THE EPO discussion has shifted/moved towards ILO, but let's not forget that Team UPC -- a cabal of nefarious people who perpetually pull every single trick they can -- work behind the scenes and try to trick politicians into doing nefarious things. It's a grand example of political corruption, not just lobbying. We've covered examples.

"It's a grand example of political corruption, not just lobbying."There may be another "torpedo" (to use JUVE's word) on the way -- one that can kill the UPC for good. No UPC (or anything like it, even a rebrand) should exist for reasons that we've been covering here for nearly a decade. Yesterday we saw over a dozen tweets from Alex Robinson, a proud member of Team UPC who is referring to himself and others who perform this coup as "Team UPC". It started with this tweet which said that "the Lords Grand Committee agenda is visible here (see link). The #UPC Order is one of 8 items up for discussion - I don't get the feeling they'll spend long on it..."

They didn't.

"Yesterday we saw over a dozen tweets from Alex Robinson, a proud member of Team UPC who is referring to himself and others who perform this coup as "Team UPC"."Guess who were there to take the lead. It was Lucy Neville-Rolfe. Seriously! To quote Robinson: "Another peer for the government... giving a bit of a history lesson. "Delighted to be standing here today to see it written down that we are going to ratify" (I think she's getting ahead of the game here!) [...] That was Lady Wilcox. Sounding rather optimistic! Now Baroness Neville-Rolfe is speaking. "Was intimately involved in UPC discussions after many many many years." Asks for clarification of opening date for London Central Division..." "Motion agreed unanimously," he concluded and there's a lot more there. But UK ratification is not possible and Jo Johnson, who took over Lucy's job, already said that he's not in a position to ratify. Robinson isn't happy about it and Bristows used his words to lie about Johnson's actual position.

"The timetable may simply say that the entire thing is stuck until 2020 if not later. And it will probably never happen.""At that point," he added, "we will be "in a position to ratify" - time for Mr Johnson to get off the fence and show his hand as to whether we WILL ratify or not!"

No, they are not in a position to ratify for plenty of reasons other than some signatures and it's dishonest to suggest otherwise. Moreover, complaints may be on the way, just like in Germany. The transcript is too long for us to rebut on a point-by-point basis, but it's basically a salad of lies.

"Here's the official transcript of yesterday's @UKHouseofLords discussion of the #UPC order," he wrote the following day (here is the full text) and Max Walters‏, a British journalist, said: "Strange that none of them seem to know where the court will be. I thought this was well known (Aldgate Tower), unless I've missed something?"

There's no such court as there's no UPC. But don't let reality get in the way. It's not too convenient.

"Sure, they'll mislead and manipulate politicians in order to get their way (or even vote at 1:30 AM in secrecy), but all that mischief is being watched and it will eventually be reported."Even Robinson dared to admit the inconsistencies later on when he wrote: "I completely agree, and was puzzled by that when I was watching yesterday. The other thing I find baffling is that Lady Neville-Rolfe asked the question about timing for the opening of the court. She was the IP minister in force when the UPC Agreement was finalised [...] one would therefore expect her to be fully aware of the timetable for entry of the agreement into force!"

The timetable may simply say that the entire thing is stuck until 2020 if not later. And it will probably never happen.

As always, when dealing with Team UPC, be careful not to believe them. Sure, they'll mislead and manipulate politicians in order to get their way (or even vote at 1:30 AM in secrecy), but all that mischief is being watched and it will eventually be reported. ⬆