“The long march to freedom” has begun, the only problem is the Prime Minster doesn’t know the way or if the Promised Land is a toxic landfill site, or a nirvana where unchained UK citizens are served by carefully selected foreign people.
As you can imagine most of the new, and old, opposition leader’s questions were on Brexit and Theresa May’s plans for it. Only this morning 170 questions from the Labour party over Brexit landed on her desk. A question for each day until the date arrives when we take back control, or lose control at the wheel, depending on your thirst to leave the EU.
The first of the 170 questions should have been, Can you answer any questions, at all, on Brexit? And she could get that right, it would be zero. Not a bad start, just 169 more brain teasers to go Theresa.
During today’s session every question on the EU was met with the same response, that the “UK would get the best deal possible.” The issue is what is the best deal possible? And who decides what that is?
Is it a hard Brexit for the sadomasochists who want to feel the pain, or a soft Brexit for the lily-livered who think that there are at least a few parts of the EU which are worth preserving.
May was asked about the plans to keep a record of foreign workers at each company, and implied that it wasn’t happening, but that they so sort of have a similar system in the US, which works, quite well. So does that mean we are going to register staff members who were not born on these shores? I’m none the wiser and my fear is that neither is May.
Alongside the many unanswered Brexit question there were also quite a few distressing questions about the state of the NHS, again these were batted off, with May saying “they are doing a great job and we must praise the NHS staff” etc etc. However, that is not enough. In the same way that there are no answers for Brexit there are also none for the health service crisis.
It was hard to digest today’s PMQs, as there wasn’t enough nourishment to chew the fat with, the issues of Brexit and maintaining a fully functioning health service are just too big to comprehend, simply too big a beast to swallow. Promising the best Brexit deal and praising doctors who do a good job, aren’t answers, they are excuses. Don’t get me wrong Labour don’t have the answers either, but then they are not the ruling party.
There appears to be a phoney war going on within the Tories – if they concede any ground to the EU, the right wing press will destroy them, and give them less strength when it comes to negotiating the terms of Brexit.
However, it can be shrewd to play with your hand close to your chest, but you need to at least know which game you are playing first.
Sycophantic question of the day
Rishi Sunak, Con, who wants the coast-to-coast walk that goes through his constituency to be recognised nationally. May said he knows about her love of walking, but she hasn’t got the time at the minute, which means the long walk to freedom might be off after all.
Winner
Confusion.