Earlier today I took part in a ten minute discussion with LabourList's Alex Smith for a BBC World Service programme - a sort of Week in Westminster. The discussion was all about the Lord Ashcroft non dom issue. We heard afterwards that LibDem Peer Lord Oakeshott had been due to appear, but he refused to take part in a discussion and insisted on being interviewed alone. The producers said no, that couldn't happen. He then relented and agreed to take part in the discussion. Having then been told who his interlocutors would be he then refused to appear. Again.
Was it something we might have said? Or was it because a Peer of the Realm decided he was too grand to appear with mere bloggers.
Arse.
So when the LibDems bleat on about not getting enough media opportunities, they shouldn't be taken at face value. There may be more to it. Perhaps this is why their Question Time appearances are being restricted :).
9 comments:
Oakeshott is an intellectual nonce. He may have money and influence, but real brains?
Educated at Charterhouse - so he clearly thinks himself far too posh to bandy words with you.
Matthew Oakeshott (as I knew him) is an immensely clever, and immensely fair, man. In my view, he is far too clever and fair to be a Liberal Democrat, but what can you do?
You can bet that he will have calculated that it wouldn't be worth his while to debate with you, or that the damage potential was somehow too great. Perhaps the Michael Brown matter is too ... uncomfortable at the moment. I certainly don't think that he would have been up on his high horse about debating with a 'mere' blogger. He isn't/wasn't like that.
The whole Ashcroft reaction and pump-priming of outrage amongst non-conservatives is the most astonishing and breathtaking hypocricy.
Particularly so is Lord Mandleson's behaviour.
I seem to remember him being disgraced for dodgy financial deals.
Twice.
Great description of this giant amongst parliamentarians.
Arse.
He may be a Peer of the Realm. But at this moment Arse seems a better title.
Maybe he was just concerned that the discussion would stray into the Lib Dem's financiers?
BBC Westminster correspondent wetting himself and orgasming over Ashcroft.
Robinson talking bollocks about Foot.
WV = 'custol, which is a thick yellow cough medicine.
Ashtongate leads the 10 O'Clock News on Radio 4. Even my wife, who is a liberal leftie, thinks it's ridiculous.
If the Tories do get in, I'll urge them to purge the BBC. One thing they can do is put their job adverts (what's left of them) online. Better, put them in the Sun and Daily Mail. Without the ads, the Guardian will go under and bloody good riddance.
He doesn't suffer intelligent people gladly.
That is not my experience of Matthew, Iain. Indeed, of all the people I know in politics, I can think of few who warrant "arse" less.
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