Last night saw a bit of Twitter swarming suggesting ConservativeHome founder Tim Montgomerie would be a perfect local candidate for Salisbury. The incumbent Tory MP Robert Key has announced he does not intend to stand at the next election.

Guido hasn’t spoken with Tim, but would commend him for his strength of character and sense of purpose. We don’t agree on much ideologically, but Guido has the utmost respect for him as an operator and an innovator. Friends are pressing Tim to consider standing. As good a candidate as he would undoubtedly make, one questions whether Tim would really enjoy the lowered status and reduced influence he would have as just another backbench MP…

Thirty-four Labour PPCs  have written to Gordon begging him for a referendum on reforming the electoral system to be the final installment of his outgoing scorched earth policy.  The letter that has the backing of the left-wing front-group “Vote for Change” reads “we do not believe that Labour will benefit at the next general election unless voters see that we are prepared to actually deliver a chance of real change.” All very nice, but it doesn’t take long before you see their true reasons for wanting the vote:

“A referendum on polling day on a system that delivers real voter choice would see hundreds of Liberal Democrats switching to Labour, hundreds more stay-at-home Labour supporters coming out to vote for the government and every Tory opponent on the back foot trying to explain why the failed old system is worth keeping and why Cameron wouldn’t give the people a say.”

A quick look through these thirty-four wannabes shows that just one of them – former Portillo slayer and 2005 Enfield loser Stephen Twigg  - has any chance of winning their seat. With the average losing majority (at the prevailing polls levels) expected to be 28% no wonder they are so keen on widening the goalposts, just look at the predicted* majorities they are up against:

Would they be backing the vote if the odds were not overwhelming stacked against them?

Funny how desperate Gordon is to have a New Year summit on Afghanistan in London. Withdrawal from Afghanistan could be some kind of a legacy for him. More likely the real reason he wants the summit is so he can get a few photo-ops that feed into his “Gordon leads the world delusion” in time for the General Election.  Remember back in March how he milked the London G20 Summit for all it was worth, desperate for a little stardust to be sprinkled on him during strolls and photographs with Obama?

That fawning and excruciatingly embarrassing joint interview (above) in Washington last March?

Gordon wants a pretext to bring Obama to London so he can play the international statesman saving the world again in the run up to the election.

Bloomberg surmises that although June 3 is the last date the Prime Mentalist can call the election, the locals scheduled for May 6* is the date implied by a 34-page Labour document, “General Election Handbook Part 1 — A day-by- day planner for your general election campaign,” issued to candidates at the conference.

The handbook is an idiots guide for activists detailing tasks to perform every day.  For example on Thursday, March 18, it instructs them to “follow up budget coverage.”

At the beginning of April, candidates are told “increase the campaign activity to a maximum level” and switch to the “Short Campaign Handbook,” which details what to do once an election is called.

The Labour Party is stretched financially and the union paymasters know that Labour is set to lose, so they would rather throw money at one not two elections, therefore combining the two campaigns makes sense.  The sooner the better…

*Chief Crazy Horse of the Sioux famouly surrendered to the United States on May 6.  Somehow seems relevant.

UPDATE : It is also Tony Blair’s bithday, so it will be nice for him to see his heir take his old job.

All the pro-politics political junkies are getting worked up about the idea that vote counting and results might be delayed until the next day (Friday) after the election.  They like all the drama.  What a waste of money and time.  Lets save all the hassle, save all the cost, get the result accurate and in a timely fashion by having an electronic count.  Election night will be saved, and it will all be done on the night with the result will be known the minute the polls close.

It is the 21st Century, we don’t need rooms full of people miscounting the vote, lets go digital and get it over with by 10.01.  The night would be for celebration, commiseration and sleeping, rather than voter slip counting into the early hours…

Dale, Isaby, Harris and Pickles just like the drama.  The rest of us just want the result, the faster the better…

In what was one of the safest Tory seats in the country UKIP plan to mount a challenge. Speaking about Bercow, the controversial Labour-backed Speaker, Nigel Farage told the Telegraph

“He is not a Conservative and yet he is sitting in one of the safest Conservative seats in the country. It means the people of Buckingham cannot vote for a Conservative even if they want to. This is a part of England where we did very well in the European elections and local elections. We are very well organised and strong and I intend to fight this very hard to become the MP.”

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Bercow	27,748	57.4	+3.7
	Labour	David Greene	9,619	19.9	−4.3
	Liberal Democrat	Luke Croydon	9,508	19.7	−0.3
	UKIP	David Williams	1,432	3.0	+0.9

This could be fun…

UPDATE : ConservativeHome’s Tim Montgomerie says what a lot of Tories will be thinking “I’d be tempted to vote UKIP if I lived in Buckingham”.  Dizzy thinks he “… would happily campaign/vote for Farage over Bercow.”

Sky’s Adam Boulton is going flat out with a campaign for a televised debate during the general election.  Sky have a petition site, as well as giving their campaign plenty of airtime and column inches in The Times.

Usually the incumbent or the front runner in Britain finds an excuse to avoid a TV Debate which conventional thinking says could give rivals an opportunity to catch up in what can be an electorally decisive TV drama.  Although Cameron is enjoying a double digit poll lead he has told Sky he is up for it.  Clegg is of course keen for that crucial airtime.

Mandelson recently said Gordon would be keen, Downing Street immediately clarified it with a negative “no change”.  If Brown does bottle it, why not as Boulton hints, leave an empty podium?  Guido wonders if Labour could be cunning enough to offer in his place Mandelson, the real power in government, in the PM’s place.  Now that would be box office…

Everyman and his blog is doing an election results service based on, well, mostly watching TV, so Guido won’t bother with that. Very disappointed that Guido’s Libertas vote looks like it went to waste. At the New Ross polling station in Wexford on Friday a neighbour said “it is our job to choose between the liars”. Wise words.

Hoping UKIP beat Labour, very worried that Dan Hannan may have won his bet that Labour will come fifth in his region. Due to Pimms-related intoxication Guido offered him 10/1 odds. Ouch, think it is bedtime for Guido…

UPDATE : Nick Griffin will be thanking Gordon Brown tonight.  He could not have done it without him. Brown has achieved one policy goal, he got a British job for one British worker, the British National Party candidate who is going to Brussels.  Labour MPs should reflect on that, do they fear losing their jobs in an election more than they loathe the BNP.  As long as they keep a Scot who can’t connect with English working class voters as leader, the stronger the BNP becomes.

If you have ever wondered how it is that all the broadcasters always seem to end up with on-message Labour talking-heads spouting exactly the same drivel after an election, here is why – Labour HQ emails everyone a briefing on “lines to take” before they go on air.  The degree of control demanded by New Labour means ambitious MPs can’t be allowed to think up their own answers.

Hence we end up with a series of robotic talking heads mouthing the party line.  Backbenchers and cabinet ministers alike will all parrot the same form of words regardless of the question asked.  If you were watching the news yesterday you will have heard the script.  Guido is grateful to a “real socialist” co-conspirator for providing yesterday’s “lines to take”.  If you want to see it, Guido has uploaded the dull script to here.   Hopefully the next leader of the Labour Party will be less Stalinist and permit Labour MPs to think for themselves…

UPDATE : It appears that Paul Waugh has blogged this already.

UKIP are complaining that ballot papers are being handed out folded over and people don’t realise their name is over the fold. Supporters are complaining to their party HQ that UKIP were not on the ballot paper…

The SNP are demanding the immediate cessation of automated marketing calls by the Labour party – using the voice of Coronation Street actress Liz Dawn. The calls directly market the Labour party – a breach of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003.  Desperately deprived of supporters willing to knock on doors the Labour Party is willing to break the law…

UPDATE : Source says the Information Commissioner has already reprimanded Charlie Whelan’s Unite union yesterday for doing automated calls.