How is the Tory government doing?

Next bombshell for Boris...

Boris Johnson personally authorised evacuation of Pen Farthing’s dogs from Afghanistan, email shows

Prime minister had previously claimed it was ‘complete nonsense’ that he intervened in the case

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-dogs-afghanistan-pen-farthing-b2001036.html

Yet another tick,tick, strangely coming out now through E Mails released. I haven’t see the actual details yet but I believe the discussion revolved around removing the veterinary STAFF, not the animals. The staff then refused to leave without the animals. What would you do, leave them there? Also, as I’m aware this lift was paid for by private money not public cash.

Agreed, most people would do the same. But that's not the issue here is it Whites?

What a dick - but this just serves to underline the "one rule for me" thing which we know anyway.

Whitesince63 wrote:Yet another tick,tick, strangely coming out now through E Mails released. I haven’t see the actual details yet but I believe the discussion revolved around removing the veterinary STAFF, not the animals. The staff then refused to leave without the animals. What would you do, leave them there? Also, as I’m aware this lift was paid for by private money not public cash.

No 63, your belief is wrong.

The email clearly states this...

[An] Equivalent charity Nowzad, run by an ex-Royal Marine, has received a lot of publicity and the PM has just authorised their staff and animals to be evacuated...

Let me explain the background which is as follows...

The Foreign Affairs Select Committee Inquiry into Afghanistan has published emails received as evidence during its investigations.

These emails show that another animal charity (following Pen Farthing's approval) in Afghanistan requested help to be evacuated and senior civil servants in the UK considered this request.

They were Afghani nationals and the civil servant had some doubts about vets being 'Extremely Vulnerable Individuals' (considering the numbers who probably were and the limited time and capacity to get everyone put safely) but they had to follow the precedent set by Johnson's personal intervention respect of Pen Farthing.

If you read the link I provide below the time-line is from the bottom upwards (in other words read the bottom email first).

The first email is a request for evacuation from a second animal charity after Johnson had personally intervened to approve Pen Farthing, and animals evacuation.

The second email is saying Farthing won't leave without his Afghani vets.

The top email is from the senior civil servant making the decision in that team and seeking authorisation from his boss for the departments Private Secretary.

Case 1 in his email he recommends the call forward and processing of Farthing's vets and dependants (based on Johnson's personal intervention on that day to evacuate them).

Case 2 is in respect of the second charity he is saying that in view of Johnson personally intervention in respect of Pen Farthing, staff, their dependent's and the charity's animals, that the Foreign Secretary should take the decision about the request from the second animal charity to evacuate them also.

https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/43225/html/

Johnson stated he didn't authorise the animals evacuation - the initial email certainly gave the impression he did - and the civil servant who made the recommendation and passed it on to his boss for a decision didn't disagree with that comment.

In another email to Bojo, Carrie said that if he didn't get the the dogs out he would be in the Dog House himself and strictly no Rumpy-pumpy.

For balance this is from Defence Secretary Ben Wallace

Posted at 15:57
Afghan animal evacuation claims 'ludicrous' - Wallace

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace says the PM did not direct him or the UK military to evacuate animals from Afghanistan during the fall of Kabul.

Emails from an official in Environment Minister Zac Goldsmith's office suggest the PM was involved in getting Nowzad charity founder Pen Farthing and his animals to safety - which the PM has previously denied.

Wallace says: "The evacuation was a Ministry of Defence-led operation, supported by application processing by the Home Office and FCDO [Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office].

"The idea that a Defra minister and his officials had any authority or responsibility in the running of the evacuation is ludicrous.

"I am, however, aware of false claims made throughout by Nowzad that led to considerable distress and distraction to those trying to save lives in very difficult circumstances."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-politics-60134104

Ben Wallace is my MP.

Cajunboy wrote:Ben Wallace is my MP.

Well I think he may be misleading things a little bit then.

The emails are all from the FCDO serving on 'crisis silver' and Wallace himself states that the application processing was done with FCDO application processing.

Seems to me the UK military did NOT evacuate animals from Afghanistan - indeed Farthing confirms that BUT permission was somehow granted for him to fly in a privately chartered plane to collect the animals in the middle of a mass humanitarian evacuation crisis.

Farthing clearly got very high ranking authority to do that - and it wasn't the military (or the American armed forces running the airport arrivals and departures) who granted him that!

Once again I’d maintain that if anything Johnson authorised getting the staff out of Afghanistan not specifically the animals. Clearly the whole thing will now be investigated but once again it’s just too convenient that this comes out now. Had Boris not authorised them leaving they’d probably have been slain and then what would the numpties say? This is just getting ridiculous now and I think people are getting sick of it.

But BJ brings it on himself by proving himself endlessly untrustworthy. His word has been shown to mean nothing. 

Sadly, all those supporting him in his fabrications and sly evasions are equally unlikely to be believed. In fact, I can't think of a single member of the cabinet that I could trust to be honest or show integrity.

How he manages to smirk whilst lying is remarkable. Practice makes perfect, I suppose.

My favourite response to the ludicrous assertion by a minister that Boris was ambushed by a cake

There is, as yet, no confirmation that Sue Gray or the Met have interviewed the cake which ambushed the Prime Minister. Here’s hoping we get answers in the morning.
— Nick Robinson (@bbcnickrobinson) January 25, 2022

Whitesince63 wrote:Once again I’d maintain that if anything Johnson authorised getting the staff out of Afghanistan not specifically the animals.

You're in denial 63, the email made public by a Parliamentary Select Committee - which is cross party (and chaired by a Conservative MP) clearly states this...

[An] Equivalent charity Nowzad, run by an ex-Royal Marine, has received a lot of publicity and the PM has just authorised their staff and animals to be evacuated...

Read it for yourself if you don't believe me.

https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/43225/html/


Raphael Marshall, who worked for the Foreign Office at the time, told the Foreign Affairs Committee that the animals were evacuated following a direct instruction from Mr Johnson.

Analysis

By Paul Adams, BBC diplomatic correspondent

This story has plagued the government ever since last summer.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace sounds exasperated. He resented being hounded by Pen Farthing's supporters over his perceived reluctance to help evacuate Nowzad's animals.

He also resents the suggestion that he was instructed by the prime minister to put pets before people.

And there's no evidence that he did.

When Mr Wallace tweeted, early on 25 August that "if he [Mr Farthing] arrives with his animals we will seek a slot for his plane," he was not offering any British resources.

In his own submission to the foreign affairs committee, Mr Farthing says: "Let me make this abundantly clear; NO HMG capacity was used to transport any animals. None."

Mr Farthing says he and his animals did not enter Kabul airport through the gate controlled by British soldiers. He also says it was American, not British soldiers, who helped load animals onto a flight that he himself had chartered.

But a mystery remains. Why did an official in the Foreign Office, on 25 August, think that Boris Johnson had "authorised" the evacuation of Nowzad's staff and animals?

It's a question that won't go away.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60143279

Our Minister of Defence, Ben Dover is currently in Europe touring our ex EU partners trying to whip up support for an aggressive stance against Russia. Ironic for sure, but it shows an incredible ignorance of Russian politics in general and the Kremlin's neo-imperialist nostalgia in particular.

This American specialist has some interesting ideas for how to resolve the situation in the long term.

Apparently Sue Gray's report was finished a couple of days ago according to insiders - but has been in the hands of Boris's lawyers and HR staff since whilst they decide which bits are "fit for publication".

wanderlust wrote:Apparently Sue Gray's report was finished a couple of days ago according to insiders - but has been in the hands of Boris's lawyers and HR staff since whilst they decide which bits are "fit for publication".

If Sue Gray is doing what Boris tells her to write - as you have frequently told us she is (clues in the name civil servant, remember?), then why does he need 'his' lawyers and HR staff (who too are civil servants!) to decide which bits are fit for publication?

You really need to stop believing everything you read on social media is gospel!

This is what is almost certainly happening to the report and why -

Why has Sue Gray's report not appeared yet?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60157517

How did Liz Truss manage to spend half a million pounds of our money on a flight to Australia?

Why is Sue Gray's report taking so long?

Here's the  "social media" source aka the Independent newspaper report which states:

Ms Gray has completed her investigation into the claims more than a dozen parties were held in No 10 and Whitehall during the coronavirus pandemic.

Lawyers, HR executives and the Metropolitan Police Service are going through the text to make sure the document can be published in full.

Does it really matter when it comes out? It isn’t going to hang Boris and even if it does confirm he broke the rules, which I think we already know he has anyway, it still isn’t going to bring him down, only his MP’s can do that and I don’t think for one minute that the required majority will be there. Sadly for you and his other critics Lusty, you’ve at least until May 24 and probably another 5 years after that!! Boris is going nowhere unless he refuses to soften some of his more excessive green and tax policies and sorts immigration. My hope is that he will be forced back into conventional Conservatism, get rid of the EU red tape holding us back, resolve Ireland and bring it back into the U.K. fully and start to sow the seeds needed to take advantage of being out of Europe. So far he’s done none of that and sadly until he does you will quite rightly be able to ask “what the hell was the point of Brexit?”

I think there's a very real chance it will hang Boris actually, his cabinet and loyal supporters (all completely void of morals lets be honest) are waiting for Sue Gray's report with a thin hope there's something in there to excuse him, but you're right we don't need the report to know rules have been broken and he lied to parliament.

The public have made their minds up, Tory MPs will put letters in if they fear their seats are under threat.

Saves Boris having to admit the Brexit fantasy was all lies i suppose, one silver lining for him.