Attack attempt on John Prescott receives general disapproval
A physical altercation aimed at former Labour MP John Prescott left him unscathed but instead affected two women as a man in a Prescott mask tried to reach the politician during a public appearance in east London. The man, thought to be in his 30s, was arrested following the disturbance in Chrisp Street, Poplar, and is now in custody at an east London police station, while another man involved in the incident was only spoken to by police and released shortly after.
Mr Prescott made the incident public via a post on his twitter page, receiving a swift response from Conservatives chairman Erick Pickles, who called such incidents “unacceptable”. Another Tory spokesman announced the party had already opened an investigation into the incident, and had suspended the men involved (who were already rumoured to be party members) from the Conservative ranks, pending the results of the enquiry.
BNP Marmite broadcast to be removed [video]
Marmite producer Unilever moved to distant itself from a BNP campaign video featuring a marmite jar prominently in the frame during a statement by leader Nick Griffin. The broadcast, published initially on the BNP website, but now to be found only on YouTube, sees a a jar of Marmite appear top left in the shot, while Nick Griffin gives an electorate speech on camera. The British National Party initially called the clip a spoof, but then denied responsibility for the presence of the familiar British product, saying the idea of including it belonged entirely to “one of the people to whom we had given the [video] broadcast to review”, adding that the marmite jar was not present in an “official version” of the clip.
In a recent Marmite advertising campaign two spoof political parties, named as the Love Party and the Hate Party, competed in a fictitious election. The BNP complained that the Hate Party was clearly profiled on itself and that the spoof prompted the party’s own reaction and the use of the product in its address.
The company issued a formal statement, that reads “Neither Marmite nor any other Unilever brand are aligned to any political party”, going on to say that they are initiating an injunction procedure against the BNP, asking them to remove any Marmite reference from the video broadcast and not allow any further usage of the product in their campaign ads.
Second debate instant polls results
The second opportunity to lock horns in a live television debate engaged the main party leaders in a fierce and fast-paced discussion answering question from the live studio audience assembled in Bristol. The general consensus from the general public seems to be twofold: first, that Tory candidate David Cameron looked pinned in a corner, unconvincingly chasing the game throughout, and secondly, that Lib Dem Nick Clegg lived up to the expectations created by the first debate a week prior. Clegg seems to have stood up well to a resurgent Gordon Brown, with a steady performance that saw him well composed, if occasionally on the offence in front of the Bristol audience hosted by Sky News.
Instant polls made public immediately after the debate give indication of the tight balance in electorate preferences that the debate doesn’t seem to have helped disperse.
SNP to focus on reducing fuel prices
Scottish National Party deputy Nicola Sturgeon voiced her party’s raising concerns at the amout of fuel duty that has been keeping fuel costs for the end consumer at what it considers to be an unfair level. Noticing that the duty tax has been raised from 39p in every pound (in 1997 when Labour took office) to 57p in 2010, Ms Sturgeon declared that the SNP will strive to fight the cause of “fairer” fuel prices.
According to the SNP, different categories need a more accessible level for the fuel price at the pumps, the issue being particularly important across Scotland. The Deputy Scottish First Minister said that the impact of such costs can be visible in motorists in general, but ultimately in an array of costs for the general population, as fuel prices are reflected in public transport or groceries.
Nicola Sturgeon made the statements in Edinburgh this week, as the SNP campaigned along with several of its candidates for the general election, as well as Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill.
Conservatives rate a hung parliament as an economic disaster
With the second of the three planned televised debates looming this week, and opinion polls showing an incredibly tight three-way race to the finish line between the main political contenders, parties are trying to separate themselves through various forecasts and statements. In line most recently, Tory MP Kenneth Clarke, who came out a day before the Sky News debate in Bristol to send a firm warning that a hung parliament would mean a financial disaster for Britain, leaving the country at risk of needing an International Monetary Fund bail-out.
Following the first television debate, of which outsider Nick Clegg was generally hailed as the winner, opinion polls have shown a surge in support for the Liberal Democrats, creating an even more likely perspective of a hung parliament come May 6th. This, says Conservative Ken Clarke, would be highly risky for the bond markets, causing the national currency and interest rates to reach dangerous levels. According to Mr Clarke, the lack of a government with majority support in the Parliament would send a worrying signal to the international market, possibly prompting the intervention of the IMF.
Tory rivals quickly stepped in to attack these claims, with the statements being characterized as “ridiculous”, “desperate”, “scaremongering” or a sign of panic at “losing the election”, by Labour and Lib Dems alike.
photo: davidChiefGordon Brown takes campaign to Wales
The incumbent Prime Minister arrived in Wales for the first time yesterday, steering his campaign towards Cardiff. During an open question and answer session at the Swalec cricket stadium, he rejected criticism of not giving enough attention to that park of UK, saying he had been to Wales on numerous occasions prior to the general election. The Q&A meeting with students touched upon a variety of subject, from the hot topic of the airway crisis, to the general state of the economy, institutional reform and expenses by political represantatives in the Parliament.
Welsh jobs and unemployment were issues on the agenda in the meeting, with recent statistics indicating an added 10,000 people out of work in the country. Gordon Brown took the opportunity to highlight what he considered were very bad Conservative plans for the economy, as Tory agenda would be of no help to creating employment opportunities in Wales and elsewhere. He said his main concern was creating a job market for the future generation of workers, as well as keeping a good level of public services in the health, education and policing sectors.
Local opposition to the Labour Prime Minister used Mr Brown’s visit to Wales as an opportunity to criticise Labour policies. Myfanwy Davies, Plaid Cymru candidate in the constituency of Llanelli, told the press Mr Brown should be tackling the “shamefully low” level of the state pension, which he considers Gordon Brown is avoiding as it is an issue he would not be able to defend. Welsh Conservative Cheryl Gillan, on the other hand, complained about the late arrival of the Prime Minister in Wales, mentioning her party’s leader – David Cameron, had already travelled there twice during the current campaign.
Nick Clegg denies past donation misuse
Following revelations by The Daily Telegraph that the now LibDem leader had monthly donations from three businessmen go directly into his personal bank account back in 2006, party representatives have come out to say all the money was properly accounted for, registered and used in support of Liberal Democrat expenses. The payments, said to amount to £250 per month, came from a Diageo, a KPMG and an ex-gold-mining executive respectively. They are all registered as official Lib Dem donors. Mr Clegg went on record this week by saying the funds were used to pay a member of his parliamentary staff.
In contrast, The Daily Telegraph claimed it had found documents which were pointing towards personal uses of the money, for purposes such as Mr Clegg’s mortgage, shopping and other expenditures. However, these donations were officially registered as required with the specific institutions (the Electoral Commission, the Parliamentary Register of Members Interests) at that time, said a spokesman for the Lib Dem MP. Suggesting that there was improper use of the funds is “utterly unacceptable”, the Tory representative went on to declare.
The issue of party donations is likely to be dug up again, as Nick Clegg prepares to face his main general election opponents tonight, in the second live TV debate bringing together the main party leaders. The debate will start at 20.00 BST and is hosted by Sky News.
photo: LibDemsEgg thrown at David Cameron [video]
Tory party leader David Cameron had an egg thrown at him while exiting a college in Cornwall. The MP was in Saltash while on his campaign trail and took the opportunity to engage in a debate with students at Cornwall College. After the discussion, while leaving the room, Mr Cameron was approached by a 16 year old attending the meeting, who threw an egg at the Conservative MP.
Witnesses said the Tory leader was unbothered by the aggression and walked off the premises calmly. The teenager who had thrown the egg was quickly arrested by local police, but released soonafter, without being taken into custody. Following the egg incident, Mr Cameron set off to Torquay, where he appeared in a fresh shirt and only joked (in relation to the chicken-dressed newspaper reporter who had been following him throughout the campaign): “Now I know which came first – the chicken not the egg”.
A spokesperson for the college where the incident happened said that the staff were very disappointed with the issue, but that the Tory’s visit had been beneficial to the institution, otherwise giving the students a good opportunity to get involved in the election issues first-hand. Asked about the egg being thrown at Mr Cameron, Gordon Brown declared, while on a visit in Cardiff, that he regretted such incidents and was hoping for a fair and civil campaign.
BNP finances under investigation
Following comments by registered auditors Silver & Co, claiming that the financial statements submitted by the British National Party in 2008 did not “give a true and fair view of the state of the party’s affairs”, the independent Electoral Commission has started an investigation into the party’s financial accounts from that year. The matter was kicked off in January with a case review, now moving into a formal investigation to find out whether there has been any kind of breach in the rules, a step in which the commission can use its full statutory powers to obtain relevant information on the issue.
The Electoral Commission mentions that no conclusion has yet been reached and that the assumption shouldn’t be made that rules have been broken. The auditors making the initial claim said that, in their opinion, the BNP’s accounts failed to comply with requirements specific to political entities, as outlined by the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act of 2000.
Tory savings considered dangerous by economists
A public letter quoted by The Daily Telegraph and signed by over 50 economists has issued a warning over the danger that the Conservatives‘ public spending plans represent on the health of the British economy. The publication claims it has read the leaked letter, which is supposedly signed by 58 economists, among them Lord Peston, Sir David Hendry, Lord Skidelsky and Lord Layard. All of them support the current Prime Minister’s plans for the economic recovery, while calling the Tories’ so-called efficiency savings only “a cut by another name”.
The Conservatives have spun much of their ongoing campaign around a proposed efficiency plan on the public sector which is promising to save £6bn straight away. The economists in question are warning this would be a “destabilising action” which is not needed. They claim that the country’s recovery is still fragile, and that “only when the recovery is well under way, will it be safe to have extra cuts in government expenditure”.
This comes in contrast with the opposition party’s supporters of the heavy cuts, as the Tories have been vigurously advertising the backing of over 400 small and medium businesses, as well as that of the leaders of several high-profile companies, such as Marks and Spencer and Next, over their savings plans. Mainly the Tory party is opposing a decision by Gordon Brown’s cabinet to raise National Insurance by one percent next year, for high earners (over £20,000), saying the measure would in effect “kill the recovery”.
photo: CP
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