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| PM delivers pies to the Northern Powerhouse |
Oh, what a travesty of democracy. First, we are disenfranchised from the appointment of yet another new prime minister and now we are about to be disengaged from the emergence of new government policies after the spurious arrival of PM Boris Johnson. There can be few Prime Ministers that have been trashed by colleagues, editors, and past friends with such unanimity as Boris Johnson. When senior Tory Party figures like John Major, Michael Heseltine, Ken Clarke and Malcolm Rifkind are queuing up to give interviews to TV, radio and the press about how unsuitable he is to be PM, and this is echoed by some of his erstwhile colleagues from the present cabinet and junior ministers like Philip Hammond, David Gauke, Rory Stewart, Alan Duncan and Margot James, you know that there is trouble ahead.
Even more devastating has been the critique of Johnson by his former editor at the Daily Telegraph, Max Hastings, who in 2012 wrote "He is not a man to believe in, to trust or respect, save as a superlative exhibitionist. He is bereft of judgment, loyalty and discretion. Only in the star-crazed, frivolous Britain of the 21st century could such a man have risen so high, and he is utterly unfit to go higher still." He added that "If the day ever comes that Boris Johnson becomes tenant of Downing Street, I shall be among those packing my bags for a new life in Buenos Aires or suchlike because it means that Britain has abandoned its last pretensions to be a serious country."
Sonia Purnell, his journalist colleague during his days as the Brussels correspondent of the Daily Telegraph was equally dismissive of his integrity. She had previously published Just Boris: A Tale of Blond Ambition in 2011 that offered a withering insight of his lassitude in dealing with detail and his probity with the truth. Even the BBC are exposing him to more rigorous scrutiny than is their normal practice when they are in fear of being accused of imbalanced reporting. This may be because he has refused almost all invitations to be interviewed, although he did get speared by Andrew Neil, not that he seemed to worry. Channel 4 news seems to be in no doubt that he is a loose water cannon and take delight in highlighting his habit of evading questions, responsibility and evidence.
His record as the Mayor of London was lauded by his team of sycophantic supporters but forensically dissembled by those who worked for him. Routemaster buses that cost £321.6m but were unsuitable for commercial operations as well as being major pollutants, a garden bridge that was 'vanity in Excelsis' and wasted £53.5m. The Thames estuary airport study cost £5.6m but was never published because it did not support his desired objective. The Boris bike scheme has cost a total of £225m when it was supposed to wash its face. Then, the debacle about the £323m funding for the refitting of the Olympic stadium for West Ham football club and its dodgy owners. What does Boris Johnson stand for, well according to one of his rare recent interviews: freedom and the better use of public money. The man has some serious chutzpah and, to be fair, he would probably claim this as a positive attribute.
He has talked of his implied Promethean qualities but whilst he may be rebellious, he is more destructive than creative and his innovative instincts are largely focused on humour rather than tangible ideas. What a contrast to the UK's best but least well known post war PM, Clem Attlee. He had integrity and diligence in spades and a genuine commitment to social justice following his years of voluntary work in London's East End. Reading his excellent biography by John Bew was understanding the true characteristics of public service. The absence of rancour and his understanding of the need for collaboration was in stark contrast to the antipathy of compromise by more recent PMs such as Brown and May. Attlee established policies and created institutions that his Tory successors accepted, and in the case of Harold McMillan, further enhanced because they were proven to improve the lives of citizens.
With Boris Johnson we have no idea what will happen, it will depend on who he listens to and his bent on the day. As John Crace summed up Mrs May's premiership, he captured the fears of Boris Johnson with astute and probably prophetic humour: "Her real legacy is leaving the country in the hands of someone even more unfit to be prime minister than herself."
Even more devastating has been the critique of Johnson by his former editor at the Daily Telegraph, Max Hastings, who in 2012 wrote "He is not a man to believe in, to trust or respect, save as a superlative exhibitionist. He is bereft of judgment, loyalty and discretion. Only in the star-crazed, frivolous Britain of the 21st century could such a man have risen so high, and he is utterly unfit to go higher still." He added that "If the day ever comes that Boris Johnson becomes tenant of Downing Street, I shall be among those packing my bags for a new life in Buenos Aires or suchlike because it means that Britain has abandoned its last pretensions to be a serious country."
Sonia Purnell, his journalist colleague during his days as the Brussels correspondent of the Daily Telegraph was equally dismissive of his integrity. She had previously published Just Boris: A Tale of Blond Ambition in 2011 that offered a withering insight of his lassitude in dealing with detail and his probity with the truth. Even the BBC are exposing him to more rigorous scrutiny than is their normal practice when they are in fear of being accused of imbalanced reporting. This may be because he has refused almost all invitations to be interviewed, although he did get speared by Andrew Neil, not that he seemed to worry. Channel 4 news seems to be in no doubt that he is a loose water cannon and take delight in highlighting his habit of evading questions, responsibility and evidence.
His record as the Mayor of London was lauded by his team of sycophantic supporters but forensically dissembled by those who worked for him. Routemaster buses that cost £321.6m but were unsuitable for commercial operations as well as being major pollutants, a garden bridge that was 'vanity in Excelsis' and wasted £53.5m. The Thames estuary airport study cost £5.6m but was never published because it did not support his desired objective. The Boris bike scheme has cost a total of £225m when it was supposed to wash its face. Then, the debacle about the £323m funding for the refitting of the Olympic stadium for West Ham football club and its dodgy owners. What does Boris Johnson stand for, well according to one of his rare recent interviews: freedom and the better use of public money. The man has some serious chutzpah and, to be fair, he would probably claim this as a positive attribute.
He has talked of his implied Promethean qualities but whilst he may be rebellious, he is more destructive than creative and his innovative instincts are largely focused on humour rather than tangible ideas. What a contrast to the UK's best but least well known post war PM, Clem Attlee. He had integrity and diligence in spades and a genuine commitment to social justice following his years of voluntary work in London's East End. Reading his excellent biography by John Bew was understanding the true characteristics of public service. The absence of rancour and his understanding of the need for collaboration was in stark contrast to the antipathy of compromise by more recent PMs such as Brown and May. Attlee established policies and created institutions that his Tory successors accepted, and in the case of Harold McMillan, further enhanced because they were proven to improve the lives of citizens.
With Boris Johnson we have no idea what will happen, it will depend on who he listens to and his bent on the day. As John Crace summed up Mrs May's premiership, he captured the fears of Boris Johnson with astute and probably prophetic humour: "Her real legacy is leaving the country in the hands of someone even more unfit to be prime minister than herself."
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