Politics Watch

Mark Oaten, who was at one point a contender for the position of leader of the Liberal Democrats, quit the front bench last night over allegations of his involvement with male prostitutes during the last six months. The announcement came after reporters from the tabloid News of the World confronted Oaten at his house with evidence of this area of his private life.

Assuming these allegations are true (I rarely automatically believe everything I read in the papers, especially not sensationalist rags like the News of the World), it is a major blow to the Liberal Democrats, and to Oaten personally. With Charles Kennedy recently admitting to having a drinking problem and the subsequent leadership contest that came about as a result of that announcement, the Lib Dems could only hope for a quick and untainted contest (or preferably the immediate appointment of one candidate without needing an election). Now they face not only the trials and tribulations of a leadership election, but also damaging stories about two of their most prominent members appearing in the national press.

What interests me most about this story though is that with the potential for defections as MPs attempt to distance themselves from the embarrassments surrounding the party, I think this is the best time for the Conservatives to make a serious return to the UK political scene. With a new leader who boasts a reasonable amount of clout and charisma without being seen as nasty, evil or a member of the Old Guard (Cameron wasn’t an MP when Thatcher was in power, which I suspect helps him to shake off the old traditions), the Tories have an excellent opportunity to steal some of the ground that the Lib Dems have taken in previous elections, and possibly even some of their MPs as well. It will certainly be intreresting to see how this all pans out in the days and weeks to come.

Media coverage

• Leading Lib Dem quits over sex scandal at Guardian Unlimited – Politics
• Oaten resigns over rent boy claim at BBC News – Politics
• Oaten scandal puts Lib Dems in crisis at Manchester Evening News

BNP gets top news listing on Google at Guardian Unlimited – Politics

If you search for “Mary-Ann Leneghan” on Google News, the first result you come across is a news report on the BNP web site. For some reason, numerous people seemed to have got rather het up about the whole affair and have demanded that Google removes such stories from its search results, which thankfully they have refused to do – and in doing so they have earned my respect for not caving in to the politically correct crowd.

I don’t like the policies of the BNP and I’d never think about voting for them, but I could say the same thing about the Socialist Worker Party. However, you don’t see many reports of people complaining about what the extreme left parties write, even though if you follow the political spectrum you’ll find it wraps round at both ends and there isn’t a great deal of difference between how much people suffered under both fascist and communist governments.

The BNP aren’t breaking the law, at least not as far as I’m aware, nor are they being grossly offensive. Whilst I don’t necessarily agree with their claims that the BBC have double standards, I believe that the BNP has the same rights to publish their opinions on news stories as I do, and I think it’s a bit pathetic that some people want to gag an organisation that is providing them with an easy way to access hundreds of news sources in one place.

As I’m sure many people will have heard, The Right Honourable George Galloway MP has accepted a place as a contestant on the Channel 4 show, Celebrity Big Brother. A lot of people are angry about this, and rightly so. There is now a web page estimating how much Galloway’s time in the Big Brother house has cost the tax payer, based on his salary and how long he has not been at work doing what he is paid to – representing his constituents in Parliament and addressing their concerns on a local and national level.

If you’re a constituent of Bethnal Green and Bow and are feeling disappointed with your MP’s lack of effort in representing you, feel free to send him a message via the UK Parliament web site or write to him at the following address:

George Galloway MP
House of Commons
London
SW1A 0AA

Remember, Galloway only won his seat by a majority of 823 votes, so a couple of hundred emails and letters from angry constituents should be enough to make him buck up his ideas and get back to doing the job he is being paid for.

If you’re not one of his constituents then you shouldn’t write to Galloway directly, as MPs aren’t obliged to respond to people outside of their constituency (many will refuse to meet with lobby groups unless at least one member is a constituent – I’ve come across this issue when campaigning for Manchester MPs to sign a climate change EDM with Manchester Friends of the Earth). You can, however, write to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards and ask him to investigate whether or not Galloway is breaking the Code of Conduct for MPs by appearing on Big Brother, specifically the part where it is stated that:

Members have a general duty to act in the interests of the nation as a whole; and a special duty to their constituents.

There is also a pledge that you can sign to indicate that you will be taking this course of action and which encourages other people to do so as well.

Media coverage

Big Brother Galloway criticised at BBC News – Politics

After several days of speculation, allegations (and later acceptance) of drink problems, murmerings of discontent within the party and finally an ultimatium of “you go or we will” from 21 MPs, Charles Kennedy has finally stood down from the position of leader of the Liberal Democrats.

I’m not very surprised or shocked to hear the news though, Kennedy’s time was limited the moment he came out and publically acknowledged a drinking problem. Whilst I applaud him for admitting to the problem and seeking help for it, the admission caused him to lose a lot of confidence from the MPs that he is supposed to lead and inspire. As soon as questions start to be raised about your leadership (in any area, but particularly politics) you have to either take direct and conclusive action to quash them and the perpetrators or stand down and let someone else take up the reigns of command. Kennedy failed to deal with the rumours over his drink problems quickly enough, and he has paid a heavy price for his lack of response.

Media coverage

• Kennedy resigns at Guardian Unlimited – Politics
• Embattled Kennedy quits as leader at BBC News – Politics
• Charles Kennedy resigns at Liberal Democrats official web site

Kennedy faces mass resignations via BBC News – Politics

Charles Kennedy came under further pressure to resign from his role as leader of the Liberal Democrats today as two of his front bench colleagues threatened to quit if he has not gone by Monday morning. Andrew George, spokesman for international development, and Norman Lamb, spokesman for trade and industry, have said their positions are “untenable” after speaking out against Kennedy’s continuing leadership of the party. It is expected that several other members of the Liberal Democrat frontbench will echo those sentiments in a statement due to be released later today.

It’s all starting to look rather bleak for the usually cheerful Charlie. At first there seemed to be a glimmer of hope as he announced a leadership election and no one else put their name forward as a candidate, with several senior MPs stating publically that they would not stand against Kennedy. Initially, it looked as if he would be able to win by default by being the only candidate in the election, but it now appears that whilst his frontbench colleagues might not be willing to contest the position of party leader with Kennedy in an election, they are prepared to force him to step down by threatening to resign en masse if he refuses to jump rather than being pushed.

Update: A statement is expected before 6pm tonight, probably at 17:45 GMT so it will be covered on all the national six o’clock news bulletins. If you want to be the first to hear it, you’re probably best tuning in to BBC News 24 or BBC Radio 4.

Media coverage

• Support for Kennedy ebbs at Guardian Unlimited – Politics

Coverage in other blogs

• The Yellow Revolution at Talk Politics
• In which my local MP makes it into the BBC news… at Burbling gently

In a dramatic statement issued a few minutes ago, Charles Kennedy admitted he has been taking treatment for alcohol-related problems in the past eighteen months and called a leadership election. He still intends to stand as a candidate for the top job, but personally I think his luck has run out and the Lib Dems will have a new leader before the local elections in May – assuming of course that they don’t make a pig’s ear of the whole business like the Conservatives did.

More Information

• Kennedy admits to drink problem via BBC News – Politics
• Kennedy calls snap election after admitting drink problem via Guardian Unlimited – Politics

Kennedy making personal statement via BBC News – Politics

Charles Kennedy has announced that he will be making a personal statement at the Liberal Democrat headquarters at 1745 GMT today, apparently to pre-empt media allegations about alcohol problems. The statement is not expected to be a resignation announcement, although given the lack of confidence expressed in his leadership by senior members of the party it wouldn’t surprise me if Kennedy did step down this evening. According to the BBC there is also a letter signed by eleven of the party’s spokespeople informing Kennedy that they are no longer confident in his leadership.

Given the potential importance of this announcement and the fact that there has been little political news of interest over the Christmas Parlimentary recess, I imagine it will broadcast on least one of the major terrestial television channels.

Lib Dems get ‘youngest’ president via UNaXcess

Oliver Smith, a member of Amber Valley Lib Dems in Derbyshire, has become the president of his local party association at the young age of twelve years. I’m somewhat surprised at this, as I thought there would be a minimum age to join a political party (not legally binding, but enforced by the parties themselves voluntarily), and it seems a bit strange to have someone who probably has a very limited knowledge of politics presiding over a local association. However, the president doesn’t really have many duties, most of the important roles are taken on by the association’s chairman (assuming a degree of similarity with the way local Conservative associations work), so it could just be an amusing publicity stunt more than anything else.

Kennedy vows to fight for his job via BBC News – Politics

Under pressure from several MPs to either call a vote of confidence or a full leadership election, Charles Kennedy has promised “direct and aggressive” leadership for the Liberal Democrats. Is this enough to stop senior figures from criticising his failure to fully utilise opportunities presented to the party, such as a weak Conservative party at the last general election, which could have been used to bolster the number of Lib Dem MPs beyond the 62 that were elected?

I think the problem for Kennedy at the moment is that he is starting to sound almost like Iain Duncan Smith with his “back me or sack me” attitude, which, as we are all well aware, did not do anything to bolster his leadership prospects. Kennedy is fortunate enough to have a party that is not quite as aggressive at undermining and back-stabbing its leaders as the Conservatives often are, but even so he cannot hold on to the top job forever if criticism is mounting about his leadership skills. Some members of the party have suggested waiting until the local elections and see how Kennedy performs then, although he may not have until then to impress the party sufficiently to remain as leader until May. He is also faced with an unbeat and rejuvenated Conservative party, who have historically done very well at local elections anyway, so if he does manage to survive until the local elections he will have to pull off something spectacular to impress his critics.

More Information

• Kennedy faces further criticism via BBC News – Politics
• Kennedy’s battle to survive via BBC News – Politics

David Cameron is due to be interviewed on the Coling & Edith show today, broadcast between 1pm and 4pm. You can submit questions online or via email to colinandedith@bbc.co.uk. I’ve already asked the following question so we’ll see if it gets put to Cameron:

What are you going to do to convince previous members to rejoin the Party after leaving through becoming disillusioned with its direction over the past two general elections?