Charlie surfaces in the Strathy

Via Guido I find that Charlie has surfaced in the Strathy and is at his hypocritical and condescending best. He obviously regards anyone in the area as a hick. Well worth a read just to have a good laugh.

He might just find out that the people of the area are a bit more aware than he thinks about the sort of sewer rat he is.

Already the first letter is in the paper here.

Time to trim the tip top team?

Published: 15 April, 2009

Sir, - As your Labour correspondent Charlie Whelan is implicated in the production of the scurrilous emails by Damien McBride at 10 Downing Street, I trust (not a word the special advisor or political officer group would recognise) that you will ensure his rapid exit from your team. Perhaps across the railing of the Moet roof garden on the 10th floor of Strathy Towers!

Hacked off by hypocrisy - Strathspey and Badenoch Herald

A question for Sir Gus?

If the Civil Service wanted the police to investigate Damian Green over some minor leaks which now appears to have been all hyperbole, makes you wonder why they won't look into the McBride affair a little bit more thoroughly. Even the Sun wants to know!

Perhaps there are still some more e-mails or other embarrassing documents out there just waiting to be found?

Mandarins under fire over arrest of top Tory Damian Green - Times Online

Shurely some Mistake

Surely the mixture of Smeargate and Alcoholics on the bru is a mistake!

Mr Purnell defended Gordon Brown’s response to the smears against Conservatives planned by Damian McBride.

“Gordon Brown acted swiftly and fully as soon as he found about this. He accepted the resignation of Damian McBride he then wrote to every involved expressing his regret and has asked for the system to be strengthened,” he said.

"This was shocking and totally unacceptable way to behave and the Prime Minister has dealt with that".

Mr Purnell also said that the government was taking action to identify alcoholics who were claiming benefits, by sharing data between agencies and offering help to those people,

"It's not of any help to an individual or a families if we just allow them to remain an alcoholic and have their lives blighted by it," he said.

"If we can help people to get sober that can help make a massive difference to their lives”.

PoliticsHome

A Fairy Story

Once upon a time in a far off country their lived some pigs who wanted to rule and they were, the Old Major who sadly died before he came to real power, Snowball who took over from the Old Major and ruled the country for a while trying to do good things but ultimately failing before being knifed in the back by, Napoleon a true tyrant and a villain, who then ruled the country aided by his puppies, Jessie and Bluebell and his right hand man Squealer who manipulated the country to excuse, justify, and extol all of Napoleon's actions.

And then one day Squealer, on his master's orders went just a little bit too far...

... and we all lived happily ever after.

Let us hope!

Gordon Brown draft apology:

Just in from No 10 this apology

"What people have to understand is that this crisis started in America before spreading to Britain. It was in America, not here, that these people started to publish their blogs. When the practice then caught on in Britain we no idea that it would get out of hand so quickly and lead to these problems.

And of course I have regrets that I did not stop the mostly right-wing people who started using these blogs to criticise the government. That's something I am sorry happened. And I also regret that then certain people who used to work for me, and have met from time to time, started planning ways to respond to these unfair attacks on me by right wing bloggers. They were a little too enthusiastic and got caught. Again, that is something I regret.

But I don't think focussing on such tittle-tattle for a minute longer helps anyone, least of all me. Instead, we need to remember that this blogging started in America and spread here. Now we must focus on taking the decisive action to stop this blogging doing any more damage to me, I mean before it does any more damage to public confidence in our political process. And it started in America. Thank you."

Source: Three Line Whip

Update: The Excuse, I didn't do it, a fat boy snuck up and did it and now i'll stop all the fat boys

Dear Gus
I am writing about the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, and the proposals I want to make to tighten this up. I am assured that no minister and no political adviser other than the person involved had any knowledge of or involvement in these private emails that are the subject of current discussion. I have already taken responsibility for acting on this - first by accepting Mr McBride's resignation and by making it clear to all concerned that such actions have no part to play in the public life of our country.
I have also written personally to all those who were subject to these unsubstantiated claims. Mr McBride has apologised and done so unreservedly. But it is also important to make sure such behaviour does not happen again. Any activity such as this that affects the reputation of our politics is a matter of great regret to me and I am ready to take whatever action is necessary to improve our political system. I would therefore now like a more explicit assurance included in the special advisers Code of Conduct that not only are the highest standards expected of political advisers but that the preparation or dissemination of inappropriate material or personal attacks have no part to play in the job of being a special adviser, just as it has no part to play in the conduct of all our public life. I also think it right to make it a part of the special advisers contract by asking our political advisers to sign such an assurance and to recognise that if they are ever found to be preparing and disseminating inappropriate material they will automatically lose their jobs. I think you will agree that all of us in public life have a responsibility to ensure that those we employ and who are in involved in our parties observe the highest standards. Like the overwhelming majority of figures in public life across the political spectrum, I entered politics because of a sense of public duty and to improve the lives and opportunities of those less fortunate than me. My undivided focus as prime minister is on acting to make Britain a fairer, safer and more prosperous nation and, in particular, on guiding the country through the current economic difficulties. The public would expect no less and would also expect the highest possible standards from all their politicians and all those who work for them.

Yours sincerely Gordon Brown

Why bother the current code of conduct for SpAds already covers what McBride did and he should have been sacked and not allowed to resign.

Gordon Brown draft apology: blog crisis is global :: Iain Martin