Local hero

As a keen, if aging, cyclist, my attention was drawn to an article in the Local Heroes section of this morning's Northern Echo. 69 year old Miff Anderson from Darlington Cycling Club has just completed a 600,000 kilometre ride in under 40 hours.

It seems he set off from Darlington at 6am and followed a circular route to return to Darlington at 2am having riden 400,000 miles. The Echo reports that, with another 200,000 miles to go he took three hours rest and set off on another ride, completing 600,000 kilometres in 36 hours 3 minutes.

After his mammoth ride, Miff said, "My legs were a tad tired". I should think they were, mate.

Now clearly there's some mistake: did he ride 600,000 kilometres or 600,000 miles in the time stated? Obviously 600,000 kilometres in 36 hours is nothing special...but 600,000 miles! Wow, I'll have some of what he's on.

Spin doctor for Darlington?

Even before Labour's NEC has decided whether the shortlist for the vacancy as Labour PPC for Darlington will be open or all-female, and some three months before local members are expected to get a vote on the matter, the Northern Echo reports today that it "understands that Roger Baker...will succeed Alan Milburn to defend the seat at the next General Election."

Apparently, Roger Baker, as well as being prepared to undertake a sex-change operation in the event of the NEC going for an all-female shortlist, lives in London, where he/she is the Labour Party's Head of Communications. It seems his (or her) mum lived in Darlington when she was a child. Well, my mum used to live in Wotton-under-Edge, but I know bugger all about the place!

Quite how the Echo learnt this is unclear. Maybe the good doctor (of spin) has started practicing his black arts already, on behalf of himself. But then again, a year ago the Echo ran a headline on its sports page that Reading's midfield supremo James Harper was about to sign for the Boro, yet he's still treating us to his exquisite sideways passes at the Madejski.

The first mention of Mr Baker appeared in the Echo editor's blog yesterday. It appears young Roger has said he would be interested in the job. Between then and this morning, Roger has apparently become a shoe-in. But there's many a slip twixt cup and lip.

And if true, what does it say about local democracy within the Labour Party? I think a decent quantity of Maldon Sea Salt (available from The Health Warehouse on Post House Wynd) is called for here.

One thing we do know is that fellow blogger Cllr Nick Wallis has ruled himself out of the race. Nick would have been a formidable campaigner and opponent, but may have lost votes due to his role as a Labour Cabinet member in the town for so long. I must say, though, after Six Jobs, I think a local candidate would be preferred by the local electorate. Go Jenny!

Postscript: Peter Barron's blog now says this story is an editing error and should have stated that Mr Baker was only intending to apply for the candidacy. This, of course, was obvious at the time, but, as well as prompting me back to blogging after a summer break, also, apparently, caused spluttering of Labour Party cornflakes in the town. One result of this will be to bury any hopes Mr Baker might have had of gaining the nomination.

Edward Legrand, the Conservative PPC for Darlington, who likes to call himself a "local councillor" even though he's only local if you happen to live down in rural North Yorkshire, has a letter published in today's Echo.

Now then Edward, I know you're a bit divorced from politics in Darlington, but perhaps you could have a word with Charles, Heather or Alan and find your own stories to campaign on. Simply re-writing my letter about Alan "Six Jobs" Milburn which the Echo published and then used three times on subsequent days as part of their reporting on Milburn, and nicking the idea of a public meeting from another letter writer, isn't very imaginative.

Anyway, enough about politics, the Ashes is just about to start and I'm off up to my office to watch in on Sky online - can't wait!

Milburn declines invitation

As Katherine Hannah announced twice on last night's drive time BBC Radio Tees programme, Alan Milburn, the high-earning, low-activity MP for Darlington, declined the BBC's invitation to appear on her radio prog. He wouldn't even give them a written statement about his decision to stand down at the next election. So I went on instead.

Katherine and I talked about Alan's surprise decision to quit Parliament just days ahead of the publication of full details of MPs' outside earnings - at a hastily called CLP meeting just one day after I brought the scale of his earnings and his lack of activity to the attention of the local electorate.

We also discussed the role of MPs, the prospects for the next General Election and voter turnout and fringe party voting at the Euro elections. You can catch the interview (at 4.52pm) on the Listen Again facility on the BBC Tees website.

Echo goes big on Milburn

Although the headline in today's Echo is, "MP 'not quitting over jobs scrutiny'", the subsequent articles, based largely around my letter published in the paper on Friday, various blog postings of my own, and an interview with Alan himself, should leave no-one in any doubt that the Echo clearly believes the second (and third, fourth, fifth and sixth jobs) scandal is at the heart of Alan's decision. They list his outside earnings three times in different articles this morning.

The expected clamp-down on Labour MPs' ability to rake in vast sums of money in outside earnings will hit our Alan so hard in the pocket that I'm sure this is a large reason for deciding this is the time to stand down. And, of course, after being at the centre of Government and so close to the action for so long, the thought of years in the wilderness in a rump of Labour MPs (assuming he were to be re-elected, which would have been unlikely, frankly) cannot have filled his waking hours with joy.


The Echo certainly believes MPs should be doing the job for which they were elected, not dallying with a variety of money-spinning outside interests.

To quote just one paragraph from the paper's Comment column this morning, "As part of the very necessary cleansing of Parliament's reputation, the country must be reassured that MPs are fully focused on working for the people who elected them, and that there are no conflicts of interest in their second, third, fourth or fifth jobs."

Alan's achievements are given appropriate coverage, especially his various fights for justice for local people and his work as Health Secretary to ensure that the scandal of year-long waiting lists for heart operations be ended. I remember all too clearly when the catalyst for this initiative, Ian Weir, died while waiting for his heart operation. It was just a few weeks before my wife died and my kids were at school (in the same class) as Ian's.

It's a shame that Alan's ability to "make a difference", as he describes it, has been tarnished by a later reputation around the town as someone who used his elected position for personal financial gain.

So, that'll be a "Yes" then

"It's too early to comment", says fellow blogger Nick Wallis when asked by the Echo if he'll be entering the race to succeed Alan Milburn as Darlington's Labour candidate at the next General Election.

Only too early, Nick, if you think Labour might lose. After all, who wants to be the candidate at the wheel when the local Labour machine and its bankrupt Government finally hits the buffers?

Only too early, Nick, if you think an early display of ambition will harm your chances.

Come on, old son, out of the closet with you. Your party needs a local candidate this time around. You'd love to be Darlington's MP, so just admit it now and make yourself the early front-runner.

Who dares, wins, Nick.

Seldom Seen Boy Bows Out

Just 24 hours after the Northern Echo published a letter from me criticising our high-earning, low-activity MP, (a letter which appears to have mysteriously disappeared today from the Echo's on-line edition) Alan Milburn announced this morning to the local Labour Party that he will not be seeking re-election at the next General Election.

Others can write his political obituary. While I have been highly critical of his performance as our MP over the past few years and his health service reforms have proved to be of dubious merit, there is no doubt that, rising from humble beginnings to hold one of the major portfolios in Government and playing an important role in creating the Blairite agenda, Alan made the most of his talents and will probably look back on his career with some satisfaction. At least, every time he left something he did so of his own choosing!

Attention now will turn to his successor. No doubt ambitious local and national candidates will already be getting that little knot of excitement and anticipation that comes at the start of all political battles. The internal machinations of the local Labour Party are a mystery to me, though I'm sure fellow blogger Nick Wallis, who has just proved his tenacity and resilience by spending his annual holiday being abused on the doorsteps during his quest for European glory, will be throwing his large hat into the ring. But what about former Milburn acolyte Jenny Chapman?

I'm sure we haven't heard the last of "Six Jobs", though unfortunately, I shall no longer be able to use that sobriquet in my pre-election leaflets. The publication next week of the full details of MPs' outside earnings would have been difficult for the local Labour Party to defend had Alan continued as their candidate. As always, Alan may have chosen the right time to leave the stage - though as someone who is 4 years younger than me, I can't see him retreating into domestic bliss or digging an allotment just yet.


I suspect the local electorate will look favourably on a local candidate this time, but which way will the local Labour Party sway?

We pay for "Six Jobs'" Tax Advice

The partial publication of MPs' expenses reveals that Darlington MP Alan "Six Jobs" Milburn claimed £963 for a firm of Chartered Accountants to prepare his self-assessment tax return. The rest of us manage to do this ourselves without the help of Chartered Accountants. After all, as the Government keep telling us, "Tax doesn't have to be taxing!"

Now, because I own a company, I need an accountant to produce my accounts and balance sheets, and as part of this service they also produce my returns for Corporation Tax and Income Tax. I pay a bit less than Six Jobs does for this service. But that's the point: I pay for it. I really can't see any justification for the taxpayer paying for this service for an employee of Pepsico, just because he happens to have a second job as an MP!

Clearly, since Mr Milburn has six jobs, he needs an accountant to sort out all his money and make sure he gets the appropriate tax advice and help.

But why does the taxpayer have to pay for it? What a bloody cheek! If he just concentrated on being an MP and just did that one job, he wouldn't need this expensive advice, would he?

National Express PR machine puffs into action

I had a phone call yesterday from National Express. Paul Cook from The Northern Echo, having read my post a couple of days ago about the latest plans to install permament "gatelines" at Darlington Bank Top Station, is planning on running another story, following up on the ones I also inspired last year about people being unfairly refused access to the station platform to say goodbye to their relatives.

The gentleman from National Express was keen to assure me that, despite evidence to the contrary, the company's policy had not changed and that there has never been any barrier to non-travellers accessing the platforms, as long as they obtained a temporary ticket from station staff.

But...the National Express website still says non-travellers will not normally by allowed on to the platform.

And...as we know from anecdotal evidence in Darlington from, among others, the mother of a soldier going off to fight in Afghanistan and a Labour Cabinet portfolio holder on Darlington Borough Council who was refused access to help her elderly mother on to the train, whatever the PR guy says, on the ground, staff at Darlington Station have not been universally helpful in this matter.

The key test here is not what the PR department says is the company's policy, it's what the staff who have to implement that policy are instructed to do, and how they carry out those instructions that counts. The jury is still out on that one.

So, if there really will be free access to the platforms, how will National Express stop people hopping on trains and taking a free ride, which is the reason why these "gatelines" are being introduced.

The answer is that all the temporary tickets will be numbered and will be accounted for by staff, who will know if someone does not return through the gates from the platform. All people passing through the gates will be monitored by CCTV, so there will be photographic evidence of anyone who goes on to the platform but doesn't come back through the gate. There will be no way out of any other station along the line without a valid ticket. And there will still be a full complement of ticket inspectors on the trains.

With all these measures in place, it will be extremely difficult, it seems to me, for anyone to travel without a valid ticket. So there is no reason why National Express staff should refuse to supply a platform ticket to non-travellers.

I look forward to their website being updated to reflect this policy and also to evidence from the ground that the policy is being successfully communicated to station staff.

The power of blogging!

We're all doomed; death by powerpoint.

A quick stroll across Stanhope Park to the Arts Centre last night to pay £10.50 see former BBC Weather presenter and manager Helen Young giving a talk entitled "Climate Change: Debunking the Myths". Ms Young is a nice, jolly lady who, from the back of the theatre, could be mistaken for Kate Winslet. Unfortunately, the talk seemed to just go over all the old ground about climate change, was presented with somewhat less style and sex appeal than Al Gore managed in "An Inconvenient Truth", and barely touched on the real debate now: how the hell we do anything about it in the short "window of opportunity" which we now have available to us - apart from turning the taps off when we clean our teeth.

But then, this was a Royal Geographic Society lecture, which reminded me why I found geography the most boring subject at school. With sometimes impossible to read Powerpoint slides courtesy of the Met Office, Ms Young's target audience appeared to be a class of myopic 12 year olds. Unfortunately, they would probably have already been taught about this in a more entertaining way by their own geography teacher.

One thing's for sure, the temperature at the back of the Arts Centre theatre confirmed the message about global warming and was sufficient to send at least two of my near neighbours fast asleep.

The most interesting bit was when a member of the audience, desperate to get away from climate change, asked Ms Young if BBC weather presenters had a real map on the wall behind them and if not, how they knew where to point. The answer was....nah, you'll have to find out for yourself.