by Rab Bruce’s Spider

Things are so bad for Boris Johnson just now that this article may well be out of date before you read it. There have been plenty of excellent articles written about the current meltdown of the UK Government, so I’ll keep this one short, and will only mention a few things which strike me about it.

First of all, as many others have said, the latest resignations are not demonstrations of some Tories developing a backbone at last. All of these people have backed Johnson to the hilt until now, and their resignations, in true Tory style, are simply to gain personal benefit by removing themselves from his toxic orbit. They have certainly not suddenly developed consciences, and I expect we will see them jockeying for position should the Tories decide it is time for Johnson to go.

As for those fanatics who remain ultra loyal to Johnson, it is hard to feel any sympathy for them. Either they are so stupid that they don’t realise he will throw them under the proverbial bus the moment it suits him, or they actually do believe in him. I’m not sure which is worse.

And what about Michael Gove? He’s been suspiciously quiet for a while now. Is he keeping his head down until he decides the time is right to stick the proverbial knife in Johnson’s back?

As for who will succeed Johnson when he is eventually forced out either by the Tories or by the electorate, it really doesn’t matter. I have said many times before that Johnson is merely a symptom of what is wrong with the UK. He may be the most extreme symptom so far, but that does not mean that his successor will be any better in substance. After all, the Tories have lurched so far to the right (dragging Labour along with them) that there only seem to be hard core Brexiteers left in their party. So Johnson’s successor will undoubtedly be just as xenophobic and uncaring as he is, although they might put up a better show of hiding it.

My final observation is perhaps the most important one from a Scottish perspective. Looking on at what is happening in Westminster, my over-riding reaction is that it is like watching a political farce unfold in a foreign country. Unfortunately, the current constitutional arrangement means that these ridiculous goings-on will affect us here in Scotland, but it still has the feeling of being somehow remote and very, very different to the sort of politics we want to see in our own country. The sooner we escape, the better.