Gak-gate continued. The story that won't go away.

The Economist 

Sunday Herald 

Sunday Labour 

News of the Screws


Tommy McAvoy's Mandelson moment


Jimmy Hood's payoff

Anne Moffat continued need for greed.

Gentlemen actuaries prefer blondes.

With nary a cynical thought in my finely sculpted head, I wish to take this opportunity to praise the erstwhile East Lothian MP Anne Moffat as the most impressive trough swilling Labour MP of her generation. At the delicate age of 51 Ms Moffat has secured a peach of a retirement package that amounts to an approximate £32,000 upfront followed by £30,000 per annum or six Byers as I like to think of it, until her retirement age of 65. 

Her esprit de corps and boot filling capabilities has put legends Baron Michael Martin, Baron Foulkes von Cumnock and former MP David Marshall well and truly in the shade. A follower of this blog, the not so diminutive Eric Joyce, must be gaping in awe at the master stroke that Ms Moffat has pulled off this week. Eric, you're an amateur compared to this dame.

Ideally someone who cares more than me, should sit down and calculate just exactly how much of your money Ms Moffat has extracted from the the public purse since first becoming an MP in 2001. That should include her by now quite legendary expenses claims, her foreign junkets, any questions paid for by outside lobbyists (she does seem very keen on asking questions relating to  the Colombian army) that wasn't a euphemism for any Purcell like behaviour, check out her They Work for You page.

Not only has she managed to secure this wonderful package on ill health grounds, she's managed to kick the Labour Party fair and square in their little balls. The hapless Iain Gray get it full blast, as does fellow Labour MP Frank Roy and Mr Harriet Harman aka Jack Dromey of UNITE who both take an absolute belter with allegations of bullying and intimidation.

I don't know Andrew Sharp, the SNP Westminster candidate for this seat, but after the open goal he's been presented with in the upcoming general election, I suggest he starts picking out curtains for his London office at the earliest opportunity.


Anne Moffat MP, myself and the people of Scotland salute you. 

Little Ms Moffat, a tuffet too far.

Ms Anne Moffat MP, the delightful lady who compared the First Minister to the little moustached German chap who started some unpleasantness in the 1930's, is facing a long drawn out firing squad by her own side.

The poor lady who was attacked by unknown assailants who purloined her jogging jewellery, but not her Blackberry, has had a fraught relationship with the local East Lothian Labour Constituency Party. 

Seen as a 'flown-in' high profile Union member from down south, with links in 'nearby' Fife. An earlier attempt to de-select her after concerns over her eye watering expenses, lack of evidence of any local work, rude and unruly behaviour towards party employees and branch volunteers and allegations of a fondness for the liquid side of life, the local constituency were thwarted by Labour's National Executive Committee who allowed the block vote of the Union to ignore local concerns.
 
Last night she was convincingly rejected by the local branch of her East Lothian constituency 25 - 5. It's rather damning that only five loyal acolytes could be found to support Ms Moffat. It's even more of a poor show, that the largest constituency Labour branch in Scotland could only muster 30 souls to participate in the de-selection of their sitting Member of Parliament. Naturally, rather than abide by local democracy, the dithering, clunking fist of the Labour Party NEC have decided that all 500 constituency members should be consulted.

One would naturally presume that Mr Iain Gray MSP, as a dedicated and high profile constituency member, and a man who knows his way around assembling a Marquee, was in attendance at last nights vote. I find myself pondering as to which way Mr Gray voted in such a terribly important ballot. Will questions be asked by our ever so independent press?