It didn’t take long for Will “we don’t do attack dog” Straw of Left Foot Forward to, errm, go on the attack.  The editor of the well funded “evidence based” blog dismissed Guido’s story (“Economics for 7 Year Olds“) about the UK being the only G20 country left in recession by quoting the figures from the back pages of an out of date copy of the Economist.

He even made a little dunce’s hat and wittily headlined his piece “Economics for Gui-d’oh  Fawkes”.

Will might have checked a back-copy of the Economist, but it seems he missed the news yesterday that Canada grew 0.1% in Q3, Mexico grew 2.93% in Q3, South Africa grew 0.9% annualised in Q3, and so did Russia. The story was driven by the new data released.  Guido isn’t sure what Will is smoking, but the icing on the cake was the citing of Spain as an example of a G20 country still in recession.  Spain isn’t even in the G20 Will.

Will’s blog is usually pretty good, provocative and produces original content, he really should stick to evidence based positive stuff, the last mysteriously funded high profile left-wing blogger who tried to take Guido on head-to-head made a huge fool of himself.  Will should also know (from his years of spinning for HM Treasury) that you need evidence that is up-to-date. Guido’s story was based on news, not old data or wishful thinking…

Above is an easy to understand venn-diagram for readers who are not into the dismal science.  The big circle shows all 20 members of the G20, the left-hand set comprises those members who are out of recession, the small right hand set contains those countries still in recession.  This is one chart you won’t see on Will Straw’s Left Foot Forward…

Embarrassingly for Gordon Brown, who sees himself as financial saviour and leader of the world, the only member country of the G20 still in recession is the UK.  Gordon is currently chairing the G20, which adds to the embarrassment.  The Times of India blames the UK’s debt burden for the divergent performance.  Who do we blame for the the debt burden?

Guido imagines it was an awkward breakfast in the Bowe household this morning. Last night former Labour MEP David Bowe was beaten in to an embarrassing third place in the selection process to become the PPC for Pudsey – by his wife.  They don’t seem to be a particularly successful power couple, Helen Bowe got eleven votes to her spouses 10. The successful candidate got one hundred and twenty-seven.

At least it will make for an interesting Christmas letter this year. Better than news of the Homer and Bart the guinea pigs…

Guido wandered into the Fabian’s Christmas party on the terrace of the Houses of Parliament. The booze, Guido noticed with some amusement, was sponsored by Serco, the private-sector outsourcing outfit.  That irony would see the Fabian’s founders, the Clause Four authoring Webbs, spinning in their graves.  Sunda Katawala told the assembled drinkers that Fabian Society membership was at an historic high, which is quite an achievement  by him given Labour Party membership is at an historic low.

Yvette Cooper was the star turn, Guido was mesmerised by her green leather boots so didn’t follow the thread of her argument closely, think it involved Etonians eating babies and David Cameron personally slaughtering first borns at Sure Start centres.  She did a lot of that head-nodding thing she does for emphasis.

The former Defence Minister Eric Joyce seemed demob happy and confirmed just how miffed Cathy Newman was when Guido beat her to getting his resignation story out.

When the booze ran out Guido slipped into the Stranger’s Bar for some subsidised Guinness (think of it as a tax-rebate) and chatted with blogging Labour MPs Greg Pope (also demob happy) and Tom Harris.  Late in the evening a tired and emotional Peter Kilfoyle exploded at the bar “You’re Guido Fawkes, you’re Guido Fawkes” ranting bitterly about a story exposing him for paying his daughter’s firm out of expenses.  He tried to have Guido thrown out of the bar, shouting to the patient barman about the injustices of this blog’s editorial policies.  Guido was a little worried that the red-in-the-face Kilfoyle was going to have a coronary…

John Bercow said…

“I cannot think of a single year in the recent history of Parliament when more damage has been done to it than this year, with the possible exception of when Nazi bombs fell on the chamber in 1941… We have to make it crystal clear that we will dynamite the past arrangements, practices and, crucially, cultures that allowed the expenses disaster to take place and will do so with as much vigour as Guy Fawkes intended to apply here in 1605.”