If any sentient being, which obviously excludes a large proportion of the Conservative party, parrots the view that Boris is the answer, then the question must have been formulated in a padded room swirling with hallucinogenic substances with its authors frothing at the mouth whilst trying to undo the arm buckles fixed securely behind their backs.
Is Johnson, the man that gave us the disaster of Brexit, dysfunctional government, law breaking, Liz Truss and trashing the Tory brand, the most dangerous man in Britain? Perhaps. Paul Dacre, leader of the Provisional Wing of Gonzo journalism clearly has a fight on his hands for that title. Dacre has backed every barmy cause that has led to our humiliation as a great nation. Worse, the only chance the poor devil has of extracting a peerage from the cold, dead hand of what is left of the British establishment is through Boris. A dilemma for him as to whom he should back. However, as soon as Johnson placed his ample derrière on his seat on the flight home from the Caribbean to try and reclaim his crown the markets became spooked, the cost of borrowing rose and the pound began to fall. Not even the Telegraph supports him now.
And the talk of a dream team of Johnson and Sunak? Utterly delusional. In a few days time this disgraced prime minister is going to have to give testimony to the Privileges Committee and face judgement on whether he lied to parliament and possibly face sanctions, even suspension and a by-election. Perhaps not the best optics.
And now there is talk of the unity candidate in Penny Mordaunt. Now this is something that I really just don’t understand. Do we really want another over promoted woman who has been less than honest about her background? We hear so much about her military service. But it’s moonshine. The Royal Navy has said that she never qualified as a reservist nor was commissioned. She was sacked from the heady heights of director of comms at the Kensington and Chelsea council for ‘incompetence’. She was removed as deputy trade minister to Frost because she couldn’t master the detail and was often AWOL. And finally what crisis has she managed? I know she appeals to gentlemen of a certain age in the same way matron did at their public schools and I have no doubt that she is good company. But for God’s sake this is time for the grown ups.
Of course, it sticks in the craw of the right that Sunak’s predictions of the Truss IEA economic fantasy came to pass. And they carefully crafted him as the ‘snake’, the betrayer, the slayer of the great man, conveniently forgetting that there were fifty other resignations from government. But he is competent, honest and decent.
So the Parliamentary party has a choice. Crown Sunak and Hunt and lock the party faithful crying and wailing in an attic with the chance of turning the next election into a disaster rather than a massacre. Or allow Johnson’s name to be put before party members and watch the economy crash and burn some more, while those who are fearful of their jobs, homes and way of life will look on in horror and despair with only destitution looming on the horizon. They will never forgive us and the Conservative party will be finally laid to rest, kicking, screaming and spitting vile and venom. It will not be a good or honourable death.