Sedgefield: "Oh Go On Mr Cameron Give Us a Hug!"

Not sure why Lib Dem Voice published the link to this? Labour activists are on hand to provide a backdrop as the gorgeous pouting Dave-id Cameron refuses to respond to hoodies saying:
"Oh, go on, give us a hug Mr Cameron."

I suppose the Libdemologists might just be trying to deflect from the fact that their candidate is a good 50 minute car ride away from being the "local" candidate they normally fetishise.

One of them has also spotted Labour's Sedgefield candidate Phil Wilson enjoying a visit to Trimdon Labour Club with his mates Tony and George.

This will play very badly with all the usual people it plays badly with. In Lib Dem favour: with almost no-one in this constituency. Against Lib Dem interests: with almost everyone in this constituency.

Strange as it may seem they're very fond of Mr Blair there in Trimdon, and they love laughing their socks off at the oaf Bush.

Akehurst: Why Apologise? Just Cover Your Tracks!

The apostate Luke Akehurst has substantially re-written the post critiqued here which possibly unintentionally, but certainly clumsily conflated someone to whom the soubriquet "ultra left" might apply, though the text which triggered its application was mild, with someone for whom it was entirely inappropriate.

In effect he is avoiding an admission that what he wrote was wrong, misleading or at best ambiguous by staging a COVER UP.

Luke should cut the sectarian crap and develop some arguments. "Because Gordon said so" is no better than "Because Tony said so" and both are extraordinary if the respective Gordon or Tony have asked for a dialogue about their proposals.

Alan Johnston: Bloggerheads on the Button

By the way the new Alan Johnston button is from Bloggerheads:

Cllr John Leech MP: What is His Hoax Count Up To?

Clearly the Iraq War, and Top Fees, indulgent protest miscalibration, Tory capitulation, apparent overspending, misery and fibs, and sheer pavement pounding effort contributed to Cllr John Leech or FUDGE's surprise 2005 victory in Manchester Withington.

But the jewel in the crown of the Lib Dem campaign was an unrebutted and Horrendous Hospital Hoax. How many more hoaxes and low tricks has Cllr Two Jobs perpetrated?

MEANWHILE: Cllr Chas Glover and Cllr Fudge McLeech are still strangely silent on their cheeky charge sheet.

South Manchester Paper: Reporter or Distorter?

Tomorrow is my "day release" post grad course at MMU. But I'll try to fit in some commentary on our local weekly paper. This week they have excelled themselves. The whole of the front cover is devoted to my priority asylum campaign of the moment. With Farhat Khan and her young children granted refugee status our focus has moved to Emiola Fadeyi from Nigeria among other Women Asylum Seekers Together (WAST). It is a well written, rounded story.

Inside, sadly, the Reporter/Distorter have allowed three contorted and negative sock puppet letters about a contrived story of theirs from last week to dominate the letters page. To their credit they also print a sample of online comments which feel far more authentic. Not written by Lib Dem staffers, councillors, MPs or their tame sock muppets.

The lead of the three negative letters is going to be a gift. It is built around an issue that I am pretty sure is about to emerge blinking into the light ... Cllr John Leech MP's latest foul hoax on the people of South Manchester. We'll see. But the evidence is certainly building up. Which is grand.

The latest WAST fundraiser is tomorrow (Friday, July 6) at the English Martyrs Social Club, Alexandra Road, Whalley Range. Live music, dance, poetry, songs, and wonderful food. From 7:30pm. Details and to support Emiola or WAST ring 0161 833 8835.

UPDATE: Reporter/Distorter's www DOES NOT yet include cover story. That will probably change in the morning.

Akehurst (Moderate Wing) vs Kenyon (Ultra Left)

Luke Akehurst libelled the mild-mannered Brownite Peter Kenyon by juxtaposing his name with the phrase "ultra left attack".

Seems to LoL that Gordon Brown has put out some reforming ideas to the party (download). Peter has been working on plans in the same area for the best part of two years (links from his blog). And he has also given house room in his resolutions area to a slightly but hardly "ultra" lefty motion.

It's a consultation Luke. Are you expecting Mr Brown to be greeted by a Wall of Loyal Silence when he asks for feedback? His Wonderwall? Or should members and party units and ginger groups respond to our new Leader with ideas. The worm has turned just a little. Don't knock it.

K Cross Clan: Boris Candidature on 18 Doughty St

I'm not sure the long form post is playing to Kerron's strengths. He is keeping his bite size end up over at his place.

Pickled Politics: Showing NHS Blog the Way

Sunny gave it some in his post on Ealing and Southall at Pickled Politics yesterday. But it is medic Rohin's thoughtful piece today on Terrorism on the NHS - a subject not covered properly or at all on NHS Blog and the like - that catches the eye.

Dubbed "Diagnosis Murder" it could more accurately be dubbed "Scrubs" as the incompetence of these attempted attacks was phenomenal.

They get their degrees by multiple choice tests and playing charades after all. And as Rohin said in the lively commentary conversation:

You sound like a medic? - you’re dead right that being a doctor doesn’t make you automatically intelligent in a worldly sense. It does, by definition, make you highly educated as it’s a long undergraduate degree with necessary postgrad qualifications. Many doctors live an insular life. But if someone is learned in the arts, history etc, as you mention, does that preclude them from becoming a nutter?

Absolutely not. Consider Dr Harold Shipman. Consider the monstrously well read Dr Hannibal Lecter MD PhD.

On the next tier down consider Mr Hyde - a potty but not strictly murderous doctor of my acquaintance who sadly never reverted to sane Dr Jekyll. Names may have been changed to protect the innocent.

UPDATE: I have added the excellent Pickled Politics to my Blogroll. There is a pattern breaking out that the Terror Doctors are linked to Cambridge.

UPDATE: Dr John Crippen of NHS Blog has explained his predicament in comments.

London Mayor: More on Spotted Dick Witty Ham

Guido has a good set of links and news here over the "sudden" (only since January) surge for Boris Johnson to be the Tory Buffoon in the Mayoral Race. "Tired of Shagger Norris? Try Shagger Boris!" is my gratis contribution to the campaign fund.

Meanwhile, some sub-Warholian has created an image for Boris to rival the London 2012 in infamy. Apparently advertising some kind of circumcision service in London.

Guido Poll and More. Does this mean that Dave-id Cameron has been wasting 18 Doughty Street AND Iain Dale's AND a succession of wannabee's time in a phoney war for the role?

Specsavers 2-4-1: New Parliamentary Endorsement

Rupa Huq on Ealing Southall: Gives Watson a Hat Tip for NOT Giving Her a Hat Tip, How Queer

So, surprise surprise, Ealing Southall CLP select a certain Cllr Virendra Sharma. Not a woman. Certainly not a visible turbaned Sikh. Tales of the unexpected took a new twist.

Those with a long game will be rather satisfied. At least twas not the young guy with 40 years in him.

As the Rt Hon Sir Gerald "Curly" Kaufman says about the young rivals (pictured in link) that constantly guard him against tumbling in front of a speedy bus: “Ahhhh, yes, so-and-so could have made a fine MP - shame they were not born 20 years later”. He's a card.


In fact Curly's youthful exhuberance knows no bounds and he even claimed excitedly in 2004 of the Brown-Blair succession:

If Labour won the next election it was "inevitable" the chancellor would be moved from his job.
"Whether he'd accept any other position, who can tell? You'd have to ask him, I don't know his mind, I've never discussed it with him," he said.

Gerald's sporting wager came true just three years later when Gordon finally took the hint and grudgingly vacated No 11 and moved to the "any other position" of his choice! Blair must be a very fine negotiator to budge such recalcitrance.

Back to business. Sharma will I think be, as Gerald ever is, the most “experienced” in the field. Perhaps barring grey backed independents.

The young man who was second in this strange contest has an interesting distinction: The cool head barrister who successfully defended various young hotheads from charges against them of an alleged Ricin plot.

I’m not sure what Cllr Virendra Sharma does with his time now. He seems to have cleared the decks well in advance. So will be able to devote 100% of his time and legendary energy to being an energetic and effective MP.

PS: I think Tom should have given you the hat tip Roops. Perhaps he felt he shouldn’t let on in case you were shortlisted or selected and that this strictly above board selection then looked like a plot. Bloggin’, rather than Ricin.

UPDATE: Rupa is getting some bigging up attention in comments.

London Mayor: Turn Again Dick Witty Ham

Boris Johnson has issued a statement on the issue of whether he should run against Red Ken for London Mayor. Iain Dale carries the text. Earlier he carried this picture from Theo which tends to confirm the impression that Boris and the Tories generally confuse the Mayor of London job with that of the Lord Mayor of the City of London. I can only imagine that Boris thinks the one with the robes, the tricorn hat, the stockings and the camp parade is "fun" and would rightly consider the job of running a great city completely beyond his meagre O. Etonian practical talents.
Turn again Dick Witty Ham!

Ealing Comedy: Hustings Heckling Hustle Bustle

LOL have now identified most of the "shortlist of all the talents" assembled by, I think, Tom Watson MP (as agent); Keith Vaz MP, Mike Griffiths and Norma Stephenson (as NEC Members), Julian Bell (Piara Khabra's RHM, as local advice) and possibly Regional Director Ken Clark ensuring "fair play". Thanks to Unity for fingering the NEC people.

Vivender Sharma and Jo Sidhu clearly. Who will I think face a witheringly small turn out at today's members' ballot. Sonika Nirwal and Jasbir Anand, natch. Tom's man from Sandwell. One Tony Singh, another carpet bagger. Inderjeet Nijar an ex-Cllr. And Gucharan Singh, again natch.

So eight not ten. 100% Indian (and I'm hearing a narrow miss for one or two Muslims - too racey). 6/8th local. 7/8ths Sikh. And something like 3/8 visible Turbaned Sikh.

Regional Director Ken Clark (no relation) was introduced to Chair the hustings and heckled mercilessly from the off. Mostly from the followers of Gucharan Singh. Things like: "Giants have been left out!"

Their hero? Traced, turban and all to a Punjab Time watering hole - The Indian Workers' Association - where he was simultaneously rejoicing that Sonika had also not made the cut and manfully drowning his own sad separatist sorrows.

Sharma repeated quote of the day:
"I'm very sad and disappointed about ..." whatever was raised by a questioner.

Sidhu (41) charm offensive:
"Vote for the Future, not for the Past" and the messianic "I am this community. I am your Son."

Why did this outcome occur? Many would have expected at least Sonika and Gurcharan to make the final shortlist. My impression is that both were quite popular and could have won.

But both might be viewed as a potential liability.

In the face of hostile media attention. And in the face of hostile campaigning that we have already seen from the Yellow and Blue Tories. The only way to eliminate the risk was to spike them at shortlisting stage. But of course that decision has its own risks attached.

Clearly there are two ways it could go now! The long established Hindu gentleman. Or the up and at 'em Sikh youth of 41. Latter would only win on the face of it if all disappointed candidates get their tribes out to vote down the other fella. On the other hand I'd probably pick him of the two if I had a vote. And he is the local party's son. That should count for something.

Alan Johnson: Alan Johnson is Free Button

Have spent a minute doing an AJ is free button. You can probably do better. But if not you're welcome to replace the square brackets with angle brackets and use this code:

[a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/world/2007/alan_johnston/default.stm"][img alt="Alan Johnston banner" width="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzXpzTTOrnEswhmfuvzR8zbpnBaah3EWZzJ7fHyJsbWVcqdbwxCPWgU0-tqDn_o5Ei3rAHUc9TXNXDbZkvSreLaR2mPDtGm_l1FA71b39nHC2BNk_u-44tPUdBR5vExb6HoxKl/s200/alan_johnston+is+free.gif" height="90"/][/a]

Camerooney Tunes: Appeasement and Homophobia

Unity does a thorough job pointing out the intractable problems with Dave-id Cameron's drafting of "outside" experts into his Shadow Cabinet. The Mainstream media have more or less missed or overlooked all this.

Meanwhile The K Cross Clan challenges us to spot the appeasing spy chief among these nonentities (below). And yes I do know there's something wrong with the "cell padding" around Ms Villiers.

BBC Hostage: Alan Johnston is Released in Gaza

Iain Dale was up in the wee small hours to report: Alan Johnston is Released in Gaza. Hallelujah!

BBC Initial Story - In His Own Words - Family - In Pictures.

BBC Manchester Blog: Out of Touch with LOL

I'm gutted. The BBC Manchester Blog, covering the glorious and brilliant new Manchester International Festival, has not yet linked to LOL.

In fact I'm feeling MIFfed.

Future Sonika: Ealing Southall is Two Man Shortlist

BLINK has an account of the shortlisting for Ealing Southall. Labour sources had set a hare running that the unity candidate would be an outsider from Birmingham - within campaign organiser Tom Watson MP's orbit. But that always looked like a ruse.

Sonika Nirwal has been working determinedly on this patch and will be very disappointed. She might well have carried the popular vote tomorrow had she been allowed through.

Messrs Sidhu and Sharma (L-R above), have been shooed through to tonight's hustings. The former is a new name as far as I'm concerned. An Oxbridge lawyer. Without knowing the background I'd guess that he will get Sonika's gang and also Gucharan's (below), who will surely not favour his old rival.

There seems to have been a lot of disingenuity from Asian men - including Keith Vaz MP and the representative of the Sikh Federation - in pressing for an Open Shortlist to increase the chances of a BME candidate.

This is old school sexist shenanigans as far as I'm concerned. Ealing Southall would NOT have picked a white woman in an AWS. And the Sikh community and others would have been pleased to vote for a woman in this by-election. Labour has by far and away the best record on Equality. But in by-elections this has been less good as Antonia pointed out recently.

Another veteran Ealing councillor, Gurcharan Singh, didn't make the cut and some think he may run as an independent. Tom Watson MP will fix that in my opinion. I reckon it'll be Comrade Sidhu. But I have been wrong on this selection as recently as this afternoon. There's no telling.

Norman Baker Watch: Leading Lib Dem Fantasist

This is a useful site. Perhaps we could get one in Man Wit to complement Thomas Graham's John Leech Watch which sometimes resembles a convention of dissembling Lib Dem party workers pretending unconvincingly to be "ex Labour voters".

Of course John Leech has not as yet outed himself as a 9-11 Truther, a mataphysical Changing Times nutter, and he is yet to publically endorse Dr David Kelly or indeed Rt Hon Robin Cook murder theories.

Leech has stuck closer to home for his barmy conspiracy theories. Christie Hospital, Southern Cemetary and Chorlton Post Office have featured.

Brown's Reforms: Now Out for Consultation

Catching Brown's announcement and Cameron's response I must say - at the great risk of being renounced by Brown haters - that this seems like a useful package of reforms and ideas from Brown and mostly clever clogs from Cam.

Drawn as Brown acknowledged at the outset from all the great minds of parliament. BBC report - full text - at a glance - or launch video.

Blogsclusive: Carbon Gargling Billionaire "Sell Me the Airport" (and Cook the Planet, and the Goose)

Billionaire John Whittaker - owner of Peel Holdings which in turn owns lots of gas gazzling orientated businesses - has suggested today that Manchester drop plans for a targeted congestion charge but improve public transport instead by selling off the mightiest resource the region has.

And you'll never guess what? He's prepared to take it off the people's hands. For £3 Billion he says, which matches the possible package from the government. But, he says his "Billionaire Pounds" are better at leveraging in other investment than "Government Pounds". We're not sure where that idea comes from. But we do think Mr Whittaker has a vested interest in keeping our city and in particularly our ring road choked with cars.

What can this Billionaire be thinking of?

Let's see. Peel Holdings own the very out of town Trafford Centre just INSIDE the M60. This already contributes to car use with free car parking for thousands of cars. In fact it tends to clog up not one but TWO junctions at busy times. Congestion charges could reduce custom, hit rents, and hit the bottom line.

Let's see two. Peel Holdings know what an asset the Manchester Airport Group is. This is not a favour. This is a sharp and predatory business deal trying to use fears about congestion charging (coming in say 2012) to snatch a prize group of businesses with some prize land holdings. Naturally the airport is also a real road journeys generator at the moment.

Let's see three. I believe Peel Holdings own Liverpool Airport (among others), and indeed many assets at that end of the Ship Canal and along the MOTORWAY corridor between, and if the business mood took them or the low cost flight market was on the rack say, they could close one of the two, wreaking economic havoc. Or they could use Monopoly power in the region to hike costs.

Let's see four. Peel Holdings land along the Manchester Ship Canal includes The Barton Aerodrome and enough land around this landing strip for a perfectly formed City Airport.

Peel Holdings were behind a recent poll of 1000 businesses. With a majority of them not backing the congestion charge proposals. Though it did not feature the other side of the coin - the investment in transport.

I'd go further. That poll should be seen as a busted flush. There was no weighting between different types and sizes of businesses. So an owner manager with no staff had the same impact on the result as a massive business.

In contrast a large group of the more important Manchester investors, businesses and landholders signed a letter which thoroughly supported congestion charges as a way forward that was good for business.

Manchester benefits from a vibrant partnership with business. But is there anyone - apart from a Billionaire wheeler dealer - seriously suggesting that Peel Holdings should decide what's best for Manchester and the region?

Clearly as a company specializing in transport infrastructure, out of town shopping and industrial estates, as well as a certain amount of residential and office development for car lovers Peel Holdings may be seen as having a vested interest in keeping the carbon belching.

Manchester Airport Group is owned by the ten local authorities in Greater Manchester. Manchester has the lions share and the other nine authorities own 5% each. Each Council has been sent a letter outlining Whittaker's plans. It begins: "Come into my parlour says the spider to the fly".

Even the most cash strapped and venal Tory and Lib Dem controlled authorities will surely realise that the appreciation in the value of the airport and its contribution to their stability mean that this is a no brainer: "Airports Not For Sale".

We do recall with some trepidation the Bristol Lib Dems' plan to sell off the people's airport there. It was eventually sold. But for around ten times the price the hapless chumps in the Lib Dems had agreed.

Anyway, LOL wonder how Mr Cameron's Husky Hugging Cuddly Nu Tories will feel about someone who clearly identifies with an old school slash and burn, cars are good, bugger the planet kind of Conservatism being on their side?

Let's see now. Should Manchester kill this Golden Goose? More anon.

Ealing Southall By-Election: Selection Prediction

Assuming Sonika Nirwal gets through the interviews to reduce a long list from ten to four - going on as I write - she is odds on favourite to win the popular vote which will be going on all day tomorrow.

LOL hear she has around 40% of the rank and file members firmly signed up to her campaign for first preferences.

UPDATE: The word in the comments is that the shortlist is just two. Men. If that's true Sonika is clearly not on it. That's show business.

Inside Out magazine: Call for Confessions

This may be just the place for either the Ealing Southall Lib Dems or the Ealing Southall Tories to explain the veracity or otherwise of the corrupt poster lottery story of yesterday.

Inside Out Magazine is looking for submissions of a confessional/autobiographical nature inspired by the brief: 'Turn the inside out' onto the page, into the world, and out of your system.

* Short Stories: Max 2,000 words
* Prose: Max 500 words
* Poems, Lyrics, Mantras: Max 30 lines
* Illustration, Graphic Design, Fine Art, Photography: 220mm x 260mm

Send: A hard copy, accompanied by a digital copy.
Include: Your contact details and a 50-word biog.

Address to: Submissions, The Editor, Inside Out, Clarence House, Clarence Drive, Englefield Green, Surrey, TW20 0NL

For further information email: submissions@myinsideout.co.uk or visit their website: http://www.myinsideout.co.uk.

Blogging Award: Vote Early Vote Often

In fact The Witanagemot Club is sadly not a VEVO. It has lots of categories including a few that are downright nasty. But you need only vote for the categories you wish to.

Dale's Diary: Shadow Cabinet Media Tarts for June

Should anyone wish for a rundown of the Tory "Shadow Cabinet" try this one. Although they have got more media mentions than their Lib Dem oppos I reckon that as Ming's these are mainly minging.

Cameron really is rather short of talent. He even has to keep his sworn enemies and soon-to-be leadership rivals in many of the major positions. When he reshuffles it will be interesting to see whether Dave-id has the bottle to take out his rivals. And if so what waifs and strays he finds to replace them.

UPDATE: Iain Dale has provided the list and is in the process of providing a paragraph on each. Obviously looking pretty weedy beyond the top three, ignoring Dave-id who is getting weaker by the day.

Lord Rennard: Calling All Tory and Labour Supporters

Tom Watson has almost embedded this vid from the weasel tongued Lord Chris Rennard as a call to arms for Labour activists to hit Ealing Southall hard. The constituency has one of the largest memberships in the country. If 10% of them work that is a already formidable force.

Anyway, LOL have actually embedded the video. I think Tom has accidentally trumped the desired You Tube URL with a ! :

Grandee Gives Game Away: Lit Sunrise Sunset

Owen Jones' Labour Fightback site is an instant hit with the disenfranchised Labour Left. In this post he repeats the essence of a secret briefing from Michael Heseltine which certainly deserves wider circulation. Tories exist to serve the interests of the Bullingdon Dining Club classes and their job is to "Con" enough gullible people turkeys to vote for Christmas.

The big question raised by his warning of a plausible Tory victory allowing "direct rule" by these interests rather than one mediated by Labour is why he would then channel a persistent, ongoing assault from within our party.

Meanwhile LOL posts about Ealing Southall are generating a torrent of email tidbits from all corners.

Not just the usual suspects. Keep 'em coming.

EALING SOUTHALL TRIVIA: The Lit clan, dad Astar (former Independent and then Labour supporter) and son 'Tony' (wannabe Labour, Lib Dem, now Tory candidate), have renamed the building in which Sunrise Radio lives, Sunrise House, and they've gone on to rename the street Sunrise Road. They may have had to buy the road to do that I think. For now this is still in the Borough of Southall. But be afraid, be very afraid, as Owen might say, we could be headed for Ealing and Sunrise.

Tory Hysteria: Brown Balances Capital Budget Shock

Although I am not a close confidant of Gordon Brown, strange as it may seem, I'm not moved by the somethingly tardy story on NHS "capital cuts" from Iain Dale.

I'm thinking that this "cut" of the NHS capital programme for 2007-08 reflects the actual speed on the ground of the building work, and hence of payments triggered by specific milestones, rather than cuts. Prudent and standard-practice accountancy.

Anyone who has been involved in capital programmes, whether in public or private sector or both, knows that slippage in building programmes and consequent adjustments to cash flow profiles are utterly normal.

This is at least part of the situation being hysterically spun by the Financial Times - who should know better - and the Tory blogosphere who obviously specialise in hysterical spin, with moments of lucidity here and there.

It is also noticeable that Iain Dale's hat tip today to "yesterday's FT" is another instance of Tory slashing of the underlying value of the week in your calendar.

Ealing Southall By-Election: Some Hot Spicey Gossip

As mentioned earlier the comments on LOL's Ealing Southall story have been interesting. Here's a taste:

Gurjeet Singh of the Sikh Federation pointed out Rod Liddle's diary piece in Sunday's Times on KKK Tourette's Syndrome. Afflicting Geoffrey Robinson.

Then anonymous Gurjeet Singh returned and pointed out three things:

1. Most if not all MPs that have come from all-women short-lists for the last ten years, since the 1997 election have been white. LOL comment: This is true, and in by-elections under Open lists only two (white) women have been picked these last ten years.

2. The Sikh Federation want an Open not AW shortlist in such constituencies as they feel this is more likely to deliver a BME candidate. LOL think this is rather spurious and disingenuous in this particular case. Ealing Southall near 100% to select BME whether AWS or Open.

3. We think Sonika Nirwal, Jasbir Anand, Gurcharan Singh etc. should all be on the short list so local members of the Labour Party can make a choice.
Our preference is for a visible Sikh as we have none in the Commons or Lords. This is why Gurinder Singh, Dr Harkirtan Singh etc. who are all believed to be in the running are also options.
'Visibility' for a Sikh is critically important - practising and non-practising Sikhs know the significance of this.

Then we have a Tory troll who claims:
Walked down the broadway today (Sat) and the place is covered in Tony Lit posters with pic of him.

This is swiftly rebutted:
For God sake do not lie. You must have seen posters at Tory campaign Headquaters Not a single poster can be seen in Southall Broadway.

Then we have news that the Tory candidate Tony Lit - whose father stood as an Independent in 2001 but supported Labour on the GLA in 2004 - has reached the Tories only after a rebuffed approach to the Lib Dems who have inevitably picked their 2005 candidate for another tilt.

Ealing Southall resident Dr Sherlock Huq and therefore LOL scoops Dr Watson's revelation that Tories are careless, even getting their own Council leader's name wrong.

And then there is a V Sharma hat tip to a story reporting a defamation suit against Cllr Jasbir Anand, another local candidate. From someone who had allegedly assaulted her.

In a Spin: Dizzy Grasping at Straw Poll Man

Dizzy has run a story suggesting that Pollster Philip Gould was criticizing Gordon Brown when he remarked in today's Indy that (a) John Smith would have been a great PM but would have left the work of party renewal undone and (b) that work is still undone.

I'm not sure I can follow Dizzy's spin here. Surely after 13 years of Blair Gould can only be saying that Blair hasn't renewed and modernised the party enough or in the right way. I tend to agree.

Blair has in fact presided over the opposite. Lost half the membership. Alienated some of the main constituencies in Labour support. Lost council seats, councils and constituencies.

Whereas the signs with Brown are quite promising as far as they go so far, just a few days in - widening participation from MPs as a whole in policy formulation for example.

Feared attacks on the part of affiliates and CLP delegates, if conference were turned into even more of a set piece rally, may or may not get through, but even on that the question is what is proposed instead. Clearly giving the PLP more power without empowering the broad membership will be deeply unpopular.

Blair's Partnership in Power has been a bit of a ramp, manipulated by fixers. Gould's remarks seem to reflect that Blair failure to get this right. Rather than being a dig at Brown who was not in the chair during some years of severe atrophy. And he now has the chance to show he can learn and grow.

Ealing Southall By-Election: Selection News 2

Lib Dems have announced their "surprise" candidate in Ealing Southall. Their incumbent candidate as it goes. What a shock! Labour are now free to announce ours. I guess that will happen here and here first.

Comments here are ticking over nicely and are rich in links and insights.

Iain Dale: Exclusive Libdemologists Party Pieces

Great work from Iain Dale with follow up and comment from the excellent Thunder Dragon which had previously been flying under my radar.

In brief Libdemologists are - according to the Tory agent Grant Shapps MP - organising a corrupt and law-breaking prize draw system which enters households with a window poster for a £50 prize draw and those with a tree or garden poster for £250. Sounds tempting doesn't it?

Let's hope the follow up story is of how the "winners" in these draws "surprisingly" turn out to be "Libdemologists". Lord Chris Rennard has issued a short example of weasel tongue and non-denial in response:

Thanks for your letter. I have never heard of this practice and have certainly never been responsible for it.
Best wishes,
Chris Rennard

Iain goes on to quote his great friend Melissa Kite's speculations on poor Ming Campbell's grip on power. Sadly the Lib Dems are unlikely to place third in Southall where Tories have selected the Lib Dem and Labour reject Tony Lit. See comments here.

On the other hand, gladly, this means Ming may stay wreaking his whirlwind of damage and dissent ... before he crosses the floor for a place alongside Lord Toby Belch in Brown's government. We can wait.

Up here in Manchester Withington LOL are still waiting for Cllr John Leech MP and/or his Sock-Muppet-in-Chief "Hazy" Glover to respond to a litany of likely breaches of protocol, election law, and expenses limits in Leech's 2005 campaign and since.

Not to mention their sick and twisted Christie Hospital Hoax, which incidentally continued on April Fool's Day, with leaflets distributed to patients in chemo and radio-therapy waiting rooms.

Naturally they have not responded to the suggestion that to broker an advantage in local government elections Mr Leech distributed a "parliamentary report" largely promoting council candidates, including pictures of Lib Dem material, and largely paid for by the tax payer. Within and outside his constituency boundaries.

Well done Iain Dale. This is an excellent story. And it resonates everywhere that the apolotical and stop-at-nothing Lib Dems weave their wicked webs of deceit.

Mika Brzezinski: Why is She, Such, a ... Journalist?

Great find from a revitalised Will Parbury 1.3 million hits on this You Tube feed alone. There are at least four.