The real opposition to the Government’s coronavirus response isn’t Labour but the hostile civil service

FOR three long years our civil servants did everything they possibly could to prevent the UK from leaving the European Union.

In other words, to thwart the will of the people — and the policies of our democratically elected Government.

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Hell, they almost succeeded, too.

Civil service insiders report that the organisation was, almost to a man, openly hostile to Brexit.

Derisive of the referendum.

Civil service reports into the effects of Brexit whipped up the worries.

Civil servants leaked whatever they could do to the Press.

Not least the foreign Press.

And now, in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, guess what? Yup, they’re still doing it.

Britain’s top diplomat Sir Simon McDonald, one of the highest-paid people in the public sector, has tried to shaft the Government over Brexit and the virus.

He said that the Government took a “political decision” not to join an EU effort to buy protective equipment and ventilators.

This was wholly untrue, as the Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, angrily made clear.

McDonald — still somehow in a job — was forced to back down.

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‘EU SPECTACULARLY FAILED’

Two things. First, the EU scheme has spectacularly failed to deliver anything.

Indeed — as I suggest below — the EU is coming apart at the seams over this virus.

And second, the invitation to join the scheme was sent, by those EU genii, to the wrong address. Duh.

It is becoming more apparent with every day that passes that the civil service is the biggest impediment to the UK reforming itself.

It is hostile to the Government, to the people — and deeply hostile to change of any kind.

It is a vast congregation of time-serving bureaucrats dedicated only to saving their own jobs.

Even now, red tape may be stifling our efforts to deal with the coronavirus.

It will be interesting to discover, once this pandemic has receded, what part the civil service played in the UK’s failure to carry out adequate testing for the virus, right from the start.

And the failure to bring in vital equipment.

Government ministers carry the can for these sorts of failures, of course.

But it is the civil service charged with enacting the decisions.

I wonder how many ventilators have failed to arrive here because of some bureaucratic hitch?

I wonder what would have happened if the civil service, rather than the military, were charged with building those Nightingale hospitals.

They might just about be ready by the end of the century.

It was clear, when this Government came to office, that the real opposition wasn’t the ragged hounds and trots on the Labour benches, but from the very people paid to enable the government — the civil service.

There needs to be a clear-out, from the top down.

Because this battle — between civil servants and Government ministers — will continue long after this virus has been defeated.

Their opposition to Government policy hampers almost everything we do.

That’s no way to run a country.

I’d watch this top TV

I see The Vicar Of Dibley is back. Dawn French will reprise her role as the Rev Geraldine Granger for the BBC’s Big Night In this evening.

That should cheer us up for a few moments.

BBC

Here are a few more sitcoms they could update to keep us laughing through the lockdown:

Some Mothers Do ’Ave ’Em – Frank Spencer is appointed Health Secretary and has to give briefings every day to the Press. Ooh, Betty, the hilarity.

Till Death Us Do Part – Alf Garnett, in self isolation, kindly explains to us what he thinks of some Chinese culinary practices and the Chinese government.

Both Feet In The Grave – sadly, there was no ventilator for Victor.

Not Going Out – huge laughs as a large number of people don’t, er, go out.

Are You Being Served? – um . . .  no, actually.

Dad’s Army – Captain Mainwaring orders his men to build a new hospital in two days flat, with hilarious consequences.

On The Buses – Stan and Jack vow to wreak revenge on the idiots who won’t give them PPE.

Ignore Prof of gloom

How’s the home- schooling coming along then?

Got the kids up at eight every morning to do a bit of calculus?

I’ve been enjoying it, although I maybe haven’t given enough attention to mathematics.

But it’s been a good chance to redress some of the crap my daughter has been subjected to in ten years of state education.

She now has a slightly different take on the British Empire, the poverty of Africa and how fun it might be to transition into being a bloke.

A mad woman in America has warned that home-schooling is “dangerous”. Why?

HOME-SCHOOLING DANGEROUS

Professor of Law Elizabeth Bartholet said: “It’s always dangerous to put powerful people in charge of the powerless.”.

She added that it gave parents “authoritarian control” over the kids.

You mean like the authoritarian control they’ve had from the teachers all these years, love?

It’s comforting to know that even in this crisis, the liberals are still as deranged as ever.

Bailout plea is a bit rich

You’ve got to feel sorry for Victoria Beckham, haven’t you?

Poor woman says that last week was the worst of her life.

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She’s bitterly disappointed with you, the British people.

She thinks we were all terribly arsey about her when she decided to use our money to furlough her fashion company workers.

How could we be so mean as to expect a woman who has an estimated wealth of £335million – acquired largely through singing badly – should dig into her own pockets.

Rather than scrounging off the taxpayer.

The stinking rich really don’t get it, do they?

No self awareness whatsoever – and even less shame.

But then never mind the witless Posh, whose useless company loses millions every year.

Look at old beardo Branson – Sir Richard, entrepreneur and “philanthropist”.

He wants YOU to pay HIM £500million to bail out his airline, Virgin.

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This is a man who has paid not a single penny of income tax in the UK for fourteen years.

But when his company is in trouble he expects you to bail him out.

And this from a bloke who has already been coining it from the taxpayer for his awful rail franchises.

This kind of bare-faced cheek almost beggars belief.

Or there’s Apple boss Tim Cook boasting about sending a few safety masks to the UK.

SO kind of you, Tim.

Now how about your company pays its proper share of tax in the UK? Then we might not need your charity.

Pope Francis

Pope Francis has pleaded with the EU for countries to “come together” to fight the virus.

Ha. Fat chance, your Popeship.

EPA

The European Union is falling apart as a consequence of this crisis.

All the member states have been doing the sensible thing – and ignoring everything the EU bureaucrats have to say.

Germany introduced very tough anti-immigration measures, for example.

But the EU has been criticised for abandon- ing Spain and Italy.

There are big rows over a joint debt fund to help the worst-hit countries.

There are arguments over what phone app should be used to track virus carriers.

One leading European economist said that the EU was in danger of “imploding”.

Ah well – every cloud, huh?

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