The economy's in the tank, our infrastructure is crumbling, our schools and hospitals are basket cases: so it's time for Gordon Brown to stop trying to do anything about it and, instead, address something called the Progressive Governance Conference. This meeting yesterday appears to have been a gathering of fantasists, including as it apparently did leaders from Spain and Greece, whose job, it must be imagined, was to make Mr Brown feel good about himself. However, with our debt scheduled to be worse than Greece's before much longer, that reassuring sense of superiority cannot last long.
Mr Brown used his speech to this bizarre assembly to berate conservative parties in general, and ours in particular, for not being "mainstream": and he accused them of seeking to endanger the recovery and the welfare of middle-class families by their policies. This is such nonsense on every level that one hardly knows where to begin.
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First, what is this recovery? Second, who has done more to grind the faces of middle-class people in this country into the dirt than Gordon Brown? Third, who threatens to do more to make the middle classes suffer, in the horrific event of his remaining Prime Minister after the election, than the present incumbent of Downing Street? Fourth, since the rest of us cannot discern a Tory economic policy that is any different from Labour's, what exactly is he attacking? Fifth, doesn't he realise that if the Tory party really were the robust, hard-line, "Right-wing" force he caricatures it as, millions more people would be queuing up to vote for it, rather than promising to abstain or to support Ukip?
With an election so close, Mr Brown has no choice but to engage in fantasy. The reality of what he has to offer to the electorate is horrible: it would ensure him re-election with an overall majority only in a two-cornered fight against the odious Nick Griffin, and even then I would hesitate before putting money on Mr Brown.
Not a day passes without more evidence of his bovine incompetence. As my colleague Jeremy Warner points out, the fact that this country needed to borrow £4.3 billion in January – the month when most self-assessed people pay their taxes – is more horrific than many have yet realised. It is like having a water shortage in Glasgow in January. The markets can
By Simon Heffer Published: 7:14PM GMT 19 Feb 2010
Comments 157 | Comment on this article
The economy's in the tank, our infrastructure is crumbling, our schools and hospitals are basket cases: so it's time for Gordon Brown to stop trying to do anything about it and, instead, address something called the Progressive Governance Conference. This meeting yesterday appears to have been a gathering of fantasists, including as it apparently did leaders from Spain and Greece, whose job, it must be imagined, was to make Mr Brown feel good about himself. However, with our debt scheduled to be worse than Greece's before much longer, that reassuring sense of superiority cannot last long.
Mr Brown used his speech to this bizarre assembly to berate conservative parties in general, and ours in particular, for not being "mainstream": and he accused them of seeking to endanger the recovery and the welfare of middle-class families by their policies. This is such nonsense on every level that one hardly knows where to begin.
First, what is this recovery? Second, who has done more to grind the faces of middle-class people in this country into the dirt than Gordon Brown? Third, who threatens to do more to make the middle classes suffer, in the horrific event of his remaining Prime Minister after the election, than the present incumbent of Downing Street? Fourth, since the rest of us cannot discern a Tory economic policy that is any different from Labour's, what exactly is he attacking? Fifth, doesn't he realise that if the Tory party really were the robust, hard-line, "Right-wing" force he caricatures it as, millions more people would be queuing up to vote for it, rather than promising to abstain or to support Ukip?
With an election so close, Mr Brown has no choice but to engage in fantasy. The reality of what he has to offer to the electorate is horrible: it would ensure him re-election with an overall majority only in a two-cornered fight against the odious Nick Griffin, and even then I would hesitate before putting money on Mr Brown.
Not a day passes without more evidence of his bovine incompetence. As my colleague Jeremy Warner points out, the fact that this country needed to borrow £4.3 billion in January – the month when most self-assessed people pay their taxes – is more horrific than many have yet realised. It is like having a water shortage in Glasgow in January. The markets can see it: despite the crippled state of the eurozone and the wreckage of the American economy, sterling is heading south again against both the euro and the dollar.
Despite 60 tame economists trying to bolster him yesterday – and how they must all be looking forward to his dissolution honours list – Mr Brown's ideas for trying to manage our bankrupt economy in the immediate future are as disastrous as those that have brought us to our knees already. What is so appalling about the Brown terror is that the fantasies aren't just about the future, but about the past. We must hope the British people dispel these not merely vigorously, but with a measure of well-merited brutality.
Today Mr Brown will unveil his party's election slogan. Its "themes" for the campaign include "Ensuring the recovery", "Protecting front line services", "Standing up for the many" and "Protecting future jobs and new industries". I fear that he will not embrace a much-needed spirit of truthfulness and go for "Finishing off Britain", "Lying for Labour", "Soaking the many" and "Protecting my job". Judging by the rubbish that he now routinely spouts – whether lies or delusion I do not know – he should be forced to produce a certificate proving his sound state of mental health before being allowed to stand for election: as should anyone who intends to vote for him.
Get tough with ill-mannered assassins
I would lying if I said I felt too worked up about Mossad, Israel’s security service, touring the globe and bumping off people it doesn’t much like. But if the Israelis are going to make the forged British passport the means of choice for fraudulently entering other countries to do their dirty work, we need to become exceptionally strict with them. This is the sort of disgusting thing you do to your enemies, not to your allies. They have endangered Britons all over the globe by doing this. If they want to fly under false colours, then let them choose Iranian passports to do it. It’s not only a much better joke, it’s much better manners.
Class war breaks out among the Conservatives
We should support Sir Nicholas Winterton’s desire to travel first-class at our expense. Since most of us cannot afford such luxury, it at least means our chances of having to meet him are greatly reduced, thereby avoiding the risk of trauma. Sir Nick is one of those “dinosaurs” that the Tories’ ambitious education spokesman Michael Gove wrote about the need to get rid of in a secret document, now brought to light. Mr Gove was worried that the party’s image was too much of white, middle-class, middle-aged men. I agree with him. Perhaps the one who leads them should do his bit to dispel this by stepping aside as soon as possible for one of the many minority candidates with which he has sought to fill his parliamentary party.
Comments: 157
AndyG "Unlike you I see the BNP emerging to lead the Anglo Saxon nation forward." That's very amusing. Someone else suggested you had a good sense of humour. If you glance out of the window, you'll see a squadron of pigs flyng past in formation, all decked out in National Front colours, with the odious Nick Griffin as their lead pilot. You are quite mad. The Falcon on February 20, 2010 at 11:24 AM ........................... We don't need your sort in this country. Get out! You are scum.
Heffer, considering Labour's past taste for smearing people's reputations, one mightn't be surprised to find that they'd handed over the details of British nationals without so much as a murmur, if they felt that there was political gain to be had. I trust that they'd act in such a manner regardless of international consequences. In terms of "Finishing off Britain" & "Lying for Labour", honestly, I wouldn't put it past them.
@Toby Morgan, 10:46 AM "Ah - the 'odious' Nick Griffin. Been reading the NUJ handbook again Simon? ... There's a rumble in the jungle Heffer ... Heaven help the lot of you when the people realise what you and your political chums have done." That sounds like a typical BNP/NF bully-boy threat from here. Nice. Bet you're proud to support such a tough party, Toby?
good article - you mentioned the honours list - I am wondering if the arch toady, Prescott, will be included
Horace Wimple on February 20, 2010 at 10:52 AM You are of course Scottish, and not British.
So much of what Brown says is beyond belief that you have to pinch youself to make sure that you actually heard what you think you heard. Take this one: Brown says he is about "protecting future jobs and new industries." First point of objection: you cannot protect something that does not yet exist. Second point of objection: if Brown meant that he wants to protect the conditions that will give rise to 'future jobs and new industries', then he is either a massive delusionist or simply a bare-faced liar, because his policies have had the effect of stifling innovation, more so even than any earlier Labour goverment. Third point of objection: the 'new industries' have not set up in Britain and are not going to. This is one of the reasons why the unprecedented attempts at reflating the economy in the last 15 months have not worked. No one wants the fiat-money created by Brown and Co to set up new industries in Britain. Instead, the innovators take advantage of the science-base that is still left in the UK but then when the idea is workable they take it to Asia-Pacific, where it is converted into products with astonishing speed, efficiency and organisation. The shame of the Labour Party is that they gave the man-beast Brown unfettered power and left him with it. That cannot be forgiven.
Photo' at the top of the article, deep in prayer, or should be.
Did you see Gordon (The Beast) Brown's petulant, sulky face caught on camera at the silly governance conference yesterday? And the message that he driveled to go with it was - 'how dare the Tories oppose the government - big, wasteful, micro-managing, totalitarian governement - my government'. If that is Brown's world-view, then he is off the scale. The only rational solution is ejection from office and trial for undermining parliamentary democracy.
Surely the correct election slogan for this failure of a 'government' should be: "A future f*cked up for all". Roll on, the General Election. I cannot wait to see this incompetent, corrupt shambles of a government (and party) get consigned to political history.
AndyG "Unlike you I see the BNP emerging to lead the Anglo Saxon nation forward." That's very amusing. Someone else suggested you had a good sense of humour. If you glance out of the window, you'll see a squadron of pigs flyng past in formation, all decked out in National Front colours, with the odious Nick Griffin as their lead pilot. You are quite mad.
It is difficult to find new things to say about the Clown. I do so wish that the elections were to be announced as being next Thursday. My repetitive dream is of sitting in the visitors gallery, listening to serious debate between members of the UKIP and BNP, with not a Lib/Lab/Conman in sight. It matters little to me how people may knock these two fringe parties, at least they are not deliberately intent on damaging the country any further. Any person who places a cross in the NuLiebour box should have etched into their conscience "I voted to ruin a fine country and am worthless myself".
The problem with Brown is he was only a 'backroom boy' in the Blair government and kept out of the public eye for obvious reasons, he was according to many reports a compulsive bully boy. His record in economics and financial qualifications would not have enabled him to get a job filling a cash point. What ever Brown has wrong with him, quote Blair "serious flaws". He's obviously O.D. on the medication ! I'd rather have Merkle running the country looking at the latest financial figures ( i don't think we yet know the half of the weak position Brown will leave this country in) at least the Germans don't spray their hard earned around on the folly of buying votes and attempting to make everybody happy to the serious determent of the majority ! Or let down the people of their country by splashing public money at failing Scottish banks then allowing take over by foreign companies using public money as loans thus leaving many unemployed. And now there is Corus once one of the world leading quality steel makers sold out to India. Too late now, but failure Brown needs to take the party politics out of government but i guess you can't teach and old dog new tricks ! Again, now is far too late to take your head out of where the sun never shines Gordon. You have sadly for the people of this once great nation totally blown it ! You never had the guts to call an election before this May. And those surrounding you know this and never had the guts to remove you from your throne room. As a floating voter who only wishes the best for his country, all in all, weighing up the situation we have now, I would vote for Millipede over Cameron. But that is not the choice due to a rather delusional figure who simply can't see the errors of his foolishly persistent ways and just wont let go. I had to laugh at Hamrperson on the news she said labour have taken old people and children out of poverty, my guess would be they have now plunged them even deeper than they were in it originally. How many more will follow this path since the redundancies of this year and of those yet to come ?
@Peter Kinnaird at 09:26 AM If the Cons stood for the 'centre right' I would agree with you but they don't. They are now well to the left of centre. People don't realise this because el Goprdo has moved the goal post so often that anything short of his extreme Marxism seems like it must be centre politics. It isn't and neither are today's Tories. I have read the UKIP manifesto and it is clearly centre-right. It certainly accords with my political views. Why on earth would I want to vote for ANY of the three leftist parties of the LibLabCon?
Brown has to go! And that means having to hold your nose and vote Tory. UKIP are more concerned with their Euro expenses.
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