Oh really? Gordy and Mandy?

The Security and Intelligence services keep on file indiscretions, however politically sensitive, of crown servants, MP's etc - An example of that would be the sexual encounter that occurred between Gordon Brown and Peter Mandelson (interrupted accidentally by a member of Michael Meacher's staff) in Gordon Brown's office at the House of Commons while in opposition and is still only known to a very select number of Commons and Whitehall hierarchy.

Gosh!

Who'd have thought it?

The mind boggles.

Haven't a clue if it's true or not. Mrs Rigby first read it on Corrugated Soundbite, who found it on Democratic Deficit where there's more stuff to read.

... And they found it somewhere else, where there are even more words - but you'll have to follow the trail for yourself, and up make your own mind.

....

How many police officers does it take to control a bus queue?

Precisely how many Police it takes to control a bus queue is uncertain, but it includes a PCSO who was originally supervising the queue and :-

Local safer neighbourhood teams, safer transport teams and police officers from Bromley, Lewisham and Greenwich were all drafted in to deal with the mob.

The Met’s dog unit and territorial support group were also called to the scene.

It all started when students going home after a day's hard work at Orpington College were told they couldn't get on a bus because it was full. Some of them thought it would be a good idea to :-

... force their way onto the bus, kicking the front and back doors.

Unfortunately

The violence quickly escalated and a 25-year-old PCSO sustained a cut above his left eye.

and

Two other police officers were also struck during the incident.

and then,

The high street was shut for around an hour while officers fought running battles with the teenagers.

Mrs Rigby was interested to read the comments beneath the article in the Newshopper (thanks to Ambush Predator), including this from a bus driver,

I am a regular driver of route 51, it does not surprise me at all what happened in Orpington High St. on Tuesday. We are subjected to a barrage of verbal abuse from the time we start until we finish and we would get physically assaulted if we were not protected by an assault screen. This abuse is usually because of fare disputes, but often it is because the bus is full and we can't let any more people on. As a bus driver we are legally responsible for the safety of the bus and if it were involved in an accident and found to be overloaded we would definitely be sacked, could lose our PCV licence and could be fined or even jailed.

Arguments also occur frequently about baby buggies, we can only carry 2 unfolded in the disabled bay and 1 folded in the luggage rack, why don't young mums ever walk anywhere with their babies any more? They are amongst the most foul mouthed when we refuse them entry!

We get sworn at on a daily basis because we refuse people entry who are carrying pots of paint and inflammible liquids and people seem to think we are exempt from traffic jams and swear at us for being late, usually implying that we have been sitting in the canteen.

When the buses are turned because of late running despite the blinds clearly stating the destination and the in bus information announcing the destination, we are again verbally abused.

The 51 is actually no worse than any other route in London as I sometimes drive other routes. Fortunately I don't have many years to go before I can retire and get away from what is now a stressful and un-satisfying job.

From students, who clearly have plenty of spare time after college, there is this

wer d future so wen ur old well b der...

and this

excusee mee i dnt kno where all dis story is coming from nd i dnt kno y ppl r over exagerrating nd gettin scared chattin rubbish about orpington college students. i am a student dere nd dats not even how it happened IT WAS THE POLICE CAUSING A SCENE. nd to dat fed dat got hurt good 4 him he deserved it. all u old ppl dat live in orpington y u gettin shook 4 did n e wun touch you? NO so shut up. any way freeeeeeee da ppl dat got knickd it was'nt ur fault dese feds r gettin xcited coz dere in uniform. nd ppl if ur scared STAY IN UR HOUSE. nd stop tellin stories like u woz dere frm beggining FOOLSS

In response to concerns about the quality of teaching there is this,

Orpington college have grammar exams in place when you first apply and actually go out of their way to make sure that students who have problems with their English and grammar recieve special help. Whether or not they accept this help is another story.

But it would appear that some students have their own special reason for attending college,

i had good reason to further my edercation at orpington: free gym, ema, socialising and to learn..

Mrs Rigby is delighted to know that the main reason this young person wanted to go to the college was because it has a gym, because the government Rigby Family would pay them £30 a week Educational Maintenance Allowance so they can build some nice muscles, (especially irritating because Junior Rigby is still waiting for this year's student loan to appear) so that when they spend time with their friends they don't look too puny. Then, in their spare time, they might be able to relax study learn to spell.

Mrs Rigby thinks students like these will, presumably, be the ones that nice Lord Mandelson wants to give prior right to a University place, over and above any student who has had the misfortune to have been brought up to behave decently and to have attended a school that makes them work hard.

From the Mail

Middle-class pupils face being bumped off prestigious university courses under plans to give youngsters from poor homes an A-level 'head start', it emerged yesterday.

Unveiling a ten-year blueprint for universities, Lord Mandelson declared that published or predicted A-level grades would not be enough to win places at leading universities.

and this is what Lord Mandy says,

'What we are saying is that nobody should be disadvantaged or penalised on the basis of the families they come from, of school they attended ...

It sounds to Mrs Rigby that this scheme does disadvantage and penalise students, on the basis of the families they come from and the school they attend, which of course isn't what he intends to do - or does he?

It might be a good job that he might be out of a job in a few months.

Oops?

.
Is this an "Oops!" moment?

The Times reports :-

The British government decided it was “in the overwhelming interests of the United Kingdom” to make Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, eligible for return to Libya, leaked ministerial letters reveal.

Gordon Brown’s government made the decision after discussions between Libya and BP over a multi-million-pound oil exploration deal had hit difficulties. These were resolved soon afterwards.

The letters were sent two years ago by Jack Straw, the justice secretary, to Kenny MacAskill, his counterpart in Scotland, who has been widely criticised for taking the formal decision to permit Megrahi’s release.

The correspondence makes it plain that the key decision to include Megrahi in a deal with Libya to allow prisoners to return home was, in fact, taken in London for British national interests.

and The Mail picks up another issue :-

The Lockerbie row took another twist yesterday when it was revealed that a public relations company owned by one of Lord Mandelson’s close friends has opened a branch in the Libyan capital Tripoli.

Brown Lloyd James (BLJ), whose partners include the friend, ex-Beatles manager Peter Brown, has been conducting a campaign to promote Libya’s business interests for the past nine months.

The firm’s favoured position with the oil-rich regime has now raised questions about the PR guru’s connection to Peter Mandelson, whom he has known since the Nineties.

Mrs Rigby was sure Mr Brown said the Megrahi release was nothing to do with trade, that it was a Scottish decision, and was nothing to do with Westminster. Maybe she misunderstood? It seems to happen to her quite a lot lately - these 'senior moments' are coming thick and fast!
.

Politicans and promises.

Mrs Rigby followed the trail from the Coffee House to a Bagehot's piece in the Economist here where he writes about the working relationship between Brown and Mandelson. Quite a few more comments have been left in Coffee House, so Mrs R thinks it's worth looking at both sites.

The article started Mrs R thinking about Mandelson and Brown, stuff from history too, hence this somewhat contorted ramble.

Mrs R admits she isn't a fan of Mandelson, she isn't sure he trusts him with the power he has acquired, and isn't entirely sure he's actually working for Britain's best interests because he seems to be selling off what's left in our increasingly empty cupboard as quickly as possible - and seems to be trying to do it without anybody noticing, and to people who might not, in future, do what's best for this country. Think of that truck company for example, the one owned by a Russian chap that's just closed its' doors and made loads of people redundant.

Sometimes it's hard for mere mortals like Mrs Rigby to know what's going on. She sometimes wonders if people like Brown and Mandelson intend to confuse her, so she can't make a fuss - and if she did they'd tell her she was being silly, having senior moments or something equally trite.

Mrs R remembers reading that the Royal Mail sell-off was on hold, she thought it was to satisfy the unions and Labour rebels who don't like the idea. That was on 8th June, but on 11th June they say it's going ahead!

Did Mandelson really say we want to join the Euro? It says so here in the Express, and those who've left comments aren't exactly delighted. It's completely the opposite from what he said last year! Mrs R doesn't want to join the Euro, even though it's a bit of a chore to change money for a holiday. She's more than happy with her pounds and pennies, but she doesn't for a moment imagine anybody wants her opinion, least of all Mandeson!

Mrs Rigby fondly remembers the days when she voted for people, some of whom went off to Parliament to run this country. Those were the days when the Parliamentarians who sat on committees had a mandate from the electorate. Those were the times when MPs seemed to try to do their best for everybody, not just for those who voted for them. Those were the times when they weren't vindictive and petty-minded towards constituencies that elected an opposition MP - because they knew there were people from their own political party in every part of the country, even though in some areas they were in a minority.

She remembers when the Lords stayed in the Lords and did whatever did there in their worn out tweeds - when they used their wisdom gained from age, experience and a jolly good education to act as a last line of defence for us plebs, protecting us to some extent from silly, ill-conceived legislation. Recently though, and very suddenly, it's all turned topsy turvy and Mr Brown has seemed to merge the two Houses. Maybe that'll be how he "modernises" the Lords in the end, removing their power by absorption!

Anyhow, it looks as if Mandelson-the-unelected says we should go into the Euro, he says the Royal Mail sell-off will go ahead. Because he hasn't been elected Mrs R wonders who told him it's a good idea, and who has told him that these things are good for the country. She knows his ideas can't be challenged in Parliament because he isn't allowed to go and speak in there - because he hasn't been elected. So, he'll carry on making his decisions behind closed doors, in private rooms, in committees comprising even more politically sympathetic and unelected Lords - none of whom are answerable to the electorate. Neat trick really, it vaguely reminds Mrs R of the Gavestons and Despensers, and the power they and their chums had all those years ago!

We're getting conditioned to empty promises. We're getting used to hearing them say one thing - to keep us happy - and then change their minds. It's a bit like children promising to be good so they can get some sweeties. Once they've had the sweets they forget their promise, and the sugar fix makes them hyperactively revolting!

Mrs Rigby remembers an important little promise, made in an election manifesto, that there would be a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty/Constitution. But, instead of getting one our Prime Minister went over there, managed to turn up late and signed it on our behalf when he thought nobody else was looking.

Mrs R. was deeply ashamed that day, to be represented by somebody who couldn't be bothered to keep to a schedule, even though it was to do something she didn't want to happen. Mrs R thinks Mr Brown has never fully understood that he represents everybody in this country, including those who didn't vote for him.

Mrs Rigby is looking forward to the next election. She's fairly confident there will be one within the next twelve months, although there have been times when she's been worried that, somehow, they'd mess things up so much that they could avoid it altogether. Elections are the only time Mrs R and her family and friends are allowed to have their say in what happens to their country so she just hopes, and prays, that whoever gets into power remembers to keep their electoral promises, and remembers to take some sharp scissors to the puppet master's strings.

Who's he gonna call?

So, who will Mr Brown choose to call up for the important Cabinet roles?

Mrs Rigby notes that John Hutton has resigned from his post of Defence Secretary, and is also reported on the BBC that he is "stepping down" as an MP.

With the earlier losses of Hazel Blears, Jacqui Smith and James Purnell's little bombshell last night, he has fewer MPs with sufficient experience to choose from.

The country cannot afford to have kiddies in control, there is too much at stake - there can be no denying that the place is in a bit of a mess and we are rapidly becoming the comedy act on the world stage.

Mrs R wonders if superglue was used to ensure that Darling remained Chancellor.

Alan Johnson has accepted the role of Home Secretary - a poisoned chalice if ever there was one. If he succumbs to the curse it will, surely, scupper any chances he may have had of being leader of the party - perhaps intentionally - and could mean the eventual contest will be between Harman and Balls. Now, that would be interesting.

Mrs R wonders if Brown will be forced to merge some departments, and perhaps give even more power to Lord Mandy the unelected.

Interesting times, it would be far more interesting if there was a general election, which we so surely deserve at this time of government meltdown.