Jacob Rees-Mogg Has Given the Game Away – Even This Government Knows Brexit Is a Disaster

THE GUARDIAN – OPINION: Leaving the EU was the point of Johnson’s administration. Without that goal, its founding purpose has gone

‘In the long story of Britain’s needless, pointless departure from the EU, the Rees-Mogg admission should count as a milestone.’ Photograph: Martin Godwin/The Guardian
The definition of a gaffe is when a politician accidentally tells the truth. So ruled the veteran Washington journalist Michael Kinsley, who would surely take delight in the textbook example of the form served up on Thursday by Jacob Rees-Mogg, the satirically titled minister for Brexit opportunities.

On a visit to the Eurotunnel terminal at Folkestone, hi-vis gilet over his double-breasted suit, Rees-Mogg announced that the government was delaying yet again the imposition of post-Brexit border checks on imports from the EU. He asked the public to celebrate this decision, on the grounds that it would save £1bn a year and help hard-pressed consumers by avoiding an increase in the cost of imported food. Enforcing post-Brexit checks, said the minister, “would have been an act of self-harm”.

You read that right. Jacob Rees-Mogg, arch-leaver and longtime loather of the EU, is now parroting lines from the remain campaign. He is admitting that implementing Brexit in full, honouring the 2016 promise to take back control of Britain’s borders, would be “an act of self-harm”. » | Jonathan Freedland | Friday, April 29, 2022

The Guardian View on Jacob Rees-Mogg: Opportunities to Do Damage

THE GUARDIAN – EDITORIAL: The ardent leaver’s deregulatory instinct in his new ministerial job will be to cut safeguards and regulations

Mr Rees-Mogg’s goal is to reduce legal controls on employers, markets and wealth.’Photograph: Tom Nicholson/Reuters
If Boris Johnson’s recent reshuffle had an overarching purpose it was to show Conservative MPs that a beleaguered prime minister was listening to them. This is the perspective in which the most eye-catching ministerial move, the appointment of Jacob Rees-Mogg as minister for “Brexit opportunities”, should also primarily be seen. Mr Johnson wants his MPs to be reassured that his faith in Brexit is undiminished and that he has installed another ardent leaver at his side after the departure of Lord Frost.

What is less clear, though, is exactly what Mr Rees-Mogg is there to do. He has not simply taken over from Lord Frost, whose responsibility for negotiations with the EU was transferred to the foreign secretary, Liz Truss. But Mr Rees-Mogg’s extended job title gives a clue; in addition to his Brexit promotion role, he is also in charge of “government efficiency”. Mr Johnson is said to have told him to draft an action plan with “1,000 regulations we want to get rid of”. » | Editorial | Friday, February 18, 2022

How Can Jacob Rees-Mogg Find ‘Brexit Opportunities’? They Don’t Exist

THE GUARDIAN – OPINION: It is increasingly clear that Brexit is doing enormous damage to Britain’s economy. And for what, exactly?

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the new Brexit opportunities minister, pictured in Downing Street this week. Photograph: Tayfun Salcı/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock
Jacob Rees-Mogg reminds me of a kipper. A very specific kipper, resting on a plastic pillow of ice, which intruded into the public consciousness back in 2019, when Boris Johnson held it aloft, proclaiming it as an example of the absurd, pettifogging rules imposed by Brussels on the yeoman traders of Britain. Naturally, Johnson’s claims fell apart on inspection. There was no European directive mandating a cushion of ice for the sleeping fish. On the contrary, the ice pillow was demanded by a British rule, drawn up by British officials. Nothing to do with the EU.

The episode came back to me when Rees-Mogg, newly appointed minister for Brexit opportunities and government efficiency, appealed to readers of the Sun to write in and tell him “of ANY petty old EU regulation that should be abolished”. That’s because Johnson’s kipper illustrated not only his serial dishonesty on matters European – already well-documented – but also a gap in the Brexiters’ arsenal. That gap was fairly well concealed in the 2016 referendum campaign, but Rees-Mogg’s plea in the Sun, like Johnson’s kipper, has exposed it.

Here’s how it can be identified. Take the Brexiters at their word – that leaving was about more than ending European immigration – and ask them to name some other reform that Britain badly needed but which proved unachievable so long as we remained in the EU: a specific change that only Brexit could unlock. The committed leaver will struggle and sputter, before either mentioning blue passports or else retreating into abstract nouns: “freedom” or “sovereignty”. Press them for a concrete, real-world benefit of Brexit, one that survives scrutiny, and they wilt. They either end up making something up, as Johnson did, or else phoning a friend – like Rees-Mogg’s call-out to Sun readers. » | Jonathan Freedland | Friday, February 11, 2022

Rees-Mogg’s Roots Tell a True Conservative Tale – Just Not the One He Wants Us to Hear

THE GUARDIAN – OPINION: The MP’s grandfather worked as a dairyman and lorry driver, but this does not fit his carefully cultivated public image

Illustration: Eleanor Shakespeare/The Guardian
Just to the south of London’s great stations for the north – Euston, St Pancras and King’s Cross – an old and rather careworn neighbourhood serves the traveller’s needs. Cheap beds, cheap food and drink, drugs probably, sex formerly. Finer amusements had been planned for the site: in 1830 a project known as the Royal Panharmonium Pleasure Gardens, which was to include a theatre, ballroom and music gallery, went bankrupt before it was finished. In its place came a square and a few streets of modest brown-brick houses, built just before flat-fronted Georgian went out of fashion.

Knowing no better, I stayed in a comfortless room there on a winter’s night in the 1960s. Shillings fed the meter for the gas fire, a light bulb hung from the ceiling, and in the early hours of the morning the door shook with a tremendous banging as a man’s slurred voice called out for a woman. The area is more respectable now, but in some ways nicely unchanged. True, there’s a Travelodge and a Comfort Inn, but also a Macdonald hotel and a Jesmond Dene hotel, which speak of a time when travellers coming or going from stations north of the Tyne liked to be reminded of home. » | Ian Jack | Saturday, January 22, 2022

What Does Tory Rift Mean for Scotland and the Union?

Jacob Rees-Mogg called Douglas Ross, the Scottish Tory leader, a “lightweight”
ANALYSIS
THE TIMES: Tory prime ministers are used to friendly fire from Scottish Conservatives. Elected Tories north of the border tend to be more liberal and centrist certainly than the present cabinet but also many of their predecessors.

However, the past 24 hours have seen an unprecedented escalation of hostilities, and not only because Douglas Ross became the first leader of the Scottish party to call for a sitting Conservative to quit Downing Street.

It is the venom with which allies of Boris Johnson have pushed back that has shocked senior politicians and strategists in Edinburgh.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of the House of Commons, called Ross a “lightweight” and sent spasms of anger through the Scottish Tory hierarchy. References have been made to Rees-Mogg’s first … » | Kieran Andrews, Scottish Political Editor | Thursday, January 13, 2022 [£]

Unfit for Office: Why Jacob Rees-Mogg Is a Disgrace - Truth To Power

May 26, 2021 • The channel where we speak truth to power about British politics, and challenge the establishment narrative peddled by the overwhelmingly right wing press and BBC. In the words of Noam Chomsky, "power knows the truth already, and is busy concealing it". Let's make it as hard for them as possible to do so, on Brexit, Corruption, the Economy, the NHS, Electoral Reform, Taxation, Equality and Climate Change.

Our recent poll clearly showed that Jacob Rees-Mogg is the most disliked senior Tory, winning more than half of votes from our viewers. In this video, I’m taking a look at why that could possibly be. Perhaps it’s his bigotry, his disdain for the poor, allegations of racism and anti-Semitism, his hard Brexit zeal, or his involvement in tax avoidance schemes?


When you take one look at this man, you have to ask yourself which century we're living in! Isn't it amazing that Brits can elect a man such as this to 'lead them'? To me, he looks as if he belongs in a circus! – © Mark

Jacob Rees-Mogg Says British Fish Are 'Happier' because of Brexit Deal

The leader of the House of Commons claimed fish delayed for export because of the introduction of the post-Brexit fishing regime were 'happier' because they are now British. 'The key is we’ve got our fish back,' he told MPs. 'They’re now British fish and they’re better and happier fish for it'

Jacob Rees-Mogg? What a tw*t! (Please insert the vowel of your own choosing.) – Mark

Boris Johnson "Nothing Like” Churchill – Nicholas Soames | Times News

Nicholas Soames reflects on his expulsion from the Tory party and says Boris Johnson is nothing like his grandfather Winston Churchill.

Sir Nicholas is more horrified by Jacob Rees-Mogg, the Commons leader. His behaviour this week, lolling on the front bench, was “repulsive”, he says. “He is in serious danger of believing his own shtick. He is an absolute fraud, he is a living example of what a moderately cut double-breasted suit and a decent tie can do with an ultra-posh voice and a bit of ginger stuck up his arse. You do not behave like that as leader of the House.” Both men went to Eton but Sir Nicholas says Rees-Mogg’s behaviour has nothing to do with his school. “I thought it was bloody bad manners and he of all people should know better. He has had all the advantages and frankly nanny made a serious bish. I wanted to kick him firmly in the arse and say, ‘What the hell do you think you are playing at? Sit up!’ ” His speech in the Brexit debate was “the lowest form of student union hackery, insolence and bad manners”. Read the full article here » | September 6, 2019

Sir Nicholas Soames Says Tories Started Resembling 'Brexit Sect'

THE GUARDIAN: Expelled party rebel also attacked Boris Johnson’s leadership and called Jacob Rees-Mogg a ‘fraud’

Tory grandee Sir Nicholas Soames has launched a searing attack on Boris Johnson’s leadership and Jacob Rees-Mogg, whom he called a “fraud”, adding the Conservative party is lurching towards a divisive, potentially catastrophic form of “hard-right” conservatism.

In an interview with the Times, Soames – who is the grandson of Sir Winston Churchill – said the Conservatives were starting to resemble a “Brexit sect”, after he had the whip removed for rebelling against the Johnson government along with 20 other MPs.

“I am worried about the Tory party because give or take the odd spasm we have always been seen as pragmatic, sensible, good at our job, sane, reasonable and having the interests of the whole country,” he said. “Now it is beginning to look like a Brexit sect.” » | Lanre Bakare | Saturday, September 7, 2019

Doctor Dares 'Muppet' Rees-Mogg to Report Him after No-deal Clash

THE GUARDIAN: Politician called neurologist ‘shameful’ for raising concerns about supply of medicines

The consultant neurologist who clashed with Jacob Rees-Mogg over contingency plans for a no-deal Brexit has challenged the politician to report him to the General Medical Council.

David Nicholl, who drew up a risk register of epilepsy and neurology drugs for the government’s Operation Yellowhammer plans for no deal, said he was not going to take lessons from a “muppet” who had no medical qualifications.

“If he has got doubts about my probity, I am more than happy to be referred to the GMC,” said Nicholl.

“I am not bothered about Jacob Rees-Mogg. I’m not going to take a single word of health lessons from a muppet like him. What does he know about epilepsy or neuropathic pain?” he added. » | Lisa O’Carroll, Brexit correspondent | Monday, September 2, 2019

ITV News Exclusive: Jacob Rees-Mogg Issues Style Guide to Staff

ITV: The new Leader of the House of Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg has instructed all staff in his new office to use imperial measurements and refer to ‘non-titled males’ as ‘esquire’.

Issuing a style guide in the first week of his job, he also bans colleagues from using various words in correspondence with other MPs and the public.

Among the list of bizarre rules, he asks staff not to use the words “got”, “very” or “equal”. » | Paul Brand, Political correspondent | Friday, July 26, 2019

Rees-Mogg and the AfD’s Alice Weidel Have a Lot In Common – All of It Nasty

THE GUARDIAN: The ERG supremo and the far-right German leader are nationalists linked by their hatred of the EU and much else

My first reaction on hearing that Jacob Rees-Mogg had retweeted a video by the populist German Alternative für Deutschland (AfD)was: “Well, that figures.” And not just because the AfD is the nasty party in German politics and because Rees-Mogg represents the faction that wants the Conservatives to remain the nasty party in Britain. One of the driving forces behind the AfD is a very German inferiority complex regarding the second world war. Rees-Mogg, with his foppish retro look and accent, embodies the Britain that German nationalists think they lost the war to. A Britain they despise, envy and admire in almost equal measure. » | Alan Posener | Tuesday, April 2, 2019

Rees-Mogg Defends Promotion of German Far-right AfD Video

THE GUARDIAN: Tory MP tweeted video of Alice Weidel criticising role of Germany and Merkel in Brexit

Jacob Rees-Mogg has defended his decision to tweet a video of a speech by a senior member of Germany’s far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), saying he did not endorse the party’s views but the opinions expressed had “real importance”.

The Conservative backbencher and leading Brexiter faced strong criticism from some Labour MPs after tweeting a YouTube video of a speech by Alice Weidel, the leader of the AfD’s 91 deputies in the Bundestag, the German parliament.

Rees-Mogg added the message: “The AfD leader asks: ‘Is it any wonder the British see bad faith behind every manoeuvre from Brussels?’” » | Peter Walker, Political correspondent | Monday, April 1, 2019

Jacob Rees-Mogg on Not Being Prime Minister, Immigration and Delivering Brexit

Our guest this week is the Conservative backbencher Jacob Rees-Mogg MP who will stop at nothing to achieve a hard Brexit.

Ring Rees-Mogg: Jacob Rees-Mogg's Phone-In

Jacob Rees-Mogg's Full Interview with Julia Hartley-Brewer

The MP for North East Somerset and possible future leader of the Conservative Party came onto talkRADIO for a chat with our host.

Jacob Rees-Mogg Admits That He Opposes Abortion and Same-Sex Marriage | Good Morning Britain

The man who is tipped by many to become the next Conservative leader talks openly about his thoughts on same-sex marriage and abortion.