LibDem Voice reports Shirley stating “I met Gordon Brown at 6:30pm on Wednesday evening. We had a friendly and constructive discussion. I was not offered a Ministerial position and would not have accepted one.”

Startlingly candid admission in Mary Ann Sieghart’s farewell column:

As this is to be my last regular column for The Times, I am in a different position today from other commentators. I don’t have to worry about whether the new regime at No 10 will return my calls, at least until the autumn. I don’t have to curry favour with anyone or worry about giving offence. Instead I can give you an unvarnished prediction of what the next few years of a Gordon Brown premiership will be like.

She has, it is rumoured, taken up the offer of a redundancy payout in the latest round of News International job cuts. Last time Guido indulged in a bit of Times-bashing they got very upset. Peter Riddell even called up an associate to tell him to stop associating with Guido, there was talk of them getting Guido back with an “exposé”. But here you have it from someone who knows; Peter Riddell, Phil Webster et al suck up to Brown and Balls out of fear. It must be true, it is printed in The Times…

The Sun’s George Pascoe-Watson, author of this famous front page prediction, says we may have an election in October, but most likely next June. Guido is offering 2/1 against George, if you are interested.

Talking of betting with journalists, Mark Townsend, the Observer hack who wrote in the loss making Sunday paper that the CPS would wind up their inquiry into Loans for Lordships last October with nothing doing and wagered with Guido accordingly, still has not paid up.

Phone calls and emails go unanswered. Guido strongly recommends that he pays up this week.

Tory and LibDem HQs are more fearful of defections today than the Soviet Olympic Team Coach used to be. Benedict Brogan says it is not going to be Rifkind. Some are worried about Patten. Still no public denial by Bercow, who incidentally backed the expansion of grammar schools last month.

LibDems should be aware that Shirley Williams was apparently spotted going into Gordon’s Commons office. She incidentally closed down grammar schools. So presumably her talent would cancel out Bercow’s talent.

Is it all just to destabilise the opposition? Of course, but it goes both ways, Frank Field was spotted chatting to David Laws, his brow furrowed. You never know…

UPDATE : Adam Boulton is reporting “Strong rumours that the Lib Dem peer and QC Alec Carlisle will be appointed Attorney General.”

As Guido and others predicted, Gordon Brown has recalled his former private secretary from the IMF/World Bank in Washington to become his Chief-of-Staff.

The Downing Street secretaries should be aware that his last girlfriend, a junior employee at the Bank, prospered very well during his time as a Board member. There were allegations made of favouritism in that scurrilous gossip rag The Wall Street Journal – which were subsequently denied. Still girls, it is worth knowing…

Of course the really big story of the day is that today sees the launch of the Big Red Book of New Labour Sleaze updated to include all the latest shenanigans and with a bit more of a focus on Gordon Brown.

It has been written by bloggers with contributions from across the spectrum of the political blogosphere. It is in the bookshops this week or you can buy it online by clicking on the picture. And you can expect a little viral advertising campaign with a difference soon…

Guido was thumbing through his builder’s reading material when he noticed this on the cover of Wprost, Poland’s answer to the Economist.

German politicians have lost it over the montage of German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s bare breasts suckling Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski and his twin brother, President Lech Kaczynski under the headline “Stepmother of Europe”. The Hun seem to be a little lacking in a sense of humour here. Seems harmless enough to Guido, attractive even…

Guido called and got an “absolutely untrue” response from John Bercow’s office about rumours that he will cross the floor tomorrow. Of course if you were about to cross the floor you would hardly broadcast it…

Guido and the Monkey interviewed Bercow for one of our infamous pubcasts last year and he was effusive in praise of Dave, and damning of Gordon. Relevant is his total avowal of any interest in any other party than the Tories. Hear the interview here.

UPDATE : Some are pointing to this speech last week by Bercow, formerly an avowed Euro-sceptic, with particular interest.

Yesterday morning Guido reported that Blair would resign as an MP. Today the rest of the Dead-Tree-Press is catching up and reporting that he will do so this afternoon. Tory party Chairman Frankie Maude put CCHQ on by-election alert after reading the story here yesterday morning.

Guido even managed to beat blogging Benedict Brogan, which is becoming increasingly difficult to do nowadays. Do keep up the rest of you…