Is ‘Falkirk’ the Scottish tragedy that no one at the BBC dare mention any longer in case disaster follows?
Disaster that is for Ed Miliband:
Why Falkirk is a ‘cesspit’ for Ed Miliband
On the 5th November, which seems to be the last time the BBC visited this story, Nick Robinson had this headline:
Falkirk – the row which simply won’t go away
The BBC however does seem to be very keen to make it go away.
Again in the 5th the BBC reports this:
Labour leader Ed Miliband has refused to commit to a fresh inquiry into allegations of vote-rigging by the Unite union in Falkirk.
He insisted he had taken comprehensive action and acted “swiftly and thoroughly” in the case.
and add this:
A Labour spokesman on Monday said the party had re-interviewed an important witness, Lorraine Kane, but she had said nothing to justify reopening the inquiry.
Now that’s just not true…..she said she had not withdrawn her evidence as claimed by Miliband in order to try and end the investigation of Unite’s activities:
On Monday, the Daily Mail revealed that Lorraine Kane, the whistleblower who first alleged she and her family had been signed up as Labour members without their consent, had rejected Unite claims that she had withdrawn her testimony.
Another witness who claimed Labour’s biggest funder was embroiled in vote-rigging is standing by her account – piling more pressure on Ed Miliband to reopen an inquiry into the scandal.
Michelle Hornall is one of several who claimed to have been signed up as Labour members without their knowledge by the union Unite.
For two weeks now there has been revelation after revelation, all pretty damning and highly damaging for Miliband and yet little from the BBC.
Compare the coverage of this with that given by the BBC when Labour claimed the Tory’s Aussie spinner, Lynton Crosby, was influencing policy in favour of his own business interests :
David Cameron’s election strategist has denied Labour claims of a “shocking conflict of interest” over his lobbying firm’s work on behalf of private health companies at the time of NHS reforms.
A relentless barrage of smears came from the BBC about Crosby, slinging enough mud in the hope that some sticks whatever the real truth.
(And contrast that also with the BBC’s complete refusal to cover claims made about Tim Yeo’s green interests)
and nowt on this from the Daily Mail, and front page on the Sunday Times all day :
Now Unite union boss Len McCluskey faces investigation into claims his election included 160,000 ‘phantom’ members on the ballot – including some who had DIED
Even Labour’s own supporters are doing their own investigations and analysis….shame the world’s most powerful broadcaster and news gatherer can’t be bothered…….
UNCUT: The real reason Labour is petrified of re-opening the Falkirk inquiry
It is politically unsustainable for the party to continue insisting all is well when figures as senior as Alistair Darling are calling for the inquiry to be re-opened and news reports related to Labour are increasingly dominated by this one issue.
And on the evidence that has emerged from the cache of over 1000 Ineos mails that were passed to the Sunday Times, the party appears to be wilfully averting its gaze. Ed Miliband was wrong today when he said that no new information had come to light on Falkirk.
Quite apart from whether key witnesses have or have not withdrawn their original complaints, if the Sunday Times e-mails are true there are several other potential rule breaches now in the public domain that merit further examination by the party.
Why would the Labour leadership indulge in such an apparent act political of self-harm by pretending nothing has changed on Falkirk?
The answer is that there is a far greater fear of the consequences for Ed Miliband if the inquiry is re-opened and a civil war with Unite ensues.
Beyond the potential financial cost to the party of withheld union donations, the leader’s office is scared about what will happen at the special conference next year on Ed Miliband’s proposals to reform the union link………
It means that although the majority of CLP delegates are likely to back Ed Miliband’s reforms, almost half are in the left camp and likely oppose the Labour leadership’s plans.
Without Unite or one of the other big unions backing the reform proposals, a crushing defeat at the special conference beckons for Ed Miliband.
This would ignite a media meltdown. It’s difficult to imagine a situation where the weakness of the leader was more viscerally demonstrated than to be defeated in such a manner. The contrast with Tony Blair and the 1995 special conference would be brutal.
This is the nightmare scenario which is scaring the leader’s office and is why they are petrified of re-opening the Falkirk inquiry.
or maybe:
The suggestion being whispered is that Mr Miliband’s refusal to hold another inquiry can be explained by the need to keep Len McCluskey satisfied. Mr McCluskey is furious about the attacks on Unite’s integrity and claims rather implausibly that the whole scandal is a Tory plot. That defence is not particularly credible; there are not many Tories in Falkirk.
“I really hope a deal hasn’t been done,” said a worried Labour MP yesterday. “In which Ed agrees not to reopen the Falkirk inquiry and Unite says it will fund the election campaign. I really hope that isn’t what has happened. But it is starting to look like it.”
The BBC looks like it has closed ranks and is giving Miliband a huge amount of protection from a ‘bad Press’ whilst at the same time headlining every new Labour policy claim such as his latest effort:
Miliband: Ban children’s TV loan ads
Payday loan adverts should be banned during children’s TV shows, in the same way those for junk food are, says Labour leader Ed Miliband.
The BBC/NUJ will try it absolute best to cover this up because its costing the dear leader ed and his labour party votes and a general election is coming up.
No bottles of champers crowding the corridors of al beeb’s propaganda HQ after this election, just anadin, razor blades and lots of phone calls to the samaritans
BBC are making mistake if they try and hush this up – it will keep festering away until just before election – and then Mail & News Int will ensure it all erupts with maximum publicity. Better for Ed to lance it now even he he has to resign
“Ed Miliband should be making amends for the Falkirk debacle instead of trying to defend the indefensible”
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/opinion/mail-opinion-ed-miliband-should-2716435?
“A cash-filled envelope and the truth about Labour and union vote riggers: The Mail finds disturbing new evidence in the Falkirk scandal Ed Miliband can’t shake off… and the crucial role played by senior Labour MP.
“Unite’s Len McCluskey chose Karie Murphy as Westminster candidate after Eric Joyce’s resignation.
Murphy worked as office manager for Labour MP Tom Watson.
“Unite hoped to persuade voters sympathetic to Murphy to join Labour in vast numbers so they could take part in ballot.
“Myriad accounts of new members being signed up without their knowledge.
“Membership applications passed to party in envelope containing cash.
“Tom Watson is alleged to have intervened to ensure illegitimate Falkirk applications were processed.”
By GUY ADAMS.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2493691/Falkirk-vote-fixing-Cash-filled-envelope-truth-Labour-union-vote-riggers.html
And compare the BBC lack of curiosity in the Unite story with the way that Newsnight kept the Andrew Mitchell story going night after night, until the inevitable happened. Not only did police officers succeed in getting the removal of a serving minister – they had the megaphone of the BBC as their accomplice.
BTW: Ban Wonga ads? Who suffers? News international of course in the form of Sky television. But of course Miliband knows all about the power of advertising income, he and the BBC have been keeping the Guardian’s head above water for years.
Ed Milliband has to resign as he is fully liable for the criminal activities of his underlings.
After all – that is what he (and the BBC) screamed about Sharon Shoesmith.
Not until the next election please, or just before. With Little ‘Ed at the helm Labour is holed below the waterline.
The last thing this country needs right now is another term of Labour.
Read the Mail on Sundays account of McClusky using “zero-hour” contracts for employing their own tutors, when working for UNITE.
Apparently the union think that their sub-contractions mean that they ought not to be held responsible for this hypocricy.
Also saw a report on Prescott leaning on union lawyers(Thompsons) to prevent them seeking compo for members caught up in health-related cases…for fear that massive payouts would prevent the Labour Party from getting a war chest needed to fight the elections…2006, I think.
And-the BBC say that the Big Energy rip-offs for overpaid credit arrangements is a victory for “People Power”…wehn the Mail seems to think that IT had just a little to do with the “climbdowns”.
Has it been wall-to-wall shilling for Labour and their union johns since the start of the month?…just making conversation, seeing as I just KNOW that it would have been.
Foical the BBC!
Anagram of Ed Miliband – I am blinded.
And Kate Middleton…”naked tit model”, so I`m reliably informed!
Mmmm. Let me think.
Ed Miliband or Kate Middleton? Tough choice.
McCluskey, Milliband and Balls:
When shall we three meet again
In thunder, lightning or Falkirk?
When the hurly-burlys done
When the BBC says the battles won
That will be ere the set of Sun and hopefully the Sun on Sunday
Where the place?
Upon the Heath, now known as Salford
There to meet Lord Hall
(with apologies to Shakespeare)
Still nothing on the bBBC ‘news’ apart from one line in What the Scottish papers say
According to The Herald, the chairman of the Scottish Labour Party has been drawn into the Falkirk vote rigging scandal after it emerged he was involved in the campaign to sign up union members to influence the constituency selection battle.
Pity the bBBC hasn’t been able to report the news in The Times today Labour warned about Unite vote tactics ten months ago.
One of Labour’s most senior officials was alerted to a membership drive by a Unite activist in Falkirk ten months ago, raising questions about when the leader’s office became aware that a vote-rigging scandal could be brewing.
Emilie Oldknow, Labour’s executive director of governance and party services, was contacted on January 14 and asked to help sort out difficulties with some of those signed up in the recent recruitment exercise.
Ms Oldknow is married to Jonathan Ashworth, MP for Leicester South, a key lieutenant of Ed Miliband, and has a key role in supervising seat elections.
The Times, Telegraph and the Guardian are suited up and are posting stories daily. Still the Bbc is tumbleweed city. Sooner or later someone’s going to question their lack of investigative journalism skills. The news room are sitting on the story – which just reiterates how big it is. I hope this is included the next time the corporations neutrality is questioned