The Culture, Media and Sport select committee will give BBC director general George Entwistle the most humble day of his life next Tuesday, the day before the elections to fill it with new faces. With the three promotions and a by-election, four vacancies have opened up. Ben Bradshaw , the shunned former Culture Secretary, has replaced Tom Watson on the Labour side. Meanwhile the Tories who have publicly declared are:
- Conor Burns – Tory A-lister turned Lords rebel Burns announced he would be standing earlier this month. Good opportunity to remain high profile.
- Angie Bray – Needs a new job after being sacked as Frankie Maude’s PPS for voting against Lords reforms, while sources close to her have been pointing out her long media career.
- David Morris – The Tory MP has thrown his hat in to the ring, and even has the backing of the Hoff. Rick Astley’s former keyboardist certainly used to sport a cultured mullet back in the day.
- Jason McCartney – MP for Coln Valley, defected from LibDems in 2007. Former journalist and broadcaster for Radio Leeds.
- Tracy Crouch – female ref and footy fan would certainly have the sport aspect sorted.
- Mike Weatherly – The MP for Hove used to be Pete Waterman’s money man – another music industry expert.
Being the most famous select committee, CMS provides a major opportunity for some grandstanding. Guido hears there are eight Tories in the running to fill their three spaces, but CCHQ don’t have a complete list and nor do DCMS…
