Mike Tuffrey writes… Why I’m serious about London
Yesterday I launched my bid to be our party’s candidate for Mayor of London and I started as I mean to go on: working with a large team of experienced colleagues from across London (see photographs...
View ArticleOpinion: Leading Labour figures guilty of the worst kind of opportunism
London burns and communities reel from successive nights of violence and looting, rumour is rife, facts are scare. All we know that peaceful vigil held for Mark Duggan, who was shot dead by police on...
View ArticleKen Livingstone: mine won’t be a grassroots funded campaign
It was Ken Livingstone’s poor taste joke about Boris Johnson, Hitler and people who don’t vote for him being sent to burn and flayed for all eternity that got the most attention following his interview...
View ArticleA tale of two holes – and a £39m price tag
In principle, I have no objection to people digging holes in the ground. Even very expensive holes. Potholes? Bad. But lift shafts, underground tunnels and other such excavations? Good. A big hole that...
View ArticleKen Livingstone ‘cannot win’, says top Labour official
News from the troubled Labour campaign for Mayor of London: The official in charge of the London Labour Party has been removed after saying that Ken Livingstone, Labour’s candidate for the mayoralty,...
View ArticleKen Livingstone attacks Boris Johnson for, er…, agreeing with Ken Livingstone
Ken Livingstone has me a bit confused. Hearing him attack Boris Johnson is certainly not a surprise. But hearing him attack Boris Johnson for saying what Ken Livingstone himself said previously? That’s...
View ArticleLibLink: Brian Paddick – London is increasingly policed by force not consent...
Lib Dem London mayoral candidate Brian Paddick had a piece on the Guardian’s Comment Is Free website yesterday on what is his undoubtedly his strongest issue – policing. Here’s a sample of what Brian...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Livingstone and Johnson: a record of unsavoury comments
Funny, pointed and relevant: this is one of the best pieces of campaign artwork I’ve seen put out by the party this year. * Mark Pack has written 101 Ways To Win An Election and produces a monthly...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Ken Livingstone definitely needs an accountant if he can’t count to five
Remember last week at PMQs, Nick Clegg commented on Ken Livingstone’s rather complex tax affairs: It is worth dwelling for a minute on the explanation provided by Ken Livingstone for his exotic tax...
View ArticleTax controversy and flash cars – that’s life in the modern Labour Party
We’ve heard lots about Labour mayoral candidate “Red Ken” Livingstone’s tax affairs recently, as this Telegraph article reports. Then we have Labour leader Ed Miliband turn up in a Rolls Royce to a...
View ArticleDid Ken Livingstone break tax rules over Labour donation?
The Evening Standard has reported: Ken Livingstone was under fresh pressure over his alleged tax avoidance after he was forced to admit using his private company to make a sizable political donation....
View ArticleThe Weekend Debate: Should election candidates have to declare their tax...
Here’s your starter for ten in our weekend slot where we throw up an idea or thought for debate… The race to be London mayor took a fresh twist this week when the leading candidates pledged on BBC...
View ArticleWhy election candidates shouldn’t have to publish their tax returns
Remember all the stuff Liberal Democrats such as Vince Cable have been saying for years about how our tax system catches too much income and not enough wealth? You know what – I believe that, and I...
View ArticleLabour peer Alan Sugar: don’t vote for Ken Livingstone
From the BBC: Labour peer Lord Sugar has urged people not to vote for his party’s candidate Ken Livingstone. The peer defied Labour leader Ed Miliband by telling his 1.8 million followers on Twitter...
View ArticleThe Independent View: how London Mayoral candidates shape up on cycling and...
The way that we travel and the places we live in have a massive impact on our lives, going well beyond what’s traditionally considered transport policy. Increased car use is driving up levels of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
LibLink: Paddy Ashdown – I understand why many voters on the progressive wing...
Writing in the Evening Standard, former Liberal Democrat leader Paddy Ashdown says: I understand why many voters on the progressive wing of politics are struggling with voting for Ken Livingstone. His...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Weekend Debate: Who’d get your 2nd preference after Brian in the race for...
Here’s your starter for ten in our weekend slot where we throw up an idea or thought for debate… This Thursday, millions of voters will go to the polls to cast their votes in local elections. And...
View ArticlePoll shows Labour’s vote up but Livingstone’s vote down
When phone polling was first introduced in the UK it attracted flak over its accuracy (least remembered about those ASL polls the better), but also gained popularity through both its lower costs...
View ArticleVote for change in London – Ashdown, Steel and Williams
Tomorrow those of you in London have the chance to make your voice heard by voting in the mayoral and assembly elections. It is vital that you do. We have an opportunity to do something to bring real...
View ArticleSincerity on both sides of air strike vote
For me, the arguments for and against air strikes against Daesh in Syria are finely balanced, and there is no surprise that reasonable people have come to different views. I am stunned that with the...
View Article