Sun newspaper Turns on Unionist Labour Party

Who can forget the 21st of April 2005 when the sun paper announced that it was supporting Tony Blair and his Labour party? The smoke was a classic Sun stunt, echoing the events in Rome the day before. The billowing black, then white, then red clouds pouring from the Sun chimney gave the TV cameras something to focus on and the paper a dramatic front page. Sun carried a piece by Blair headlined "I'm a British Patriot"; the next day, the Sun endorsed Blair, who went on to win the 1997 election by a landslide. Alastair Campbell, Blair's right-hand man, has called the endorsement his greatest achievement in politics. The Sun was the big prize and during Blair's eight years in office, he and Murdoch have stayed on reasonably good terms.
So when Caerphilly MP Wayne David dismisses this announcement then he and his unionist MP’s should learn from history. Then has a cheek to say that the media doesn’t win elections, while in the same breath expecting the Mirror paper to support the Labour party.

Mandelson Comes Out Fighting

Labour needs to fight “like insurgents, not incumbents” were Peter Mandleson's battle cry to the faithful in Brighton this week. While one former soldier said Lord Mandleson's use of the word insurgent was "completely inappropriate" "Insurgents are terrorist. A term commonly used for describing forces fighting against British and US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan; they operate outside of the law and use dirty and bloody tactics". I know Lord Mandy is the master of the political dark arts but would he use political terrorism to fight the next General Election with? In a last ditch attempt to keep Labour in power.

Labour Opportunists MP’s

I see some Labour MP’s like Chris Bryant, Paul Murphy, Kim Howells, Madeleine Moon and Jessica Morden have all signed a letter to Labour Assembly minister Brian Gibbons. In a campaign to urge the end of Welsh army families paying more council tax. These campaigns are more about timing, like it could have been raised during the Welsh Assembly elections but that might have spoilt the election of Labour candidates. It could have been raised during the local council elections that also would have had a negative response to Labour council candidates. After all Labour councillors could have changed the rule but failed to.
This campaign could have started during the European elections, which would have been a bigger disaster for Labour. No they see their jobs under threat, as MP’s in next years General Election and this is an act of desperation by these opportunists MP’s.

Neil Kimmock losing control

I came upon this wonderful clip of Neil Kinnock speaking with Ed Stourton. You really must listen to it.

PPPM

Gordon Brown (Pill Popping Prime Minister) looks jaded, tired. He is like a hard fought warrior horse who have lost the battle.

Lord Mandelson: I would work for Tories

In an interview, the Business Secretary said he would be willing to put his experience at the disposal of the country, if Labour lost power. "As I grow older, I can imagine more ways of serving my country than simply being a party politician," he said.
Asked whether he might use his experience in business and world trade to fulfil a public role under a future government led by David Cameron, he said: "If I was asked to do something for my country using that asset base, of course, I would consider it."
I thought he was already working for the Tories.

Labour leadership 'has lost will to live', says Alistair Darling

Alistair Darling has revealed his frustration at the collapse in Labour morale under Gordon Brown, accusing his party – from the prime minister down – of handing power to the Tories without a fight.
On the eve of what many MPs believe could be Labour's final conference as a governing party for a decade, the normally restrained chancellor delivers a stinging rebuke to the entire Labour hierarchy, which he says appears to have lost "the will to live", and warns that a Conservative government would "crash the economy".

New Labour’s Assault on the Jobless

Blame the unemployed for unemployment. This is the basic principle behind New Labour’s proposal to reform the welfare benefits. If they had their way, New Labour will preside over the dismantling of the welfare state. Towards the middle of last year, the Department of Works and Pensions (DWP) published its welfare reform green paper, "no One Written Off", which is based on a report by banker David Freud.
There are undoubtedly some that selfishly use benefits to avoid work. But life on benefits is not the easy ride some right-wingers like to depict. It means rationing basics like food and fuel. It’s difficult to imagine someone having an ambition to live on benefits. Most people are aware of a few people using the welfare safety net as a lifestyle choice. The problem is assuming that all the unemployed are playing the same game – and punishing the vast majority whom are desperate to find jobs.
So if a claimant can’t find a job, they will be expected to work for a government selected "delivery provider" in exchange for their benefits. These providers may be supermarkets, fast food restaurants or local authorities. The providers will be paid well for their support, out of the savings made on benefits payments. Thus they will be reimbursed, from taxpayers’ money for negligible costs of gaining a large, unpaid workforce. The Government also backtracked on promises to involve charities and social enterprises in this scheme.
TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber can see the potential problems: "people who lose their jobs want help in getting new skills and new paying jobs." This sentiment has been echoed by PCS union general secretary Mark Serwotka: "These proposals are regressive and draconian, going further than even Thatcher dared in the 1980’s. Picking up litter to receive benefits will stigmatise people and do nothing to get people back into long-term sustainable employment." I thought these schemes were aimed at criminal offenders in the form of community service, or is this Labour government saying all people on benefits are criminals. What next denying the unemployed the vote.
Full article by Leanne Wood AM in Celyn magazine.

TUC warns of double-dip recession and 4m unemployed

According to the TUC’s general secretary, Brendan Barber, Britain could be faced with a “double-quick, double-dip” recession if future Governments try to cut public sector jobs.
The TUC leader described the outlook as “very precarious” and cuts in public spending could result in over four million people unemployed.
Official figures show that unemployment increased by 220,000 to 2,435,000 in the three months to June, and takes the unemployment rate to 7.8%.
The Centre for Economics and Business Research recently predicted that unemployment could reach 4 million - worse than the record high in the 1980s under Margaret Thatcher’s leadership.
Labour and the Tories war on public spending will only cause more misery to the working classes, low earners and people living in poverty. I say cancel Trident, cancel ID cards and bring our boys and girls home from Iraq and Afghanistan. The time is to start fighting the war on poverty within Wales and the rest of the UK. The total bill for the banks bail-out is more than £130billion.

Think Different, Think Wales, Think Plaid

As Wales limp ever so close to a General Election, where the T-Rex of the Labour party slog it out with the T-Rex of the Conservative party. Both dinosaurs would have you believe that this is the only fight in town and both guilty of putting the fear of god into the voters. Recent polls suggest that the Conservative party will win thanks to English voters in England. What does that mean for us in Wales, four more years of cuts and under spending? Isn’t that what the Labour party has promised too?
Thank goodness for Plaid Cymru, the people of Wales has a third option and that is to vote for change, a vote for a party that is different from the London based parties who will always put the people of their communities before the party whips. Plaid is a political party that doesn’t pander to millionaires or to big businesses for its funding. If the people of Wales really want change them we need to think different and vote for change. When a one new nationalist candidate gets elected, that is like a political earthquake. The British media gets interested, the fat cats in London look up from the morning papers. More importantly whatever colour party runs the country; they never take Wales for granted again. So can you imagine what would happen if Wales elected at least four new Plaid MP’s.