It May Be the World's Favourite Airline But It's Not Mine

Can anyone think of another airline that inconveniences its passengers as often as British Airways? Every year they seem to have at least one strike. And that, ladies and gentleman, is why they can whistle for my custom. I'm going to Washington DC at the end of February for a week and it hasn't even crossed my mind to fly with them. When they finally get their act together I may change my mind.

Ruth Turner: Things Can Only Get Worse

Sometimes it just just isn't your week. maybe your biorhythms are playing up, or maybe your luck is just out. For Ruth Turner it's been a terrible few days. And according to Tribune Magazine it may get even worse, for she stands accused of interfering in Labour Party candidate selections and bending Party rules.

"A formal complaint has been made by a deselected sitting MP [Ian Stewart] who was told he could not have access to party records because it had been decided he was "going to the Lords". Downing Street, senior Blairite party officials and at least one loyalist MP are embroiled in the allegations of irregularities, which point to a concerted effort to oust non-Blairites from standing...Downing Street insiders and senior ministers have confirmed that Ruth Turner, Number 10's director of government relations, co-ordinated party staff, MPs and ministers to assist Ms [Barbara] Keeley. Ms Turner is paid by Labour and is technically a member of the party's staff. As such, she is bound by the party's rules, which state that staff are barred from actively supporting any candidate in internal party elections or selections. Ms Turner was contacted on several occasions but did not return Tribune's calls."

That maybe because she was, er, otherwise engaged with Inspector Knacker, perhaps. It all concerns the selections in Salford where Barbara Keeley beat off Ian Strwart for the nomination and he now has to beat off the challenge from Hazel Blears. The full story is HERE on LabourHome and very entertaining reading it is too.

Labour Orders Police Committee Chief to 'Clarify' Remarks

Yesterday, the chairman of the Metropolitan Police Authority, Len Duvall, issued a statement warning Labour politicians not to try to influence the Cash for Honours Inquiry. I posted it HERE. This afternoon he has sought to, er, clarify his remarks...

'In the Sunday Times article today on the cash for honours inquiry some of my comments could be misconstrued as referring to the strength or nature of the evidence. This is not so. 'My comments were primarily focused around my concerns for the way in which some people appeared to be questioning the behaviour, conduct and motives of police officers involved in this inquiry. What I did say was that it is wrong for anyone, no matter who they are, to attempt to interfere with or try and influence the way in which police carry out their investigations. Those people who made what I consider to be inadvisable remarks around recent events connected with this inquiry should reflect on the appropriateness of what they have said.
They know the police are fully accountable for their actions and are involved in a complex and difficult investigation, and everyone should cooperate fully. I would also like to add that on further reflection, and having had the opportunity to re-examine what Tessa Jowell said, I am now quite clear she was not commenting on the way in which police are conducting the inquiry. Also, I was not implying she or her husband were involved in any wrongdoing nor that I had evidence suggesting that was so.'

Now call me an old cynic if you like, but you don't reckon he's been 'got at' do you? Nah, thought not. After all, the Labour Party doesn't do bullying, does it? They're not like Jade, are they? I'll just get my coat.

UPDATE: Dizzy thinks the same HERE.

Why Tom Watson Resigned...Or Is It?

Tom Watson MP writes on his BLOG today... "One day I’ll tell you the whole story about my reasons for choosing to leave government."

I'm sure his readers are salivating in anticipation as am I. However, I thought it was fairly clear as to why he "left". Wasn't the sequence of events something like this...

1. Watson organises group of junior Ministers & PPSs to call on Blair to quit
2. Watson drives to Fife to tell Gordon Brown
3. Watson drives back to the West Midlands having accomplished mission
4. Letter is sent to Blair
5. Letter is leaked to press
6. Brown displays typical cowardice and denies all knowledge
7. Whips very angry
8. Whips tell Watson to fall on his sword
9. Watson falls on his sword
10. Watson becomes first Minister to resign to spend more time with his blog

Or am I wrong? Only Tom can tell us...

Lieberman Explains Why We Have to Stick With Iraq

My colleague at 18 Doughty Street, Tim Montgomerie, is a self confessed hawk when it comes to Iraq. He never ceases to extoll the courage and bravery of Sen. Joe Lieberman, who nearly lost his Senate seat over his opposition to the Democratic opposition to the War in Iraq. So when he sent me an email urging me to read THIS interview with Lieberman in the Washington Post today I admit I sighed a little, and thought to myself, 'later'.

But I have now read it, and found it to be quite a revelation. If, like me, you supported the war 100% but have had a few doubts about the wisdom of it in recent months, you should read it HERE. It explains in blunt terms why we have to stick with it and what the rewards are, but more importantly what the downside is if we don't.

Singing from the Same Hymn Sheet (Not)

"[If the Gambling Act] gave rise to an increase in problem gambling it would be bad legislation."
Tessa Jowell, Culture Secretary

Interviewer: Could the Act give rise to a rise in problem gambling?
Richard Caborn: Absolutely. If there were increases, we could arrest that.

Richard Caborn is Jowell's junior Minister at the DCMS. it seems you don't even get joined up Government within the same government department nowadays.

Comment Moderation Is Off...For Now

As an experiment I have switched off the Comment Moderation on this blog. If anyone sees a comment which they think needs my attention please email me. I suspect I will be forced to switch it on again within about half an hour, but let's see.

The reason I am doing this is because I want to encourage more spontaneous debate. I can normally approve comments fairly quickly even if I am away from my laptop as I can now do it through my Blackberry, but block approving 30 or 40 comments does tend to stifle an immediate debate.

My policy on comments is quite simple. I do not delete comments unless they are gratuitously offensive or contain a serious of four letter words. I allow comments criticising me personally unless they are Anonymous, in which case they may well get deleted.

Please do not write essays. If you want to do so, please get your own blog.

Sunday Sleaze Round-Up

The NEWS OF THE WORLD says that a Downing Street mole tipped off Police about emails which Ruth Turner had allegedly not disclosed. The PM's office tried to block a trawl of Number Ten computers but failed.

The front page of the SUNDAY TELEGRAPH says that Police have hacked into Number Ten computers, having been given permission to do so by the Information Commissioner. It also says Gordon Brown stands accused of doing favours for Lakshmi Mittal and that Police have not ruled out re-interviewing Tony Blair. Matthew D'Ancona says that there is now pressure on the Police to deliver the goods.

The INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY manages to get round to mentioning Cash for Peerages on page 10 and says Police are warning No 10 that 'no one is above the law'. They also allege that Blair is considering giving Lakshmi Mittal a Peerage in his resignation Honours List. John Rentoul says that Brown may use this crisis as an excuse to ' strike at Blair'.

The MAIL ON SUNDAY has a front page story about Cherie Blair's freebies and her telling the Cabinet Secretary that he was infringing her human rights. She lashed out when the Cabinet Secretary challenged her for accepting the clothes, telling him: "You are infringing my rights under the European Convention on Human Rights." Dear God.

The OBSERVER says on its front page that Downing Street and the Police have been plunge dinto a full-scale war. Andrew Rawnsley ruminates on who will be the next to get a 'chilling knock at the door'.

The SUNDAY TIMES leads on Police fury at Number Ten smears. It devotes pages 4 and 5 to the Inquiry and it's leader column asserts that Tony Blair will not be able to escape from it.

BBC Buries Cash for Peerages News

So there we have it. Britain's premier current affairs interview programme managed to get through a whole hour with barely a mention of the Cash for Peerages Inquiry which dominates the news and the Sunday papers. No mention of it in the BBC news bulletins, no mention of it in the newspaper review with Trevor Phillips and Jane Moore, one patsy question for Lord Falconer who said he wasn't playing and that was, er, it.

Even more astonishing is that the Cash for Peerages Inquiry doesn't even feature in the top three stories on the BBC News Politics section. What on earth is going on with BBC news judgement?

So it looks like John Reid's announcement on splitting the Home Office up has done the trick and buried the news they don't want to discuss. And the media has fallen for it. What's the betting that in a few weeks time we will read a short story of page 5 of The Guardian headline REID SHELVES HOME OFFICE SPLIT PLAN? Mission accomplished. Makes you sick. Later on this morning I'll be posting a roundup of what's in the Sunday newspapers

Greater Love Hath No Man Than He Lay Down The BBC Trust For His Friend

Before I start, let me declare an interest. I know David Puttnam and I like him. But I am bemused by his staunch defence of Ruth Turner, Tony Blair's Director of Government Relations (she's not an 'aide' and the BBC keep calling her - she's pretty damn high up in the Downing Street hierarchy). I know Ruth Turner used to work for Puttnam and he thinks very highly of her, but by touring the TV studios yesterday defending her honour he has effectively ruled himself out of becoming Chairman of the new BBC Trust, a post for which he is ideally suited IMHO and was seen as the front runner.

Defending the honour of your friend is a laudable thing to do, but commenting on a police inquiry and effectively making a party political point is not the best strategy if you want to head up a supposedly impartial body like the BBC Trust. In today's Observer Puttnam goes one stage further and says: "It could affect the outcome of the next election,' says Puttnam. 'And there's another factor - who is going to repair the damage to Ruth? Apologies are no good."

It seems the good Lord has become an unguided missile. Unguided missiles can be very dangerous, particularly when they have been primed. Downing Street take note. I think this is a space which needs to be watched.

A Good Evening to Bury Bad News?

The BBC has just run a STORY about John Reid wanting to break up the Home Office. Surely this couldn't be a deflection tactic could it? I haven't seen the Sunday papers yet, but it wouldn't surprise me at all if there was another Cash for Honours revelation and the Labour spin doctors have thought to themselves: 'what shall we use to draw attention away from it'? Cynical, ain't I?

UPDATE: Looks like I was right... This has just appeared on PA...

The News of the World reported that the arrest followed the unearthing of fresh information during a search of the Number 10 computer system. It said it was informed by sources within the Crown Prosecution Service that a "mole" within Downing Street told the police about potentially-incriminating emails. An independent IT expert was then sent in by detectives, with the permission of Downing Street, to look through communications records, it claimed. But the Sunday Telegraph suggested that detectives had obtained high-level permission to "hack" into the IT system remotely.

Police Complain of 'Political Interference' in Honours Inquiry

In contrast to the inappropriate comments by Tessa Jowell and the hysterical rantings of David Blunkett on the police behaviour in the Cash for Peerages inquiry, Ken Livingstone has been uncharacteristically statesmanlike. He has said that however uncomfortable it may be for the Labour Party, the Police have to do what is best to maximise the evidence. He said he had absolutely no intention of intervening to tell the Police how to do their job.

Meanwhile, senior officers in the inquiry have said that political interference in their work is putting their officers under undue pressure.

Strong stuff indeed. I wish I was doing the paper review tonight!

UPDATE: The following is a personal statement from Len Duvall, chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority regarding comments made in connection with the cash for honours inquiry:

'Throughout this investigation the police have, quite properly,
refused to comment except to confirm that, as in any other criminal inquiry,
they are following where the evidence leads. It seems to me that it is
inadvisable for others to comment, openly or behind the scenes, on the merits of
individual lines of inquiry until such time as the full picture can be revealed.
Those who have spoken out over the past 24 hours about the way in which police
are conducting this inquiry may well wish to reflect on what they have said.
'What is clear is that allegations of perverting the course of justice raise
very serious concerns. It is also clear that no one in this country is above the
law. 'As chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority I must be seen never to seek
to manipulate or pressurise senior officers in the Met on any operational
inquiry. Others would do well to follow my example.'

Gordon Brown is Not a Lucky Politician

To be a successful Prime Minister you have to be lucky. Margaret Thatcher was a lucky politician and so is Tony Blair. Gordon Brown is not. How unlucky was it for him to be in India just as the Big Brother racism row broke? How unlucky is it for him that the inflation rate hits its highest level for ten years and government debt has doubled, just as he's about to take over the top job? Well, that could be said to be his own fault, rather than bad luck, but you get my drift.

Urge Your MP to Sign EDM 670 on an English Parliament

Frank Field has tabled Early Day Motion 670 noting that voters have put the issue of an English parliament at the top of their priorities for constitutional reform. If you agree with this, write to your own MP and urge him or her to sign it too.

EDM 670

ENGLISH PARLIAMENT
17.01.2007
Field, Frank

Andrew Rosindell

James Gray

Lindsay Hoyle

David Taylor

Peter Luff

That this House notes that those polls that have questioned the English report a clear majority in favour of an English parliament; and further notes that it is this issue, and not Scottish independence or even House of Lords reform, that is the issue that voters now put at the top of their priorities for constitutional reform.

Sir Malcolm Rifkind Should Perfect the Sound of Silence

ConservativeHome reports HERE that Sir Malcolm Rifkind (for it is he) is positively encouraging Eurosceptics to defect to UKIP. Thanks Malc. Really helpful. What is it with these relics that they feel they have to clamber out of their political tombs every now and then? It's a kind of Attention Deficit Syndrome - they're crying out 'See? I'm still here. Look at me me me me me'. Some of us stopped looking in 1997. Anyway, now I've got that out of my system, let's look at what he's arguing for.

By arguing that Eurosceptics should defect to UKIP, Sir Malcolm is effectively saying that the Conservative Party should become a narrow based sect. Successful political parties are broad coalitions of people who agree on most issues but may differ on a few. Until the mid 1990s that's exactly what the Conservative Party was. Unfortunately it then discovered ideology and ideology over Europe become the Party's watchword. Look where that got us.

They don't come much more Eurosceptic than me, but I can quite happily co-exist in the same Party as Ken Clarke and Ian Taylor. I'll argue my case over European policy and they will argue theirs. It's quite clear who is in the majority in the Party, so to argue as Sir Malcolm effectively does that the majority should now leave the Party is just plain crazy. Frankly, there wouldn't be much of a Party left. If this is the most constructive thing Sir Malcolm has to say it is best to remain silent. As Sir Denis Thatcher once said to Fergie: "Better to say nothing and be thought a fool, than to open your mouth and remove any doubt."

You Couldn't Make It Up No 94

From tonight's Cambridge Evening News...

A SMOKER was refused cigarettes at a Cambridge store because the Muslim
shop assistant said it was against her religion to sell tobacco. A 31-year-old
woman, who asked not to be identified, was shocked when she attempted to buy a
pack of 20 cigarettes at the WH Smith store in Market Street and was turned
down. She said: "I asked for a pack of 20 Lambert & Butler and the woman
behind the desk asked me if they were cigarettes. "When I said they were she
told me that it was against her religion to sell them - I couldn't believe my
ears.

"I rang up the manager to complain and he said the shop assistant has
to ask someone else to serve them for her if a customer wants tobacco. "If she
had just said, I can't serve you, then that would have been fair enough, but the
thing that really annoyed me was the way she gave me a lecture as well. "She
started saying she doesn't agree with smoking, that it kills you - I was really
gob-smacked."

When contacted by the News, the store's assistant manager, who refused
to give her name, said: "It is true that Muslims can't sell cigarettes - I used
to be Jehovah's Witness and I wouldn't on religious grounds either."She said the
customer should have realised the shop assistant was a Muslim, and would not
sell her tobacco, because she was "sitting there in her full robes".

Asked why the store had someone who would not sell tobacco working behind
the till, she said: "It is against the law to discriminate against people on
religious grounds". However, a leading Muslim denied the claim it was against
Islam to sell tobacco, and said he had Muslim friends who smoke. Asim Mumtaz,
president of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Association in Cambridge, said: "I don't think
there is any basis for refusing to sell cigarettes. "Islam, like most religions,
is against anything that injures health or the body, but there is no ban on
cigarettes or on smoking. "The holy Koran is quite specific about
intoxicants, alcohol and other drugs which cause a person to lose control are
forbidden, but cigarettes are not forbidden so I am surprised by this."

And in Other Sleaze News Today...

Mr. Heald: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission if the Electoral Commission will re-commence its investigation into the admissibility of 5th Avenue Partners Ltd.'s donations following the conviction of Mr.
Michael Brown.
Peter Viggers: The Commission informs me that it continues to liaise with the City of London Police, whose investigation into the activities and status of 5th Avenue Partners Ltd. is ongoing, and it will consider carefully any information that has a bearing on the permissibility of donations made by the company.

That was the text of a PQ answered earlier this week, which I must apologise for missing at the time. Very uncharcteristic of me I am sure you will agree. Many sharp intakes of breath in LibDem HQ in Cowley Street one suspects.

Another Labour MP in Deselection Trouble

It looks like Labour MP Martin Linton is in a spot of trouble if THIS snippet from LabourHome is anything to go by.

The word on the grapevine is that Martin Linton is having some selection
trouble in Battersea. His recent "trigger ballot" to determine whether he gets
automatically adopted as candidate at the next general election resulted in him
failing to win a majority of CLP branch affirmative nominations. Don't know if
anyone can shed more light on what's going on there? Battersea has a
reputation for being a moderate, loyal and relatively active party so this seems
more than just a few "lefties" causing trouble for a new Labour MP... Whatever
the reasons, it's surely a massive humiliation that a three-term MP representing
London's most marginal seat can't win re-adoption overwhelmingly, isn't it? How
out-of-touch and/or complacent must he be to have allowed this to happen?

Blair Adviser Arrested in Cash for Peerages Inquiry

An hour ago it was announced that Tony Blair's Director of Government Relations, Ruth Turner, has been arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice. I'm not going to make much comment on this as she is innocent until proven guilty, but I will say that it is an unprecendented development in British political life for something like this to happen. I think those who thought the cash for peerages inquiry was going nowhere will be rapidly revising their opinion. And if my name were McTernan, Powell or Levy I'm not sure I'd be having a very good night's sleep tonight.

I Want to be an MP to Fight for People Like This...

If you've got a blog, please link to this story as it illustrates perfectly what's wrong with our country's immigration system. Mark Coleman is a white Zimbabwean national. He came to this country two years ago to escape Mugabe's terror regime. He's now being threatened with deportation. He doesn't qualify to stay under the Grand Parentage rule because both his Grandparents, although British subjects, were born in India rather than on British soil. The fact that his Grandfather fought for Britain during the war and was put in a Japanese Prisoner of War Camp is by the by. The Home Office say they will deport him if he doesn't leave voluntarily. They say he is no danger, yet he knows he is.

So while the Home Office lets dangerous criminals into the country without batting an eyelid and does nothing to deal with escaped foreign prisoners, they are insisting on deporting a law abiding man whose family have a history of serving this country. And to rub it in he was persuaded to apply for asylum by the Home Office who then refused him. Mark says:

"I think my grandparents will be turning in theor garves after everything
they did for this country, they fought for its freedom and this is how their
grandson is being treated.

Boris Johnson is his local MP and is fighting his cause. If ever any of us needed a reason as to why we want to go into politics, this case illustrates it - to fight for justice for those who the system lets down. Full story from the Telegraph HERE.