New cabinet

This is scary stuff - Boris as a diplomat and Hammond whose known as a bean counter in the treasury. Fox is another hardliner and David Davis has been a thorn in the conservatives side for years.

I can only assume that May is taking the approach of 'keep your friends close and your enemies even closer'. Well that's a charitable view and one I'm hoping is correct. If not then I'm afraid we're all in for a rough ride.
 
Gove looks to be gone. Hunt hopefully follows.

You can't seriously think Boris would fit that job unless it's for a comedy sketch? She might have sugar coated her plans but it's already looking bad.
 
I wish Have I got news for you was on this Friday, just for the Merton and Hislop meltdown over this. They both get along with him but both think he's an utter buffoon who shouldn't be let anywhere near a position of power.
 
robfosters said:
I wish Have I got news for you was on this Friday, just for the Merton and Hislop meltdown over this. They both get along with him but both think he's an utter buffoon who shouldn't be let anywhere near a position of power.
Click to expand...

Speaking as an ex-FCO diplomat, what do you make of the Brexit department and International Trade cabinet position? It would seem that the FCO is losing much of its remit and significance. A sad day in my view
 
robfosters said:
I wish Have I got news for you was on this Friday, just for the Merton and Hislop meltdown over this. They both get along with him but both think he's an utter buffoon who shouldn't be let anywhere near a position of power.
Click to expand...

Indeed. The fact HIGNFY has not been on over the last few weeks is hugely disappointing.
 
Amber Rudd said

During the campaign for Remain in the EU referendum, she warned in a TV debate that she would not trust the new Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson to drive her home at the end of a night out

Going to be a good cabinet :D
 
BoJo as foreign secretary is going to be fun considering he's recently insulted both the current American president and the potential next president.

We truly could be at the back of the queue.
 
Chives said:
Speaking as an ex-FCO diplomat, what do you make of the Brexit department and International Trade cabinet position? It would seem that the FCO is losing much of its remit and significance. A sad day in my view
Click to expand...

I think the trade cabinet is somewhat of a synchronisation. Foreign trade policy was always split across three departments, the FCO, the DTI and DFID. Each department had different responsibilities, for example the FCO dealt more with regulation while the DTI concentrated on promotion and the minister operated from both departments. It worked fine when we was in the EU as the trade situation with EU partners was pretty much cut and dry and everyone could operate with average levels of communication with each department. Now we are leaving, all this has been completely obliterated and there is ridiculous amounts of work to do in order to get us to an acceptable trading position by the time brexit happens. It makes far more sense to take the cream of each department and combine them together in one unit to go forward. The FCO had many civil servants working in trade, but hardly any were experts, which is what is needed now.

As for the brexit 'ministry', I cant really see the point in that one. We need a brexit minister without a doubt, but we don't need a separate ministry. The FCO's European Union department is very large and consists of many of the FCO's most senior diplomats. I'm sure it's something they could do on their own. Indeed, an ex colleague told me today that appointments are already happening and noses are being put seriously out of joint with many senior diplomats having their responsibilities ripped away from and passed on to the new brexit unit and in many cases, to civil servants who have never had any experience in the field, but come with solid CV's from other departments. So while this looks good and efficient to the public, it's leaving somewhat of a bitter taste in the mouths of the FCO civil servants.

The FCO have been the lead in the European Union since we joined and has a wealth of experience. I think they should have been trusted to negotiate our way out of it.
 
Why should we have stuck with things as they were?
Since the public clearly voted for change ;)

I wonder if this is purely a Brexit cabinet, in place for three an a bit years, get us out, get us to the next election intact, and then she runs, wins, burns them all?
It does looks like she has stacked the deck full of brexiters, and will assume they can sing from that hymnsheet for a time.
 
A trade deal with America, such as TTIP, and the inherent flaws it might have brought are a great thing to avoid.
Allowing companies to sue governments for policy chnages that hurt profit margins seems a ridiculous way to start doing business, look at how much the world has chnaged in the past thirty years.
Old telecoms companies sueing the govt as they sell mobile phone licences which would hurt the old companies profits. Situations such at that would be insane.
I hope we never acquire a govt willing to implement such a short term stupid, long term blind policy.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom