Theresa May (and Vladimir Putin)
Theresa May might be many things, but a leader she most certainly is not. Indecision, fear and a huge lack of conviction in anything at all are the hallmarks of her early days as British prime minister.
Take, for instance, the fiasco that passes for the UK government’s enquiry into historic sexual abuse in the country, precipitated by the scandals involving Jimmy Savile and Rolf Harris, to name but two of the high-profile offenders in public life. The enquiry, such as it is, has been through three Chairs since its inception in July 2014, with other leading figures standing down as the investigations become ever-more mired in treacle.
It has been claimed that as Home Secretary, May was aware of the problems facing the enquiry under the leadership of Dame Lowell Goddard, the New Zealand judge appointed to oversee the investigations, but failed to act on the concerns of those involved. In parliament, May defended her inaction, claiming she could not (as Home Secretary) “intervene on the basis of suspicion, rumour or hearsay.”
Really? Surely, considering the highly sensitive nature of the enquiry, and the need for the government and public bodies to clean up their acts after the appalling abuses perpetrated by the likes of Savile and Harris, Ms May should have at least consulted with Goddard and other senior members of the enquiry to establish the nature of the concerns and to ensure that everything was proceeding as it should be?
Brexit means Brexit. We think.
“#Brexit means Brexit.” “The UK government will not produce a running commentary on how Brexit is progressing.” These were May’s emphatic statements in the wake of her elevation to Number Ten, and parliament would not be consulted over Article 50, the mechanism by which the UK can leave the European Union.
At the Conservative Party conference, current Home Secretary Amber Rudd (presumably with May’s knowledge and blessing) decreed that UK employers must produce a list of all their non-British employees as a means to encourage them to hire more British workers. Within hours, accusations of racism were levelled against Rudd and the government, and within days, the idea was scrapped. Strong leadership from Ms May, or flip-flopping and failure to adopt a clear strategy on immigration, one of the key drivers of the successful Brexit campaign?
The UK government, under the ‘leadership’ of Ms May, are a rudderless ship. We will bring back grammar schools! What? Nobody wants them? Er, ok, then maybe not. Parliament will have no input into the Brexit negotiations. No way, absolutely not. Actually, parliament CAN debate the broad terms of our Brexit strategy, and will be able to vote on the outcome of the final negotiations. But they won’t be able to make any changes.
What. A. Mess. As many have long suspected, the government have no plan for managing our departure from the EU – the result of this farcical referendum surprised pretty much everyone. And they have no clue how to proceed now the country (well, 52% of those who bothered to vote) has spoken. Clueless and flailing around in a sea of indecision, May looks like a rabbit in the headlights – there is no way she can come out of Brexit with any credit and her reputation and legacy will be forever defined, and tarnished, by being the poor stooge left holding the baby once Cameron, Farage and the others jumped ship.
Some clowns. Definitely NOT UK ministers.
In appointing the laughably incompetent Liam Fox, David Davis and Boris Johnson to oversee our EU departure, she at least tried to pass the buck. But unfortunately, no one will remember those clowns when Britain is languishing as an economic and social backwater in years to come.
What a carry on.