Iain Dale is Hurting: No Snap Election and NOT NOT Announced First on 18 Doughty Street

Mr Iain Dale is being particularly silly at the moment. He is repeatedly including my name in his posts, pointedly without a link. Flattering? Or creepy? Nah, I don't think so. Sorry Iain. Just snide. Go and pick on someone your own size.

But here's the latest example to show there's no reciprocation of his silly game. Apart from snide name dropping Iain is reporting a falling out among media outlets as to where Gordon Brown should NOT announce something.

NOT announce it on the BBC? NOT announce it on SKY? NOT announce it on ITV? Or NOT announce it in parliament? I can't see how it matters where you don't announce something. Or the order in which you don't announce that thing.

It's June 2009 Iain. Haven't I let you in on that before?

Doctoring the Spin: Rupa Huq on Political Communication

Rupa Huq is off being a complete and utter blooming blog tart once more. This time it's Progress. And Doctoring the Spin.

Conservativehome.com: More Juvenile Tosh

Connservative Home have called the whole thing off. This is apparently because Gordon's pre-recording an interview for the Politics Show. Though I've bet my house on June 2009 taking these shambolic and juvenile Tories apart over the next few weeks would be a great pleasure. Or perhaps not ...

UPDATE: Now everyone's saying the same. NOTW ICM poll in marginals. Good. Media and tory boys out of control. Settle down everybody.

World Cup Rugby: England Belying Expectations

What a fantastic game of rugby. 15 minutes to go. 12-10 for England. Six minutes to go. Jonny misses penalty. Still 12-10. Three minutes. Very long penalty chance for Australia. Still 12-10. England in possession. One minute left. 30 seconds. 10 seconds. 10 seconds over. Australia knock on. 12-10 win. Tremendous.
NOW I can go and do my leaflets and letters.

Same Old Tories: Nasty Messages from Juveniles

The ever so macho Iain Dale's Diary asks "Is This the Message the Tories Should be Pushing?"

Gordon Brown has a history of ducking out of big decisions, which is all the more ironic when you consider he has had ghosted for him written two books on the theme of courage. In 1978 he failed to challenge George Robertson for the Labour selection in a by election. In 1994 he let Tony Blair walk all over him. For ten years he failed to make Tony Blair stick to his promise to stand down in his favour, culminating in last September's abortive coup.

If Brown ducks out of calling an election on Tuesday are these type of posters (from TheWrongMan.org) the Conservatives should be using, or should they just let the media dump on Gordon and stay out of it themselves? I just so look forward to PMQs on Wednesday.

Yes please, yes please. Go on Iain, go on, go on. Please do use these disgusting, childish and superficial ideas.

Go further, much further than this. Let's have much more of this. And don't stop there. Some more hilarious Cyclops action should be your next move.

Dave-id Cameron has just completely wasted 67 minutes of blood, sweat and tears with his "unscripted" 67 minutes that he was trying to get under the hour or 50 minutes, pretending that there's some New Politics and Change from the Tories.

Throughout the speech his narrative was busted wide open time and time again. Live blogging the speech I noted two or three ideas each minute. The ones that got the applause were the good old fashioned nasty silly Tory dog whistles.

Yes please Iain. Tell the clever people at thewrongman.org (that is the very mainstream, low deniability conservativehome.com) that they really must pursue this clever and useful campaign. And not take it all down before Labour folk have done the screen grabs. Are you lot ten year old twits, or what?

Surely this wrong man thing is just evidence if evidence were needed that the cuddly new Tories that Dave-id has promised are a complete illusion?

There is no need for an election now. But if you are not careful and continue with your triumphal and over egged nonsense you Tories will get exactly what you say you wish for.

Followed by a complete thumping powered by hateful nonsense like this.

(You could shut up and wait to be thumped in an election later.)

In these circumstances however I will not mind so much losing the house I've bet on a June 2009 election.

Remember Peterloo: Journalists to Lobby Editors

Melodramatic press releases usually find their way straight into the bin. But when the National Union of Journalists - ever fair and balanced remember - call on the spirit of the Peterloo Massacre it's hard to look away and walk on by.

There could certainly be fireworks in Manchester on Monday 5 November ... not least as scribblers and snappers give their editors a rocket: Stand up to greedy media owners! (Enough of this corny hackery already. Ed)

The National Union of Journalists is organising a lobby of the Society of Editors conference at the Radisson Hotel on Peter Street.

Union president Michelle Stanistreet, of the Sunday Express, said: “The media is owned by a smaller and smaller group of extremely wealthy corporations. They make big profits but they want more. So journalists face a constant round of job cuts and dwindling editorial budgets. This means that more and more news is just recycled press releases.

“We want our editors to join with us and stand up to the culture of cuts. If they believe that journalism is important for democracy and for local communities they must take a stand."

All things considered they should be pushing at an open door (this is I think the SoE mission statement and a rallying cry from their president) :

The Society of Editors works to protect the freedom of all sectors of the media to report on behalf of the public.

Society members share the values that matter:

- The universal right to freedom of expression
- The importance of the vitality of the news media in a democratic society
- The promotion of press and broadcasting freedom and the public’s right to know
- The commitment to high editorial standards

“If we are willing to embrace the opportunities now available to us, this will be the industry's heyday. Now is the time to be bold, to experiment, to be prepared to fail and then have another go.”
Paul Horrocks
President, Society of Editors and Editor, Manchester Evening News

“The editors are meeting on a site that was developed to commemorate the Peterloo massacre," continues Michelle. "We hope they will take courage from history and seize the moment. ”

This lobby will be the national focus of the snappily named Stand Up For Journalism event. Job cuts and derisory offers, as in West Yorkshire are evidently undermining the vitality and standards the editors champion.

There seems to be less and less time for time for journalists to develop decent stories. In Manchester few Town Hall meetings - even Full Council - are covered from beginning to end by a single journalist.

Whatever MEN newsman David Ottewell may say in comments here edgier stories are simply not getting covered and deep and wide investigations are almost unheard of.

Concentration of ownership locally - even in the hands of what we might consider the more benign Guardian Media Group - is not helping either press workers or reading public. The highly principled Scott Trust scarcely intervene or intercede with either the MEN or the regional and specialist titles. Bean counters appear to have a rather free hand to restructure, close titles and cheap chisel the staff.

Of course the Peterloo Massacre itself back in 1819 occurred in a time of revolutionary changes, not only in calls for representation and suffrage, but also in the development of a free and diverse press.

Edward Baines was rather generous to magistrates and murderous yeomanry in sharing blame with the organisers, Richard Carlile, soon to launch The Republican was more direct, as was John Edward Taylor a writer for the Manchester Gazette which helped organise the event. But he was to break through to a national lead story as chance intervened.

Thomas Barnes was not present but he was editor/proprietor of The Times and let's say "not convinced" of the merits of the cause. He sent John Tyas to get the story - the only national reporter on site. Being kindly seated in the middle of the action with the dangerous radicals themselves Tyas was arrested and imprisoned.

Although he was later able to file copy from prison his furious editor, Barnes, tending to think this arrest was more than chance, didn't hesitate to run a damning report from Taylor. As the establishment paper selling all of 7,000 copies at 7d per day this line boosted the outrage at the killings along with the case for proper representation and wider suffrage.

Carlile's Republican was produced quickly and cheaply. It soon overtook The Times' circulation and was a thorn in the government's side.

A law was introduced to enforce a minimum price. This aimed to strangle "cheap papers". Carlile and many of his colleagues and sellers were imprisoned as a result of their work.

More on 1819 and All That anon.

Miles Barter has more exciting NUJ quotes and details.

Borschtola: Is Alisher Creosotemanov Buying the Press?

Tim Ireland has reported that Alisher Creosotemanov has been buying rather than bullying the mainstream media. With swanky flights, luxury hotels, gift books and a nice bit of scran to boot.

Hats off to the FT who mostly insist on paying their own way. But I must say that eg music, film and lifestyle publications - especially the big ones - often get treated to trips by their subjects or record companies. Particularly the richer ones who paradoxically could afford their own fares.

We don't see these things disclosed. And nor do the artistes always get positive reviews or whatever.

When the figure is political, even with a small p, this is a more serious matter. Though expecting journalists to behave like politicians around ligs and freebies and disclose every last little drip of grease that crosses their palms and glass of bubbly that crosses their lips, as the gonzo journalist Iain Dale seems to, well that's possibly a bit OTT.

Imagine filling out your declaration after a three-week slog going round party conferences. Homily Pie from Campbell, Sausage and Mash from Brown, Eton Mess from Cameron?

But even the FT accepted a meal from the formerly imprisoned, blogger bashing art lover and oligarchioso Alisher Creosotemanov.

Is this a problem? How big a problem?

And shouldn't it also be expected that currently un-outed pundits, radio phone-in participants and so on also declare their allegiances?

Blogsclusive: Council Not Guilty of Vote Rig Say Council

Last Friday we brought you a Blogsclusive double story of alleged Tory shenanigans in Guildford. First a land and property deal some citizens thought whiffy. Then what looked very much like an attempt to to manipulate an online residents' vote about that very development.

Following formal complaints about Tory Guildford Council's closeness to a major Property Developer - they were sharing the same valuation consultant at one point which is not normally recognised as best practice - the District Auditor has been sent in to investigate. Meanwhile the Council's Chief Executive has apparently cleared his own political boss Cllr Andrew Hodges of wrong doing in what I'll call Surrey Advertiser Poll Gate. His website (all of it) is pictured.

This thoroughly unscientific "just for fun" poll of the type run by newspapers and bloggers everywhere allowed readers to vote once from their computer. Just as the Tom Watson MP poll we are featuring does. It is known to be possible to subvert this stricture by either removing cookies or using different machines. Grant 1234 Schapps has all the techy details I believe.

The Tory Councillor at the eye of the storm, the Leader of the Council no less, has admitted to voting twice using different PCs "out of frustration" at what he thought was a dodgy poll. It certainly seemed destined to become one!

Before the strange pattern of block voting the poll was running 80:20 that the people of Guildford WERE being ripped off by the cosy Tory deal.

Then the 14 votes from the Town Hall computers and also more than 100 from another network - all giving the scheme the thumbs aloft - weighed in and the swingometer worked overtime and the result was turned on its head.

After the suspicious voting pattern it was running 60:40 in favour of the cosy deal. So it must be quite a relief to hear that this run of votes wasn't due to any kind of Tory conspiracy. Everything is on the up and up down in Guildford on the square.


FAIRLY UNRELATED STORY: Apart from being in Guildford, and involving some new flats being built, and some money changing hands, and some building professionals, and Tories, and a new entertainment centre being built, anyway The Masonic Hall, Guildford (above) is thoroughly haunted. Probably liable to phantom results too.

Missing: Iain Dale has been Missing for 18 Hours

Iain Dale is still missing from home. Did he ever reach Widdy's Halloween Party?

UPDATE: The naughty stop out rolled in at 14:30 with some cock and bull about a meeting in Kent. Not to do with a candidacy in Medway and Weald. But who knows? perhaps related to one in Rochester?

Boy Dave-id: "Beadle's About, You've Been Framed"

Susan Press is Grimmer Up North and compares Gordon Brown's situation to that of "Sunny" Jim Callaghan. I too am old enough to remember Calor Gas. At the time my dad was in the white collar middle years of his working life. Sandwiched by two periods of blue collaring. In fact he was a tax officer and active in the IRSF as it was then. Sunny Jim - a tax man in the professional sense, cue Tory blogger jibes - was never considered any great shakes.

Gordon Brown is Champions League to his Championship. Clearly this has all been an elaborate hoax Susan. Clearly. The election will take place in June 2009 alongside the European Elections. As LOL have been predicting and favouring all along.

Gordon has shoved his fierce ferrets down into the Tory rabbit warren. Sadly for the Tories no sensible policies whatsoever were caught in either the big media nets or the commentary cross hairs.

No notes, no facts, no policies.

The biggest story they have is that memorising an hour of cack shows how authentic the former media spinmeister really is. This will wear thin very soon.

Clearly all the applause was centred on the old school stuff also which is a funny way to support a narrative of change and new politics.

I don't think he will run. I never really wanted to believe it.

When Jeremy does a Beadle's About he lets the family and friends in on it and they have to keep schtum. They usually do manage this. We wouldn't see any set up where they didn't anyway now would we?

But when Gordon does a You've Been Framed - knowing how all parties have a share of blaggers and double agents, even some bloggers that will publish private party information - he's had to keep family and friends out of the loop.

Just for the record I'd like to share something. I have seen Gordon speaking at length without notes. He had a speech written but felt he shouldn't give it because of world events. So he didn't.

He spoke instead off the cuff without a verbatim memorized, totally trite, string of soundbites and feelgood quackery. He spoke from the heart. From his demonstrable commitments and convictions. With an impressive command of facts, dates, names, places. And real belief too.

Now that was authentic. This thing of Cameron's however was a polished but ultimately very smarmy party trick. Thinking this epitome of falseness could make him appear authentic shows a kind of Old Etonian bravado and over confidence that Britain can do without.

In what way has this been damaging? Beyond three to five days of silly headlines from proprietors and their sub editors and scribblers who should know better.

Some do. Expect everything to turn out well come Sunday or at latest next week.

Obviously I was not thinking of Susan when I opined that sometimes some of the Labour Left are whiners. Susan never whines and pointed that out promptly. But Dave has been well and truly Beadled. The reveal will come soon no doubt. Let's hope the Tories are good sports! Wouldn't want Dave to get bludgeoned to death with drafts one to 212 of his "unscripted" speech.


CAPTIONS: First video shows a moment from Drop the Dead Donkey - based on spin Cam's own career in news management - while the second demonstrates, as Beadle says, that "any performer worth their salt must give 110%. If you don't you could make a complete ass of yourself." It is fortuitous that mummy magistrate and daddy stockbroker sent the video of little David's first play in to the programme. He is the unscripted ass.

Ms Widdy is 60: Iain "Scoop" Dale Missing in Medway

Yesterday I didn't spend much time on Tory blogs. But at breakfast time I clock Iain Dale's promise to give us his compelling insights "later" on his return from Ms Widdy's 60th.

Sadly there is still no sign of the young raggamuffin. Perhaps there is going to be a vacancy down there in Medway and Weald after all? (Running gag, apologies to new readers).

So, on to his other top stories. Particularly this "Exclusive". It seems old Creosotemanov is offering share holders £10,000 per share. This is a hell of a lot when the market price last month was only ... let's see ... it must be here somewhere ... Iain is a journalist you know ... oh dear, he doesn't say and I've double checked.

So the story is tantamount to meaningless. Not even the slightest bit exclusive either. Sadly the lying biased bastards proper journalists at the BBC had the story about a week ago and as the ubiquitous "Anonymous" points out six months ago the shares were already trading at £5,300.

But the first commentator was the Tory blogger and football fan "Ed" who said...

Business is business - the odiousness of the buyer is largely irrelevant.

Spoken like a true Tory. Remember this odiousness is coupled with being a big time convict sprung from his vast helpings of porridge by a renowned gangster/warlord oligarchiosi.

Wonder at what the Rostrapovitch would have thought of Creosotemanov buying up the old art collection. Though his widow clearly thinks like Ed.

Whisper-sing "who ate all the pies?" to yourself as you consider that several champion bloggers have laid down their blogs to save sinners like Ed.

Tory Triumphalism: Enjoy it While You Can

Have not looked at any Tory Boy Blogger's output for ten hours. But I imagine there is a lot of triumphalism, that there is an assumption that the election is now off, and that visceral hatred is running riot.

Hatred of Labour's agenda of:
Fairness, equality, solidarity, rights balanced for many not the few.

But what have we actually got to back this ebullience:

1. Cameron's speech was to be on a No Notes basis; not quite true as it turned out but something that all the media have pigged out on.

2. Osborne's speech was on a No Facts basis; none of it quite true; seasonal agricultural pickers rolled into non doms; the supposed saving on stamp duty (illusory); and that three card trick with inheritance tax.

3. Other sessions too. Whether superficially OK (Gove's) or maverick (Ainsworth's) they were all fundamentally "No Policies" whether they had "No Notes" and "No Facts" or not. (For the record: Gove fluent no noter/no facter, Ainsworth bumbling noter/no facter).

Obviously Blair has done quite a few big speeches off by heart, Cameron has now done one, Brown has done it too to my certain knowledge and more so; and as some blogger said: "when I was in the school play I learned my lines".

Election Timing: As an Akehurstite Brown Will Now Cease and Desist Reckless Talk of Elections

As Gordon Brown is a dyed-in-the-wool Akehurstite on most matters this will clinch his decision. 2008 or 2009 then. Nothing to see here. Move along, move along. The Tom Watson MP Poll that LOL are piggy backing continues to show feelings in the wider party "too close to call".

Conference Security: "Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes?"

Overlooked this one somehow. A guard working for the famously foolproof Group 4 Securicor including at party conferences was found to have false documents.

There is no sign whatsoever that this man is anything other than a chancer who has neglected to get some more credible iD after entering this country on a faked French passport.

Questions:

1. How good or bad was this fake anyway? James Purnell good? Or even better?


2. How did he pass G4S vetting? They being famous for their good works.
3. How did he pass Conference vetting which stopped the likes of Dizzy?
4. Would he have been stopped and asked to produce documents if he had been say Swiss or Kiwi?
5. Why was he in fact discovered? Was this the glories of racial profiling?
6. What security routine would he have to go through before clocking on and off each day at a security sensitive event?

Personally I have always found the G4S people at such events to be very amiable and efficient. In particular I remember that at Brighton 2005 I realised how the £50 an hour (guess at recharge) Sussex Police and other forces assisting had no visible minorities in their ranks while the £8 an hour G4S crew drastically changed the diversity of our protectors.

Hat tip: Johnny Jailhouse.

Tory Party Conference: Environment/Quality of Life

May have mentioned yesterday that the Quality of Life/Environment session was a different kettle of fish to the Platitudes on Youth one masterminded by Gove.

But there was one thing that was just the same:

Contributions from the floor were concluded with a BME woman delegate sharing an anecdote ... Not understanding the game dippy Shadow Ainsworth tried to cut her in mid-flow, until someone who understood the desirability of the "BME-woman-delegate-at-the-end-of-the-session" gag shut him up.

[If anyone who watched more sessions than me can confirm that these also had prominent BME delegates and/or BME women towards their conclusions we might be able to establish a case for full on Tory tokenism. In comments please.]

Other contributions, all ritually slagging off Labour, covered the need for Tories to stop the Labour 3rd Runway at Heathrow, the need to reverse the Labour bulk discount price curve for power for poor Tories, the treacherous Labour river silt clogging Tory shipwrecks and Conservative sea fauna, and of course the Labour unseasonable rainfall damaging Tory business at Tory Brum golf courses.

I didn't quite make that last one up. But I did transplant it. Brum Lib Cons are blaming rain on golf courses for their budget mishandling. As well as people not using crematorium services as expected i.e. not dying young enough.

Changing the price curve for power is an interesting one. If we only use ten units we would pay for these plus the standing charge. If we use five hundred units we may still pay the same standing charge. So though the marginal cost is the same throughout the average cost falls and "the more we use the cheaper it gets".

Quite how to turn this on its head I don't know. Businesses don't use more particularly because the average unit cost comes down. It is still cost and still comes off the bottom line and they'd save it if they could.

This was thought provoking at least.

The third runway question is just a headache for any credible party of government. You know you will need to do it. But you know that shooting Bambi is always a bit of a hard sell. But perhaps Dave could confirm that he's listened to Mary and that her wishes are indeed now Tory Party Policy.

Most of these things aren't actually party political at all in sense of any left-right, liberal-conservative, freetrade-fairtrade kind of way. They are essentially managerial matters.

Though if anything in suggesting stopping the transport infrastructure expanding according to expressed demand, and in demanding a state-motivated fiddling with power tariffs these two Tories are strictly speaking barking up quite the wrong tree ideologically.

They are very likely accidental Tories who would be Lib Dem or indeed even Labour oppositionists if they were born or lived somewhere else. Their main conviction being that they are against not being in control.

Torygraph: "Cameron Fights to Stave Off Election"

All looking like bluff, double bluff, counter bluff and uber bluff. Has poker face Dave pulled off a coup with his feel good quackery? Or have the Labour machine been toying with him all along? Jangling his fragged nerves, wasting his puffed out war chest, keeping Gordon's own powder bone dry?

I've made no secret of preferring a June 2009 poll myself. Gordon is doing remarkably well at dealing with events. Cameron isn't going to convince anyone his party has changed by talking about "new politics" when his party faithful still cheer the same old same old "old politics"?

Balls himself pointed this out immediately afterward. Well crafted, yes. New Politics, absolutely not. Iain Dale's man of steely coilons has a bad case of false memory syndrome and not to mention that same old deja vu, again.

He clearly got his applause for retro old Tory policies - the very opposite of his attempted narrative - with the new cuddly stuff finding indifference, bemusement or even dissent from the greying hordes.

It doesn't matter when it is really. Labour will win. And yes Britain will win. My point of view is that we might as well sort out the European Parliament or reclaim half the nation's Town Halls while we're about it.

Cameron on Facebook: He's Making Baby Jesus Cry

David Cameron generously gave a huge plug for his facebook depreciation group Am I the only person who doesn't like David Cameron? during his feelgood quackery. He said it had 370 members. Already he is boosted almost to 1,000; though Stop David Cameron... his lies make baby Jesus cry is approaching 1,500; meanwhile David Cameron is a hottie, also plugged will soon reach 300.

There are quite a few other groups, considering he is a no-hoper and a quitter.

PHOTO: Scurrilous illiberal attack on drug taking. We say if you can afford it, deal with it, and not get found out ... you could be leader of the opposition for quite a while yet. Though sadly never PM.

Ummah Pulse: Speaking With Muslim Communities

Speaking of the SMC and its weight ... Useful discussion of the representation of and communication with the Muslim communities here.

Tory Party Conference: Platitudes About Young People

If the Platitudes about Young People session was much better than the Environment/Quality of Life one it did still have its problems.

Paul Oginsky, CEO of the Young Adult Trust, presented a plan that Michael Gove hopes will in time include 650,000 16 year olds every year.

These will take part in a Community Action month sandwiched between a one-week residential team building course and a one-week residential challenge.

Considering it has been two years in the making what the Tories are calling National Citizens Service - probably rather offensive to those who did the real thing - the concept still seems to be at the blue skies end of things.

Unity at Ministry of Truth thinks that "pigs might fly" and includes Pink Floyd 'Animals' video in iron clad evidence of this.

Problems I have with this scheme and its appropriation by the Tories are that:

1. It is not actually original. There are all sorts of schemes extant along these lines. The Duke of Edinburgh Award, some strands of The Prince's Trust, Outward Bound, plus uniformed and un-uniformed youth organisations of all stripes and special diversion and capacity building activities for the age group.

2. Throwing the same budget at established providers could have the same or better effects. Throwing the budget at a new "Tory" scheme could kill some off.

3. It is nothing like National Service and borrowing this name is not only likely to be offensive but is also hellishly self-aggrandising.

4. The Tories have been ducking and diving round youth projects in all sorts of nooks and crannies, including on our own Wythenshawe estates in Manchester. You will remember Dave-id's hoody friend? Subsequently jailed.

5. The budget required is considerable. Summary budget at today's prices:

Two weeks residential:

650,000 x 14 x £30
£20 per night for base, £10 per day for staffing

Four weeks non-residential:

650,000 x 28 x £10
For supervision and basic admin

Recruitment cost:

650,000 x £50 per head advertising and marketing
Required even if eventually near compulsory

650,000 x £50 per head interviews and admin

Core Admin Team:

£2 million for housing, salaries, on costs

Completion Bonus (half to charity, half to trainee)

650,000 x £1,200
Based on 25 hours at NMW which is low sided for full time

GRAND TOTAL : £1.2435 Billion

Given Osborne's trials and tribulations with his officially fact-free budgeting this week Tories are going to have to try a good deal harder to explain how these things will be paid for.

Paul Oginsky has a nice pitch. Ex-Paratrooper, worked with Simon Weston to co-found Weston Spirit, and he had an idea on the back of an envelope down the pub. Partially worked up. Tories come along and try to repackage it as their own.

Oginsky related the story of the New York Marathon he did a couple of years ago. Sounds like he wasn't particularly well prepared, ignored his own plan, almost came a cropper, barely dragged himself round, and called it a huge success.

This scheme is he said based on that experience. Doomed then from the word go! The ideas are being piloted with a couple of dozen youths as he told Conservativehome today earlier this year. I'll try to delve a little deeper.

On a more positive note Oginsky is determined, cheerful, humourous as only scousers can be, and able to say "we love the bones of them kids" and the like from a Tory Party Platform. Which was nice.

Haras Rafiq is a successful businessman we're told. Also a co-founder of the Sufi Muslim Council (SMC). Mr Gove rather exaggerated the importance and reach of this organisation to Mr Rafiq's visible embarrassment.


Its website appears not to have been updated since around June/July and items are predominantly dated March and April 2007. And their SMC gallery seems to very deliberately be staying politically independent with Labour figures including Jack Straw and Ruth Kelly (above centre), Tory Dominic Grieve, and Deputy President of the Lib Dems Fiyaz Mughal.

The organisation has a third party profile cached on Google here that reveals that SMC was co-founded by Haras Rafiq (above right) and Azhar Ali (above left). This is not a unique name but I'm pretty sure that Azhar is a long standing Labour Party activist in the NW, at time member of Labour's regional board, and just re-elected to our National Policy Forum.

Showing just why Gove's introductions of him as being heavily involved with the Conservatives seemed to have caused some embarrassment Mr Rafiq is quoted under the following introduction:

The party also encourages Muslims to vote in elections. During the local elections in 2006, when the Labour Party faced huge discontent with Muslim voters due to the Iraq war, Haras encouraged Muslim to look at issues other than the Iraq war.

"Anger at Labour is far from universal, says Haras Rafiq, the 40-year-old president of Bridges TV, a Muslim entertainment channel he is helping to set up in his hometown," reported the BBC.

"I think people need to vote with their brain rather than with an emotion," Rafiq told the BBC. "We're never going to get a party that is going to represent any individual on a 100% level."

Whatever his true affiliation Haras too had an anecdote. His daughter had come home from school at the age of five and told him she wished to stop being a Muslim. Why? Because all the images she saw in the news, even computed though a five year old brain, were of Muslims being intensely angry. She did not want to be like that. The Sufi Muslim Council was he said born of that experience albeit five years later.

At a stretch it is possible to connect this project with the other.

Contributions from the floor were concluded with a BME woman delegate sharing an anecdote about a training scheme in Brent. Already doing the same kinds of things successfully with funding from other parties at national and local level, though she forgot to mention that.

DISCLAIMER: No young people were involved in the making of this session.

UPDATE: Thanks to Sam Coates for Conservativehome timing correction.

Tory Party Conference: A Tale of Two Sessions

Today I watched a good deal of the BBC's Tory Conference coverage. Two sessions this morning formed a right pair.

The Environment/Quality of Life session appeared to be peopled mainly by mavericks. Including on the panel.

Several policy proposals popped up from the floor. Given the current shortage do these count as Tory policies if the platform party mutter "jolly good", "well done" or speak warmly of them?

Those making contributions were evidently known in advance and er, hand picked.

Immediately after this we had a panel called Platitudes About Young People chaired by Michael Gove. With him were Paul Oginsky and Haras Rafia.

Despite the unpromising title this was altogether far saner, more interesting, and in principle at least rather more promising.

The first session: loads of calling Labour names, bad names. The second: none of the above.

Ann Robinson: What a Silly and Sour Old Cow!

Heard on the radio yesterday that the high-friction Ann Robinson has recently become romantically unattached. She can now take Manchester off her search list as well as the whole of Wales. She has just been teasing a Dance and Drama teacher on my kid's fave Weakest Link. The guy teaches in Moss Side.

She asked him repeated derogatory questions:

What is the life expectancy of a Drama teacher in Moss Side? What did you teach the children? To say they didn't do it? That they didn't nick the car? That they were asleep in bed when it happened?

What a silly and sour old cow she is! A series of about five consecutive derogatory remarks about Manchester. Then back onto her dissing Wales routine. The school where the guy teaches is almost certainly the Academy, where the kids win national Newsnight prizes for their impressive business nous.

The competitors are getting back at her by making out she is very very old. Ann apparently made her peace with Wales. Now she will have to stop her quest for love and beg Manchester's forgiveness. Or go see this lot perhaps?

London Labour Left: Report Back Meeting Tonight

The agenda for Labour to win: Annual Conference Report Back

7pm Wednesday 3rd October
Conway Hall, Red Lion Square WC1

Ann Black, NEC member
Raj Jethwa, Ethnic Minorities Officer, London Labour Party
Christine Shawcroft, NEC member
Peter Willsman, NEC member
Walter Wolfgang, NEC member

Comments here very welcome if you attend.

Nick Griffin and BNP: British Nazis are Falling Apart

Griffin and Collett are problem drinking political fascists from a Nazi party

The Voice of Reason blog reports that, as well as being upset not to make Dale's Right One Hundred (along with Saatchi, Giddens, Major, Portillo, Woodhead, Stevens, Brown, Dale, Schapps, Lord Taylor, Neville-Jones, Coe, Heeschen, Eliasch among others) Nick Griffin is also losing his SS generals at an alarming rate. He still has the bomber Lecomber and other undesirables such as Mark Collett. The Nazi who glories in marching Jackboots, loves Hitler, demands that his troops control the streets, and proudly says so on the telly (this is now a link to Channel 4's page for the programme as the Google Video link is broken).

Despite Griffin dominating the recent leadership election the word is that a more serious challenge is in the fascist nutjob pipeline. Collett himself?

UPDATE: Collett's Wiki Page. Lovely bloke.

Cameron Speech: Observations on Feelgood Quackery

15:23 Will leave it there.

15:22 Ah bless. Samantha Stefani is by his side now. Looks uncomfortable. Like they've had a huge ruck.

15:21 Yah Boo Yah Boo Yah Boo. Call that election, we will fight, Britain will win.

15:21 Dares Brown to call election.

15:20 This speech keeps nearly ending. That's a bit tedious.

15:19 My mother the magistrate ... Swampy and Greenham Common. Public Service. Go back to your constituencies and prepare for government.

15:18 Has he got what it takes? He answers YES! But he would say that now wouldn't he? Tries to deal with privilege background and schooling.

15:17 Winds up wandering string of feel good quackery with more whimsy.

15:16 National Citizen Service for 16 Year olds. I'll come back to that. Amir Khan mention at this point.

15:15 Strengthening Families.

15:14 Anecdote re kid nicking from mother. Back to Dixon of Dock Green? Get rid of everything. Localise all control. Marvellous.

15:14 Scrap early release scheme. Why? But more important Reform the Police.

15:13 Crime. Some anecdotes and some slander.

15:11 Some more dodgy stats at this point. On China, carbon etc. The Party of Sensible Green Leadership.

15:10 Green issues; Not popular, I don't care, it falls to this generation.

15:09 Throwaway on HRA, scrapping iD cards, banning HuT, save trial by jury.

15:08 Pauline Neville-Jones - dig at dodgy dossier, which he of course voted for.

15:08 National Security Policy.

15:07 Blether about problems - most international liaison issues.

15:07 Cannot parachute in democracy. Oh really? Top priority is Afghanistan.

15:06 Bigs up Liam for promising to revoke cuts in the army. Stats alert?

15:05 Schools, housing and hospitals. Separate military wards he says.

15:05 Leave should start when you get home not set off. Very good point.

15:04 Accuses Labour of breaking The Military Covenant. Huge applause.

15:03 Says again Old Politics is Failing.

15:02 Will back GB on Iraq and Afghanistan. Incredible bravery in Helmand Province.

15:02 Backing Labour on Trident - again big applause.

15:01 Never put party before country - big applause.

15:01 10,000 trained terrorists in UK??????

15:00 Is this the third point? International security. Nukes and insurgencies.

14:59 Transitional controls new EU entrants; overall limit on economic migration.

14:58 IMMIGRATION! Right noises on benefit of immigration.

14:57 3. District General Hospitals, all with e.g. A&E services

14:56 2. Modern Conservative Changes - more choice (sounds a bit New Labour)

14:55 Replace with some other sort of monitoring. Outcome recording. semantics.

14:55 1. Scrap Top Down targets - trust professionals.

14:54 Anecdote about marching with junior doctors.

14:53 Claims NHS "morale is so low". He thinks it is because of top down approach.

14:53 Personal anecdotes about the help he's had from NHS workers.

14:52 National Health Service.

14:52 The strongest family package any party has ever put together.

14:51 Flexible working for all. As a right?

14:50 Attack on current system. Says will reward cohabitees and incentivise marriage in tax system.

14:49 LAT - Living Apart Together; anecdote about lost benefit if live together.

14:49 Dave-id is just chugging out stats and feel good vagueness.

14:48 Best welfare organisation of all is called the family.

14:47 Tough on welfare if anyone refuses job. Privatise back to work services. (NB David there already is a lot of private back to work provision)

14:46 After this dodgy stat. Slags off treating people as stats.

14:46 600,000 more people in deep poverty than in 1997? Are you sure?

14:45 Stronger Families etc: this is the Second Point.

14:45 Economy is getting richer, Society is getting poorer says Posh Dave.

14:44 Big fib about 125,000 pensioners being let down.

14:43 Tells anecdote about poor pensioner screwed by failure of private company pension scheme after capitalists went bust. Blames government.

14:42 Big lie about "destruction of pension system".

14:41 Bigs up Osbourne's 60% inaccurate (Channel 4) tax cut speech.

14:40 Where is the third point?

14:40 Headteachers will get complete command of schools. Freedom to exclude kids. No appeals panels. This is worrying tosh now. the Mail will like it.

14:39 ... DC did two days as teacher. Anecdote about some kid.

14:38 Good point re 4-pass exams.

14:37 Tosh about lack of ambition, fear of failure in schools.

14:37 Action on standards Now. Is this second reason?

14:36 Easy entrance for providers to state sector.

14:36 Open up provision to private sector. Think TB and GB have been there also.

14:35 Why are Labour Failing? Three reasons he says.

14:35 Setting by ability. Gosh that's radical. We wouldn't have thought of that.

14:34 Dave-id would like to send his children to Eton.

14:33 Some more stats. This time on Education. Meaningless blether.

14:33 Applause at utterly vague proposition of tax and regulation cuts.

14:32 Brief loss of transmission - two seconds. Just after vague business tax cut "promise".

14:32 Some business stats that need some fact checking Dave Matey.

14:31 Globalised World. Tories sorted that out apparently. Spain 5%, Germany 9%, Sarkozy tax cuts too.

14:30 Abolish Regional Assemblies while we're at it. Big cheer.

14:30 Call for Elected Mayors - way back in no-go cities?

14:29 "Stop Wasting Money on pointless Gimmicks" he suggests.

14:28 Gordon: 1000 People to come up with six words for Gordon.

14:28 Tories will push for, campaign NO in, seek to wreck constitution.

14:27 EU "Constitution" referendum. Clearly going to be a big issue.

14:27 Facebook: DC Hottie and Hate sites (latter being 500% bigger).

14:26 MySpace = 10th Biggest Country in World.

14:26 How do we do these things?

14:25 Ridiculous dog whistle re PCSOs watching boy drowning.

14:24 Extraordinary stream of woolly meaninglessness.

14:23 What does he believe? he is an optimist he says.

14:23 People want the politics of belief.

14:22 Apparently Gordon is going to try to win the next election!

14.21 Dig at EU and small race whistle.

14:21 Silly joke re Gordon's speech.

14:20 Down with lurching! Down with soundbites. Goodness there are lots of them.

14:19 New world, Old politics is failing, Change is required

14:18 Force to be reckoned with in every part of country. NOT Manchester!

14:18 Proud of Sayeeda Warsi - first ethnic woman in cabinet. But hey Dave, she was not elected.

14:17 Tosh about Health Service campaigns.

14:17 10% of MPs women, 33% of candidates.

14:15 Takes credit for freeing East and Central Europe.

14:13 Two video presentations. First had the gathered Tories utterly bemused. Second not much better. Cameron has already broken his promise and admitted he has notes!

Dave-id Cameron: Into the Conference Hall Naked

The main pre-speech spin at Blackpool is that Dave-id will be performing with no safety net, no harness, absolutely no notes. Ooo-er. He is going into the Conference Room naked with his Emperor's New Clothes of a policy platform there for all to see. So very thin and fine that it is transparent.

There you go. Caroline Spelman, Steve Hilton and Andy Coulson believe that "No Notes" is a better recommendation than "No Policies" and so that is how they are briefing. Very brave.

Meanwhile , did I tell you how many marks out of five Channel 4 Factcheck gave Osborne's package for Veracity? 60% of the way to absolutely made up says the verdict. This is hot on the heels of 90% tosh for their continual spin on tax generally.

And naturally they still cannot make their minds up whether Gordon Brown's moves on troop numbers are (a) so trivial as to not warrant any news whatsoever or (b) so important that they needed the recall of parliament.

Truth is the draw down has been announced in parliament. It is ongoing. And it neither needed the hype it got - largely thanks to the Tories calling Gordon's first visit to Iraq as PM a stunt - nor any kind of reference to Parliament.

But not to worry: "Cameron Speaks Without Notes" scream the headlines. "No policies either" say the standfirsts.
Graphic is from The Times, December 2005. Cameron's "inner circles" as they were seen then.

Bloggerheads: Just a Few Looseners to Get Started

Tim Ireland has returned ever so gently to his old stamping ground with good news for Iraqi refugees, a ridiculous and mendacious Potato Chopping rumour, bad news for all Iranians from Who She? and naturally some taking the Michael on Brown's mysterious movements.

Clearly with this relaxed approach he has time to keep blogging here also. Still waiting for journalist Iain Dale to cover the return of the Manic Special One.

Right One Hundred: White, Rich, Middle Class, Men

Well now. LOL tipped 30 possibles, some in jest but got only 14 from 25 of the Dale/Brivati Right One Hundred. The whole list and the top 25 in particular is far far more institutional Tory Party Back Room I'd say than their Left One Hundred.

Dale himself isn't in it. Must have either found a shred of modesty somewhere or decided that, yes, unlike fellow Right Boy Bloggers Guido Fawkes and Tim Montgomery he is "a journalist". Don't think that's right myself.

We missed:

5. STEVE HILTON
Director of Strategy, Conservative Party

8. MICHAEL SPENCER
Conservative Party Treasurer

11. ANDY COULSON
Director of Communications, Conservative Party

14. EDWARD LLEWELLYN
Chief of Staff to David Cameron

15. CHARLES MOORE
Chairman, Policy Exchange & Biographer of Lady Thatcher
Sir Simon Milton

16. SIR SIMON MILTON
Chairman, Local Government Association

17. PATRICK McLOUGHLIN MP
Conservative Party Chief Whip

20. CHRIS GRAYLING MP
Shadow Secretary of State for Work & Pensions

21.ANDREW MACKAY MP
Senior Political Adviser to David Cameron

22. STEPHAN SHAKESPEARE
Founder, YouGov

23. TIM MONTGOMERIE
Editor, ConservativeHome.com

Dale/Brivati don't seem to have these in their 100 at all:

Saatchi (M) - Giddens - Heeschen - Eliasch - Stevens - Field - Hoey - Salmond - Teather - Davey - Brady - Woodhead - Portillo - Schapps 1234 - Neville-Jones - Dale - Murdoch (any of them) - Bruno - Taylor (Lord) - Coe

Those in italics were wildcards, just for fun, attempting to first guess Iain's wicked ways. The Murdoch(s) may fall foul of the media rule, just like Iain Dale, but unlike Charles Moore and Tim Montgomery.

Might well come back to this when Dale has got round to posting the list on his blog (Update 9:01) and the comments start coming in. There is enough "filler" in 26-100 of the list to give at least ten of our picks cause for great indignation - unless they paid or threatened to sue to be kept off it.

UPDATE 9:57: Now linking to Telegraph and not accidentally to Channel 4's hilarious fisk of Tory Tax Bull.

Dale's Right One Hundred: LOL's Favourite Possibilities

These - but who knows, it is Dale after all - are perhaps possibilities for the remaining 25 places in the roll of dishonour:

Dave-id - Blair - Brown - Thatcher - Saatchi (M) - Giddens - Boris - George - Liam - Ashcroft - Heeschen* - Eliasch - Stevens - Paisley - Field - Hoey - Salmond - Hague - Teather - Davey - Brady - Woodhead - Portillo - Herbert - Gove - Schapps 1234 - Neville-Jones - Letwin - Dale - Murdoch - Bruno - Taylor (Lord) - Ms Widdy - Coe

* Heeschen won't make it, that's a wind up.

Run On Bookies: Betfair Return Down to 57 Pence/Pound

Still possible to get 57 pence for every pound wagered on there NOT being a General Election this year. Looks like free money if you're as convinced as I am of a June 2009 poll.

George Galloway: Back Before We'd Noticed He Was Gone

Apparently George Galloway withdrew his name from the Poplar and Limehouse selection for Respect. I hadn't noticed. But I'm very glad to hear he's done a U-Turn. Was he just planning to hang on to BG&B in the event of an early election? Was he worried that winning would get in the way of his media career? Not that he let constituency or parliamentary responsibilities get in the way in the past.

Whatever the reason: George Galloway needs to be wallopped at the ballot box. Poplar and Limehouse is as good a place as any for this. Apart from any disagreement one may have with GG politically he appears to be as bloody useless Respect constituency MP as he was a bloody useless Labour one before.

Creosotemanov/Usmanov: Bulging Profile for Blog Bully

The official transcript of the slamming of Alisher Usmanov/ Creosotemanov in the European Parliament we told you about right here has now been published just here. Thanks to Matt Wardman for that link midst his campaign collection, and to Bloggerheads for pointing me at it.

Alisher Usmanov's profile was not showing any real signs of malnourishment ahead of his scandalous use of Schillings Solicitors to massage his reputation. The reputational risk of using lawyers for this purpose is also on Matt's agenda.

Rupa Huq: Reporting From the Frontline

Rupa Huq is Losing Her Religion over at Pickled Politics. Some nasty big boys - possibly including one of her usual muppet stalkers - are picking on her in the playground.

Bomb Proof: Security Solution for Gordon Brown in Iraq

On the General Election speculation strand at Political Betting they are also worrying about Gordon's well-being on a pre-announced visit to our troops in Iraq. They needn't have worried.

They have sent James Purnell with a tin hat and selection of cardboard cut outs of GB in the back of his Range Rover. And "top photoshopper" Al Thumbs (pictured).

Meanwhile the wise old MPs who actually dreamt up the idea of the "tricking the minister into a photo" jape have come clean.

General Election Speculation: House of Love on June 2009

Back with Lib Dem Voice. They think Gordon will call the General Election tomorrow. It is still possible to win 80 pence per pound wagered on the Betting Exchanges on a General Election NOT taking place this year. This would be very generous indeed in the face of any genuine information on timing. It has come in from a little over 90 pence in 24 hours.

Comments at the normally astute Political Betting are also running either way, possibly on balance rather against a poll this year. But there are nearly 300 comments already and I've not been scientific in saying that.

MORE ON OSBORNE AND NON DOM: He's included visiting NHS workers e.g. nurses as well as fruit and cockle pickers in his calculation of the numbers of non doms. All ever so likely to put their hands up and say "right, the games up, here's my £25,000".

Lib Dem Voice: Tories Rubbish Own 'New' Tax Plans

Mark Pack at Lib Dem Voice has his moments and this is one of them.

Tory Central Office rubbishing George Osborne's plans when they were Vince Cable's. Naturally CCHQ were right then. The Lib Dems are all over the place on tax. But what are CCHQ saying now? And did Dave-id actually supervise the document as part of his spin mastery role in those old dog whistle days?

Right One Hundred: You Can Never Have Enough Lists

Still no Iain Dale on Iain Dale and Brian Brivati's fabled Right One Hundred. So either Iain is planning - as predicted - to rank himself at 23 (moving Polly Toynbee to 24) or he has decided he is a "journalist" and therefore not eligible?

Nick Clegg is in this instalment as we also predicted. Dave-id Cameron has yet to appear however. So he is either in the top 25 somewhere or he has been left out altogether. Probably the latter.

It is a very strange list. Loads of donors - but where are the ski man and the gun man? Loads of think tankees and gingerists. Four local councillors? A PPC in Hereford? Guido Fawkes?

Will be back sometime in the next 12 hours hopefully with LOL's predictive list of the 25 Dale has yet to finger.

Dale/Brivati Right One Hundred 51-75 and 76-100.

Dis Respect: "We'll Win the Game, Me Boys; Bobbing Up and Down Like This"

Arthur Scargill was unhappy to leave behind his own highly successful electoral force. But two of the Bobbies persuaded him to "come quietly, sir".

Anyone nostalgic for the long form resolution should go over to Liam MacUaid's excellent blog and feast your eyes on one from the recent Respect National Committee (Saturday 29 September).

Numbering and particularly lettering is profuse and non-exclusive. It runs to three pages of single spaced 12 point type. Here are a few snippets:

Respect has to broaden its forces and build itself outwards if it is to become an effective left alternative. It has to relate to the Labour left after the collapse of McDonnell campaign and the left in the unions given the crisis of representation they face. ...

c) To discuss with the RMT, the Labour left, the CPB and others the possibility of a jointly organised conference to extend the discussion on a solution to the crisis of Labour representation.

b) Take a positive and collaborative approach to wider developments on the left, such as Bob Wareing’s decision to stand in West Derby, and the discussion on electoral strategy inside the RMT and among other significant forces in the movement.

Call me cynical but I would not give three bob for the chances of an organisation with Bob Crow (RMT) and Bob Wareing (ex Labour MP) and Bob Griffiths (CPB) in the Vanguard. The one still unable to get elected to committees at TUC, the next unable to perform the relatively easy tasks of ticking over as a constituency MP and being reselected, the third "who he?" *. Throw in the vainest man in politics George Galloway and the "buried hatchet" of SWP versus the rest and this ain't the recipe for a national political party of significance.

Surely Arthur Scargill would be available to get this worthwhile and essential project marching in the right direction?

* WIKI EXCERPT: Robert Griffiths comes from the city of Cardiff, although he was a Communist Party candidate in the Pontypridd constituency for the 2005 general election and obtained 233 votes (0.6%). Labour held Pontypridd with 52.8% of the vote. In the 2001 general election he stood for the Newport East constituency, winning just 173 votes (0.6%).

Rt Hon James Purnell MP: LOL are Not Falling For This Obvious Link Bait

It goes without saying that any green inked anti-James-Purnell blog worth its salt would have another go after James' recent "photo opportunity". They were bound to. But we're not about to rise to that. Except to say the miserable wot nots behind the link - which probably drives votes for James and his people through its utter malice - are now having yet another Google Ads freebie campaign. Someone should put their foot down. Perhaps sue them to discourage the others. And certainly slip me an email confirming exactly who these people are.
UPDATE: The above link appears to be a nest of BNP fascist nutjobs. James' photo album however is not.

Farhat Khan 4-Star Refugee: Buerk's The Choice

Our friend Farhat Khan who recently secured refugee status with her young children after a seven year struggle is speaking with Michael Buerk on The Choice on Radio 4 Tuesday 2 October 2007 9:00-9:30 (Radio 4 FM) and Repeated: Tuesday 2 October 2007 21:30-21:58 (Radio 4 FM).

This comes highly recommended. Particularly as Mrs Claus forced Buerk to record the programme in Manchester, where she lives and he started, even though he claims to be a bit of a Manchester-phobic. Well done Farhat. Buerk should move his whole operation here. In fact his crew ARE in Manchester and usually he makes them all travel every week to London. Not good carbon-wise Mr Buerk.

Double hats off by the way to Farhat as she was in London anyway the day before the R4 recording.

Tory "Tax Cutting": What a Load of Transparent Twaddle

Much as I welcome the closing of tax loopholes the Tory figures are bananas. Non doms (non domiciled for tax) will weigh up whether the tariff of £25,000 is good business and most of them will be driven to incorporate, pay themselves massaged dividends and pay say £5,000 but certainly not £25,000 tax as UK resi's.

The inheritance tax proposal is hugely regressive. Currently 6% of estates pay the duty. It could be as low as 0.5% if the Tory milk snatchers proposal were enacted. Their 9 million households figure is bunkum and as IFS stated requires every home owner with more than £300,000 equity (NB not living in a house worth £300,000) to die at once.

Obviously the Stamp Duty thing is just tinkering and Gordon can match or exceed that. If he did something serious about the non doms too that would be welcome. He should put up Inheritance Tax on the richest 6%.

When Stephanie Flanders put the discrepancies to Alan Duncan he fibbed fluently and denied everything. Hilariously he claimed the IFS - who had just been pissing themselves laughing at the proposals - were on board.

Duncan's body language was 100% wrong. He was leaning back, lolling even; he appeared unbelievably arrogant as a result; and flip, that man is unbearably flip. If he were your mate having a pint you'd take the piss, now wouldn't you?

UPDATE: Osbourne has it seems included seasonal agricultural workers in his non doms. What an idiot.

Channel 4 News Factcheck: Tory Tax Claims 90% Cod

If you go to the Channel 4 News website you'll find that their famous FactCheck service is back. This gives "facts" a through examination and awards them marks out of five for veracity. 5.0 would be utterly baseless.


As the Tories produce a rather entertaining version of Pacman called TaxManGordon Factcheck has given Tory Tax Claims 4.5/5.0 which in reality is the worst mark they would ever award (verbatim explanation - see below after the lovely verdict).

Here's the Verdict:

The Tories' claims are neither accurate nor informative. They're a way for the party to sound like a low-tax party, without having to propose actual tax cuts which would have to be matched by politically uncomfortable cuts in spending.
Blathering on about stealth taxes gives a certain spurious credibility to the allegation that Gordon Brown is a high-tax chancellor, but it's a ridiculous way to calculate how heavy the tax burden is. It's like measuring your food intake by the number of items you eat - as if three apples were three times as fattening as one cake.
The more useful way to measure it is to measure total tax revenues as a percentage of national income. When Labour came to power, government revenues were just over 37.3 per cent of GPD, and for 2007-8 they are expected to nudge just above 40 per cent - a substantial increase.
But somehow, "Gordon's 2 per cent of GDP" isn't such a catchy name for a computer game.

FactCheck rating_ 4.5

How ratings work
Every time a FactCheck article is published we'll give it a rating from zero to five.

The lower end of the scale indicates that the claim in question largerly checks out, while the upper end of the scale suggests misrepresentation, exaggeration, a massaging of statistics and/or language.

In the unlikely event that we award a 5 out of 5, our factcheckers have concluded that the claim under examination has absolutely no basis in fact.

<<<<<<<

There was also a lovely segment on tonight's C4N when the head of the Institute for Fiscal Studies pretty much laughed out loud repeatedly at the Tories new proposals and claims. I look forward to posting the link when the editors stop ROFLling and the video is released.

There is a link to classic Pacman about half way down this post. The Tory concept doesn't quite work. If we rechristen the Pacman Tory-Fib-Man (TFM) we find an increasingly energetic Gordon Brown catches and defeats TFM every time!

UPDATE: The Conservative-leaning Newsnight economic guru Stephanie Flanders was crest-fallen to have to follow C4N in busting the Tory flush.

Dogging in Alexander Park: Incident Report

Lucky dogs get another substantial outing. Alexander Park. Excellent park for dogging and logging both and with an open wood fire to feed today we kills two birds with one stone.

Highlight may have been my chance to recreate a killer scene from The Wizard of Oz. Calling the dogs I shout at the top of my voice: "Ignore the funny man, weeing on the tree". It is 4.00pm in the afternoon, local schools are emptying, the man is five feet from the park boundary, near an access gate.

If he blushed, tough. The Wizzer of Odd. There should be a law against it.

There is? Oh. PEOPLE, CONTROL YOUR BOWELS WON'T YOU?

Dogging on the Mersey: Incident Report

This morning our merry throng went off dogging on the Mersey banks. Taking our three sight hounds for a spin. We were joined by a batty black labrador after a mile or so. Partner thought he was called "Batman" from his tag, but then again she is near word blind without reading glasses, turned out to be "Rothko". Whatever, the charmless mutt tagged along for two miles or so. Search parties were out for him and we were glad to reunite him with his pack leader.

TRAIN YOUR DOGS PEOPLE!

Meanwhile the two lurchers Ottey and Hooch had a full on lurch in the "model aircraft flying field" on the Trafford side of the river. A sight to behold with Ottey paws down top dog in the sprinting, milling and lurching stakes.

Full greyhound Jim DOES NOT mill along with them though even as a failed racing dog he does have excellent short burst speed. He doesn't join in because if he does this relegates Hooch to bottom dog at running and this is not something old Hooch will accept.

Great North Run: Guardian Ignore T Abyu Breakthrough

It's not often that we can justifiably say that men have had a raw deal in the sports pages. Fair enough, Paula Radcliffe has returned to the fray and even if she is a couple of minutes off her best and well beaten into second in the Great North Run this is clearly newsworthy. But the Guardian's report of the men's race comprises one para of barely 30 words. There is more there on Steve Maclaren jogging it. The report fails to list the leading British competitor.

That was Tomas Abyu from my own club, Salford Harriers, who ran a staggering 1:02:50 for the 13.2 miles. This is I believe a minute and 15 seconds off his adult best, one of the fastest GB times of the past ten years, and a truly world class run from an athlete who sometimes races way too much - because of the absolutely barmy economics of UK sports funding.

We say "adult best" because Tomas, who came here as a refugee from Ethiopia and is now a citizen, ran 63 minutes as a prodigious 17 year old back in his homeland. Still a life time best. But we did know he had it in him.

Preselecting Tomas for the Beijing marathon now, subject to fitness, and giving him enough financial support to discourage the old four half marathons in 29 days (three in 15 days) routine of Spring this year would be a cracking idea.

Meanwhile Guardian Sport need to keep their eye on the ball. Did the others do any better I wonder? The BBC certainly missed the story too. And this greatrun link doesn't even mention the male winner! Maclaren gets several paragraphs.

Without Tomas, Andi Jones and Pumlani Bungani the club were a strong fourth in the Northern Six Stage. But Leeds City will be tough to beat in the National (20 October) even with the full side out and Tomas on fire.

TRIVIA: Four years ago when your LOLster was quite fit I was the third man in our team which won the 20th Tour of Tameside. Tomas won handsomely taking all of the six races in seven days comfortably from a field with the champion (from Kenya) and a number of GB internationals. Club physio Duncan Mason was around 5th and I was back in 24th, struggling in both first and last races.

Still, not bad at 45 years of age. Missed out on the age group award by just TWO SECONDS. Bit close after 52 miles and more than five hours of racing!

UPDATE: Tomas ran the fastest time by any GB qualified runner since 2000.

Socialist Unity: Lefty Blogging Lists and Labour Politics

LOL has made yet another ranking list, placing 74th in a list of lefty blogs compiled by a bit-of-fun-personal-preference-ranking-system by Andy at Socialist Unity. This is a blog - like Lenin's Tomb (placed 260th in Mr Dale's main list) - that IS getting hits in five figures every week - three times better than this blog's best week so far.


If Andy's method was transparently pure whimsy and personal preference, with a weather eye on traffic I guess, Mr Dale's method has been subject of some demystification with Andy building on an investigation by Dave at Complex System of Pipes. I had thought it had been done by a rather different method.

The fundamental message coming out from the judges is that Dale's left list is in fact more or less a Labour bloggers list. Perhaps in 2008 there can be a Labour list and an Other Left list? I'm sure Iain will be responsive to constructive criticism and polite comment, as ever.

Socialist Unity has also used the writing of John McDonnell to spark a discussion on the future of the Labour Left. May write on that here later. I have posted a comment over there if you can't wait.

Essentially I don't agree with either the sometimes whiney Labour Left analysis of being stitched up or the sometimes strident Independent Left analysis of being time for the comrades to give up completely on our Reformist Democratic Socialism or if you will even Social Democracy.

Sanction to Graffiti: Government Whip Sanctions Spraying

Tom Watson MP is the only member of the government of the day currently pointing citizens at a nifty Buddhist Monk stencil and where exactly it can be downloaded (PDF). Radio Netherlands are providing an open channel to send messages of solidarity while Labour blogger Mike Ion has an excellent collection of Burma links. The BBC helps on the old Myanmar/Burma which turns out to be so much Tom-ato, Tomate-o or Mumbai, Bombay. Hat tip: Pickled Politics.

Baroness Warsi: BNP Have a Point? I Hear Dog Whistling

The Independent on Sunday's cover story is right here, far right here even and the same paper rehearse all Dave-id's woes in this field. Thanks to the well-connected Westmonster for the heads up and Tom Watson for pointing me there.

Can Baronesses be lowered to being commoners once more? Or given lessons in how to express complex ideas in ways that promote rather than detract from your job as a promoter of Community Cohesion? Was it arrant foolishness on Cameron's part to give someone a seat in parliament and a sensitive portfolio without a bit more experience and nous behind her?

Or, and I tend to believe this to be the case, is this an absolutely planned, absolutely cynical and absolutely culpable huge great massive dog whistle? With Cameron and Osborne and Johnson and Saatchi planning every word of it?

The BNP simply DON"T HAVE the answers Baroness. You know that. So don't give them the credit for a few pieces of silver and a blur of ermine. We can be sure that the answer is not to blame immigration and immigrants for everything, or anything much. Indeed we should be very thankful indeed.

But we should also acknowledge that the underlying issues of housing and education and health and crime now finding this baseless scapegoating, by the BNP and the Tories, are not being addressed well by the political classes.

There are estates and suburbs often written off as "non voters" or "against" or "core" that get very little useful attention from any mainstream politicians. These are ripe for miserable pavement politics from new players with a nasty twist.

Let me give you one example. In 2005 I spent a couple of mornings during the campaign period distributing anti-BNP literature in David Chaytor's Bury North constituency. This was in the Totterington area, near to the hotspot for BNP activity and less than a mile I believe from where the BNP candidate lived.

All sorts of tenure, but the majority seemed to be Right to Buy owner occupied. The area was well groomed. Grass cut. No environmental crime evident. Quiet. No rat runs. No youths on street corners. Litter free.

But it was also free - about one week before polling day - of evidence of ANY PARTY working the area. Absolutely no posters on display. No leaflets in porches.

It was a safe Tory ward, three Tory councillors and all. But I'd not be at all surprised to find the same kind of pattern in a safe Labour ward.

It's understandable. We all concentrate on our key voters, swing voters, target voters, and on our key seats too. They will have had electoral addresses in the post. But if Mr BNP came knocking as a neighbour some residents might well be open to suggestion.

Taken for granted people don't vote or are susceptible to those who do pay them some attention. Simple as that. In Bury North David Chaytor's majority - from memory was cut to about 2,500. Will check. The BNP got c2,500, up from 500.

What is more despite Chaytor's strong opposition to the War in Iraq many of those leafleting against the BNP were planning to vote for small leftish sects, a single issue campaign, or the fourth and fifth party.

Guido Fawkes: Actually Had a Story Once

Being the incredible dog-bites-man news that Lib Dem Rennard is ready for a drubbing. GRAPHIC: Purnell Studios (Motto: We Woz Here).

Update 12:34 MARK PACK actually does have a good story right here. Tories claim they have won eight of ten recent by-elections. They have in fact won two of them. And this is the Chair of the Party not some wild eyed numpty in Middleshire.