A great editorial in today's Observer newspaper (HERE). Hard hitting and scathingly critical of the government's handling of the talks, it believes both sides would benefit from stopping the clock and delaying our departure to allow a reassessment and avoid a spiralling downwards to a rancorous and damaging breakdown. Davis is blamed for making a monumental mess of the negotiations and Mrs May is urged to sack him. These are probably both good ideas, but almost certainly won't happen because the time limited talks favour the EU and hard-line Brexiteers would like nothing better than for us to crash out without an agreement.
And although I make a point of not reading The Daily Mail, I see the sister paper, The Mail on Sunday, is carrying a report (HERE) claiming a letter has been sent to Mrs May by Gove and Johnson - described as cabinet heavyweights [sic] - with what are said to be a series of veiled threats.
They are accused of running a hard Brexit "cell" inside the cabinet, a sort of provisional wing of the Brexiteers. It includes a suggestion that the PM "clarify the minds" of rebel ministers who want a soft Brexit - aimed presumably at Phillip Hammond, the only cabinet member with a modicum of understanding of the issues.
It underlines the weakness of Theresa May and exposes the kind of fractious and disparate gang she has surrounded herself with. These are the people running the country, may God help us.
