Tag Archives: activist

Tory chairman apologises to civil service for ‘activist blob’ email. Why not Braverman?

Greg Hands: I’d forgotten I had this duff graphic that approximates his image. I suits what he’s done here, though.

Suella Braverman said she wouldn’t apologise to civil servants for saying they blocked her bid to stop Channel migrants coming to the UK in an email to Tory supporters – and she hasn’t.

It was left to party chairman Greg Hands to do it instead.

The email, in Braverman’s name, sent by Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ) to party members, said the following:

“We tried to stop the small boats crossings without changing our laws.

“But an activist blob of left wing lawyers, civil servants and the Labour Party blocked us.”

Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA Union, which represents civil servants, stated in a letter to prime minister Rishi Sunak that it was “a direct attack on the integrity and impartiality of the thousands of civil servants who loyally serve the home secretary, doing some of the most complex and difficult work in government”.

Penman also said Braverman may have broken the ministerial code, which says ministers must “uphold the impartiality of the civil service”.

Braverman disowned the email, despite the fact that it went out under her name.

She told Robert Peston: “I didn’t write that email, I didn’t see it and it was an error that it was sent out in my name.”

Nevertheless, her name was attached to it and for that reason alone, she had an apology to make. She should have been paying attention to what was being said in her name. She didn’t.

Instead, we hear that the head of the civil service, Simon Case, has written to the PCS union to say that Hands has apologised for the “error”:

“He assured me that he has already taken action to change procedures in CCHQ to make sure that there is not a repeat of this incident,” the head of the civil service said.

Hands has also “provided his assurance that attacks on the civil service are not part of any standard CCHQ lines”, Case added.

It’s not enough, is it? It’s just a proxy apology from a civil servant to a civil service union. Where’s the full and frank apology and explanation from the Home Secretary?

Source: Simon Case: Conservative Party chair has apologised for ‘activist civil servants’ email

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Channel migrants: Braverman won’t apologise for comment on ‘activist blob’ of ‘left-wing’ civil servants

Suella Braverman doesn’t think before broadcasting: she’s pictured in a committee where she claimed there were legal routes for refugees to enter the UK. Challenged on it, she couldn’t name even one.

Once again, for Tories, “sorry” seems to be the hardest word.

An email in Suella Braverman’s name, sent by Conservative Campaign Headquarters (CCHQ) to party members, said the following:

“We tried to stop the small boats crossings without changing our laws.

“But an activist blob of left wing lawyers, civil servants and the Labour Party blocked us.”

See for yourself. I’m using an image posted by a journalist on Twitter because it clearly shows Braverman’s name:

The message has been savaged by Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA Union, which represents civil servants.

He stated in a letter to prime minister Rishi Sunak that it was “a direct attack on the integrity and impartiality of the thousands of civil servants who loyally serve the home secretary, doing some of the most complex and difficult work in government”.

Penman also said Braverman may have broken the ministerial code, which says ministers must “uphold the impartiality of the civil service”. Here’s the relevant part:

Braverman was challenged over this scandal by Robert Peston on his ITV show – and denied having anything to do with the email. Take note of Clare Hepworth’s comment prefacing the video below:

Word to the wise Home Secretary.
In a moment of generosity I'll share this with you.
Always better to own up & take the consequences – which would probably be less punishing – than denial & being found out further down the line. https://t.co/3PemaQ0lZd

— Clare Hepworth OBE (@Hepworthclare) March 9, 2023

But it was sent out in Braverman’s name. From This Writer’s point of view, it is inconceivable that any government minister – or anyone at all – would allow a message to be sent out (in this case to many people at once) without having seen it or approved its contents.

So I think Ms Hepworth may be right that we may discover something different, some time in the future.

Mr Penman had already stated that, whether or not Braverman had approved the message that went out in her name, she should apologise for it:

As Home Secretary, Suella Braverman leads thousands of civil servants who she has now effectively accused of blocking govt policy. As I told @mrjamesob, whether or not she approved the message that went out in her name, she must immediately withdraw the remarks and apologise pic.twitter.com/ESJiE8GjWN

— Dave Penman (@FDAGenSec) March 8, 2023

As you have seen in the Peston video, above, Braverman has not apologised.

I wonder what the other members of the “activist blob” – the “left wing” lawyers and the Labour Party – have to say about the way they were mentioned. I would certainly expect Keir Starmer to object at Labour being described as “left wing”.

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Can Keir Starmer really win an election after giving Labour activists a hard kicking?

Orwellian: after doing this to his left-wing activist base, how can Keir Starmer expect any grassroots help to get elected?

The Labour Party and its supporters are still reeling from the blows dealt to them by party leader Keir Starmer last week, it’s fair to say.

Unilaterally declaring that the Islington North Constituency Labour Party would not be allowed to choose Jeremy Corbyn as its candidate in the next general election, Starmer said anybody who doesn’t like the direction in which he has led the party is free to leave (the exact opposite of his promise, when he was seeking to be party leader, to unite Labour’s factions).

But the people he was showing the door are the people who have previously campaigned for the party on the nation’s doorsteps.

How does Starmer expect to win without activists to push his party and its policies?

Here’s one viewpoint:

[thread🧵] I’ve heard people on the left say that @Keir_Starmer will regret targeting @jeremycorbyn & his supporters, citing the fact that they & many of the people they know will refuse to vote Labour because of the abuse they’ve suffered since the change in leadership. (1/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

This is the thing about the rightwing of @UKLabour. Any notions of truth, justice or integrity are entirely secondary to electoral calculation. That’s why moral arguments are a waste of time with them. They attack @jeremycorbyn because they think it wins them votes. (3/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

It will seem so, to Starmer & his team: the liberal press, celebrities, the business community, ‘important’ political figures, commentators are all praising the ‘new broom’ sweeping away the “loony left” cranks & they are flying in the polls. But what are the numbers? (5/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

In 2015, 250k members voted for Corbyn; in 2016, the figure stood at 313k. Both were overwhelming majorities, we know that, but those bare numbers don’t tell the full story. The loyalty built up around Jeremy – as an individual – made that 250/300k very solid & enduring. (7/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

Of course, there’s an argument to say that the impact of people’s activism & political views reach into their communities & of course, families. So, while 250-300k may seem small beer in electoral terms, the ripples of Starmer’s attack on the left may go further than that. (9/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

Of course, there is another story: millions of people also voted for a @jeremycorbyn-led Labour Party. 12.9 million in 2017 & 10.3 million in 2019. If just half of what @Keir_Starmer is now claiming were true, they wouldn’t have, at least not in those numbers. (11/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

It’s a risk though in terms of credibility: Starmer is staking a lot on a residual hatred for someone who led the party he now leads just 3 years ago. But they are convinced that the rest of the country sees it the same as they do, which is why they keep stirring the pot. (13/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

Which brings me to the last issue: where is the enthusiasm for campaigning going to come from in 2024? Thousands of active members have gone & many who have stayed are refusing to actively campaign. This is potentially a bigger risk for @UKLabour than left voter kickback. (15/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

I’ve always been sceptical about door knocking in the way it has traditionally been done. A large activist presence can undoubtedly have an effect though, whether that’s visible campaigning locally, or community meetings. Starmer’s Labour will forgo all of that obviously. (17/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

But here’s the killer – and I don’t think they know it. The reason why all of that works politically is because it has an army of activists behind it, with the enthusiasm to push beyond the bubble of politically engaged communities around Westminster & local CLPs. (19/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

There have been some signs already: e.g council seats lost in places where there has been an evacuation of active members. Polling doesn’t necessarily equate to real life. And in an election campaign where the party has less to say, we may see the exact reverse of GE2017. (21/21)

— Ben Sellers (@MrBenSellers) February 18, 2023

So, with the activists staying at home, refusing to vote Labour or encourage anybody else to do so, will slick branding, impact social media, good PR, placed media ads/stories from friends in the press and storyline video make any impact on floating/casual voters?

What do you think?

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Truss vows to clamp down on free speech after climate activists interrupt her

In Liz we DON’T Truss (it’s a play on her campaign slogan, which is itself a play on words): she’ll end your right to free speech, and to campaign for fair pay and decent working conditions.

Tory leadership contender Liz Truss vowed to clamp down on free speech and protest after being interrupted by critics of her police on climate change.

Her speech at a hustings in the Winter Gardens at Eastbourne was halted when six activists from Green New Deal Rising loudly criticised her:

In response, Truss said: “Can I just say a few words on the militant people who try and disrupt our country, and who try and disrupt our democratic process, and who try and disrupt our essential services?

“I would legislate immediately to make sure that we are standing up to militant trade unions who stop ordinary commuters getting into work, and I would legislate to protect our essential services.

“And I will make sure that militant activists such as Extinction Rebellion are not able to disrupt ordinary people who work hard and do the right thing and go into work.”

If you think that sounds good, think again.

Truss was saying she would remove your right to free speech and rescind your right to demand acceptable pay and benefits at work.

You may be happy that other people will be stopped from disrupting your day, but will you be as happy when you have a serious issue of your own and get arrested for trying to raise it?

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Is Priti Patel’s latest pronouncement an attempt to have homeless people murdered?

I’m only using this image because I haven’t got one of her dressed as a Nazi.

‘Dumpy she-Hitler’ Priti Patel is at it again, it seems.

Only a day after it was claimed her attack on “activist lawyers” she said were frustrating the removal of migrants led to a “violent, racist attack” in a London law firm by a knife-wielding man – who actually injured a staffer…

… she is now calling for homeless people to be deported:

Priti Patel has been criticised for allegedly planning to deport homeless people who repeatedly engage in low level crimes.

The home secretary has reportedly asked Home Office officials to discuss new immigration rules that would make it easier to deport rough sleepers who engage in “persistent anti-social or dangerous behaviour”.

It is understood Patel wrote to ministers on Friday to inform them of the plans, according to the Mail on Sunday.

After it was revealed, the scheme was blasted by commentators who warned “somebody is going to end up getting hurt”.

Damn right – somebody is going to get hurt. Most likely, it will be a homeless person (or many), attacked by people of similar mentality to the knife-wielder in the London law firm mentioned above. Or the lawyers trying to stop them being sent to Ascension Island.

And it occurs to me that Priti Patel must know this.

She knows that somebody got hurt after she had a go at “activist lawyers”.

Only an irresponsible (or psychotic), homicidal fascist would then suggest that another societal group should be targeted for deportation in those circumstances.

But that is exactly what she has done.

So it seems to me that the UK now has a Home Secretary who is deliberately trying to incite people to commit the crime of murder.

Source: Priti Patel criticised for ‘planning to deport homeless people’

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Corrupted morals: men who allegedly toppled Colston statue to be punished but Priti Patel goes free

Over it goes: the toppling of the Colston statue, back in June. By a curious coincidence, nobod involved in pulling it down could be seen in this image.

People who toppled – and then sank – a statue glorifying slavery during the Black Lives Matter demonstrations in the summer are to be offered a bizarre punishment.

The five, who pulled down the statue of slaver Edward Colston in Bristol, will have to pay a fine that would go to a charity supporting people from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities in Bristol – which is more than Colston ever did.

They will also have to complete a questionnaire by Bristol City Council’s history commission, explaining their reasons for attacking an exploiter who considered black and minority ethnic people to be property during a week of protests against their mistreatment.

That’s going to be an uncomfortable read for these history commissioners.

This Writer would be unsurprised if every answer contained harsh criticism of them for even asking such a stupid question.

Worse still is the fact that four more people – three men and a woman – may face criminal charges over the incident:

Avon and Somerset police said its investigation had been completed.

It said: “Following a review of the evidence, detectives will now approach the Crown Prosecution Service for a charging decision against four people – three men, aged 32, 25 and 21, and a 29-year-old woman.”

Meanwhile, the Home Office is reportedly resuming deportation of asylum-seekers after it was prevented from sending a flight to Spain a few weeks ago.

Lawyers for the deportees demonstrated that the government had rushed the flight in order to deny the refugees their right to appeal.

It’s a direct correlation with the attitude of slavers like Colston, who also refused to allow foreign people any rights.

So we have to ask ourselves:

Who should really be explaining their actions – the protesters who tore down a statue of a historic slaver, or Priti Patel, the home secretary who treats people like slaves today?

Source: Men allegedly involved in toppling of Colston statue offered cautions | UK news | The Guardian

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Patel resumes refugee deportation – and attacks on ‘activist lawyers’. Why aren’t her own legals on strike?

The Home Office tweet about ‘activist lawyers’ that was released only a week ago. Officials have been barred from using the phrase but the Home Secretary continues to do so.

If I was a lawyer working for the Tory government, I would be on strike from today in solidarity with my “activist” colleagues whose only interest is in ensuring that the UK’s government does not break the law.

Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, has tweeted that deportations of refugees who came to the UK by small boat have resumed with a flight to Spain.

She stated that this happened in spite of “activist lawyers” – in an act of defiance against those who achieved a ruling from her permanent secretary that the use of the phrase by Home Office officials was inappropriate.

Unfortunately Matthew Rycroft’s pronouncement does not apply to the Home Secretary herself, so she broadcast this on Twitter:

Today we removed people who came here via small boat.

They had previously claimed asylum elsewhere and had no legal right to be in the UK.

Removals continue to be frustrated by activist lawyers, but I will not let up until this route is unviable https://t.co/oc1sOTTOae

— Priti Patel (@pritipatel) September 3, 2020

The tweet has provoked a wave of protest, which This Writer expects was exactly what Patel wanted:

If this were France, lawyers would be on strike until the Home Secretary resigned…

— AmicusCuriae (@Amicusc54803237) September 4, 2020

"Activist lawyers" again? Really? Doing your job is now activism, it seems. We are wondering what an "activist Home Secretary" does. #ChangeTheRecord https://t.co/adIanOz3A8

— The Bar Council (@thebarcouncil) September 3, 2020

Yes, who cares about the rule of law when you're running a far right bandwagon to keep the hard of thinking on board?

— Daisy Ecksmakina 🇫🇷 🇮🇪 🇪🇺 (@Broken_Politiks) September 4, 2020

Yes, I think it’s what she wanted – because for every tweet in protest, she’ll have roused people like this commenter:

I'm pleased that a few have been removed Priti but you have to be aware that some of us are having to put up with a lot more than others in our country. A lot of the immigrants are being sent to the North of England where my grandchildren live, and I'm worried sick about them!

— NotSoSilentNow (@Oneofthesilent1) September 3, 2020

It creates division.

And division allows Tories to act without inhibition – and the rule of law is diminished in favour of Tory dictatorship.

The tweeter who complained about migrants moving into the North of England has received angry replies, meaning that smaller arguments are breaking out, diminishing the larger point against Patel:

And there speaks the man from Hertford! You have no idea of what is going on. Hope your family are safe……

— NotSoSilentNow (@Oneofthesilent1) September 3, 2020

You see how it works?

That’s why I say the best response to Patel would be a strike by people in the legal profession working for the government.

But will it happen?

Or are government lawyers far more interested in fat salaries than in upholding the law itself?

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‘Loudmouthed lawyers’ jibe shows it’s the Home Office that doesn’t know when to shut up

Devilish advocate: Priti Patel has set her Home Office against the rule of law.

What unbelievable arrogance from “a government source” – as quoted, we’re told, in The Times.

After the Home Office was forced to withdraw a video tweet referring to “activist lawyers”, that was posted in retaliation after solicitors prevented Priti Patel’s thugs from illegally – mark that word – deporting 23 asylum-seekers without appeal, what did the Tory government have to say for itself?

Here:

The day after Home Office had to remove offensive tweet they went from "activist lawyers" to "loudmouthed lawyers and barristers who seem to spend more time on social media than representing their clients"

Via @thetimes pic.twitter.com/K8g4vSb8JO

— Axel Antoni (@antoni_UK) August 27, 2020

“There’s a bunch of particularly loudmouthed lawyers and barristers who seem to spend more time on social media than representing their clients.”

This is arrogant disregard of the rule of law.

Perhaps the “government source” who said this should be named and removed from Whitehall to a place where they can do no more harm.

Ms Patel should be rushing to Whitehall, to deliver a grovelling public apology to the lawyers mentioned – who can all be identified very easily – and to the nation.

Really, she should be resigning as she has clearly allowed standards at the Home Office to fall far below what is expected in a government department.

Not only has this matter been a scandal but it has also been revealed that the Windrush Compensation Scheme is being bungled because Home Office officals have an “institutional ignorance and thoughtlessness towards the issue of race”.

Patel is responsible; unlike wealth, this is an instance where the “trickle-down effect” really does work and, as the novelist Henry Fielding implied in the 1740’s, the poison seeps down from the top.

But Patel won’t go. Her kind believe they are entitled to their bare-faced, flaunting immorality.

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Home Office deletes “fascist Dad’s Army” ‘migrants’ clip released after it was forced to abandon deportation flight

It seems there was more to the Home Office’s video clip about “activist lawyers” than met the eye – and that was already pretty bad.

Apparently the government had been forced to abandon a deportation flight to Spain after last-minute legal challenges meant all 23 passengers had to be allowed off the plane.

It seems that HO had tried to rush through the deportations fast, in order to deny these asylum-seekers the right to appeal; that would be breaking the law. All the lawyers did was insist that these people be allowed their legal rights.

In response, the government department released the tweet attacking “activist lawyers” who “delay and disrupt returns”.

So it seems the line saying, “Soon we will no longer be bound by EU laws and can negotiate our own return arrangements,” was an attempt to taunt those lawyers.

That was a mistake. It provoked complaints – some of them from the lawyers who carry out these actions.

So now the tweet has come down and HO permanent secretary Matthew Rycroft has issued instructions that the term “activist lawyers” should not be used again.

The most effective complaint seems to have come from the economist Jonathan Portes. This Site has huge respect for this gentleman, going back to discussions of the UK economy here many years ago.

He posted a thread showing part of the response he received:

This was a very clear breach of the Government Communications Service Propriety Standards. The prompt reaction of the Permanent Secretary is very welcome. I hope comms teams/Press Offices in Home Office & other Depts take note, & this unacceptable behaviour is not repeated.

— Jonathan Portes (@jdportes) August 27, 2020

Later, he added this:

Rather than following law, HO tries to rush through deportations without giving asylum seekers -who may/may not have legitimate claims- right to appeal. Gets caught. Is embarrassed. To divert, makes a video that breaks its own rules.

There's your "exclusive" @MrHarryCole

— Jonathan Portes (@jdportes) August 27, 2020

By this time, some of the lawyers concerned had already taken to Twitter to put their side of the story across – and it makes interesting reading:

This is the weirdest quote ever. I don’t understand a word of it and I’m a lawyer.

My guess is “organised casework barriers” mean the lawyers told a court there were laws preventing the government doing what it wanted to do and the court agreed https://t.co/AV4xT9TRdK

— Adam Wagner (@AdamWagner1) August 27, 2020

https://t.co/DFZNHeAULQ pic.twitter.com/owWV0NZOYX

— Adam Wagner (@AdamWagner1) August 27, 2020

I'm just a lawyer, standing in front of a government, using the law, to ask it to behave lawfully #ActivistLawyers

— Rose Arnall (Activist Lawyer) (@ArnallRose) August 27, 2020

It’s another own-goal for Boris Johnson’s Tory government – and the Home Office that Johnson insists must be run by Priti Patel.

Source: Home Office wrong to refer to ‘activist lawyers’, top official admits | Home Office | The Guardian

Have YOU donated to my crowdfunding appeal, raising funds to fight false libel claims by TV celebrities who should know better? These court cases cost a lot of money so every penny will help ensure that wealth doesn’t beat justice.

https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/mike-sivier-libel-fight/

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Toppled Colston statue in Bristol replaced by resin sculpture of Black Lives Matter activist

It makes This Writer proud to be Bristolian.

After the statue of slaver Edward Colston was toppled by protesters last month, artist Marc Quinn replaced it with a resin sculpture of a Black Lives Matter protester in a pre-dawn operation that caught authorities by surprise.

Slave trader statue replaced by ‘unofficial’ sculpture of Black Lives Matter protester pic.twitter.com/QaG3cDVvMS

— The Independent (@Independent) July 15, 2020

Now calls have been made for the city to keep the new statue standing on the formerly-vacant plinth.

The artist said he had based the statue on the moment activist Jen Reid stood on top of the empty plinth on June 7, raising her fist to the skies.

Authorities in Bristol are receiving calls for the statue to be kept, even though it was raised without permission. Mayor Marvin Rees has previously said any replacement would be decided democratically through consultation.

This is a big step forward against the attitude that said slavers should be celebrated, and against the right-wing loons who tried to protect statues like this after Colston’s was pulled down and dumped in the River Avon.

THIS is the future👇 pic.twitter.com/owIol2Ji67

— Mel (@melaniekmelvin) July 15, 2020

Source: Edward Colston statue in Bristol replaced by resin sculpture of Black Lives Matter protester | The Independent

Have YOU donated to my crowdfunding appeal, raising funds to fight false libel claims by TV celebrities who should know better? These court cases cost a lot of money so every penny will help ensure that wealth doesn’t beat justice.

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