The Awesome Movement ISN’T

On Tuesday evening, Jack Blanchard of Politico was in an otherwise almost deserted Westminster. Outside Downing Street, and along Whitehall, something caught his eye: “Someone has been busy ... These posted all along (deserted) Whitehall and outside Downing Street”. The yellow posters, tied to lamp standards, declared “Thank you to the awesome Boris Johnson”. They were a product of the Awesome Movement.

So what is the Awesome Movement, apart from the butt of jokes about curry and beer aftermath? Well, substituting one Pen And Ink for another, it appears to have been set up to give thanks for the work of the emergency services, none of which (thankfully) is under the control of our alleged Prime Minister. Nick Tolhurst was not impressed.

“On the day that it’s revealed that the UK - with 41 000 fatalities - has the highest Coronavirus death toll in Europe … the secretive Conservative front organisation ‘Awesome Movement’ puts up placards proclaiming thanks to Boris Johnson in London”. Well, quite. Johnson’s prevarication only made the Coronavirus mess worse.

The National observed “The Awesome Movement was set up in 2018 in response to concerning stories about how emergency service staff can be treated and aims to show appreciation to ‘everyday heroes’. The organisation, which describes itself as a ‘charitable organisation’ on its Facebook page but is listed as a private company with Companies House”. It claims it is in the process of becoming a charity. Yeah, right.

The Glasgow Standard had a more detailed account of the, er, movement. And they put it directly: “A private London-based company masquerading as a charity set up to thank the NHS and emergency services has been putting up pro-Boris Johnson, pro-Tory government propaganda”. Correctamundo. And the movement has good Tory form.

After noting that one of the Awesome Movement’s directors had conceded “We have been going for two years supporting the emergency services and this was meant to be nice … But we shouldn’t have put [the signs] up supporting someone who has supported so many cuts to those services”, the article homed in on one Mark Edward Wright.

“Another of the company’s directors is Mark E Wright, the winner of season 10 of The Apprentice UK. The entrepreneur reportedly has very tight connections with Alan Sugar, the billionaire member of the House of Lords. Wright told thisismoney the two share an office building and see each other every day … the posters supporting Boris Johnson echoes sentiments recently expressed by these two businessmen on Twitter”.

Do go on. “Wright tweeted that Boris Johnson ‘has done a fantastic job for this country in this crisis and only deserves the best wishes from all’ … Sugar tweeted that Boris resting so he could lead us again would be best for the country, and, aiming at Piers Morgan, said: ‘The PM … is doing his best, you are the only idiot who can’t see it.’”

The GS article ends “Awesome Movement has been asked for comment on this apparent connection”. If it looks like a Tory front, walks like a Tory front and quacks like a Tory front, the chances are that it is a Tory front. And there’s nothing awesome about that.

You want to support the emergency services? Push for proper funding. End of story.

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