Gavin’s Gaily Gigest

Have you attempted to travel, taken a photo of a landmark, used a computer or mobile phone or tried to hire some form of transport? Then you could be a terrorist. Report to your nearest police station immediately

The Metropolitan Police Service: The best form of defence is complete paranoia about absolutely everything.

Hat-tip: Helen Duffett on Lib Dem Voice.

Will Howells’ take on that weekly monstrosity, Prime Minister’s Questions:

The Lib Dems (and the divine and by no means equine Chris Huhne) yesterday launched their new Freedom Bill. The successor to Clegg’s Great Repeal Act, the Bill would roll back 20 of the most insidious and authoritarian pieces of New Labour and Conservative legislation, including ID cards, control orders and the worst elements of the DNA database. You can read the full text of the Bill here, sign up to the campaign, as well as read a brief history of the UK’s civil liberties.

This song will never be the same for me again:

Well, somefink wot I wrote at least will be on BBC Radio 4’s Recorded for Training Purposes sketch show tonight at 11pm. So, if your parents will let you stay up that late, you can listen to it then or you can catch it at some point over the next seven days on the BBC iPlayer. It’s the Boris sketch, and according to the running order, it’ll be at the end.

As seen in last Wednesday’s Hansard (Parliament’s official record):

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to conduct exit interviews with Ministers leaving Government; and if he will conduct an exit interview with Lord Jones of Birmingham to discuss the noble Lord’s experiences as a Minister. [249500]

The Prime Minister: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 23 July 2007, Official Report, column 721W.

Okay, fair enough, probably quite a detailed explanation there of his policy, I’ll go look it up:

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Prime Minister if he will establish the practice of holding exit interviews with Ministers leaving the Government. [152055]

The Prime Minister: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to him by my predecessor (Mr. Blair) on 8 January 2007, Official Report, column 248W.

Oh.

Well, surely Tony Blair was more forthright about what discussions he would have with resigning ministers:

Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Prime Minister if he will conduct exit interviews with Ministers who are leaving the Government. [110346]

The Prime Minister: No.

Brevity: Not a speciality for the current Prime Minister.

There, I said it. Possibly the one person who would have complained if the BBC had broadcast the Disasters Emergency Committee Gaza appeal has penned an article attacking the BBC for a lack of impartiality:

…the BBC has brought this crisis upon itself. It is not surprising that it finds itself friendless, since for years it has been systematically squandering the respect and trust of the public – so much so that licence-fee payers are increasingly questioning its very existence as a publicly financed broadcaster.

Across the board, the BBC operates as a kind of ‘Guardian’ newspaper of the air. It is institutionally hostile to conservatism, big business, religion, the countryside and family values; it supports multiculturalism, environmentalism, European federalism, human rights law and ‘alternative’ lifestyles.

Its own impartiality review concluded two years ago that it operates in a ‘Leftleaning comfort zone’ and has an ‘innate liberal bias’, dictating what issues it chooses to cover and how it does so.

Melanie Phillips, I salute you. Your mental dexterity knows no bounds. Nor, apparently, does your chutzpah.

I’ve penned three articles for February’s Total Politics, out this week. Here are the links so you can read them if you’re into that kind of thing:

• A review of the Nokia E71 (I like it)
• Top ten examples of unparliamentary language (Dennis Skinner deserves an award for rudeness)
• Political couples (pass the sick bag)

In other news, Recorded for Training Purposes, a BBC Radio 4 sketch show (and a rather good one at that), will feature a fing wot I wrote at some point in the next four weeks. I’ll post when it happens.

PS. Where others lead, I follow.

Sent to my MP, Rudi Vis, today:

Dear Mr Vis,

On Thursday 22nd January the Commons will vote on the draft Freedom of Information (Parliament) Order 2009. If enacted, the measure will exclude MPs’ and Lords’ from disclosing fully their parliamentary expenses.

I urge you, in the interests of transparency and accountability, as well as to maintain public trust in Parliament, to vote against this measure tomorrow and sign up to Jo Swinson MP’s EDM (EDM 492: FREEDOM OF INFORMATION (PARLIAMENT) ORDER 2009) expressing your displeasure at this measure.

Parliamentarians should be open and accountable for any public money, and the only effect of this order will be to further erode public belief in the British democratic system.

Yours sincerely,

Gavin Whenman

Find out more from the MySociety Facebook campaign group and write to your MP before tomorrow’s vote.