BORIS JOHNSON is not reading from David Cameron’s script at the Tory party conference in Manchester. While the Prime Minister described a "modern and compassionate" party on Sunday, the Mayor of London went wildly off-piste by discussing his new demand for tough laws against swearing at policemen.So Boris Johnson is ambitious. Well, well, well. Any stories about dogs biting men or supermodels taking drugs? No? Well, I guess one about an ambitious Tory politician will have to do.
Johnson is to address the conference this week and as a true darling of the party he will be a major attraction. His words will be carefully scrutinised for signs of friction with Cameron, or of increased ambition.
Apparently, he is grandstanding at the party conference. I am shocked, I tell you, shocked. And there is a biography that shows a continuing rivalry between the two, Cameron and Johnson. Are we going into another stage of the "political rivals in one party" soap opera, last seen starring Blair and Brown? Surely not. (Excuse me while I yawn.)
Meanwhile BoJo as he is known by the hacks, has been boasting about his achievements as Mayor of London and telling us to re-elect him. As the alternative to him is Ken Livingstone, I see no real problem about that re-election. But is Hizonner the Mayor going to boast about this?
Tube drivers in the capital will see their pay go over the £50,000-a-year mark under a four-year wage deal negotiated between London Underground and union leaders.This will not be popular in London and among people who struggle into London to work here, work a darn sight harder than those drivers and mostly for considerably less money.
The Rail Maritime and Transport union began consulting on a four-year pay deal, which LU said offered the prospect of no industrial action over wages until at least 2015.
Under the deal, staff will get a 5% pay increase this year followed by RPI inflation plus 0.5% in the subsequent three years.
Industry sources said that if RPI inflation stays reasonably high, some tube staff will receive a pay rise approaching 20% by the end of the settlement period.
Bob Crow has been crowing:
General secretary Bob Crow said: "We saw major movement from LU and we now take this improved offer back to our local reps.He is, of course, one of the prominent supporters of the People's Pledge Campaign that is fighting for that referendum we are likely to lose. All of a pattern, I'd say.
"In these days of austerity we have shown … trade unionism is the best defence from attacks on jobs and living standards. I doubt you will find a better offer than this anywhere else in the public sector."
This week Mr Johnson called for a referendum on EU membership. Although such a referendum would - in contrast to referendums on new treaties - benefit europhiles more than "eurosceptics", he hoped it would make him sound "tough on Europe".
ReplyDeleteThis could be because the new biography that Helen mentions claims that its subject is “quite Europhile” (according to journalist Christopher Cook who worked in the same office as him). So, the call is a great move for Johnson: he discomfits Cameron, he sounds "eurosceptic" to those who want out of the EU (but are misguidedly pursuing a referendum to that end*) and if a vote ever came it would go his way (ie keep the UK in the organisation that has employed his father and been plugged by his brother, a former FT hack).
Another truth that Tories won't face: their Next White Hope, Boris, and his family are rather pro-EU.
"fighting for that referendum we are likely to lose". "Who's this 'we', Paleface?" as Dr N says. Keith Vaz, John Stevens and Bob Crow?
* http://tinyurl.com/433h459
Oh there are quite a few others involved with the People's Pledge.
ReplyDelete