So, how did I do in my guess at Gordon's Cabinet. My original guesses can be seen HERE. I got 17 right, or 18 of you include Yvette Cooper. The only direct hits i Had (ie. the right people in the right job were Gordon Brown (difficult one, that) Hilary Benn, Baroness Scotland, Hazel Blears, Harriet Harman, Alistair Darling and James Purnell - 8 out of 22 - not too bad a strike rate.
I'll be putting my head on the block on a Tory reshuffle tomorrow. I have another article in the Telegraph (this time in the news pages) on this subject.
told you had made a mistake on andy burnham.
ReplyDeletePretty good, Iain, but not as good as the writer of the following post to BBC's Have Your Say:
ReplyDeleteI am really concerned that Ruth Ellis has been given the job of transport minister. She made a hash of education and was equally unimpressive in her latest post with the HIPs flop. Surely Gordon doesn't want to let her loose on transport
Funniest HYS I've read
Auntie Flo'
Deckchairs on Titanic time again eh?!
ReplyDeletein baseball, you would be batting .364. Such an average would place among the better hitters in the game.
ReplyDeleteMalloch Brown - George Soros's tea boy and the guy who covered up things for the UN in North Korea and Oil for Food.... methinks Soros now has an inside man in the British Government.... needs to be watched very closely.
ReplyDeleteWell done Iain. Discarding Broon on your figures (7/21) you exceeded my prediction of direct hits by just over 3%. But on the real figures (one less) I think you got 6/21 and so were indeed under 30%.
ReplyDeleteAbout 75% on the names. Not bad.
But you didn't think Ruth Kelly would be there or that Peter Hain would have a department!
ReplyDeleteWhat made you think Brown would give an old fossil like Kinnock the leadership in the Lords - Gordon has no sense of irony.
Victor
David or Dave as I call him must have a very short memory. As my inside man in the Tories and now Tory leader. How much fun I had on Black Wednesday! Thanks to you Dave.
ReplyDeleteOuch. Getting caught out again by Chris Fool not being able to add up is tragic Iain. Do you never think of counting to ten (or nine or eleven) before pressing the publish button?
ReplyDeleteHe'll no doubt be bellyaching that you incorrect story about no Minister for London and SE has still not been withdrawn or corrected.
'only' 8 from 22 - that is pretty good and you can be proud of your self !
ReplyDeleteMing is looking somewhat confused on Question Time - 'What am I doing here?'
Statistically speaking, I visited this blog last June and I'm sure Iain Dale was 44 then. Has he discovered the secret of eternal youth as well the inner workings of Gordon Brown's frontal lobe?
ReplyDeleteJust waiting for an Yvette Cooper 'foot-in-mouth' gaffe on QT..
ReplyDeleteLord Blair of Wormwood Scrubs to be shadow leader of the House of lords in a job-share with Lord Archer?
ReplyDeleteAfrica, Asia and UN: Lord Malloch Brown
ReplyDeleteKofi's fixer on oil for food and Soros' poodle. Why would Brown want him anywhere near HMG ?
How is Blair's MP's/PM's pension effected by his decision to leave the house immediately?
ReplyDeleteDo MP's retire on a pension based on the last 12 months of their employ?
Is Blair leaving to maximise his MP's/PM's pension?
I was thinking earlier that Gordon Brown pulled off a masterstroke creating the department of innovation and universities, or whatever it's called. Why? Because the Tories will have to shadow it with someone of full shadow cabinet rank.
ReplyDeleteWhich means Boris, without whom the Tories' support among students would probably be massively reduced.
I wonder if Dave dares do it?
BJ, you have preempted my Telegraph article today... Watch this space.
ReplyDeleteDiane Abbott:
ReplyDeleteThe reason that Blair stood down as an MP immediately was to avoid having to declare ALL his earnings from outside The House.
Tapestry, I was born on 15 July 1962. Work it out.
ReplyDeleteSame as my sister.
ReplyDeletePleased that facts are separated clearly from opinion, and are completely correct.
Gordon wants the end of the culture of celebrity, but is desperate to recruit some from other Parties.
I'm sure Iain Dale was 44 then. Has he discovered the secret of eternal youth as well the inner
ReplyDeleteIt is waist size not age - careful dieting keeps it constant
Look out for Yvette Cooper.... a tough cookie...nasty with it ...behind that smile she's searching where to place the knife.
ReplyDeleteHow many of Broon's cabinet have family backgrounds outside the public sector?
ReplyDeleteMillipede 1 and 2 sons of a barking mad Prof of Politics for example. How many others come from backgrounds which were either directly or indirectly linked to the public sector?
Hang on a sec.... DONT PANIC, then you claim “Camera On” will reshuffle his also-rans tomorrow. Isn’t that panicking?
ReplyDeleteBy coincedence I also scored 8 direct hits, and got 17 of the 21 names. The ones I didn't predict were Woodward, Hoon, Des Browne, and Ruth Kelly.
ReplyDelete