Wrong 'Uns: Lord Ashcroft, Iain Dale, John Leech

Lord Ashcroft is providing a goodly part of the start up finance for the "politically neutral" Total politics. Iain Dale is now quibbling over the description of this as "bankrolling". He says it is a purely commercial investment.

Tom Watson doubts this. Though in fact the verb to bankroll is not loaded as specific to either charity, loan or commerce. For example:

Cllr Angela Gallagher was persuaded to use her retirement nestegg to bankroll the hoaxer John Leech in his rather mendacious campaign for Westminster.

And there's more:

Mrs Gallagher believed her contribution was by way of a loan and was rather disappointed to say the least when Hoaxer John refused to countenance any payback. Especially considering he had used it to tell lies about the Christie Hospital.

And finally:

"Really" she said "I'm a pensioner and he would take me out for a lovely meal or a big drink and end up persuading me to give him another cheque. All together I gave him twice the spending limit, and that was on top of whatever else he raised."

At the time Mrs Gallagher was said to be particularly upset that Leech was splashing out on sofas and curtains and what have you. Presumably though that was all paid for off the John Lewis List and all £23,000 of Mrs Gallagher's donations were used for the campaign. Limit £11,000.

Withington watchers are looking forward to the complete disclosure of all Mr Leech's runnings. He has been taking adverts in party political leaflets, mixing politics into parliamentary reports produced with taxpayers money for three years on the trot, and also - according to the official list - reneging on his promise to make donations of all councillor expenses from his neglected job in Manchester.

£45,000 plus received, before tax, a mere £3,500 recorded as donated. He's a wrong 'un that John Leech, he really is. GRAPHIC: Courtesy of The Sun.

Essex Boy Vacancy: Have UKIP Turned a Tory?

Haringey Lib Dem councillor Matt Davies kindly reproduces Bob Spink MP's CCHQ gloss. Spink is rumoured to be headed for UKIP as a sole Westminster MP.

Who knows what will happen in the General Election? If Tories were to select Essex boy Mr Iain Dale as their PPC - despite his record in propagating reverse swing as well as unplayable spin - there is even a chance that Spink will hang on.

Guido Fawkes the GuF Blogger: Has Cloth Ears

Looks like the anarcho-imperialist hedgie swear blogger Paul Staines aka Guido Fawkes aka Mr GuF has cloth ears like his master's voice "Dave" Cameron. Actually that's not fair. I take it back. Both of them know full well that Ed Balls said "So Weak!" rather than "So What?".

Both sadly are shameless fibbers and mischievists.

BBC Online is balanced while failed Lib Dem councillor Norfolk Blogger is clearly unbalanced, insisting he is right even when Hansard and indeed the Video (above) uploaded by GuF simply shows the feeble Cameron lying about the original Balls heckle. Recorded as "So Weak!" in Hansard.

Environment: Peak District "Pollution" versus T5

An interesting juxtaposition on BBC Breakfast. School kids helping to track the "pollution" emanating from the Peak District's weathered peats. And the Queen due to open Heathrow's sparkling Terminal Five. Which is worse? Allegedly the peat bogs chucking out rather than soaking up CO2 are SEVERAL TIMES worse than the whole of Heathrow.

Interesting stuff. When natural processes and a naturally occuring gas are termed "pollution" are we getting rather mired in gobbledy gook?

Iain Dale: "Thought" for the Day, Heralds Slash and Burn?

Iain Dale needs to explain what the Tories plan to cut, apart presumably from the shameless doh-brain soundbites?

Sir George GOO Osborne MP: He's So Full of It He Stinks

In November GOO stated that people in Manchester would be £50 per week worse off this year under Labour plans, £50 more per week the following year, and so on and so forth. Today he's claiming the figure is about £2 per week. A 94% reduction in alarm and mendacity. Which is nice. Still not right though.

Mike Todd: Chief Constable, Found Dead in Snowdonia

Shocking news. Greater Manchester's Chief Constable Mike Todd has been found dead in Snowdonia. Attempts are being made to recover his body. Radio Five report that notes to his family have been recovered.

When I met the man and discussed policing issues and the fight against racism with him in Spring 2004 I was very impressed with him. He told me that he loved being a police officer. Every day he said was like Christmas. Excepting the day when Detective Constable Stephen Oake was killed, in the course of an arrest.

Libdemologists: Depths of the Yellow Streak Franchise

Iain Dale has the story of the defection - to the Tories, yeuch - of former LD PPC in Hull East with some interesting comments to follow. After Clogg endorsed Elywn Racist as following Lib Dem principles - reported yesterday - this is yet another instance of the evil franchise exposed.

Having said that this is not a universal plague. I was saddened to hear today of the death of local Lib Dem and before that Liberal activist Charles Sinclair (1929-2008) in the Carlton Club Newsletter.

Charles was a true believer. One of the few Manchester Lib Dems who actually put in the vigil hours alongside those of other parties and none over the war. With a good technical understanding of planning, transport and other issues. And a well directed skill with letters to the editor. Not to forget a generosity with tea and biscuits when passing the time as an election day teller.

Cllr John "Cancer Hoax" Leech: "Will Face Consequences"

Whippy Clogg has made it known that he's (a) gunning for the ne'er-do-well John Leech, and (b) excusing a Sheik's bookman and PPC for Oldham and Saddleworth from repeating hard racist views without comment, by way of a dog whistle report the Manchester Evening News.

The Lib Dems are it seems constitutionally obliged to be apolitical. To quote Clogg, to "represent the views of his constituents, which is what we all have to do - even if we don't like it." Er, no, Whippy, that's actually contemptible and weak. There are times when elected representatives should LEAD. Lib Dems are bang out of order FOLLOWING pig-headed racists.

This was the excuse of Lib Dem activists either side of the Leeds Road in the latter constituency when they supported a mosque's planning application one side of the street and disparaged it the other. Contemptible and weak.

Iain Dale: Cold Leads from the LibDem Spring Conference

Iain Dale (2:32 pm) has a set of four anecdotes from the Lib Dem Spring Conference here. Far from being exclusives from his "undercover reporter in Liverpool" they are all old news. LOL had the best story - on Lib Dem money laundering - yesterday, as did our credited source GuF, and GuF also had the second one at 11 this morning. The first - about autocues - was frankly obvious.

Leaving the fourth - about a non-photograph. Which is what journalists would I believe call a non-story. As Tory bloggers did when it was Boris Johnson who didn't get photographed the other day.

The post is only really good for a link to Archbishop Cramner's destruction of Whippy Clogg's speech. Amen to that.