He does appear to have a point.
The UKIP transparency reports stop in 2011…
Launching @AndySawford's by-election pledges at a meeting with local residents in Corby http://t.co/6TtJQgtP—
Ed Miliband (@Ed_Miliband) October 30, 2012
Something a little sad about this tweet…
Mark Reckless: “To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department plans to support the European Year of Citizens 2013 campaign.”
Brandon Lewis: “No.”
Why was a BBC boss under fire over Jimmy Savile in court yesterday?
Find out over on MediaGuido…
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It hasn’t been an easy few weeks for BBC News director Helen Boaden. First she was accused of blocking the Newsnight Jimmy Savile exposé, and now she has had to take to the witness stand to defend the Beeb over another alleged cover up. Twice looks like carelessness.
This time round Boaden was facing questions over why the BBC are refusing to answer a freedom of information request asking which scientists attended an infamous 2006 climate change seminar. The BBC Trust have admitted that the seminar led to an unprecedented editorial decision to no longer give equal airtime to opponents of the climate change lobby. Boaden and co’s refusal to disclose who spoke during this all-important discussion is suspicious to say the least. Why would they not want us to know who these “scientific experts” that dictated their editorial policy are? The legal costs billed to the license fee payer are rumoured to have hit six figures…
UPDATE: Tory MP Peter Lilley and former Chancellor Nigel Lawson have today written to the BBC complaining about bias in their coverage of climate change stories. Lord Patten has a lot on his plate…
As we go to pixel 28 Tory MPs have now signed the rebel amendment calling for the EU budget to be reduced in real terms. One insurgent co-conspirator has passed on to Guido a document produced by the backbench rebels counter-whipping operation, accusing their own party whips of peddling “mis-information and spin” over the vote:
It’s all boiling down to a very difficult day for Dave tomorrow…
£90,000-a-year Communication Workers’ Union fat cat Billy Hayes managed to boost his salary by another £29,580 this year by converting backdated unused annual leave into cash. Normally annual leave must be taken in the period it is due but Hayes has been able to accumulate unused leave over twelve years and write himself a five-figure cheque. Furious CWU members have written to union bosses accusing Hayes, who seems to earn so much he has lost count, of “deliberate abuses of the union’s money”.
They also claim the CWU’s pension schemes are haemorrhaging money and have left the union “on the verge of a financial meltdown”. Not exactly what you call performance-related pay…

In spite of his rough ride at Leveson it seems Gordon Brown got off lightly considering the evidence that wasn’t heard by the inquiry. Guido understands that Linklaters, the law firm contracted by News International to conduct interviews with employees over phone-hacking, possesses a wealth of evidence on the Prime Mentalist that Leveson decided was outside his remit.
Sources close to Linklaters whisper to Guido that while Leveson only asked for specific evidence from 2008 onwards, they collected testimony from Fred Michel dating back to the crucial election-that-never-was period in 2007 that was not heard at the inquiry. This includes embarrassing details of failed attempts by Brown’s aides to lobby Murdoch for support and more significantly evidence that sources at the law firm believe show Brown lied under oath when he denied the truth of the infamous ‘declare war’ phone call. If anyone at Linklaters feels like doing the public a service, they know what to do…

What Dave, Ed and Nick Want You to Hear | James Kirkup
In Praise of Apple’s Tax Plan | Daniel Mitchell
Christine Blower Can’t Do Maths | Toby Young
Cameron is Having a Shocker | Iain Martin
UKIP Still Back Flat Tax | London Loves Business
Dave Will Probably Win in 2015 | Dan Hodges
EU’s Tax Harmonisation Agenda | Dan Hannan
Tories Have Always Sneered at Party Faithful | Simon Heffer
French Youth Fleeing Socialism | Reason
Councils Should Not Blow Cash Subsidising Arts | Harry Phibbs
Old Holborn on Twitter Exile | Backbencher

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Ai Weiwei in China fighting the taxman…
“Under totalitarian rule, no one is protected by law. We will all be the same helpless victims. When a country insists on its lies, it’s time for an artist to bring forth change.”

Ned Flanders – Clegg
Lisa Simpson – Natalie Bennett
Milhouse – Hilary Benn
Martin Prince – Andy Burnham
Edna Krabappel – Luciana Berger
Crazy Cat Lady – Glenda jackson
Comic book guy – John Prescott
Carl – Chucka
Lenny – Philip Hammond
Willie – Eric joyce
Poochie – Gordon Brown
Reverend Lovejoy – Tony Blair



