Nothing to do with their money grubbing ways…

UPDATE: Iain posts in the comments

“Not sure which of your monkeys posted this, but did they actually listen to it? Probably not, it would seem, otherwise it wouldn’t have such a preposterous headline.”

Well, Iain, the Organ Grinder heard you say “I think the cynical way that people in the media deal with politics and politicians is corrosive.” On his new blog (we are paying attention) he said

“Our public life is being corrupted by a permanent sneer and cynical outlook by those who report on it. Yes, to some extent it’s the fault of those who serve in public life. The trouble is that the way politics is now reported in the print and broadcast media, it’s a wonder anyone wants to go into it. And this is why increasingly we will get a political class made up of geeks and obsessives. Normal people, people who actually want to do good, will turn their efforts elsewhere, and who can blame them?”

So the headline to do justice to Iain’s argument should perhaps have read “Iain Dale blames corrosive media for creating political class made up of unpopular weirdos”. Happy Iain?

Rare sighting of Gordon Brown (Retired) MP [PICTURE] http://t.co/gOA4ziW7—
Eye Spy MP (@eyespymp) January 29, 2013

Nice of the Prime Mentalist to show up for a vote concerning him keeping his own seat rather than, you know, speaking on the budget or a matter of national security.

The LibDem rebellion has done for Dave’s boundary reform bill, with the government defeated 334 to 292.

Labour are cheering the fact that they may well have just won the next election, with a rigged system…

Guardian hack Nick Davies once called the Press Complaints Commission “corrupt” and has written numerous pieces attacking it. So Guido was surprised to hear that he was not averse to threatening to use it himself. In October a journalist from the Mail rang Davies up about a diary piece concerning what a girlfriend, Imogen Lycett Green, is said to have told giggling friends. The details are not suitable for a family blog – think Max Mosley without the Germans.

He went absolutely crackers, surprisingly. Guido hears that Davies was able to recite vast chunks of the PCC code word for word down the phone. Threatening them with the PCC equivalent of hell and damnation if his vice anglais became public…

In Guido’s Daily Star Sunday column we revealed how Sadiq Khan had promoted the British Kebab Awards in Parliament after trousering a £5,000 donation from the Tayabb Kebab House in his constituency. Today emails have gone out inviting Labour supporters to a February fundraiser hosted by Sadiq Khan at – you guessed it – the Tayabb Kebab House. You can join the queue for your dodgy donor kebab for just £35. Bargain…

Guido’s counsel has just got back to us following our application to lift reporting restrictions in the Chris Huhne case – currently we are unable to report anything other than the bare bones of the case – the “not guilty” plea from Huhne and that the trial proper starts Monday.

We argued that we should be free to report the proceedings and tweet from the trial starting Monday. The CPS told the Court they had no problem with reporting restrictions being lifted.  The position now is that unless the defendants object on Monday, reporting restrictions will be lifted. If they do object, we will fight them…

Many thanks to Donal Blaney at Griffin Law and Matt Richardson (with junior counsel Kabir Sondhi) at Henderson Chambers for successfully representing Guido, again…

Well how is this for devotion to the cause of efficiency? In order to help his department achieve 20% budget cuts, London Fire Brigade comms chief Richard Stokoe has given himself the sack. Stokoe says that when he was looking at how to make savings he found that his own job was the one that should face the chop:

“When I looked at it, any other staff leaving would have had a direct impact. I set the strategy, which is now in place, so strategists are not needed.”

Though the PR Week spin fails to neglect that this isn’t the first time Stokoe’s original management style has raised eyebrows. Back in January 2010, when he was at the LGA, 13 PR staff were made redundant. Stokoe simply changed his job title from Head of News to Head of Media to delay his departure. Guido will be watching to make sure he does not pull a similar wheeze this time…

UPDATE: Stokoe gets in touch to say that he did not delay his departure from the LGA, but merely had a three month notice period and wanted to take a small break. He describes the move as “jiggery pokery”. Guido is happy to clarify.

Find out the latest media movements over at the Telegraph as their head of business leaves in mysterious circumstances…

Over on MediaGuido…

The Telegraph has a new head of business. Tim Jotischsky, deputy editor of the paper’s Sunday outfit, comes in to replace Damian Reece.

A Telegraph insider whispers to Media Guido that the circumstances around Reece’s departure are, as of yet, unknown, ‘but he doesn’t work here any more’.

UPDATE: Jotischsky keeps his position on the Sunday paper as well.

Sir Doug Ellis is a name more familiar with the footballing world than the Westminster bubble, yet the former chairman of Aston Villa football club has just opened his cheque book to donate £10,000 to Andrew Mitchell.

Word of an interesting tale from Ellis’ Villa tenure reaches Guido – back in the day the authoritarian chairman was engaged in fairly brutal boardroom battles with his arch-nemesis Bill Dugdale. And just who is Sir William “Bill” Dugdale?

None other than David Cameron’s uncle…