Waiting for Cruddas

THERE is not much worthy of comment in this morning's newspapers apart from an hysterical attack on the BBC from Searchlight.

This is the offering from Jane Merrick in The Independent.

"The BBC was last night plunged into a row over claims of "disgraceful" bias in favour of the British National Party.
"Anti-fascist campaigners Searchlight launched a formal complaint with BBC director general Mark Thompson after a series of broadcasts which, the organisation said, broke strict election rules on impartiality. Searchlight said the BBC was claiming the BNP were the main beneficiaries of the "anti-politics" sentiment caused by the MPs expenses scandal, when in fact the UK Independence Party and the Greens were ahead of the far-right party in the polls.
"A BBC spokesman said the corporation "is obliged to treat all political parties... with due impartiality" and said the BBC "strongly contest" Searchlight's allegations."

Apparently Searchlight issued instructions telling all media outlets to carry a report that the BNP weren't the beneficiaries of the disenchantment with establishment politicians. The BBC was a little tardy in its response so hence the broadside.

Also worth noting is this from The Observer:

"The PoliticsHome poll found that of the 27% of voters now prepared to defect from their current party, 28% will back Ukip, 16% the BNP and 15% the Greens. More than eight in 10 voters wanted MPs caught abusing expenses deselected."

Sky News has been disappointingly anti-BNP in its coverage. In the last 48 hours, the BNP prospects have been discussed on numerous occasions by the likes of Weyman Bennett from the Socialist Workers Party, a spokesman from Respect as well as Labour, Tory and Lib-Dem local party workers. They all are given a green light to say what they like about the British National Party but there's never any response allowed from the BNP itself.

Sky News even admitted yesterday evening that the BNP had been in Bury with a loudspeaker van but it was deliberately not showing it!

While the media, Searchlight and the establishment chosen pollsters desperately try to create another UKIP surge similar to 2004, the reality on the ground is very different.

A Freedom and literature stall in Whitehaven yesterday was literally swamped, while the Labour MP Jamie Reed, turned up with a Labour stall, took a few photos, and then disappeared all within 30 minutes and well before it had started to get busy.

Bill Pugh, one of our Copeland candidates, reported that there were people in Whitehaven walking around with 'Vote BNP' posters snapped up from our stall under their arm whilst they did the shopping.

Many thanks to Derek and Gina Butler and the Sherwood Bandidts for their generous donation to the Allerdale election address appeal. It was so generous that we are helping out our colleagues in Carlisle and Copeland as well. Let's hope we can deliver the results in Cumbria that reward their financial faith in us and we shake the political status quo in this far flung corner of England to its core.

This was my contribution to the North West European Election campaign launch on Thursday in Manchester. It could be a collector's item as I have more than done my stint of public speaking and only get wheeled out for specific occasions such as this one.

And finally correspondence from Steven Dunkin with regard to the expenses scandal. He's concerned that there's still one MP missing from the list of those exposed!

"I have seen no reference of Jon Cruddas in relation to' noses in the trough' coverage in the Establishment media.
"I suspect that this might be because he is regarded as a media lovvie to be treated with kid gloves because of his attacks on the BNP.
"It appears that despite the fact he has a house in his constituency of Dagenham, a mere 15 miles from Westminster, he is also claiming £23,000 Taxpayer funded housing allowance in 2007/8 and no doubt continues to do so.
"The accommodation is a private portered block called Matlock Court, in Kensington Park Road Notting Hill Gate W11 opposite the private Ladbroke Square in which I regularly see a remarkable look-a-like walking on sunday mornings, which puts me off my tennis.
"From what I have read he sends his son to Cardinal Vaughn , an exclusive Roman Catholic school in Holland Park, and the move to this flat may have been to facilitate entry to this school.
"One wonders why he did not consider a diverse school in Dagenham ?
"The area is home to Lord Stansgate (Tony Benn), Lord Sainsbury, Lord Lamont (the former Tory Chancellor failure) and round the corner from a £2 million house (Lansdowne Road) that is occupied at taxpayers expense by a Somali family that featured in the London Evening Standard.
"Enquiries advise that his wife also works and therefore I suggest that their combined incomes pay for the exclusive flat and not the taxpayer.
"A bespoke 'noses in the trough flyer' relating specifically to the Cruddas rip-off distributed in the area would put frighteners through the liberal establishment some of whom would choke on their croissants, but could get an interesting reception as the Notting Hill Carnival, makes life hell for residents every August."

Updated at Mid-day:
This offering appeared quite late on the The Telegraph website this morning. Apparently in its original form it was quite an objective article, but under pressure Sunday Telegraph editors had to toughen it up quite considerably to avoid the the tirade of complaints from the Old Gang leaders and Searchlight.