'They are all at it'

Image courtesy of the excellent Beau Bo D'or blog

"They are all at it". That was the headline of the Daily Mirror until about three hours ago. This has subsequently been changed.

Must have taken something big to change the lead story, surely?

You'd be right. As predicted last week, it looks as though the proverbial shit is hitting the fan. And all in time for the G20. Gordon must be happy.

Already tonight Hazel Blears has apologised for incorrectly claiming travel expenses. Guido Flawkes has lots more details on this story, but it basically looks as if she's been claiming near £500 per journey.

LabourList feature a quote, although not a direct response to the story yet, regarding the hands in the till syndrome seemingly sweeping through Parliament.

"Sleaze is eating away what's left of Labour's authority. Increasingly, voters feel MPs are only in it for themselves, and every new horror threatens another Labour seat. Of course, the Tories are as bad. But Labour supporters expect better of the people's party, and to be seen as sleazy as the Cons is cold comfort".

Kevin Maguire

Ouch. Has Maguire, basically the cheer-leader of Labour, really come to that conclusion? He is right though.

Newsnight have also ran with rumours circulating Westminster tonight. Could there possibly be a Tory moll within the Parliamentary authorities? I suspect there probably is.

But mole or no mole, this does not detract from the underlying story. Although I suspect many MPs shall be hoping it does. MPs, desperate to avoid being publicly outed, are now heading hands over heals to avoid the situation Smith, Blears, McNaulty and Conway have all found themselves in.

Expect plenty more from across the floor yet. Expect the government to look increasing red-faced and expect Gordon's own standing to drop even further. I'll update this as it develops.

G20 - Sink or sail moment for Gordon

Andrew Rawnsley's Observer article today proves essential reading.

The G20 meeting later this week shall undoubtedly prove a news-worthy event. Alongside President Obama there shall be a whole host of international statesmen and women. Cynically, it could be argued that it is because of President Obama that these leaders have paid so much attention to the G20, usually a mere meeting of finance ministers with a rather dull statement at the end.

Whether Gordon Brown can gain anything from this meeting is another matter.

As Rawnsley points out, Gordon has gone out of his way to 'hype' the meeting. Indeed, he has had two triumphs so far. Firstly, he has drawn the attention of leaders to this rather overlooked event. Secondly, drawing upon the presence of President Obama, who shall already be in London, adds another 'wow factor' to preceedings - not least an opportunity for a photoshoot with the new President.

But, Gordon is playing a very fine line.

If the conference fails to reach an overwhelming agreement, a new Breton Woods for the 21st century, Gordon risks landing egg on his face. Indeed, already Berlusconi and Merkell have voiced opposition to the way forward presented by Brown. However, if Gordon can succeed then he shall appear, on the international stage, to be the deal-broker, 'the fixer' if you like.

The chances of this are increasingly slim though. Downing Street has already notably tempered the language of Brown. No more is it the case than Gordon proclaims the emergence of international consensus in London, instead merely the hope of a mutual agreement.

The real problem for Gordon though is far outside of the meeting rooms of Whitehall. Although markets shall undoubtedly pay lip-service to any agreement in London, the confidence of the markets, and the resulting financial instability, is crucial. If Gordon, within 6-12 months is unable to show the famous green shoots of recovery then any appearance of international statementsmanship shall be scuppered.

Smith allegations merely the tip of the iceberg

Smiths been caught at it. Well rather, her husband has been caught at it and then invoiced the tax-payer for the pleasure.

The Home Secretary today announced that she would repay an invoice from her husband and parliamentary aid to pay-per-view porn films.It comes only weeks after Smith was challenged over the second home allowance she has drawn from her second home, incidentally her sisters. This wouldn't be so bad if fellow minister Tony McNulty hadn't been found with his hand in the till as well. It comes as a particularly virulent period of 'sleaze' for the Government.

Remember the same thing happening towards the end of the Major government?

It is with all of this in mind that the comments of Diane Abbot seem particularly pertinent. After Easter the initial Freedom of Information Act request for Parliamentary expenses reaches its culmination. This shall see the publication of thousands upon thousands of receipts.

As Abbot intuitively notes, don't expect a few porn films for the Home Secretary's husband to be the worst of it.

Not quite a Howe moment but close...

Hat trip goes to Guido Fawkes for mentioning this one.

Gordon made a speech to the European Parliament this afternoon. As Hannan's response shows the recent news from the IMF, amongst others, that Britain is ill-placed to economically recover has triggered some heated debate.

Who ever says European politics can't be a place to hold officials to account...

Expect tax increases, who ever wins

The announcement, this weekend, that the Conservatives were not likely to take inheritance tax seriously demonstrates a general confusion within the party over taxation. It is not a new development. Shadow Business Secretary Charles Clarke let the cat out of the bag with the announcement, probably on sound backing from those within the upper strata of the party. Indeed, privately the apparent u-turn over inheritance tax is not a new thing and has been predicted by several leading economists, not to mention economic historians.

The BBC’s Mike Crick quite neatly demonstrated what the Tories have been worrying about for some time, empty ministerial boxes, if they gain power. It is fair to say that the last 12 years of Labour rule have witnessed unprecedented levels of public expenditure. And, leaving aside the debate over whether this was necessary, it now seems pertinent to note the old adage – we’re about reaping what we’ve sown. The IMF recently noted that Britain would be the worst placed to respond to any ‘green shoots’ in economic recovery. Indeed, as another stimulus package has been launched in the United States there now appears to be increasingly vocal calls from within Europe that Britain should restrain its economic approach.

Niall Ferguson, that great epitome of economic history, commented on Channel 4 News yesterday that “Big government is here to stay”. This indeed may be the course of action taken, employing a Keynesian approach of state sponsored works and spending to relieve the economic outlook. But this doesn’t match up with Dave’s ideas. Shortly following his leadership victory a raft of new policies seemed to indicate future tax cuts, a raise in the inheritance tax threshold and even a tax break for some working family. Any future government shall now find this an impossible task. Indeed, to fund the continued level of stabilisation of our banks we’re likely to see an even further squeeze in public spending. Higher Education has begun to witness such cuts. I attended a Parliamentary Select Committee meeting on HE funding yesterday and the overriding consensus from Liverpool’s senior academics was the need for greater levels of investment. In other words, higher tuition fees for students.

So, whilst some may be treating Clarke’s slip as a major change in Tory policy it is worth noting that any future government (and remember, we shall have one within a year and a half) is going to have to increase taxes. Like it or lump it. It’s not likely to be the Conservatives confused as the way ahead in the future but also quite a few political strategists....

Some changes to the blog

Well, as the last of the large essays are now out of the way a few changes will be happening soon.

We've recently (you may have noticed Cherie-gate) been playing around with the site being more image rich and video laden. I'm still trying to figure out how best this will work - not least actually getting the video in the first place.

I've also finally updated a working blog-roll. I've been going through a bit of a virtual clear-out and also added a more fuller profile of both what the blogs about and who I am. I'm still working on improving that as well... So, expect a few changes and if we disappear for a while - fear not. We shall be back.

Famous last words?

***FUCKING CHERIE***

The evil witch has cursed us.

Well, not quite. We're having a few technical problems with the blog at the moment. Hopefully, we'll be back to full health soon.

In the meantime, we'll leave you with some music.

Freddy vs. Cherie

Full credit goes to Beau Bo D'or for this wonderful animation.



It serves the point I'm about to make quite well. Guido are reporting that Cherie Blair, remember that stololt of the free-market?, is to take RBS to court.

The papers presented to the Court in New York allege greed and hubris on the part of the RBS board.

What about failure to regulate in No. 10?

Cherie to take-on RBS