Ed Miliband’s appointment of the former Times hack Tom Baldwin has sent ripples through the stagnant Labour pond, the Alastair Campbell protege is supposed to bring substance to a weak team and perk up Ed’s image However Labour backbenchers have been left slightly confused by the employment of a controversial Murdoch man, blunting the sustained attacks upon Coulson. Further to that, it’s going to be tough for Red Ed to deploy class based attacks, as he so savoured at last week’s PMQs, given Baldwin’s heiress wife has the nickname “Just Sixteen”, given that was her response when asked how many million she had just inherited…

Another thing that isn’t going to go down well is the rumours of Baldwin’s former closeness to Dave. Roughly contemporaries at Oxford, it is said they both shared their “normal university experience” and their friendship bloomed though the lively world of PR and journalism when the young Dave was working long hours spinning for Carlton. Baldwin and Steve Hilton remain firm friends.

If it’s true that Bad Al Campbell put Baldwin up to the job, it’s going to be a hard sell for Ed to his backbenchers, who didn’t vote for him in the first place and claim to want an end to the dark days of New Labour spin…

The £800,000 worth of non-existant receipts between 2009/10 was, unsurprisingly, a bit of an issue. And that was before the £1.8 million claimed by MPs on trial or under investigation by the Police was taken out of consideration…

Developing…

UPDATE: The statement:

“The qualification arises because the House authorities were unable to provide evidence to support payments to MPs of £2.6 million, including £0.8 million that remains unsupported despite a major exercise to obtain evidence retrospectively and £1.8 million where evidence is not available for audit because the MPs are under investigation by the police.In addition, the evidence supporting £11.3 million of costs reimbursed to Members was not sufficient for the C&AG to confirm the expenditure had been incurred for Parliamentary purposes. This is despite the evidence having been obtained in accordance with the rules governing the MPs’ Expenses Scheme.”

So around £1,200 per Member that they cannot support? Who was it that said they had changed…

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The Speaker’s House is Godless again this year:

The clue is in the title…

Ring, ring…

Beeboid : Are you available for the Radio 5 breakfast show tomorrow?
Guido Fawkes : Well you know I’m more a Radio 4 person and it is a bit early for me…
BBC R5 : You would be up against Kevin Maguire.
GF : What time will you send the car?
BBC R5 : 07:40
GF : What are you looking for…?
BBC R5 : What do you think the hiring of Tom Baldwin says about Ed Miliband, how do you think PMQs will go…?
GF : It speaks of desperation, scraping the barrel that you think your PR will be improved by hiring someone like Baldwin, he’s an operator but…
BBC R5 : What do you think about Bob Roberts?
GF : He’s a bit of a wet fart.
BBC R5 : Ha, no really, what do you think?
GF : Ed’s got a cokehead and a re-tread.
BBC R5 : You can’t mention cocaine, it is breakfast.
GF : OK, I’ll say he’s got someone who has personal issues and someone we’ve never heard of..
BBC R5 : No cocaine references – it is live.
GF : Is it Richard Bacon?
BBC R5 : No, God no. What does Miliband need to do?
GF : He needs to come out swinging to cheer up his backbenchers or else the Blairites will have his job by party conference.
BBC R5 : What do you mean by that?
GF : His brother hasn’t gone away.
BBC R5 : OK, I’ll book the car for you.

Hours pass, it is midnight. Ring, ring…….

BBC R5 : Sorry we don’t need you tomorrow.

Fair enough…

UPDATE: Seems The Telegraph’s Alex Singleton got sent this as well, and got it up quicker.