Taken from Press and Journal

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By NICOLA BARRY

Published: 05/05/2010

JUST when you think Gordon Brown cannot sink any lower in the opinion of the voters, he does exactly that, in spectacular fashion.

Every time he opens his big mouth, he forgets his microphone is still on.

However, bear in mind that his comment about Gillian Duffy could have been so much worse, especially if it has been made by a woman.

We really know how to bitch. Our prime minister, on the other hand, does not. Men call women bitches when they don’t get what they want from them. So, if a woman turns a man down for a date, she’s a bitch. If she races up the career ladder faster than he does, she’s a big, fat bitch and so on.

Women are far more likely to go for the jugular and drop some interesting bombshell about the target of their gossip.

Bitching is fine, provided you are with people you know and trust. In the case of the PM, the voters are not in that category.

As a result of all the fuss, Gillian Duffy is heading for mega stardom. She might even be the Susan Boyle of politics. An ordinary wee wifie, a widowed granny from Rochdale, suddenly thrust into the media spotlight from nowhere just like SuBo.

Suddenly, Gillian D has been revealed as a major player in the general election campaign, with the prime minister wanting to shake her hand for the TV cameras. Her name is now known nationally – possibly internationally. She is, if you like, notorious.

All because Gordon Brown, in a toe-curlingly embarrassing moment, dared to describe her as “a bigoted woman” after the poor soul raised the taboo subject of mass immigration.

Brown, who is also a poor soul these days, managed to forget for a moment that he is our servant and we are not his.

Mrs Duffy’s concerns are not difficult to comprehend. There are those who say she is not a racist; that she was just questioning Westminster’s immigration policy. Of course, there are thousands of Eastern Europeans here in Scotland and in the rest of the UK; people who have come here to find work. But Mrs Duffy’s choice of words was plain unfortunate. She talked about “flocking eastern Europeans” and it isn’t hard to see why Gordon Brown took this as a slur.

Many of these immigrants work far harder than Scots. They pay taxes. They have a right to our respect. However, whatever you think of what she said, you will probably admit that her sentiments are shared by a lot of other people who are too scared to say the words out loud. And, to question government policy on this matter is to leave yourself wide open to accusations of the R word.

No one can dispute the fact that parts of this country – and the north-east is no exception – have been all but swamped by incomers from abroad. Whether skilled white-collar workers or students seeking higher education, Eastern Europeans have been abandoning their homes in their thousands, in search of a mythical promised land. And to say so does not constitute racism.

Since joining the European Union in 2004, well over 1million Eastern Europeans have come to the UK, thought to be the largest single migration movement in history.

They have good reason to come here. Times are tough at home, with unemployment reaching an all-time high. Yes, membership of the EU has brought economic benefits but not fast enough for the country’s disconsolate army of jobless.

True to their reputation, most immigrants from Eastern Europe work extremely hard and are prepared to do anything in order to earn a living. Their output is, by all accounts, prolific, their work ethic admirable. Those who have not been able to find jobs have been prepared to fill the most menial job vacancies around just to earn a crust. The jobs no one else seems to want. Others have converted derelict buildings into delicatessens or similar businesses.

Whatever anyone says in Mrs Duffy’s defence, to dismiss all these honest folk as a “flock”, implying they resemble sheep, following each other and baa baa-ing, is an insult to their integrity.

As political parties continue to debate the way forward for immigration, many politicians and would-be politicians cash in on our worst fears, on the insecurities of many white, working-class people who say they feel under siege.

But, in 2010, look around you and listen to your friends and neighbours and you will soon hear someone moaning about the invasion of foreigners. They do sound hostile, aggressive and, I’m afraid, racist.

Politicians tell us that unfettered immigration from the extended EU and beyond has stretched this country to breaking point, turning even the most liberal of citizens into something approaching rabid fascists. The popular argument is that people feel like strangers in their own country – an exaggeration, of course – but, it would take a twisted individual not to have some sympathy for their logic. Hence Mrs Duffy’s comments.

You can almost hear the BNP chortling with glee every time a court case comes up involving illegal immigrants and every time you see pictures of foreigners gathering at Calais, trying to reach the UK and its unquestioning benefits system.

I am beginning to sound racist, but, believe me, I’m not. This is what Labour has reduced us to.

Perhaps we are over-reacting to Gordon Brown’s gaffe. After all, if you lined up the number of people in this country who had muttered something about somebody else – the queue would stretch from here to China and back again.

Yet, even here, in Scotland, this simple, straightforward woman has touched us deeply. Could it be that Gillian Duffy, widow and lifelong socialist, is the psychological boost we all need to help us ride out the recession, at a time when we are all worried about our jobs and lifestyle? Or, is it simply the fact that an underdog has finally come up trumps and shown our scandal-ridden politicians where to get off?

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The Conservative Manifesto 2010

A country is at its best when the bonds between people are strong and when the sense of national purpose is clear. Today the challenges facing Britain are immense. Our economy is overwhelmed by debt, our social fabric is frayed and our political system has betrayed the people. But these problems can be overcome if we pull together and work together. If we remember that we are all in this together.

Some politicians say: ‘give us your vote and we will sort out all your problems’. We say: real change comes not from government alone. Real change comes when the people are inspired and mobilised, when millions of us are fired up to play a part in the nation’s future.

Yes this is ambitious. Yes it is optimistic. But in the end all the Acts of Parliament, all the new measures, all the new policy initiatives, are just politicians’ words without you and your involvement.

How will we deal with the debt crisis unless we understand that we are all in this together? How will we raise responsible children unless every adult plays their part? How will we revitalise communities unless people stop asking ‘who will fix this?’ and start asking ‘what can I do?’ Britain will change for the better when we all elect to take part, to take responsibility – if we all come together. Collective strength will overpower our problems.

Only together can we can get rid of this government and, eventually, its debt. Only
Together can we get the economy moving. Only together can we protect the NHS. Improve our schools. Mend our broken society. Together we can even make politics and politicians work better. And if we can do that, we can do anything. Yes, together we can do anything.

So my invitation today is this: join us, to form a new kind of government for Britain.

Read the Conservative Manifesto 2010

The Conservative Manifesto 2010 is available to read in the document reader below, or alternatively download as a PDF in both hi-res and low-res versions.

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Audio of the Conservative Manifesto 2010

Download the Conservative Manifesto 2010 in audio (MP3) format using the links below.

01 Invitation to Join the Government of Britain
02 Contents
03 Foreword
04 Chapter 1_Change the Economy_Introduction
05 Benchmarks for Britain
06 Ensure macroeconomic stability
07 Create a more balance economy
08 Get Britain working again
09 Encourage enterprise
10 Ensure the whole country shares in rising prosperity
11 Reform public services to deliver better value for money
12 Create a safer banking system that serves the needs of the economy
13 Build a greener economy
14 Chapter 2_Change Society_Introduction
15 Build the Big Society
16 Make Britain the most family friendly country in Europe
17 Back the NHS
18 Raise standards in schools
19 Fight back against crime
20 Chapter 3_Change Politics_Introduction
21 Make politics more accountable
22 Make politics more transparent
23 Make politics more local
24 Restore our civil liberties
25 Strengthen the union
26 Chapter 4_Protect the environment_Introduction
27 Combat climate change
28 Conserve and enhance the natural environment
29 Chapter 5_Promote our national interest_Introduction
30 Defend our security
31 A liberal Conservative foreign policy
32 An open and democratic Europe
33 One World Conservatism

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Incredible.

Jim Ferguson

EU rules are fatal for terror watchlist

Thursday, February 25 2010

Shadow Security Minister Baroness Neville-Jones has pointed out that EU rules will make the Government’s proposed terror watchlists ineffective.

In response to the failed attack on an airliner heading for Detroit on Christmas Day 2009, the Government announced that it would use the existing Home Office Watchlist as the basis for two new lists.

There was to be a no-fly list, and a larger list of those who should be subject to special measures prior to boarding flights bound for the UK (including transit/transfer passengers).

However, the European Commission says the UK cannot compulsorily collect Advance Passenger Information (API) for flights from within the EU under the e-Borders scheme, regardless of the nationality of the passenger.

And as the British Government has decided to also not collect and use Passenger Name Record information (PNR) for intra-EU flights, this means that Britain currently has no way of collecting advance information on all travellers arriving from within the EU.

The Detroit bomber flew from Nigeria to Holland and then on to America. If he’d travelled through Britain he might well not have been picked up by the new watchlist.

Speaking about the issue in a speech at the Royal United Services Institute, Neville-Jones said that Labour are “knowingly and inexcusably misleading the public into thinking that they are creating a system which will be an effective barrier to dangerous people being able to get on to a flight to the UK”.

“The flimsy basis of the new watch list will provide no such protection”, she added.

Read the full speech

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Thursday, February 25 2010

Damian Green has accused the Government of allowing immigration to run “out of control” following new evidence published by the Home Office.

The Shadow Immigration Minister was commenting on figures that lay bare the extent to which the Labour Government has failed to get a grip on the level of immigration in the UK.

The Home Office figures show more student visas being issued than ever and visas, settlements and EU benefit claims all up.

New asylum statistics also reveal that there are more asylum seekers arriving in Britain than failed asylum seekers leaving.

Damian said these immigration figures, the last to be published before a General Election make it clear that immigration “has been running out of control throughout the lifetime of this Government”, and he added:

“Even in a recession with more than two million unemployed the number of work visas issued is going up. So much for British jobs for British workers.”

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Jim Ferguson

First word …
Welcome to the February edition of my Brussels Briefing.This month, in addition to my involvement in the appointment process of the new European Commission, I have been keeping a close eye on the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy while striving to seek clarity on the issue of food labelling.

In these tough economic times local businesses and farmers need our support. Locally sourced produce is no longer a fashionable phrase, it now relates to the very survival of local shops and businesses.

In addition,  the people of Scotland recognise the quality of home-grown produce and want to buy food that is genuinely Scottish. For too long consumers have been duped by products that have been mislabelled or not labelled at all. It is about time that producers are given clear guidelines for labelling. I will continue to campaign to have existing legislation changed to reflect the choice and clarity that consumers expect.

Join up here to support my campaign and help protect Scotland’s local farmers and businesses.

Best wishes,

Struan Stevenson MEP

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