Pasties and jerry cans — who’d have thought that yesterday’s politics would descend into a roaring debate about two such innocuous items? And still the hullabaloo goes on. Most of today’s front pages lead with one or both of the stories, although I’d say it’s the jerry cans that win out overall. Thanks to Francis Maude’s suggestion that ‘a bit of extra fuel in a jerry can in the garage is a sensible precaution to take,’ we’re seeing headlines such as ‘Pumps go dry as ministers provoke panic’.
As with the pasty row, which James discussed yesterday evening, the political dangers of this stretch far beyond the actual matter at hand. The government’s fear will be that it becomes less about fuel and more about competence; a word that is being deployed like a weapon by Labour this morning. It may be an exaggeration to say that motorists rushed out on the advice of the minister for the Cabinet Office, but it’s still slightly embarrassing that his advice met with official disapproval from the fire service. According to the London Fire Brigade, ‘It’s against the law to store more than 20 litres of petrol in two 10 litre metal containers, and 10 litres in two 5 litre plastic containers’ — which rather precludes a 21-litre jerry can.
Judging by the ministerial response since, Downing Street are being understanding of Maude. The specifics of his advice are being played down: Mike Penning described the jerry can line as a ‘mistake’ on Newsnight last night. But the generalities are being supported: Ed Davey has also spoken of ‘sensible precautions’ on the Beeb this morning. David Cameron will surely be hoping that today’s public service reform announcement (more on which later) also contributes to a calmer, sunnier atmosphere.
And for all the furore over fuel, there is a chance — a slim chance, perhaps — that the coalition could actually gain from it. So soon after the Cruddas affair, they now have an opportunity to play up Labour’s union links. As the Telegraph observes in one of its leaders today, ‘nearly half of all Labour MPs are sponsored by Unite,’ the union behind the dispute. Oh yes, cash and influence are troublesome matters for all the parties.
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