As 2020 is screwed up, chucked over the shoulder and heading for the waste paper bin, it’s worth remembering that local council regulations stipulate that at least 50% must be reused or recycled. So far lockdowns, Brexit chaos and Gavin Williamson are the bits being dusted off for a new life. American facism has been upcycled with the addition of a buffalo bill headdress, face paint and an attempted takeover of the Congressional building. Everything still feels very like last year.
The UK government has kicked off 2021 with a new round of covid-lockdown restrictions, including closing schools. In a sign of the dangers of full time education, Eton graduate Boris Johnson ordered pupils to stay home after a single super spreader first day back. Meanwhile, CSI Starmer has shown a new streak of forensic attention to detail as Head of the Opposition. He is now able to demand exactly what the government says they will do within only hours of the government leaking their own plans.
More assertive resistance to the government’s lockdown has come from a small group of Conservative MPs. Steve Baker likened recent measures to ‘near Soviet intervention’, forgetting perhaps that those who resisted actual Soviet interventions tended to find themselves in front of the firing squad. So far even Priti Patel hasn’t suggested going that far.
But despite the ever-increasing number of Covid infections, there is hope. TheNHS began rolling out vaccines to the over 80s just before Christmas. Trying to find out about their experiences, families reported their elderly relatives struggling to use technology and turn their laptops on. This proving that they haven’t been injected with a microchip from Bill Gates.
2021 will not just be about COVID. Boris began his 2021 foreign policy ambitions by cancelling a trip to India due to take place this month. This is genuinely a great start for global Britain as there is less chance he will say something racist and offend his hosts. Civil servants will be breathing the same sigh of relief that the producers of the Grand Tour breathe when they find out that Jeremy Clarkson and co will not be heading to Argentina or Myanmar.
Later this year the UK will also host the United Nations climate change conference COP 26. Of course if the government delivers its trademark incompetence to ending climate change, the consequences could be considerably more dire than Covid-19. The covid tier system may be repurposed as the world becomes hotter and seas rise. Tier 2 for most people in England and Wales might mean stay inside and drink more water. Whereas tier 3 for Norfolk might mean, 'Seek high ground immediately'. Stay on top of your home>don't flood the NHS> save lives.
And then of course there is the reality and politics of Brexit. In between applauding Trump and not falling off his bar stool, Nigel Farage has renamed the Brexit Party to the Reform Party. This is a worrying signal that Farage is staying in politics and not going to return to his ‘man of the people’ job as a City commodities trader. It also might be a clever way for the Brexit party not to be associated with Brexit. Just in case some people are upset by delays at Dover and Calais; the flight of stockmarket investment to mainland Europe; 4 hours of new vet checks on Scottish seafood awaiting export; the ending of erasmus exchanges for students; visas for frequent travelers; UK companies no longer selling to Europe; European companies no longer selling to the UK; the end of membership of Europol and use of European arrest warrants and; any other trivial matters affecting the UK. Presumably the EU is to blame.
2021 is going to be a lot to handle. What is needed perhaps is some sort of hilarious, anonymous, Crow-logoed purveyor of political sketches to spend the year churning out wit and whimsy for the entertainment of the nerdy political observer. That will surely make things better for everyone. Be sure to let me know if you find one. Happy New Year.
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