The political newspapers of a chief whip of Simon Hart

Desmond Clifford

Simon Hart (SH) was Secretary of State in Wales under Boris Johnson, by whom he was fascinated and alarmed in an equal measure.

Surreeded by Liz Truss, he was appointed Whip in chief by his friend Rishi Sunak. As SH noted at the time, Boris crushed our reputation for integrity, and now Liz has managed to do the same with our reputation for competence. The end of the game was inevitable.

It seems that there is nothing in the role of office of the Wales he loved. He complains oral questions in the municipalities once every six weeks, barely an expensive level of responsibility.

The cabinet was dull, he only noted at his second meeting. In fact, DUL is the most common word in the book.

His work at the Pays de Wales office, Brexit Policy, White Lipers, Mark Drakeford, Labor deputies, David Frost, the Jubilee Platinum ceremony in Saint Paul, Liz Truss Terne, Terne.

Sh considers himself a voice of reason while his group melts and people lose their heads.

Accomplice

In truth, he is an accomplice and helps reduce the standards of British governance by imitating the carelessness of his Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

On March 10, 2021, he received a letter from Jeremy Miles, a lawyer general of the Welsh government (wrongly described as Attorney General; WG does not have such a position) on post-EU practices in Wales. Hart writes, I don't really care / don't give a damn what he thinks about this subject. I imagine that club friends could laugh, bloody well done, Simon.

I imagine that many more people will be depressed by this contempt for the government of the United Kingdom to Wales.

The contempt, in fact, of the only man whose real work was, paid by the taxpayer, to engage with the Welsh government on exactly these questions.

Mark Drakeford is described several times as dull, as if his function was to provide a Welsh secretary bored with distraction and entertainment. In this regard, SH emerges from these pages like the authentic creature of the era of Cirque Johnson.

Drakeford was all that Johnson was not, and the inhabitants of Wales preferred this way. (I should record that I was a civil servant of the Welsh government at the moment).

Sarcastic

Sh is sarcastic about Drakeford management of the cocovio crisis. So much for the shiny manipulation of Nice Mr Drakeford, he one day makes female dogs when the virus takes a bad turn. This of the minister who, on February 28, 2020, thinks that Covid is probably still a hysteria.

In May 2020, he recognized that the good result of the labor work elections was attributable to the management of Drakeford de Cavid, before adding, scandalous but true. Stupid voters, huh?

A few months later, he was in Cardiff to represent the British government at the official opening of the new Seedd. He meets the queen at the station and, in violation of the protocol, attributes opinions to her, she prefers to look at the race. How does he know? The end of the queen was famous for never referring to her personal opinions, so he is strange for a trade unionist and a monarchist to undermine the crown in this way.

The queen had a keen sense of duty, which is more than what can be said for her secretary of state, I jump the song of Senedd – in part to protest, and in part to have lunch with Adam.

To protest against what? He doesn't say, so we will never know. I am in favor of family lunch when the duty is over, but the Welsh secretary is not invited to the opening of Seedd in favor or a personal delight.

They are invited, alongside the monarch, to reflect the full functioning of the constitution of the UNI kingdoms.

If there must be a secretary of state for Wales, the paying public could reasonably expect that they exercise these few functions related to their work.

The Welsh secretary has only one job: defend the Wales in the decision of the British government.

Contempt

We hear about the contempt shown at the Wales office by the Home Office. SH confirms that he did not warn the accommodation of 300 asylum seekers in a disused army base but inappropriate for criminal (in his constituency).

It was a shame, and he should have hit doors in Whitehall. If he did it, he neglected to tell his newspaper. When Penally was closed, SH received precisely 30 minutes of notice from the ad.

In January 2021, he was annoyed because the Welsh government wanted his say on the site of Freeports in Wales. Why wouldn't they do it?

Later, he is faced because Michael Gove plans a private meeting with Mark Drakeford. Again, what is the problem?

On several occasions, the newspaper notes the petulance in search of a grievance.

During a day outside for conservative deputies, he notes that the climbs displayed exclude Scotland and the Wales, concluding, we remain very focused on England. Whod thought it!

In February 2021, he tried but failed to intervene in the office. The same day, he collects the project of electoral manifesto Tory Sened, the more I read it, the more I conclude how bad it is.

Completely admission.

Finally, he deplores, I continue not to be heard.

Trampled

According to his own words, he transmits ineffectiveness, trampling and resentment towards more dynamic colleagues.

His rendering of sanitation on the advice of coal is a question on which memories will vary radically.

At no time of this newspaper, he transmitted any feeling of defense of Wales, pushing his interests or fighting his corner in Whitehall. Apart from its job title, the word Wales barely offers.

He was delighted with a royal visit to notice Union Jacks as well as the Dragon.

If he really wanted the union to flourish, he could have worked better with the Welsh government to demonstrate the advantages of cooperation between the Unionist administrations.

When party stories broke for the first time in December 2021, he writes: A strange story that I do not think resonates with the public. Do you have a beer with colleagues that you spent all day with a violation?

I was so amazed that I had to read it twice.

The power isolates the ministers and the effect is cumulative, but Crikey!

Has he never entered his premises? Has he already held a bus stop, talking to the neighbors of the corner shop?

Later, when the row on the non-Dom tax status of Sunak's woman breaks, he asks, why is it in the public interest?

No quality is more in politics than judgment and it is the assets even that SH seems to be missing the most.

Whip

Sh was happier as a chief Whip than in the office of Wales. He is a rider and tolerant of weaknesses, faithful to his boss and without incident by ideology.

He is on the right side when a conservative MP shamefully connect Sadiq Khan to London terrorism and he shows solidarity with the LGBT group in the Conservative Party when it comes to pressure.

In foresight, he noted that Kemi Badenoch lives in a state of permanent indignation.

A lack of grace towards political opponents on opponents. The king's coronation, he said that Humza Yousaf, Scottish Prime Minister, seemed to organize a barn dance.

Stirred curiosity; I went online so that Checkyousaf wore an intelligent kilt as the Scottish often do on ceremonial occasions: why would that attract comments?

His time as Whip Chief was spent taking care of the bridge chairs and repelling the shameless requests of the honors of deceased deputies.

At other times, SHS remains, light blue, Londs' references for reflecting traditional conservatism; His misfortune was to be active when they were possessed by the howling madness.

He is nice with his friends, David TC Davies, Alun Cairns and Craig Williams, and ambiguous on the Robert Buckland too talkative.

He kicks his most bizarre colleagues and is especially nasty to the opponents of work.

He shows a weakness for the deputy of Ben Lake of Plaid who, surely, will not be delighted to read, I suspect that he was going to live in England, he would most likely be a curator.

There is a strange interaction in these pages between the excitement and weariness of the world. The world of red boxes, government cars (although with drivers unable to locate Pembrokeshire), private advice, Downing ST, Cenotaph, fees of fees and chic invitations all induce a touch of vertigo.

Theres a Shucks, little old me, who would have thought it?! tone. But this false modesty does not cause a certain relevance.

On March 6, 2020, he attended the conference of the Welsh Conservative Party, listened to Paul Davies and Byron Davies, then confides, but I think my speech went even better. Well, congratulations Cicero!

Evil

What could have been a pleasant game through the Conservatives the last days is soiled by a wickedness.

With little to say about politics in Wales, he offers personal gibes, perhaps by confusing animosity with a conviction.

Here is a wasted opportunity; Simon Hart may have ecological the trend and build cooperation between Welsh and British governments during delicate moments, demonstrating the value of the union.

He turned out, without intention, he is part of the eloquent to finally abolish the post of Secretary of State in Wales.

Unlikely: the political newspapers of a chief whip by Simon Hart are published by Macmillan and can be purchased here.