General Election 2019

In 24 hours from now the country will have a good idea on which party has the biggest chance of forming the next Government. I hope with all my heart that it is not the Conservative Party.

I used to vote Conservative. I was proud to be a pro-business, pro-EU, pro-aspiration voter. Not any more. Since 2016 the Conservatives have swung so far to the right that there is no way I can vote for them tomorrow. And the lies they have told, with this deluded belief that they need to out-Brexit the Brexit Party.

Boris Johnson has no integrity. Neither do many in his Cabinet, I hope that the results tomorrow will be a blood bath for them. The polls are tight but it is still possible that there will be a hung parliament. That is what we need right now - some moderate politics that can guide this country away from the abyss. Boris Johnson is not the man to represent the country.

I am a bit scared for tomorrow, but I have a small feeling that the polls are closing in on Boris Johnson. Tomorrow I think that people will vote for anything but the Tories. Whether tactical voting is successful or not will be part of that story.

I am so fed up with politics right now. I'm fed up with Brexit, But that doesn't mean that I am prepared to waive through a Withdrawal Agreement that has not had proper scrutiny. This is what Johnson is hoping to do. Before the election was called Parliament refused to accept the shortened timescale for debating the Withdrawal Bill. So Johnson tried to call for the election. I am still a bit annoyed that an election was called at all, but I believe in democracy and I know that in the end this will be work itself out.

We have come a long way since that terrible year, 2016, when people who didn't have any opinion at all about Brexit suddenly decided to pin all their domestic woes on the EU. Fed by the lies and deceit of Brexiteers it was always going to be inevitable that manipulated electorate would vote for something that had been barely explained in full. Now that the full ramifications of leaving the EU are in the open, there is only disinformation (and there has been a lot of it) by the Tory spin doctor in chief, Mr Cummings, that can once again engineer a result to suit them. I just hope that truth and integrity prevails tomorrow. It is the last chance we have to stop Brexit.

Do or Die

Tonight was supposed to be the last night before we left the European Union. The famous Halloween Brexit, drummed into the country through television advertising, social media and no-doubt email spamming (hopefully only for those who had opted in for such nonsense), has mysteriously come to a juddering halt. The minting of the 50p celebratory coins has stopped. All money wasted. Johnson said he would rather "die in a ditch" than not fulfill his promise to leave the EU on 31st October.

He has failed.

He has failed because Brexit is impossible to achieve. Instead he has insisted on an election. Another election to mix up the Parliamentary mathematics with a last gasp hope that he might win a large enough majority to have another go. It is also a convenient smokescreen, to distract the public who really should be asking where the ditch is and why is he not lying in it.

So in about six weeks, on 12th December, we face a General Election. On my work Christmas Party night of all days. I await with interest to see if we get yet another hung Parliament. Lots of MPs are already quitting whilst they are ahead but there are also plenty of Brexit fanatics that I hope will face humiliation on Friday 13th December.

What a nice Christmas present that would be.

Momentous

What a time to be alive. After reducing my anti-rejection medication my creatinine made a significant fall this week. So pleased that the return to a decent eGFR has recommenced again. I just need to fix the CMV infection I have contracted from the donated kidney and will be sorted. My liver is still causing me problems though and the cysts on it are impeding on my stomach, causing me reflux. I have an appointment at Kings next week to address that.

This week the Supreme Court deemed that Johnson had broken the law regarding prorogation. What an outcome! So Parliament was duly resumed. Hopefully MPs can continue to hold this corrupt Government to account and maintain our democracy.

This week I also spoke to my manager about returning to work. I feel a little guilty as there has just been a major release, which I missed. I just need to meet with Occupational Health next week and set a date for returning.

Set back

Bit of a set back this week - my creatinine stopped falling completely and was actually slightly raised. Also my new kidney appears to have a bit of hydro-nephrosis. On top of that my Tac levels are a bit too high. It's a bit of a balancing act to keep them right but that could be what is impacting my creatinine levels. Received a call from the surgeon today to reduce my levels even more and they are bringing forward my appointment to Monday next week.

Spent most of yesterday watching the proceedings in the Supreme Court where the Government is defending their position on prorogation. Tomorrow we will hear from John Major's lawyers. So it will be true blue-on-blue PM-on-PM. How has it got to this?

Johnson heckled again on a hospital visit. He really is not very popular with the people.

Finally the Lib Dems are offering a true alternative for Remainers by promising to revoke Article 50 if they win the next election. That is quite unlikely but it is a great incentive for Remainers to put an end to this sorry affair. Looks like Corbyn has missed the boat.

The drone bombing on Saudi oil refineries looks about the escalate. 

Extension

Huge day tomorrow. Will the Johnson lies be finally stopped and the country taken off the brink of no deal Brexit? Or even if Parliament votes for an extension, which will be legally binding on him, will he choose instead to break the law and ignore the will of MPs?

I'm so sick of the way this Government is choosing to interpret what "leave the EU" actually means. He lies when he states there is progress on the negotiation. I watched the statements with Merkel and she did not agree that the Withdrawal Agreement could be opened. She just said that there was existing provision for alternative arrangements to replace the backstop when and if it is finally agreed that they will actually work. Despite his lies that there is progress the EU states categorically that there is not and that he has not presented what these so-called alternative arrangements will look like.

Yet he needs to claim there is progress as the only defence he has against removing the threat of no-deal.

There is no progress.

And let me state again, I have specific requirements for medication following my transplant, which is at risk if there is a no deal.

The sooner this nasty party is consigned to history the better.

Constitutional outrage

He's been in office barely  month and Johnson has shown complete disregard to parliamentary democracy. Today he announced that he intends to prorogue parliament in a naked attempt to suppress the debating time of the House where it might otherwise seek to block a no deal.

I cannot begin to describe the contempt I feel for this man, if not this government.

Kidney is still very sleepy and my eGFR is still only 22. My creatinine is still 276, with only a slow decline. Still better than being on dialysis though.

Transplant!

It finally happened. Two weeks ago now. I took at call in the early hours of Friday morning to say that there was an available kidney. The operation seems to have gone well - my creatinine is falling and I feel great!

eGFR is currently 12 and rising.

As usual the NHS was completely amazing. The nurses were brilliant and really looked after me. Night times on the ward were more of a challenge (I need absolute quiet to sleep) and I was a little uncomfortable at first with the pain.

Most of the swelling has subsided, and I am without the catheter and drain line now. Only a catheter between the new kidney and my bladder remains for a couple more weeks. That will not be a pleasant experience to remove it!

And all this against the change from a May to a Johnson government. He has 98 days to deliver an impossible Brexit. We shall see what happens, but I am not confident that he will achieve any kind of deal. And if there is no deal then Parliament has made it clear that it will do everything it can to block it.

Interesting times.

They don't know who I am

Tonight I am bleeding profusely with a hematuria. I feel light headed. I have an appointment tomorrow at the hospital. Just my luck that the warmest day of the year is about to hit us this weekend but I might be in hospital.

I slept when I returned from the GP this afternoon. I've eaten but feel nauseous. Three weeks of bleeding has taken its toll. I have no energy.

I have no energy to update my Twitter account. After three years of fighting Brexit I am tired. It looks highly likely that Boris Johnson will be elected to the position of PM by the Conservative Party members. The decision is out of my control. He looks likely to push through a Brexit by 31st October by whatever means, even if that means proroguing Parliament. We'll see about that. For now I just need to sit back and watch this pantomime play out. I still don't think Brexit will happen. I am just too tired now to fight it anymore.

And my family - those who ignored me, who chose to believe in this ludicrous endgame we have followed, they can continue to believe in it. It's actually more than not forgiving them for voting Brexit. They don't even know who I am. That is unforgivable.

Counting down the days

And so we are now in the Tory leadership campaign, down to the final two: Johnson or Hunt. Rory would have been good, but common sense was never going to prevail here. Last week a poll of the Tory membership revealed that they would rather break up the United Kingdom as a price to pay for Brexit. So it is confirmed - they are fanatical.

I am at the stage now that it doesnt matter who wins. Both are chasing unicorns. Hunt is probably more of a statesman, but he also says that he would pursue a no-deal Brexit if it came to it.

The world has gone mad. And this weekend the news of strange noises coming out of the 31 year old's Camberwell flat where Boris is shacked up. Where have the standards gone?

Received another offer of a kidney: a 30 year old group with a history of cocaine and steroid abuse. I would have accepted but it wasn't a tissue match in the end.

Hematuria has lasted over a fortnight. Went to the doctor's about it. They took a sample. But what can they do?

Only seven more years until my planned retirement. I'm starting to count down the days. 

Trump

I just can't, even.

And a dozen contenders for the job of PM. With Boris as the favourite and endorsed by el President.

Will the NHS really be on the table with an trade negotiation?

The State Visit is almost over. Last night we were treated to footage of the Trump family meeting the Queen for dinner. After that tweet aimed at Mayor Khan.

The demonstration outside Parliament was fake news apparently. At least the blimp was there.

Meanwhile I received a call today from my surgery, advising that my phosphate binders have been put on the "red list" and that they can only now be dispensed by the hospital.

In good news my consultant advised that I can take 2 days off from dialysis, every so often. So I'm hoping we can go to France for a short trip.

Resignation day?

Today might be the day that Theresa May resigns. But then I have thought that on many other previous occasions.
This time it is more likely. After the extension to Article 50 was granted earlier in the year, she has done very little to unite the party. Worse still (for the Conservatives) it has proved impossible to prevent the European Elections from taking place. In the chaos of that Nigel Farage has established the Brexit Party from nothing which looks like it has stormed ahead to win most of the seats. Interestingly though, so too have the Lib Dems, overtaking Labour and leaving the Conservatives languishing in single figures.
And amidst all that May tried to return her WA a final time in the form of a Bill into the House of Commons. This has proved the death knoll for her. The backlash has successfully killed it off and the 1922 Committee are pretty much forcing her out.
We await an announcement this morning to see if she will cling on until 10th June after the D-Day commemorations and Trump's state visit.
In my view the best thing she could do now would be to unilaterally revoke Article 50 and reset everything for the next PM to start again. And who will that be? Will it really be Boris? What can he do with the mathematics of Parliament - call another election? Would he dare?

More Brexit drama

The drama of Brexit refuses to die down. After the Commons seizing the order of the day and carrying out indicative votes, no one solution surfaced as a winner, although Customs Union and People's Vote failed by only a few votes.

Then yesterday, after 7 hours of Cabinet, Theresa May agreed to discuss options with the Labour Party. That meeting took place today, described as "constructive talks". But May still wants to get agreement by next week with a delay in leaving until 22nd May. I don't think the EU will agree to this, as I don't think the talks will resolve this week. Meanwhile the ERG are looking for blood. It's interesting because on paper the Conservative Party cannot force May out as they had a vote last December. Will this be the beginning of the men in grey suits?

What I am hoping for is a long extension with a public inquiry into what kind of Brexit, if any, is feasible. Then, once agreed, it is put to a public vote.

Now tonight the Commons failed by a tie-break to take control of the order paper next week for further indicative votes, when Bercow ruled against the motion. MPs are currently voting on the Cooper bill to prevent a no-deal. This will guarantee by law that we don't crash out of the EU if no deal is agreed by April 12th.

Tomorrow I have tests at the clinic. Will be nice to have taken the day off work.

Happy No Brexit Day

So today is 29th March 2019, the day we were supposed to leave the EU.

We haven't left the EU.

This is great news. Today May tried once again to put her poisonous Withdrawal Agreement through Parliament, and again failed, this time by 58 votes.

We've recently had a situation whereby Parliament took control of the order paper for the day and had a series of indicative votes to see if there was a majority for anything. There was not, although a referendum and a customs union were the least hated options.

The country is in such a crisis. It will be hard to describe in years to come just how bad things are right now. Today there was a demonstration outside Parliament full of leave voters claiming a Brexit betrayal, complete with coffin for democracy. Compare that to the crowds that thronged through Westminster last Saturday when we went on the anti Brexit march.

I don't really know what the answer is to this mess. A second referendum perhaps. I just hope that one day we can all start talking about Brexit.

Ate Swedish meatballs in Borough tonight.

Revoke Article 50!

What a day! Today we marched against Brexit. All 1,000,000 of us. We showed Theresa May that there is a significant opposition to the road she is taking us down. We followed the route of my MP, Neil Coyle, Southwark Labour. Neil has been amazing in his unswerving opposition to Brexit. I'm so pleased that Southwark is a massively Remain area.

It was busy. Very. Much more than the last time I marched. R was not happy with the crowds! But it was worth it to put the message across that Brexit is a disaster for this country.

In addition to the march over 4 million people have now signed the petition to revoke Article 50. It really feels like the tide is turning.

And tonight the Sunday papers are reporting a coup. Is this finally the time that May will fall? But then what? Will a Brexity headbanger take her place?

There are talks of David Liddington (undefined), or Gove (Brexity) or Jeremy Hunt (Brexity).

I just want this all to end. Brexit has ruined my life, my relationships. R was very sweet today in the march though.

Stop Brexit.

I think this is the pinnacle. Something is happening tonight.

She will not do it.

What a time to be alive! So many people are just going about their business and seem oblivious to the fact that we might have a no-deal in 8 days time. If that happens we risk martial law. Already there is a bunker under Whitehall where the military are planning for it.

This. Is. Ridiculous.

Hopefully the EU can help save the day. Right now there is a Summit in Brussels where they are deciding what offer to give the UK for an extension. Yesterday May write asking for one until 30th June, but as that is after the European Elections in May it is doubtful this will be agreed. Also Tusk gave a provisional offer for an extension on the proviso that May was able to pass her deal.

She will not pass that deal.

What's more she then decided to give an astonishing speech from Downing Street whereby she blamed MPs for the mess we are in. No remorse. No self-reflection that perhaps the actions she has taken since 2016 to shut out debate and the red lines she has taken might have contributed to this terrible situation we are in.

I went again to the supermarket to stock up - pasta, sauces, cheese, tuna. I need to be at least somewhat prepared when there is no food in the shops. It is that bad. The risk is that bad.

I can't believe she has brought us to this. But I still do not believe that a British PM would take us to no-deal. She would not do it. She will not do it.

Ding Dong! MV3 is dead!

At least this week it probably is, after Mr Speaker, John Bercow, blocked May's attempts at putting it back for a 3rd vote due to the Erskine-May rules. We are now in full blown constitutional crisis, and with just 10 days remaining until 29th March this is extremely serious.

10 days remaining - and we don't even know if we can extend Article 50, nor by how much.

This. is. ridiculous.

To delay or not delay

Another week and it's going to be another dramatic one, it seems. The Government has until Thursday, when there is an EU summit, to decide whether it will put the MV3 to Parliament, and from the result either ask for a short technical extension (if it passes) or else ask for a much longer extension to Article 50.

I really hope that if the vote even occurs that it does not pass. It would keep us bound by the EU rules for a number of years with no say in any existing or new regulations that come to pass. Worst still is the dreaded backstop which would bind Northern Ireland to these rules should we decide to move against them.

And of course I am dreading a no deal situation. That would risk my supply of medicines and dialysis equipment. I cannot believe Parliament - or May - would let this happen. I have a cupboard stocked with food just in case but it would be a complete disaster.

Rumour has it that any longer extension might be for just 9 months, which seems pretty short to me. I'd rather it be for 2 years, so that the country can decide what it really wants. perhaps by means of a second referendum.

It's odd - generally people I speak to don't seem too bothered by the outcome of a no deal. I think most people haven't really understood the catastrophe that it would be, and are quite relaxed about it all.

The clock is ticking and sooner will will know our fate.

MV3

Just back from dinner on the southbank. For some reason Pizza Express that overlooks the Thames is never busy. We managed to get a window seat too. Wine is vile though, but anyway...


So not much happened politically today. May is trying to get a deal with the DUP and according to reports they are softening. She is going to try again next week with the 3rd attempt for a meaningful vote (number 3 - MV3). Some more might vote with her, but I still think she is not going to manage a majority.

Took delivery of my Bollinger 2008 today. Let's see how that does over the next 30 years. Hopefully it's Corbyn proof for a while.

Massacre in Christchurch with 49 dead. Nowhere is sacred anymore.

Parliament votes for no no-deal, but what happens next?

It's not a given that there will be no deal. This is the thing I am most worried about. No deal will risk a disruption to the delivery of my medicines and dialysis supplies. That the Prime Minister could walk through the No Lobby tonight, voting against the removal of no deal under any circumstances, is despicable. Completely despicable.

And so it was, the will of Parliament is to remove no deal. And yet still, she stated immediately after the vote that there must still be a deal of sorts if we are to truly remove no deal. This is no true. She could choose to revoke Article 50. She doesn't need to hide behind the EU to do that.

On the plus side it is clear now that Theresa May is really losing her grip of power as Parliament starts to express its own. Brexiteers must be furious. But they are also so stupid. Take Mark Francois for example. So thick that he would rather vote against a 3rd attempt of May's Withdrawal Agreement because he thinks it is not completely leaving the EU, ignoring the fact that its the future arrangements that will define our future relationship. I'm glad that these people are blinded by their own ignorance.

I just want it all to stop. Ever since 2015 when I heard about this wretched Referendum I've wanted it to stop.

Withdrawal Agreement voted down a second time

This is proving to be a fascinating time to follow politics. Tonight, thankfully, Theresa May's Withdrawal Agreement was voted down again. Now tomorrow there will be a vote to take no-deal off the table and on Thursday whether Article 50 should be extended.

It's not a given that the EU will agree to extend Article 50. My thoughts are that if no-deal is taken off the table, and if the EU refuse to extend Article 50, May might well be forced to revoke Article 50, and we can put an end to this sorry affair.

Strangely, tomorrow's vote is a free vote for Conservatives, proving that May can no longer govern her party. As predicted Corybn did not push for a second referendum.

Given that its been shown recently that May knew how unsafe the Referendum was due to electoral cheating, it seems incredible that she has pushed the "will of the people" narrative for so long. It's nearly 3 years since the will of the people was tested. It's time to accept that this vote, proven to be illegal, was a vote for unicorns. Brexiteers offered an impossible future to the people. Now is the time to get real and return back to the EU with a program of reform, and to fix the problems and reasons of why the people were convinced to blame the EU for all their woes.

Brexit is only 17 days away.

29th March or bust

I had a work from home day today as I was due to see the consultant at Guys. It seems I now need to up my folic acid and also increase my inhibitors. Plus more ferrin(?) will be required by means of an iron infusion. I've also not been feeling to good, possibly a mild form of flu.

Also today the never ending saga that is Brexit moved forward. Already this month there have been defectors from both the Labour and Tory parties forming an independent group of MPs to oppose Brexit. This is good. It has also put pressure on both May and Corbyn. Only yesterday he agreed to pursue the idea of a second referendum. And today May agreed that there will be a vote on delaying Article 50. First a vote on her deal or no deal. The assumption is that the Commons will not vote for her deal. Then the following day a vote on no deal or delay Article 50. On the face of it it seems that leaving on 29th March is now dead in the water, as is her deal. But she is still trying to get those legal assurances from Brussels, so we will see.

Meanwhile I am quite concerned by how I might be impacted by a no deal scenario. If my dialysis supplies cannot be delivered it will be very serious for me. I counted about 20 different medicines and equipment that I require. It's not possible to stock pile. I don't have the room for it.

Taking back control

What can I say? We are plunged even further into the political crisis than last time I posted on this topic. The meaningful vote proved to be the biggest parliamentary vote against a Government ever. Yet Theresa May is still ploughing on, determined to see it through. For now she has agreed to invite the other political parties for discussions. But is she really listening?

This week there were further votes on amendments to the motion that was necessary after failing to get the vote through. Here a few noble parliamentarians (such as Dominic Grieve and Yvette Cooper tried but failed to give Parliament more powers to take back control from this despotic government. Grieve's amendment would have provided specific days for discussion and voting on next steps should May still not have the deal approved. Cooper's amendment was to extend Article 50. That too failed. Even an amendment to prevent a no-deal didn't go through. May's response to that is that the only way to avoid a no-deal is to vote for the deal. Even if the deal is worse than a no-deal.

It was the Brady amendment that passed that evening. This unicorn amendment seeks to remove the backstop from the Withdrawal Agreement. Yet we all know that the EU will never approve this. The whole point is that the UK can no longer be trusted not to contravene the Good Friday Agreement. What a mess.

And in all this melee I was invited to speak on Radio 5 Live breakfast show with my thoughts. I actually thought I would be discussing no deal and the risk to my kidney medicine and equipment. In fact I was asked to comment on who holds the power.

Meaningful Vote

The time has finally arrived for the meaningful vote.

It was promised last December, only to be pulled at the last minute. So there is no guarantee that it will take place at all, tomorrow. But the time is now here, surely here, for Parliament to have its say and that the answer must surely be no. The vote would take us out of the European Union, remove freedom of movement both ways, subject us to rules over which we have no say. It is a bad deal.

What I love about this is that the Brexiteers are so ignorant and prejudice that they would rather stop us leaving the EU just because they can't stand the idea of us temporarily being ruled by another entity, even temporarily as a pathway to Brexit. It says it all that they would sacrifice their own dreams on the alter of their hatred of the EU.

Well let them, it helps me and everyone else who doesn't want to leave the EU anyway. If this deal is voted down then the threat being peddled by Theresa May is (last week) of a no-deal, and (this week) of a no Brexit. Well I vote for a no Brexit.

Hopefully once this deal is voted down we can see Parliament exert itself and take back control. There lies another irony as its the same slogan used by Brexiteers in 2016, only now they are not too keen on it when it means preventing them hurtling towards no deal.

The whole thing is a mess. Hopefully we can extend or abort Article 50 and either stop Brexit once and for all, or put it all to the country again with a People's Vote.

Interesting times. What will Labour do? Will they manage to seize power? Will Parliament manage to stop Brexit. Will Theresa May fight on and change all our lives forever?