Friday, November 10, 2006

Bernard Jenkin Reports Daily Mirror to the PCC

Bernard Jenkin has complained to the Press Complaints Commission about their reporting of his departure as Deputy Chairman in Charge of Candidates. They said he had been sacked over his remarks to Ali Miraj, whereas in fact this issue was not raised in his conversation with David Cameron. Bernard makes clear that he was offered an alternative post and it was his decision to return to the back benches. Here's the text of Bernard's letter to the Daily Mirror...

The top line of your piece about the ending of my Deputy Chairmanship of the Conservative Party is wholly inaccurate. Rosa Prince wrote: “The Tory MP in charge of selecting candidates was last night sacked for allegedly telling an Asian hopeful he would not win a seat because of his colour”. I was grateful to Rosa Prince for carrying my comment on this allegation, but to allege that I was sacked “for allegedly telling an Asian candidate … etc.” is factually wrong. She failed to report that both I and the Leader of the Conservative Party, David Cameron, were at pains to point out that my departure was wholly unrelated to any allegations by Mr Miraj. The key premise of your story is speculation reported as fact, and is therefore in breach of the Press Complaints Commission Code of Conduct.

The Press Complaints Commission Code of Practice states:-


1. Accuracy

i) The Press must take care not to publish inaccurate, misleading or distorted information, including pictures.
ii) A significant inaccuracy, mis-leading statement or distortion once recognised must be corrected, promptly and with due prominence, and - where appropriate - an apology published.

I therefore would ask you to correct the misleading impression you have created, making it clear that my departure had nothing to do with Mr Miraj’s allegations, and apologise for the misleading impression you left on your readers.

Yours sincerely,
Bernard Jenkin MP


This is a very sorry affair. I haven't commented on Ali Miraj's remarks on his failure to be selected so far, but he has had a lorryload of criticism from the readers of ConservativeHome. He's very frustrated and unfortunately let that frustration boil over onto his blog. His main point seemed to be that having fought two seats before, he felt it was his turn to get a good seat. Politics just doesn't work like that. The whole selection process has always been a complete lottery in all parties. Usually, just when you're on the point of giving up, something turns up - look at Nick Herbert's experience before the last election. The secret is to stick with it, vent your frustration privately to your friends, but calm down before you do anything you might regret later. I really hope that Ali persists, and also that this episode is not held against him.

I'm not sure a complaint to the Press Complaints Commission will do anything to dampen down the whole story, but Bernard understandably feels the record must be put straight.

UPDATE: Bernard's local newspaper has printed this apology...

"BERNARD JENKIN MP - correction and apology

We wish to make it clear that Bernard Jenkin MP made absolutely no 'negative' comment about an Asian candidate. We recognise that Mr Jenkin has been working very hard to promote black and minority ethnic candidates for the Conservative Party. We also should have reported that both Mr Jenkin and David Cameron MP, Leader of the Conservative Party, have made it clear that Mr Jenkin's resignation as Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party is entirely unconnected with comments made by an Asian candidate, and that Mr Jenkin had told us that he agreed with Mr Cameron to resign before either were aware of any such comments. We apologise to Mr Jenkin and to the Conservative Party."

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

The PCC's usually bloody useless anyway; they've always got an excuse for why in that particular situation their perfectly clear guidelines don't apply...
He's better suing them for libel

Sir-C4' said...

Mr. Miraj seems to think that coming from an ethnic minority gives him special politics favours. Such thinking is politically correct nonsense and un-Conservative!

CityUnslicker said...

Just as well Doughty street was able to debate the issue with Bernard before he decided to leave.

Anonymous said...
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Praguetory said...

You wish that what Ali has done won't be held against him? Exactly, why not? A man should be judged on his actions.

Anonymous said...

there are no muslim tory mps. why? you have top quality muslim men and women trying to get seats with you but not a simgle muslim mp. you need to open up your party if you want to govern the UK again. and please dont just have a solitary token muslim, that is just self degrading pr. there should be a few muslims next time round along with loads of women or you will be seen by all muslims and also other non-tories as not having changed at all.

Anonymous said...

Iain, your take on this unfortunate situation is,as usual, spot on.

Johnny Norfolk said...

These are the dangers when you start down the road of some sort of positive discrimination. When someone from a minority group is not picked they feel thay have not had special consideration.
As they have had their hopes built up that they will have special treatment.
I am sure there are many people that have tried many times and have never been selected.
Leave the selection process alone it will do more harm than good.

Anonymous said...

I may be sitting on the fence here, but does it matter what the Mirror says? If there is one paper that is generally loathed and seen as a rag it is the Mirror, even by it's own readers.

Bernard Jenkins would do better to just go to the back benches quietly and with the least of fuss, and Ali Miraj, from what I can see, is better kept out of the lists and never allowed anywhere near a safe seat if this is how he behaves; who does he think he is anyways? And I see somebody has to try and use the ethnic religion card...just because you are muslim doesn't give you any special dispensation, and likewise it shouldn't. Just because there are no muslim MP's doesn't mean there must be one.

Anonymous said...

C'mon, cut the man some slack. If you can't whine and bitch on your own blog, where CAN you? Every blogger is entitled to one "I hate my parents, school is hard and nobody likes me!" post per year.

David Lindsay said...

Neither Ali Miraj nor any other Cameron A-lister need really worry. At least one of them is unable to explain when, how or why she ever left the Labour Party (which she only ever joined because of Tony Blair), leading one to assume that she has not in fact done so at all, a matter which the Labour Party's Senior Constitutional Officer (Eric Wilson -- Eric_Wilson@labour.org.uk) refuses point blank to investigate. There are no doubt many more in the same position. Are they all, perhaps?

Labour members or not, the A-listers are all members of the Blameronite Party (formerly the Blairtilloite Party). That organisation has its own source of funds, namely the criminal sale of peerages out of Tony Blair's office, whence its Publicity Department is also briefing furiously in favour of a Cameron victory over Gordon Brown as, to no one's surprise, Blair's preferred outcome to the next General Election, an outcome for which Blair will undoubtedly vote in the privacy of the polling booth.

So Mr Miraj and the rest of the Blameronite A-list can sleep easy. If Conservative Associations will not take them, then loyalist Labour MPs for safe seats will be found to announce their retirements, in return for peerages, far too late for the normal selection procedures, thus enabling the National Executive Committee to impose absolutely anyone it pleases. And guess who they will be.

Ah, the wonders of living in a one-party state!

Dangerouslysubversivedad said...

What a tosser this Miraj guy is. Just another prick who thinks the world and everyone in it owes him something extra because he is on the darker side of pale. What a disgrace the Tory Party has become that it would even let a weasel like that near a selction list, let alone fight seats for them on previous occasions.