From Anonymous...
"I was at the Mayoral debate last night. The audience was made up of a mixture of faith and voluntary help groups and union representatives from 'London Citizens'. The TGWU were there in force at the entrance telling everyone that Boris was a rascist, there were about 30 Boris helpers, about 10 Ken helpers, couldn't see or hear any Lib Dem or Green helpers. All four candidates did very well. Paddick's public speaking is getting better. The Green candidate reminded everyone that she was on the list for the Assembly elections. Ken said Yes to every proposal made by 'London Citizens'. Boris said Yes to pretty much everything but was brave enought to say No a couple of their proposals. Unsuprisingly there were a number of boos for Boris from the unions at the beginning but by the end Boris had earned the respect of the audience so much so that he won the loudest cheers for his 2 minute closing speech. It took him about half an hour to get through the audience with everyone wanting to have their photo taking with him from West Indian Faith Groups to the children from Primary Schools around London. If he can get a reception like this from the groups that make up 'London Citizens' then the Mayoralty is his for the taking.
From Danvers Baillieu...
"I have just spent an hour or so handing out "Back Boris" oyster card holders outside Bank tube station. In all my years of campaigning, I have never seen such a positive response for a candidate. The card holders flew out of my (and the other volunteers')hands so fast we had to call to HQ for additional supplies. I realise that the centre of the City is not exactly enemy territory for Boris, but I still got the strong feeling that he is a popular front runner. After 11 years in the political wilderness, on 1 May Boris will show that the Conservatives are back."
Feel free to add your own experiences of the campaign so far in the comments...
45 comments:
Outside Embankment tube the other day there was a lonely-looking chap handing out purple Ken rags. He looked as if he was handing out one of the freesheets but everytime anyone realised he was a Livingstonian they handed the "paper" back to him or chucked it in the bin.
I wear my Boris t-shirt on the way to work and got lots of horns and cheers from all kinds of people, mainly it's van drivers, cabbies, posties etc... the old Thatcherite working class, white van man, mondeo man etc
Who or what on earth is "London Citizens".
Is this some secretly financed pro-Ken outfit furnished with the usual lefty rent a supporter and mouth mob.
For whom do they speak?,
To whom do they report?,
From whence do they come?.
Oh dear, oh dear, it seems another severe dose of Tony Lit-itus is infecting London Tories.
Are you sure that the seemingly high demand for 'Back Boris' Oyster card holders is not immediately followed by a superfluity of said items of political ephemera appearing on eBay? City boys & girls are not exactly averse to the idea of making a quick buck and with many of them looking anxiously at their bonus prospects, every little helps!
"This is no fight of just politicians or of City financiers, of corporations or national ambition; it is a fight of a people and of a cause. There are vast numbers, not only in this City but in every part of our land, who will render faithful service in this election but whose names will never be known, whose deeds will never be recorded. This is a fight of those unknown citizens; but let all of us strive without failing in faith or in duty, and the curse of Livingston and Labour will be lifted from our City and ultimately our nation !"
If Boris wins it will be because of who he is rather than the fact that he is a Tory.He's possibly the best loved Conservative because of his character.
Sorry Iain but anecdotal "evidence", isn't ... Boris was truly pathetic on Newsnight, a jabbering fool with nothing to say. He has never managed anything much. His achievements are minor. Really isn't a viable mayor. If he gets in Cameron definitely won't get it. But I don't think he'll win anyway. Ken always confounds the opinion polls and the YouGov ones are very poor quality as far as I can see. From online volunteers? Give us a break. This excludes some very important demographics and is dominated by chatterers.
My Oyster card holder promotes IKEA but I'd definitely have taken a Boris one if proffered. As a souvenir. Not because I support the chuntering clown.
What about the opinion poll that gave Livingstone a small lead? I don't understand how you can say Johnson has the momentum even as he's sinking in the polls.
I want rid of Livingstone as much as anyone, and I still think we stand a good chance, but I have to accept that the news isn't all good.
But has Boris answered Paxman yet and told us how much his buses will cost?
"Proof" - are you completely bereft of understanding of words??
Labour have shot themselves in the foot labelling Boris racist and using way-OTT hyperbole. It hasn't stuck and it means Boris gets away with being reasonably incompetent, as shown on Newsnight.
If they'd stuck on that theme he'd be toast.
I got roped into a bit of canvassing on tuesday in a solid Labour held ward. The reaction was astounding, we had five people offer to deliver leaflets for us. There is defintely a buzz around Boris that is for sure.
Having worked a bit in US politics, i know just enough to think that coming out saying your candidate has 'the big mo', the day after his 13 point lead has evaporated to a tie is either grasping at straws, or absolutely true (if you think the big mo can go in both directions!)
What people like Chris Paul don't understand (or refuse to admit), is that a very large number of people in London, probably the majority, hate Ken Livingstone. You don't have to be a Tory to dislike him: his anti-Semitic comments, his cosying up to Latin American dictators and homophobic, racist Imams, and his vindictive, irrational outbursts at anyone who dares cross him have alienated people across the political spectrum in droves.
As that recent tv programme showed (which will have been watched by far more people than the other day's Newsnight show) Livingstone is a thoroughly nasty individual, quite unsuited to public office and well past his sell-by date.
That's why Boris has support; not so much because of who he is but because he's not Ken. Give me buffoonery and inexperience over corruption and paranoia any day.
Iain.
I see the Downing Street Kindergarten are out of their cots! They must be worried.
They have a master who has to have the BBC correct his statements (ie what we all heard him say " I WILL be attending the opening ceremony" was actually "I WILL be attending the closing ceremony" so says Robinson!!!...I know what my ears heard!
Then their boss, who promised us NO more celebrity chasing..Goes on American Idol and promises 50 million quid (Obviously his own money as tax payers money expenditure surely has to be agreed by Parliament!) for Mosquito Nets.
I remember the days when DDT almost eradicated malaria! surely that chemical should be used! it would be cheaper.
Then I recall their boss relling us all that he would always make announcements to Parliament!
So may I make a suggestion to these boring prats who I and all taxpayers pay to watch the blogs.
Turn away from your screens and tell the Right Honourable Nose Picker of a Prime Minister that HE and his fourth rate cabinet are the problem.
Comment I overheard in the pub yesterday:
"Did you see Boris, Ken and that libDem feller on Newsnight last night?"
"No. Who came out on top?"
"Paxman"
He must have done better than on Newsnight then - he was wretched then!
Come on Boris - you can do better than that!
God, I hope he does win!
Boris is getting very good support in our part of London, and the cabbies who live round here loathe Leninslime.
Re the polls - YouGov have a very high polling-to-outcome accuracy rating, and the Ipsos/Mori poll that reduced BoJo's lead to 1% was commissioned by Unison, so who knows how the questions were worded?
I certainly wouldn't predict a Boris landslide, but Labour have either given up or can't get the volunteers round our way (which isn't safe Tory country), because no one has seen or heard 'owt from them - nor the LibDems, come to think of it.
We all love Boris, that is true, but we laugh at him not with him.
Yes he is a character, but definitely not mayoral material.
If he were to win his inability to do the job will reflect badly on Camera On.
The Newsnight debate confirmed that, hair cut or no hair cut, bozzer is still a mumbling bumbling buffoon. He was awful in the debate
This is further confirmed by Tory bloggers who HAVENT been falling over themselves praising his performance on the programme, even they know when a pigs ears isn’t a silk purse.
Popularity on an individual basis is not necessarily enough, though. Think Churchill in 1945 - cheered to the rafters wherever he went but slaughtered. I still think it is a big ask for Boris who is liked as a comedian but not I think considered to be a serious politician. Sadly I think Ken will win it again.
It doesn't matter that people think Boris is a buffoon. People aren't voting FOR Boris, they are voting AGAINST Livingstone.
Why are they doing this?
Because they perceive that Livingstone is a nasty and vindictive piece of shit who doesn't have their best interests at heart.
Look. This is another London Mayor story. When will you please understand that most of us do not live in f*ck&ng c£%nting London?
So, two "celebs" of the type you Londoners are so enamoured of are going for Mayor, and another guy who is gay, but tries desperately not to look it.
I live in Scotland, currently part of the UK. When was the last time you did a series of Scotland stories or a series of Northern Ireland stories or (heaven forbid) a series of Welsh stories?
Currently the candidates for Mayor are a bunch of nutters. Your choice is which nutter you want, as opposed to the two other nutters. The rest of the UK does not give a monkey's.
By all means, go on about your car. At least I can buy one in Edinburgh if I want to (Mine's a Phaeton). Keep doing the light hearted stuff like the polls. Talk about your dog. By all means, keep digging where others fear to dig when it comes to stuff that affects the UK, but pulease - quit with this London crap.
There is a world out here that does not know what an oyster card is,or who cares about Terminal 5 or how 4x4s are the scrapings of Satan's Scrotum. Having lived in the squalid carbuncle that is London for many years, fighting for parking spaces and having to remove black snot from my nose every day, I don't really want to read about your self imposed hell anymore than I have to, and particularly about a bunch of self-serving clowns who fancy themselves as the guardian of your poncy overpriced slum.
Rant over.
"so who knows how the questions were worded?"
Poltical Betting has some analysis, and also points out that is represents a drop in Ken's lead by that polling firm. You can't compare different polling firms' figures.
Just had lunch with a Labour councillor. He was telling me how impressed he was by the Boris campaign. Seemed quite depressed about Leavingsoon's chances.
Is he old enough for a pension yet?
I'm hoping Boris will appoint Andrew Gilligan as Deputy Mayor - he's doing London a real service in exposing Leavingsoon's corrupt shenanigans...
Boris would be a disaster. Honestly, Ken is most certainly a long way short of perfect but he does at least have a grip on reality. The most unfortunate thing about this election is that its a choice between the lesser of two evils. I'm naturally a Labour voter but if the Tories had put up a credible candidate with genuine business experience i would have easily swung. As it is, I would prefer to vote for Ken rather than some numpty who thinks that has showcased his campaign on designing a new bus and thinks that heading up the UK's largest city authority isn't worth £130k salary....well you pay peanuts and you get er...
Judith is quite right, the wording of the poll was on politicalbetting.com comments. It would make a 'push poll' blush, and by allowing it, Mori have done themselves a disservice. If Boris wins by a good margin, Mori might have, just to get a quick customer, lost their integrity...
Wapping Boy: you are entitled to your opinion. But Ken Livingstone can actually do the practical tasks involved in the job of Mayor. And he has an awesome grasp of issues, policies, problems and solutions. And ambition and a real track record.
Your assertion that more than half the people of london HATE Ken is just arrant nonsense with absolutely no argument or proof. Even Iain offers a couple of anecdotes. And Dizzy has one. What is your basis for a claim of majority hatred for the London mayor?
Boris would be an absolute disaster.
"I remember the days when DDT almost eradicated malaria! surely that chemical should be used! it would be cheaper."
Unfortunately its indicriminate use also eradicated a lot of people.
blackacre has a point. Kilroy Silk was mobbed wherever he went for his party Veritas in the General Election...very popular..no votes though.
wrinkled weasel..there is nothing wrong with Wales!
Judith is right. Mori have sold their soul to this government. They will have similar polls leading up to the next general election.
In a previous life we commissioned them and we were asked what we wanted from the result! The result came as we wanted!!!
to WW
I'm no Londoner either but the outcome will resonate nationally. With Gordo's bunch now wobbling over his leadership a good shove would come in handy.
The worst is waiting for it to be over. It's like waiting for the results of a cancer test.
Boris: harmless lump. Ignore.
Ken: malignant tumour. Despair.
Why does Northern Monkey Chris Paul have to stick his nose into London Politics? Just wondering.
On the symbolic effect nationally I would have thought the last thing Brown needs is another sweaty old redistributing hard left figure going on and on and on.Labour are dead in the South and the sight of London and its Mayor is unlikely to revive it.
.Ken is a refugee from a 1970s student Union bar a bastard siring IRA supporting , terorrist sympathising dictator crawling to, petty empire building, ersatz foreign Policy operating corrupt libidinous drunk violent bullying gangster who has sold London a bill for about £1000 per household to have his Soviet Olympics.
It is hard to imagine a human being so utterly wanting in any redeeming feature besotted with power , relaint on perpetuating racistdivision and in hoc to extremist Islam .To the rest of the region he an George Galloway are aliens from another planet. The same one probably
Boris would be a better Mayor if he went on holiday for the entire term.
Livingstone / Mugabe ....not much to choose
Boris' support for an amnesty for illegal immigrants (which you have been strangely silent about) will help the BNP.
nulab = blulab = nulab ...
Hazel Tree, where are you? This is your subject. Do you dare to leave the comfort zone of the Telegraph blogs and post here amusingly about watermelon smiles and the Bullingdon? Or perhaps not.
Boris was pathetic on Newsnight, still bumbling, but no longer funny. Very sad to see that, for some reason, he found it expedient to compete with Livingston and the ex-cop as to who is the most authoritarian. Cannabis was a classic example. Maybe the strategists have decided that Boris has to compete on Ken's territory. Instead of treating us like adults, Boris has joined the "I have a Plan" brigade. And as we well know, for every Plan, there will be 10 more Plans to sort out the problems caused by the first Plan.
Re DDT (The only matter of substance herein)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DDT
No DDT does not kill people unlike mozzies.
No, really. Please research this a bit.
Try and work out how many Rachel Carson's stupid, ignorant book actually killed. Maybe worse than Marx (ie into the 10's or 100's of millions).
I had the misfortune of watching the Newsnight mayoral debate. Poor, poor London. Boris Johnson was inarticulate, wooly and badly prepared. I'm afraid he really is a buffoon. When Scotland becomes independent they'll be plenty of other superior candidates looking for a job. Could I suggest Wendy Alexander?
Livingslime has been undone by many things and apart from the more obvious nastiness, it is actually that he can be seen to share so much of what people hate about Labour in Central government, mostly the complete disregard for taxpayers money which has been spent on massively expensive and inefficient services, the endless cronyism, complete disregard for the concerns of the electorate and that he clearly doesn't give a toss about democracy! Livingslime has been outed as just another NuLab pig with his snout in the trough and when he has benefited so much from not being seen as NuLab in the past, this has clearly wrecked his credibility with many voters.
Dave.
Yes, I know that the mayoral election will impact on the Bogeyman.
That is why Gordon will do his familiar disappearing act when the results are announced.
Strappy. Sorry about the snide comment about Wales, please don't do anything silly will you?
Why does everyone who lives in London feel the need to take drugs? I mean, that tetrapak woman. She is the wife of a billionaire and she's stuffing charlie up her nose? How sad is that?
Mrs Weasel wanted to go south and eat at that restaurant that serves you snail porridge. Well, up here, we are kind of up to our eyes in porridge, and at certain establishments you get all kinds of extras in your oats.
Well, Mr Paul, Mr Livingstone certainly has a record of spending MY money with alarming abandon, and of meeting with vile terrorists and left-wing maniacs like Chavez, and creating new slum areas in East London, and jetting around the world (oh dear, where are his Green credentials?) flashing our cash, and piling on the bureaucrats, drinking alcohol in public meetings, sucking up to every whingeing, self-defined victim minority .....
how much more do you want?
wrinkled weasel.
In the 'Welshman Singing'pub this evening. In the snug. The executive council of the FREE WALES Committee met and discussed my calling an urgent extraordinary meeting, to discuss whether to declare war on Scotland.
Of the three members in attendance. One said he couldn't be bothered. One asked where Scotland was the other said he believed we should but not until next Monday so he could watch the Manchester United versus Arsenal game (his nephew is Ryan Giggs you see)
I was unable to vote as the proposer of the motion!
So Winkled Weasel you live to write another day!
Chris Paul said...
Boris... a jabbering fool with nothing to say. He has never managed anything much. His achievements are minor."
Yep Chris Paul said that. hahaha
Wrinkled weasel, I don't like what you said about Mr. Paddick. I am a huge Boris supporter, and I think he will be an inspirational Mayor, but that comment is out of order.
Mr. Paddick has done well, he has campaigned with guts and dignity. You have absolutely no right whatsoever to jibe about his private life. You are offensive.
It's really easy, isn't it to sneer at everything, it saves you from having to come out and pick a side. That takes the guts that Mr. Padedick and both of the other candidates have got, but you haven't.
wrinkled weasel said
"and another guy who is gay, but tries desperately not to look it."
what do you mean? Every article about Paddick mentions he is gay and has a partner. He is quite open about his past lifestyle. This is the definition of homophobia - expecting him to wear a pink tutu so you can say you arent homophobic but... and then slag him off for shoving his sexuality in your face.
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