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Month: January 2008

It’s 7/1 that Hain will be “on his bike” this month

It’s 7/1 that Hain will be “on his bike” this month

Was it £200,000 well spent Peter? For me Labour-leaning blogger, Paul Linford, sums up Peter Hain’s predicament best – “…the real reason he’s finished is because he spent 200 grand coming fifth behind Harriet Harman in the deputy leadership contest. However things pan out with the donations story, Hain has been living on borrowed political time ever since that dismal result and the only way is down from now on.” To be be prepared to spend that sort of money…

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Will Labour pay a political price for NR nationalisation?

Will Labour pay a political price for NR nationalisation?

Was action delayed because of the planned November election? With the government having lined up a veteran City executive, Ron Sandler, to run a nationalised Northern Rock there’s been a big downward move on the stock market on the NR share price. The expectation is that if the government steps in then equity investors will suffer. But what is the political price of such a move which has been advocated by the Lib Dem treasury spokesman, Vince Cable, for several…

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…..Michigan…..Nevada…..South Carolina

…..Michigan…..Nevada…..South Carolina

Is McCain becoming unstoppable? With the next big battle in the GOP race taking place in the Michigan primary tomorrow new national polls have reported leads of 8% and 15% for John McCain – the 71 year old who in the run up to Christmas looked as though he was finished. He’s now the 1.38/1 favourite to take the prize. Tomorrow all eyes will be focussed on Michigan which is really the last big chance for Mitt Romney to make…

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Is this why Cameron U-turned on nuclear power?

Is this why Cameron U-turned on nuclear power?

Has Dave dumped his “nuclear a last resort” commitment? Watching Andrew Marr interviewing David Cameron this morning I was struck at the ease in which the Tory leader has been able to change the party’s stance on nuclear power. From a position when he became leader of regarding this as a last resort he’s managed to move it so that the only issue is whether or not there is a taxpayer subsidy. Marr pressed him a couple of times but…

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Is Gordon now staring defeat in the face?

Is Gordon now staring defeat in the face?

Two more polls show increases in the Labour deficit A week ago Gord returned from his holiday and went on the publicity offensive with a series of set-piece interviews and high profile announcements. For days there was hardly a TV bulletin without him featuring. This wasn’t a re-launch, we were assured, but it had all the makings of one. Brown was trying to get the initiative back and to build on the improvements in Labour polling fortunes that we had…

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Peter the Punter takes over PBC Recorded Wagers

Peter the Punter takes over PBC Recorded Wagers

Making this work effectively For some time now Mike has reserved a small corner of Politicalbetting.com for recorded wagers. The idea is that if two posters can agree terms between themselves, they can actually have their bet formalized to the extent that it is recorded here for posterity and for others to view and comment on. The advantages are fairly obvious. The record makes it clear what the terms are and we can all share in the fun of applauding…

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We’re back to a double digit lead with Ipsos-Mori

We’re back to a double digit lead with Ipsos-Mori

But why is this against the trend of other recent surveys? A new poll by Ipsos-MORI for the Sun today goes completely against the run of other recent surveys and reports that Cameron’s Tories now have a 10% lead. The following are the shares with changes on the last survey from the pollster before Christmas – CON 42(nc): LAB 32(-3): LD 15(+1) After a period when Populus, YouGov and ICM have all reported Labour deficits of within 5% today’s survey…

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Sean Fear’s Friday slot

Sean Fear’s Friday slot

The Far Right in the Midlands Last night, Labour held a seat which the Conservatives had expected to gain, at Ibstock and Heather, on North West Leicestershire District Council. The Conservatives had won two out of three seats in May 2007, in what had formerly been a very safe Labour ward. What seems to have prevented them winning the third seat was a very strong performance from the BNP, who contested the seat for the first time, and won second…

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