With the Tories leaving the European Peoples Party, MEPs have been keen to make sure they keep some influence in other movements, such as the The International Democrat Union – the formal gathering of centre-right parties across the globe. But clearly the young Conservatives here didn’t get that memo…

The IDU’s youth-wing (IYDU) has always been Atlanticist in its outlook. With more than a little help from Ashcroft, IYDU has been in British or UK-friendly hands – until now. At its recent AGM in Sydney, the pro-EU Germans reneged on a deal and knifed the Australian candidate for Chairman in the back. Pro-EU IYDU members have used funding from Brussels to unite to take over the IYDU, shutting out African and Commonwealth countries from its inner core. Any Euroscepticism in the group is being slowly squeezed out. But who would sell out the UK’s interests and let this happen? Well step forward the Chairman of Conservative Future…

There was no Dave-like veto for Ben Howlett, whose career highlights thus far have included infuriating everyone in the Tories from Tebbit down by declaring Gerry Adams was his favourite Irish politician, and having such a temper tantrum during a photo-shoot that the Standard photographer refused to take part. Howlett returned to Britain trumpeting the German takeover of the IYDU as a triumph for British interests. It is anything but that, although it is a triumph for him personally as he managed to get himself elected as an officer in a deal with the Germans. The friend of Gerry has now become the friend of Jerry, and Tory MEPs are fuming…

Q: How do you know when Denis MacShane is lying?

A: When he’s tweeting.

Yesterday Guido brought  you the disgraced, de-whipped Labour MP’s fibs about the Olympics and the pound. Now this morning a psephological co-conspirator gets in touch to point out another howler:

http://twitter.com/#!/DenisMacShane/status/161167423461011456

Except, the polls in Croatia, see here, were correctly predicting that Yes would win, and were showing support for the EU growing. A MacShameless porkie…

Ed Miliband on the important issue facing the world…

“David Cameron’s example of responsible capitalism was the chocolate orange. He’s failed to sort it out, why?”

No invite to Davos for Chuka Umunna. After comparing running RBS to being a local NHS Chief Executive, the acceptable face of Milibandism told the Today programme that bonuses should be linked to performance. He failed to mention that Stephen Hester’s bonus will do exactly that. RBS are not giving him cash, but share options worth £963,000. He will not be able to claim it until 2014, so if RBS shares drop, his bonus will drop. With no one willing to take Chuka on this morning, it was left to John Humphrys to paint the picture of doom at what would have happened to RBS, and taxpayers’ money, if Hester and his board had walked out.

Elsewhere LibDem Jeremy Browne has said Hester should turn the bonus down. Interesting positioning from the right-wing LibDem.

Lining up for Huhne’s job?

A lot of chaff is being thrown up about the £10,000 tax threshold hike being pushed by Clegg this morning. Matthew Sinclair over at the Taxpayers’ Alliance has sent this chart proving the point Guido has been making all day. Those on low earnings benefit proportionately the most.

Those on lower earnings, e.g. the second decile (£10,853 according to ONS data) will see their post-tax earnings rise by 4.7%, those in the highest decile will see their post tax earnings rise by just 1.1%. Now some policy wonks on the left complain that middle income earners will see their post tax income rise by some 2% and that this is “a waste of money”. The squeezed middle-classes need some help as well, this is a good thing, not a flaw. The hike shouldn’t be paid for by once again shifting the higher rate threshold either. The coalition parties should stop piling on the pressure on the very demographic that voted them into office to cut taxes…

No this isn’t about his fraudulent expense claims, this is about the whoppers MacShane tells on Twitter:

Without even checking the records, Guido recalls that the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 were officially opened by President Ronald Reagan and saw him re-elected in November 1984. More recently the Canadian Conservative government of Steven Harper won a full majority of votes in 2011, after the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, following successive minority and coalition governments in the previous years.

Last week MacShane made the bizarre claim that €uro had got stronger against the “Osborne pound” which was “still weakest currency in world as oil prices rise”. The pound is in fact up 5% against the crisis-ridden €uro over the last three months.

UPDATE: Courtesy of William Pitt in the comments below:

1984 – Los Angeles (Reagan reelected in 1984)
1988 – Seoul (Roh Tae-woo returned in 1992)
1992 – Barcelona (Marquez returned as PM 1993)
1996 – Atlanta (Clinton reelected 1996)
2000 – Sydney (Howard reelected 2001)
2004 – Athens (Karamanlis reelected 2007)
2008 – China (no brainer)