Mornin’ Politocadoes!
The UK Government has missed a key deadline to handover text messages sent and received by former PM Boris Johnson prior to May 2021. The government had until 4 PM on Monday to handover all relevant unredacted notebooks, diaries and WhatsApp messages as part of the UK’s Covid Inquiry. For those who don’t remember, Boris Johnson held several gatherings in direct contradiction to the UK’s stringent protocols for Covid to help prevent spread. Since then, information has come out showing a criminal lack of regard for those rules and for the people who did not have the ability to flout them.
At the core of the request for documentation is Boris Johnson’s old cell phone. This phone, which he has apparently had for fifteen years, is still in his possession. The relevant texts should still be in there. The phone has been a source of contention for the former PM previously as he had been told to stop using it because the number associated with it had been freely accessible to the public. It is expected that the phone will contain texts related to the 3 national lockdowns and other information related to the pandemic.
This all comes as Downing Street had first attempted to prevent the release of any information and then claimed all “requisite material” had been given to the Covid Inquiry. There had been some back and forth with the Government claiming any information contained would be irrelevant, while Lords Justices Dingemans and Garnham allowed that the Covid Inquiry head Baroness Heather Hallett should be able to make the determination what documents are relevant and return whatever is not.
In his defense, Johnson has said that he would like to hand the phone over but needs IT to help him retrieve information without compromising security. But this is BoJo we’re talking about. So I frankly doubt that is the reason. S’funny, we talked about the similarities between Trump and Boris while they were in office, and the only comeuppance that may well stick for them will come out of office and it’s for having shitty document management skills.
Welcome to Thursday! Please be excellent to each other in the comments. The Mayor McSquirrel Rule remains in effect.
Something to keep in mind! Police are using digital data to prosecute abortion seekers, and Facebook and Google are helping them! Even if they are not legally required to do so, the tech giants will aid them in this since it’s technically *against the law*. Please be careful when looking for abortion providers or helping someone who is looking for that assistance.https://tinyurl.com/2azchvd2
The Covid-19 pandemic continues even if the emergencies end, continue to vaccinate using the latest version of the FDA approved vaccines by Phizer and Moderna. Even if you are vaccinated, please continue to maintain social distancing measures, wear masks in public areas in accordance with CDC guidelines in regard to your own vaccination status. EVEN VACCINATED INDIVIDUALS CAN STILL GET IT AND SPREAD IT