ANDREA JENKYNS
Telegraph: Theresa May’s Offensive Speech Sets The Country on a Dangerous Path
Again, she has demonstrated a failure to listen
Another week has passed of our Government fiddling while Rome burns, as our Party’s little Neros play their harps in the hope of reviving the long-lost support of MPs and activists. On Wednesday evening, journalists lined up outside Number 10 and swamped the Twittosphere with their predictions of what the Prime Minister would say in her statement.
A new deal? A referendum? A general election? The brave acknowledgement that a no-deal could be the last resort? None of the above, of course – just the good old “back-my-deal” refrain that we have heard for the past nine months.
The Prime Minister then had the nerve to blame the Brexit crisis on Parliament. As if MPs had travelled to Brussels to negotiate her lousy deal. As if Parliament had not given a clear indication of the need for legal guarantees that would allow UK to exit the Irish backstop unilaterally when they backed the Brady Amendment and supported the Malthouse Compromise.
The Prime Minister’s statement was not only offensive to the role of Parliament and a testament to her inability to negotiate something that would unite MPs. It was also potentially dangerous. At a time when yellow vest protesters have assaulted the Attorney General’s office, when MPs of all persuasions are encouraged to share taxis on their way out of Parliament to avoid harassment, when the social media feeds of all elected representatives – Leavers or Remainers – are full of threats, Theresa May, from the safety of Number 10, has the guts to pit People against Parliament.
It is irresponsible, to say the least, to blame the House of Commons for the Prime Minister’s failures. She is right when she says that “the people want to get on with it”, but she fails to recognise that the people don’t want her bad deal, that the constitutional crisis is caused by her weak negotiation skills and that using inflammatory language in such a moment will take the country on a dangerous path. You shouldn’t try to be a fire eater if you can’t light a match.
On the other side, the situation is even worse. If Jeremy Corbyn’s history of obsolete Marxist ideas and “purges” of his internal rivals were not enough, Brexit has shown him in an even worse light. A long-time Leaver who campaigned feebly for Remain, he now seems to change his mind daily on whether to support a second referendum to please his urban hipster supporters, or discard the idea not to infuriate the working class strongholds of the North.
Corbyn gave further proof of his statesmanship – or lack thereof – when he walked out a cross-party Brexit meeting with the PM. His reason? Chuka Umunna and Anna Soubry, representing The Independent Group, were in the room too. Now, I’m hardly the biggest fan of the pair myself, but such childish behaviour from the Leader of the Opposition in a time of national stalemate, gives you some idea why Brexit is not being delivered smoothly and on time.
May and Corbyn have shown no real faith in Britain, no real interest in delivering Brexit and no vision for our country. Their egotistical approach has made Britain a laughing stock in Europe. Their lack of leadership is causing a national humiliation. I hope this phase of our politics will end soon and we can find inspiring leaders with fresh ideas for our country. Faith in democracy and the future of our political parties are at stake.
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