David Cameron once called UKIP, Farage's former party, a bunch of "fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists". It's now headed up by Gerard Batten with Tommy Robinson as his advisor and has become too 'extreme' even for Nigel Farage himself. However, to help voters who want a real Monster Raving Loony Party but without having to admit to voting for one, Nigel has launched The Brexit Party (HERE). This has multi-millionaire Richard Tice as chairman. Think of Screaming Lord Sutch in a pin striped suit but without the sophistication or intellect.
The party only got going in January this year and amazingly has already lost a previous leader and treasurer. Even by Farage standards this is quick.
The party was founded (HERE) by UKIP's economics spokesman (yes, they actually had one) Catherine Blaiklock. She had to stand down in March after making Islamophobic remarks followed shortly after by the party's treasurer, Michael McGough after he was found to have made antisemitic and homophobic social media posts. Things move very fast at The Brexit Party don't they?
Anyway, Farage agreed to take over as leader (he has to have a party to lead) and so yesterday it launched or relaunched itself ready for the coming charade of the European elections with Annunziata Rees-Mogg, sister of you-know-who as a candidate. Where I come from anyone named Annunziata wouldn't last ten minutes. People would think her name was Anne Unziata and she was from somewhere exotic - like Mars. Her name is the Italian word for Annunciation. You would have to think yourself really something to give or keep a name like that - and the Rees-Moggs do.
She will no doubt try to be the toff-of-the-people figure like her brother, just like any of your regular, aristocratic, multi-millionaires would.
The Brexit party has had it's internet identity hi-jacked and a .com domain registered in its name (HERE) by the anti-Brexit group Led by Donkeys. These are the people responsible for putting up billboards with embarrassing quotes from Brexiteers' campaigning days when truth didn't have a care in the world and neither did they. The official website is a .org domain name by the way.
If UKIP was a national embarrassment, The Brexit Party looks even more chaotic. I don't expect it to last more than a year or two and in the meantime it will simply attract UKIP supporters and damage both them and the Tories. So, probably good for us.
Farage himself has said it's 'no more Mr Nice Guy' for him although nobody can seem to recall a time when it was for the man who has insulted just about everybody you can name east of Heligoland.
On another matter, Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, spoke to the assembled press very early last Thursday morning following the emergency summit granting our request for a delay to Article 50, and implored UK parliamentarians not to 'waste this time'. Most of them were abed at three o'clock in the morning but later the same day, they promptly went on their Easter break until the 23rd of April with the words of the PM that they would have to work 'at pace' when they returned to the House to reach a conclusion on the Withdrawal Agreement, ringing in their ears.
The party only got going in January this year and amazingly has already lost a previous leader and treasurer. Even by Farage standards this is quick.
Anyway, Farage agreed to take over as leader (he has to have a party to lead) and so yesterday it launched or relaunched itself ready for the coming charade of the European elections with Annunziata Rees-Mogg, sister of you-know-who as a candidate. Where I come from anyone named Annunziata wouldn't last ten minutes. People would think her name was Anne Unziata and she was from somewhere exotic - like Mars. Her name is the Italian word for Annunciation. You would have to think yourself really something to give or keep a name like that - and the Rees-Moggs do.
She will no doubt try to be the toff-of-the-people figure like her brother, just like any of your regular, aristocratic, multi-millionaires would.
The Brexit party has had it's internet identity hi-jacked and a .com domain registered in its name (HERE) by the anti-Brexit group Led by Donkeys. These are the people responsible for putting up billboards with embarrassing quotes from Brexiteers' campaigning days when truth didn't have a care in the world and neither did they. The official website is a .org domain name by the way.
If UKIP was a national embarrassment, The Brexit Party looks even more chaotic. I don't expect it to last more than a year or two and in the meantime it will simply attract UKIP supporters and damage both them and the Tories. So, probably good for us.
Farage himself has said it's 'no more Mr Nice Guy' for him although nobody can seem to recall a time when it was for the man who has insulted just about everybody you can name east of Heligoland.
On another matter, Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, spoke to the assembled press very early last Thursday morning following the emergency summit granting our request for a delay to Article 50, and implored UK parliamentarians not to 'waste this time'. Most of them were abed at three o'clock in the morning but later the same day, they promptly went on their Easter break until the 23rd of April with the words of the PM that they would have to work 'at pace' when they returned to the House to reach a conclusion on the Withdrawal Agreement, ringing in their ears.
The extension granted by the EU was effectively for six and a half months, about 28 weeks in all.
If we look at the parliamentary recess dates (HERE) you can see the two weeks for Easter (11th - 23rd April), seven weeks for the summer recess (20th July - 5th September) and four weeks for the conference season (14th September - 9th October). That's 13 weeks, or nearly half the extension period, that's the period which EU 27 leaders stayed up half the night to agree.
We seem to be in a massive constitutional and political crisis yet the MPs at the centre of the maelstrom swan around as if they have all the time in the world!
I wonder what the EU27 think? Probably not a lot, as Eric Morecambe used to say.
I wonder what the EU27 think? Probably not a lot, as Eric Morecambe used to say.
