Lefties 9: This will succeed through its success

What is Simon Hughes' Twitter name?

hmmmm Simon Hughes in fighting mood? must get on twitter, I'm not on it yet.

Prolesworth - I think we think we have a better chance of influencing the Tories than Labour, to be honest. And there's a huge desire to get Labour's hands off the reins.

i know it's the torygraph (barf) but if there is even a shred of truth in this story then fuck...and fucking fuckers on defence contracts of all things!!!

here

more Simon Hughes:

Simon H: we can be more radical than Labour. We must be there for people who never had a good deal from Lab or Tories.

Simon Hughes: Dont just keep calm and carry on, it won't be calm but for gods sake carry on

and Graham Watson

Graham Watson MEP - No deal with Labour 'not just down to the arithmetic, but what it would add up to'. Labour not progressive

animula, dont see many political hackettes lining up?

i always thought I'd be a good lobbyist, but i'm prob not subtle enough (understatement).

helloooo

just caught up.

apart from coolfonz bulldozing all non state schools, a general feeling of ok, but lets wait and see re the real substance of ed mill, and more feeling that the LDs have been sold/sold us down the river anything I've missed?

Guardian David Steel piece (next to shite charles kennedy one) was excellent I thought...really important to note that a lab/lib coalition was kyboshed by labourites (reid, prescott et al) and not just about numbers.

errrr...laura K (bbc) thinks budget will be brutal...we need to be very on message that it really really would have been regardless of election result, we're in shithole, need to clamber out somehow.

Clegg thought it was worth the risk because the country is in deep financial shit.

Yes, definitely, Allegra, if they later support Labour they'll just be seen as blowing with the wind, and if they stick with the Tories they'll eventually be absorbed into them. Clegg must have thought it was worth the risk for the chance of political reform leading to increased representation for them, but the method he's taken to get political reform pretty much means the LibDems won't increase their numbers anyway because they've alienated so many people.

What does everyone think about Labour's direction now? While I welcome the idea that they might move to the Left, there's always the fear that that would mean electoral suicide. Or perhaps we're redefining the Left now, to embrace environment, climate change etc, making it more palatable to voters?

Think this coalition is going to finish off the LibDems

I checked to see what GO's qualifications and experience were for running the exchequer

He has none. Nothing. Nada. No economics, no finance, no business knowledge.

Which means that he will be highly dependent upon advisors. Bit worrying tbh

'not because he is a friend, not because we are godfathers to eachother's children'...yeah right.

agree Cable must be pretty cheesed off at getting a business secretary post rather than the one he manifestly deserved.

Anyone else feel this coalition is going to finish the LibDems? They will come out looking weakened, like the Tories' second fiddle for 5 years or however long ConDemNation lasts, and will not look like a feasible political force again for years...

I had a look at the Wikipedia entry on Osborne to see what qualifications he has for this job (answer none) and came across this from Cameron;

'Asked whether or not he would be willing to sack a close colleague such as Osborne, Cameron stated, "With George, the answer is yes. He stayed in my shadow cabinet not because he is a friend, not because we are godfathers to each other's children but because he is the right person to do the job. I know and he knows that if that was not the case he would not be there."'

This is just old school effing tie. It makes me laugh to hear Tories (and their voters) go on about the dangerous state of the economy, the meerkats, la la la and they have chosen this guy for the job of Chancellor. What a bunch deluded hypocrisy.

TDiddy We are still arguing over private education. I went to fantastic state school in a communist country where education is hugely important. Whatever theorists say equality, admittedly in in poverty, and solidarity did make social mobility possible. None of my friends' parents went to uni and we are all from quite poor backgrounds.
My DH went to private school on scolarship, but against it as a principle. Oh, and we do not actually have the money BTW. I would have to go back to work full time in a proper private sector job to be able to afford that.

I was also looking for news on the telly on the LibDem conf. Nothing.

Some interesting post-election articles in today's Sunday Independent. Also, lovely piece by John Rentoul, who is calling David and Ed Miliband "the 0.2 Centibands"

aubergines - I'm following you now (alison)

BTW, direct messaging is a useful facility on Twitter, but you can only DM someone you're following who is also following you.

I just think there's something sleazy about Osborne's relationship with DC. There must be something there about which we know nothing...
Poor Vince Cable must be spitting mad.