BEST FOR BRITAIN'S
WEEKEND WIRE
Dear John,
Our first big milestone has arrived–we’ve reached Weekend Wire #50. Since we can’t count on them to govern, we can at least console ourselves with the fact that this Tory Government has given us plenty of material in these past 50 weeks.
When Rishi met Emmanuel (and accomplished very little)
The Prime Minister got the chance to marvel at the existence <[link removed]> and efficiency of France’s high speed rail network when he travelled to Paris on Friday for the first France-UK summit since 2018.
Sunak met <[link removed]>Emmanuel Macron to discuss the continued European partnership aiding Ukraine, energy security, preventing terrorism, and a new deal <[link removed]> on precision weapons.
However, according to reports, Macron had already privately rejected <[link removed]'> Sunak’s pleas for a bilateral deportation agreement. The French President is said to be pressuring the PM to open new safe routes to UK asylum.
In the absence of a deal that will actually stop dangerous small boat crossings, the updated deal will focus on patrols <[link removed]>, build a new detention centre in France and see the UK send France €541m over three years <[link removed]>. Just don't get it confused with the deal signed in November <[link removed]>which focussed on patrols but didn't work, or the one Priti Patel signed <[link removed]>, which focussed on patrols but didn’t work, or the one Amber Rudd <[link removed]> signed…
An illegal Bill on migration <[link removed]>
The Government continued <[link removed]> its depressing and dangerous campaign of shockingly cruel legislation toward immigrants, people seeking asylum, and refugees this week with the announcement on Tuesday of a so-called Illegal Migration Bill.
This policy would see tens of thousands of people locked up <[link removed]> in criminal detention and deported en masse should they fail to arrive in the UK to claim asylum through one of the extremely limited safe routes to the UK, the largest of which are restricted to Ukrainians and Hong Kongers. With the Government dog-whistling about ‘illegal migration’, it bears repeating that seeking asylum is a right recognised <[link removed].> by international law.
Critics have slammed <[link removed]> the Bill’s cruelty and noted it had little chance of beating judicial challenges in the UK or by the European Court of Human Rights, which Suella Braverman herself admitted <[link removed]>. The German far-right party Alternative für Deutschland, conversely, said “Bravo” <[link removed]> in a Facebook post.
Best for Britain CEO Naomi Smith said <[link removed]> the Bill amounted to “little more than performative cruelty”.
Out of the crisp fryer and into the fire
With the Government seemingly determined to transform the UK into an isolationist rump state with their despicable Bill, the nation’s media grandees have all zeroed in on the biggest outrage the UK has seen since, well, last week: football legend Gary Lineker criticising <[link removed]>the <[link removed]>Government <[link removed]>.
The BBC Match of the Day presenter’s crime? Accurately expressing concern that the Government’s rhetoric toward people seeking asylum has strayed into dangerous territory reminiscent of 1930s Germany.
With Tories across the board screaming for the dismissal of Lineker from the *checks notes* football show, the matter of former BBC political presenter Andrew Neil chairing <[link removed]> a right-wing political magazine at the same time appears to have been forgotten. One might even call it rank hypocrisy. Still, Lineker announced on Friday that he would step back <[link removed]> from MOTD.
We’d close this bit out with a pun about football, but Penny Mordaunt’s attempt <[link removed]> has crippled us with so much secondhand embarrassment that we’ll just say: Less scrutiny of Gary, more of Government, please.
UKTBC tells Government to follow the science
The announcement that the UK would be allowed to rejoin the Horizon Europe science and research programme as a result of the successful Windsor Framework negotiations was greeted with joy from scientists around Europe, including the UK.
Naturally, noted tech bro Rishi Sunak responded to this news by…waffling on the purported scientific reunion with Europe and intimating that reentry to Horizon was not on the agenda. Instantly, a chorus of condemnation from scientists, academics, and people interested in the UK not being shut out of all international bodies resulted.
One of the strongest rebukes came from the cross-party, cross-industry UK Trade and Business Commission, for which B4B are secretariat. The UKTBC’s letter <[link removed]> to the Prime Minister was written up in the Financial Times <[link removed]> on Tuesday.
In their defence, five steps is a lot
Glad to know last week’s show of cooperation with the EU was just a brief hallucination.
Last weekend, the New European published an op-ed <[link removed]> by your author on the next five steps for resetting the UK-EU relationship after the Windsor Framework.
Among these were an immediate rejoin of Horizon Europe and working in partnership with the EU to establish new safe and legal routes to asylum. In both cases, the Government has already done the opposite. We do have to give them some credit for addressing the list so promptly–maybe the next Government will actually follow it.
Georgians take to the streets
This week, protestors marched in the streets <[link removed]> across Georgia to voice their opposition to a bill being advanced by the country’s ruling party which would require a wide spectrum of independent media, political organisations, and bloggers receiving funding from outside the country to register as “foreign agents”.
The bill, similar to Russian legislation, was advanced amid widespread reports of Russian involvement. In response, thousands of Georgians, many waving EU flags, hit the streets to demand its retraction and demonstrate against any political moves that could disrupt the country’s accession to the EU <[link removed]>.
As of this weekend, they have succeeded <[link removed]> with their immediate aim–Georgia’s parliament officially revoked the legislation on Thursday. Organisers have said <[link removed]> they will press on to achieve the reforms necessary to make Georgia an EU member.
Worst Round Table ever
Boris Johnson’s campaign to give each of his mates a heraldic title hit a snag <[link removed]> this week when outrage greeted his reported plans to give his own father, who has been accused of both sexual misconduct and domestic violence, a knighthood.
The former Prime Minister has already given his brother a peerage among his allegedly triple-digit honours list <[link removed]>. Sir Stanley Johnson, however, appears <[link removed]> to be a sabre too far for top Tories, who have now joined opposition voices in calling for Johnson to trim some of the less-distinguished names from the list.
One Tory has cautioned that it could put Rishi Sunak in the uncomfortable position of forcing Johnson to cut it himself. To make the ceremony more BoJo friendly, we suggest doing away with some of the stuffiness–maybe try firing peerage certificates from a T-shirt cannon!
Are you breastfeeding, formula, or arsenic?
Rejoice, babies of Britain! Meddlesome bureaucrats from Brussels can no longer stick their noses in your lunch. The fully sovereign UK will not have to comply with new EU regulations…limiting <[link removed]> the levels of arsenic in baby food.
Following studies on the toxic metal’s carcinogenic effects, the EU has slashed <[link removed]> the amount of arsenic acceptable in infant formula and baby food by 80 percent. Babies in the UK, meanwhile, will be consuming five times more than their European counterparts.
With the potentially deadly health effects of this regulatory divergence, it’s good that the UK has stopped sending £350m per week to the EU <[link removed]> and funded the NHS inst..*gets yanked off stage by a vaudeville-style cane*
As it’s our golden issue, we’re expecting to arrive at work on Monday to boxes and boxes of golden trinkets and baubles gifted to us by you, dear readers. You guys sent them, right?
Best wishes,
Tommy Gillespie
Press Officer, Best for Britain
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Best For Britain - United Kingdom
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