2200 [2145] Hrs GMT
London
Saturday
24 April 2010
Editor © Muhammad Haque
It is quite possible that Ken Livingstone will in the not too distant future find evidence that will convince him that he made another serious error by getting so fanatically involved in pushing for the abolition of local council democracy in Tower Hamlets altogether. He may find evidence that will convince him that it is unwise to take ordinary people for granted. Especially when Livingstone's own career-linked track record is overfilled with instances of irrational behaviour very seriously at odds with the basic requirements of decency and courtesy. Why are we saying this? We are saying this on the facts. The facts as broadcast by Channel S satellite TV of Livingstone’s adventurist appearance at the Brady Centre on 6 February 2010. The satellite channel is itself the subject of a detailed new complaint to OFCOM over the same events. So for that reason we are not at this moment commenting on the behaviour of Channel S itself. We are commenting on Ken Livingstone’s defiance of common decency and reasonability.
[More on this here in the next parts.]
BHANGEELAAR! Campaign for a NO Vote on 6 May 2010 brings this relevant item about the UK Conservative Party supporting blogger site is demanding explanations on Labour Party constitution. The call arises from a leaflet apparently published by George Galloway s group for Galloway to get elected in the parliamentary constituency of Poplar and Limehouse on 6 May 2010. The Con Party blogger site claims that the leaflet has a picture of Ken Livingstone standing next to George Galloway with Livingstone s left arm on Galloway s shoulder and the pair looking at ease with each other in the shot. The Conservative site carries a few questions for the Labour Party on membership rules etc etc. Will the Labour Party now expel Ken Livingstone for apparently endorsing George Galloway who is standing against a Labour Party candidate, Jim Fitzpatrick, they ask! Others deride both Livingstone and the Labour Party and dismiss both as heading downwards. The question for the people of Tower Hamlets is this: do we approve of an agenda that has been devised by someone as unreliable and opportunistic as Ken Livingstone? After all, it was the same Ken Livingstone who had on 6 February 2010 at a staged spiel delivered for an elected mayor in Tower Hamlets denounced the NO votes campaign as nothing more than the product of certain dubious outsiders not really belonging to the community in Tower Hamlets. Ken Livingstone of course told lies there on 6 February 2010. As he arrived in the Hanbury Street walking to enter the Brady Centre venue of the mysteriously assembled fan club, he knew that he was not welcome in the community. He was loudly booed. One account of the day s events in the Hanbury Street includes a claim that Ken Livingstone was pelted with a missile. AADHIKARonline has no evidence in substantiation of that particular one. What we did observe was the tension in the crowded spot around Ken Livingstone. He looked shaken but struggled to keep a smile on his face. No, he even raised his arm in an ambitious replay of the routine he must have fantasised about going back to the days gone by as if he were there receiving the warm welcome from his subjects !
[To be continued]
AADHIKARonline publishing the following texts from the Conservative Party supporting blog site purely as a supporting material forming part of the edveince
” Is Ken Livingstone backing George Galloway in Poplar and Limehouse against the official Labour candidate?
Voters in the newly-drawn Poplar and Limehouse constituency have no fewer than ten candidates from which to choose come polling day.
Among them is the excellent Conservative candidate, Tim Archer, the sitting Labour MP for Poplar and Canning Town, Jim Fitzpatrick, and the Respect MP for Bethnal Green and Bow, George Galloway.
Above is a leaflet that Galloway has been distributing in the constituency (click it to enlarge) and below I have zoomed in on one section of it.
Yes, pictured with Galloway there is Ken Livingstone, the former Labour London mayor, who is desperate to stand for Labour again against Boris Johnson in 2012.
Has he given George Galloway an endorsement? Is that passage in inverted commas a quote from him or Galloway?
If the answer to either of those questions is yes, then I cannot see how he can remain in the Labour Party.
If the answer to either of those questions is no, then Galloway should withdraw the leaflet immediately as it is misleading in the extreme. He is clearly implying that he has the support of Ken Livingstone.
Either way, answers are required.
Hat tip: Matt Woods
6.45pm update:
Elsewhere on Twitter, Mr Onions has the below excerpt from the leaflet of the Green candidate for Cambridge, Tony Juniper
Again, it would appear that either Ken Livingstone is endorsing a non-Labour candidate or the Green candidate is falsely claiming his support. Can anyone establish which is the case?
8pm update:
Ken Livingstone has just returned my call about these leaflets. He was very blasÈ about the whole issue, as you might have expected. Here's what he said:
"There's nothing new in this. At the 1989 European elections Lord Bethell used a picture with me on a leaflet. It must be my immense personal popularity; I think I'm on the leaflets of about three quarters of Labour candidates in London - they don't seek my permission, they just go up. If you stick a picture of me on your leaflet, it's not going to do you any harm. Of course, I'm supporting the Labour candidates everywhere, but it would be churlish of me to deny others the pleasure of looking at me. I wouldn't mind betting that lovely George Osborne's got a picture of me on his leaflets too."
Jonathan Isaby
Posted at 06:35 PM in Green Party, Lurching Left | Permalink
Reblog (0)
Comments
Matt Woods (CleethorpesRock) said...
Jonathan, it also appears that another twitter user has found Livingstone backing ANOTHER non-Labour candidate- this time the Green candidate in Cambridge.
http://twitpic.com/1i3uua
(Please update to main article if you wish)
Reply April 24, 2010 at 06:42 PM
SuperBlue said in reply to Matt Woods (CleethorpesRock)...
Thanks, Matt - this is quite hilarious, really.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 07:20 PM
Sally Roberts said in reply to Matt Woods (CleethorpesRock)...
This has given me quite a giggle!
Nice one Matt!!
Reply April 24, 2010 at 08:09 PM
Gary Farrimond said in reply to Matt Woods (CleethorpesRock)...
I wonder if this means he intends to defect or that he believes Labour are in for a deserved hiding.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 08:34 PM
SuperBlue said in reply to Gary Farrimond...
Hedging his bets, evidently;)
Reply April 24, 2010 at 09:20 PM
Gary Farrimond said in reply to SuperBlue...
Well if memory serves me right did he not have a pact with The Greens in the past when he was Mayor of London?
Like you say hedging his bets!
Reply April 24, 2010 at 09:38 PM
SuperBlue said in reply to Gary Farrimond...
˛ˇ
TypePad HTML Email
He was originally an "Independent" Mayor, having
defeated "Dobbin" to the title - before Labour welcomed him back.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 09:41 PM
Norm Brainer said...
I got that one through on the same day as the nice one from Tim Archer - the difference in quality is striking.
A nice bright one from Tim and a gruff looking galloway with dodgy fonts and lots of talk of wanna be working-class speak such as talking about the "East End".
Made me laugh that it had Ken on as if that would help him, but didn't make the connection that he wasn't labour!
Not sure why Tim uses an odd email address though.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 06:47 PM
Peter Thurgood said...
Looks like all the rats are hurrying to abandon Labour's sinking ship.
First it was Mandelson, trying to talk up and defend the Lib-Dems, and now it's the other slippery snake, Livingstone.
These people really make me sick. They care only for themselves and their own personal interests.
I just pray that the voters see through them and send them to where they belong.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 06:48 PM
SuperBlue said in reply to Peter Thurgood...
Return to Sender.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 07:04 PM
Norm Brainer said in reply to SuperBlue...
They've probably uniquely identified them all and would charge you for postage .. like Brown did on his begging letter.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 07:32 PM
Peter Thurgood said...
Return to Sender?
I think the rights on that one have been hijacked by Gordon haven't they, in his latest ridiculous wheeze, with his Elvis impersonator?
Reply April 24, 2010 at 07:09 PM
David Jack Smith said...
I see this site is moderated by someone who really doesn't like pointing out the obvious truth about a couple of odious haters of those folks who brought us the Old Testament.
How's that Mr Moderator? Still too controversial? How about some threads here on Mr Cleggs' past hysterical anti-Israel rants?
Reply April 24, 2010 at 07:11 PM
Ultimo Tiger said in reply to David Jack Smith...
What the hell are you going on about?
Reply April 24, 2010 at 07:42 PM
Ultimo Tiger said...
I think I'd rather have a picture of Gideon than Kenneth on my leaflets.........[sarcasm]But who am I to judge the mighty Livingstone's opinon?[/sarcasm]
Reply April 24, 2010 at 08:01 PM
eugene said...
Poplar and Limehouse...that is going to be an intesting result in that it is not easy to call...my gut feel is that 4 parties can take it. Maybe ConHome can do an article on it for us.
What is the word on the ground there?
Reply April 24, 2010 at 08:16 PM
Norm Brainer said in reply to eugene...
Although I live hear I don't really know the word on the street as you wouldn't want to go into poplar... but given with the redrawing, Conservatives weren't that far behind, there's Galloway splitting the Labour vote and Tim Archer is probably known as well as that labour guy who is MP (having done lots as a local councilor) then it should go to Conservatives - but who can tell!
Reply April 24, 2010 at 08:56 PM
Norm Brainer said in reply to Norm Brainer...
Whoops - odd typo there.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 08:56 PM
Steve Foley said...
I'm having a laugh too, that and the Elvis impersonator.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 08:34 PM
Chris Buckwell said...
Tim Archer - indeed an excellent candidate - and the Poplar and Limehouse CCA deserve victory on 6th May. Let the others "play" politics if they wish. Very good luck to Tim, and to all our candidates in the Tower Hamlets Borough elections.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 09:18 PM
Peter said...
By the way, there are currently no 'sitting' MPs, and George Galloway is no longer the MP for Bethnal Green and Bow.
Reply April 24, 2010 at 10:16 PM
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