Wishful Thinker Blair thinks.....

Tony Blair is back! He thinks Labour has "every chance of succeeding" on 6 May. New crystal ball for Tony, please. I can't think what this spivvy ex-politician can do to help Labour. He'll just resurrect memories about how he took us into an illegal war, etc, etc.

News comes that the Charity Commission says it is considering claims that e-mail databases held by Mr Blair's charities have been used to canvass voters. No, not Tony's charities, surely? I don't hold out much hope that the Commission will test his mettle much. It's headed up a New labour luvvie.

Blair says, "I think, once people get back to the question of what does the future really hold for me, is it more of what we have here or is it not, then I think that Labour's got a far better chance." Is he for real? He definitely needs a new crystal ball. If I ever question what the "future really holds for me" I'd volunteer for remedial therapy if the answer came back "VOTE LABOUR!".

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SNP fails in BBC debate court bid

It was bound to be. Lady Smith, judge at the Court of Session in Edinburgh, through out the SNP's bid to be in the spotlight. Alex Salmond in a Prime Ministerial Debate? Laughable at best, I'd say.

Scottish Tory campaign manager David McLetchie sums it up rather well. "The SNP knew the UK leaders' debates would get significant press coverage but Alex Salmond waited till now to go to court to ensure maximum coverage during the campaign. His use of the legal process, for what has been no more than a £50,000 SNP campaign stunt, is desperate stuff. The ruling just proves this point."

I hope Salmond puts the £50K in the accounts for the Electoral Commission to peruse!

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Tories attack Labour over leaflet 'lies'

Gordon Brown is talking about truth in the leaders' debates but he is also stimied by his recent bout of untruthfulness. He told six lies in six weeks, one of which was a real deception in front of Sir John Chilcott.

Now he is distancing himself from the lies being told about the Conservatives and their welfare policies. Gordon Brown was confronted by a very annoyed David Cameron last night, but he just responded by providing his caninus muscle grin, which I am beginning to see is a cover up for "I've been caught out again!".

Gordon Brown may not have "authorised" the leaflets, but he doesn't seem to want to say that such deceptive electioneering is wrong. Makes a paragon of virtue look decidely amateur in comparison I think. He should try a bit harder in his truthfulness quest.

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Joe Hall - Independent - Luton South

Independent candidates are contesting this election in their droves. Not only that they are also in various groupings and some constituencies are getting more than one serious Independent standing.

Luton South is one consituency in particular. Esther Rantzen is contesting this seat as is Joe Hall, a Luton born and bred charity professional. That makes two charity professionals in the field. Given the electoral system only really recognises a voter as being either "a little Conservative or a little Liberal", crowded fields tend to give skewed results. That said, the electorate currently is in a "plague on both your houses" mood and Joe Hall has as much chance as Esther in achieving a good result. It may not be a win, but it will be interesting to see who the eventual winner is in Luton South. Must be a bookmaker's nightmare and a pollster's conundrum.

I give Joe Hall's Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 6/10 for Election Information

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Clegg says suspend Goldman Sachs contract

Goldman Sachs should be suspended as an adviser to the government until fraud allegations are investigated, Nick Clegg has said. This is the first reaction to this troubled topic of toxic banking. It is a step in the right direction.

The Liberal Democrat leader referred to US allegations that the investment bank had defrauded investors. He said it was a reminder of the "recklessness and greed" that had "disfigured" the banking industry and said the allegations were "extraordinarily serious". They are and such activity in the financial markets is not only wrong on a criminal point but are a source for destabilising trust in the banking industry.

Nick Clegg said today, "We believe that Goldman Sachs should now be suspended in its role as one of the advisers to the government until these allegations are properly looked into." Vince Cable added, "The Goldman issue is not simply an issue for the US, it is emerging that the British taxpayer may have lost something in the order of £500m, perhaps more, as a result of the guarantee for the complex derivatives that were given by ABN Amro, which of course is now part of RBS, so there is a very strong British interest in this."

Slowly but surely getting to the bottom of the banking crisis? Hopefully so.

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Ross Grant - Conservative - Leicester South

I'm slightly miffed all the Conservative candidates are getting their campaign sites through Central Office. This tends to give the same touch to each. I'm looking at Ross Grant's site and he comes across well but nothing too exciting about Ross himself. Seeing as he "conducted research for a variety of industry sectors including public sector, international post services, retail and wholesale banking sectors" he could have given himself a really snazzy site.

That's where this "on message" stuff gets in the way of proper campaigning. By the time a real gem from Ross has done the rounds, been sanctified, sanitised and specially sanctioned, his electioneering message has lost its shine. Pity. He seems to have lots going for him. My advice is - read between the lines to get the real message.

I give Ross Grant's Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 4/10 for Election Information

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Eric Pickles is an online champ!

Whatever one may think of Eric Pickles, you can't fault his eagerness for internet campaigning. It's a mixture - sort of Yorkshire Terrier meets Essex Man - and I think he puts the Conservative cause quite nicely here.



His own website gives the impression of being a subtle blend of old Liberal campaign favourites "spot the pothole" and my mum's diary "I have always felt very proud to be super-common.”

I give Eric Pickles' Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 6/10 for Election Information (plus an extra point for personal bio!).

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Frank Cook - Independent - Stockton North

Unlike most independents in this election, Frank Cook is a sitting MP standing for re-election. The difference this time is that he will not be fighting under the Labour Party banner, New or Old. He has now quit the party, saying Labour is "no longer the party I joined in 1950". That is stating the bleedin' obvious Frank! It's amazing it took him so long to realise this. I get the impression some Labour MPs allowed Mandelson and the Gang to hypnotise them good and proper. Rather like the Little Britain character, Kenny Craig, "Look into my eyes, not around the eyes...."

How many will be hypnotised this time round?

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Nikki Sinclaire - SAMRA - Meriden

Caroline Spelman is the excellent Conservative MP and candidate for Meriden. This constituency covers half the Solihull Borough area and takes its name from the village of Meriden. Actually this parish is only a very small part of the constituency. Into the fray comes Nikki Sinclaire, West Midlands MEP, who had been selected as UKIP candidate but fell out with the leadership over its grouping arrangements in the European Parliament. Ms Sinclaire is now standing as the candidate for SAMRA or the Solihull and Meriden Residents Association. She has told the local paper, Solihull Observer, where a full scale advertising blitz is underway, that she will spend £20,000 plus on trying to get Caroline Spelman ejected. A tall order I'd say, but worth the money if second place is not to be sniffed at.

SAMRA will contest all 17 ward seats on the borough council and this will prove an additional excitement to the local campaign.

I give Nikki Sinclaire's Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 5/10 for Election Information.

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Unionist 'unity' candidate agreed in Fermanagh

The DUP (Democratic Unionist Party) and Ulster Conservatives and Unionists (UCU) have agreed on running a joint unionist candidate in Fermanagh and South Tyrone. Rodney Connor, a former chief executive of Fermanagh District Council, will stand as an independent. However, he has agreed to accept the Conservative whip if elected.

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A tale of two Gary Walkers

One Gary Walker is standing in Lincoln as a independent, after being sacked from his NHS job. Now I find another Gary Walker who lives in Lincoln Nebraska decided in 2005 to make a stand about people smoking in his diner. Maybe there's another Gary Walker somewhere in yet another Lincoln who is making a stand?

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David Cameron in a pickle with the voters

Telephoning voters will be a "thing" many of us will get used to over the next few weeks. These two are real pros. David Cameron has a top-notch telephone manner and Eric Pickles gets straight to the point. I'd love to be a fly on the wall here. "You do the colonel chappie David and I'll do the butcher bloke!"

Just imagine you're settling down to an evening's brainless box-watching and the phone rings. You hear Eric Pickles and his dulcet Yorkshire tones tempting you to vote Conservative. Are you in a mood to hear the message? I don't know, but apparently many people are, as otherwise Pickles and Dave wouldn't be doing it. But I'm not one for this American style coaxing. I prefer to watch the TV and see Eric sound off to the ones who need to give the answers. Or better still, see the action in person.

Basically they just want to hear the word "YES". I tend to waffle on a bit, so I think I'm down as a Miss, if you know what I mean.

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Gordon Brown's take on Employment Tax take!

Gordon Brown, looking tired and troubled, has begun a fightback on the National Insurance contributions issue. Figures are being bandied about but the real heart of the matter is that this is a tax on jobs for the sole purpose of raising money for the health service and pensions. Or at least it was. Nye Bevan came up with the scammy idea of calling an employment tax "National Insurance". This is no more insurance than a protection racket is security. Ever since the notion of pretending the money raised went into a health fund was first mooted, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has enjoyed a king in a counting house approach to public revenues.

Let's get real. This is an Employment Tax and NOT a so-called "National Insurance".

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William Ross - TUV - East Londonderry

William Ross, formerly an Ulster Unionist MP, is standing for the Traditional Ulster Voice in East Londonderry. Currently chairman of the TUV, he is coming back into frontline politics, or hoping to, as the heart and soul of unionism gets a tugging and a tussling as the various unionist parties vie for pole position. Most unionists these days appear to have had previous unionist incarnations, and Willie Ross is no exception!

Ross says, “Many people will ask the question why I have put my name forward again for front line politics. Quite simply, like many thousands of decent Ulster men and women I have been outraged by the general behaviour of many Members of Parliament, including some from Northern Ireland. They have fallen short of the high ideals they professed and which people expected of them." So the political sleaze of recent years will be, partly at least, an election issue in this part of Northern Ireland.

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Priti Patel - Conservative - Witham

Witham is a new constituency in Essex. It has been formed by lopping off bits from Braintree, Colchester and Maldon to create a seat that is notionally Conservative with a majority of around 7,000. So it is almost a certainty that Priti Patel will become the MP for Witham. Apart from being a Saxon town in Essex with Roman remains, Witham was a short-lived spa town with pretensions of rivalling Bath and Cheltenham. A certain Dr. Taverner promoted his newly discovered mineral spring by stating, "This most excellent mineral water whose singular virtues and efficacy will render it beneficial in many if not in most chronic diseases incident on mankind".

I'm sure the Conservative message in Witham with have similar "singular virtues and efficacy" as the campaign progresses.

I give Priti Patel's Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 6/10 for Election Information.

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Gary Walker - Independent - Lincoln

This election is producing an interesting crop of serious candidates standing as independents. One such is Gary Walker in Lincoln. His campaign is based primarily on the health service (having spent 22 years in the NHS) but he also concentrates on the scandals in politics generally. He tells voters via his campaign website, “I will represent you and fight for what matters to you. In the coming weeks you have the chance to give Lincoln a completely new exciting future, free from party politics.”

It is always difficult to know how much a candidate like Mr. Walker can affect the outcome in a particular constituency. Lincoln, though, has "form" when it comes to voting, especially with the backing of Dick Taverne as a Democratic Labour MP in 1973.

I give Gary Walker's Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 7/10 for Election Information.

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A Monster Vote is on the cards or in the tea leaves!

Every political party is in on the act. This is one of the Monster Raving Loony Party's election videos.



And this is the other! For all good protesters.

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Sam Cam on the Terrible Channel Flicker!

We are going to get more of these YouTube offerings. Can you imagine Dorothy Macmillan giving a frank interview about "Harry"? Sam is speaking about Dave. I may be wrong, but I suspect he took a while to get used to being called Dave. Even the electorate hasn't gone that far!

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Esther Rantzen - Independent - Luton South

One topic that won't go away at this election will be MPs' expenses. Whilst the main three parties will be hoping all that is either under the carpet or well out in the open air and blown away, the minor parties and independents will be stoking it up. One such will be Esther Rantzen. Offering herself as an Independent to the voters of Luton South, Ms Rantzen is providing a serious campaign based on openness, accessibilty and a promise to abide by the highest standards of transparency and integrity. Luton South voters know they had a dose of opaqueness and a lack of transparency in their existing member.

Esther Rantzen's campaign is hard to judge. She may do reasonably well, but I suggest a deposit retention is nearer the mark than an outright win.

I give Esther Rantzen's Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 4/10 for Election Information.

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Nigel Farage - UK Independence Party - Buckingham

Nigel Farage is probably the best known UKIP member and the people of Buckingham will be getting to know him quite well over the next four weeks. Farage says, "Speaker John Bercow has turned his back on his principles and now his own Conservative Party has turned it's back on him. The political class does not listen and are not addressing the local and national issues that people care about. Buckingham needs a Voice not a Speaker". One thing Nigel Farage has got is a voice. In some ways his political oratorial skills are almost matching those of George Galloway. Nobody in Buckingham will be able to complain they haven't heard about UKIP's policies. The Voice will let them know all right!

I give Nigel Farage's Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 7/10 for Election Information.

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Salma Yaqoob - Respect Party - Birmingham Hall Green

Of the smaller left-wing parties, the Respect Party seems to be well organised and campaign savvy. When Salma Yaqoob appears on Question Time she quite often gets those who probably wouldn't think of supporting her do exactly that. This is particularly so of the Iraq War and New Labour's military shinanigans. Her campaign is this time concentrated on the enlarged Hall Green constituency. Last time, 2005, she did very well in the old Sparkbrook division. But I'm going to stick my neck out and suggest she is in with a fighting chance of winning this seat. One thing the voters won't get is a woman of quiet mind. So they may opt for a star rather than a sparkler.

I give Salma Yaqoob's Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 5/10 for Election Information.

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Mark Ashwell - Independent - Wokingham

My eye has caught the website of Mark Ashwell. He is standing as an Independent in Wokingham against John Redwood. What makes the difference in 2010 is that a person like Mark takes the campaign seriously. The internet gives him a better chance than ever before. With Twitter as well! Gone are the days of Bill Boaks on his bicycle contraption. This is voter choice with a vengeance.

How will Mark do? I don't know, but his lie detector tests for would-be politicians could liven up the election. Perhaps the three main party leaders could be offered a test before the televised debates?

I give Mark Ashwell's Campaign Site a Voter Friendly 6/10 for Election Information.

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General Election 2010 - The Campaign starts!

Seeing as the General Election is now under way I thought I'd use this "second" blog of mine (it's been in a kind of hibernation) as a pick of the candidates election campaign websites and take a different look at the election. Whilst the BBC and other media groups will be concentrating on the three main parties, I will include some of the best sites on the internet at the moment.

This campaign will be interesting for several reasons. First, we could get a "hung" parliament. Or we may get a party winning the popular vote but losing the seat count in the House of Commons. The largest grouping may yet be the Abstentionists. They could muster an armchair army of over one third of the electorate. Then there could be sizeable votes for the minor parties. Could they achieve 20% between them?

So far the indications show that this election will have a bumper crop of candidates. The last straight fight was in the dim and distant past. This election will seem a poor show if a consituency can't provide at least six candidates for the voters to choose from. It will be four weeks of electoral fun, political showmanship and nerve-racking involvement with those very people who have been so frustrated by it all this past year - The Electorate!

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