tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post2038224699222199204..comments2024-03-04T17:54:32.559+00:00Comments on Iain Dale's Diary: It's Not Cameron Who Needs to Up His Game - It's The Shadow CabinetIain Dalehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03270146219458384372noreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-2853277272478827122007-07-28T18:24:00.000+01:002007-07-28T18:24:00.000+01:00A bad leader blames his troops. The same goes for...A bad leader blames his troops. The same goes for the leader's supporters. If the shadow cabinet is underperforming, there is only one person to blame.Scary Biscuitshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03039289019338752778noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-15107470132519444162007-07-28T11:08:00.000+01:002007-07-28T11:08:00.000+01:00A press release is a good way to announce somethin...A press release is a good way to announce something but not away of getting press. That comes through a relationship with the journalists.<BR/><BR/>It is frightening how little we see anyone but Cameron in the press. Maybe that is why we were fooled into putting DC's name on the ballot paper in ES.Kevin Davishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08297006428452885206noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-34879449070967227342007-07-28T04:29:00.000+01:002007-07-28T04:29:00.000+01:00SSI,Nice theory, if there were inevitable cycles i...SSI,<BR/><BR/>Nice theory, if there were inevitable cycles in tribal politics. But you have to take a very long average (Walpole to WWI) to be able to make the claim that the Whigs were the natural party of government (if there is any such thing). If one took just the nineteenth century, the Tories/Conservatives held power for longer than the Whigs/Liberals - in fact by 1830, the Whigs had held power for only one year during the nineteenth century. Which doesn't prove the opposite. It demonstrates that this sort of generalisation is codswallop.<BR/><BR/>On the other hand, it is fair to project the near-term fortunes of the Tory party from the current state of the party. Mid-21st century is a bit far out, though. Events that we cannot currently foresee will undoubtedly change the political equations several times before then. My money is on a major global economic crisis and/or an energy crunch between now and then, which will change the terms of the political debate. <BR/><BR/>Whether the Tories have a relevant alternative message in those circumstances, or whether it needs a new party to offer a credible alternative (and to disassociate the compassionate classical-liberal message from the Little-Englander nastiness that many on this thread have noticed), remains to be seen. On current form, I'd say the latter.bgpriorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00628170401069060830noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-90346602553090781052007-07-27T16:38:00.000+01:002007-07-27T16:38:00.000+01:00VERY interesting comments, from all around the rin...VERY interesting comments, from all around the ring!<BR/><BR/>NOW for some HISTORICAL perspective:<BR/><BR/>It is axiomatic that Britain is a conservative nation (with a small c) with liberal (small l) impulses . . . or is that visa versa?<BR/><BR/>ANYWAY, despite the conservative Brit bent (recognizable in all non-fringe parties) the historical record shows that, from the time of Robert Walpole to World War I the UK's natural party of government were the Whigs>>>Liberal Party. First Whig, then Liberal governments were the rule; Tory/Conservative administrations the exception.<BR/><BR/>Before WWI, the rise of Labour led to the weakening of the Liberal Party position, and afterwards its near-total collapse. This provided an opening for the Conservatives.<BR/><BR/>From WWI through to the eve of the 21st century, the Conservatives could claim to be the natural party of government, as Conservative administrations were the rule and Labour governments the exception.<BR/><BR/>COULD IT BE that 1997 marks a watershed . . . that the Conservative dominance of the previous four score years is at an end . . . that the polarity of the UK political magnetic field has shifted yet again . . . and that the Labour Party is now the natural party of government for the foreseeable future????<BR/><BR/>Believe that the post-Thatcher Conservative leaders have all been smart, honorable and well-intentioned. William Hague, Ian Duncan Smith and especially David Cameron have (and still have) much to offer to their party, politics and the British people. <BR/><BR/>And it is certainly possible that they will be in government sometime in future; after all, during periods when one major party was dominant, the other was still able to win an election every once and a while . . . thanks to the blunders and/or bad luck of their opponents.<BR/><BR/>YET the lackluster performance of the current Shadow Cabinet . . . and their predecessors since 1997 . . . along with the reactionary cast of many posting on Iain's blog and other Tory sounding boards, makes me think that the Conservative Party AND its leaders are simply NOT ready for prime time . . . and may not be, at least in a sustained manner, until maybe sometime in mid-21st century.Sea Shanty Irishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02962821593752274830noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-4049109904824064042007-07-27T16:31:00.000+01:002007-07-27T16:31:00.000+01:00There are a lot of ferrets fighting in a sack here...There are a lot of ferrets fighting in a sack here. I hope we can get back to something approaching proper arguments.<BR/><BR/>Jim, your case study seems interesting, but there is always a background to these things. Surely nobody is suggesting that these ex-servicemen are being shafted?Wrinkled Weaselhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05291551539649118631noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-1302559362510189512007-07-27T14:12:00.000+01:002007-07-27T14:12:00.000+01:00This is why the Conservatives will never gain powe...This is why the Conservatives will never gain power<BR/>A charity wants to buy a seven- bedroom house in Ashtead Surrey for families of of injured service personnel being treated at Headley Court rehabilitation centre near Epsom. The Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA) needs planning permission to convert the house for use by up to six families. However Mole Valley District Council has said the proposal should be turned down after "overwhelming" local opposition. <BR/>Guess what C4 and Newmania et al. This TORY run council turned planning permission down, and local TORY voting residents have sent nearly 100 letters of objection to their TORY council. <BR/>You see while Camera On desperately tries to show that Tories our actually human, its councillors MPs and hard core supporters prove that at their nucleus lies a swinging brick. The Tories are nasty, I almost feel sorry for Cameron, even I can see that what he is trying to do has merit; but he hasn’t fully comprehended how dreadful his core supporters beliefs and motives truly are.<BR/><BR/>Its NOT Cameron who needs to up his Game..Correct it is every other Tory who still breaths air. Stop being so nasty !!!!!!Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08154883691100377834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-79662727749762335292007-07-27T13:42:00.000+01:002007-07-27T13:42:00.000+01:00C4' said... The problem is that Cameron is a socia...C4' said... <BR/><BR/>The problem is that Cameron is a socialist leading a libertarian party in a libertarian nation that is suffering under the tyranny of a fascist regime, propped up by a left-wing media and little Hitlers like Bob Piper, Polly Toynbee and Ken Clarke. <BR/><BR/>July 27, 2007 12:28 PM<BR/><BR/>There there calm down dear. Seems that poor old Camera On, has his work cut out. Just read the various rants of C4, Newmania et al...Are you actually representative of the Tory core? If so, and I have a feeling that you are, god help you all. Cameron is trying to drag an insular, backward looking organisation into the current century.<BR/><BR/>Cameron isn’t out of touch with his party...his party are out of touch with REAILTY, C4 and Newmania being prime examples.Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08154883691100377834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-22102901202044798162007-07-27T13:41:00.000+01:002007-07-27T13:41:00.000+01:00This comment has been removed by the author.Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08154883691100377834noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-70344547958153905172007-07-27T12:28:00.000+01:002007-07-27T12:28:00.000+01:00The problem is that Cameron is a socialist leading...The problem is that Cameron is a socialist leading a libertarian party in a libertarian nation that is suffering under the tyranny of a fascist regime, propped up by a left-wing media and little Hitlers like Bob Piper, Polly Toynbee and Ken Clarke.Sir-C4'https://www.blogger.com/profile/03917709983378003032noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-23830209807030096592007-07-27T11:53:00.000+01:002007-07-27T11:53:00.000+01:00Why dosen't he call everyones' bluff and call for ...Why dosen't he call everyones' bluff and call for a vote of confidence from his MPs. This will resolve the in-fighting and will put him back onto the front pages and daily news clips. If he loses, which he will not, he has not lost anything because the party is not worth saving.LLloyd Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11502721376366054214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-91363096768764022002007-07-27T09:31:00.000+01:002007-07-27T09:31:00.000+01:00Real nice stuff. I like it. Keep it up !!!One can ...Real nice stuff. I like it. Keep it up !!!<BR/><BR/>One can find similar thought provoking and informative material at InfoMailers.in, India's premier Corporate Newswire. <BR/><BR/>InfoMailers.com distributes news items to more than 15,000 Indian journalists and 1.5 m Indian Net users, including more than 100,000 top-notch industry leaders from CII, FICCI, ASSOCHAM, NASSCOM and PHDCCI etc. All news items are also sent to more than 500 national and international news websites and newswires.<BR/>A news release once added to InfoMailers.com system remains there for ever and is never taken off. All news items are invariably crawled by all major search engines including Google and Yahoo !<BR/><BR/>Do give it a try.<BR/>ArryUnknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558594731837980678noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-74501233104134465952007-07-27T07:18:00.000+01:002007-07-27T07:18:00.000+01:00The premise here is right and despite being a Tory...The premise here is right and despite being a Tory when it comes to the 'Bob & Geezer' thread Bob's spot on - there may be a little media impact but to crouch behind it as a way of avoiding their on shortcomings is not on. Most of the Shadow Cabinet need to raise their game and fast.<BR/><BR/>Here's the rub though - if there's one member that analysis definitely applies to it's George Osbourne. I know anecdotal evidence can be misleading but for 18 months now I've taken every opportunity to ask friends & colleagues for the 'snap' view on Osbourne - I've yet to hear a positive comment. Even discounting any personal or abusive observations the best you get is a 'who?'. And this applies whatever their party alliegances or degree of political engagement. There's no way the same would've been true of Brown between 94 & 97.<BR/><BR/>The public always viewed Blair & Brown as a double act and there was a sense that any shortcomings in one were balanced in the other (what Tony lacked in intellectual weight, Gordon made up - what Gordon lacked in 'ordinariness', Tony made up etc.) This duality was as key to their electoral success as Blair himself and a strong high profile shadow cabinet complimented this.<BR/><BR/>The truth is Osbourne is always embarrassingly tame on the media, has absolutely no authority or sense of mastery over his brief and doesn't even mask this well with any charm or likeability. If the public do see any double act at the head of us Tories it's Cameron / Osbourne and while one half of that team is so inneffective we'll remain in trouble.<BR/><BR/><BR/>And yet from what I read I'm alone in this observation?Liam Murrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16493956117016119698noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-57565889641847225262007-07-27T03:26:00.000+01:002007-07-27T03:26:00.000+01:00Anyone else notice the irony of Iain advising the ...Anyone else notice the irony of Iain advising the shadow cabinet on how to get media coverage on the day he was dumped from the Daily Politics?<BR/><BR/>Get some policies, then they'll get some coverage...Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05649491689196103228noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-74683353810493083102007-07-27T02:12:00.000+01:002007-07-27T02:12:00.000+01:00Cranmer is right, particularly as Dave only recent...Cranmer is right, particularly as Dave only recently completed his reshuffle. The question is, did he pick the wrong people, or is that the best that they've got (that are willing to work for him)? A bit of both, I suspect. He may have missed a few gems, but it doesn't appear to be a rich seam. <BR/><BR/>And that applies all the way down the party, from what I can see. There appears to be a real problem with the quality of policy analysis. This suggests that some shadow ministers are not providing a strong lead, demanding the best, nor have sufficient discernment to tell the wheat from the chaff. But it also suggests that their researchers and advisers aren't exactly the sharpest tools in the box either. Sheds a different light on the snide remarks about the difficulties of working for DD - maybe other shadow ministers ought to be that demanding too, and researchers not to expect an easy life.<BR/><BR/>I went to conservatives.com earlier, to see what they were saying about Rwanda (answer: nothing, all mention of the trip appears to have been expunged). But while there, I noticed that there was <A HREF="http://www.conservatives.com/tile.do?def=news.story.page&obj_id=137716" REL="nofollow">a news item on Theresa Villiers's comments on the Rail White Paper</A>, and had a look. You should too for a laugh. It is seriously feeble. It ticks a number of boxes in terms of issues raised, but it lacks credibility and gravitas. Mostly, it sounds like whinging. It appears not to have identified where the Government's usual financial trickery has been snuck in to give them the headline figures (clue: look at whether these are real or nominal figures). The figures in that White Paper are so improbable that they are ripe for ridicule - we're going to get more investment, better service-levels, more capacity, lower contributions from taxpayers and all without massive hikes in some fares? Yeah, right. And not in all fares, mind, just the majority (mainly on commuter routes) that are unregulated. So commuters will pay for the improvements while those travelling to parts of the country where a rail service may not even be justifiable (but where they tend to vote Labour) continue to get subsidised travel. This deserves a good kicking, but all it gets from Theresa is a tickle under the ribs and a bit of a moan. Lightweights.<BR/><BR/>Symptomatic of this intellectual malaise is the tendency to measure reports by the number of proposals they incorporate. We were told, with apparent pride, that the Global Poverty Report included 76 recommendations. It was the same with the IDS paper, and with the Forsyth tax report - "look how many different things we have thought of". Except, if they'd really got to the heart of an issue, they'd have tackled the complexity and narrowed it down to a few fundamental changes. This many proposals shows both that you are still stuck in the detail and that you are trying to be all things to all men. It makes it tedious to read, difficult to pull out the main points, and thoroughly unattractive to the media. This is the Government's way - they display their ignorance with Consultations on things like what to do with our old bottles and tins, that include 56 different questions and an absurdly complex yet uninformative RIA. It is not a good model to copy. Simplicity is a virtue, not to mention bloody good ground from which to attack Brown.<BR/><BR/>These various failings have something in common, which may point to the real cause of their ineffectiveness. A sound, shared, basic philosophy helps when one is trying to decide what angle to put on a story, and to argue the case with confidence. I have commented many times on the intellectual void at the heart of Project Cameron - its philosophy (ignoring tosh about socio-centric paradigms) seems to consist of doing and saying whatever is needed to get elected. That approach is defended with vigour by the many on here who think politics is a tactical sport whose objective is merely to get your team in by hook or by crook, and not a battle of ideas. But that attitude makes it pretty hard to know what the party line ought to be in each specific case, and to speak with the passion of conviction. The hodge-podge of managerialist or nitpicking responses that flow as a consequence from the absence of an overarching philosophy doesn't inspire the media to report on the latest flim-flam or faux indignation from the opposition.<BR/><BR/>But could Cameron commit to a consistent, coherent philosophy without alienating those parts of the party whose philosophy he did not adopt? If he sets out his social-democrat principles, will he lose the conservatives and libertarians? Impossible situation.bgpriorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00628170401069060830noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-11079071809718917862007-07-27T01:17:00.000+01:002007-07-27T01:17:00.000+01:00The words "straws", "clutching" and "at" come to m...The words "straws", "clutching" and "at" come to mind on this one. Not only that, you are in danger of agreeing with ol' Portaloo on this.<BR/><BR/>I have been doing some back reading and it is very clear that Cameron has chosen to surround himself with some people who espouse a strong social message, such as IDS, David Davis and Oliver Letwin. They do this in a robust and compelling way.<BR/><BR/>Letwin:<BR/><BR/>"You would have to be blind not to see that there are people who are not able to participate properly in everything that most of the population takes for granted," he says. "Any human being who looks at that is bound to conclude that we should take steps to enable those people to move out of that condition."<BR/><BR/>David Davis:-<BR/>"It should certainly alarm us that many of these victims of State failure are among the most disadvantaged people in Britain today.<BR/><BR/>Ian Duncan Smith:-<BR/>"the Breakthrough Britain report is based on the belief that individual people must be responsible for their choices but that government has a big responsibility to help people make the right choices"<BR/><BR/>I firmly believe that you can tell a man by the people he surrounds himself with. The three aforementioned impress me with their apparently genuine commitment to social justice, and not just as a cheap shot hit and run exercise, they really mean it. They think about it.<BR/><BR/>Portaloo claims that the Tories are not "hungry for power". That is such a nasty phrase, very akin in the morality index with "getting media coverage".<BR/><BR/>They are both vacuous phrases devoid of morality, devoid of humanity and devoid of intellectual rigour.<BR/><BR/><BR/>You say that Cameron "He needs more support from his Shadow Cabinet colleagues". <BR/><BR/>My own impression is not that he is not supported but that the overall approach will not dovetail with the demands of modern media.(Letwin is a case in point, even I was despairing of his rather distended prose.)<BR/><BR/>His people are cerebral; reflective and given to quoting Vaclav Havel. For God's sake, you are not, I hope, suggesting that the rest of the pack start engaging in STUNTS?Wrinkled Weaselhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05291551539649118631noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-82894433164193181502007-07-27T00:34:00.000+01:002007-07-27T00:34:00.000+01:00A few points here:Jo(e) Public hates the PR rot th...A few points here:<BR/>Jo(e) Public hates the PR rot that is Nu-Labour, and was rooting for Lame Cameron to get in there and Kick Arse!<BR/><BR/>He hasn't got the balls to do it, so on a parliamentary level they're a dead duck<BR/><BR/>On a local level, they're still the same lying toerags that let Labour in the first place<BR/><BR/>It comes to something when the Lib dems and loons like UKIP and the BNP are the credible opposition in this countryChemisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14888998283603851234noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-7563961734226145242007-07-27T00:12:00.000+01:002007-07-27T00:12:00.000+01:00Bob, to quote me old grand-daddy, many of our fell...Bob, to quote me old grand-daddy, many of our fellow posters "DON'T KNOW AND DON'T WANT TO KNOW!"<BR/><BR/>Works for me!<BR/><BR/>As for the notion that a Tory Party that can takes its eyes off its navel and its head out of its ass is going to lose critical support to UKIP, well, that's a hoot and a half. IF that logic truly computed, then why didn't Scargell & Co. cut New Labour a new one back in 1997????<BR/><BR/>Not to mention the fact that UKIP is a extinguished volcano . . . or rather a clapped out old fart who can't find his Viagra!Sea Shanty Irishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02962821593752274830noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-73530710530274702402007-07-26T23:57:00.000+01:002007-07-26T23:57:00.000+01:00I am in despair at the sight of tories panicking a...I am in despair at the sight of tories panicking at the first bout of unfavourable polling for over a year. The Brown Bounce was forseen by all but a few. Things will never be as good for Brown as they are now. I'm with Portillo when he states that the tories have missed some golden opportunities to paint Brown as he really is. Instead they continue to deny the government a decent opposition. <BR/>Time after time they have let down the country in insisting that we should suffer a mediocre, at best, government whilst they gaze at their navels.Once more we see "the bastards" sharpen their knives for yet another leader. Would someone please form a party which espouses conservative values (in the Cameroon sense) without the bitching which constantly seems to beset this once great party?its my party and i cry all the timehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04807304586131322901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-45142108144713001412007-07-26T23:55:00.000+01:002007-07-26T23:55:00.000+01:00geezer, whether by design or plain stupidty fails ...geezer, whether by design or plain stupidty fails to get the point. It is not the capability the public judge, but their brand recognition. No wonder you people are in such a mess.Bob Piperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13792439016502695274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-33374395019462963402007-07-26T23:45:00.000+01:002007-07-26T23:45:00.000+01:00...i come, hotly, from the jcr to say - i hav been......i come, hotly, from the jcr to say - i hav been MOVED. TRULY moved...<BR/><BR/>me & peason were watching C4 news when we perked up at the story of shambo...<BR/><BR/>...he is a BULLOCK.<BR/><BR/>Revered.<BR/>Religously so.<BR/>By those who might, indeed.<BR/><BR/>...tho sadly it apere that he is infected. and with a most noxious pox, eg TB. (now that IS irony,hem-hem...)<BR/><BR/>with the goggle-box on news24, the 'peason-gates' Steam-PC (pat. & lawsuits pndng.) fixed on SHAMBO-cam, and the crystal-set whiskered to the wurld service, coverage continu...<BR/><BR/>"And so, as the Especially Empowered minions of the state approach, sploshing thro' the floods, we report that Shambo-ron was last seen running accross the screen and disappearing off to the left for a quite disconcerting length of time..."<BR/><BR/>tho' his ace media team then edit him lurching on from the right at the last pmq's...genius. <BR/><BR/>'coulson has us sold, ect.ect.' cry a grateful few.<BR/><BR/>..the poor cambo now appear, like a rabbit, dumbstruck in the headlights... jus' waiting for the powers that be, that control his fate, to show up...<BR/><BR/>and so they do. webshambo-ron now show an empty stall, devoid of the bollocks that the devotees strought so stridently to protect.<BR/> <BR/>it is such a shame...(cheers cheers)...@molesworth_1https://www.blogger.com/profile/12278870362360637173noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-62075726069844465702007-07-26T22:02:00.000+01:002007-07-26T22:02:00.000+01:00"The Tories have got virtually the whole of the na..."The Tories have got virtually the whole of the national press behind them... or they would have if they had half an ounce of initiative and were prepared to work for it."<BR/><BR/>Except that Labour have been shamelessly grovelling to the "Feral Media" or the Dirty Digger, to be more precise, for the last 13 years. I mean what happened to the Times??<BR/><BR/>If Major, Cameron and the others had knelt down in front of Murdoch, and given him a bit of executive relief, and said "thank you master" for the privilege, the way Bliar did and Broon still is, then perhaps they might have more friends in the MSM. But, I for one, am very glad they didn't demean themselves.<BR/><BR/>As for being useless, their not all diamonds I'm sure, but looking at the front bench that Labour have put up over the last ten years, I suspect the average teenage school sports team, could have done as much good and been a lot cheaper!Geezerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03642135656070350953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-9834026587266377782007-07-26T21:59:00.000+01:002007-07-26T21:59:00.000+01:00This comment has been removed by the author.Geezerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03642135656070350953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-14865751672816277122007-07-26T21:10:00.000+01:002007-07-26T21:10:00.000+01:00Oh no, geezer, spare us the whole 'It's all the fa...Oh no, geezer, spare us the whole 'It's all the fault of the nasty commie BBC' nonsense. The Tories have got virtually the whole of the national press behind them... or they would have if they had half an ounce of initiative and were prepared to work for it.<BR/><BR/>Why the hell wouldn't they!!! you ask, and the only answer I can give you is either a) because they are useless or b) because they are bone idle. My guess is that they are not idle.<BR/><BR/>Sit back and squeal about the BBC if you want, but you had better be prepared for a long time in the wilderness if that's your only strategy.Bob Piperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13792439016502695274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-36228207148989204892007-07-26T21:00:00.000+01:002007-07-26T21:00:00.000+01:00Well Mr Piper. They would have been known because ...Well Mr Piper. They would have been known because the terribly impartial BBC and ITN news, stuck them in the headlines at every opportunity, to crap on the Conservative government.<BR/>By contrast Broadcast news under a Labour government, have dumbed down domestic issues and prefer to talk about de-politicised subject matter, therefore give themselves (very conveniently) no reason to use the Conservative spokesman (not that the BBC do, even when they cover domestic issues) The pro-Labour/anti-Conservative bias in the media has much more to do with it. Why do people heap blame on the Shadow cabinet, when it is bloody obvious that they would be criticising the government, if they got the chance to do so publicly, Why the hell wouldn't they??? Although, they might have got used to being ignored for so long, that they don't try too hard anymore. But, please don't tell me they choose to be ignored and not kick this useless shower of an administration, at least on the big issues.Geezerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03642135656070350953noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214838.post-63580023970413761152007-07-26T20:42:00.000+01:002007-07-26T20:42:00.000+01:00Something to think about. When Labour went from le...Something to think about. When Labour went from left to centre, there was no other party on the left who could take votes.<BR/><BR/>The Tories have UKIP. Moving away from traditional views on Europe, tax and immigration will send the grassroots into UKIP arms.Liberal Republicanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15494973255399870603noreply@blogger.com