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[scriver]

Pooched the screw

[Duuvian]

https://www.politico.eu/article/uk-bulking-up-spying-regime-breakneck-speed/
Despite the protestations of industry and campaigners, ministers are whisking a new bill through parliament.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Tech companies are most concerned by a change that would allow the Home Office to issue notices preventing them from making technical updates that might impede information-sharing with U.K. intelligence agencies.

TechUK argues that, combined with pre-existing powers, the changes would “grant a de facto power to indefinitely veto companies from making changes to their products and services offered in the U.K.”

“Using this power, the government could prevent the implementation of new end-to-end encryption, or stop developers from patching vulnerabilities in code that the government or their partners would like to exploit,” Meredith Whittaker, president of secure messaging app Signal, told POLITICO when the bill was first unveiled.

I thought it was bad enough when Microsoft wasn't informed about a security flaw US agencies were exploiting. C'mon now, Microsoft doesn't need any help keeping their OS borked. This is overall a very bad idea, and I can comfortably say that without even having to read the bill this time.

[Great Order]

Oh that's fantastic, wait until an exploit appears, can't get patched, and shitloads lose their personal data. It'll be one of the funny-if-it-wasn't-so-sad situations.

[Starver]

And this is why I pore scorn on many ideas for changing how the House Of Lords operates. All the "new ideas" are shown to be bunkum in significant ways.

(Yes, hereditary peers may be considered an underserving anachronism but, given how many of their successors are undeserving/problematic (and the elected members of the other House/equivalents in other jurisdictions hardly cover themselves in glory), I don't think there's anything like the impetous to abolish that aspect as many so-called-reformers try to suggest.)

[Loud Whispers]

And this is why I pore scorn on many ideas for changing how the House Of Lords operates. All the "new ideas" are shown to be bunkum in significant ways.

(Yes, hereditary peers may be considered an underserving anachronism but, given how many of their successors are undeserving/problematic (and the elected members of the other House/equivalents in other jurisdictions hardly cover themselves in glory), I don't think there's anything like the impetous to abolish that aspect as many so-called-reformers try to suggest.)

Lmao I know of this guy. I remember when the London Evening Standard went from being a cool little newspaper that showed off all these little Londoner perspectives that no one ever acknowledged or even knew existed. Then when he bought it and took it over it would run such relatable concerns as "which chocolate fountain should you buy" two years after everyone had lost their homes and were being priced out of London

[EuchreJack]

Hm, but what if all the members of the House of Lords actually showed up and voted? What havoc they could bring.  Or what if only the clearly Russian plants decided to actually show up? Then perhaps pass a proposal to "reform" the House of Lords.  Pure laziness is the only thing saving Britannia.

[Loud Whispers]

Hm, but what if all the members of the House of Lords actually showed up and voted? What havoc they could bring.  Or what if only the clearly Russian plants decided to actually show up? Then perhaps pass a proposal to "reform" the House of Lords.  Pure laziness is the only thing saving Britannia.

the great art of achieving very little

[hector13]

Looks like Speaker Hoyle made a significant boo-boo today in going against convention and allowing a Labour amendment about voting for a ceasefire in Gaza to be discussed on a day designated for the SNP amendment to be discussed instead.

This caused member of the SNP and Tories to walk out in protest.

So far as I can tell the Labour amendment isn’t really any different from the government position in anything but name though? Basically a humanitarian pause for aid and work on a long-term diplomatic solution?

Interesting in that the Speaker is a former Labour MP, and the last time there was an SNP amendment to a vote on Gaza there was a significant rebellion as Labour MPs voted for it, including 10 front benchers (basically opposition “ministers”) who had to thus resign those position.

[Starver]

Government and (Westeminster) Labour Party are close to lockstep. If there's to be cessation of Israel-Gaza conflict (whether pause, cessation or resolving to discuss terms) then it has to be bilateral. Scottish Labour has perhaps forced the idea that A Message Must Be Sent (to one or other such end), despite such messages being probably not worth the vellum they probably won't even be written on. Likud may pay attention to British opinion slightly more than Hamas would, but that's a spectacularly low bar already.

The SNP seems to favour a more unilateral approach (it's hard to know what remains of the pre-October radicalised organisation, anyway... or how much post-October radicalisation may have offset its natural attrition).

As I understand it, it's a break in tradition for Labour's ammendment to be considered, against the SNP original, when there's already such a similar Conservative government pre-emptive (performative) proposal in the loop. But, realistically, the pure SNP version wouldn't satisfy enough people to get legs. Whilst, despite heavy disagreements within both Lab and Con groupings, the Labour proposal could get support enough (and not lose too much for being too cross-chamber in nature, give or take what levels and type of pressure various whips exert), probably moreso than what I understand might be the fate of the Government alternative. But there will be objections on principle for all permutations, even where the sentiments aren't too different from the respective representatives.


...but I haven't been following the details too closely, as I class this as pretty much ineffectual regardless of what mix of 'suggestions' are going to be made. This is for internal consumption only and will mean effectively zero effects 'over there'.

[Starver]

(Was on the verge of submitting this in the "things that made you laugh today" thread, but I'd posted there already on another matter... Still a double-post here, but at least a little over a month between.)

There were always prior claims by government mouthpieces that a prior period when the "small boats" (not the laughing matter) numbers subsided due to the threat of the Rwanda Bill ([url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Safety_of_Rwanda_(Asylum_and_Immigration)_Bill]ditto), or had increased thanks to attempts to thwart it.

Today, the exact same sort of spokesbod claimed that the greater numbers over the weekend was due to the imminent success of the policy, actually encouraging attempts.

I tell you, I couldn't help laughing out loud at that. (But then "your cake and eat it" seems to be de rigueur in this sort of political matter, or at least spun to appear that way.)

[hector13]

Former SNP Chief Executive is charged with embezzlement

Probably not a great thing to happen in an election year.

[Starver]

Not exactly out of the blue[1], as it seems to be a holdover from the whole original end-of-Sturgeon-era fuss.

I think the SNP might be more damaged by the reduced environmental targets, or at least the pressure will sit more heavily upon their Green coallition partners.


[1] Talking of blue, another Tory in trouble! (For balance, Rainer is risking an adverse investigation (for Labour), and LibDems are... way too quiet. With the other Celtic sub-nations also having some funny political manouevering going on. Upcoming local elections, for those who are having them, might signal whether Rishi'll want to rush or stall the national ones.)

[hector13]

If Tories stopped getting into scandals around the time the other parties are he’d probably have made the announcement already.

Rayner’s thing is nonsense though. The amount of money involved (maybe £2k?) is a pittance compared to even Menzies current thing, and the amount of money wasted by other Tories libeling academics and the like.

[hector13]

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-68901088

Looks like the Scottish government is about to collapse after the SNP unilaterally decide to leave the Bute House Agreement and blowing their foot off in the process.

That is unless they convince SNP defector and losing leadership candidate Ash Regan to vote with them in the no confidence vote.

[Great Order]

Yeah, the SNP have really shot themselves in the leg here. Dunno what Humza's thoughts are, or even if he has any. Guy's got the political guile of a brick.