BEST FOR BRITAIN'S 



WEEKEND WIRE



Dear John,



You know how the old saying goes. Political firestorms are a lot like buses–they always happen right before you host the biggest trade policy conference since Brexit. 



T-minus 3 days to #TU23



Trade Unlocked is only three days away, and the Best for Britain team is making final preparations before the hundreds of businesses, trade experts, and policymakers arrive in Birmingham on Tuesday. 



Our keynote speakers include Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy MP and Shadow International Trade Secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds, among dozens of other business leaders and experts. 



<[link removed]>



Be sure you’re following Trade Unlocked on Twitter <[link removed]> and LinkedIn <[link removed]> to catch all our updates from the conference on Tuesday, and use the #TU23 hashtag to join the conversation on social media. For those registered to attend, you can have a first look at our app at app.tradeunlocked.co.uk <[link removed]>.



90 Day Fiance: Parliamentary Edition



Westminster is still reeling from Boris Johnson’s shock announcement that he would resign late last Friday, and this week, the Privileges Committee (composed, let us remember, of a majority of Tories) revealed exactly what had him running scared and raging incoherently into the ether of the Parliamentary lobby: Johnson was set to be suspended from Parliament for 90 days.



The harshness of the proposed punishment came as a surprise even to the most seasoned Westminster hacks, including a delicious suggestion that Johnson be banned from receiving a former member’s pass to the estate. Firing back, Johnson repeated his line that he was the victim of a kangaroo court and tried to tattle <[link removed]> on Bernard Jenkin, one of the Tories on the Privileges Committee, for an alleged lockdown breach of his own.



The House will vote next week on whether to accept or reject the Committee’s findings, with most Tory MPs expected to abstain. Johnson, for his part, can never be accused of failing to multitask in his grifting–he’s already lined up a gig as a Daily Mail columnist <[link removed]>.



Not Guto





Best for Britain Chief Executive Naomi Smith appeared on BBC Politics Live <[link removed]> on Wednesday, and alongside Labour Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin, aced the formidable challenge of remaining sane, cool, and on top of their game on a panel that included Cultural Marxism conspiracy-peddling Tory MP Miriam Cates and the former Director of Communications for Boris Johnson, Guto Harri.



Against the backdrop of the bombshell Partygate Privileges Committee report, Tracy swiftly dismissed Cates’ claims that the fallout was a distraction, relating her experience <[link removed]> meeting constituents who believe Johnson is a “serial liar and a narcissist”. Naomi shared <[link removed]> her powerful personal experience of grief during the pandemic, which Harri impotently tarred as “parading” personal stories…before proceeding to a personal pandemic story of his own.







In between dispatching Harri and Cates, Naomi also cued viewers into Best for Britain’s recent work, including our recent polling <[link removed]> and the upcoming Trade Unlocked conference <[link removed]>.



Tragedy in the Mediterranean <[link removed]>



An unimaginable tragedy struck in the Mediterranean early Wednesday morning when a boat carrying up to 750 people capsized and sank <[link removed]> off the southern coast of Greece. 



The fishing boat, which was believed to be en route from Libya to Italy, had been reported in distress for several hours before it capsized. At least 78 people were confirmed to have died, but responders said the death toll is expected to rise. 



The Greek government declared three national days of mourning in response to the tragedy, but observers have heavily criticised <[link removed]>their failure to respond to reports that the boat was overloaded and in danger of sinking. 



Best for Britain’s deepest sympathies are with those affected by this disaster.



The peerage-denier was Rishi Sunak in the No 10 bathroom with the candlestick



With all of the humdrum, provincial frivolities out of the way, it’s time to focus on the real, hard-hitting news: who’s behind Nadine Dorries not getting a peerage?







After kicking off the whole affair with her resignation, initially thinking that she would receive a peerage from her creepily-doted-upon little brother Boris, the shock turn of events and subsequent political chicanery that saw the former Prime Minister resign also cost Dorries her promised place <[link removed]> in the House of Lords. 



Not one to go down (or do much of anything) quietly, Dorries immediately went on the offensive, blaming a cabal of misogynist and classist forces close to the Prime Minister in a Daily Mail op-ed <[link removed]>. To twist the screw, she has refused <[link removed]> to formally resign as of Friday afternoon, until the Prime Minister explains exactly why she didn’t receive a peerage. 



As novelist Dorries surely knows, this narrative drama could delay the by-election in Mid Bedfordshire to just before party conference season in the autumn. Anyone who’d read her work would know not to trifle with her, lest they <[link removed]> “unleash the dogs of war”.



Baby of the Other House



In defence of Nadine Dorries, we’d also likely have a few choice words to say if we were passed over for a place in the House of Lords in favour of a 29 year-old assistant. 



Included in Boris Johnson’s honours list was Charlotte Owen <[link removed]>, a former parliamentary aide to Johnson. Having filtered through a number of roles with Tory MPs, Owen served as a special adviser from 2021-22 in Johnson’s office, apparently accomplishing enough to earn herself a lifetime role as an unelected lawmaker. Criticism of the appointment has followed swiftly, however, with some commentators accusing Owen of exaggerating her role and another member of Johnson’s office describing her <[link removed]> as “staggeringly junior”.



Trump in orange



After his bombshell indictment on charges of illegally retaining classified material, former US President Donald Trump was arraigned <[link removed]> in Miami on Tuesday. He has pleaded not guilty.



On his way out of Miami, Trump also found the time <[link removed]> to visit a Cuban restaurant, promise free food for all his gathered supporters, and skip out on the bill. 



At a rally of supporters in New Jersey after the arraignment, Trump then claimed <[link removed]> that the boxes piled up in the now-infamous photographs at his Mar-a-Lago resort were actually “shirts and shoes”. Apparently he wasn’t a Marie Kondo devotee.



Whether you will be ascending to the House of Lords or joining us and Nadine Dorries in lamenting another day of our wretched plebeian lives, we wish you a happy and restful weekend. Bye for now! 



Best wishes,



Tommy Gillespie

Press Officer, Best for Britain







-=-=-

Best For Britain - United Kingdom

This email was sent to [email protected]. To stop receiving emails: [link removed]

-=-=-



Copyright © 2022 Best for Britain, All rights reserved.

Published & promoted by Cary Mitchell on behalf of Best for Britain, the campaign name of BEST FOR BRITAIN LIMITED registered at International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London, EC1A 2BN. Best for Britain is registered with The Electoral Commission.

Best for Britain Limited is a company registered in England and Wales no. 10436078. Registered for VAT no. 378894125.



Created with NationBuilder - [link removed]