Gyles Brandreth gave an insightful interview to Radio 4's Week in Westminster programme this morning, on the dark arts of whipping. He revealed that in the dying days of the Major government the Tory Whips Office completely abused the pairing system by successfully pairing absent Ministers with BOTH Labour and LibDem MPs. Tsk Tsk. Still, needs must, I suppose. You can listen the interview HERE. Brandreth's diaries, Breaking the Code, are sadly out of print, but it's the best political book of the last decade in my view. If you haven't read it yet, you've missed out. You can buy a second hand copy HERE.Did I mention West Ham won their 6th game on the trot today? Thought not. 2-0 against Sunderland. Debut goal for Dean Ashton. Thought you'd be interested...
what could Labour do? uhm, maybe pairing every tories with Diane Abbott (when she's busy talking on Portillo's sofa).
ReplyDeleteThen send Jeremy Corbyn to campaign somewhere in Scotland (they could find a town council by-election everytime there's a crucial vote) and pair the LDs with him.
And finally change Chief Whip!
Despite Brandreth's diaries being out of print, Amazon seem to be selling new editions of the hardback form.
ReplyDelete