Forum Topic

Jennifer Arcuri

Could someone please explain the reason for the front page story about Jennifer Arcuri?  Did she live in Chiswick?

Claire Moran ● 1860d52 Comments

Chiswick is in the United Kingdom. Doris Johnson is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, God help us. He's a liar and a charlatan.

Susan Kelly ● 1860d

Susan, you demean the very old and worthy name of Doris. If I want to read about Boris Johnson and his antics, I can read business magazines, the national press, social media etc.  I read ChiswickW4.com because, at it says in its slogan, it is aimed at locals.  If it decides it wants to cover national news, why choose one particularly salacious story over Johnson's disgusting record over Covid, Afghanistan, WASPI women, universal credit, Heathrow, his constant lying and much, much else?  This story was inappropriate to ChiswickW4.com.

Claire Moran ● 1860d

We've only left the European Union, not Europe and not the whole wide world.

Philippa Bond ● 1860d

How local is local? Should nnet confine themselves to the purely parochial? Surely London is sufficiently local, and as the story involves the antics of the former mayor it seems to me a legitimate subject for coverage. Do you object to the front-page article about the current mayor, or is your objection merely to the salacious aspect of the Johnson/Arcuri romp. It's Londoners' money that Johnson was flashing around.

Robert Fish ● 1860d

A bit old hat really.

Janice Evans ● 1860d

Old hat? Arcuri gave evidence to the London Assembly oversight committee today. What could be more current?

Robert Fish ● 1860d

I mean when something is flog to death and you don't even bother reading it.

Janice Evans ● 1860d

I find it pretty sad that people seem to think they will get London-wide and even country-wide or even international info from this site. Perhaps that's the reason for the myopic views demonstrated regularly on this forum.  I follow all the nationals and at least 15 London-wide sites which give a really good overview of what is happening across the capital.  If you get all your info about the world, the UK and London generally as well as local happenings from ChiswickW4.com which rightly claims to be a website for Chiswick while proclaiming to offer opinions beyond Chiswick, you deserve to be derided and ignored.  Your are lazy and ignorant.  The article was a new low level  for ChiswickW4.com, not at all balanced and particularly as it chose to focus on that story regarding London news in general of which there are thousands of stories. It did not relate to Chiswick at all.

Claire Moran ● 1860d

The depressing thing about this story is that is shows how degraded our polity has become. We all know about the inadequacies of Boris Johnson but there should be processes and systems in place to rein in him but they have clearly not functioned here.Nobody is seriously disputing any more that Johnson's mistress was paid to go on official trips and given grants that she was otherwise unqualified for. Johnson did not declare the relationship but it was widely known about at City Hall.There are therefore two possibilities as to what actually happened here - either officials booked Jennifer Arcuri on trips and gave her public money because they knew that would please their boss and be good for their careers or Johnson explicitly asked them to do this verbally.Either way what was happening was clearly corrupt and needed the complicity of several people to happen which raises some profound questions about the fitness of our institutions to protect the public interest.Unfortunately the same blurring of the lines as to what is public property and what belongs to Boris Johnson and his friends has transferred from City Hall to Westminster and, once again, civil servants appear to be unwilling to represent our interests and uphold the law.

Francis Rowe ● 1859d

I agree.  There will always be corrupt and deviant individuals in politics. But the bigger problem is that Johnson has 364 enablers, at least some of whom we must assume are intelligent, decent people who went into politics for the greater good. But who are not preventing Johnson and his cohorts from destroying this country, as is their duty.

T P Howell ● 1859d

'Susan, you demean the very old and worthy name of Doris.' Random historical fact: King Herod had a wife named Doris.

Susan Kelly ● 1859d

Experience shows that a good proportion of politicians will be venal and untrustworthy. Traditionally the quality of our civil service has put a break on them not their own party colleagues.It may be that for a mid-ranking civil servant the terms and conditions they now receive particularly the defined benefit pension could not be replicated in the private sector so a potentially career damaging challenge to a senior politician has far more dire consequences than it used to.It should be the other way round and people's jobs should be at risk if they turn a blind eye to something that they know to be wrong not if they call it out.

Francis Rowe ● 1859d

The part of the Q+A Ms. Arcuri was doing with the London Assembly yesterday that I saw seemed to indicate she was on the make and found our dear P.M. an easy target for her feminine wiles. No surprises there then, just confirms he doesn't think with what's between his ears, God help us.

Vanessa Smith ● 1859d

Haha, touche but as far as I know Boris is not Doris.  Still doesn't change the fact that this is not an appropriate story for ChiswickW4.com.  Supposed to be a site for people in Chiswick. I send out press releases many times a month to journalists in London and the SE and of course follow them and national media. If I wanted to read comments on national issues, I don't go to them, let alone the pretty parochial Chiswick W4.com.  No issues with it being parochial - indeed that is its strength which is why I and many others view it.  If it is going to cover London-wide news, there are many other well-established sites with an enormously high level of well-balanced, London-wide stories I can access for free and that I automatically get my news feeds from so W4.com will become increasingly just a bore to check.

Claire Moran ● 1859d

Maybe they could offer MCB News a role as guest editor to offer something more local? And relevant.

Russell Pearson ● 1859d

just for once I'm with Claire M on this one. This ain't a Chiswck story and I can pick it up elsewhere

James Tickell ● 1859d

It’s all to do with resources, or lack of them, on the editorial side of this site and it’s sister ones in Ealing. Gotta get that content from somewhere and the (publicly funded via the BBC) local democracy reporters are as good a place as any. It’s also why much of what happens doesn’t find its way into the news feed here until days later.It’s the trend that did for proper local newspapers in this area. Stick anything in, regardless of provenance or accuracy, and see if anyone notices. If local papers in west London were still paid for they’d have totally disappeared by now because there’s little of interest to most readers.Travel to some parts of the country and you will find local newspapers thriving - the Keswick Reminder is a good example. It’s bought abdcread by residents and visitors to that part of the Lake District because it tells people what’s going on and what’s happened. Sadly, that model no longer works in London due to swingeing staff cuts and uninterested readers. I fear this site and others are following the trend.

Simon Hayes ● 1859d

The Chiswick Calendar is much better

Stewart Jones ● 1859d

The Chiswick Calendar is a dreadful rag biased in favour of the cycle brigade and everything Karen Liebreich does - the editor was a business partner of hers.  Makes no attempt at proper, unbiased journalism.  Stopped reading it a long time ago.

Claire Moran ● 1858d

That the Prime Minister has habitually lied all the way through his career shouldn't be a reason stop reporting instances when he is shown to be a liar.In addition to confirming his lack of honesty, Jennifer Arcuri's testimony raises serious questions about his judgement. How could he have fallen for this dreadful chancer. She didn't need to appear before this committee and it may not entirely be a coincidence that she did so as Boris Johnson was visiting the states. Normally her testimony would have attracted zero interest from the US networks but now they will be covering it. For a desperate attention seeker that is gold dust.Although she now hates her former boyfriend, she has received sufficiently good legal advice to avoid the trap of confirming that he pulled strings for her to go on trips and get grants. If she'd have done that she would have opened the door to a criminal prosecution of not just the PM but herself. However, in her vanity she has provided further details which the various agencies still investigating this issue will be able to use. Unfortunately for those who don't want to hear any more about Jennifer Arcuri, the matter is likely to be in the news again before too long. Johnson's poll ratings have made him bulletproof on this matter up until now and he is likely to receive a short term boost due to appearing next to Joe Biden on TV but once he returns to the reality of rising food and energy prices, Universal Credit cuts, the impact of the end of furlough and SEISS his colleagues will be looking for an excuse to get rid of him. One option will be Jennifer Arcuri.

Felicity Caborn ● 1858d

The Chiswick Calendar is infinitely more interesting in its coverage of issues about Chiswick and the other various topics it touches upon with articles from Chiswick residents. The Club Card supports local residents and businesses alike. And no mention of Arcuri.

Stewart Jones ● 1858d

I refuse to refer to Johnson as 'Boris' as if he was my MATE -- somebody I like and respect -- when nothing could be further from the truth.A recent poll suggested that people think he's 'one of the lads', whereas Keir Starmer is a posh toff. I despair.

Susan Kelly ● 1858d

The unwillingness of some to consider this story newsworthy seems to be either based on a desperate attempt to protect Johnson's reputation or an inability to grasp the importance of the matter and a misconception that is about dragging up the Prime Minister's past simply because it is salacious.That Johnson lies we all know but, up until this case, he has not lied in a way that is likely to have terminal consequences for his political career. If one of the very large number of people involved in booking flights and hotels or doling out grant funding was willing to confirm that Johnson did personally request Jennifer Arcuri get preferential treatment without declaring their relationship he would be finished.It could be that he didn't actually do this but his past record suggests that it is highly likely that he did. Much as I dislike the man and think he is unfit for office I would baulk at blowing the whistle on this and bringing down the Prime Minister given the hatred that it would bring from some quarters so I can understand the reluctance of people to tell the truth.Felicity is right that his poll ratings probably protect him but I don't think he is going to see a drop in popularity soon. The Conservatives have been rock solid around 40% for along time and that rate matches the residual support for Brexit. Supply issues due to driver shortages and rising energy prices seem to have no impact on this level of support. Perhaps an autumn lockdown and the return to foreign travel (and the realisation that Brexit has brought queues, increased insurance and roaming costs) will bring about another dip in Johnson's ratings but I'm not holding my breath.His comeuppance over the Arcuri affair is likely to come not when he is Prime Minister but when he is following in his father's footsteps into the jungle with Ant and Dec.

Mark Evans ● 1858d

Yes us too Susan - we refer to 'him' as either Johnson, or that f'ing moron  - all that Boris nonsense is part of his schtick which a lot of people have been drawn into, makes him seem approachable and cuddly - yeh right! He's no more 'one of the lads' than the Queen, it's all applied psychology and people fall for it over and over. But then having an almost exclusively right-wing leaning media and Tory MPs queueing up to make excuses for him helps. Talk about appearances can be deceptive.

Vanessa Smith ● 1858d

I would concentrate on your own party and the leaders strange direction to loosing another 1-2 elections. Even some under Blairism are not exactly happy My thought hes a sure firev gonner when we go to the poles,if it lasts that long which i think he will. Roll out Mr  Burnham for some more target practice

Julian Pavey ● 1858d

Agree Julian, but then this is the Chiswick Forum and other members mustget very fed up with all the politics.

Janice Evans ● 1858d

Does Baphomet live in Chiswick then ?

Richard Greenhough ● 1858d

"..having an almost exclusively right-wing leaning media.."Perhaps you ought to watch the BBC occasionally, or read the Grauniad or the Mirror sometimes, before you make such silly claims.

Richard Greenhough ● 1858d

Keir Starmer elected! Posted by: Vanessa SmithDate/Time: 04/04/20 10:53:00"Looks like common sense has prevailed - thank Heaven!""the membership and the electorate thought differently, and of the candidates who made it through I think Keir Starmer is the pick of the bunch"

Julian Pavey ● 1858d

The current PM of the UK is a proven liar. We should be condemning any PM from any party for lying in office and for bringing shame to the office he or she should be proud to hold and honour.

Stewart Jones ● 1858d

Janice, this isn't about politics but whether someone should be allowed to use our money to take his mistress on a foreign jaunt.

Francis Rowe ● 1858d

As  said a million times over But we can have fun both ways or all ways

Julian Pavey ● 1858d

Yes Francis, political undertones and he was Mayor not P.M

Janice Evans ● 1858d

To be honest Francis when thinking about who we could have had for P.Mit's difficult to look down on him.

Janice Evans ● 1858d

The problem is if you believed what most on here say and what the BBC thinks (dressed up as a question or a Newsnight soliloquy) then Boris wouldn’t now be Prime Minister and Brexit wouldn’t have happened.    It happened he won  - Fact check that .

Charles Carr-Jones ● 1858d

Why are you so obsessed with Brexit? Only one person has mentioned it on this thread, and then only in the context of explaining the strength of Johnson's support base. Stop your backward-looking triumphalism, and consider the serious problems that need to be addressed, sadly by a Prime Minister who is wholly unft for office - a chancer, a charlatan, and a liar, who has corrupted public life. Even ardent Brexiteers (though clearly not you) are appalled by the man.

Robert Fish ● 1858d

He lied. He won. He still lies.Fact checked.

Stewart Jones ● 1858d

Sure sign he's doing well if the moaners appear.

Janice Evans ● 1858d

TP Howell is probably right. Janice has to be a bot troll. There's never any serious attempt at intelligent discussion - just non-sequiturs, diversions, and name-calling. An automated gadfly!

Robert Fish ● 1858d

😴

Janice Evans ● 1858d

While I accept that this is a real scandal and an important matter that is worthy of our attention I am with those that think ChiswickW4.com shouldn't be covering it (Isn't it nice that Stewart and Claire have finally found something they can agree on?). The reason is every time reports about Jennifer Arcuri and Boris Johnson appear there is this picture in my head of the gruesome twosome together which is vomit-inducing. I don't care if the structures that hold together our democracy are crumbling because of corruption like this I just want to banish that image from my mind.

Anita Blake ● 1857d

I have no problem with this corruption being covered on this website. It has been reported on many other local websites without, as far as I am aware without the pearl clutching that occurs in Chiswick when a story about a former Mayor of London appears on a local website. Chiswick is in London after all.

Stewart Jones ● 1857d

"Could someone please explain the reason for the front page story about Jennifer Arcuri?" Bike? 

Adrian Irving ● 1857d

And what does that make Johnson?

Stewart Jones ● 1857d

A cyclist!

Robert Fish ● 1856d

HA ha

Janice Evans ● 1856d

Like many commuters I used to get at least some London wide news from the Evening Standard but with increased working from home and increasing thinness of that paper the coverage provided by ChiswickW4.com is proving ever more useful. It is of a good standard and I can't see the argument that this site should confine itself narrowly to news only exclusively relevant to W4.

Andrew OSullivan ● 1856d

The argument, as far as I can see, is not that they should only cover W4 matters but that they should refrain from publishing any story that reflects badly on Boris Johnson.How the scoundrel has dodged any serious consequences from this farrago is beyond me.

Jeremy Parkinson ● 1855d

I think it's because some very self interested people in this country are willing to back him no matter how bad it gets as long as they still have theirs.  He and all his ministers are incompetent narcissists.  This government and he will go down in history as the worst ever.  If Labour were to dump Keith then get a half decent replacement the Tories would lose the next election.  But whilst Johnson is ruining the country Starmer is killing the Labour Party and the biggest loser from both is democracy and therefore us the people.

Caroline Carney ● 1855d

Well put Caroline.Keith seems more interested in attacking members of his own party rather than this shower of a government!

Basil Finnis ● 1855d

Everyone can highlight problems and the lack of taking a bad situation and making it a possitive one for the party,everyone can see it. But lisa Nandy this morning says he is showing leadership,yep he certainly is,but thats within the party to shape it future and not accross the bench. Red Len thinks its all a conspiracy by the blairights to keep quite and when the change is voted upon and kier looses the election a Blairite will be in place to take over. Its puzzling at best

Julian Pavey ● 1855d

It is possible the CPS have stepped back from a prosecution in this matter and suggested other investigating authorities do the same as bringing charges against a sitting PM would be incredibly divisive. There will almost certainly be a number of similar cases in which Johnson has rendered himself liable to prosecution which may have been shelved until he is no longer PM.In the States Biden has apparently stopped the progress of a number of cases against Trump because he believes that civil unrest would occur if the Donald was given a suit to match his skin colour. In the UK I don't think there would be too much rioting if Johnson was convicted of a crime and he may not have done anything sufficient to warrant incarceration but lots more about his behaviour will come into the public domain when he leaves office.

Jeremy Parkinson ● 1854d