Vote-OK and Countryside Alliance : Tally Ho!

The Guardian lead with a story about how hunt supporters are organising to take out a few anti-hunting Lab and Lib Dem seats and install pro-hunt Tories.

I know a thing or two about this campaign in Manchester and will come back to it later. Just as soon as I've helped fold 12,000 letters and stuff 12,000 envelopes in our bid to get Tony Lloyd re-elected. And I'll need to track down Kevin from the Wythenshawe lurcher and terrier crew for the latest.

***

I'm back though I haven't cuaght up with Kevin just yet. The deal being offered to opponents of the loyalist and pro-ban Paul Goggins and the ultra-loyalist and rabid anti-hunt Sir Gerald Kaufman is that up to 150 rabbiters per constituency will turn out and work on the doorstep or dropping leaflets for any candidate who will agree to back repeal of the Hunting With Dogs Act.

My belief is that they're all rabbit here. Though they may unseat a few anti-hunt candidates in the shires this lobby are unlikely to get a kill in Manchester seats.

100 Days : Will That Be Blair's Quota?

Today marks 100 days since GW Bush got himself re-elected by fair means or foul. And it also marks the day when John, the spread betting guru of the "What Now For Labour" discussion list on Topica, made his prediction that Blair would last just 100 days. He is expecting the bookies to be laying odds on this only after 6 May but appears confident that they'll be plumping for two to three years and that he will make a small fortune for his pension fund.

More on the direct betting and spread betting markets later today. And also on that leadership contest.

Independent Exposé : Labour Blogger Apologises!

Today's Independent leads with a cover featuring four swingometers and their view that voting Lib Dem is unlikely to let Michael Howard into government.

For some reason they use swings of 3%, 6% and 9% rather than the something over 11% where Labour loses overall control.

It would be at that point where the Lib Dems could start dabbling with both of the other parties. With Tories as in Leeds and other Councils. With the Labour right as in Scotland. In both cases the Labour left would probably be out of the loop.

At every single step in the process there appear to be MORE Tory than Lib Dem gains as a result of the swing.

However it does seem that some of the figures given out by Labour HQ have overstated the effect - if that is these were on the same basis as The Independent.

As I have repeated these claims in this blog I must apologise without reservation.

I will say this. The study is based on the same turnout, and no change whatsoever or a 3% uplift in the Tory vote. If the turn out is well down as many expect and if there is a greater Tory improvement vs Labour, and versus Lib Dems in their key marginals too ... Well then the predicted global effect of 80 seats changing and only 5 or so going to the Libs, and even a Tory government, well I think that may still be possible.

I'm off to find a two way swingometer that works to have a play with the numbers.

100,000 Kisses for Tony Blair

(Press Release)

In an extraordinary art performance artist Mark
McGowan will attempt to kiss a 8 inch colour laminated
photograph of Tony Blair 100,000 times. This marathon
event is to take place outside the gates of number 10
Downing Street from 10 am on Thursday 5th of May,
election day. Mark estimates the event to last for 8
hours. The kisses for Tony Blair are in support for
his re election. A counter/timer will be employed and
Mark believes his biggest obstacles to be his facial
muscles spasming and dry lips.

For images and more info
07956084780
chunkymark1964@yahoo.com
http://clublet.com/c/c/house?page=MarkMcGowan

John O'Farrell

Better than usual so thought I'd share it :

Dear All,

At this stage in the campaign I think it is very important that we avoid sinking to
personal insults and name calling of the sort that we've been getting from those
unprincipled scumbags in the Tory Party. We have to stick to the issues. And for me,
one of the biggest issues is that we can't have Michael Howard as Prime Minister.

It is terrifying to think that in a week's time we could actually have a Tory
government. And if you just read that and thought 'nah, it couldn't happen' imagine
exactly the same presumption in millions of other voters; all thinking that it's
safe to abstain or vote against Labour this time.

There should, of course, be more to an election campaign than just being negative
about the Tories.

That Charles Kennedy is a waste of space as well.

But here are some important facts about the Conservative Party;
* Today's blame culture is all their fault.
* When they abolish the Winter Fuel Allowance and free TV licenses, pensioners will
be expected to burn their tellies to keep warm.
* Crime went up when under the Tories ( not surprising when you look at all the
senior Tories like Archer and Aitken who ended up in prison).
* When Michael Howard last faced a leadership election he came fifth. There were
five candidates. Yes when they last had the chance to vote for him, the people who
know him best decided that he was:

* less appealing than John Redwood
* less of a fresh face than Kenneth Clarke
* less moderate than Peter Lilley
* and less likely to win an election than William Hague. So don't stand back and let
the Tories win by accident. If it hadn't been for people who cared taking the
trouble to vote, we would never have had the minimum wage, would never have had the
NHS and John McCrirrick might have won Celebrity Big Brother.

So please, if everyone who received this email was able to persuade one wavering
voter to back Labour, we could avoid another 18 years of Tory government starting on
Thursday.

Pick one person you know and work on them non-stop from now until 5 May. The bloke
I've chosen is still really angry with this Government but I've told him he has to
move on and see the bigger picture. After all it was four years ago now and John
Prescott didn't mean to punch him that hard...


John O'Farrell
Author and Broadcaster

There are Two Elephants in my Sitting Room

There are two elephants in my sitting room. One is a noisy and sleepless little blighter, scarcely two years old. The other - a huge and venerable beast - snoozes quietly.

The first persistently reminds me of my family's big day out of 15 February 2003. The second of 18 long years of Tory mismanagement and greed.

The way things were under Howard and Thatcher.

Sleeping now, but the broken tusks and raw scars remind me that the great beast is more of a war elephant than his little room mate.

As you will know by now, I am convinced. We need to re-elect Labour for the sake of pensioners, patients, children and those facing poverty or recently rescued from it.

We were right about the war. We don't need to help a Tory government in through the muddle to prove that.

Lib Dem Lord opposes war - because North Korea should have been tackled first! (Link to Spiked)

Particularly interesting to me is the news that at a Lib Dem organised meeting Lib Dem Lord and ex-forces Tim Garden is gagging to sort out the Balkans, Palestine-Israel and North Korea - they should have been prioritised ahead of Iraq he says.

>>>>>>

Iraq still isn't an election issue

Debating the legality of the war is not the same thing as debating the war.
by Brendan O'Neill

Anyone who still buys the idea that challenging Tony Blair over the legality of the Iraq war is the same thing as challenging him over the war itself should have been at Hampstead Old Town Hall, north London, on Tuesday night.

http://www.spiked-online.com/Articles/0000000CAAD1.htm

Catch Up : Mr Lloyd on the Knocker

Tony Lloyd is one of three main party candidates picked out by the Manchester Evening News for a campaign trail piece.

This is a comfortable win for our side. The wonderful voters of Moss Side glow with love for and pride in their MP of the last 22 years.

Link here soon.

Because we have NF standing here there will be no hustings whatsoever.

Bearding Blair In His Lair

I have been meaning to write something about the happenings in Sedgefield. And will get on to this if I get a chance.

The link to the Reg Keys campaign website is in the Links and Quizes post.

Labour Left Marginals

Some opportunities to help Labour Left candidates under threat :

If people are mobile and wish to aid some of the most vulnerable Labour left
candidates, please make contact with the appropriate campaign office:

Ann Cryer MP – Campaign Group member
Keighley, West Yorkshire
Majority: 4,001
BNP leader Nick Griffin also contesting seat
* Address: 35 Devonshire Street, Keighley, Yorkshire, BD21 2BH
* Phone: 01535 602579
* Email: a_cryer@hotmail.com

John Cryer MP – Campaign Group member
Hornchurch, Essex (District Line tube)
Majority: 1,482
* Address: Labour Hall, 11 Park Lane, Hornchurch, Essex, RM11 1BB
* Phone: 01708 742674 or 01708 722918

David Drew – LRC member
Stroud, Gloucestershire
Majority: 5,039
* Phone: 01453 764 355
* Email: drew4stroud@hotmail.co.uk

Ian Gibson – Campaign Group member
Norwich North, Norfolk
Majority: 5,863
*Address: Norwich Labour Centre, 59 Bethel Street, Norwich, NR2 1NL
*Phone: 01603 661144
*Fax: 01603 663502

Bob Marshall-Andrews – Campaign Group member
Medway, Kent
Majority: 3,780
* Address: 73 Maidstone Road, Rochester, Kent
* Phone: 01634 814687
* Fax: 01634 831294
* Email: marshallandrewsr@tiscali.co.uk
* Website: http://www.epolitix.com/bob-marshall-andrews

Christine McCafferty
Calder Valley, West Yorkshire
Majority: 3,094
* Address: Trade Club, Holme Street, Hebdon Bridge, HX7 8EE (Upper
Valley) or GMB Offices, Clifton Road, Brighouse, HD6 1SL (Brighouse)
* Phone: 01422 845159 (Upper Valley) or 01484 716018 (Brighouse)

Linda Riordan
Halifax, West Yorkshire (seat of retiring Alice Mahon)
Majority: 6,129
* Address: Halifax Labour Party, 2 West Parade, Halifax HX1 2TE
* Phone: 01422 251 800

Phil Sawford – Campaign Group member
Kettering, Northamptonshire
Majority: 665
* Address: 16-18 Station Road, Kettering, Northants NN15 7HH
* Phone: 01536 412724
* Email: philsawford@computersuk.co.uk

Mike Wood – Campaign Group member
Batley & Spen, West Yorkshire
Majority: 5,064
* Address: 9 Cross Crown Street, Cleckheaton, BD19 3HW
* Phone: 01274 335233
* Fax: 01274 335235
* Email: reelectmikewood@aol.com

Under Advisement

This exchange appeared on the Labour Left Briefing discussion list. As you will see opinions are divided on whether this will do for Blair or help him. I think it will (unfairly) help him as you will see from my response. As I don't want Tories to make gains through the muddle I will accept this windfall if it comes along.

>>>>

> Channel 4 broke an exclusive tonight:
> Tony Blair was told by the government's most senior law officer in a confidential minute less than two weeks before the war that British participation in the American-led invasion of Iraq could be declared illegal.
> Lord Goldsmith, the attorney general, spelt out to Mr Blair the dangers of Britain going to war without a second resolution. It is understood that he then went on to warn that British soldiers could be hauled before the International Criminal Court.


Where's the story here? Never mind exclusive.

Surely everyone has known for a very long time that there were legal arguments for and against military action? All this was rehearsed in minute detail at the time wasn't it? And everyone knew surely that the pros and cons were finely balanced? That a UN resolution was legally stronger?

Most if not all of us favoured those legal arguments against and/or thought that even if it was lawful it was unnecessary and would be a bad judgement.

Personally I thought that a second resolution wouldn't make the case for war any better at all. As France and Russia showed, and as US and UK have shown before, the UN, though the best we've got just now, is bankrupt.

Anyone who has ever sought an opinion from a lawyer, or indeed most professional advisers, will know the form.

First, provide instructions.

Second, receive very likely exhaustive advice i.e. on the one hand x on the other hand y, if a and b then c, but if b not a then c2 etc etc.

Third, interrogate that advice, check nuance, question key points.

Fourth, receive amended advice.

(Third and fourth may be repeated as nauseum)

Fifth, choose action to take leaning on the parts of the advice which suit your chosen course of action.

Sixth, in the event of a dispute see the advice tested in a court.

Step six being the only one that really tells anyone whether something was lawful, unlawful, or mu. And then there are appeals and counter appeals.

There is no exclusive. There is nothing new here.

This whole thing may tip the balance in some of those Lib-Lab marginals, particularly with pro-war Lab incumbents but on the whole I think this is probably playing pretty well for New Labour's adherents in middle England.

I met a sample yesterday. Switched from Tory to NL. Likes Blair. Thinks war was maybe a mistake but no worse than that. BUT will not vote for Blair's candidate - not because of war - but because of position on Palestine. This guy is voting UKIP instead of Kaufman. In probable boundary change for next general he will vote happily for Lloyd if still living here, though his positions on Palestine-Israel are not what this voter believes.

The Tories are looking like clowns on this. And the Lib Dems arguably looking too weak to make a decision over anything important.(Paradoxically though the decision they wouldn't have made in this case would have been the right one if you see what I mean).

Blair, cabinet and parliament were wrong IMO but my opinion at the moment post-Straw doing rather well considering vs Paxman, post-R5 phone in, post Brown-Blair press conference is that this could actually play rather well for Blair.

Which in some ways would not be fair. But if it blocks off any Tory revival or too much Lib-Dem rightwards leverage on Blair's successor then I'll take that.

<<<<<

"To the Right was Death, to the Left was Life"

Quote from survivor on arriving on train at Auschwitz. BBC2 last night.

Doctor This Picture Please

SNWDWVF readers will remember the fuss from Lib Dem Deputy Leader when Tories amended placards. He should have a word with his Leader. He appears to have had his picture taken with candidates and a blank placard! So that whatever they want can be stripped in at their convenience! The unreal alternative.

"Save Christie Hospital"

The Lib Dems in Manchester Withington have already issued one Cancer Scare during this campaign. That took the form of a targeted leaflet on Ovarian Cancer which provided scary statistics but omitted most of the key information. It also omitted to praise the leading Cancer Hospital and University Reserch Units that operate in the consituency.

They have now addressed this omission by launching a scare story. They say that the Christie Hospital is under threat.

Testicular cancer patients may wish to turn away at this point. This is absolute bollocks. The Christie has seen increasing investment, more doctors, more nurses under Labour. The Head of the Hospital Trust is adamant that this Lib Dem campaign is based on a damn lie. There is no threat to his hospital whatsoever.

Apart that is from Tories. And, according to the Orange Book schism, from the Lib Dems too.

This morning I met with North West Development Agency to trouble shoot IDEA Centre matters. My friend John who runs various managed workslaces was involved. He is also a patient at Christies. After the meeting he showed me the Lib Dem leaflet. A3, full colour, full of fibs.

Staff at the Hospital, where this nonsense was displayed in reception areas for vulnerable patients, binned this rubbish immediately.

The Lib Dem candidate for Cheadle, Patsy Calton is a patient at the hospital living with a very serious condition. Will these Lib Dems stop at nothing to trick their way into positions of power?

Two cancer scares in one campaign. That really is low.

We pop into Keith Bradley's campaign HQ. They have seen the leaflet but are shocked that it is being foisted directly on vulnerable cancer patients. After lunch I dash off some letters to the papers.

The Battle of Sedgemore

Boggy ground in Somerset or foggy thinking in Brian's brain. Brian Sedgemore was never one of the Labour Party's finest thinkers. But he was our fool. Not anyone's fool. He has voted consistently along left lines. He may or may not be a blindingly good constituency MP. I don't know. He has failed to set the house alight with his wit, repartee or persuasion. In fact according to yesterday's Guardian Diary he spoke there only once in the last year.

He has become a defector to the Lib Dems.

What was he thinking? Surely not that their take on neo-liberalism is better? With more health and post and school privatisation than New Labour by a long streak and, in some commentators' view, more than the Tories? Surely not their persistent opposition to Minimum Wage and other measures to assist the working poor? Probably not.

Purely and simply Brian Sedgemore wanted his place in history. He wanted to stand up and be counted. By calling for Blair's nose to be bloodied.

Writing as someone who has personally taken a bloody nose for Blair in 2003 local elections, and who is fearful that it could be the British people - particularly working poor, pensioners, children and patients who take this one for him - I share the extreme annoyance with Brian of his former Campaign Group and LRC colleagues.

Will they now all be regarded as putative turncoats? Will some of them fighting on, unlike Brian, lose their seats as voters follow Brian's courageous lead?

Mr Sedgemore retires to a seven-acre country pad in Wales. The lake is 1 acre of this. Well done Brian!

Lib Dems fighting Tories in marginals must be wondering what's going on here too.

Accepting a lefty from the Labour fringes isn't going to comfort the Tory voter preparing to have a dabble with the third party much now is it? Even though Charles Kennedy has been resolute in denying false media claims that his party is solidly to the left of Labour or "socialist". He has run a mile from the very suggestion.

He knows his Lib Dem history. The routine is sniff of power - shift to the right. This was also Blair's problem. Though I suspect that underneath the guff most Lib Dems politicians are already solidly to the right of New Labour at very least on their economic policy.

Catch Up : Blair is No Tory

One week after Ardwick's 'Boost' I skip the equivalent for Bradford Ward and drag the family on a road trip. This time we are off to see Mr Blair address a rally in Liverpool.

I guess our last medium or long haul political road trip en famille was on 15 February 2003. And now we are walking past protestors into St George's Hall to hear him speak.

This is my third audience with Blair over the last few years. And I must say this one turns out to be far more comfortable than the first at least.

Warm up comes from various scouse celebs. Liz Dawn from Corrie is also on hand but stays schtum. Liverpool and Scotland soccer star Phil Thompson is probably the star turn. But Ian McCartney - the Party "Chair" - is close.

Manchester Central has been a pretty prolific and successful generator of conference resolutions and rule change proposals down the years. The latest proposed a properly elected Chair and Deputies. McCartney, though hugely popular with the grass roots, - loyal and disciplined yet willing to admit mistakes - is appointed by Blair, not elected or selected by the party.

In fact his role is more like a PM's Ambassador than a Chair. But this one, unlike say Alan Milburn, would have every chance of being elected anyway.

Before this proposal we successfully got through a rule change allowing constituencies and unions a fair crack of the whip when it comes to prioritising contemporary debates at conference.

Before that we faced down the control freakery, alongside Rodney Bickerstaffe and Barbara Castle, to push through policy to restore the earnings link for pensions.

Though we're still waiting for the legislation!

I digress. Cherie and Tony arrive. And Tony is actually very good indeed. It seems that he does understand Labour values pretty well. The charge that the parties have completely converged is ripped to shreds. Positive differences are apparent.

Labour left and centre are uncomfortable of course with the commodification of public services and the consumerisation of "customers" and "clients". The creeping private good, public bad shibboleths.

Yet there is clear red water. Blair obviously has the invited audience on side. But I am amazed at the extent to which he hits the Labour Values buttons. He didn't trouble these in Bolton a few years ago. Or in a Big Conversation event a year back.

On the way in I spot Ciaran who is a leading Labour Student at UMSU, currently doing a stint in the election press office in London; he says sorry he isn't helping in Central. I say that if Tony loses there will only be 10 Labour MPs left so we'll probably manage. On the way out I see a regional office worker who is also a member in our constituency.

He says he is doing Pendle, and Oldham East, but Rochdale needs some help too. I say I'm probably not going there. And he says 'fair enough'.

Not going there Rochdale-wise may become a bit of a theme. And the word is that Rochdale members are grudging workers too. Though none of them want to lose a Labour MP and they are doing their bit.

The kids get a rare McDonalds as a reward for their patience.

Links and Quizes

International gambler and philanthropist George Soros famously said "Networking is not working" and whether it is true or not in business there *are* some problems with the web based resources of election briefings.

There are dozens of interesting sites. Some produce figures in black and white indicating your representative's variance from your own views and allows you to compare that with the colective variance of the parties pretending to each seat.

Some remarkable results can arise. There is no careful nuancing. It can be a case of garbage in garbage out. So if it seems wrong work out why that is.

We can even submit to a quiz taking just a few minutes and have our personal politics analysed and compared on two axes - one conventional left-right, the other apparently the trainspotters' scale where the issues may signify a little less.

Here, in no particular order, are some to play with :

www.notapathetic.com

Where you can share your innermost feelings as a not apathetic non voter.

www.publicwhip.com
www.theyworkforyou.com
www.writetothem.com

Some of the standard resources on who voted what when. Hansard is more informative. And a Hansard-digest which pulled out the divisions would be a real boon. Is there such a thing?

www.publicwhip.com/election.php

Is a little game where your rep's record on some cherry picked issues is compared with your views. There are a couple of drawbacks. Constant oppositionists in other parties can come out too well based on their 'say anything, do anything' opposition status. And it is not smart enough to excuse absences or to nuance which vote on a particular issue is the best signifier. Finally it doesn't include lots of lower profile matters, not controversial for Labour supporters, but which the opposition also opposed. Like Minimum Wage, secretly redistributive budget bills, that sort of thing.

www.politicalsurvey2005.com

Fun. Where do you lie on the political spectrum as a whole? I had 0.0% significantly to the left of me and about 1.2% as left on the main political scale. A few percent on the other scale. Sometimes you'd want the questions to be different. Should Britain be more like America or Germany/France? Answer : Finland. The Guardian still came out as far and away the newspaper on the left for people like me.

www.labouragainstthewar.org.uk

An important and 9/2001 established group for Labour and TU lefties. Too low profile. Arguably has not spread net widely enough from the Campaign Group core. Wonder in the colouring of the upgraded logo. My contribution to the cause.

www.labourleftbriefing.org.uk/links.html
www.labourleftbriefing.org.uk/special.html

First is a good links page for TUs, Labour left and independent socialist organisations, and a spectrum Labour ginger groups from Catalyst to LRC.
Second is a run down of LLB's list of star Labour MPs who've got things right all of the time (by the time of writing at least). Good to see Tony Lloyd in the 30 or so. Also a list of the most threatened anti-war Labour MPs.

www.redpepper.org.uk

Daily election blog. Questions about Respect. And Tariq Ali's Tory-helping nonsense.

www.pledgebank.com

Think this is vote swapping swingers site.

www.backingblair.com

Looks like a Tory front with a ruthless anyone-but-Labour streak, often calling for votes for right wing Tories over left wing, anti-war Labour. Tossers.

home.freeuk.net/clpd

Possibly the Sedgefield Blair Must Go portal. Will find the real front door.

http://www.keysforsedgefield.org.uk

This is the Reg Keys site anyway.

www.tactical-voting.co.uk
www.tacticalvoter.net
www.keepthetoriesout.co.uk
www.stophague.com
www.torywatch.org.uk
www.votedorset.org

These do what it says on the tin. Last is Billy Bragg's. I interviewed Billy c 1984 for City Life and remember standing on the roof of GO! Mansions or whatever it was with Kevin Cummins trying to capture the de Niro within. Possibly BB's first magazine cover? A couple of years later it was a pinky and perky style interview as the batteries let us down easily, without packing up, on Red Wedge I. And finally a great Red Wedge II tour with Luis Melia Godoy and Billy. Sold Out in a good way.

www.ICMresearch.co.uk
www.nop.co.uk
www.mori.co.uk
www.gallup.com
www.ukelect.co.uk
www.fuzzymath.co.uk

Pollsters and the like ...

Will try and switch these to click through links later on.

Broken ones can be reported to me at idea@easy.com.

Seven Up In Manchester Withington

In the neighbouring constituency there are seven candidates. Five live within the constituency boundaries. Two do not.

INSIDERS
========

The insiders are Keith Bradley (Labour), an independent on NHS ticket (New Labour supporter!), Brian the Green, an emigre standing for UKIP, and wild card Yasmin (Independent). This last is by far the most interesting of the smaller parties and in dependents.

In 1997 she took the Lib Dems into second place I think. And she certainly managed one of the largest swings in the country in 2001. But she has been passed over for her agent (see Outsiders below).

Yasmin was a refugee from Saddam's Iraq. She states in her election material that she is grateful to Britain for providing refuge. She does not go as far as stating support for the war. I don't know where she stands on that.

But everyone who reads the local press knows how she came to be passed over. At the selection meeting it is alleged that elements supporting her rival stated openly that she was a liability because of her race, creed and gender.

That seems ridiculous. She has built their vote up nicely. And in Withington of all places she has the credentials to do pretty well I'd have thought.

Yasmin appealled to the Lib dem hierachy but they closed ranks and even issued press statements villifying her. She complained to the Standards Body for England but they believed that none of the individuals concerned were acting in their elected offices and that it was a private matter.

The CRE position at the moment is that they don't do political party matters. I know Yasmin remains furious at the Lib Dems and is still taking legal advice and making clear statements about them being bullies and so on.

She wears a head scarf on her leaflets and has stood repeatedly in one local ward giving her a base there. Lib Dems are writing her off and saying she will get only a handful of votes. I'm wonder if that is the same "handful of votes" i.e. many thousands that they are claiming will decide the election.

THE OUTSIDERS
=============

The Tory KAREN Bradley is from Buxton and may cause a little confusion on the ballot and do better than expected. In 1992 the Tories polled more than 14,000 votes here. They may make some ground back on the Lib Dems and at a big stretch could even win through the muddle if they could regain their form. From third to first.

The Lib Dem John Leech has a chequered career. At the start of the football season he told fibs about some offensive grafitti at the City of Manchester stadium. He claimed he had reported it three months earlier. He had not. He claimed that Council workers should have cleared it anyway. There were none on the site. He never retracted.

Earlier he had been part of a Lib Dem big lie when they continued distributing claims that Manchester had underspent passported schools money a full month or so after this was proven totally wrong. They didn't retract that either.

During the campaign he has been telling fibs about how Keith Bradley voted. Splitting hairs. But he has also been fibbing about where he actually lives.

He says Chorlton. The ward is Whalley Range and he's in the M16 part. Even the postman wouldn't say Chorlton (M21) for that part of the ward. It's a small thing. Not worth fibbing about you'd have thought. Half a mile outside the consituency would be close enough for most people.

It is Leech who put out the Cancer scare "Focus Special".

Election Day The First

We're in play. Back from the school run with the dogs. The postman has snuck in while the coast is clear and popped the Lib Dems' second election address instalment and also my postal vote package through the door.

The Lib Dem candidate is a terrible liar. His standards are double. He is reliably maverick. And not a little snide. But that three eared picture has not made a reappearance.

Here he lies : "There's just a handful of votes in it".

This is just above the usual barmy bar chart. It shows 39:35:12 (percent). The real figures are 18:4:3 (thousand) or thereabouts. He would have to have a huge hand to hold 10,000 or more votes!

Hopefully this blatant lie will not fool the Tories. They will revert to type for the General and stop propping up the Lib Dems as they do in local elections. And who knows, perhaps it will stir some reluctant voters into action, and appeal to the personal loyalty of Tony Lloyd's constituents in the anti-war asian communities. They will not want to lose him.

******

Yesterday evening I did some canvasing in the terraced 'Dukeries' at the heart of Whalley Range ward. Where the main asian groceries and halal butchers are for this part of Manchester. The name recognition is phenomenal. There is not a single Lib Dem poster up. A few of ours. Voters here are coming back to Labour. Not all of them. But there is movement.

There are some people who do not even realise they don't have Labour councillors any more. They cannot have had a problem needing help just yet. Three of the four Labour candidates they have rejected in 2003 and 2004 are actually involved in the work tonight. The fourth is organising in another ward. One of them is Chair of the Resident's Association for this patch. Still the one doing the work round here. Most residents have not seen a Lib Dem councillor since they were elected. They are clearly not working the patch.

Tony Lloyd's four-out-of-four as rebel teller on all the anti war votes reflects the views of most local people. But Aftab, who is working alternative avenues to me, tells us later that there is a fear of attacks on Iran, then Syria, then incredibly Pakistan in some households.

I have yet to get a reply to my request for policy clarification from the party leaders on this issue.

In contrast to this I spoke with a West African household. They think people round here, particularly the muslims, have been confused. It is clearly in their interest to vote Labour they think. The mother has had regular contact with Tony Lloyd through work and also with ex-Councillor Nilofar. Her discussion with N has been along the lines that any government would have done the same thing. She's OK with that she says. I'm not particularly, but it's three firm votes.

A few streets away I see a family that Tony Lloyd and I helped solve a long running farce with Croydon (Immigration and Nationality Directorate) back in 2002 and 2003. Though we got the result it was no great win really. We were Labour, but so now was the Michael Howard mangled bureacracy they were tangling with.

I'm delighted they are firmly back with us. The greatest issue is about local primary schools not Iraq. The older child is at school with Patrick. I tell mum about the superb OFSTED last time. Also that what I like about the school is the way the children smile as they go in and they're still smiling on the way home. I make a note that she would be an excellent school governor. Perhaps a community activist.

******

Back to this morning. I ignore the Lib Dem man's guarantees. I don't worry that I haven't received Election Addresses from National Front, UKIP or Tories. The UKIP man is standing in eight different constituencies. If he wins several (!) he'll have to let all but one down gently.

I have read the Socialist Labour (Arthur Scargill) one, and 'Damo' O'Connor's 'Independent Progressive Labour' (Benefit Criminal) effort. And Tony Lloyd's first arrived yesterday too. Three "Labour" candidates in one post. Eight candidates in all. This is probably far better for us than just three or four.

I make my mark and get the declaration of identity signed by neighbour Sue. She agrees that subject to family negotiations she will display a Tony Lloyd poster. Brooky down the street stopped me to ask for one too this morning.

Remembering the angst of last year, when I worried about whether I'd posted the damn thing for days, I walk straight to the nearest post box. The vote is cast.

I hope that Tony Lloyd's second leaflet and his targeted letters to asian and first time voters have arrived already or will hit the mats in the morning. The election clock is ticking.

Catch Up : Smash the Nazi BNP

Though my Royton mission failed I did make it to Bury North and spent two hours with a variety of independent left comrades leafleting a large proportion of Totterington Ward. The home turf of the BNP candidate.

If the willingness and spirit of the volunteers were combined with the organisation Labour have developed over the last 100 years more could have been done - as it is in say Oldham or Manchester - but as it is we manage to instil some system and urgency and cover several estates and roadside ribbons.

It is hard to imagine people in these neat ex-Council and new-build semis voting for the fascist filth.

It is also hard to work out quite why these independent left volunteers will support a Scargill candidate here and risk getting a Tory. I would not hesitate to work to get David Chaytor re-elected in this seat. He is a thoughtful and principled rebel. Including on the war and about 40 other recent divisions.

In Bury South they will take the same risk backing a one-issue independent. Though Ivan Lewis has not been rebellious my sense is that he will be loyal to a programme to the left of him as well as this programme to the right of him.

Doctoring The Tardis

Doctor Who's recent struggle against "the Slitheens" has been wonderful satire. This alien family have taken over key figures in society, with a vile purpose.

The too skinny Prime Minister has been killed and his body rejected by a corpulent intergalactic gangster family. Like old school Levis they can shrink to fit. But that can only go so far. They find a more corpulent substitute, kill him too and make his skin the home for their top dog.

Here we have this acting prime minister (an alien) taking charge as a flying saucer clips Big Ben and ditches in the Thames. They are asking the United Nations for sanction to use nukes to destroy the threat.

There is a big lie. An alien mother ship hovers above London. They have "Massive Weapons of Destruction" - MWDs presuamably. These can be fired within 45 seconds. The UN is asked for sanction to nuke 'em. Not having permission "Hasn't stopped us in the past!" chirps Rose, played by the enchanting Billy Piper, but this time the UN agree anyway.

All the defence staffs are in on the game. This alien family is planning to turn the nukes on the neighbours and kick off Armageddon so that they can loot the earth's resources and sell radioactive england (and the rest) by the pound.

These usurpers in Number 10 are defeated by East End blitz spirit, malt vinegar, Doctor Who directing a hard working family, and conventional weapons of destruction.

New Labour, oh no, I'm sorry, the alien usurpers, are destroyed.

Bring on that hovering Dalek!

Bethnal Green and Bow redux (Galloway, King, Trade Unions, Iraq)

Today's Observer carries a flurry of letters about Nick Cohen's uncomradely attack on George Galloway and his people. 'Respect is due' say all but one of the selection. This last one revels in Cohen's insight as strict muslims are expected to automatically back the political ambitions and machinations of godless revolutionary communists.

But one GG supporter insists that Respect's electioneering about Spearmint Rhino (apparently a 'lap dancing' establishment) stems not from pandering to muslim fundamentalists but from high principled feminism.

That'll be the same high-principled feminism which is striking a blow against the murderous patriarchy of the "Honour" code. That'll be the same feminism and high principles which sees Respect struggle for rights for lesbians, gay men, bisexuals and transexuals. They are silent on this too. Except possibly to say it's worth leaving it off the agenda.

While some Labour people are on a strict "don't mention the war" diet Respect are on a don't mention lots of socialist principles or your godless revolutionary communism diet. Huh, compromises!

And George has been in big trouble for cheer leading for nationalist insurgents who are attacking, killing or torturing the relatives of Iraqi refugees in Bethnal Green and Bow, fellow socialists, communists and trade unionists, westernised women and homosexuals, not to mention the workers in uniform of our own armed forces.

Having said all that ... if George was the properly selected Labour candidate in my constituency I'd be out working for him to be elected. If George was up against Oona in a two-way selection I'd pick George.

If Oona were picked though I would vote for her. Really for the interests of people and party members of Bethnal Green and Bow who I believe are better off with Labour representatives at all levels. I might even drop some leaflets and do some canvassing.

Though it must be said that aside from allowing a flock of Vote Labour posters to gather on our building in Salford I have not done any work for candidates who did not oppose the war.

*********

So how did Oona get selected? The facts are coming in nicely. She is of course a charming woman and of the eleven branch parties in the constituency five rubber stamped her being re-selected without a contest and five did not.

The eleventh branch is a bit short of active members and met alongside one of the others. On their own they voted for a contest. Making it 6:5 in favour of a contest. But regional office decided (after all) that they would be counted in with the other branch returning the running total to all square 5:5.

In Manchester Central none of our affiliated unions or socialist societies voted at all on the question of the Tony Lloyd candidacy. Their quarterly or occasional meetings rarely coincide. And besides they were very happy with Tony's record. He headed up the Labour-TU group in Parliament.

In BGB the Union votes came in steadily. Region suggested at least one of them (which voted for a contest) ought to have an all members vote instead of the exec deciding. But then enough "no contest" votes came in and that ruling evaporated.

Oona King was re-chosen without a contest by an even split 5:5 of local party groups, supplemented by a clear majority of trade union decisions against a contest.

Despite all this intrigue it must be said that having active units of residents and workers in each local area, and these having a say in picking candidates, well this is way ahead of other parties. This is perhaps the best way for SNWDWVF readers to make a difference in the medium to long term.

Become an activist. Join or rejoin. Get a vote on candidates great and small, on the constituency party representatives on the NEC (there are currently four Grass Roots Alliance reps), and before too long I hope on the Great Leader and Deputy Great Leader question. Don't give up. Take part and make a difference.

The Unions riding to New Labour's rescue, ignoring or not seeking members' views, does remind me of the last Labour conference.

Asked to agree a timed withdrawal from Iraq. Local party representatives voted for a timed withdrawal. I think so, or at least it was very close. But the unions whose official policies tended to range from "Troops Out" to timetabled withdrawal waded in to reject that by going 100% behind New Labour. Our constituency representative voted for withdrawal.

It seems as if good people should not only consider joining or rejoining Labour and get active but also participating in Trade Union activities and holding elected officials there to account.

During the course of this process the Iraqi Federation of Trade Unions spoke up for continued troops in Iraq. But George Galloway and others renounced them as quislings. Soon enough some were murdered. And this has been another part of the hollowing out of the Stop the War Coalition.

I don't want to be sectarian. But I will say this. Every step I took marching against the war. Every hour I spent on vigils. Every bit of this does not mean I stick with the first thought that came into my head about the war. Once this war happened there are responsibilities to our forces and to Iraq.

It sometimes seems to me that persistently offering the "Troops Out Now" advice is rather like being asked for directions and replying "Well, I wouldn't start from here if I were you." There is no magic wand. No Tardis or de Lorean to go back and change the decisions.

We surely cannot just leave immediately. We surely cannot be cheerleaders for people killing our forces, ordinary citizens, co-religionists from differnt schisms, Iraqi trade unionists, feminists, gays and communists.

There are consequences of the March 2003 decision and just because we disagreed we cannot walk away. Continued support for the Iraqi people as a whole is now a requirement. The weak and floppy Lib Dems and the robust Respect have now got this wrong in my humble opinion.

Green Finger George

Hot on the heels of Observer Galloway coverage we have George Monbiot in the Guardian making a reasonable case or his ideas on how best to really signal displeasure with the government.

I don't agree with all his choices. But there's no surprise in that. Under his scheme ther is just the same potential as under the "Liberal for a Day" nonsense from wrecker Tariq Ali for the Tories to waltz in through the middle if too many voters take the risk where things are reasonably close.

Remember that just over 10% swing away from Labour to the Lib Dems causes about 80 seats to change hands. But the Tories get all but six or seven WITHOUT GETTING A SINGLE EXTRA VOTE THEMSELVES.

In the case of a 10% swing to Greens, SSP, Respect or Plaid, who form Monbiot's equal first pick, the Tories would probably get the same 73 seats, and Labour would hang on to the others.

The table in full goes :

1= Green
1= SSP
1= Respect
1= Plaid
5 Interesting independents e.g. Reg Keys in Sedgefield
6 139 Anti-War Labour candidates (though a few retire)
7 What he calls "a faintly credible micro party"
8 The Lib Dems

Monbiot's logic on the Lib Dems is sound. On their intrinsic merits. And on where their success could move things - which is not leftwards.

The full article is here :

http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,1462946,00.html

A letters about Reg Keys in Sedgefield is here :

http://www.guardian.co.uk/letters/story/0,,1464420,00.html

And this is a letter I submitted on the subject to the Guardian :

>>>>>

George Monbiot (Signal your opposition, April 19) is right. Lib Dems are rock bottom of any left-wing tactical voter's list. Even then best avoided if so voting let's a Tory in through the muddle.

But why should Greens or others take preference over 139 anti-war Labour people? Particularly over 30 or so candidates for re-election who "got it right" on all marquee left issues - as recognised by Labour Left Briefing?

In Manchester we have blue-green as well as red-green Greens. One in my area called for medieval-style corporal punishment. One of three BNP pledges this time. Another criticised the cost of town hall tea and biscuits - ignoring labour value. Expect redundancies. Others are Labour-right defectors. Leeds Greens govern with Tories.

Of course some Greens are "solidly to the left" of Mr Blair. But not George to the left of _my_ red-green Labour party.

Chris Paul
Manchester

George Galloway and the communal -ism

Nick Cohen made a strong attack on GG in last Sunday's Observer. This included the parallel life of Sir Oswald Mosley and their East End careers.

http://tinyurl.com/9faux *

In the inky version there was a picture of Mosley in full flow.

I have heard GG speak on a good number of occasions. Before, during and 'after' the war. Four times I think during 2003. The delivery is legendary. But I was not particularly impressed with the content and this feeling increased with each event. More about George and less about Iraq or whatever. And this increasing cheerleading for the killing in Iraq.

Perhaps GG will beat Oona King. Perhaps not. But either way I think the style of his campaign and the reported hothead incidents around it appear lamentable.

Communalism is a dangerous -ism. But GG is not the only one who has been using this approach. If George is really saying if you're asian vote Respect, if you're muslim vote Respect he is only doing the same thing which we saw from two parties in Manchester during the Euro and Local elections in 2004.

Obviously the BNP were saying "Protect your identity, vote BNP" to white voters disaffected with the way things are and will continue to be.

When Respect managed to get an imam in Preston to endorse a council candidate in 2003 the Lib Dems protested vehemently. Even though they had imams calling for Lib Dem votes left, right and centre. But Respect are not the other party I meant.

The Liberal Democrats were saying it too. In the euro election campaign a targeted leaflet essentially called for a vote for the Lib Dems to get an asian elected. The individual concerned has family in the Tory party and seems unlikely to share the Lib Dem agenda of social liberalism. This agenda was not part of the pitch.

At least when Muslims For Labour put out a leaflet it rehearses the benefits of Labour policy and the actual achievements on representation and so on.

Cllr Faraz Bhatti actually used almost the same phrase as the BNP in an advert in an Urdu paper "Aatish" soon after he was first elected. As well as telling fibs about Council Tax rises, suggesting a rise of 11% was on the cards, he called on readers to "Retain your identity, join the Lib Dems".

Alongside this we had a Lib Dem MEP refusing to take an interest in controlling the threatening content of the Combat 18 Redwatch site. A site which gives photos, names and addresses of people spotted on anti-racist marches and so on.

And a Lib Dem council candidate, now councillor, telling voters living opposite a school with 90% muslim students that :
"I wouldn't mind if the BNP had councillors in Manchester. We could debate the issues in the Council chamber."

This last party may be confused and naive in this matter. But George Galloway is an experienced and able politician and he surely knows exactly what he has been doing in Bethnal Green and Bow.

Incidentally, though I have been assured by someone that should know that no ward party in Bethnal Green and Bow wanted the super-loyalist Oona King to be selected or re-selected, I have been unable to find out how she managed to secure that selection.

* Full URL http://observer.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,6903,1461621,00.html

Don't Attack Iran

Readers may like to send messages to the major party leaders on the above subject. Details below.

I have added a message to mine explaining what we are doing with these blogs and offering the leaders the chance to share their thoughts on this subject and in general with SNWDWVF? readers.

>>>


----- Original Message -----
Subject: Fwd: Election campaign: Send an instant message to the party leaders on a
key peace issue


Dear favourite thinking people,

You may have heard this already, but if our beloved leader is still willing to support Bush in the possible June Iran conquest then we might like to register our views before the election - this is how to quiz the party leaders, and very quick to do.

Go to http://www.owos.info/no_iran_attack/ to send your message now, which will be
delivered to each party leader.


love
geoff

Begin forwarded message:



“And finally, this notion that the United States is getting ready to attack Iran
is simply ridiculous. And having said that, all options are on the table.
(Laughter).”
George W Bush, February 2005

Dear Friend

This is an invitation from Our World Our Say to send a message to all the leaders
of the main parties now. The question that we are seeking an answer to is what
will the parties do if the US attacks Iran after the election.

Go to http://www.owos.info/no_iran_attack/ to send your message now, which will be
delivered to each party leader.

The evidence is mounting that firm US plans are in place to attack Iran – and that
the attack could take place as early as June.

It would be really appalling if we were to vote in May and then find Britain
supporting an attack against Iran this summer. Please take a moment now to send a
message to the party leaders – asking each one to make a pledge not to support
such an attack and to actively dissuade the US from taking such action.

Please do that now. With thousands of messages going to the leaders this will be
an issue they have to face up to. We’ll also be placing more adverts and
distributing tens of thousands of leaflets pressing the party leaders on this
question.

In his recent article 'Sleepwalking to Disaster in Iran' ex UNISCOM weapons
inspector Scott Ritter stated: ‘Late last year, in the aftermath of the 2004
Presidential election, I was contacted by someone close to the Bush administration
about the situation in Iraq. There was a growing concern inside the Bush
administration, this source said, about the direction the occupation was going.
The Bush administration was keen on achieving some semblance of stability in Iraq
before June 2005, I was told.

'When I asked why that date, the source dropped the bombshell: because that was
when the Pentagon was told to be prepared to launch a massive aerial attack
against Iran, Iraq's neighbour to the east....'

It would be inconceivable for Tony Blair not to know of such plans. Perhaps this
is why he wants the elections held before June?

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh has uncovered the full extent of
US government plans. Details are available at
http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?050124fa_fact.

We all remember how Tony Blair ignored our concerns in the build-up to the attack
on Iraq. The fact is, once the elections are out of the way, we may once again
find ourselves bounced into another war. That’s why we need to pressure the party
leaders now – before the UK elections – at http://www.owos.info/no_iran_attack

It’s vital that the party leaders answer the questions. Thanks to the generosity
of our campaigners and supporters we have already been able to place three
advertisements in the national press. Word of mouth is vital to help us build
momentum. Please send an instant message now to the Party Leaders and let your
friends know about this campaign at http://www.owos.info/no_iran_attack

All the very best


Simone La Corbinière – for the OWOS team


“The neocons say negotiations are a bad deal. And the only thing the Iranians
understand is pressure. And that they also need to be whacked.”
Senior Official of the International Atomic Energy Agency speaking to Seymour Hersch

Desi's In The Cold, Cold Ground

This afternoon Desi Noonan, gang boss, drug dealer, and fully accredited security operative, late of Chorlton Park, followed his brother Damien into the cold, cold ground. They didn't see eye to eye of late and while Damien is resting in Blackley Cemetery and Crematorium up North, Desi not far from Morrissey's famous Gates in Southern Cemetery.

Both progressed to their graves in full gangster pomp. "THE BOSS" in flowers by their sides. Four black chargers. And a couple of thousand central casting extras from gangsterland looked on. Some no doubt to make sure he was nailed in well and that their IOUs and grievances were buried with him.

Desi was the second of the gang to die. And third brother Dominyk (sic) looked sick as he took over the mantle of family boss walking at 3 mph ahead of the hearse on its last journey, from Northenden to Chorlton Park.

Desi was sometimes generous in life. And in death he bequeathed an unexpected last minute day off to 2000 High School students from two establishments. An unexpected hassle to the parents of same. And a post mortem to follow for Police, Head Teachers and Local Authority on who actually cancelled lessons and why.

Why was the man taken to his grave on a schoolday anyway? Word in the local schools outfitter is that this was because Desi's family has more guns than the police and they wouldn't dare suggest he was buried on a Sunday. Our informant may have got this from the Channel 4 hagiography published (just) posthumously. The Heads say It Woz the Police Wot Did It. The Police say It Never Woz.

Desi made all Friday's local and national TV and many of Saturday's papers. His mother would have been proud of him. Publicity for the right reason at last.

Trompe D'Oreille : The Ears Have It

Sorry, I forgot to tell readers yesterday about what must either be photo trickery or a hitherto unaired physical gift of the Lib Dem PPC in Manchester Central.

The Mighty Ming Campbell was quick to call for sackings when Tories doctored photographs. So let's hope it is the latter.

In one picture our hero Marc has THREE EARS. He has been superimposed on a picture of a police car. Either another candidate was actually in the photo, or had been superimposed earlier and not removed, or Marc himself has had several incarnations as the image doctors did their best.

Actually it doesn't look bad and he should consider adopting this talking point for real.

Royton and Chorlton

Off I go to Royton near Oldham to help distribute anti BNP materials. The meeting point is half a mile from the Vets where I took Hooch recently to see a working dogs specialist.

A couple of hours then amidst Countryside Alliance booklets and the trappings of rabbiting is revealling. There is underlying anti-gypsy feeling, founded on occasional cases of dog-napping and what people believe is an incident of malicious greyhound poisoning in the vicinity. Two dogs dead in 48 hours. Here and elsewhere in the area it's feelings about travellers and other groups that the BNP play to.

The fascists are standing in a whole swathe of urban and semi-urban seats straddling the pennines. Bury North, Rochdale, two Oldhams, Denton and Reddish, Ashton and onwards into Yorkshire. They are also standing in leafy Cheadle.

They have little or no great chance of a breakthrough MP wise but they are going in the mayoral in Stoke, and in various County Council seats. But the main purpose almost everywhere is to soften up target wards for 2006 and 2007 and build support round some of their vile ideas or at least a cleaned up public version.

Newsnight later carries a story of a BNP councillor and sometime seller of nazi memorabilia who is doing the community politics thing on local estates and reaching out to Black Britons, Sikhs and Hindus. His lapel carries a badge : "Don't Unpack, You're Going Back". Invidious.

Having good councillors doing that community politics in the first place and dealing with fears and feelings too is the only real insurance policy against the nazis. Poor councillors, weak councils, party fall outs and schisms generating independent vote-splitting candidates. Well these are the building blocks of BNP success.

From 2001 to 2003 Oldham had a Lib Dem council. They lost it against the trend in 2003 and the erstwhile leader admitted that they were not up to the job. They could, he said in so many words, say anything and do nothing in opposition when they had power they had to make hard decisions.

One of my fears from a General Election with any level of couldn't-care-less tactical voting is that Tories (and one or two Lib Dems) will win seats. And that the trickle down from that to future local government elections will weaken councils and leave room for fascists to work their tricks.

Here in Oldham West the BNP have targeted the two Royton wards as well as Glodwick and others.

Although I know exactly where I'm going there is a lot of traffic and I miss the group. My phonebook has none of the right people in it and wards cover quite large areas and kerb crawling round to find them is not an option. So it has to be Plan B.

This is stuffing envelopes in Chorlton Co-op Rooms for Keith Bradley. I make it back for the second half of the action and am amazed to find almost 40 industrious souls folding, stuffing and stamping 11,000 plus envelopes like a well-oiled election machine.

The main run is a friendly call to vote to those with PVs. The second run targeted letters to Asian voters. Both include a summary of the general benefits of having a Labour government for working people, pensioners, patients and schools.

The second talks about going forward with tolerance and respect with three specific calls for a Labour vote :

>>>

* Labour is committed to toughen the laws on incitement to religious hatred. These moves are opposed by both the Lib Dems and the Tories.

* I did NOT support military action in Iraq. It is simply misleading of other candidates to suggest otherwise. Parliamentary Hansard 18.03.03 shows that with Tony Lloyd and Graham Stringer I voted against the war.

* Labour has a commitment to state-funding Muslim faith schools.

<<<

The second point is vital. The Lib Dem PPC has been putting out cheeky lies which say that Keith voted for the war. It is a matter of public record that he did not.

It was of course useful to have some 50 Lib Dem MPs and a few Tories and Nationalists supporting the Labour-led (139 MPs) rebellion on the war. But it galling for a man who has taken no visible part in any anti-war activity to be telling fibs like this. After a full rebuttal and a lull he has picked it up again.

Keith has also included a paragraph in his election address pointing out the duplicity of the Lib Dem pretender.

We're all done and some are off to the pub while others like myself finally go home to get our tea. A big topic of discussion on the way out is the funeral of gangster Desi Noonan. the second of the gang to die. His funeral will be nearby. One police estimate predicts there will be 11,000 mourners. And Kate's school is being closed for the day as the wake is 100 metres away from the gates.

The last gangland funeral this side of town saw a drive-by shooting at the wake. Keep well clear is the advice.

Is "Real' the new "New"? "

The Lib Dems are "The REAL alternative" and Greens offer "Real Progress" and fliers from the Labour Representation Committee offer "Real Labour". Are you thinking what I'm thinking? Is 'Real' the new 'New'? And will the Greens' address be any better than the yellow one?

We like :

- printed on 100% recycled and a quarter the size of the Lib propaganda with less fibs and no bar charts

We wonder :

- why our Green blogger is bragging about local printers when this one is done in York; Labour's Manchester leaflets are all printed by a small firm in Manchester

We like :

- the main slogan (there are plenty) "For people, planet and peace"; it's very grand

- some of the policies too

We don't like :

- unsupported assertions like "Labour's done nothing"

In this city that just isn't the case and our local government 2005 manifesto aspires to make Manchester the Greenest City in Britain and 2006 will see more aspiration, progress reports and detailed action plan; recycling has already increased eight fold in two years, we have a composting plant, talk of incinerators has been replaced by much better alternatives, there's Metrolink and the most used public transport outside London, all streetlights here are powered by renewables, all council buildings including schools and local units too, and a process of eco audits is underway with school dinner food miles looking the biggest remaining culprit; Fair Trade status of course, and so on and so forth.

Manchester Labour is making a conscious effort to recruit energetic red-green believers and, yes, Manchester is doing the business for people, planet and peace.

We also don't like :

- scaremongering from the Lib Dem school

The cover graphic is a rural type signpost with six directions shown. These are :

Dentist 18
Corner Shop 3
Post Office 5
School 12
Station 23
Hospital 8

Total 69 somethings

These figures whether in miles, kilometres or star years have got to be bogus in most of the seats where they are standing.

My sister in law lives under the Black Mountain in Pontardawe and my parents at the edge of Ballycastle in Glen Shesk and their figures are actually not dissimilar to mine perhaps 150% in Gower and 250% in Antrim. Mine are (in kilometres) :

Dentist 2.5 (the ex NHS one is 0.2)
Corner Shop 0.3
Post Office 0.6
School 1.0
Station 4.0 (1.0 when Metrolink is delivered)
Hospitals 1.2, 3.0, 3.5

Total 11.9 kilometres (using longest alternatives)

The Greens do have a good point underneath the exaggeration. We are lucky to be so handy for everything. Others, especially in rural areas, are not. But scaremongering by a factor of SIX is loopy stuff when Greens are mainly standing in Manchester, Leeds, Lancaster, Oxford, Brighton and the like. And by TWO or THREE times for some typical country towns. It's nonsense.

Green voters and activists out there should seriously consider getting stuck in and greening Labour instead. Watch from the sidelines, or roll up your sleeves and make things happen with us.

The problem for socialist-leaning greens and green-leaning socialists must be that the Green Party may be clear on a couple of things, possibly, but beyond that there is policy chaos and all stripes politically. Are we going to get Blue-Green or Red-Green today?

In Chorlton the council candidate advocated medieval punishment stocks on her website. Startingly similar to the BNP pledge number two : corporal punishment for petty criminals and vandals.

One of their national spokespeople gave the papers an exclusive story. That Manchester town hall brews and bickies were startingly overpriced. As I recall the cost was about £2.50 for unlimited refills and a couple of biscuits. A fraction of Starbucks or any conference centre. The Green sums were nonsense. Neglecting all the Labour value in buying, brewing, serving, clearing and pot washing. Expect redundancies.

Some of their candidates here are Labour right defectors. And of course in Leeds they are in a coalition with Tories and Libs. Well I suppose if you mix true blue with cheesy yellow you do get a shade of green! Perhaps that's it? Or the bicky-gate redundancy agenda and the medieval punishment?

(PS To check the real liberal democratic environmental challenge google for the excellent "Too Yellow To Be Green".)

Electoral Addresses Start Arriving

The Lib Dem's postal offering arrived yesterday. Predictable enough. In this "positive only" Lib Dem campaign this inevitably is largely full-on attack politics.

Post Office closures - it says our man Tony Lloyd voted for the closures. Of course he only voted for "reinvention" after assurances that city branches, esp in deprived wards would be properly looked after. And he has ruthlessly attacked Post Office manager's cheating on closures and reneging on these promises.

Metrolink is attacked - a Labour success. With a Labour national manifesto commitment at £520 million. Which the Lib Dem's have been weak on. Which the LD candidate has done nothing visible on. Which our man Tony Lloyd has played a blinder on. Including collecting signatures at the blue City of Manchester stadium - though he is a well known Red!

The third attack is a mystery. "Labour is failing on the police". There's lots more to be done but that is just a dirty fib. 800 more officers for GMP - thanks to Labour leadership, despite Lib Dem feet dragging - and crime going down on both recorded incidents and British Crime Survey results.

As a regular at various police partnership bodies I know that it's true that the rise in violent crime is really and truly because of changes in reporting practice. And as one frontline policeman said on the telly today: With more police more volume crime gets recorded. The serious assaults (and there usually needs to be open wounds or broken bones) are going down here, except in isolated hotspots.

Lib Dems really do have a cheek to whinge about crime or police. They vote against all legislation to give police even basic tools to deal with problems. And in Manchester this particular candidate was carpeted by police only last summer for leaking and scaremongering unhelpfully to the papers.

Still there's not much damage there.

Then there is the Blair/Bush photo. Much as I opposed the war I don't think there's that much damage there either. Perhaps in one ward and in small parts of two others. But we have Tony Lloyd’s exemplary record with four out of four as rebel teller/whip. And we also have a high proportion of the electorate who are not exercised by this issue or support the government.

The B side includes a number of extravagant promises. Some are on how this pretender will vote. But one stands out. There are two picture stories with it. That is that Marc will *get rid* of Top Up Fees, not just vote against mind, actually get rid of.

THERE IS NO MENTION WHATSOEVER OF LOCAL INCOME TAX!! Perhaps they'll do a second leaflet. Perhaps they realise that for Manchester at least the sums just don't add up.

Marc's usual cronies - giving the look of three granny mugging musketeers - are nowhere to be seen.

There are those two pics with the woman President of the SU where Marc works as the Manager. Another with the stern woman ward candidate in target Ancoats. And a fourth with one of my Lib Dem comrades from the Whalley Range vigil, mother of a SWP activist, and reportedly wondering what she as an old school left Liberal is doing mixed up with these slippery-pole by-all-means-necessary chancers!

Marc has reinvented himself from "casual boy with pals" for town to "James Bond with ladies" for parliament. This is his third parliamentary challenge. He must know what he is doing. But despite Charles Kennedy's call for an honest and positive campaign it does seem that belonging to the Lib Dems in Manchester means having a fibber's charter.

In case there was any doubt about that we get a picture of Michael Howard and the usual deceitful slogans and bar charts. "It's a two horse race", "Tories cannot win here", "It's neck and neck" all the usual guff. And the barmy bar chart is based on a recent local government election and includes five constituencies. It shows 39:35:12 per cent for Lab:Lib:Tory. The actual figures in the last general election were around 17:4:3. They are shameless.

This blog entry has been typed four times as the server keeps rejecting it and the 'recover post' feature is half hearted. Further analysis on the Green effort and on deliberately misleading Lib Dem attacks in neighbouring Withington.

BBC : Thank you for your email

This is standard reply 279a generated by the BBC's hard working staff in the complaints department or possibly their clever Turing Machine.

You will get probably get the same if you complain. But please do complain. Numbers are logged even if detailed arguments are not.

And do complain to OFCOM if and when the BNP content is offensive. (Link in Urgent etc earlier today).

>>>>>>

Thank you for your e-mail.

The BBC and other relevant broadcasters transmit Party Election Broadcasts where registered and lawfully constituted political parties qualify under rules which are agreed by and common to all broadcasters and which are scrutinised by the Electoral Commission. It is the legal responsibility of each broadcaster to transmit Party Election Broadcasts. The BBC's Board of Governors agree the eligibility criteria for Party Election Broadcasts transmitted by the BBC. The minimum qualification for a single broadcast in the General Election in any nation in the UK is to stand in one sixth of seats in the nation in question. To qualify for a broadcast in Great Britain a party must stand in one sixth of seats anywhere in GB. The BNP qualify for a single Party Election Broadcast because they are standing in sufficient numbers of seats in these elections. The BBC plays no part in the editorial content of the broadcasts, but these must comply with the law and with some other broadcasting regulations.

As a public service broadcaster the BBC is committed to impartiality in its reporting of political issues. Freedom of expression is a very important democratic right, especially within an election period. The inclusion of such Party Election Broadcasts within our output under these rules is in no way an endorsement by the BBC of the views of the parties concerned.

Thank you again for contacting us.

BBC Complaints Unit

http://www.bbc.co.uk/

Dear BBC

Dear BBC

Apart from the atrocious technical quality of materials provided by the fascist BNP for transmission on BBC TV and Radio there is a much more serious issue. The material and this pernicious party's underlying programme completely fails the quality threshhold for decent political activity in a decent democracy.

The BBC should use every available scrap of discretion and legal power to avoid transmitting any such material whatsoever. Today April 21 or any day. Wherever BNP gets more profile attacks on BNP target groups increase. This is not scare mongering this is the real life pattern on the ground where I live in Greater Manchester.

The BBC should also issue instructions to journalists and producers that if they should afford the BNP any coverage whatsoever this should be (a) hostile because of the BNP's criminality and not-so-hidden agenda of hate and (b) certainly be no more than afforded to other parties with less than 1% support across Britain.

Most such parties will get next to no coverage. The BNP deserve none.

In particular, should the BBC allow journalists and producers to include interviews or coverage of the BNP this should only be handled by the most experienced and savvy staff. I listened in horror last year when Nick Griffin ran rings round an experienced Five Live reporter in Burnley. What they can do with the inexperienced is appalling.

And finally, no journalist or technician or BBC staff or freelance worker whatsoever should be required to assist in transmitting BNP propaganda against their will. This is a matter of conscience and should be respected.

Free speech rights need to be balanced with other rights. This is clear in slander and libel, incitement, verbal assault, right to quiet enjoyment, right to operate a business and many other rights enshrined in the various declarations of human rights.

The BNP lose their right to free speech when they offend the rights of so many other people in most if not all these matters.

As I live and work in areas which enjoy fantastic diversity with a current situation of peace and harmony - community unity - the last thing I want to hear or see is BNP propaganda on the most famous and high quality broadcaster in the world.

This gives these terrible people - including many criminals - more credibility. And it encourages fascist thugs to go out and "rule the streets" with fear and loathing and hard core violence and intimidation. In the manner of the supporters of all fascist parties and organisations through history.

Please DO NOT help these pernicious criminals and hate politicians in any way. Pull the plug on the BNP.

Yours Faithfully

Chris Paul

Residents Labour Party, Manchester

Urgent : Anti Fascists : Pull The Plug, But Get Dialling

Have a couple of days catching up to do. But in the meantime here's something you can and should all take part in.

The BNP's proposed election broadcast has been failing the technical quality threshhold for broadcast with a folky soundtrack of a song composed by Nick Griffin proving particularly ropey. They are trying to fix that and intend to have something ready for transmission TODAY.

But many people will feel that whatever the technical quality the BNP's material fails the quality threshhold for decent political life in a decent democracy.

Previous examples have seemed to incite race hatred, incite religious hatred, contain bogus facts and figures, feature convicted criminals not least Griffin himself, and of course included the disgraceful call "to vote BNP to preserve your identity".

Other parties which should know better are also flirting with this communalism. Not least Respect through George Galloway - according to Nick Cohen in the Observer last Sunday - and also the Lib Dems here in parts of the North West. Michael Howard is of course appealling to the same sort of base instincts.

Whether there is a call to vote for a party of whites and christians or vote for a party of asians and muslims this seems to me to be dangerous stuff.

Here is what you can do about the BNP. Complain to the BBC right now. Adapt the BECTU letter at the foot of this blog entry or use your own words.

UAF and BECTU Press Releases :

* Pull the Plug campaign
http://www.uaf.org.uk/
Protest against the BNP's party political broadcast and call on the BBC to pull the
plug on race hatred.

BBC1 and BBC2 are set to transmit the first party political broadcast by the BNP in
the general election campaign on Thursday 21st April.

The BBC is not obliged under the law to transmit the broadcast. There are precedents
for restrictions being put on the fascist and racist BNP - its previous broadcasts
were either stopped entirely or subject to severe restriction due to their offensive
content.

Wherever the BNP have a presence, racist attacks increase. Prominent members of the
BNP including its leader Nick Griffin have recently been charged under the section
18 of the Public Order Act which outlaws incitement to racial hatred.

A letter will be handed in, calling on the BBC to not to broadcast the BNP's message
of race hate.

You can make a complaint...
By phoning the BBC: 08700 100 222
or Textphone: 08700 100 212
or by email: Go to the BBC website complaints page http://www.bbc.co.uk/complaints/
and click on 'email: send your complaint'

You can also write to the BBC:
BBC Complaints, PO Box 1922, Glasgow G2 3WT

You can complain to OFCOM on the content of the broadcast by emailing:
contact@ofcom.org.uk


* BNP objectors backed by union http://www.bectu.org.uk/news/gen/ng0219.html

BECTU has confirmed that members will have union support if they refuse to service a
planned right-wing election broadcast.
In a letter to all major UK broadcasters, BECTU has promised to back members who
decline, on grounds of conscience, to help transmit a party political broadcast
(PPB) by the far-right British National Party.

The letter, sent to BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, ITN, S4C, Ulster TV, and BSkyB,
reminded broadcasters that they were under no legal obligation to transmit the PPB,
and would be accused of increasing racial tension by giving the BNP airtime.

Anti-racist campaigners, and trade unionists supporting Unite Against Fascism, plan
a demonstration outside BBC Broadcasting House in Central London from 4.30 pm on
April 21, to coincide with the scheduled transmission times of 5.55pm on BBC2, and
6.30pm on BBC1.

Other broadcasters are likely to put the BNP broadcast into their schedules, and any
members seeking advice should call BECTU Head Office on 020 7346 0900.

Letter sent by BECTU to:
BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, ITN, S4C, Ulster TV, and BSkyB
20 April 2005
BRITISH NATIONAL PARTY AND THE GENERAL ELECTION
As I am sure you are aware in past General Elections the British National Party were
granted a free election broadcast which was transmitted by most of the broadcasters.

BECTU is of the view that the only reason the BNP wish to broadcast is to increase
racial tension. The BNP is also a party whose manifesto calls for the forced
repatriation of all black people. The carrying of broadcasts for parties like the
BNP is discretionary and not a formal legal requirement placed upon the
broadcasters.
The purpose of this letter is to seek an immediate assurance from you that if you do decide to grant the BNP a free election broadcast that you will not require BECTU
members to work on this broadcast if they, as a matter of conscience, do not wish to do so. We will support any of our members who refuse to work on such broadcasts as a matter of conscience to the maximum extent within the limits of the law.
Yours
Gerry Morrissey
BECTU Assistant General Secretary

Catch Up : Ardwick, Rampant Lion, Beech Inn

Tuesday boost. Ardwick's turn. Reasonably solid Labour here though the area we tackle has a much higher turnover of residents than Moss Side.

The ward looks likely to be one of two the Lib Dems will be attacking. Their candidate has been busy. But it seems he is promising the earth to individuals. Not just "more fines for poopy dog owners", "new gate on the way", "smoother pavements". This man is offering cuts in council house rent.

We visit the Rampant Lion pub in neighbouring Manchester Gorton constituency and I arrange to see Tony Lloyd later for some beers in The Beech Inn in Chorlton.

Great little pub. Though a shame that they've changed their dogs policy. So the hounds must be left at home.

I tell Tony that the publicwhip quiz is showing the Lib Dems closer to my views than even a Labour MP who has voted against Fees, Foundations, War, Hunting, and on most of the PTA divisions too.

We work out that this (he is 24% from my picks on seven questions, the Lib Dems 14%) is largely because he was away for the iD card debates. Public whip seems to miss the nuance of absence versus abstinence or support for a government bill.

Clearly the opposition get to vote against ad nauseum. They can say anything and duck hard choices.

On the way home I also realise that the quiz doesn't factor in dozens of votes which support Labour values where the Lib Dems voted against with their Tory chums.

Things like the Minimum Wage.

Red Letter Days (blog in progress)

Had letter in Manchester Metro at the weekend. Severely edited thus :

(Text to follow)

So will send follow up thus, waiting to see what response the above gets. In private correspondence with the letters' editor at the Metro I have predicted that there will be a personalised attack from the Lib Dems and no answers :

(Text to follow)

My letter did not get into the South Manchester Reporter last week though Keith Bradley's team are reasonably happy with the balance of coverage now. The editor has finally put in more of a round up and over recent weeks has printed a picture of the Tory, UKIP, and Green pretenders. Though the Lib Dem's auto-hagiography of three weeks ago was pretty much a free and unmediated election address. Perhaps this letter will be in next week so I'll not post it here for now.

There was an excellent letter in the MEN Postbag last night attacking Lib Dem bar-charts and calling for a vote for either Labour or Tories. Keep it simple was the message! If you vote Lib-Dem you don't know who you'll get.

This should be available on the website, link to follow.

There was also a letter rehearsing the BNP platform without identifying that. The author signs "Phill" and is almost certainly the man who calls himself "Phill Edwards" (not his real name) the BNP's National Press Officer.

Perhaps worth a response.

I'll also post up a couple of recent letters I've submitted to the Guardian.

I've finally had a chance to read Nick Cohen's Observer piece about George Galloway and I will aim to post a blog entry about that here soon. In a nutshell I feel that Respect are guilty of a degree of communalism. Clearly the BNP are. But a third party is up to the same dangerous trick too. And it's not Labour.

Also something on the performances of Howard and Kennedy with respectively J Dimbleby plus audience, and Paxman.

I'm also hoping to find out the confirmed runners and riders in Manchester's five seats; and the final formation of the BNP threat.

Canvassing tonight will be in what should be another reasonably strong Labour ward in inner city Manchester.

News from the Northern Hills

Later on I called into see Kathy who had been part of the nearly successful real Labour slate in the City Centre in the 2004 all outs.

We had trebled the turnout with an energetic campaign. The Lib Dem majority, which ought to have increased proportionally from about 100 votes (of only 550 cast that time) to 300 but was down to just 90. And the Tories were up from just over 100 to 250 plus. Many who had lent their vote to the Lib Dems had flown home to Maggie's party. Though strictly speaking these figures are all approximations as the ward boundary was quite different and the electorate smaller in the second case.

Best of all though poll tax rebel and disgraced ex-councillor Dobbo had bounced back to overtake Barrister Peter. Serial maverick Marc had a comfortable lead overall. He is the Lib Dem PPC in Manchester Central, his third campaign so far and in his third different constituency.

First we catch up on each other's campaigns. From starting together with pre-election leafleting in the Centre these had diverged and while I had been out and about most days canvassing, leafleting, blogging and postering Kathy had just done her first bit of real campaigning, joining Kath Fry in going up to Ramsbottom in the hills North of Bury to help David Chaytor's team.

Kathy is utterly dismissive of activists going and working in 'loyalist' marginals. We have to lose a few seats over this war she thinks, and better that is these people, Fitzsimons and Woolas for example, than Chaytor. He rebelled on three Iraq votes and has a total rebellion tally greater even than Tony Lloyd. Around 45 instances in all. But famously not including Top Up Fees. Something which I will cover in this blog before long.

Bury North includes urban-rural fringes and small and rather isolated small towns and villages. They are told that the hot issue is youth and community resources.

So what has been done since the last General on this ask Kathy and Kath. Actually plenty with 5-a-side courts and other diversions including voluntary youth organisations in each and every township. But still 60% of the youth don't engage and drink and create low level nuisance instead. It may be that ASBO talk hasn't helped much on this, though actual Orders have been pretty rare.

They are using the 'phone bank. And contrary to the Lib Dem blogger's scurrilous charge last week they aren't finding anyone who has opted out under TPS. The response is OK to good overall. They use new Labour "Voter iD" methods, not the old ways.

Then we talk about Horwich near the Reebok Stadium and Westhoughton. Kathy has recently moved up there to work for Bolton College and Kath works for that college part time too. The staff include a good few socialists. There is even a friday night socialist club in Bolton. The MP until dissolution was Ruth Kelly. I'm not sure whether Kathy is serious but she says workmates are saying they won't vote for her "because she talks like a man".

The BNP are standing in most of these constituencies. But there is action from them closer to home. Kathy shows me about 20 fascist leaflets. She has just been down her street collecting back this unwelcome material from her neighbours. I'm impressed.

There is a cartoon of a criminal with swagbag. Presumably to help voters recognise the candidates! And a torched car on the reverse. The BNP claim to be the only party of law and order. Platform is a crack down on crime and "politically correct interference" with the police; corporal punishment for petty criminals and vandals; death sentence for paedophiles, terrorists and premeditated murders with DNA evidence.

BNP hotline if you are interested (at £1 a minute) is 0906 553 2245. And you can send off for information, delivered in a plain envelope, on the campaign against the "Islamification of Britain".

Giving Kathy this Blog address she says she'll take a look and also feed through information and ideas.

She is not alone in thinking that Ming Campbell could find a place in our party. But when I say "but not Simon Hughes" she disagrees. But for me he is one of the leading dirty tricks people, securing his own election in Bermondsey with leaflets including one which asked voters "so which queen are you going to vote for?" under pictures of HRH and Peter Tatchell.

Kathy thinks some of ours are just as bad. But the example she gives, involving a personal enemy, seems pretty tame to me. It's pointing out the weakness of Lib Dem policies on crime and disorder with the messenger letting people think they were themselves a social worker.

"Blair Must Go" or this Woman's not for Turning

Louise is a more or less contemporary of mine. Part of the MU student union paper Mancunion crew in the award-winning early 80s. And also I now remember the 'collector' for my part of Hulme when I first joined Labour in 1983.

That was in the days when the branches took in subs monthly and sent a small slice to London, instead of the opposite effect. The days before the allegedly witty writer John O'Farrell was sending out begging emails to the rank and file. The days when there were millions paying the tiny subventions within their union dues. A grounding for the original mass Workers' Party.

Lou is a solicitor, mainly defending petty criminals, and a single mum, originally from the East Midlands. There both her parents had been party activists. Dad canvassing for the Liberals of Grimond and Thorpe. Mum for Wilson and Castle.

This she remembers was confusing for the neighbours who saw her helping out. In different rosettes on alternate days.

Post Iraq II she will not vote Labour until Blair is gone. She may even be lost for a generation as in wilder moments she needs all the front bench to be gone.

Her MP in the leafy Heatons in Stockport is Ann Coffey. A representative who has not given either anti-war protestors or socialist leaners much comfort in her voting record this last parliament.

Stockport's Council has been hung (usually Lib-Lab) or close (currently Lib) these last 20 years. Not sure what the Audit Commission ruled last time but Lou is satisfied with their performance even though I know that on all the classic Focus issues - bins, street cleaning, pavements, potholes - they are actually trailing well in socialist Manchester's wake.

When it comes to non-statutory quality of life services like Libraries, Theatres and the Arts, Parks and Recreation their spend is probably not half Manchester's even though a good few of Manchester's national and regional arts organisations receive little or no money from the Town Hall.

But Lou is satisfied. She earns enough to run a car and travel across the border for entertainment, shopping and civilisation. There are people elsewhere in Stockport, for example Reddish, who are not so fortunate and like residents in Moss Side and Ardwick they rely far more on the return of a Labour government than any left-wing solicitor.

It matters not that the Lib Dems round here are mixed-up mavericks. Relying on what must be a pretty fragile coalition of the disaffected. Tories, socialists, muslims and of course a tiny kernel of old school libertarians.

We were at college when the Gang of Four carried out their treachery. Arguably Blair's advance guard. Bill Rodgers' daughter was another contemporary as were Labour loyalists like Phil Woolas and John Mann.

The mystery of what ther Lib Dems really believe in does not blunt Lou's purpose noir even the prospect of a Tory win locally or nationally.

This vote is lost until Blair gets lost.

Radio Waves

Have been picking up snippets on Radio 5 all week. Despite claims in some quarters that the election hasn't caught fire yet most items, even football, are throwing up politics. Three examples :

Health : Flash The Ash

One day I listen aghast as a strange woman rants and raves about MRSA. I have missed the first section and don't know who this is but she is apparently speaking for the Patients' Association. I'm surprised they have sent someone so emotional and unreasonable to make their case on MRSA. Then she says the PA doesn't do party politics ... Though Labour inherited a mess from the Tories they could've done more in eight years. Much has been done but much remains to be done to coin a phrase.

Presenter Victoria is pretty clear that following a climb the MRSA and MSSA figures are going down. The strange, still anonymous, woman says she doesn't believe it for a minute. Victoria says "oh, really why's that?". This is not because she has counter statistics. Not one bit. It is because she has met ONE person who has just got MRSA.

This is the huge weakness in the Lib Dem line WE OPPOSE TARGETS etc. If you don't have targets and statistics and monitoring you are left simply with anecdotes. This is the politics of Jennifer's ear and Margaret's shoulder.

This is one of the ten so called positive pledges which is just glib and negative sophistry. Most of them are. And though the media were onto this immediately all the evidence is that the Lib Dems are now and will continue to be treated less seriously by pundits. They get away with it.

The ranting woman by the way turns out to be esteemed political and health services commentator Lesley Ash.

Race, Asylum, Immigration and Terror : Silly Fash

There is a 'phone in on the Bourgass case. One caller comes out with what comes very close to BNP/NF lines. He demands a five year freeze on immigration including asylum. Dribbling on and on with weasley fascist nonsense. Another caller slams into him. "What I have just heard is racist pure and simple. They dance around this but basically they are racist and don't want black people in Britain." Brilliant.

Future of Football : Chelsea Backlash

Matthews and Mortenson were real gents says the caller who is from Blackpool where she used to wait on tables at a cafe they frequented.

Pretty picture postcards of seasides of yesteryear and cup final goals at 50 don't come to mind though. Because this woman has just given a beautifully coherent analysis of the capitalist exploitation involved in Abramovitch's accumulation of billions of previously collectively owned resources. Only to blue the people's money away on football.

And there's more. Lovely that there's democracy in East and Central Europe. They're now saying they'll do the same for the Middle East. So with this example Oligarchs from Iraq will be asset stripping the people's resources and buying football clubs in far-flung lands - thanks don't forget to the onslaught of freedom and democracy.

In Hollywood the waiting staff may soon be movie stars. In Blackpool, possibly with a little help from the Open University, they may be seeing through Chelsea's new clothes, not to mention that whole freedom-loving-peoples schtick.

Bog Standards and Fiscal Discipline

Off to buy trainers with Patrick. I have shown him the cost of BNIB Nike Shox on ebay. Way over my budget even there. Next I take him to Tesco. And show him the £5 a pair item that would do the job. But admittedly even I would not impose those. JJB Sports, Shox are £38.99 and Umbro Owens £24.99, and Decathlon have their own £5 model.

Back to JJB. He can hear other kids pushing for ridiculous label models too. Most fotunately being rebutted by sensible parents. He will not buy into his sister's marvellous "no logo" stance. She evn has a pair of Decathlon's finest budget trainers. But I reckon he is open to persuasion.

My budget £20. No, he cannot come back with his mum another day. But, for every pound he gets under that I will give him a 50p boost to his economy. He quickly chooses eponymous Patrick's at £9.99 and pockets £5 there and then.

Off to Borders and I offer him a 50% uplift in his bonus to buy a book. He gets it anyway for a new deck of Pokemon cards. But I'm still £2 ahead and £21 ahead of the Shox position. Bog standard Trainers cool enough after all.

Five Live is playing sport so I tune in to Four instead. A Business flavoured The World This Weekend. Digby Jones has just buried the good news of unprecedented economic numbers and stability, and Britain being the best place in the whole of Europe to do business mentioned en passant with a whinge about regulations. Of course there is a case to answer here.

But BBC Four's case is weakened as the Toy Shop in York they visit to make their case only really has extra forms to get benefit of generous training money and wage subsidies.

Next, the presenter whinges that Mr Blair is not joining them as the other party leaders will but that we have to make do with Mr Prescott.

I think I would send Johnno rather than Bleugh in to bat against this rather pompous presenter myself. And before long a rather agricultural style and those famous punchy forearms are creaming the long hops and full tosses and even the tougher googlies and yorkers round the ground for fours and sixes.

Presenter bowls a loosener. He jeers at Bleugh's intro to the manifesto which as well as praising the economic successes gives an example of where fiscal discipline has got us in eight years. Our schoolchildren no longer have to use outside toilets in any school in the land. Presenter says if Rory Bremner came out with this it would be A1 satire.

Johnno goes forward not back and crashes it back over his head into the stands. "That's outrageous" he says "In 1997 school buildings were falling down around children's ears after 18 years of Tory neglect. Investment in schools and hospitals has been terrific. Do you want to go back to outside toilets and leaky roofs?"

I remember Bog Alley at my own school and I'm with John 100% on this. The knockabout continues with Tory plans to slash Billions, and to remove minimum wage protection from agriculture. Not to mention Labour's success in cutting the overall business tax burden and a huge simplification in VAT with bargain fiscal deals for small businesses and organisations in many sectors.

Bog standards and fiscal discipline win the day. Prescott carries his bat proudly aloft as the crowd rise to their feet.