The observant among you may have noticed on the Bromley Council website that another councillor has joined Cllr Hobbins as an Independent.
Cllr Colin Willetts has, I understand, been in a bit of long running bother with the Standards Board for England. I also hear that the Labour Party have been a bit red faced over it. Well it seems that Cllr Willetts is now an Independent!
Did he jump, or was he pushed?
Royal Mail Freepost services are an excellent way for the public to contact the political parties, candidates, elected representatives etc to raise issues at no cost to themselves.
All parties use the service.
Occasionally all parties hit problems with phone directories, bricks, hundreds of envelopes etc being posted through the system. And all parties discuss what can be done to stop it with the Royal Mail. In my former job I had high level discussions with Royal Mail, including the Chairman, on the problems customers face.
The worst thing to happen is for one party to abuse another party's Freepost. We all use it, and there has to be an informal code based on the fact it does none of us any good to make it difficult for each other.
Four years ago, when I was a candidate in Chelsfield and Pratts Bottom ward of Bromley Council the Orpington liberal Democrats Freepost started getting lots of A4 envelopes. Addressed in crayon mainly. Addressed to me. Many contained holiday brochures. Some contained specialist magazines and papers on financial investments. It all eventually stopped.
Over the last few weeks there have been a couple of empty envelopes to the Bexley Liberal Democrats Freepost address. Addressed to me. Empty.
Last time in Orpington there were some clear pointers as to who was sending them. I suspect it is the same person again.
I don't think I need to say much more, but it really would look bad for you to get caught.
I still prefer the original, but this a great cover of the best Christams song ever.
Read more...
As the New Statesman reports the BBC has withdrawn a video of a Newsnight video of the investigation into Trafigura, 'Dirty Tricks and Toxic Waste in the Ivory Coast', from its website after legal threats from the oil firm and Carter-Ruck.
So in the interest of transparency, a free media and the rights of freedom of speech in Parliament. Here is the video:
Something I was reading just made me look at Ester Rantzen's website and political blog. And you know, I get the feeling that she may now be a bit bored with the drive from East Heath Road, Hampstead to Luton and being a minor celebrity in a shopping arcade (unless there is a dog that can say "sausages").
Months after it was first pointed out on the Vote 2007 website, her Luton South policies page still says "Coming soon..." and her blog hasn't been updated since 1 November, and has had only 7 posts in 5 months unlike Qurban Hussain's blog which has regular stories about what he is doing in the area with 35 posts in 6 months. I suppose that is what comes from him having his finger on the pulse of the area and her living in NW3.
Well the shortlist is out on Conservativehome, and not one of the remaining 15 Orpington Conservative councillors has made the cut to the final six.I start this from the point of being a Harlequins fan, so excuse the bias. But the difference in performance of Quins players when playing for the club, or the Lions, and playing in Martin Johnson's England side is very telling.
Compare and contrast what Ugo Monye does with the ball when playing for the Lions - highest try scorer in the squad and an incredible intercept leading to a try run the full length of the pitch, or the way he probes the opposition with the ball in hand when playing for Quins to his lack of ball paly, constant kicking of the ball, and being placed out of position at Full Back for England (Quins only use him as stand in Full Back when Mick brown is not available).
Compare and contrast the play of Danny Care in the tryfest that was the Gloucester match this week, play which was ably supported by Nick Evans, Nick Easter and George Lowe, with his performance for England. Read what Danny said about that difference in the Sunday Telegraph this week:
"It was frustrating that the game-plan England chose to play for the opening two internationals didn't really suit the way I play," Care said. "It probably suited [London Irish scrum-half] Paul Hodgson a bit more.As Simon Briggs went on to say in the Telegraph article:
"It was frustrating that the game-plan England chose to play for the opening two internationals didn't really suit the way I play," Care said. "It probably suited [London Irish scrum-half] Paul Hodgson a bit more.
On the evidence of the autumn internationals, Hodgson is indeed a more natural partner for Jonny Wilkinson, who likes to lie deep at outside-half. But with the fleet-footed Nick Evans outside him at Quins, Care creates a dangerous threat down the middle of the field.Now the question has to be, even with Jonnie's high score rate, do we want England bogged down in a style of Rugby that is totally defensive, relies on the boot and not tries, and gets our players bogged down constantly behind the gain line. Or do we want a style of Rugby that sets players free, uses dummy runners, probes defences with the ball in hand and attracts spectators.
The website of the Tory candidate for Richmond Park, Zac Goldsmith, claims
"I grew up in Ham, and have spent most of my life in this area"Which is intriguing, as the Sunday Times reveals today:
ZAC GOLDSMITH, the green adviser to David Cameron and prospective Tory MP, has admitted that he claims non-domicile tax status, enabling him to avoid huge sums of tax on his estimated £200m fortuneWhat typical two faced Cameronite Tory hypocrisy. Read more...
News reaches me from inside a recent Orpington Conservative PPC selection meeting. Top Tory Turnip Cllr Julian Grainger was scuttling around the room putting notes on chairs that the vegetables should uproot and storm the citadels of CCHQ.
Unfortunately for Cllr Grainger, the CCHQ man at the front of the room thought differently and declared "We've gone round in circles long enough, thats enough of it now!". At which point Cllr Grainger sat down (arms crossed, eye twitching, rocking in seat, brain cell planning world domination).
Candidate hopeful Cllr Forethwop then entered the room to be told he had to leave, but he declared that he had just come off the phone to CCHQ, and they told him his services as candidate would not be required, so he took his seat.
I await further exciting instalments of the Tory selection as it hots up even more, if it gets any hotter we will all have roast turnips for Christmas Baldrick!
The Evening Standard on it's front page tonight has a story "Boris Deputy peddles story of his credit fraud shame".
Apparently Ian Clement is trying to sell the story of his downfall to the highest bidder.
I shall reserve comment, but have put a poll on the sidebar so you, dear readers, can decide. Has he paid the price, or should he not profit? You decide!
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