Last night’s No. 10 press conference descended into farce as Environment Secretary George Eustice announced the launch of his new ‘Pick for Britain’ campaign, encouraging furloughed workers to volunteer as food pickers to fill in for shortages of migrant labour. Immediately after announcing the new website, pickforbritain.org.uk, it spent the next six hours offline or crashing. Collapsed by an entirely predictable traffic spike…
You would think Eustice of all people could competently introduce a farm-picking programme; given his own Cornwall farm, Trevaskis, has been running a “Pick Your Own” scheme for 40 years, where from 8am to 7pm your family can go and pick fruit and veg, while learning all about what you’re choosing.
Much like Britain’s proper food picking industry, Eustice’s farm tells hopeful visitors “there is currently nothing picking”…
"No, they're wrong" – former DEFRA minister, George Eustice, dismisses concerns that no deal would be disastrous for farmers. #Ridge
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— Sophy Ridge on Sunday (@RidgeOnSunday) March 3, 2019
The man who was Farming Minister until three days ago probably knows what he’s talking about…
Former Farming Minister George Eustice has laid into grandstanding Remain ministers for flaunting resignation threats around in the press, after his own principled resignation yesterday. Speaking to TalkRadio, he attacked them for “trying to buffet the Prime Minister around through threats of resignation”, adding “that’s no way to behave as a minister”. Cabinet Ministers who have happily sat in Government on a “no deal is better than a bad deal” platform for two years now publicly blackmailing the PM into reversing that policy is a truly shameful spectacle…
Eustice privately made his case to the Prime Minister and then simply submitted his resignation when he felt he could no longer continue. Without any highly embarrassing Richard Harrington-style media antics in advance…
Yesterday in Parliament (Hansard)
Rosie Duffield Labour, Canterbury
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has assessed the potential merits of introducing a new criminal offence of theft of a pet.George Eustice, The Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Theft of a pet is already a criminal offence under the Theft Act 1968. The maximum penalty is 7 years imprisonment. The Sentencing Council updated its guidelines in relation to sentencing for theft offences in February 2016. The guidelines take account of the emotional distress and therefore harm that theft of personal items such as a pet can have on the victim and accordingly recommends higher penalties for such offences.
Barking mad…
