Tuesday 11 September 2007

The Poliblogs 11th September 2007

My Two Cents...on a welcome move by David Cameron

David Cameron has had a shaky few weeks since Gordon Brown became Prime Minister. Brown’s honeymoon may, however, be coming to an end. The unions are in a boisterous mood, the economy will soon be impacted by the crisis confronting the City and Brown is under pressure from his own party and the unions to give us all a say on the draft EU treaty.

Blaney’s Blarney

Hague responds to Petraeus report

Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague has obviously hired Sir Humphrey Appleby to be his new speechwriter. Here's is civil service-speak response to General Petraeus' report to the US Congress on the progress of President Bush's surge strategy:

Conservative Home

Rhetoric and reality

Gordon Brown's speech to the TUC pressed every labour movement button, but the unions want action not just words.

Seumas Milne

Capital incompetents

I won't be voting in the Tory hustings - but here are the questions that any candidate for mayor should answer

Ken Livingstone

The choice for London and the choice for the LibDems

The announcement of the LibDem shortlist to be their candidate for Mayor of London has made very little news - even in London - but is a really important one. The LibDems have controversial policeman Brian Paddick standing against two worthy but very little known candidates, both of whom will benefit from the experience even though they will be trounced.

Little’s Log

Brian Paddick for mayor?

I can’t help but feel sorry for the other two people going for the Lib Dem nomination for Mayor of London, as Brian Paddick is always going to be the star attraction and I’d be astonished if he doesn’t get selected.

Anders Hanson

Samuel Coates: The first Mayoral hustings

Last night was the first and most central hustings for the Conservative nomination. Chaired by former London Assembly leader Bob Neill MP, the candidates each started with a five minute speech:

Conservative Home

Does John Bercow stand a candle in hell's chance of standing again for the Conservatives?

I wouldn't bet on it. Conservative Home today reports speculation over the deselection of Bercow and Patrick Mercer, his fellow Tory Brown adviser. That follows a Daily Mail article talking about "Grassroots fury" at the two.

Liberal Burblings

Why calling for UK population controls misses the point

Madeline Bunting purports to be thinking the unthinkable in her Guardian column this week, calling for the UK to consider population controls. Indeed, I made a similar point when reviewing the Centre for Um’s recent pamphlet on demographics. Sadly though, I must add my name to the members of the blogosphere who think she must be tad confused.

Quaequam Blog

Ability And Application Are The Classroom Divides

Class, race, and gender are not the real classroom divides. Ability and application are. This may be reflected along gender, race, and class lines, because they don't exist because of them. They are a symptom, not a cause. Instead of trying to focus on one group, however defined, it would be far better to encourage all school children to work harder, and to encourage their parents to encourage them as well.

Thunder Dragon

Swan Lake Too Risky Say Docs

Following on from the BMA’s 25 year campaign to ban boxing and their more recent attack on mixed martial arts Dr Hans Wringing-Nanyer, spokesman for the Dull as Ditchwater subcommittee has announced the organisation’s opposition to ballet dancing. Citing a little known study published in the British Journal of Radiology in 2004 he voiced his concerns for the nations little girls and effeminate boys.

Dr Rant

Boris Interview Now Available for Download

The programme lasts thirty minutes. In it, Boris...

*Declared “I do want to be the greenest mayor this country has had. I want to lead the way on this. I want to give people reasons to be green and I want to encourage all that.”

*Asserted that “I reserve the right to make gaffes, I really do. I think it is a key thing in politics that people should be able to say what they think and to, er, get themselves into slight trouble from time to time.”

*Vowed he would have a go if he saw a crime being committed…

Iain Dale

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