Because the dirty mind is a perpetual feast (and because I know you've all got dirty minds), we're going to start with this frankly ROCKIN' headline from LabourHome: "Gordon has his best PMQs for months and satisfies Joanna afterwards". Saucy devil! [Cue Leslie Phillips style sniggering];
By Sadie Smith
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Posted in Morning roundup
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Also tagged Alex Smith, David Cameron, Demos, Derek Draper, DNA database, hazel blears, Iain Dale, Joanna Lumley, Jonathan Myerson, Kerry McCarthy, LabourHome, LabourList, Liberal Conspiracy, Luke Akehurst, Matthew Parris, PMQs
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The Gurkha related ho-down of last week continues apace, with the latest installment of this drama taking place in a special sitting of the Home Affairs Select Committee. Readers will know that I'm on the side of the Gurkhas in this particular kerfuffle, but I challenge the most ardent campaigner to listen to St Joanna of Lumley's evidence (available via Today in Parliament) without coming to the conclusion that, in the end, it's not just MPs who are destined to start believing their own press releases.
By Sadie Smith
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Posted in Morning roundup
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Also tagged Culture Media and Sport Committee, domestic violence, Frank Owen's Paintbrush, Gurkhas, Home Affairs Select Committee, Home Office, Ian Hislop, Jacqui Smith, Joanna Lumley, John Rentoul, Nadine Dorries, News of the World, Question Time, Red Box, Sam Coates, The Sun, Today in Parliament
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It's thirty years since Thatcher became Prime Minister, and the entire blogosphere has gone Maggie ker-AZY! ConservativeHome appears to have a "Margaret and me. But mostly meme" on, with this from John Bercow on how she inspired him to join the Young Conservatives, and Liberal Lord Alton tells all about his part in her triumphs. [...]
By Sadie Smith
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Posted in Morning roundup
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Also tagged A Very Public Sociologist, Anton Vowl, BBC, BNP, ConservativeHome, Dailyy Mail, David Dimbleby, Don Paskini, Evening Standard, Frank Owen's Paintbrush, hazel blears, Hopi Sen, Jackie Ashley, John Bercow, John Rentoul, Liberal Conspiracy, Lord Alton, Margaret Thatcher, Paul Burgin, Robin Day, Tom Harris
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Well done the comrades on the Gurkha debate yesterday! The comrades, I hear you roar? THE COMRADES?! For was it not David Cameron who posed with Joanna Lumley outside St Stephen's Entrance for the cameras with wee Nicky Clegg? (Yea!) Was it not the Government that was defeated at the vote and promised to bring forward the review of the guidance to before the summer recess and put a moratorium on deportations? (Yea!) Why yes, to all of the above. But it was actually the LABOUR backbenchers by and large - who actually care about the Gurkhas and have been lobbying for years for justice - who put on the pressure to bring about the changes (although hon menshes go to Ann Widdecombe and other Liberal and Tory members of the APPG on Gurkha Rights). The rest is just vacuous grandstanding by two leaders with pretty hair for the benefit of headlines involving the words "BROWN" and "CRISIS." Guess it depends whether you think politics should be about process or progress, I guess.
By Sadie Smith
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Posted in Morning roundup
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Also tagged David Cameron, Giles Coren, Gurkha, Hopi Sen, Joanna Lumley, Laurence Robertson, Liberal Conspiracy, Mike Smithson, Nick Clegg, Paul Sagar, RecessMonkey, Rod Liddle, swine fever
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Iain Dale is accusing Gordon Brown of stealing Boris' ideas, apparently in an interview with the Independent, Gordon Brown announced a plan for electric vehicles long with a number of other policies. Supposedly this plan is a carbon copy of one Boris announced in January and Gordon has jumped the gun and announced it when there [...]
Clearly the most important issue of the economic world this week is the decision by your correspondent's employer to up the prices in the canteen, here are a few less important issues:
First up, we learn that not every traditional Building Society has been able to weather the credit crunch as we saw from the collapse [...]
The Gord's developed a sudden interest in ensuring theoretic Catholics can theoretically get their theoretical mits on the sparkly hat once Her Maj (gawd bless yer, Ma'am) shuffles off this mortal coil, producing some hilarious outpourings from the chaps who have firms views about the role of the ladies about "state sponsored sectarianism" and how the Pope is in favour of "equality in all its forms." Evan Harris has got a Private Member's Bill on the subject today.
How do you go to economic zero to hero if you're a beleaguered Governor of the Bank of England? That's right, throw tradition to the wind and come over all, "yeah, like, the Gord's plan for further stimulus SMELL OF POO, mmkay?" just at the point at which the PM's in Yankland attempting to build a global economic consensus. Well done, Mervyn King, for realising that there's going to be an election next year and there may be bottoms of a different hue to kiss: ten points for ass-covering, zero points for subtlety.
By Sadie Smith
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Posted in Morning roundup
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Also tagged Adrian Prandle, Angus MacNeill, Anton Vowl, bank of england, Barack Obama, Coroners and Justice Bill, Fabians, Fox News, mervyn king, Rowan Atkinson, SNP, Today in Parliament, Will Straw
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