Wednesday, December 03, 2008

Eddie Mair Skewers Harriet Harman

Eddie Mair skewered Harriet Harman on PM just now - several times. Click HERE and then scroll in about 17 minutes. The really good bit starts at 20 minutes. Listen to her squirm when he asks her if she received leaked documents from her lawyer sister. "I was perfectly entitled to receive them. I was Solicitor General," she shrills. Funny how a court of law didn't see it that way. Her sister was found guilty of a contempt of court, had to resign as a Judge and had to pay £25,000 court costs.

UPDATE: I am told that Harriet is on Newsnight tonight - with Mr Paxman. I do hope he was listening to PM.

28 comments:

Francis Horner said...

"Funny how a court of law didn't see it that way. Her sister was found guilty of a contempt of court, had to resign as a Judge and had to pay £25,000 court costs."

It was a shame that Mair didn't memtion that bit, and let her right off the hook. She got away with the "I was entitled to recieve them" line, I'm sure most listeners wouldn't have been aware of / remembered the court judgement.

Anonymous said...

Hag!

Tim said...

What about Boris telephoning Green to talk about the Police case

is that right ????


Is that legal

given his role in appointing Met Police commander

Tim said...

Michael Ashcroft

Maxwell

tick tick tick

Anonymous said...

ITV News already suggesting (to my outrage) that the tories are now over-playing this Iain.

Any thoughts on that?

@molesworth_1 said...

The mental image of Eddie Mair 'skewering' Harriet Harman is, unfortunately, going to stay with me for a long, long time...

Hughes Views said...

Wot? Nothing here about the president elect of the US saying that nice boy Dave is a lightweight?

Lord Elvis of Paisley said...

Tim, Boris has no say in the appointment of the next Met Commander. That will be the decision of the Home Office, and the Home Office alone. You're a bit thick, aren't you?

Man in a Shed said...

Lets assume Tim is Dolly for the day.

Oscar Miller said...

Tim is doing the rounds of the blogsites no doubt on Dolly's orders. Trouble is he is a bit thick and he isn't making much of an effort. Surely Dolly would expect him to work a bit harder for the paycheck.

Man in a Shed said...

Listening to it again I note that Harriet Harman refers to Damian Green as "the defendant" - sounds like a little prejudging the inquiry to me ...

I've noticed one of two BBC interviewers refusing to fall for the debating devices Labour politicians use to avoid questions these days. ( The Blair trade mark manoeuvre of redefining the question highly specifically and then using manufactured outrage is a favourite ).

not an economist said...

I knew nothing about Harriet receving dodgy documents and so when I heard this on PM I thought Eddie had lost the plot and I wondered what he was blathering on about.

Can anyone say what this was about please? Or alternatively point in the dierction of a link which explains what its all about?

Anonymous said...

Most listeners I suspect may not have been aware of her history, but were entertained by the sound of her scrabbling around for a leg on which to stand. She should be better practiced at that leg hunting by now. She's always been a bit of a stranger to integrity, starting on the 11 December 1997.

Mr Mr said...

I too was not aware that Mrs Harman had received and used dodgy goods from her sister. Like others I thought Eddie was backtracking, darn shame that he did not explain the significance of his question to us, the audience.

strapworld said...

Iain,

whenever the labour incompetents are in the cacky they get their juveniles in the brown bunker to set about the blogs.

They are so transparent. This 'Tim' is the latest, paid by the tax payers, to try and ensure Brown is supported.

Strange that the bank story has blown up in his face NONE of the banks, he told the House had agreed mortgage payments, have done so, they are absolutely livid.

LYING TO THE HOUSE young TIM . Your master has LIED to the house.

Anoneumouse said...

Watching Gordon Browns performance in the commons this afternoon was like witnessing a Harringay social services meeting.

Isn't it time that an opposition MP just got up and asked just how many tractors have been manufactured in the UK since 1997

Anonymous said...

Lord Sleay, Draper et al. have become a bit rusty as they grow old and employ trolls who can at best score an "E" grade. The comment about Boris illustrates this. Lord Sleaze himself sounds not that slick and sharp, full of crude epithets showing that he needs some therapy soon! He was brought in really to fix some 'ocal difficulties' of Labour. Easy to pick these trolls even in newspaper blogs. Always a bit thick and crude in their arguments!

Anonymous said...

Kay Burley, that lightweight woman so good at weepy stories was anchoring Sky - on and on she went about MPs not being above the law. Boulton and Joey Jones haven't been much better. What has got into them all? At least Jackie Ashley was sour about the Queen's speech.

FonyBlair said...

Have the BBC taken this content down? It says not avaialble!!

Lola said...

Personally I do not think Eddie skewered Harriet. He sort of got going and then backed off when he had her on the run. I bet he did know the full details of the case and could have had Harriet over a barrell, but he did not go in for the kill and she managed to squirm out of it.

DiscoveredJoys said...

It seems to me that each NuLabour Cabinet Minister has their own personal skelton in the closet (sometimes two *cough*).

If every time they gave an interview their own personal skeleton was given a good shake by the interviewer they might be a little less condescending and a little less willing to mislead...

Null said...

I am currently enjoying Harry Harperson being stabbed to death by Paxo on Newsnight.

I wish I had some of her blood on my hands...

Null said...

DiscoveredJoys said...

"If every time they gave an interview their own personal skeleton was given a good shake by the interviewer they might be a little less condescending and a little less willing to mislead..."

What a good idea. No more of that GHASTLY Madeltroll sneering across the airwaves. I understand he read this blogs, so here goes.... We are coming to get you Mandy...

How long before I get arrested by the (Anti)terrorist police?

Unknown said...

Story is that as Solicitor General she asked to see (and got, as it's hard to say no to a minister) a lot of court-related documents she shouldn't have.

Ditto as a minister at DCA.

Doubting Richard said...

Surely she must now resign? If not she should now be fired.

Tony Blair said that anyone in the government who was found to have lied then they should not keep their jobs. "I was perfectly entitled to receive them" is a direct lie, and she must have known it was not true!

Doubting Richard said...

Christ, she even claims to have received them "in [her] role as Solicitor Generral"! Unbelievable.

Savonarola said...

Mair allowed Harman to repeat a Mandelson mantra(so bleeding obvious)whilst making a PPB. Bloody useless interview.
Would Harman have survived 5 minutes with Day/Walden.
Piffle.

Unknown said...

Eddie Mair - best cross-examination for a politician for ages.
Glad he kept bringing her back from her attempts to make it comments on the police rather than her own conduct and views.
Can't abide the woman.