[vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]Even the Prime Minister’s most ardent admirers would not pretend that 2020 was anything other than a pretty dire year for him.
Having given the Conservatives their biggest parliamentary majority since 1987, the gloss quickly came off the former Mayor of London as he went from crisis to catastrophe in his responses to the pandemic.
From being AWOL from the early cabinet discussions about how COVID should be tackled, through to his bonhomie approach to the disease, including his admission that he had been happy to shake hands with hospital patients during the early days of the infection outbreak, the initial incompetence was compounded by the government’s decision to lockdown too late, allowing events such as the Cheltenham race festival and a Champions League match between Liverpool and Atletico Madrid to go ahead.
The list of cock-up’s is not insignificant. His live television broadcast, for which he was widely mocked following his mixed messaging as to whether we should be working from home or going to work; the Chancellor’s ‘eat out to help out’ gimmick; the promise that we would “send this thing packing” in a matter of weeks; an unmitigated disaster of a test & trace system; an economic crash worse than anywhere else in Europe and a higher death toll. And, let us not forget, a five-day Christmas ‘bonus’ that was reduced to two days, and then led to national lockdown THREE – followed by his commitment to keep schools open on the Andrew Marr programme on Sunday 3rd of January, only for him to announce that they were shutting, after all, twenty-four hours later.
Against this backdrop, is it any wonder that many in the Conservative Parliamentary Party were sharpening their knives, with a view to selecting their fourth leader in as many years? At this rate, they will have had as many leaders as Chelsea have had Manager’s.
However, one can never underestimate Boris’ powers of recovery. This is a man that has survived more scandals than you can shake a stick at. Among a long charge sheet, forgetting how many kids he has, adultery and conspiring to beat up a journalist.
So, the advent of a vaccination and its subsequent successful roll out somewhat incredibly means, Boris is back in the game.
Undoubtedly there are still hurdles he will have to jump. As on many COVID related issues, as with the Brexit deal, he does want to ‘have his cake and eat it’. As is being demonstrated with Brexit, few political settlements allow that – and it is the same with coronavirus.
By trying to balance the early government response between protecting lives and protecting the economy, they did neither. The same is happening with border controls at airports. The restrictions don’t do enough to prevent the import of COVID – but they are harsh enough to kill the aviation industry.
Nevertheless, people are fed up being fed up. They want the vaccination story to be the shining light at the end of a very long tunnel, and Boris will be happy to take the credit for it.
There is an old saying that it is better to be lucky than good. It seems that Boris Johnson is determined to prove the point.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_raw_html]JTNDYSUyMGhyZWYlM0QlMjJodHRwcyUzQSUyRiUyRnR3aXR0ZXIuY29tJTJGRG93bnRvd25GcmFuayUzRnJlZl9zcmMlM0R0d3NyYyUyNTVFdGZ3JTIyJTIwY2xhc3MlM0QlMjJ0d2l0dGVyLWZvbGxvdy1idXR0b24lMjIlMjBkYXRhLXNob3ctY291bnQlM0QlMjJmYWxzZSUyMiUzRUZvbGxvdyUyMCU0MERvd250b3duRnJhbmslM0MlMkZhJTNFJTNDc2NyaXB0JTIwYXN5bmMlMjBzcmMlM0QlMjJodHRwcyUzQSUyRiUyRnBsYXRmb3JtLnR3aXR0ZXIuY29tJTJGd2lkZ2V0cy5qcyUyMiUyMGNoYXJzZXQlM0QlMjJ1dGYtOCUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRnNjcmlwdCUzRQ==[/vc_raw_html][/vc_column][/vc_row]
