Ɖ Gardịn vy on Brexit in a tîm v Covid: Crîsis? Ẃt Crîsis?
(Transcription of a Guardian editorial of 25 December 2020)
Parḷmnt śd b rcōld t dīl wɖ ɖ crîsis v c’roṇvîṛs, nt jst ɖt v līvñ ɖ YY
25 Dsmbr 2020
In Jańri 1979, a b’līgrd Lebr prîm̦inistr, Jemz Caḷhn, rtrnd fṛm a Caṛbiyn sumit t a cuntri ɖt apird in crîsis. A wīc rlịr, trucdrîvrz hd gn on strîc, cutñ of petṛls’plîz in ɖ “wintr v discntnt”. Ẃn ɖ prîm̦inistr arîvd at Lundn’z Hīʈro erport, h hld a presconfṛns in ẃć nʈñ memṛbl wz sd. Instd, in a frêz ɖt hz bcm cod fr p’liticl cmplesnsi, Caḷhn bcem fr evr asośietd wɖ ɖ folowñ de’z Sún nyzpepr hedlîn: “Crîsis? Ẃt crîsis?”
Hiz fet wz sìld. Caḷhn lost ɖ nxt jenṛl ilex́n t Marġrit Ʈaćr. Ɖ lésn fr poḷtiśnz z ɖ importns v pspśn in a crîsis. F smʈñ fīlz lîc a crîsis, it z ifctivli a crîsis. Britn nǎ cnfrunts its most sirịs imrjnsi sins ɖ secnd wrldwor. It fesz ɖ unpresdntd ćalinj v c’roṇvîṛs ẃl ajustñ t a ny dminiśt steṭs ǎtsd ɖ Yṛpiyn Yńn. Ɖ cuntri’z hlʈsrvis z at brecñ pônt, n its fyćr az a yṇfaid stet z on ɖ lîn. Ol ɖs gz unmnśṇbl bî Boris Jonsn, phps bcz h disinjenẏsli promist ɖt Brexit wd sev ɖ NHS.
Hiz hanḍlñ v ɖ pandemic hz bn a fełr v stetcraft so big ɖt it cn b sìn fṛm spes. Ɖs munʈ, fr ɖ ʈrd tîm ɖs yir, h dd nt act untl ɖ vîṛs wz spredñ ǎt v cntrol. Nǎ hundṛdz r dayñ evri de. Parḷmnt śd b rcōld so ɖt MPz cn mc ɖ ces fr a betr rspons agnst a ny, hîli trnzmisbl Covid verịnt. Mr Jonsn cd sumn MPz bac t dscus ɖ pandemic, nt jst Brexit, bt w’nt bcz ɖt riscs alrtñ ɖ public t ɖ sori stet w r in. Dǎnñ Strīt emz t svîv mstecs rɖr ɖn lrn fṛm ɖm. A record v obfsceśn n rtrit mīnz votrz ples litl feʈ in prîm̦iṇstirịl ri’śuṛns.
Mr Jonsn prifŕz caćñ būcez t dojñ bricbats. Nxt wīc, parḷmnt wl sit fr tū dez t finiś ẃt Mr Jonsn startd in Jūn 2016. MPz wl b asct t pas intu lw a hard Brexit – dspt scersli hvñ hd tîm t rīd ɖ ny trīti, let alon proprli cnsidr it. Wɖt śem, Mr Jonsn sīcs credit fr hiz agrīmnt n ɖ frīdm t run ǎr ǒn dmestic poḷsi uncnstrend bî YY lw. Glǒtñ wl dīpn Yṛpiyn mstrust n ǎr îṣleśn. It z olso insnṣtiv, az most bizṇsz r il-priperd fr ɖ ćenjz. Ɖ rīsnt sît v loriz bacñ p fr mîlz fṛm Dovr, ẃć handlz 17% v ɖ YC’z intîr tred in gdz, z a wornñ v hǎ bad ʈñz cd gt.
Mr Jonsn’z reclisnis mt b xplend bî Lebr reẓgneśn. Sr Cir Starmr sz ɖt hiz parti wl vot fr Mr Jonsn’z dīl, bcz ɖ oltrṇtiv z t līv ɖ YY wɖt wn. Lebr riscs gtñ suct intu Mr Jonsn’z mes. Hvr, in ɖ 2019 ilex́n Lebr lost tū rmen sīts t ɖ Tōriz, bt mor ɖn 50 līv wnz. Ɖ mesij wz clir: in 2016 ppl wr gvn ɖ rît t vot n xpctd ɖ rzult t b rspctd.
Sr Cir z, ɖrfr, rît t bac ɖ dīl, bt ɖt wl nt b inuf. T rgen trust, h wl hv t fînd a naṛtiv ɖt cnvinsz ɖ public h z fîtñ ɖ nxt ilex́n, nt ɖ last wn. It wd b a r’toricl err fr Sr Cir t apoḷjîz fr Lebr’z opziśn t Tori Yrofobia. Undr Mr Jonsn, ɖ Cnsrvtivz me ignor ɖer ǒn past, bt ɖe wl nvr se sori fr it. Britn lacs a rsponsbl guvnmnt ebl t cnstruct a chiṛnt compnsetñ poḷsi fr îɖr v ɖ twin crîsīz inveḷpñ ɖ cuntri. Undr Mr Jonsn it z far fṛm clir ɖt w wl evr gt wn.
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