Is Pickles trying to hijack the Lib Dems “fair votes” rhetoric?

Is Pickles trying to hijack the Lib Dems “fair votes” rhetoric?

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Will this muddy the waters in the electoral reform debate? It’s surprising that with electoral reform being pushed up the election agenda by Labour, the comments by Tory chairman, Eric Pickles, in his conference speech don’t seemed to have attracted much attention. For under the banner of the Lib Dem “fair votes” rhetoric Pickles is pressing for the Tory version of electors reform which involves cutting the numbers of seats and having fresh boundary reviews after each general election. Acknowledging…

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Could Cameron learn from Bill on how to handle “That Photo”?

Could Cameron learn from Bill on how to handle “That Photo”?

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A PB Essay by Martha Richler The Bullingdon photo just won’t go away. It pesters Cameron like a fly – the more he swats at it, the more persistent it gets. Cameron could learn a thing or two from Clinton, who handled his Oxford days deftly from the start. In the same year as the Bullingdon photo,1992, Clinton was elected President of the United States. Unemployment in America was up to ten million – and Clinton knew how vital it…

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It’s almost no change with the YouGov tracker

It’s almost no change with the YouGov tracker

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CON 41% (+1) LAB 28% (+1) LD 18%(-2) The latest figures, based on polling that mostly took place last night, are above. Tomorrow’s tracker will be the first indication of reaction to Osbornes plans and his pension gamble. The moves today are not very big – all within the margin of error for all parties. The Lib Dem share seemed to be the one that’s moving about most and there’s no real explanation. Mike Smithson

Is the ComRes boss right – Labour’s right to be glum?

Is the ComRes boss right – Labour’s right to be glum?

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But could “events” put a smile back on their faces? In a radio interview being reported today, the boss of pollster, ComRes, Andrew Hawkins is suggesting that the election is in the bag the for the Tories. He said: “If Gordon Brown stays in post until the General Election then despite the protest that this will elicit from Tories then yes it is a done deal… “On the analysis we’ve done going back over theg last 4 years worth of…

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How’s this going to go down with 59 year olds?

How’s this going to go down with 59 year olds?

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Could Osborne’s plan cost the Tories votes? The front page of the Daily Mail sets the scene and the tone for today’s big news – the announcement from shadow chancellor, George Osborne that from 2016 the male retirement age will be moved from 65 to 66. This means that many in their late 50s who were looking forward to retirement and their pension in only a few years are going to find they they’ll have to wait a year longer….

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Boris vs Paxman: Is this set to become a classic?

Boris vs Paxman: Is this set to become a classic?

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BBC Newsnight 16 minutes in And is Darling helping the Tories move on from Lisbon? If you didn’t watch BBC 2’s Newsnight last night then check it out on the BBC IPlayer – 16 minutes in. This is one of the most enjoyable Paxman interviews for a long time and will rank, surely, alongside his famous encounters with Michael Howard and John Reid. The issue, of course, is the Lisbon Treaty and what the Tories would do if on winning…

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Is this pay-back time for the Sun’s announcement?

Is this pay-back time for the Sun’s announcement?

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BBC Why has Darling broken the long-standing convention? Lots of talk tonight about the timing of Darling’s pay freeze announcement and it, apparently, breaking the long-standing convention that governments don’t do things like this during party conferences. It’s comes on the eve of George Osborne’s big speech and the suggestion is that ministers planned it tonight to cause maximum disruption to the Tories. I wondered whether we are seeing a payback for the Sun’s announcement of its change in political…

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The Tory lead moves to 13 points with the tracker

The Tory lead moves to 13 points with the tracker

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CON 40% (-1) LAB 27% (-2) LD 20%(+3) And the Lib Dems continue to poll well I assume that this is based on fieldwork that was carried out last night and first thing this morning. To a question of who people thought would perform best in the TV debate the split was: Cameron 49%; Brown 12%; Clegg 15%. So the Tories will be quite pleased that their lead has increased while the Lib Dem will be delighted that once again…

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