IPSA is the Parliamentary Equivalent of a Failed State
- 20 May 2010
The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority has not made an auspicious start. It has packed itself with very highly paid staff, most of whom know nothing about the way Parliament operates. It's chairman, Sir Ian Kennedy, has become a hate figure among MPs. So what, yo...
Why I'd Vote for John Bercow
- 18 May 2010
It's interesting that many of the left have interpreted the blogpost last night on Ming Campbell and the Speakership as proof that I want to see the back of John Bercow and that I therefore automatically support Nadine Dorries and Kat Hoey in their bid to oust him. Read the po...
Campaign Spotlight: Norwich South
- 16 May 2010
I spent a couple of hours this afternoon canvassing in one of the less Conservative wards of Norwich South with Antony Little, the Tory candidate, who also stood there in 2005. Norwich South is a constituency I know well, having been at university in Norwich in the early 1980s...
Did the LibDems Pick the Wrong Norman?
- 15 May 2010
It comes to something in a Ministerial shuffle when Norman Baker becomes a minister and Norman Lamb doesn't. As regular readers will know, LibDem MP Norman Lamb whipped my Tory ass in the 2005 election. He was a formidable opponent. Over the last couple of years he has been...
A New Dawn Has Broken, Has it Not?
- 11 May 2010
Well, it's finally happened. Labour has bowed to the inevitable and called off talks with the LibDems. Gordon Brown will apparently resign the office of Prime Minister tonight and David Cameron will travel up the Mall tomorrow morning (or perhaps even tonight) to kiss hands wi...
Just When You Thought...
- 10 May 2010
I hardly know where to start. When I sat down in Richard Bacon's studio at around 3pm, John Pienaar was reporting the news that Nick Clegg hadn't told David Cameron of his meetings with the Labour Party. Pienaar was pretty critical of Clegg and more or less said he needed to g...
The Change Coalition is Coming
- 9 May 2010
I've noted with wry amusement that ever since I came out as an enthusiast for the Change Coalition, the media invites have dried up. Believe me, after Friday's marathon I am hardly complaining. I can do with the rest, but note how the news channels are concentrating on using T...
From North Norfolk to Westmorland & Lonsdale
- 8 May 2010
As most of you know, at the last election I stood in North Norfolk and experienced one of the biggest swings away from the Conservatives - 8.6%. The LibDem majority increased from 483 to 10,606. As soon as the result was announced I knew I would get a whole heap of the brown s...
A Full Coalition Can Work
- 7 May 2010
Hilarious. I have just been dropped from a Newsnight discussion on a potential Tory-LibDem coalition because I am seen as too pro LibDem. I never thought those would be words I would ever write. But I know what they mean. I have spent most of the day explaining on the media...
A Few Thoughts on the Election Result
- 7 May 2010
An astonishing night. As predicted there was no such thing as a national swing. Seats the Tories should have won, they didn't and others no one predicted they would win, they did. What no one predicted was the disastrous night the LibDems have experienced. Not only will they e...
Twenty Election Night Predictions
- 6 May 2010
Have you noticed how virtually none of our highly paid political columnists or pundits have been brave enough to make any predictions about this election? Cowards, the lot of them. It's easy to understand why, because frankly no one knows what will happen over the next 36 hour...
Ten Things You Won't Hear David Dimbleby Say on Election Night
- 6 May 2010
1. It's 10pm and our exit polls show David Cameron heading for a clear majority. 2. And here's Jeremy Vine in his cowboy uniform. 3. That was Nick Clegg paying tribute to the two old parties. 4. If you click the red button you can see Emily Maitlis naked. 5. And now over t...
It's a Sin
- 2 May 2010
When you get to the closing stages of election campaigns, political parties who are losing tend to do desperate things. We saw an example of it earlier today with Shaun Woodward. Newspapers happily lap up any kind of lurid allegation - especially when it concerns a Conservativ...
Ten People Who Are Having a Bad Election
- 1 May 2010
A couple of days ago I published a list of Ten People Who Are Having a Good Election. So you won't be suprised if I now balance things up. These are ten people who perhaps haven't had the best of times over the last month... Gordon Brown Needs little explanation. He's head...
Telegraph Column: This Was Supposed to be the Internet Election
- 27 Apr 2010
This was supposed to be the election when internet politics came of age, when the blogosphere and social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook had a real impact on the campaign. But it hasn't turned out like that: far from being an important player, the internet has become ...
Ten People Who are Having a Good Election
- 26 Apr 2010
Andrew Neil Ubiquitous. His Daily Politics morning reports have been incisive and entertaining and he always seems to ask the question the politician doesn't want to answer. A pity he isn't chairing the debate tonight. Michael Gove The Tory Party's emerging safe pair of h...
A Gay Row That Exposes Bradshaw's Hypocrisy
- 23 Apr 2010
I get very frustrated when the likes of Ben Bradshaw try to play politics with gay issues and try to make out as if all Tories are latent homophobes. I gather tonight Little Ben was at it again after an interview David Cameron gave to Gay Times and which was picked up by Chann...
These Attacks on Nick Clegg Will Backfire
- 22 Apr 2010
What a terrible indictment of the British press we see this morning. The Mail runs a spurious story about Nick Clegg making a supposed Nazi slur against Britain. The Expressreckons he wants us to be overrun by immigrants. The Telegraph accuses him, of well, properly declaring ...
Campaign Spotlight: Dagenham & Rainham
- 15 Apr 2010
I spent a very enjoyable couple of hours this afternoon campaigning in Dagenham & Rainham for my friend Simon Jones, who is seeking to oust Jon Cruddas. I was out with a team of eight canvassers (including Baroness Noakes) in a fairly nice part of the constituency on a new...
High Court Finds Against Leading Labour Blogger
- 8 Apr 2010
Alex Hilton has not had a good day if my reading of this interim judgement in the High Court is correct. Reading between the lines, it could have severe implications for all bloggers. In short, he is being sued because of an article posted on Labour Home which intimated that s...