Politics Archives

Monday

30 Apr 2012

An anti-Labour leaflet in a pro-Labour font

The leaflet pictured above landed on my doorstep in Peckham last week. It’s the most interesting piece of election literature I’ve received this year — not because of its words, but because of its graphic design. If you read it closely, it appears to be an official communication from the Tories. The legally mandated imprint declares it to be ‘Promoted by Ian Sanderson on behalf of the Conservative Party, both of 30 Millbank, London SW1P 4DP’ — and that would accord with its strongly anti-Ken Livingstone text. If you don’t examine it closely, however, it appears to be an official communication from Labour. The highlighted details are red, and all

The Spectator

Just in case you missed them… | 30 April 2012

James Forsyth highlights David Cameron’s warning about the eurozone, and previews the coming battle over pensioners’ benefits. David Blackburn reports on a weekend to forget for the Tories, and wonders whether Grant Shapps is in line for a promotion. Melanie McDonagh analyses the ongoing row over the Catholic Church and gay marriage. Jonathan Jones brings you the Comedian-in-Chief. Sebastian Payne gives his take on Boris and the ‘jaws of death’. Rod Liddle covers a case of sweet revenge. Alex Massie presents another dose of Saturday Morning Country. The Spectator Arts Blog praises Peter Hain as a ‘man of courage and conviction’. And the Spectator Book Blog’s latest Bookbencher is Kate

James Forsyth

Modernisation comes to the 1922 Committee

Christopher Chope is the only officer of the 1922 Committee who will be challenged by the 301 Group backed slate of broadly pro-leadership candidates. It is running two candidates for the two posts of secretary: Charlie Elphicke the popular, campaigning MP for Dover and Karen Bradley, the MP for Staffordshire Moorlands. Where the slate is running the most candidates is for the executive, full list below. But here great care appears to have been taken to come up with an inclusive list. For example, the group is supporting Adam Holloway who resigned as a PPS to vote for the EU referendum motion. It is also endorsing Penny Mordaunt, one of

Sunday

29 Apr 2012

James Forsyth

Cameron’s Euro line

One line jumped out at me in David Cameron’s Marr interview this morning. When Andrew Marr asked him if he thought we were halfway through the Euro crisis or nearing the end of it, Cameron replied: ‘I don’t think we’re anywhere near half way through it.’ Cameron clearly does not believe that any resolution to the crisis is in sight. Given that, as long as the Eurozone crisis rumbles on it is hard to see how the British economy returns to robust growth, this is immensely significant. It does, though, make me wonder if the government’s approach to the crisis should now change. If the Eurozone isn’t going to accept,

Jerry Hayes

A man of courage and conviction

Whatever you might think about Peter Hain, he has proved himself to be a man of great personal courage and conviction. Of course, when it comes to being a British politician he is not a lot better than any of the others. But at least he has done something. Where Hain showed his mettle was well before he even lived in Britain, let alone became an MP or a minister. It was as a small boy in South Africa, where he joined forces with his amazingly brave and dedicated parents in their struggle against Apartheid. For this alone, his autobiography, Outside In is a remarkable and sometimes inspiring read. For

The Spectator

Bookbenchers: Kate Hoey MP

Kate Hoey, the independent minded Labour MP for Vauxhall, is in the hot seat this week. She’s reading Boris on London and would save The Pilgrim’s Progress from a burning library. 1) Which book’s on your bedside table at the moment? Johnson’s Life of London by Boris Johnson 2) Which book would you read to your children? Every Child’s Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, retold by Derek McCulloch and illustrated by Geoffrey Fletcher. 3) Which literary character would you most like to be? Jo from Little Women by Lousia May Alcott 4) Which book do you think best sums up ‘now’? Londoners: The days and nights of London Now, as

Sebastian Payne

Boris unleashes his final weapon: ‘the jaws of death’

Boris Johnson has granted a killer interview to the Sunday Telegraph, where he has unleashed a full-on strike against government. Such a move is calculated to draw a distinction between Boris and the flailing government. The most notable attack is saved for his arch-rival — the chancellor — and the upcoming battle(s) he would face upon re-election: ‘We’ve saved Crossrail from the jaws of death – aka George Osborne….I don’t mind having a row in Whitehall, I don’t mind how much plaster comes off the ceiling, providing it’s done in a robust and sensible way and London gets the money it needs.’ Boris does not go easy on the rest

David Blackburn

Cameron on the defensive

‘As things stand, I don’t believe Jeremy Hunt broke the ministerial code,’ said David Cameron to Andrew Marr earlier this morning. But the prime minister reiterated that he would act if new evidence came to light when Jeremy Hunt gives evidence to the Leveson inquiry. Cameron also indicated that he would not wait until Leveson reports in October to punish a breach of the ministerial code. And if Leveson does not clear up the issue, then the Hunt case would be referred to Sir Alex Allan. ‘I know my responsibilities,’ Cameron said time and again. In addition to putting Jeremy Hunt on probation, Cameron took the opportunity to defend his

Saturday

28 Apr 2012

The Spectator

Leave those Lords alone

The Joint Committee on the Draft House of Lords Reform Bill could have saved itself a lot of bother if, instead of producing a lengthy report, it had simply quoted the words of Lucius Cary, 2nd Viscount Falkland, in the House of Lords in 1641: ‘When it is not necessary to change, it is necessary not to change.’ That was the attitude of the British people, expressed as eloquently as can be through a ballot box, the last time that a proposal to change the British constitution was put to them a year ago. The alternative vote system was rejected as emphatically as Lords reform would be if the public

David Blackburn

A weekend to forget for the blue team

The Conservatives get a battering in tomorrow’s papers. Jeremy Hunt graces the front pages of the Observer and the Indy. The Sunday Express has an Angus Reid poll that finds 82 per cent of ordinary voters think the coalition is out of touch. The Mail on Sunday has given space for Ed Miliband to attack David Cameron. And Boris has told the Sunday Telegraph that now is the time for more tax cuts (he also refers to George Osborne as ‘the jaws of death’). Needless to say, Boris is bucking the national trend – still the favourite to win London, although it’s bound to be close. The paper also covers

David Blackburn

Shapps leading a reshuffled pack?

The wettest drought on record has made work for idle thumbs on Twitter this afternoon. There is a smattering of reshuffle chatter about, prompted by the ‘omnishambles’ as much as the rain. The gossip is inspired by this report in the Mail, which tells of more rumours that Ken Clarke and Caroline Spelman are for the chop, together with Baroness Warsi. Meanwhile, as James reported a couple of weeks ago, Andrew Lansley has ingratiated his way back into the safety of the inner sanctum. Promotion has been complicated by the allegations engulfing Jeremy Hunt, who has, of course, been tipped for the very top. The names among the favoured Tory ministers remain fairly

David Blackburn

Cameron sits tight on Hunt

Downing Street has indicated that it will not pre-empt the Leveson inquiry by investigating the Culture Secretary’s role in the News Corp takeover of BSkyB. The government is keen to avoid calling a private inquiry that will, in the words of Tory deputy chairman Michael Fallon, ‘cut across’ the judicial inquiry. Hunt will appear under oath next month to lay out all evidence pertaining to the takeover, including all emails and texts sent to his then special advisor, Adam Smith. A Downing Street spokesman said that the Prime Minister ‘will of course’ act if Hunt’s evidence suggests he was in breach of the ministerial code. Downing Street has moved after

James Forsyth

The pensioners’ benefits battle

During the last election campaign, David Cameron repeatedly promised to protect pensioner benefits. In one of the most heated moments in the Prime Ministerial debates, Cameron accused Labour of telling ‘lies’ when they said the Tories would cut things like the winter fuel allowance, the free TV license for the elderly and the like. For this reason, these benefits have, basically, been protected in government despite all the other cuts. But both the Liberal Democrats and Iain Duncan Smith have been arguing behind the scenes that these benefits shouldn’t be protected, that they are not an efficient use of money. It is in this context, that Iain Duncan Smith’s intervention

David Blackburn

Leveson shows his teeth

The Leveson inquiry has rebuffed the government’s suggestion that it should decide on the probity of Jeremy Hunt’s actions during the notorious BSkyB bid. The inquiry says that alleged breaches of the ministerial code do not fall within its remit. A spokesman for the inquiry also quashed Nick Clegg’s claim that ‘we’ve already got an agreement Jeremy Hunt will go to the Leveson [inquiry] pretty quick.’ An inquiry spokesman said that it would not be fair to bring forward Hunt’s appearance. The Culture Secretary will appear in the middle of May. These developments are an embarrassment for David Cameron, emphasising that he has not called an inquiry into the Hunt

James Forsyth

Politics: Cameron’s season of sorrows is not over yet

The black dog has descended on Whitehall. Tory ministers are, as a group, at their lowest ebb since they entered government. When I saw one secretary of state this week, he stopped halfway through our meeting to say, ‘I’m sorry this is such a depressing conversation’. He then continued in the same vein. Even the normally Tiggerish Prime Minister is in a bit of an Eeyoreish mood. I’m told that he seems more tired and down than at any point since he took on the job. This funk is a result of a difficult few weeks for the government. Granny tax was followed by pastygate, which compounded the damage done

Fraser Nelson

It has to be Boris

The government’s failings have hampered his campaign but he must prevail A few weeks ago, Michael Gove addressed a crowd of Tory activists in the basement of a London hotel. He wanted to disabuse them of what he regarded as a dangerous notion. The London mayoral election, he said, was not about Boris Johnson vs Ken Livingstone; the stakes were far higher than one man for one city. They had nationwide implications. This is a critical moment in the lifetime of parliament, he said, which will set the trajectory for the next few years — for good or for ill. The London election was one of these very rare ‘watershed

Tanya Gold

Handshake fatigue

On the campaign trail with London’s would-be mayors The mayoral election is, to my eyes, two pantomime dames bickering about who gets to eat the scenery. I join it at the church hustings, St James’s Piccadilly. Boris Johnson enters, hands deep in hair, five points ahead in the polls. He sits down and gives the audience that swift, forensic look. Ken is at the other end of the table — he is tanned in a tan suit, a man who might walk into a desert and be lost. Brian Paddick and Jenny Jones separate them; it’s safer that way. The chair, George Pitcher, is a Richard Curtis-themed vicar, with glowing

Rod Liddle

The meaning of Nadine Dorries

I was in the back of a cab with Nadine Dorries once. It was after some event where politicians and the press meet up to propagate their unhealthy relationships with one another at someone else’s expense, probably yours. I can’t remember exactly what it was. All I remember is this apparently perpetually furious woman ranting at me, a whirling bleached-blonde cloud of vituperation and contumely, with the vestigial tail of a scouse accent — like the bastard offspring of a semi-articulate Tasmanian Devil and the late Bessie Braddock MP. Simon Hoggart was with us too and he just sort of merged imperceptibly with the taxi seat and became invisible. He

Tom Bower

Dangerous liaisons | 28 April 2012

Ever since Andy Coulson was forced to resign as Downing Street’s media supremo, Westminster’s malcontents have gossiped about the prospect of Rupert Murdoch wreaking revenge for Cameron’s impulsive creation of an inquiry into press ethics. More recently, cynics whispered that the Sunday Times exposure of Peter Cruddas, the Conservative treasurer offering access to the Camerons in exchange for donations, was the gypsy’s warning of horrors to come. And now we have the revelations about the Murdochs’ secret negotiations with the government to take full control of BSkyB. The Murdochs’ appearance this week at the Leveson inquiry fatally threatens the Cameron project and probably destroys Tory hopes of recovering their reputation

Mark Mason

Get a grip, chaps

There’s too much male blubbing in public life Last Sunday’s London Marathon had me in tears. Not as I battled agonisingly through the wall at 20 miles. No, I was at home on the sofa, with the digestives. And yet again — it happens every year — I blubbed softly at the inspirational tales, the people running in memory of friends who’d died, the sheer personal achievement of everyone involved. This year, though, another thought entered my reckoning. It was the memory of another male who confessed to crying at the television: Ed Balls. A couple of months ago he told how he often cries at the Antiques Roadshow, when