Today is World Mental Health Day and the government is taking the opportunity to announce that is appointing Jackie Doyle-Price as the newly created “Suicide Prevention Minister”. Coincidentally she previously made an unfortunate political joke about suicide. In 2014 there was some controversy in her local paper after she quipped that she would “rather jump off Beachy Head” than defect to UKIP. Beachy Head is a notorious suicide spot which has seen over 20 deaths-a-year in some years. Political suicide is no longer a laughing matter for Jackie…

“Can we agree that none of that can come from the Brexit dividend?” @afneil asks @JackieDP on the extra £7.5bn for the NHS across the UK #bbcdp pic.twitter.com/vqTcOlYvyh

— BBC Daily Politics and Sunday Politics (@daily_politics) June 20, 2018

Health minister Jackie Doyle-Price admits the obvious: there is no Brexit dividend while we continue to pay our subs to the EU. That means no Brexit dividend until at least two years after Brexit. Which means the new NHS spending during those years will be paid for entirely out of taxes (and possibly borrowing). In reality the vast majority of the money will come from taxes after the transition period is over as well. Which is not what Number 10 is trying to spin us…

It’s all kicking off in Thurrock, as Tory MP Jackie Doyle-Price’s partner boiled over and shouted “bollocks” at a UKIP councillor last night. Smug Tory councillor Mark Coxshall was condemned by UKIP as a “twerp” and ordered to “calm down” by the chair. Feeling the heat from defending his other half’s 92 majority under threat from UKIP candidate Tim Aker?