It is expected that today Boris will announce an end to compulsory face masks from July 19th. However, not everyone is happy to see face coverings go; Labour mayors Sadiq Khan, Andy Burnham, Dan Norris and Steve Rotheram all seem reluctant to bin the masks. As such it’s unclear whether masks will continue to be mandated on public transport – which is under the remit of mayors. If Khan had his way, Guido suspects that no one would be boarding the freedom train any time soon…
Unite the union are also calling on ministers to keep face masks mandatory on public transport, writing that optional face coverings would be “an act of gross negligence by the government”.
Boris is expected to advocate people exercise their own judgement. However, Huw Merriman, Tory Chairman of the Commons Transport Committee has slammed the government’s “confusing” policy arguing that scrapping mask laws whilst simultaneously recommending they be worn is a “cop out.” He says guidance should be scrapped in its entirety…
Guido couldn’t noticing David Schneider also weigh in on the great mask-debate. Hardly surprising to hear he enjoys restrictions…
Yesterday’s pro-Brexit ruling in Northern Ireland thoroughly dismissed a Remainer case attempting to make No Deal illegal – by arguing it would damage the Northern Ireland peace process. In his judgement Lord Justice McCloskey thoroughly slapped down the spurious arguments that the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement hinges on membership of the European Union, or even regulatory alignment with it…
“Neither NIA 1998 nor the international treaty scheduled to the Belfast Agreement (or, for that matter, the Agreement itself) has the effect in law of requiring the continued membership of the EU on the part of the UK.
The Supreme Court was alert to this in Miller: see [129]. Furthermore, none of the sources mentioned subjects the EU 27 to conclude an Article 50 Withdrawal Agreement in any particular terms.”
“Once again, neither the Belfast Agreement nor this suite of provisions was predicated on the basis that UK membership of the EU would continue forever. Neither of them can be construed as requiring a customs Union or continued regulatory alignment. More fundamentally, there is no sufficient evidential foundation for the incompatibility asserted. There is no suggestion that the incompatibility has already materialised”
This expert ruling will come as sad news to some of Guido’s Remoaner friends, who have repeatedly, erroneously, argued that it does:
It is impossible for anyone who understands the Good Friday Agreement to believe that Northern Ireland can leave the Customs Union without breaking the treaty. Hoey is not the only one daft or deluded enough to miss this point. But this? This is a whole new level of batshittery. https://t.co/4TFQQzdnM4
— James O’Brien (@mrjamesob) December 15, 2018
The man who tells us all ‘How To Be Right’ getting it wrong…
The Good Friday Agreement is guaranteed by the EU. Without the EU and the four freedoms, without the Uk and Ireland both being in the EU, it wouldn’t have been possible. Hence why the GFA and peace are threatened by Brexit.
— David Schneider (@davidschneider) May 15, 2019
Maybe stick to comedy mate…
Ireland & UK signed the Good Friday Agreement explicitly as EU members. 3,600 deaths preceded it. If there was an easy solution they’d have found it at 36 deaths.
WE chose to undermine the agreement with no solution.
We should be ASHAMED that it’s not US insisting on the backstop— Femi (@Femi_Sorry) February 20, 2019
Spoken with such confidence, just a shame its completely inaccurate
Dublin seeks to preserve the Good Friday Agreement. London’s (and the DUP’s) choices are inconsistent with its preservation. https://t.co/I9a63XeJFt
— Jo Maugham QC (@JolyonMaugham) December 2, 2017
The Twitter Lawyer is wrong again. Awkward…
