Guido has had some fun with centralised attempts from Labour HQ to win the online battle in the past, so imagine his joy to be invited to join their latest wheeze. This season’s Derek Draper / Damian McBride / Kerry McCarthy is tubby two fingered typer Jon Ashworth, who has emailed supporters in a  bid to set up a rapid online rebuttal unit:

“We can’t outspend the Tories to rebut their smears, and we can’t rely on the media to do it for us (spoiler: they won’t). So we’re taking matters into our own hands — and that’s where you come in. We’re calling it the Labour Response Team — a team of grassroots activists fighting back by exposing the Tories’ dirty tactics and highlighting their real record. I’m looking to recruit a few thousand of Labour’s most committed members and supporters to join this new team — and I want you to be a part of it.”

In other words: we tell you what to Tweet.

Amusingly Ashworth breaks the first rule of firefighting in the first line of his call to arms email. Never, ever, repeat the charge:

“The Tories have a plan to win this election…”

It’s fitting though. Labour’s entire campaign so far – from the ‘a better plan’ slogan down – has been totally reactive.