Boris Johnson’s survival is a headache for Douglas Ross and the Scottish Tories
Boris Johnson’s survival is a headache for Douglas Ross and the Scottish Tories Gerry Hassan The National, 15 February 2022 Boris Johnson’s continued clinging on as Prime Minister and leader of the Tory Party is an undignified mess, a new ethical low for the Tories and moral stain on the reputation of Britain. Tory politicians across the UK now have to publicly pretend that they live in an Alice in Wonderland world where upside down is the right way up, and Johnson’s never-ending speel of lies is not called out but presented as fair, accurate comment. Thus Tory politicians cannot
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In the age of rebellion we can do better than Boris Johnson and Toryism
In the age of rebellion we can do better than Boris Johnson and Toryism Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, 2 February 2022 2022 is the centenary of a year of rebellion. The Irish Free State was born in 1992, the ‘Red Clydesiders’ went to Westminster; and the year gave its name to the 1922 Committee of Tory backbenchers after they overthrew a sitting Prime Minister – David Lloyd George – then heading up a Tory-Liberal coalition government. Boris Johnson and this Tory Government should know that today we live in even more an age of rage and rebellion – being the
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We need to address accountability in public life in the UK and Scotland
We need to address accountability in public life in the UK and Scotland Gerry Hassan The National, 1 February 2022 The UK is a country lacking accountability in public life. Increasingly, those in senior positions of authority in government, civil service or public bodies resign or take responsibility for anything they have done. There never used to be such an indefensible state of affairs. Previously government ministers used to resign for policy failures, shortcomings of their departments, and for breaking constitutional convention of ministers. Lord Carrington, Thatcher’s first Foreign Secretary, resigned as a result of the Argentinian invasion of the
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It is not just Boris Johnson that is the problem but Toryism and the British State
It is not just Boris Johnson that is the problem but Toryism and the British State Gerry Hassan The National, 25 January 2022 Boris Johnson’s Premiership is in tatters, he is discredited as a person and politician, and his tenure is coming to a predictable, messy end. The only question is timing. Already lots of once true believers in Johnson are trying out unconvincing lines like “let’s look at the big picture, and all the right calls the Prime Minister has made” which is delusional and an insult to voters. Others try to be subtler, distancing themselves from the PM,
Continue Reading It is not just Boris Johnson that is the problem but Toryism and the British State
Time for a Genuine Tartan Tory Party!
Time for a Genuine Tartan Tory Party! Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, 19 January 2022 The Scottish Tories have had a shoogly past week. Douglas Ross, Scottish Tory leader, dared to put his head above the parapet and say the unthinkable - that Boris Johnson was long past his sell-by-date and should for once do the decent thing and resign. He was subsequently followed by the entire group of Tory MSPs at Holyrood; while former Scots Tory leader Ruth Davidson was even more indignant and incandescent with fury. This was met by Jacob Rees-Mogg calling Douglas Ross ‘a lightweight’ and even
“Scotland deserves better than this”: the broken UK constitution
“Scotland deserves better than this": the broken UK constitution Gerry Hassan The National, 18 January 2022 The reputation of the UK PM is in tatters; UK Government is in chaos, denial and vengeful; Toryism has become toxic again and the stories of Boris Johnson’s misdeeds and blatant lies have become the object of anger, indignation and satire. A backdrop to all this is that what passes for the British constitution is literally falling apart – buckling under the pressure of a government and individuals who don’t accept the rules and think they can gather unchecked power to themselves. There are
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Is this an elegy for the end of Britain?
Is this an elegy for the end of Britain? Gerry Hassan The National, 11 January 2022 The UK is in serious crisis – a malaise that affects its politics, political elite, system, and the ethos and practices by which they govern, act and think. That much is obvious to anyone studying the descent of Britain. But what is rare is for this to be spoken about openly and candidly, clearly directed at those who have produced this sorry mess. Tom McTague’s essay in The Atlantic magazine, “How Britain Falls Apart?” last week showed insight and honesty along with a
Scotland needs to learn the lessons of how we defeated Margaret Thatcher
Scotland needs to learn the lessons of how we defeated Margaret Thatcher Gerry Hassan The National, 28 December 2021 Margaret Thatcher looms large in the history of modern Scotland. Her minority rule of Scotland, her dogma and indifference to hardship and suffering, her English nationalism wrapped in the flag of the Union Jack: all this and more irritated an overwhelming majority of Scots. She did change history here, although not in ways she intended. She underlined that the old union of compromise was broken; she weakened the strength of the unionist case; and she was a handmaiden in creating the
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Life after Boris Johnson: The Tories, “Freedom” and the rise of authoritarianism
Life after Boris Johnson: The Tories, “Freedom” and the rise of authoritarianism Gerry Hassan The National, 21 December 2021 For many on the left and pro-independence describing Toryism is simple - it is callous, lacks compassion and is about a brutal class politics looking after its own and shafting others. Yet understanding your opponents is key to successful politics, a point that Kennedy and LBJ’s Secretary of Defence Robert McNamara observed in The Fog of War documentary saying you should “never dehumanise your opponents.” That said British Toryism is in an advance stage of degeneration, distortion and bitter division. This
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The union case needs to deal with the return of the British Empire State
The union case needs to deal with the return of the British Empire State Gerry Hassan The National, 7 December 2021 The UK may have been around a fair amount of time but it has never been static; always changing, sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. While many UK supporters repeat the great thread of British history, the current UK borders only date from 1922 and the aftermath of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921 (its centenary on Monday) while the current name - United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland –became legally adopted in 1927. Despite this,
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