The Shaking

Chapter Twenty Three

PINDAR. 13.11.

Stuart Pullman hadn't been able to give too much thought to his political ambitions recently: Just coping with the ongoing crisis as part of the emergency cabinet had fully occupied his mind. But he was under no illusion that the disaster had prompted only a ceasefire between the warring factions in the national interest, not a reconciliation. Once the immediate problems had been dealt with, the rescue operations concluded and the long, slow recovery begun the vicious internecine battle would be joined again; only this time with no holds barred.

Already Stuart had been the target of a furious withering stare from Pippa Slater which would have turned lesser men to a pillar of salt, but he revelled in the fact his anonymous disclosure had left her so obviously rattled. He'd returned her look with interest, and was gratified to see her silent frosty countenance falter under his intense scrutiny. At heart Slater was a fearful and defensive woman; so much the better. Her cabinet allies were more civilly communicative, but only up to the extent required to coordinate the government's efforts. The cabinet was as visibly split as the Kentish countryside, now riven by a new eighty kilometre long gash of a slip-thrust escarpment.

At Rampling's suggestion the rolling cabinet session had broken up into smaller working groups. Chancellor Ian Campbell, still jet-lagged and trying to shrug off the 'flu like symptoms of the bug he'd picked up while in Mexico was revising the government's spending plans in the light of the disaster; preparing an emergency budget along with an offer of more state support to the banking and insurance sectors. The Foreign Secretary equally busy engaged attempting to drum up aid from the European Union. Pullman was occupied as well with his own task force: In a separate room, he along with Christopher Parsons and the pair's trusted junior ministers were in conclave, coordinating the wider national response to the earthquake. They were expected to report back to the reconvening emergency council in half an hour, though at the moment discussion of law and order had taken a temporary back seat to their political conspiring; this being their first opportunity to talk out of earshot of the rest of the cabinet since before the massive tremor had struck.

"Bloody typical! Just when we thought we had it in the bag, an earthquake of all things ruins our plans!" said Parsons. "I bet Ian Campbell and Mizz Miscegenation are relieved about this massive diversion; this will dominate the news for weeks to come!"

"Yes; events dear boy, events..." sighed Pullman ruefully. "But it's not over yet. You can bet Campbell and Co are still busy plotting at this very moment. They aren't giving up, and nor are we; we'll just have to wait a little longer for the right time to strike. I've got a gut feeling about this; that there will still a few unexpected surprises on the way.

Take for example the emergency budget to be announced tomorrow; that's going to be unpopular in the party and the country at large. Oh compassion is fine in the short-term as long as it doesn't cost too much, but people will soon begin to the resent the increased taxes and cost of living; then the old issues will resurface again. Have faith, our time will come.

Now, this partial State of Emergency we want to declare for south east England... I really think we need to extend it to cover the whole if the UK just to be sure. Yes I know the Civil Contingencies Act grants us the powers we need, but I think it's best to make absolutely sure; and it will be seen as a declaration of intent on our part, a firm planting of a marker in the sand and a poke in the eye for the Soft Faction. Do we agree to recommend a resolution asking His Majesty to sign an Order in Council to that effect be adopted by the cabinet when it reconvenes?" There was no dissension.

"Good." said Pullman with obvious satisfaction. "At times such as these people demand strong government. I think this disaster could turn out really well for us if we play our cards right."