Thread by @DmitryOpines

There's a hardworking group of UK negotiators in DIT trying to make progress on this deal.

They really don't need this kind of 'support' from whichever Liz Truss' "ally" thinks this Bullingdon Club ruggers bants crap is helpful.

https://twitter.com/LOS_Fisher/status/1384617042481930240

Like, genuinely what's the dream here?

"She thinks I'm inexperienced does she? I'll show her! Here Minister, here's some fresh concessions and no need to worry about our agricultural market asks. I'm sure once I explain you called me amateurish our farmers will understand."

The very best case scenario is that after mouthing something unprintable in his hotel room and having a bit of a seethe session with his staff, Dan Tehan orders the negotiation team to ignore it and proceed as before, and does so himself at their meeting.

The worst case scenario is that this article is agenda item one, and his first question to the Minister is whether she shares the assessment of her allies, if not whether she will be taking disciplinary action, and when he can expect his formal apology.

It's all just so infuriating and exhausting.

Clowns. Utter clowns, inexplicably in position to undermine and screw over hard working and chronically underpaid civil servants.

Also as @SamuelMarcLowe points out, this is not exactly @DanTehanWannon's first rodeo.

He's a former DFAT officer who was in the then trade minister's office in 2002-2005, when Australia negotiated AUSFTA, an FTA with a minor economic power you may have heard of called the USA.