I've just, this minute, watched Margaret Moran try to defend her usage of £22,500 to cure dry rot for her holiday home in Southampton, in neither her constituency or Westminster.
Her defence was that her partner lives there, and that she should have a family life. Yes, she should have a family life, but at our expense? If she is unable to have a family life in Luton then she is disrespecting her constituency. Why can't her partner, who works in the City, not live with her in Luton or London? He obviously doesn't want to be her that much. Thameslink has a quick direct link from Luton directly to the City. And, if he works in the City and she's an MP then surely they have enough income between them to pay for the dry rot treatment themselves.
An absolute disgrace. It's shoddy. She should hang her head. If she doesn't have the moral authority to resign now, then the members of Labour party in Luton South should de-select her now and she should be thrown out of the party.
Squiffy.
Sunday, 10 May 2009
Friday, 8 May 2009
Will election defeat mean another re-alignment of the left?
If the Tories win the next election, what will happen to the Labour party? After the last defeat in 1979, the Labour party marched leftwards and the right wing split off to form the SDP. Only when the Labour party ditched the left-wing ideology did it become electable again.
The Tories also had a similar problem in 1997, but the issue which split the party was Europe, not a whole left-right divide. This, they have largely patched up internally with the right winning out.
The newspapers are now beginning to outline a battle for Labour's soul, with an old
left-right divide emerging. The left in the form of Harriet Harman and Jon Cruddas and returning to old ways and seeing class war and equality as the way to fight. The right in form of Frank Field and Alan Milburn are looking at individual freedoms.
We'll only know which one will win after the next election. But will the other wing be content to be carried along? I don't think so. The left have been waiting for a resurgence for so long, and to go further to the right would not sit well. I don't think the right would go along with a left-wing bias either as they would know that it is electoral suicide.
Personally, I think that the party will head left with many members on the right heading towards the LibDems and some even crossing the floor directly to the Tories. In a short time, the LibDems could supplant Labour as the main opposition, and the country would head back to the Tory/Liberal battle lines drawn at the beginning of the last century. Maybe the 20th Century will be seen as an aberration from the norm.
Could be true?
Squiffy.
The Tories also had a similar problem in 1997, but the issue which split the party was Europe, not a whole left-right divide. This, they have largely patched up internally with the right winning out.
The newspapers are now beginning to outline a battle for Labour's soul, with an old
left-right divide emerging. The left in the form of Harriet Harman and Jon Cruddas and returning to old ways and seeing class war and equality as the way to fight. The right in form of Frank Field and Alan Milburn are looking at individual freedoms.
We'll only know which one will win after the next election. But will the other wing be content to be carried along? I don't think so. The left have been waiting for a resurgence for so long, and to go further to the right would not sit well. I don't think the right would go along with a left-wing bias either as they would know that it is electoral suicide.
Personally, I think that the party will head left with many members on the right heading towards the LibDems and some even crossing the floor directly to the Tories. In a short time, the LibDems could supplant Labour as the main opposition, and the country would head back to the Tory/Liberal battle lines drawn at the beginning of the last century. Maybe the 20th Century will be seen as an aberration from the norm.
Could be true?
Squiffy.
Is Blair to blame for the country's plight? And does he regret it?
It's very easy to blame Gordon Brown for the state the country in, and I do, nearly every day. But why is Gordon Brown Prime Minister in the first place? Tony Blair.
That may sound weird, given that they have been at loggerheads over the leadership of the Labour Party and country for the past 15 years. But look at it this way, after John Smith's death in 1994 the Labour Party needed a new leader. Gordon Brown presumed it should be him, but Tony Blair realized that he could get it and should go for it. After polls were taken of party members, it showed that Tony Blair would be extremely popular and would win. Gordon
Brown was way down, nearing the levels of Margaret Beckett.
It was at this time that the famous Granita dinner was held, and for Gordon Brown agreeing not run, he would be assured the Chancellorship with wide ranging powers, and (he thought) a deal was in place to step up to the premiership some time in the second term.
That dinner, in Islington, is the root of many things which have gone wrong. If GB had not been promised so much, TB would have had immense power. Freedom to deal with Gordon as and when he wanted to, without being gotten over a barrel. Many of the reforms he fought for would not have been watered down by GB. There would not have been a rival power base next door, as GB (without the promise of the premiership) would not have drawn as many people to his cause. GB could have been replaced as Chancellor with more ease. TB could have found other, more amenable, ministers to replace him at the appropriate time.
Unfortunately, the promises put GB in pole position and kept him there, running a rival operation which TB found hard to contend with. And now we find ourselves here, a bust economy and a PM who is a laughing stock, despised and misunderstood.
So why did Tony Blair promise Gordon Brown so much 15 years ago, we don't know. But probably because he was the younger, less experienced man who had also thought that GB would be the natural successor. Unfortunately, his lack of experience made him make a rash promise which I think will be his biggest ever regret. It could have all been so much different.
Squiffy.
That may sound weird, given that they have been at loggerheads over the leadership of the Labour Party and country for the past 15 years. But look at it this way, after John Smith's death in 1994 the Labour Party needed a new leader. Gordon Brown presumed it should be him, but Tony Blair realized that he could get it and should go for it. After polls were taken of party members, it showed that Tony Blair would be extremely popular and would win. Gordon
Brown was way down, nearing the levels of Margaret Beckett.
It was at this time that the famous Granita dinner was held, and for Gordon Brown agreeing not run, he would be assured the Chancellorship with wide ranging powers, and (he thought) a deal was in place to step up to the premiership some time in the second term.
That dinner, in Islington, is the root of many things which have gone wrong. If GB had not been promised so much, TB would have had immense power. Freedom to deal with Gordon as and when he wanted to, without being gotten over a barrel. Many of the reforms he fought for would not have been watered down by GB. There would not have been a rival power base next door, as GB (without the promise of the premiership) would not have drawn as many people to his cause. GB could have been replaced as Chancellor with more ease. TB could have found other, more amenable, ministers to replace him at the appropriate time.
Unfortunately, the promises put GB in pole position and kept him there, running a rival operation which TB found hard to contend with. And now we find ourselves here, a bust economy and a PM who is a laughing stock, despised and misunderstood.
So why did Tony Blair promise Gordon Brown so much 15 years ago, we don't know. But probably because he was the younger, less experienced man who had also thought that GB would be the natural successor. Unfortunately, his lack of experience made him make a rash promise which I think will be his biggest ever regret. It could have all been so much different.
Squiffy.
"I was sticking to the rules" is no defense
After the publication of MPs expenses in the Telegraph, I have heard members of the cabinet pop up in the media saying that they were sticking to the rules as they are now.
Do they really understand how this line of defense is angering the public? I don't think so.
If any of them had an inkling of the contempt in which they are held, they would hold their hands up and say:
"Sorry, it was wrong. Unfortunately, that was the culture endemic in the House of Commons, I should have been stronger to resist falling into trough, but I promise to work to pay back the public purse and will actively pursue better regulation of the system of expenses."
I don't believe in Harriet Harman's attack on Sir Fred Goodwin, when she said that he would be held to account in the court of public opinion, but if she does then she and her friends are in the dock and have been found guilty.
One of the more galling aspects of the controversy has been the notion of nominating which is the main residence and which is the second (publicly-funded) residence. And even worse, that this can be 'flipped' at any point during the year. This means that you furnish your second home in Fife, 'flip' your second home to be the one in London then furnish that with public money. When the TV blows up in Fife, 'flip' it again and buy a new TV on the public purse.
It's scandalous, and anyone should know that it's wrong. The PM, Chancellor and Geoff Hoon have been shown to pull this trick.
What is going on in the heads of these people? They have no shame.
Let's see what else crops up for the Tories and LibDems, but I'm expecting no better.
Squiffy.
Do they really understand how this line of defense is angering the public? I don't think so.
If any of them had an inkling of the contempt in which they are held, they would hold their hands up and say:
"Sorry, it was wrong. Unfortunately, that was the culture endemic in the House of Commons, I should have been stronger to resist falling into trough, but I promise to work to pay back the public purse and will actively pursue better regulation of the system of expenses."
I don't believe in Harriet Harman's attack on Sir Fred Goodwin, when she said that he would be held to account in the court of public opinion, but if she does then she and her friends are in the dock and have been found guilty.
One of the more galling aspects of the controversy has been the notion of nominating which is the main residence and which is the second (publicly-funded) residence. And even worse, that this can be 'flipped' at any point during the year. This means that you furnish your second home in Fife, 'flip' your second home to be the one in London then furnish that with public money. When the TV blows up in Fife, 'flip' it again and buy a new TV on the public purse.
It's scandalous, and anyone should know that it's wrong. The PM, Chancellor and Geoff Hoon have been shown to pull this trick.
What is going on in the heads of these people? They have no shame.
Let's see what else crops up for the Tories and LibDems, but I'm expecting no better.
Squiffy.
Sunday, 3 May 2009
30 years ago today the people delivered us Mrs T
As we look upon an economic disaster, a Government close to collapse and an untried opposition leader it is easy to draw parallels between 1979 and 2009, and in many ways there are some obvious similarities. Of course, as always, the Labour Government has run out of money and it will fall to the Tories to bring order to the public finances.
30 years ago the country went to the polls, it wasn't absolutely clear the Tories would win but the indications were that Mrs T would make it through. For one, I am grateful to the electorate for delivering that Tory Government.
I was six years old in 1979 and so my memory of the time is not as clear as it could have been but I can see from my own experiences that living standards rose quite substantially. Being born to two parents employed in the public sector and the conventional wisdom that the Tories didn't believe in public services, you may expect that for me things would have got worse during the 80's. Far from it, out went the old 3rd hand car, in came the new one; out went the holidays in the caravan, in came the occasional holiday in Europe; out went the "steam powered TV", in came the Video and home computers. It wasn't all materialistic, but for a little boy things improved massively and I had a fantastic childhood.
When I read old political texts, and watch old documentaries, it's hard to equate the 70's language of an "Income's policy" and "In place of strife" with the current economic realities. Mrs T changed the economic landscape of Britain. No more beer and sandwiches at number 10, but a strategic plan to shift the economy from a command and control, union acquiesced model to an entrepreneurial, go getter system. Ridding us of trade union power and reforming the tax system were key to this.
Standing firm on the Falklands was a symbol that Great Britain would no longer roll over and allow us to be seen as a soft touch. We were put back on the map and allowed to be heard at the top table, as well as provide our obligation to the thousand or so people on those remote islands. Facing down the Soviet Union helped to lead Eastern Europe to freedom. Mrs T was instrumental in bringing about the Single European Act in 1986, the epitome of the original aims the EEC. Mrs T was a colossus on the world stage, no ridicule from a Polish PM for her.
Privatisation would not have passed through the spell checker without the Thatcher Government. British Telecom would be a basket case now, as would British Airways. Our rivers and beaches would still be sewage ridden without the investment provided by private money through Water privatisation. The country became richer, people were set free and failing institutions have stopped needing bail outs and provided vast tax sums to the exchequer. Only recently has nationalisation come back, through necessity, due to the lax regulation provided to the banking industry by the tripartite system.
I could go. She had the right ideas about Grant Maintained schools, and Trust hospitals, which having been abolished have been brought back again by this Government (what an expensive way to go full circle).
She did get many things wrong obviously. The Poll tax was one such failure, her aims were to get some proper democracy and ownership of local Government, but she forgot that many people who couldn't afford to pay were being asked to for the first time. Cabinet colleagues could not convince her that it was a bad idea and she ploughed on. By this stage of her premiership, she believed her own hype and showed the hubris that happens to all people who have been in power too long. Failing to listen to her colleagues was her downfall, any similarities to the present situation?
There were many sections of society left dispossessed by the 80s, and Mrs T did not provide enough focus on curing our social ills. She concentrated on the economy, it needed it, and some people fell by the wayside and so she will always be seen as divisive. It is something that David Cameron needs to consider when he forms the next Government.
For me, though, she did way more good than harm and I will always owe her my gratitude. Enjoy your anniversary Mrs T, we need you again!
Squiffy.
30 years ago the country went to the polls, it wasn't absolutely clear the Tories would win but the indications were that Mrs T would make it through. For one, I am grateful to the electorate for delivering that Tory Government.
I was six years old in 1979 and so my memory of the time is not as clear as it could have been but I can see from my own experiences that living standards rose quite substantially. Being born to two parents employed in the public sector and the conventional wisdom that the Tories didn't believe in public services, you may expect that for me things would have got worse during the 80's. Far from it, out went the old 3rd hand car, in came the new one; out went the holidays in the caravan, in came the occasional holiday in Europe; out went the "steam powered TV", in came the Video and home computers. It wasn't all materialistic, but for a little boy things improved massively and I had a fantastic childhood.
When I read old political texts, and watch old documentaries, it's hard to equate the 70's language of an "Income's policy" and "In place of strife" with the current economic realities. Mrs T changed the economic landscape of Britain. No more beer and sandwiches at number 10, but a strategic plan to shift the economy from a command and control, union acquiesced model to an entrepreneurial, go getter system. Ridding us of trade union power and reforming the tax system were key to this.
Standing firm on the Falklands was a symbol that Great Britain would no longer roll over and allow us to be seen as a soft touch. We were put back on the map and allowed to be heard at the top table, as well as provide our obligation to the thousand or so people on those remote islands. Facing down the Soviet Union helped to lead Eastern Europe to freedom. Mrs T was instrumental in bringing about the Single European Act in 1986, the epitome of the original aims the EEC. Mrs T was a colossus on the world stage, no ridicule from a Polish PM for her.
Privatisation would not have passed through the spell checker without the Thatcher Government. British Telecom would be a basket case now, as would British Airways. Our rivers and beaches would still be sewage ridden without the investment provided by private money through Water privatisation. The country became richer, people were set free and failing institutions have stopped needing bail outs and provided vast tax sums to the exchequer. Only recently has nationalisation come back, through necessity, due to the lax regulation provided to the banking industry by the tripartite system.
I could go. She had the right ideas about Grant Maintained schools, and Trust hospitals, which having been abolished have been brought back again by this Government (what an expensive way to go full circle).
She did get many things wrong obviously. The Poll tax was one such failure, her aims were to get some proper democracy and ownership of local Government, but she forgot that many people who couldn't afford to pay were being asked to for the first time. Cabinet colleagues could not convince her that it was a bad idea and she ploughed on. By this stage of her premiership, she believed her own hype and showed the hubris that happens to all people who have been in power too long. Failing to listen to her colleagues was her downfall, any similarities to the present situation?
There were many sections of society left dispossessed by the 80s, and Mrs T did not provide enough focus on curing our social ills. She concentrated on the economy, it needed it, and some people fell by the wayside and so she will always be seen as divisive. It is something that David Cameron needs to consider when he forms the next Government.
For me, though, she did way more good than harm and I will always owe her my gratitude. Enjoy your anniversary Mrs T, we need you again!
Squiffy.
Friday, 24 April 2009
From disappointment to anger
After the budget I said that I felt disappointed. As time goes by I'm getting more and more angry.
The vindictive tax rises on entrepreneurs and wealth creators continues to unravel. This morning we found that there will be a further raid on their pensions, even though this is out for consultation they have included the figures in their future revenue forecasts. This Government has no shame, they wrecked the great pension provisions we had made by their 1997 raid on pensions, then set-up an inquiry on how to improved pension provision, and are now raiding the again. Absolutely scandalous.
The Chancellor said in his forecast that growth in Q1 2009/10 would be similar to Q4 2008/9. Well it was -1.6% in Q4 and is now -1.9% in Q1, so his growth forecasts are already being missed, only two days after being revealed! That is surely some record, even for this "numerically-challenged" lot.
The latest figures are showing that we may be back in balance by 2032! 23 years away! I'll say that again, it will take 23 years before we can pay back our debt, they have truly mortgaged our future. That's Wangernumb.
An top of all that, the treatment of the Ghurkas is absolutely disgraceful. They should be allowed to stay here after fighting for our country.
The Government should hang their heads. They are a disgrace. We need rid. Please, for God's sake go. Leave. Resign. If you had any decency left, you'd have gone by now. Your moral decency has passed, ceased to be, and gone to moral heaven. You have no bills and no ideas. You are destroying the UK, so call a General Election Now!
Nuff said.
Squiffy.
The vindictive tax rises on entrepreneurs and wealth creators continues to unravel. This morning we found that there will be a further raid on their pensions, even though this is out for consultation they have included the figures in their future revenue forecasts. This Government has no shame, they wrecked the great pension provisions we had made by their 1997 raid on pensions, then set-up an inquiry on how to improved pension provision, and are now raiding the again. Absolutely scandalous.
The Chancellor said in his forecast that growth in Q1 2009/10 would be similar to Q4 2008/9. Well it was -1.6% in Q4 and is now -1.9% in Q1, so his growth forecasts are already being missed, only two days after being revealed! That is surely some record, even for this "numerically-challenged" lot.
The latest figures are showing that we may be back in balance by 2032! 23 years away! I'll say that again, it will take 23 years before we can pay back our debt, they have truly mortgaged our future. That's Wangernumb.
An top of all that, the treatment of the Ghurkas is absolutely disgraceful. They should be allowed to stay here after fighting for our country.
The Government should hang their heads. They are a disgrace. We need rid. Please, for God's sake go. Leave. Resign. If you had any decency left, you'd have gone by now. Your moral decency has passed, ceased to be, and gone to moral heaven. You have no bills and no ideas. You are destroying the UK, so call a General Election Now!
Nuff said.
Squiffy.
Thursday, 23 April 2009
Wednesday, 22 April 2009
The verdict: disappointment
The hope of an honest and decent budget has gone. I feel disappointed. There were some piecemeal initiatives, which will get some headlines but will achieve very little. The 50% rise in the top rate of tax will raise very little a year, and is just an extension of the dividing line established in the pre-budget report. The Tories should say nothing, but repeal it at the first possible opportunity.
There were no significant ways mentioned on how to bring the budget back to balance. The Chancellor is hoping that by returning to growth in 2011 (at an unbelievable rate of 3.5%) he will start to pay off the debt. Well, it's not good enough, that sort of strategy got us into this mess in the first place. He's bearing his head in the sand whilst crossing every appendage he's got. Over-optimism is this Chancellor's Achilles heel, and he's stumbling around on it again.
This was a major disappointed, debt is going to get even further out of control. All Labour chancellors run out of money, and this one has just been added to the list.
Squiffy.
There were no significant ways mentioned on how to bring the budget back to balance. The Chancellor is hoping that by returning to growth in 2011 (at an unbelievable rate of 3.5%) he will start to pay off the debt. Well, it's not good enough, that sort of strategy got us into this mess in the first place. He's bearing his head in the sand whilst crossing every appendage he's got. Over-optimism is this Chancellor's Achilles heel, and he's stumbling around on it again.
This was a major disappointed, debt is going to get even further out of control. All Labour chancellors run out of money, and this one has just been added to the list.
Squiffy.
Will this budget be better received than the last few?
The last four occasions that the Chancellor has presented a budgetary report (two budgets and two pre-budget reports) the details have quickly unravelled. Each budget has been deemed as a springboard to Labour's comeback but each one has plunged the party into the abyss. Think back to the damage that the 10p tax fiasco caused.
Will this budget be any different? If the papers are to be believed, then maybe. From what we read, the Chancellor will finally give us some truths about the state of Britain Plc's finances and will not try to be too rosy. It sounds like he is not going to be pushed around by the Prime Minister any more, creating dividing lines with the Tories, rather he will try to get a grip on the amazing levels of debt we are now reaching.
If he does this, then it maybe seen as a successful budget - if not a cheerful one. Here's waiting with baited breath.
Squiffy.
Will this budget be any different? If the papers are to be believed, then maybe. From what we read, the Chancellor will finally give us some truths about the state of Britain Plc's finances and will not try to be too rosy. It sounds like he is not going to be pushed around by the Prime Minister any more, creating dividing lines with the Tories, rather he will try to get a grip on the amazing levels of debt we are now reaching.
If he does this, then it maybe seen as a successful budget - if not a cheerful one. Here's waiting with baited breath.
Squiffy.
Tuesday, 21 April 2009
What ever happened to purdah?
No not the noisy cat, the practice of keeping details of the Budget under wraps until Budget day. In days gone by, there were even prosecutions for Budget leaks, but I can't see Mr Plod doing a Damien Green-esq House of Commons type raid as the leakers are all on the Government benches.
The last two days have seen headlines stating that the Budget will help the construction industry, the stamp duty cut will be extended and that £15 billion will be cut from efficiency savings. On top of that the last month we've heard of car "scrappage", and eco-bonuses for electric cars which don't exist. These should not be announced until budget day, but the Government is desperate to change the subject of conversation away from smeargate to something more wholesome, like the terrible state of the country's finances!
Tomorrow is going to be bleak, and it needs to be. From what we hear Alistair Darling is going to fess up, he's going to tell us that we are deep in the poo, he's been unbelievable optimistic in the past few years and now he's going to give it to us straight. He probably won't go so far as to say that we wouldn't be so far up to our necks in it, if his boss had been more prudent with the finances because that would be too honest!
It's interesting to hear the figures of £15 billion efficiency savings, when the Tories have proposed such savings in the past the Government have screamed "cuts to nurses and teachers". I guess that's another tactic that has been blown away.
So, go out tonight and enjoy yourself. Tomorrow we will all be dealing with a massive hangover.
Squiffy.
The last two days have seen headlines stating that the Budget will help the construction industry, the stamp duty cut will be extended and that £15 billion will be cut from efficiency savings. On top of that the last month we've heard of car "scrappage", and eco-bonuses for electric cars which don't exist. These should not be announced until budget day, but the Government is desperate to change the subject of conversation away from smeargate to something more wholesome, like the terrible state of the country's finances!
Tomorrow is going to be bleak, and it needs to be. From what we hear Alistair Darling is going to fess up, he's going to tell us that we are deep in the poo, he's been unbelievable optimistic in the past few years and now he's going to give it to us straight. He probably won't go so far as to say that we wouldn't be so far up to our necks in it, if his boss had been more prudent with the finances because that would be too honest!
It's interesting to hear the figures of £15 billion efficiency savings, when the Tories have proposed such savings in the past the Government have screamed "cuts to nurses and teachers". I guess that's another tactic that has been blown away.
So, go out tonight and enjoy yourself. Tomorrow we will all be dealing with a massive hangover.
Squiffy.
Friday, 17 April 2009
Frank Field should cross the floor
Every time Frank Field speaks or writes an article, I'm impressed and bemused. Impressed that he seems to have grasped ideas which his fellow backbenchers haven't and bemused because everything he says points to Tory policies.
For instance read this article, and it strikes you that it could have been written by George Osborne or Kenneth Clarke.
So why on earth does he continue to sit on the Government benches? One of the big mysteries of our times!
Squiffy.
For instance read this article, and it strikes you that it could have been written by George Osborne or Kenneth Clarke.
So why on earth does he continue to sit on the Government benches? One of the big mysteries of our times!
Squiffy.
Thursday, 16 April 2009
And on the sixth day...
Anyone who has watched the absolutely marvellous West Wing will know about how controlling the news cycle is a major part of Government's agenda. Watching CJ Cregg try to get to the serious news of the day whilst being dragged down by the media storm of the President's MS gave some idea of how difficult it can be.
Our Government finds itself in a similar situation. Guido Fawkes timed his smeargate attacks to perfection, in a quiet period known as Easter he did his worst. For the last five days the news has invariably led with the response to the smear e-mails. Today is different, but no better for the Government. Instead of a Government looking squalid by getting dirty in the ether, we have a Government looking incompetent over the arrest of Damian Green MP. From the frying pan into the fire!
It's not looking good, a Government amid sleeze and incompetence reminds me of a not too distant past. And if the Tom Watson libel suit were to go the way of the 'sword of truth and trusty shield of fair play' (not that it should) the parallels would be ever greater.
I doubt whether it will get better either, rumours exist that there are further e-mails to be released as part of smeargate affair, which will bring it to prominence again. Oh, if only GB had a CJ!
Squiffy
Our Government finds itself in a similar situation. Guido Fawkes timed his smeargate attacks to perfection, in a quiet period known as Easter he did his worst. For the last five days the news has invariably led with the response to the smear e-mails. Today is different, but no better for the Government. Instead of a Government looking squalid by getting dirty in the ether, we have a Government looking incompetent over the arrest of Damian Green MP. From the frying pan into the fire!
It's not looking good, a Government amid sleeze and incompetence reminds me of a not too distant past. And if the Tom Watson libel suit were to go the way of the 'sword of truth and trusty shield of fair play' (not that it should) the parallels would be ever greater.
I doubt whether it will get better either, rumours exist that there are further e-mails to be released as part of smeargate affair, which will bring it to prominence again. Oh, if only GB had a CJ!
Squiffy
The world is poorer today without Sir Clement
It is a morning of great sadness, hearing of the death of Sir Clement Freud. A man of many talents, including MP for Ely and North Cambridgeshire, chef, horse racing fanatic, writer, television and radio performer.
As part of the Liberal contingent in parliament, I will always be grateful that he chose to vote against the discredited Callaghan government.
In my mind, though, his appearances on Radio 4's Just a minute will forever be in my memory. His dry tones were just the foil for a witty anecdote, sometimes we wouldn't know where he was heading but at the end it was always a delight. Some of his put downs to Nicholas Parsons were priceless, even if you could detect that occasionally he really did meant it!
That brings an end to the original line-up of Sir Clement Freud, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo and Kenneth Williams and the passing of an era. Thankfully with talents like Ross Noble, Graham Norton and the wonderfully surreal Paul Merton "Just a Minute" will continue, but just like the loss of Humph in "I'm sorry I haven't a clue" it won't quite feel the same.
We'll miss you.
Squiffy.
As part of the Liberal contingent in parliament, I will always be grateful that he chose to vote against the discredited Callaghan government.
In my mind, though, his appearances on Radio 4's Just a minute will forever be in my memory. His dry tones were just the foil for a witty anecdote, sometimes we wouldn't know where he was heading but at the end it was always a delight. Some of his put downs to Nicholas Parsons were priceless, even if you could detect that occasionally he really did meant it!
That brings an end to the original line-up of Sir Clement Freud, Peter Jones, Derek Nimmo and Kenneth Williams and the passing of an era. Thankfully with talents like Ross Noble, Graham Norton and the wonderfully surreal Paul Merton "Just a Minute" will continue, but just like the loss of Humph in "I'm sorry I haven't a clue" it won't quite feel the same.
We'll miss you.
Squiffy.
Tuesday, 14 April 2009
Never shall he say it's about ishoos
One of Gordon Brown's frequent ripostes in PMQs is that the Tories don't want to talk about policies, but personalities. Now that the operation within Number 10 to reveal unfounded stories on political opponents on a new 'Red Rag' website has been exposed, he will not be able to repeat the jibe with effect.
That doesn't mean that he won't try, the PM has shown that he's not fleet footed within the Chamber and I will be extremely surprised if he stops himself saying something similar. If he does, David Cameron will bring up the McBride emails and the house will be in uproar.
One of Gordon Brown's stock answers has been taken away from him, as well as one of his key aides. The possibility of a Labour recovery has now further narrowed. And quite rightly.
Squiffy.
That doesn't mean that he won't try, the PM has shown that he's not fleet footed within the Chamber and I will be extremely surprised if he stops himself saying something similar. If he does, David Cameron will bring up the McBride emails and the house will be in uproar.
One of Gordon Brown's stock answers has been taken away from him, as well as one of his key aides. The possibility of a Labour recovery has now further narrowed. And quite rightly.
Squiffy.
Monday, 13 April 2009
They have to go
I've said this before, but this Government has to go. The Damian McBride emails have shown that there is something rotten in the heart of Number 10. He may have gone, but the person who appointed him and set the parameters for his behaviour is still around - and that is dear leader.
Gordon Brown cannot wash his hands completely of what has been done in his name. He may not have typed the emails himself, but the tone is set by him - and the spinning and back stabbing throughout the years in power by his coterie of advisers has now gone too far.
Will no-one rid us of this troublesome Government?
Squiffy.
Gordon Brown cannot wash his hands completely of what has been done in his name. He may not have typed the emails himself, but the tone is set by him - and the spinning and back stabbing throughout the years in power by his coterie of advisers has now gone too far.
Will no-one rid us of this troublesome Government?
Squiffy.
Tuesday, 7 April 2009
The dead cat that did not bounce
Last week's G20 meeting seemed to be relatively successful for the Prime Minister, whether it is successful in bringing the worldwide recession to an end we'll have to wait and see. But for Gordon Brown, the threatened walk outs and violent demonstrations did not happen and he could pose in his favourite position as Chancellor to the world spouting large figures such as the $5 trillion fiscal stimulus. Never mind that the figures need to be taken with a pinch of salt (the $5 trillion being the total amount spent through the recession by all countries, including the natural automatic stabilizers such as unemployment benefit rather than specific fiscal stimuli packages).
For GB, it looked good and I would have been predicting a 5% increase in the Labour party poll figures which would quickly disappear as reality stepped in. The first poll (for YouGov) had the party increasing by 4%, but the second poll (for Populus) taken after the meeting showed no increase in the Labour party position and the Tories advancing by 1 point. It's too early to say whether the G20 lustre has so quickly faded, but it may be that the dead cat did not bounce this time. In fact it looks like the dead cat has been to a taxidermist and has that very strange stare that only stuffed animals and expense challenged MPs get.
Squiffy.
For GB, it looked good and I would have been predicting a 5% increase in the Labour party poll figures which would quickly disappear as reality stepped in. The first poll (for YouGov) had the party increasing by 4%, but the second poll (for Populus) taken after the meeting showed no increase in the Labour party position and the Tories advancing by 1 point. It's too early to say whether the G20 lustre has so quickly faded, but it may be that the dead cat did not bounce this time. In fact it looks like the dead cat has been to a taxidermist and has that very strange stare that only stuffed animals and expense challenged MPs get.
Squiffy.
Friday, 3 April 2009
He's not the messiah, just a very naughty boy
Which must be how Lewis Hamilton feels today. Whatever the details of whether he chose to lie or was told to by the team manager, it should have been clear that the car to pits radio would expose any discrepancies. In such circumstances it seems like a very foolish thing to have done and his reputation has suffered, in a similar way to Schumacher parking his car after Rascasse in Monaco 2006.
This year he needed to repair his relationship with the stewards after the controversies of the last two years. Unfortunately, it's all gone wrong from the first race of the season. The world championship is already looking like a tough ask this year, and it just got tougher.
Squiffy
This year he needed to repair his relationship with the stewards after the controversies of the last two years. Unfortunately, it's all gone wrong from the first race of the season. The world championship is already looking like a tough ask this year, and it just got tougher.
Squiffy
Thursday, 2 April 2009
Capitalism = Freedom
I was listening to an anti-capitalism protester today, when he said "Capitalism equals oppression, we need to rid the world of it."
How utterly, absolutely, undoubtedly wrong.
The guy doesn't seem to realise that capitalism gives people freedom. Not the democracy kind of freedom, but pretty close to it. He has the choice of what to spend his money on, that's capitalism. He has more of his money in his own hand before the tax man takes it, so that he can spend it on paint to splash over RBS windows if he so chose.
You need to ask yourself, what has capitalism done to China? Although the people of China do not have the freedom to choose their politicians, they have a choice of what they spend their money on. For those not living in the countryside, their standard of living has increased immesurably since the East embraced capitalism. They can choose when to borrow money to invest, how many people to employ, the rates that they employ people on and what to charge their customers. Everyone benefits and world spins on its axis.
There is not an enonomic/political system to rival communism for lack of freedom, but these demonstrators see some pseudo-communist state/system as the panacea for the world's ails. It's so wrong-headed, capitalism goes with the grain of the human condition, not against it.
Squiffy.
How utterly, absolutely, undoubtedly wrong.
The guy doesn't seem to realise that capitalism gives people freedom. Not the democracy kind of freedom, but pretty close to it. He has the choice of what to spend his money on, that's capitalism. He has more of his money in his own hand before the tax man takes it, so that he can spend it on paint to splash over RBS windows if he so chose.
You need to ask yourself, what has capitalism done to China? Although the people of China do not have the freedom to choose their politicians, they have a choice of what they spend their money on. For those not living in the countryside, their standard of living has increased immesurably since the East embraced capitalism. They can choose when to borrow money to invest, how many people to employ, the rates that they employ people on and what to charge their customers. Everyone benefits and world spins on its axis.
There is not an enonomic/political system to rival communism for lack of freedom, but these demonstrators see some pseudo-communist state/system as the panacea for the world's ails. It's so wrong-headed, capitalism goes with the grain of the human condition, not against it.
Squiffy.
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