covid vaccine rollout manager. The panel pointed out that the successful applicant would have to be able to demonstrate the ability to think big and break a few rules along the way. I saw this as playing to my strengths and recounted joyfully the many pens and pencils I had stolen from every one of my employers, indeed offering to bring in some samples. Imagine my astonishment when a chap called Nadhim Zahawi got the job. It seems that he is an MP who had the taxpayer foot the bill for heating the stables at his riding school. Fair enough!
30 November
NEU General Secretary Mary Bousted puts a strong case for closing schools. For example:
Many schools and colleges are at crisis point with staff absences because of COVID isolation. At a recent meeting with a govt minister we were told to tell our members to ‘hold their nerve’!
Twitter contributor Reed between the Lines reacts on behalf of the government:
Woah. Hold up. Wait. Are we seriously suggesting that 12 million people sharing a building with limited hygiene facilities in groups of 30, with no masks or distancing for 7hrs a day, 5 days a week isn’t a great idea during an outbreak of highly communicable disease?
1 December
I guess Starmer is playing for time. In a couple of months the only thing people will remember about Corbyn is that he brought anti-Semitism into the Labour Party. There will still be some who cannot get over the treacherous behaviour of the Parliamentary Labour Party and the party officers who betrayed ordinary Labour Party members but they will be asked whether they would rather sulk than stop the Tories. Many will sigh and move on.
2 December
There goes Debenhams as reported by the BBC:
Debenhams set to close putting 12,000 jobs at risk
No shock for readers of Corbynista. Here’s an extract from the July 2nd entry:
From the start the furlough scheme was designed to protect the owners of businesses rather than the staff. It gave them the chance to plan for the post-lockdown world while minimising staff costs. Most board meetings in March would have had cost cutting as a major theme. They were hoping to come back in a few months time leaner and meaner having shed employees. Where the business could not be saved, the owners were working out how and when to head for the hills
