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Diary: Mayor of London, ouster of Dave, saviour of Tory Britain. Can Boris do all at the same time? Diary: Mayor of London, ouster of Dave, saviour of Tory Britain. Can Boris do all at the same time?
(4 months later)
• Day by day, Boris Johnson moves his tanks closer to the lawn at No 10. And what is this we see in an interview with the blond one in the Evening Standard? A potential solution to the constitutional problem he faces. He can't oust Dave in 2015 because, without an act of gross treachery to those who elected him in the capital, he must remain mayor until 2016. But from his tete-a-tete with Evening Standard editor Sarah Sands comes the thought: why can't he, for a while at least, serve as mayor and fight a safe Tory seat? "I was a colleague of Johnson's at the Daily Telegraph and I remember the more micro-discussions about his having to choose between editing the Spectator and standing for parliament," writes Sands. "His solution, to the surprise of his employers, was that there was no point in having a cake if you could not also eat it. I am pretty sure that this will turn out to be his argument for reconciling being mayor and an MP." Makes sense. Boris's role as mayor is largely ceremonial anyway, and isn't it the sort of audacious thing Winston Churchill might have done. Doesn't Boris look in the mirror and see Churchill?• Day by day, Boris Johnson moves his tanks closer to the lawn at No 10. And what is this we see in an interview with the blond one in the Evening Standard? A potential solution to the constitutional problem he faces. He can't oust Dave in 2015 because, without an act of gross treachery to those who elected him in the capital, he must remain mayor until 2016. But from his tete-a-tete with Evening Standard editor Sarah Sands comes the thought: why can't he, for a while at least, serve as mayor and fight a safe Tory seat? "I was a colleague of Johnson's at the Daily Telegraph and I remember the more micro-discussions about his having to choose between editing the Spectator and standing for parliament," writes Sands. "His solution, to the surprise of his employers, was that there was no point in having a cake if you could not also eat it. I am pretty sure that this will turn out to be his argument for reconciling being mayor and an MP." Makes sense. Boris's role as mayor is largely ceremonial anyway, and isn't it the sort of audacious thing Winston Churchill might have done. Doesn't Boris look in the mirror and see Churchill?
• Yes, as wheezes go, it's fantabuloso, as the blond one might say. And it exponentially increases the pressure on Dave. But then, Tory leaders seem doomed to live with the machinations of those who would undermine or supplant them. In Scotland, the former Tory leader Annabel Goldie has been forced to address the manoeuvrings of unnamed Tories who gnaw at the foundations underpinning the leadership of her successor, Ruth Davidson. Some float the possibility of a leadership challenge against Davidson, complaining that she isn't cutting the mustard at Holyrood, despite evidence that she seems to be broadening support among the voters. Things have got so bad that the other day Dave himself moved to back Davidson and slap down her critics. What should we think of them? Goldie, at a private dinner for senior party figures, apparently phrased it rather well. "A bunch of self-indulgent chihuahuas trying to find a lamp post to piss against." There they go: nibble, nibble, nibble; yap, yap, yap!• Yes, as wheezes go, it's fantabuloso, as the blond one might say. And it exponentially increases the pressure on Dave. But then, Tory leaders seem doomed to live with the machinations of those who would undermine or supplant them. In Scotland, the former Tory leader Annabel Goldie has been forced to address the manoeuvrings of unnamed Tories who gnaw at the foundations underpinning the leadership of her successor, Ruth Davidson. Some float the possibility of a leadership challenge against Davidson, complaining that she isn't cutting the mustard at Holyrood, despite evidence that she seems to be broadening support among the voters. Things have got so bad that the other day Dave himself moved to back Davidson and slap down her critics. What should we think of them? Goldie, at a private dinner for senior party figures, apparently phrased it rather well. "A bunch of self-indulgent chihuahuas trying to find a lamp post to piss against." There they go: nibble, nibble, nibble; yap, yap, yap!
• The clamour against workplace insecurity grows louder and, as one might expect, much of the righteous indignation is to be found in parliament. Last month Lord Oakeshott was shocked to learn that the House of Lords was using "zero-hour" employment terms – in which no hours are guaranteed. "There should be zero tolerance for zero-hours contracts for people who serve us in parliament," he said. But there's no sign anyone was listening. Here's another job ad for the Lords: now it seeks a "zero hours" chef de partie. Hardly leading by example, is it?• The clamour against workplace insecurity grows louder and, as one might expect, much of the righteous indignation is to be found in parliament. Last month Lord Oakeshott was shocked to learn that the House of Lords was using "zero-hour" employment terms – in which no hours are guaranteed. "There should be zero tolerance for zero-hours contracts for people who serve us in parliament," he said. But there's no sign anyone was listening. Here's another job ad for the Lords: now it seeks a "zero hours" chef de partie. Hardly leading by example, is it?
• Fiery talk in the US as the Guardian's exposé trains a harsh light on intelligence practices on both sides of the Atlantic. Recriminations against Edward Snowden and those who oppose snooping here gather pace. Professor Anthony Glees of Buckingham University, writing in Public Service Europe, seems notably cross. "Snowden is no whistleblowing hero," he says. "To some, he is allegedly a traitor. He has revealed something that should have stayed secret to keep us safe. Like Julian Assange, he has managed to manipulate public opinion to provide a media story against the spooks." And he's not the only problem. Theresa May's snooper's charter is held back by "those refusing to pass the laws", chiefly "the deputy prime minister Nick Clegg and 'libertarian' Tories – led by David Davis and the unelected Shami Chakrabarti of Liberty". Ah, the unseen hand. No laws pass without Shami.• Fiery talk in the US as the Guardian's exposé trains a harsh light on intelligence practices on both sides of the Atlantic. Recriminations against Edward Snowden and those who oppose snooping here gather pace. Professor Anthony Glees of Buckingham University, writing in Public Service Europe, seems notably cross. "Snowden is no whistleblowing hero," he says. "To some, he is allegedly a traitor. He has revealed something that should have stayed secret to keep us safe. Like Julian Assange, he has managed to manipulate public opinion to provide a media story against the spooks." And he's not the only problem. Theresa May's snooper's charter is held back by "those refusing to pass the laws", chiefly "the deputy prime minister Nick Clegg and 'libertarian' Tories – led by David Davis and the unelected Shami Chakrabarti of Liberty". Ah, the unseen hand. No laws pass without Shami.
• Finally, we must give the courts their due, for the officials seeking to extract £120 from 83-year-old veteran peacemonger Pat Arrowsmith are nothing if not persistent. They tried a couple of months back with a letter raising the spectre of jail. Now they've tried once more. It stems from an anti-nuclear protest arrest many moons ago – perhaps 2008, Arrowsmith says. And as the saga drags on, one wonders about the endgame. She won't pay; they persist. She won't break many rocks at her age.• Finally, we must give the courts their due, for the officials seeking to extract £120 from 83-year-old veteran peacemonger Pat Arrowsmith are nothing if not persistent. They tried a couple of months back with a letter raising the spectre of jail. Now they've tried once more. It stems from an anti-nuclear protest arrest many moons ago – perhaps 2008, Arrowsmith says. And as the saga drags on, one wonders about the endgame. She won't pay; they persist. She won't break many rocks at her age.
Twitter: @hugh_muir Twitter: @hugh_muir
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