When Dave’s away…

The mysterious @ToryEducation has gone all Toby Helm on Suzanne Moore this afternoon:

@suzanne_moore Can't admit u write crap in Guardian without fact checking & attack other hacks for not 'checking facts'?! Embarrassed yet?—
Tory education news (@toryeducation) March 25, 2013

@suzanne_moore You're rattled cos u know you've committed Hack Fuckup 101, basing article on wrong facts, I double dare u to call DfE—
Tory education news (@toryeducation) March 25, 2013

@suzanne_moore Not 'contention', it's out for consultation and on DfE website dopey! READ BEFORE WRITING. Call DfE PO or spads—
Tory education news (@toryeducation) March 25, 2013

Yadda yadda yadda…

Yesterday’s supposed Gove grilling by Labour’s Education select committee bunglers turned out to be a damp squib, with Bill Esterson not knowing the difference between the department’s permanent civil servant and the education editor of the Indy. Afterwards fellow Labour MP Ian Mearns wrote to Gove trying to salvage some dignity. He probably shouldn’t have bothered:

Some might say he floats like a butterfly…

A must-watch this morning: Gove is up before the Education select committee. Tune in here…

UPDATE:

#edselctee #won—
Tory education news (@toryeducation) March 13, 2013

When he hasn’t been tweeting about, er, “suck jobs”, Michael Fabricant has been ribbing Michael Gove about his previous career down in Eastleigh today. Gove played a priest in 1995 comedy A Feast At Midnight. Blair used to be an actor too…

All out over at Education. Well 37.5% out, as some members of the civil service PCS union vote to strike over job cuts in the department. According to PA, PCS boss Mark Serwotka is claiming that the department is being used “as an ideological testbed for wider civil service cuts”. It’s interesting that the main PCS representative in the department is one Ruth Serwotka. It may be no relation, but a Mrs Ruth Serwotka, who is apparently a civil servant, has popped up before.

Is this a case of union royalty using their power couple connection as an ideological test-bed for wider civil service strikes?

Times journalist Sarah Vine is married to Michael Gove, she clearly gets irritated by the Observer hack who she thinks carries water for Ed Miliband’s chief-of-spin, Tom Baldwin:

when does @tobyhelm stop pretending to objectivity and admit he's a political activist not a neutral reoprter @observerfail—
Sarah Vine (@SarahVine) February 10, 2012

Labour now say Mrs Gove is an attack dog:

Gove's attack dogs are out in force already in panic over @tobyhelm story he's got his wife @sarahvine to have a go as well as @guidofawkes—
Labour Education (@EducationLabour) February 02, 2013

Huge handbags on Twitter this week between the Observer’s Toby Helm and the CCHQ @ToryEducation Twitter account. The Tory tweeter told Helm “You’re like Baldwin and Campbell – an activist, not a professional hack”, provoking paroxysms of rage from the Labour Party press office’s favourite broadsheet channel. Particularly after they called Helm a Labour stooge. This will apparently spill over into the paper this weekend when The Observer is going to allege that it is part of a scandalous McBride/Draper style dirty tricks operation. Guido understands that Helm reckons it could bring down Michael Gove…

Judge the robust exchange for yourself:

@toryeducation come on tell us who you are. You know who I am. Let's debate the issue and poll full on. Don't hide you pathetic disgrace.—
Toby Helm (@tobyhelm) January 27, 2013

24% say support has increased, 11% say decreased @tobyhelm You're like Baldwin and Campbell – an activist, not a professional hack—
Tory education news (@toryeducation) January 27, 2013

@toryeducation and no I am not an activist I care about an important issue which you clearly do not as you try to misrepresent it.—
Toby Helm (@tobyhelm) January 27, 2013

@toryeducation you are too cowardly even to say who you are. Let's debate this with the whole lot of figures and people will see your games.—
Toby Helm (@tobyhelm) January 27, 2013

@tobyhelm You were a Labour stooge at the Telegraph and always predicted UK would join triumphant euro—
Tory education news (@toryeducation) January 27, 2013

@toryeducation 18 years at telegraph as a Labour stooge eh? say who you are then we can judge who is the independent thinker here.—
Toby Helm (@tobyhelm) January 27, 2013

It is unclear to Guido whether or not the account is run officially or unofficially from CCHQ or by Gove’s SpAds, or what the exact rules about this would be. As is so often the way with Twitter, exchanges are strongly worded. SpAds are supposed to operate within civil service limitations.  A strongly worded written letter of admonishment to a SpAd from the permanent secretary may result. Not exactly enough to bring down the Secretary of State…

UPDATE: Looks like Toby has been down the bookies:

Rush of money for Michael Gove to be next Cabinet Minister out. Odds cut from 25/1 to 8/1.—
Ladbrokes Politics (@LadPolitics) February 02, 2013

First it was Pickles’ biscuits and now Michael Gove’s department have spent £17,000 on three “beverage areas”. The National College for School Leadership  is enjoying the luxury of three brand new fully kitted-out self-service watering holes. The department has also been refurbishing its Cambridge office. The cost? A cool £159,000. They tell Guido the move will save money. Bottoms up…

The news is full of reports claiming cabinet ministers want Andrew Mitchell to go, Lobby hacks report that up to six cabinet ministers are openly ridiculing the Chief-Whip and want him gone. None of the stories name the cabinet ministers…

@ShippersUnbound now now…. just making point if you listen to some party sources, all is hunkydory and we're making mountain of molehill—
joeyjones (@joeyjonessky) October 17, 2012

So who are the mysterious ministers ridiculing the Chief-Whip? The most senior minister who thinks the Chief-Whip should go is Michael Gove. He was openly mocking Mitchell’s position at a drinks reception at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham. Not that the Lobby hacks who heard Gove joking at Mitchell’s expense seem to want to tell their readers and viewers what they know. The Lobby system once again ensuring that they keep the truth about a politician’s real views from the public. Tory MPs are queuing up to tell all and sundry that the Chief-Whip has had his chips. On the doorstep for Police Commissioner elections Tory activists are fed up of hearing the plebgate story thrown back in their faces…