Referendum-gate: the fallout
Peter Hoskin 8:57am
So, Wendy Alexander's standing firm in the face of calls for her to quit. Not good, says Alan Cochrane in today's Telegraph. His article is among the angriest you'll read all year - a perfect kickstart to the day. Here are some highlights:
"Wendy Alexander has landed Labour and Gordon Brown into one of the biggest political messes this observer has ever witnessed in 30 years of political reporting. And over a subject that should be at the very top - indeed is, at least as far as the Prime Minister is concerned - of the party's list of priorities: the maintenance of the United Kingdom.But this lady has been prepared to risk even that in a desperate bid to rescue her own hapless leadership, which has grown more inept with every week that passes...
...Last night there was no sign whatsoever of the limpet-like Ms Alexander "considering her position" - the normal euphemism for resignation.
With an arrogance that defies belief she was refusing to accept that she'd done anything wrong, just like she did when she thought that the most important thing the new Scottish Parliament should do was repeal a ban on teaching about homosexuality in schools.
Just like she did when she refused to accept Henry McLeish's order to accept the environment portfolio a few years ago.
Just like she did when she first of all said she'd contest the Labour leadership against Jack McConnell and then let down all her allies by backing down at the 11th hour.
Just like she did when she later walked out of Mr McConnell's cabinet.
And just like she did last year when she was found to have accepted illegal campaign donations...
...Whatever else we need in Scotland, we desperately need an effective opposition to counter the distinct appeal of Alex Salmond and the threat he poses to the Union. Ms Alexander has not only made the Labour Party a laughing stock; her antics are undermining support for the United Kingdom. For that reason alone she should go, and an Alex Salmond demolition job at First Minister's Questions today might just do the trick."
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Comments
Ewan Spence
May 8th, 2008 10:14amWe've been told for months that Tory hopes would be destroyed by an ill-timed word from Boris Johnson. Turns out we were watching the wrong party. Frankly I have more confidence in BoJo than Wee Wendy Alexander at the moment.
http://scottishsketch.wordpress.com/
simon
May 8th, 2008 10:37amBrown and his Scottish cronies are unbelievably duplicitous. They are all career politicians and lack shame. Brown and Wee Wendy will be in place limping shamelessly until the next general election call.
Water
May 8th, 2008 12:20pm"She's been hung out to dry', said Scottish Tory leader Annabel Goldie" and rightly so, she has no right to be wet.
Gareth
May 8th, 2008 12:23pmShe's quite sexy though
Nah, to think, after gordy backed her that she is now reneging on the deal is bizzare. This has the hand of gordy in it. and is therefore another nasty attempt at moving the agenda away from him. Sad man
Austin Barry
May 8th, 2008 12:49pmFor allegedly close friends of McBroon, Wendy and Douglas Alexander do cause him enormous grief - Duggie with his election advice last year and Wendy with the current and other messes. It may be of interest and concern to Gordon that both were chosen to take part in the "British-American Project for the Successor Generation" which was described by John Pilger in the New Statesman in 2003 as "a masonry of chosen politicians and journalists conceived by the far-right oil baron J. Howard Pew and launched by Ronald Reagan and Rupert Murdoch". Are the Alexanders perhaps a conservative sleeper cell activated upon Gordon's succession?
Frank Pulley
May 8th, 2008 1:11pmIf eyes are the windows of the soul, then Wendy and her bro are two envoys from hell and should be exorcised forthwith. Gordon is a bit iffy in that department too.
Austin Barry
May 8th, 2008 1:16pmWendy sexy? I always think she resembles her brother in drag. Come to think of it has anyone seen them together?
Ian C
May 8th, 2008 2:25pmIf you find goldfish shaped mouths sexy...?
But she has spilt the whole devolution can of worms, so we should be grateful. Salmond will clean up if the agenda is left in his hands, especially as GB has no credibilty left so someone had to do something. Wee Wendy, however far up his nose she has got, has at least diverted attention away from the recent disasters for GB south of the Border. And she has not dithered in the doing thereof. Now we will either get a schism between GB and Scottish Labour or we get progress towards halting the pace of devolution and the move to independence for Scotland is consequently checked/reversed.
Ian C
May 8th, 2008 2:29pmFollowing on from above:
Either way she has done us all a favour - GB gets slammed by all and sundry if he shafts her (presently the case) or GB gets shafted as he has denied her words (presently the case) and resistance to the Scots Nats starts now (not previously the case).
Verity
May 8th, 2008 2:41pmHer face looks like a grouper fish. Huge bulging eyes and a thick, petulant, gaping, greedy mouth. OK, on the fish it doesn't look too bad. On Alexander, it's hideous. OTOH, perhaps that's why "she's been hung out to dry" ...
phil
May 8th, 2008 2:43pmREALISE I AM BEING VERY NAIVE BUT CAN ANYONE EXPLAIN WHAT WENDY HAS DONE WRONG -IT SEEMS TO ME(AND NO DOUBT I WILL BE CORRECTED) THAT SHE IS BEING HONEST AND ASKING THAT THE SCOTTISH PEOPLE BE ALLOWED TO EXPRESS THEIR OPINION -ALSO THAT THAT THEY WILL WANT TO STAY IN THE UNION -what is it that I have not understood?
mitch
May 8th, 2008 2:51pmFirst Minister's question really is a joke. My kids know how to mis-behave better than that.
Frank Pulley
May 8th, 2008 3:09pmNever mind a Scottish referendum, when are we going to get an English referendum on the EU Constitution - as promised! Using that as a yardstick, Scotland will drift into separation by default, just as we are being inexorably and undemocratically consumed into the BEurocracy of Brussels. And we are rejoicing because the Tories won some local councils? Winning some little battles while losing three wars: to Brussels, to Islamic jihad and to multicultural mayhem. The triple whammy! What are you Boomers doing to our country? Have you no shame?
Frank Pulley
May 8th, 2008 6:32pmphil
Please try to master the shift key; putting whole paragraphs into caps won't make you sound less naive; on the contrary. It is the equivalent of shouting in the blog world. It would also help if you stopped seeking approval in every post -too many plaintive question marks! And all that faux modesty is wearing a bit thin. You'll never be all things to all men, so agree/disagree or make a new point and take your chances. As for Wendy, she is a socialist. What further explanation is necessary? Everything she says is wrong-headed and/or underhanded. Though you may agree with it, always look that particular gift horse in the mouth. Not in the eye though (at least not without the aid of a silver cross and a tuber of garlic).
BTW I assume that ruck about her campaign expenses got dumped in the 'leave it - it will go away tray' with all the other official corruption 'enquiries'?
As for Gareth - one assumes he is Welsh, which probably explains why he thinks Wendy is 'sexy'.
phil
May 10th, 2008 11:43ammr pulley -I have told you in the past not to give up your day job, you are no comedian-I asked a serious question from serious people ,not you -we don't need you getting off on your pathetic sarcasm at everyone's expense -I see you didn't provide an answer which is pretty typical of your style -just sad -if you want to make a fool of yourself why not pick some other way ?-as for the capitals -I,m having a temporary problem with the computer sorry it bothers you -I am sure worse things have happened to you .By the way the fact that Wendy is a -socialist should only worry bigots I am not and she doesn't worry me -PHIL