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Boris Johnson loses Parliamentary majority, faces Brexit showdown
Britain's Parliament returns from its summer recess and is facing a titanic showdown over Prime Minister Boris Johnson's plans to leave the European Union. Here's what we know:
● Johnson has lost his majority in Parliament, with the defection of Conservative Phillip Lee to the Liberal Democrats.
● The opposition, including members of Johnson's party, is seeking to pass legislation to delay Brexit.
● Johnson has said that if his foes succeed he will call early elections.
List of prime ministers of the United Kingdom by length of tenure
#54: George Canning, 119 days (1827)
#55: Boris Johnson, 40 days (Incumbent) (2019)
See also: Brexit: Tory MP defects ahead of crucial no-deal vote
How Brexit Blew Up Britain's Constitution
(Score: 4, Interesting) by bradley13 on Wednesday September 04 2019, @07:45AM (9 children)
If nothing else, a general election would bring clarity. It would be, in effect, a second Brexit referendum.
The pro-Brexit people claim that a majority of the population is behind the idea, and it's just stupid politicians standing in the way. The anti-Brexit people claim that the referendum was poorly presented, poorly understood, and that the voters would take it back if they could. An election will give the voters the chance to tell Parliament very clearly what they want.
Everyone is somebody else's weirdo.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Arik on Wednesday September 04 2019, @08:08AM
Few on either side will look at it this way, I fear.
The Brexiteers (and even many Remainers) will point out that there's no doubt in anyone's mind that if the referendum had failed that would have been the end of it. For a generation, at least, and after a generation it would be unlikely to come up again.
But it doesn't work the other way. This is one of the profoundly anti-democratic practices of the EU that helped to inspire Brexit; there are votes, but there are predetermined outcomes to the votes, and if you (the voters) don't get it right then you can just keep voting until you do.
And of course the Remainers (not all, but many) aren't going to be any more inclined to accept the results of the next vote than they were the last, if it goes against them.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Wednesday September 04 2019, @08:48AM (5 children)
It may but again it may not.
The Brexit is in shambles because the Brexiteers don't have a clear and coherent set of objectives they want to achieve. Pretty much like the Occupy... movements at the depth of GFC, they knew they don't want the same wall Street shenanigans any more, but couldn't tell what they want instead.
If Brexit wins again, this can drag on indeterminately.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 04 2019, @08:53AM (2 children)
I went to occupy once. They wanted to give more money and power to the same people who screwed them over the first time.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Wednesday September 04 2019, @09:01AM (1 child)
Chances are, the next day after you were there, they wanted the opposite.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 04 2019, @09:18AM
Nope: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=RY0R0NpIdQQ [youtube.com]
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Thexalon on Wednesday September 04 2019, @11:59AM (1 child)
Yes they do: Those clear and coherent set of objectives were to give Boris Johnson and the likes of Nigel Farage the power to do whatever they want without interference from those jerks in Brussels, without any negative consequences for the UK economy.
That these objectives are stupid and unachievable doesn't change what the point was.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Wednesday September 04 2019, @09:34PM
They may be clear but they are self-contradictory (at least ATM), therefore not coherent.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday September 04 2019, @11:29AM
Yet guess what happens when that argument is made regarding the FUD campaign the self-same motley crew of anti-brexiteers mounted wearing their 'better together' hats during the Scottish Independence referendum and the outright lies they told to swing that vote? (e.g. The relevant biggie here being the only way Scotland would be able to stay in the EU was to vote to No and keep the UK alive..)
tossers, the lot of them.
The problem with a general election now, as is obvious by the way Labour are running scared and don't want it, is that it will return a seriously right of centre government to the UK, and that will be taken as a mandate for all the fun things that the powers behind the Boris muppet have in store for us all. Personally, I think we're fucked whatever happens now, I just curse the fact that the Irish side of my family stopped registering their births back there, so the Irish passport is out of the question.
(Score: 1) by therainingmonkey on Wednesday September 04 2019, @03:06PM
I wouldn't count on it.
Remember we had an election in 2017 which, if anything, only reduced clarity.