Politics

Fine balance
Dr Bob Spink, UKIP's latest acquisition, voted in favour of the 42 day detention plan. Thus he voted with Nulabour and against his old party the Tories. His explanation for this was that -

"he had to consider his 8,000 constituents who work in London, the front line of the terrorist threat".

But when Spink left the Tories for UKIP it would seem this group of his constituents were not the main reason for the move. In fact it is hard to see how any of his constituents played a part in the process, as he was expelled from the Tory Party. Also Dr Spink said that, along with many other MPs of all parties, he would be -

ten bob OK?
I assume you know that Gordon Brown has written a book on Courage? I mention this because it would, in the present climate, take real courage to be a political party fundraiser. Over time all political parties seem to come off worse on this subject, a sort of - where there's muck there's more muck scenario. Hence the need to keep the party Leader and the money a great distance apart at all times. So I say pity the poor fundraiser who must know the score when they take on the job. As, at the first sign of trouble they are supposed to fall on their sword and protect Number One, a sort of flanking manoeuvre to draw off the press corps; remember Lord Levy? So, damned if you don't get the money in, and damned if you do as well.

mother asleep It is often said, and here we go again that, 'a week is a long time in politics'. True, and we now wish we had placed a bet on the timing of a general election. For as those who set themselves up as being 'in the know' propelled each other forward from speculation to certainty, we had our doubts. We had no proof from polling, no reports from think tanks, but it did seem to us to be reckless and out of character for our new PM Gordon Brown to risk so soon the position he has waited for all these years. Also it is a long time, in real time as well as political, since the season of party conferences. Test yourself,can you remember the venue for this year's Liberal Democrat conference?

Dursley Pedersen bicycle Not so many weeks ago in a radio interview the present Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, got terribly excited as this year's Tour de France was starting from... London. According to Ken, here was another example, as if it were needed, that London was, under his thumb, doing it right. And then he went on to implore ordinary people to get a bike, to do their bit and 'help' etc. At no time was there a mention of the phalanx of vehicles that follows this event, and the fuel they burn, or the disruption caused.