Crewe and Nantwich by-election: Gordon Brown orders 80 ministers to join surge

[T_i_B]

You know, reading this I feel sorry for people in Crewe who are going to have to try and get about without being buttonholed by MP's of all sides. Still, I think it's best that we have something about the coming by-election, even if the news from Crewe is likely to be a Tory win.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/by_election_crewe_and_nantwich/1970140/Crewe-and-Nantwich-by-election-Gordon-Brown-orders-80-ministers-to-join-surge.html

About 80 ministers, whips and parliamentary aides have been told to visit the Cheshire seat amid growing signs that the Conservatives will overturn Labour's 7,000-vote majority there on Thursday.

"It's all hands to the pump – they've all been told they have to be there unless they have a good excuse," said a senior source. "We need everyone we can get."

Following this month's disastrous local election results and a string of rows with his party, Mr Brown's fragile political authority could be badly hurt by a by-election loss.

The Labour surge comes after David Cameron flooded the seat with Tory MPs and shadow cabinet members. The Conservative leader has visited Crewe three times so far, and will return next week.

[non sociopath skin]

1. I have read coverage of NuLab's "performance" in the by-election ...

... with increasing disgust, especially John Harris's Guardian Op-Ed article.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/may/15/crewebyelection08.labour

Were I unfortunate enough to have to consider voting Labour there, I would need more than Polly Toynbee's proverbial clothes-peg to dullen my olfactory facilities. I find the scarcely-disguised "If you want a Pole for a neighbour, vote Tory" element particularly stomach-churning, especially as I am married to a "foreign national".

They deserve to lose, of course. But I then have to remind myself that both the Tories and the Lib Dems, in these troubled times, are quite as capable of such a dirty campaign.

We shall need All The Perfumes of Arabia - Industrial strength - after the next General Election, I fear. :puke:

The Skin

[T_i_B]

2. Well there's always the flying brick!

As you can see from the candidate list.

The Flying Brick - The Official Monster Raving Loony Party
Tamsin Dunwoody - Labour
Gemma Garrett - Independent
Mike Nattrass - UK Independence Party
David Roberts - English Democrats
Elizabeth Shenton - Liberal Democrats
Robert Smith - Green Party
Paul Thorogood - Cut Tax on Petrol and Diesel
Edward Timpson - Conservatives
Mark Walklate - Independent

[non sociopath skin]

3. Of course, the late lamented Lord Sutch was a top-hat-and-tails man, yes?

Incidentally, if this list is in alphabetical order, one presumes that "Brick" is deemed to be his/her surname. Funny, that!

Important, too, as the received wisdom is that the higher up the ballot paper you are, the more likely the "plumpers" are to go for you.

Might we see a significant swing to the Loonies here? (No, I meant the Monster Raving Loony Party, silly ....):evilgrin:

The Skin

[non sociopath skin]

4. Might have been better if the NuLab ministers had just stayed daan sarf.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/may/19/crewebyelection08.byelections

The Skin

[T_i_B]

5. And here's the results

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/7415362.stm

The full results from the Crewe and Nantwich by-election were:

Edward Timpson (Con) 20,539 (49.49%, +16.93%)
Tamsin Dunwoody (Lab) 12,679 (30.55%, -18.29%)
Elizabeth Shenton (Lib Dem) 6,040 (14.55%, -4.03%)
Mike Nattrass (UKIP) 922 (2.22%)
Robert Smith (Green) 359 (0.87%)
David Roberts (Eng Dem) 275 (0.66%)
The Flying Brick (Monster Raving Loony) 236 (0.57%)
Mark Walklate (Ind) 217 (0.52%)
Paul Thorogood (Cut Tax on Diesel and Petrol) 118 (0.28%)
Gemma Garrett (Ind) 113 (0.27%)

A bad result for Labour after what by all accounts was an atrocious campaign.

[LeftishBrit]

6. Ugh. Just ugh.

[Polly Ester]

7. Did the Dunwoody effect play a part?

Would it have been worse if someone else had been the Labour candidate?

[Mr Creosote]

8. Tamsin Dunwoody was on the radio this morning

and she seemed to think that her mother's personal vote had been lost, which means things may not be quite as bad as they seem.

[non sociopath skin]

10. Not as bad as they seem? How so?

The Skin

[Mr Creosote]

19. Well

because suffering a 17% swing would be even worse if they had managed to retain the previous MP's personal vote.

[T_i_B]

11. That was obviously Labour's intention

But thanks to their cack-handed playing of the class card it backfired spectacularly.

[non sociopath skin]

9. ... Another fine mess, Stanley ...

... after an appalling campaign which has actually left Mrs. Skin, left-wing D(d)emocrat though she is, relieved that it may cause NuLab to pause before stigmatising her and other furriners in England's Green and Not-So-Pleasant land by making them carry ID cards.

And what's this about having no-one else to challenge Hapless Gordon for the Leadership? I mean, how big does your Parliamentary Party have to be before you have TWO people capable of leading it???

The Skin

[Polly Ester]

12. The betting now favours Gordon not leading Labour in 2010

[T_i_B]

13. Er, "Campbell" is no longer party leader!

Are those really the most up to date odds?

And why do people keep giving us bookies odds anyway? I don't know about you but I for one have no intention of wasting my money down the bookies whatsoever.

[Polly Ester]

14. I think it's because when the book was opened, he still was.

[T_i_B]

15. Is that really the most up-to-date bet on offer then?

Doesn't look like it to me. Just as well I don't gamble eh?

[Polly Ester]

16. yup, see for yourself

www.betfair.com

click "Sports" in the tab bar, then scroll down to "politics" in the menu on the left, then "UK" then "Next General Election", then "Party Leaders"


I'm no gambler myself, but I find the bookies quite prophetic, often better than the pollsters.

[T_i_B]

17. Politics under the "Sports" heading eh?

All the more reason to avoid political betting if it's for people who think politics is a sport!

[Polly Ester]

18. Blood Sports! ;o)

[LeftishBrit]

20. 'How big does your Parliamentary party have to be...

before you have TWO people capable of leading it?"

Pretty big, after 10 years of Blair. He evidently considered, and took steps to ensure, that, other than himself, there would not be even ONE person capable of leading the party. "Apres moi, le deluge" - actually, come to think of it, that was quite literally true in his case!

[Mr Creosote]

21. I think there's plenty of people capable of leading it actually

If Broon fell under the proverbial bus tomorrow they'd be spoilt for choice. Jon Cruddas would make a great leader IMO. Jack Straw could do it. So could Charles Clarke, although I personally can't stick him.

[LeftishBrit]

22. I hadn't thought of Cruddas, but the more I think of that idea, the more I like it!

But quite the reverse for Clarke - he is AWFUL. Super-right-wing and incompetent with it; almost as bad as John Reid.

Jack Straw - well, possibly; but I think he might be similar to, and have the same problems, as Gordon Brown.

I think if Brown does get replaced, his successor will be either David Miliband or Ed Balls. And I am not at all convinced of either of them doing any better than Brown.

[non sociopath skin]

23. The media would think they had died and gone to heaven ...

... were they to be gifted with a PM called Balls! :evilgrin:

The Skin

[LeftishBrit]

24. They could already have had one with the even better name of...

Major-Ball! But his dad spoiled their fun in advance.

I admit that I can't help giggling over the two main Ministers in charge of education being called Balls and Adonis. You couldn't make that up!

[non sociopath skin]

25. Someone help me here. Who was it who said ...

... that had Hitler's family name not been changed he could never have become Nazi leader or dictator as it was unimaginable to have people raising their arms and shouting "Heil Schicklgruber"?

The Skin