By Press Release
Just the idea of anyone reading my text messages fills me with horror. If those on my contacts list could see what I’d had to say about them sometimes, few would ever speak to me again. Come to think of it, that’s a great way to rid oneself of the most annoying people in your life.
We all bellyache occasionally, usually it’s just a heat of the moment thing. Messaging tantrums are soon forgotten, neatly printed on A4, years later, they could look diabolical.
I believe in fairness, and it surely isn’t fair that Boris is forced to hand over all his messages to the Covid inquiry. I’m pretty sure the government handled the pandemic as best it could under circumstances that were without precedent. First, they underreacted, then they completely overreacted. Sometimes they did well, (vaccines), and sometimes they messed up completely, (discharging elderly patients into care homes, and Rishi’s barmy Eat Out to Help Out scheme.) Inevitably, the inquiry will drag on and on and cost millions. Its conclusions are predictable, they’ll inform us that ‘lessons will be learned’ but by then, it’ll all be ancient history. Public inquiries are a waste of time for everyone except lawyers, and particularly useless to those who want answers now, not 10 years later.
Telephone messages are sent in the expectation they are between you and the recipient. Boris wouldn’t have expected his messages to be made public, and any juicy bits will be leaked immediately. If I were him, my phone would have vanished in the move from Downing Street. Failing that, I would have followed Rebecca Vardy’s agent’s example and lost it over the side of a boat out at sea.
Boris’s enemies loathe him with a passion, they constantly search for the silver bullet that they pray will finish him off permanently. If they really think the Covid inquiry will do that, they’re deluded. And if politicians’ WhatsApp messages are to become public property, I’d like to see Keir Starmer’s exchanges with Sue Gray please.
Locally, sight of Cllr Chris Jarman’s exchanges would doubtless be amusing. Supported by the Greens he was elected in Totland as an Independent. He’s now had a hissy-fit and left the ruling Alliance Group. That meant losing his cabinet role, which irked him.
Chris is now leader of the new ‘Empowering Islanders’ gang of four who are controversially backing Tory Joe Robertson’s bid to become council leader. One is a former Tory who left the group because he wanted to be an ‘Independent Conservative’, the other three were elected as Independents. One of them says it would make him “retch” to “even temporarily” support the Tories. If Robertson believes he can run the council depending on that motley crew, he’s a fool.
The electorate spoke just two years ago; they’d had enough of the Tories running County Hall. Now Cllr Jarman and the EI group propose putting the Tories right back in power! In any event, Joe hopes to become MP for the East Wight. Is he planning to use the position of council leader to campaign, keeping an eye on the bigger prize? Surely we deserve better than that.
On social media, Empowering Islanders say they’ll work for the common good, and that voters should “Imagine if fire crews only tackled blazes if they supported the same party?” One wag responded to that gem by pointing out a better analogy: “It’s like working with the arsonists who caused all the fires.”
Sadly, the EI leader also doesn’t have any solutions to our ferry crisis, other than if you can’t afford the crossing, he suggests you hitch a ride with someone who’s already paid the extortionate fare. Some say Jarman’s clever – I’m yet to be convinced!
