DEM not gonna CON dis NATION: Rolling UK politics in the short-lived Cleggeron era

His Master

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2010/jul/21/nick-clegg-prime-ministers-questions

lol what a dick

He also cited the coalition's plans to introduce a marriage allowance – a key Tory commitment which Clegg had dismissed as "patronising" prior to the general election – suggesting voters now saw the Lib Dems as "people who are giving power to the Conservatives without any influence over policies they used to oppose".

More likely "giving power to the Conservatives over policies you pretended to oppose but didn't really give a shit about".

The Iraq stuff is classic. Surely it would have occurred to him not to do that beforehand? Also liked him setting in stone a date for leaving Afghanistan, which presumably he isn't authorised to do?

There's been a lot of noises from Cameron that they're out of there by 2015, too, so I'm not sure about that one.

God knows where we begin with the unholy mess in Afghanistan, but it's nice to see it being dealt with purely on a basis of electoral advantage.

A Tory donor lobbied the Government to cancel the £80 million loan to Sheffield Forgemasters, it has been claimed.

Andrew Cook, chairman of engineering firm William Cook Holdings wrote to Conservative Business Minister Mark Prisk calling for the funding to be withdrawn.

The loan to build nuclear power station components was agreed under Labour, but cancelled as part of the coalition's efforts to rebalance the nation's finances.

In a short Commons debate Labour's Angela Smith (Penistone and Stocksbridge) produced the letter from Mr Cook which she had obtained following a Freedom of Information (FoI) Act application.

She said: "I have here correspondence released as the result of an FoI request which indicates that Andrew Cook, of William Cook Holdings, wrote to the Government urging the cancellation of the loan.

"This approach, from a major donor of the Tory party, seems to provide the only basis for the Government's decision to cancel the loan."

Don't they teach history at Eton or what?. Don't know if anyone saw it, but it was the most creepy, cringe-inducing display of crawling I've seen in a long while. Blair might have been able to get away with that sort of thing but not this douchebag.

Blair got away with it?!

Might have. He could conceivably pull it off, is what I meant. Cameron tries so hard to be Blair but he is nowhere near as "good".

someone post his annual income and his clean criminal record pls

then we can start a thread about what it means to have gotten away with something and if t blair qualifies

He definitely got away with smarmy chumminess when Clinton was President because it was all YAY LIBERALS IN SYNC, ALSO ALL LAWYERS GROUP HUG.

Yes, Obama and Cameron don't seem to have very much in common

Cameron will get away with it because:

- He's still in his honeymoon period
- Everyone likes Obama
- Cameron's already done his fair share of chest-beating over BP
- There about 8 million more important things to be taking him to task over
- It doesn't really matter

Everyone likes Obama

Say what? I'm not expecting Cameron to be imprisoned for being a brown-noser just sayin' that his role model was much better at that sort of thing than the fat-faced one.

Of course he's gonna be smarmy and eager to crawl up his butt, based on being an ex-public schoolboy of a certain age and Obama being a cool black guy who doesn't need to be his friend.

There were also 5753945 news pieces about Ben Eine's attack of WTF? at learning one of his paintings would be given to Obama. Interesting detail: he was approached by Anya Hindmarch and had to 'donate' the painting - best example ever of 'give us a freebie, I'm sure you'll get real, paid work out of it' LOL, Shoreditch.

I think when we're in the realm of "my guy could disracefully suck up to the Americans better than their guyy can" then we're really kneejerking a bit too much. Also Cameron hasn't actually entered any illegal wars or imprisoned any of his own citizens at the US's behest yet. Also this:

http://oladejiabiodun.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/bush-and-blair-at-camp-david.jpg

I don't actually think the ability to kiss arse is something to be applauded, by the way

depending on yr position it's invaluable, actually.

when yr britain, in re the US, then yeah it's something that you need to have

So at least be able to do it without grovelling is the point, I suppose.

yeah- be good at it

we got the EU, they're pretty sweet as bosses most of the time- it's almost always easier to get away with shit when you answer to a committee.

Finding the Forgemasters story more interesting, tbh:

Ministers are now facing calls to launch a full independent review of the decision to pull the loan after it emerged Andrew Cook, whose company has donated £650,000 to the Tories since 2005, obtained advice from lawyers against the deal and sent it to Ministers.

getting the feeling we may be heading home from the honeymoon. hopefully.

Nick Fagg weighs in

From Private Eye last month:

May 2010: Coalition announces Labour government plans for new generation of nuclear power stations will go ahead

June 2010: Coalition cancels Labour government's £80mn loan to Sheffield company Forgemasters for new press enabling it to make parts for new nuclear power stations, meaning the parts will have to be bought from Japan instead.

http://editorial.jpress.co.uk/web/Upload/YPOS//TH1_227201056ppp70F0.jpg

Funnily enough, Forgemasters is the company involved in the Iraq 'Super Gun' scandal back in the 1990s.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOBbqWM-T_Y

The 'Community Right to Build' will allow local people and communities across England to decide where to create new homes, shops business and facilities where they want them and where they are needed, not where local councils and central government think they should be and free from unnecessary red tape and bureaucracy.

Housing Minister Grant Shapps said:

"Far from the Nimbyism that often hits the headlines, up and down the country there are entire communities willing and eager to give the go-ahead for new developments in their area. The countryside must be a vibrant place to live, and cannot be allowed to become a museum. I want to give communities the power to preserve their villages, which are currently struggling to survive because of a shortage of affordable homes."

Community Right to Build has the backing of celebrity builder and TV presenter Tommy Walsh. He said:

"I've worked with people on community projects for many years, and in that time I've found that no one knows the needs of the community better than the people who live there.

"Whether it's building affordable housing to allow young people to remain in their village, housing for the elderly, new schools or even business developments to keep the community vibrant - if it's what the community wants, it should be made easier for them to do it. Any moves to cut red tape and help local people will certainly be welcomed by me."

New Community Right to Build homes pictured in the background:

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4142/4818116328_27c87a2cb6_z.jpg

This is basically so Tesco can bulldoze medieval village churches isn't it?

maybe I'm an appalling elitist who just doesn't get the brilliant thinking behind BIG SOCIETY, but as nice as all community all the time is, I think in a lot of cases I'd rather things were done by people who know what they're doing.

it sounds like an astroturfer's charter.

Q: Can property developers use the Community Right to Build?
A: We believe that only people who live in an area should be able to use the Community Right to Build. However, we envisage that communities should be free to use property developers, should they wish to do so.

Gonna table a proposal to build a huge wind farm in the middle of Clovelly or somewhere just for the lulz

The 'Community Right to Build' will allow local people and communities across England to decide where to create new homes, shops business and facilities where they want them and where they are needed, not where local councils and central government think they should be

oh dear christ this will be hilarious.

the local community will no doubt speak with one voice on every planning issue under this initiative, as they do at the moment against the evil planners.

This is actually unworkable and won't actually be implemented in the way they're saying. What will happen is:

- A load of council planning workers get laid off
- Schemes are presented as normal
- Random people get right of veto
- Poor people are housed as far away from the people making the decisions as possible

Yes - pretty much.

Gotta fight back against the undemocratic, unelected forces of, er, local councils and central govmint.

and their pesky long-term view

dammit i may be coming across dangerously leftie on this one i think i'll bow out

"Far from the Nimbyism that often hits the headlines, up and down the country there are entire communities willing and eager to give the go-ahead for new developments in their area.

Developers will be able to target communities more directly, and offer them a nice new community centre for yoga lessons in return for a new megastore in what were once green and pleasant fields - without the meddlesome involvement of council planners and other 'petty bureaucracy'.

Can't see scaling back the green belt playing that well with core Tory voters tbh.

Tory core voters will vote Tory whatever. Tory core funders on the other hand will be delighted that they can now bulldoze what's left of rural England with impunity.

Dunno, I can see nimbyism winning out here.

tbf I've worked with some planners who were Stalin except mad cuz he's stuck with a desk job.

yeah it wll be interesting to see how it pans out, but i really expect the 'BIG SOCIETY' to have some nasty little detail that makes nimbyism redundant- when it suits.

The 'Community Right to Build' will allow local people and communities across England to decide where to create new homes, shops business and facilities where they want them and where they are needed, not where local councils and central government think they should be

That actually doesn't talk about vetoing developments, when you look at it. It's a right to build rather than to nimby?

Stalin must've spent a fair bit of time at his desk tbf. Stamping death warrants and such.

nah he had someone like me for that kind of thing i reckon

A fair bit of time round at the shredder too xp

i don't get to work the shredder union issues. get a guy from the depot down to press the button.