Lost election, new leader!

I'm in the middle of my GCSE exams at the minute so there is likely to be a few more breaks in my posting. Sorry. To keep the whole thing fresh, I have also given the place a makeover! Hope you like!

Onto the politics, I haven't actually posted since before the Election, so after reading my last post you'll realise how very wrong I was. In fact, I couldn't of be any more incorrect. And although, for obvious reasons, I don't want to dwell on the election, it was very interesting watching how the country didn't take to Nick Clegg as much as the poll said they would and how good, old Gordon finally conceded defeat.

Anyway, moving very swiftly on, to the new leader of the Labour Party! Miliband, Miliband, Burnham, Balls or Abbott? Well, i'm going for Miliband, Ed that is. I don't want to tempt fate but I do believe he is the best option and I do believe he will become our leader. Although I wouldnt begrudge any of the other candidates the leadership, except maybe Ed Balls, but David M is fantastic on foreign affairs and the other three, I believe just don't have the spark needed to salvage Labour, which apparently, is no longer New and the New Statesman-organised leadership debate outlined that, although, Diane Abbott spoke very well on the main talking point of the event, immigration, Balls & Burnham preached the usual "power to the people" talk and David, I'm afraid to say, seem to do a lot of sucking up to various factions who are supporting him, such as young people. Put simply - EM4Labour. Support him now.

And that really has been the hot political topic since the election...oh, except the, ahem, cuts. The cuts devised by George Osborne and David La- Danny Alexander. As unclear as they were, what stood out was a repulsive decision to scrap the Child Trust Fund; an initiative introduced by the former Labour government to support children, financially, once they turn 18. Just another sign of the Conservative minded way in which the finances of the country look set to run over the course of the next Parliament. £6.2 billion has been taken out of the budget, yes, while the economy is still trying to recover. I fear for the future, to tell the truth. £620m comes out of Education and £836m from the Communities budget, the strong infrastructure put in place by Labour, slowly being dismantled. The coalition are criticising the former government for wasting money, so what are they doing now by scraping initiatives and re branding departments?

Anyway, i'll try and keep up the posting, although, there is now the added distraction of a certain tournament taking place in South Africa...

The similarity of the salesman

The Politics Show with Jon Sopel, today featured a Question Time-styled audience interrogating Liberal Democrat leader, Nick Clegg. Immediately, as Clegg's responses were heard, I felt the presence of a certain David Cameron. In the run up to the election, it has become obvious that Cameron is a salesman who lacks any real substance on policy, but never had I considered Clegg's real qualities as a leader until today. The way Clegg talks, his mannerisms, the smile, they are all strikingly similar to that of the Tory leader.

So, with both parties offering ''change'', they may be best placed to look across the opposition benches at one another and actually try to clarify what sets them a part as leaders and potential prime ministers. Well, only one thing sets them apart of course, policy. Thankfully for Labour, as the polls continue to suggest a hung parliament, the Lib Dems are still far from compromising on policy with the Conservatives; and as much as Clegg will deny it, they are much closer to the Labour Party than any other.

I apologise for stating some of the obvious there, but I found it quite amazing how Cameron and Clegg can be so close yet so far apart. The leader debates will highlight this once again, on personality, Cameron and Clegg may come out on top, but on policy and substance, Gordon Brown has it in the bag.

UK, US close their embassies in Yemen

Full story on NPR

A bold and decisive move is how I would describe this action against the recent revelations of terrorism in Yemen. Gordon Brown has clearly, already taken the leading stance out of all the major world leaders on how to deal with the Yemen threat. It is clear to see that the government of Yemen have very little control of what is happening. All westerners should be glad that this hazard has been confronted in the aftermath of the 'Detroit Bomber' case and not when a recent major attack has been successful.

Gordon Brown's decision to host a meeting on the Yemen threat, later this month in London, is another sign of his expert statesmanship and ability to lead the world on the big issues that face us. Personally, I can't even begin to imagine David Cameron and a Conservative government taking such definitive and bold movement on these matters. Again, I hope, for the sake of the UK's global reputation, that the Conservative's take no part in our next Government.

The UK Summer 2009 - Cricket, BBQ's and Gaddafi...

What would a British summer be without annoying disappointment? While the country are off enjoying a burger and a glass of lime cordial with the Ashes Tests on the TV, the unfortunate and unfair embarrassment of our very own Gordon Brown continues. When the Scottish government come out and say that they are "releasing the person responsible for the Lockerbie bomb attack", you just know somebody is going to face the wrath of humiliation. Barack Obama has come out and said that the UK have made a 'mistake' and if that wasn't enough, jolly old Colonel Gaddafi has 'thanked' Gordon Brown for 'encouraging' the release of Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi, the bomber I mentioned earlier. Of course, as with most things Libya-related, this infuriates me. Gaddafi said; "the UK prime minister had "encouraged" the Scottish Government to take what he called a "courageous" decision. Others went on to suggest it was linked to a trade deal with Libya! A trade deal?! What the hell do we have to trade? We don't make anything and their economy is in freefall, well, come to think of it, so is ours. But they do have a large amount of oil and gas... The Foreign Office have gone on to strongly deny those allegations. He is just generally annoying, Gaddafi, I mean. He knows what affect comments such as his could ahve on British politics and on the Labour Party. But who knows maybe, secretly, he's a raging David Cameron fan! Let's hope not, eh?

The election is emerging on the horizon...

As Parliament is recess, nothing has really happened. Newsreaders persist on claiming what a slow news month it is with nothing to talk about but a 11 year old girl crashing her grandfather's car off of a cliff. With all this quiet, it gets you predicting how the start of the parliamnetary year will begin. Not just a new parliamentary year but an election year, by this time next year, parliament could be in recess with a certain David Cameron in charge of Britain (God forbid). But you never know, there could be a very drastic change in fortune for Labour, and Gordon Brown could win his first elected term in the top job. But in the words of Mr Obama himself, we need change and we need it fast. We need some fresh impetus for Labour and for British politics. A fresh impetus to get the public back an interested in the workings and goings on of Parliament, and that certainly does not mean electing a Conservative government. Enthusiasm is something Westminster has been lacking since the election of 1997. I am sure Gordon Brown can deliver given the chance, but to do this he must use the talents of David and Ed Miliband, Peter Mandelson and Andy Burnham, the first and the latter of those names, I feel, are the future of Labour, maybe even the future Prime Ministers of Britain. Election 2010 will be an interesting one, certainly for the younger generation who only vaguely remember the 1997 election when there was a change in government, from that you can probably tell I expect a change in premier as much as I hope against it.

R.I.P Harry Patch and Henry Allingham

I would like to dedicate this post; one, to Harry Patch and Henry Allingham, the final two British First World War survivors who died today and last Saturday respectively and two, to the recent soldiers who have died in Afghanistan in combat.Gordon Brown's quote today says it all; "The noblest of all the generations has left us, but they will never be forgotten. We say today with still greater force - 'We will remember them'."

Lest We Forget.

I recently visited the battlefields of World War One in Southern Belgium and Northern France. I found the trip immensely fascininating while deeply moving, it brought the horrors of the front line to my own eyes. I hope you find the pictures below of interest to you.


The above photo shows the Menin Gate in Ypres, Belgium on which are listed the thousands of names who died without a recognised grave.



The above photo shows a close up of an Australian Memorial, erected after the First World War and then sustained this damage seen when it was come acroos in the Second World War,therefore explaining the bullet holes.

I may post some more photos from my trip, although my computer is taking its sweet time to upload them.

The end of a turbulent week...

I meant to post this message about this past week in Britsih politics yesterday (Friday), but deferred to the news of the unexpected reshuffle of the cabinet by Gordon Brown. But what an interesting but damaging (for some) week it has been. Jacqui Smith set the ball rolling on Tuesday when BBC News reported of her resignation from the Home Office. At this point a cabinet reshuffle was expected after the results of the European elections tommorow. This was just another repercussion of the Expenses scandal - she was the one who claimed for the 'adult movie' for her husband. I kinda though that her resignation was inevitable. I belive she has . As Gordon Brown said in PMQ's that day, crime is down. But I feel will be hard to erase the memory of the many stabbings of younger people in the UK. Over 100 people aged 10-19 have either been stabed or beaten since 1st January last year. Shocking facts that we will remember when we think of Jacqui Smith's time in charge of Home Affairs. The next day, the eve of the Local and European electons, Communities Secretary Hazel Blears quited the cabinet, increasing pressure on Prime Minister Gordon Brown. No great loss really, one of 'Blair's Babes', who I never thought would work under Brown's leadership. She has been been replaced by much more competent John Denham. The resignations continued, less important junior minsters came out after further expense revelations. But the big one didnt come until Thursday, the polls had closed, the votes are being counted and verified then, bang! James Purnell had resigned from Work and Pensions. This angered me greatly as you may know from my other posts. That then set the bar for Friday. After the very poor election results (for Labour). A string of further resignations including John Hutton and Margaret Beckett followed. I had thought before that Beckett would be in the Cabinet in some capacity, perhaps Health Secretary. in conclusion, I feel the week has ended with a smart reshuffling by Brown followed by a strong defence of the resignations to the harsh Fleet Street press & Nick Robinson, of course.

In a very turbulent week in Westminster, Gordon Brown can only hope next week isnt as bad but with the results of the Euro elections, who knows what could happen. Brown will hope to lie low and just do his job. I hope he succeeds. Well, that's what I think...

A Facebook Conversation...

I began this blog a couple of hours after the resignation of James Purnell. When that story broke I had BBC News on in the background whilst trying to defend Gordon Brown's leadership of the Labour Party. I thought for my first post I could show you all that converstation to just give an idea of how passionate I am about Politics and the Labour Party for that matter.

The Conversation:
(I have censored the names of the people in the conversation as they may not wish to have their names published in my blog.

Ash Giles is thinking poor Gordon...Bugger Blears!

Person 1 at 07:59 on 04 June
poor gordon? why?

Ash Giles at 20:09 on 04 June
He's a good Prime Minister with a vision fo rthe future...but every one is ganging up on him! It's not all his fault!

Person 1 at 20:12 on 04 June
Errr hello.... He was the fricking chancellor for the last gazillion years..of course this is all his fault!!!

Person 2 at 20:14 on 04 June
??? good lord, ash. he had been chancellor for god knows how long, and i hadnt seen him do anything memorable - unless of course, you can name something :P i know you cant see him as all bad... well, maybe you can :/

Person 1 at 20:16 on 04 June
Here here Cody!! Although I feel sorry because he had a child that died!!!

Person 2 at 20:18 on 04 June
blimey never knew that - how long ago was it?

Ash Giles at 20:19 on 04 June
You got me started now, just ask Liam about my political rants! When Gordon was Chancellor the economy was in a boom time. During the boom time he made sure the NHS recruited 20,000 more nurses and built 30,000 new schools.Gordon Brown presided over the longest period of growth ever, creating two and a half million more jobs, and lifting 600,000 children out of poverty. Owned.

Ash Giles at 20:50 on 04 June
Gordon and his wife had a daughter in December 2001 and she died of Cystic Fibrosis in the January of 2002.

Ash Giles at 20:55 on 04 June
I tell a lie....the daughter was born prematurely and died...he also has a son who has got cystic fibrosis though :(

Person 2 at 21:09 on 04 June
hey, i didnt say he didnt do anything memorable, just not anything that i knew of. the only thing i would say about that is in a boom cycle, there wouldn't be many who couldn't have done that and more.i understand the death of a child is very hard, and not to sound cold or anything, but around about this time (7 years laer) something like that shouldnt be something to get in the way, nor an excuse for his inability to lead a country in a crisis.the final thing i find is that as good as you make him out to be, he and his entire party have been revealed as very corrupt, and while not the sole blame can be put upon him for that, if the "scandals" or whatever they are called were not revealed, it would be likely he would have allowed it to go on.again, he cant have sole blame - but he's the one spearheading the fate of the country, if he's so wonderful it shouldnt be to hard to overcome these problems.... Read more double your post size XD and i have more if you wanna discuss single points.

Person 2 at 21:10 on 04 June
woops i ran outta post space :/ all i wanted to add was; :P

Ash Giles at 22:50 on 04 June
Firstly, I think you may find that in no way has his child's death got 'in the way', Liam's mum just happened to bring it up....Secondly, it is not only the Labour Party that has been uncovered. The scandal involves MP's from both sides of the house (primarily Conservatives). I am not saying he is the best PM we have ever had but Gordon Brown has a... Read more vision for the future of Britain, he and Alistair Darling are currently leading the world out of the recession (he has advised Barack Obama on some issues), and lets face it, anybody is going to be better than having David Cameron as the Prime Minister. Tony Blair was the best Prime Minister the UK has ever seen (Yes, better than Churchill or Thatcher!), Blair was always going to be a difficult figure to follow. Tony also left Gordon with some loose strings to tie up, for example, 3,000 British troops were still in Iraq when Tony left office, all British troops have now been withdrawn. See next post>>

Ash Giles at 23:09 on 04 June
I think any leader, be it Brown, Cameron or Clegg, Obama, Sarkozy or Merkel, would laugh at you if you told them that it quote: 'shouldnt be to hard to overcome these problems'.The challenges we face are unprecedented. These are global challenges we must combat. You can't possibly only blame our government for the state of the economy because as I... Read more said this problem is not on the British stage, it is on a global stage. As a result of the 'scandals' Gordon Brown has announced complete constitutional reform which may well include an electoral reform (This could lead to the voting age being lowered to 16) and an expenses reform to enthuse trust in Parliament. Gordon Brown is not allowed to know the content of other MP's expenses to respect the privacy all MP's are entitled to. For that reason, there is no way Brown could of prevented this from happening. But he has now acted very quickly to address the issue and prevent it from happening again. Obviously, as a member of the Labour Party >

Ash Giles at 23:23 on 04 June
I will try to defend it at all times. But I am fully behind Gordon Brown, I believe he is the best person to lead the country out of this recession and into the next general election which should be in May 2010. As I write this James Purnell, the Work & Pensions Sec., has resigned. There will be a cabinet reshuffle next week and Gordon Brown and ... Read morehis new cabinet can focus on the real issues facing Britain, something David Cameron and the Conservatives are incapable of. The Conservatives lack substance and policy.A Conservative government for Britain would be a disaster.I think that post was about 3 times your last one...