We've recently passed the five-year anniversary of the 2019 General Election, in which Boris Johnson won a staggering 80+ seat majority in the Commons. I wanted to cast my mind back and explore the election's impact for a moment. 🧵 There were, fundamentally, two causes of Johnson's majority. The first was Boris Johnson's "Get Brexit Done," which I view simply as an appeal to "Make it all stop." Brexit had dominated British politics since 2016, and the country was fed up. /2

So, I've just spent a bit of time looking into the debate on IHT and farming. I... got a shock. First, a note: I have a friend who runs a family farm. In his view, the whole thing is a something and nothing. 🧵 A third of all farmland in the UK is farmed by tenant farmers like my friend (and everybody he knows around here), who'll be completely unaffected by the IHT changes. /2

As a Brit, I've been watching the American election results with sorrow for my American friends. Some are comparing it to the Brexit vote here, imagining if we'd voted for Brexit twice. But here's the thing... in a sense, we did. And here are some lessons from it. 🧵 First, an explanation: The U.K. chose Brexit in a referendum in 2016. But Brexit did not become truly inevitable until 2019, when the country doubled down on this decision and gave Boris Johnson a massive 80+-seat parliamentary majority. /2

If @BorisJohnson has indeed done a deal over #Brexit, I have no doubt it will fall far short of what the country needs - but that it is still better than No Deal. /1 The British Government has conducted its #Brexit negotiations with a minimum of analytical thought, and poor consultation with stakeholders. Given that context, I personally believe it is impossible for @BorisJohnson to get a good deal. /2

Let’s explore Boris Johnson’s analogy - in what sense is Brexit like the Hulk? /1

https://twitter.com/MoS_Politics/status/1172968556407005185

Firstly, the Hulk is essentially a case of multiple personalities - implacably hostile to one another. That does sound disturbingly reminiscent of the Brexit debate. /2

Personally, I think a Second Referendum has become inevitable. But how do Remain win it? /1 A Second Referendum is inevitable because a change of Prime Minister won't change the parliamentary arithmetic. /2