A tall story
Daniel Kawczynski is the tallest MP ever.
Life in the stratosphere seems to affect his judgement. A reporter from the Shropshire Star newspaper phone me today with the news that he had complained to the Speaker about me. The reporter said that he says I used a Commons Committee room last night to launch my new book. I did. The basis of his unhappiness is that the Commons should not be used for commercial purposes.
'Commercial' is not accurate. As I made clear, I did not profit by a penny from the serialisation of my book in the Mail on Sunday. Putting aside my published views on personal profits from these activities Daniel is wholly wrong.
I informed the reporter that the House Authorities were fully aware of the nature of the booking beforehand. My assistant was told that it was fully within the rules to use Commons rooms for such events. In the past I have used Commons to launch my previous books. Chris Mullin launched his book last year in a Commons Committee Room. So have dozens of others. My staff again contacted the House authorities this afternoon. They confirmed that books by members and formers members can be launched in the House. They further said that it's within the rules to sell books - but only in the room where the launch is taking place.
I dropped a line to the Speaker in order to get my retaliation in first. It also gave me a chance to warmly commend the contents of the book for the Speaker's perusal.
I am sure he will enjoy it.
Contented digestion
Had a meal tonight with Jack Straw and Gordon Prentice.
Both had had good days. At last Gordon is being recognised for his dogged tireless campaign to expose the truth about Lord Ashcroft. A fellow MP this afternoon said that he should be named the 'campaigner of the year.' Quite right.
Jack Straw gave a lecture on electoral reform. He made a partial but good point. He described Cameron's proposal to reduce the number of Commons seats by 10% as "outright gerrymandering". Jack said Mr Cameron wanted to adjust constituency boundaries to make it easier for his party to win seats.
He said "The Conservative Party proposes to cut the number of MPs by 10% without testing the will of the people in a referendum and without any proper effort to seek any kind of cross-party consensus. In stark contrast to Labour's agenda for moving towards a new politics on the basis of popular consent, the Conservatives aim to butcher scores of constituencies for sordid political ends," he added.
Labour is committed to voting reform. It's long overdue. I do not understand why the Tories do not agree.
The Evening Standard carries this charming story in their Londoners' Diary gossip column.
"THE Thatcher room of Portcullis House was an odd choice of venue for the launch of veteran socialist Labour MP Paul Flynn’s memoirs, The Unusual Suspect, featuring as it did a fetching portrait and bust of the Iron Lady. But this wasn’t what caused such a low turnout of Flynn’s comrades, however — a Parliamentary Labour Party tribute to Michael Foot was taking place at the same time.
Flynn makes all his parliamentary questions “Tweet-length” and keeps an Afghan war body count on his blog. “In my megalomania I like to think I’m a tiny bit indispensible and that’s why I was condemning the incursion into
“I adapted the Charge of the Light Brigade for it — ‘Blair to the right of them, Bush to the left of them...’ Now twice as many have died than in the Charge of the Light Brigade.”
He promised that, post-election, there would be a new dawn for the Left. “Michael Foot is today in paradise, chewing the fat with Nye Bevan. He’s looking down at us now we’re returning in triumph to new socialism.”