The other Wedding stories

• Met Police issue statement which includes: "Let me make it clear. This is a day of celebration, joy and pageantry for Great Britain. Any criminals attempting to disrupt it - be that in the guise of protest or otherwise - will be met by a robust, decisive, flexible and proportionate policing response...
  
  "We have been working closely with officers investigating recent demonstrations in London and as you are aware bail conditions have been imposed on over 60 arrested people, including that they will not be allowed to enter [central] London on the day of the wedding.
  
  "I can also confirm that as part of the investigation into the TUC demonstration and the subsequent disorder that took place, since 18 April six people have been arrested for a range of offences. The work of the investigation team continues and as you would have seen over the last few days further images of people we would like to speak to have been released to the media."
  
  
• There have been a number of 'pre-crime' arrests by the police whose powers appear to be out of control.
  
  
• This includes three Republican street performers. Arrested for planning to say we should live in a modern democratic republic. Wow.
  
  
• A Cambridge activist who was planning to voice dissent peacefully.
  
  
• Seven arrests in Hove.
  
  
• And more disturbances in Bristol around the Tesco-ification of the town.
  
  
• There is a fair pay for Royal Cleaners campaign from the union PCS.
  
  
• There was a not the Royal wedding street party in Red Lion Square as well as a number of similar events organised by different organisations up and down the country.
  
  
• Today is also the day that a swathe of radical facebook groups have been purged from the site in one fell swoop.
  
  
• Meanwhile Bright Green are crowd sourcing any bad news that might get buried today under the avalanche of Wedding ephemera.

Charges dropped against Tunisian policewoman

Months ago a simple event, a common place event even, led to a series of world historic uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa. A Tunisian fruit vendor, Mohamed Bouazizi, was humiliated by a policewoman. Not only did she confiscate his wares, because he supposedly did not have a permit, she also slapped him.

For Bouazizi this was not the first time the police had stopped him earning a living, nor the first time they had treated him like dirt. This time would be the last time though because Bouazizi had had enough. He took himself to the local municipal office in his small provincial town and set himself on fire. Three weeks later he died from his terrible injuries.

This extraordinary act of immolation from a man who could simply not cope any more led to snowballing protests against police corruption, unemployment, poverty and the state. So powerful did that movement become that the President himself fled the country in fear. The fruit seller took down the dictator.

Bouazizi's family had put in a complaint against the policewoman who's casual acts set in chain these vents but, according to Al Jazeera, they have now dropped the charges as "a gesture of tolerance and an effort to heal wounds suffered in Tunisia's upheaval".

It's a generous act aimed at helping the country move forwards and one that should command great respect. His family did not choose to be at the centre of a revolution but it is quiet acts like these that can help construct a better Tunisia.

March 26th: a political turning point?

It seems that today saw one of the five biggest demonstrations ever in British history. While most of those protests were against Labour administrations, who didn't take a blind bit of notice, this one makes a nice change in that it is against the Liberal Democrats and their coalition partners, and has the backing of the official opposition (pic tweeted by Richard Mallender).

It seems there could be up to half a million people marching through the streets of London with another substantial demo in the north of Ireland. There was a significant mobilisation on the part of the trade unions but also non-coalition political parties and protest groups.

Ed Miliband addressed the crowd from the end platform despite having written Labour's cuts Manifesto for the last election and Labour councillors up and down the country voting, en masse, for cuts budgets.

In a move designed to annoy the Daily Telegraph UKUncut occupied Fortnum and Masons and there were a number of other peaceful direct actions, mainly against banks, and Anne Summers' windows were smash in a targeted strike against, um... shops? This led some wags to comment that police were looking for "hardened protesters" and that this was the "climax of the demonstration".

However, while the smashed windows seem pointless and, frankly, unrepresentative of the feelings of most of those turning out, the continuing direct action, which led to a number of protesters being arrested despite being completely peaceful, are a real benefit. Unlike the Iraq War march where the focus was simply on size it is very good to see that this protest was not just big, but lively and edgy too, with many people reporting a carnival atmosphere.

The TUC had come in for criticism for taking so long to organise this demo, but part of me feels this turnout is a vindication of that decision. There have been very well attended protests all over the country which have helped build this march and it seems unlikely that had this been called in January, for example, we'd have had anything like this turnout.

It does call into question where we go from here. I've seen various people talking about the next monster demo (and "let's make it bigger", etc.) but this feels slightly unimaginative and disregards the fact  that these protests lend moral weight and confidence to the movement against austerity but cannot, of themselves, change government policy.

Right now, according to YouGov, the majority support the aims of the march (52% to 31%) but in order to get the government to change direct we need a viable strategy that goes beyond moral force. The next step is public sector strike action.

The prospects for industrial action that is coordinated across the public sector seem far closer now than at  any other point in my lifetime. While Thatcher took on unions one at a time this government has taken on the entire country all in one go, banking on the weakness of the trade union movement. For the trade unions this is now life or death, if they let this moment pass without real action they are in danger of being snuffed out of any meaningful existence what so ever.


Of course, if they allow their links to the Labour Party to hold them back once again they will find their members out of work and/or demoralised by the end of this government. Thankfully unions like the PCS are not linked to Labour and are far more free to act effectively. Whether other unions can take the lead with them is another matter - but this march today shows that there is an enormous public mood against the cuts, let's not piss it away.

The new Arab revolts continue

As Libya continues to, understandably, dominate the news I thought I might take a quick tour of what's happening with the inspiring revolutionary process that kick started the whole thing. Although, perhaps more accurately that's a tour of the repression that's currently taking place.

• In Yemen 35 protesters have been killed when troops opened fire on them. The government have now declared a state of emergency.
• In Iraq gunmen torched a TV station for showing protests, police allowed armed men to beat and stab protesters in Bagdhad, while journalists who reported the demo were arrested, as they were in Basra, in Anbar province security services shot five protesters dead, Al Jazeera have pictures of police shooting at protesters in Falluja.
• In Iran they are cracking down on web activists, 
• There are mass demonstrations in Jordan.
• Strikes closed 300 factories in Oman and the ports.
• Clashes in Syria have left at least three people dead in pro-democracy protests.
• In Bahrain Saudi troops have come in to restore order, and Kuwait is sending its navy (!), all to reinforce the status quo against the protests. This is while they enforce their own ban on protests. The Bahraini authorities have smashed a monument symbolic of the movement as the state rounds up the opposition.
• In Djibouti opposition leaders have been arrested and there have been widespread calls to boycott next month's elections.
• In Egypt the repression continues, with attacks on women marchers, as the wrangles over the constitution look set to leave the revolutionaries out in the cold.
• While the inspiration of these liberation movements in taking hold in Africa, a place not so seperate from the Arab world.

Check out the very useful Iraq Occupation Focus. Meanwhile in Tunisia Clinton has made a visit to encourage economic reforms. Goodie.

Japan Swept by Natural Disaster

I'm sure everyone who's watched the unfolding events in Japan has been just as horrified as I have. The earthquake and tidal wave that followed are a stark reminder of the power of the planet we inhabit.

Hundreds dead, thousands missing and an as yet unknown long term toxic an polluting impact across a highly populated area. Trains, planes, ships and cars have been swept away like so many toys.

The Fukushima nuclear power plant was caught up in the catastrophe raising the possibility of leak as cooling systems shut down and the station switched to battery power. We certainly wish the authorities the best of luck as they battle to keep the station safe. It is rare for these kinds of events to effect nuclear power stations but, particularly in an increasingly unstable climate, the impact o such a disaster d not bear thinking about. (I was talking about tis the other day on pod delusion).

The good news, if that is the right word for it, is that the wave seems to be dissipating and is unlikely to significantly effect Australia, Indonesia or vulnerable Pacific Islands. It's also true that the numbers of dead are currently far lower than they could have been due to good building standards.

A poorer nation would have been obliterated by these crushing events. Never the less Japan must be reeling, my thoughts are with them.

End of the Tyrant; Now to end tyranny

Millions, if not billions, of people across the world will have raised a smile to hear that Egypt's dictator Mubarak has at last stepped down. You would have to be made of stone to not welcome the news.

Of course the end of a tyrant does not mean the end to tyranny and the revolutionary wave across the Arab world has barely begun. What comes next will no doubt be a mix of both good and bad, new solutions and old. The risk of an even more reactionary regime is both real and, I think, no reason to mourn the dying of the old.

I was impressed last week by a reporter on Radio Four being interviewed by John Humphreys. "How will Mubarak react next?" he was asked "I don't know." He replied. "But Mubarak wont do a Tianamen Square will he?" "I've got no idea what he'll do!" Queue an outraged snort from Humphreys - but the reporter was right.

Speculation is pointless at this time, the only thing that really matters is how the people of Egypt and the rest of the Arab world react. What kind of world they choose to make is in the balance and how those disagreements and compromises that lie ahead play out are all to play for.

There are many different visions for Egypt's future, and I'm sure that even what people want at this point is fluid and changing. Maybe those with modest aspirations will find themselves radicalised. Perhaps the religious will start looking to secular solutions and others will find themselves fusing faith and politics.

I'm reading it all with interest, but I've decided that, not only do I not know enough about the region to comment properly, but also that even the self appointed experts will have to throw their deeply entrenched ideas in the days and years to come. Who can say what these means for Egypt's women or how Israel will take the news, or the US or the people of Saudi Arabia?

This domino is falling. Today we should celebrate that, even if we cannot know what seemingly permanent structures will evaporate next.

Activist dies in fire

I was very concerned to see that after a fire at a protest camp in Midlothian a young man has died and a woman is seriously ill in hospital. The death is not being treated as suspicious.

The Bilston Glen camp is probably one of the last surviving road protest camps existing in the country. The camp issued this short statement;

"The people of Bilston Road protest site regret the loss of one of their friends, who has been a valued member of our community, and extend our deepest sorrow to his family and friends, who we would like to get in touch with as we have no way of contacting them. We would ask everyone to respect our grief."

My condolences to the protesters and family members of those concerned.

Oldham East and Saddleworth result

It was no surprise that Labour won, although I have to admit the fact that the Lib Dems managed to slightly increase their vote share was unexpected. Of course this was aided by the Tory strategy aimed at bolstering the coalition by fighting a low key campaign where they might, arguably have been able to fight their way into second place. However, it's useful to note that the Lib Dems are still able to mobilise a viable, if losing, campaign.

The results taken from wikipedia show Labour's current increased poll ratings being borne out on the ground.

	Debbie Abrahams	Labour	14,718	42.1%	+10.2
	Elwyn Watkins	Liberal Democrat	11,160	31.9%	+0.3
	Kashif Ali	Conservative	4,481	12.8%	-13.6
	Paul Nuttall	UKIP	2,029	5.8%	+1.9
	Derek Adams	BNP	1,560	4.5%	-1.2
	Peter Allen	Green	530	1.5%	N/A
	Nick "The Flying Brick" Delves	Monster Raving Loony	145	0.4%	N/A
	Stephen Morris	English Democrats	144	0.4%	N/A
	Loz Kaye	Pirate	96	0.3%	N/A
	David Bishop	Bus-Pass Elvis	67	0.1%	N/A

In other news I was pleased that the BNP failed to either get their deposit back or achieve their previous fourth place in an area they think of as a target. I also happen to think that Peter Allen's 530 votes were very good considering the Greens had not stood in the area before.

I'm never sure about standing candidates in these kind of elections where we're unlikely to come fourth or better. It seems to be a prime opportunity to risk coming below Bus-Pass Elvis without any likely returns. I do wonder whether taking the lost £500 deposit and instead spending it on any random area in the country in a membership recruitment drive would actually have a better longer term impact.

I'm glad Peter got a good result as I would have been worried about mentioning this if he'd got less than 1% but it's hard enough for the Greens standing in by-elections where we have a good electoral history and a strong local party - but here this was the first time we'd ever stood, so it was a real gamble.

It reminds me of when the Greens stood against David Davis in his vanity resignation/restanding during the last Parliament. Ultimately we came second, which was a relief, because if we'd been beaten by the English Democrats et al it would have been a real embarrassment. I'm unconvinced we gained very much by putting ourselves in the firing line on that occasion.

If we're going to stand in these things it would be handy to get more of a by-election machine going, in the way the Lib Dems do - so we're prepared to give local parties support when they fight by-elections like this. But I do think it's worth considering that we don't have to stand just because there's an election and no result can someties be better than a poor result.

Student protester sent down for 32 months

News just in: Edward Woollard, 18, has been given a thirty two month sentence for 'violent disorder' for his part in the student protest at Tory HQ last year where he dropped a fire extinguisher from the roof of the building, narrowly missing police and protesters alike.

It's a stiff sentence for a stupid act but he'll be unlikely to receive any sympathy from the press. Indeed I'm not going to defend his actions because they were criminally reckless and could have resulted in severe injury or death of a protester, police office or passer-by.

Sadly this does not herald a list of prosecutions against violent behaviour. We will not see those who put Alfie Meadows in hospital before the courts, nor those who put Ian Tomlinson in the morgue. This prosecution may well be the first of many against students though, many of whom will not have endangered lives or been violent in the way that Mr Woollard undoubtedly was.

Judge Geoffrey Rivlin QC said in his sentencing;

"It is deeply regrettable, indeed a shocking thing, for a court to have sentence a young man such as you to a substantial term of custody.

"But the courts have a duty to provide the community with such protection from violence as they can and this means sending out a very clear message to anyone minded to behave in this way that an offence of this seriousness will not be tolerated.

"It is my judgment, exceedingly fortunate that your action did not result in death or very serious injury either to a police officer or a fellow protester."

The judge praised Wollard's mother saying he was taking into account her "extraordinary and courageous conduct" in persuading him to give himself up. I'm not sure she will be thanking him for these words at what must be a heart rending time for her.

Woolard is paying the price for being a prat and we shouldn't try to minimise the harm he could have done. Indeed at the time other protesters instantly realised how reckless his actions were and began to chant up to those on the roof "Stop throwing shit", which they did.

However, we should also not allow the hypocrisy surrounding these events to go unmarked. Where Camilla's Stickgate seems to be in the news every day and those police officers who put Alfie Meadows in hospital go unremarked. Thankfully Meadows is recovering, but he was a victim of violence in a far more serious way than Prince Charles' consort, but somehow we are not all equal in the eyes of the great and the good.

My personal view is that this sentence seems comparatively high compared to others who have committed violent offences, but I'm more concerned that this does not herald the start of a series of convictions against those who did not endanger lives on these protests, whilst violent police officers appear to be immune from the law.

Murder in Arizona

There's been some shocking news tonight that a gunman opened fire on a public meeting in Arizona. At the moment six of the 30 people shot have died, including a nine year old girl, a political aid and a Federal judge. The key target, who was shot in the head, was congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Doctors say they are optimistic for her recovery.

The assailant was a 22-year old Afghanistan veteran who was wrestled to the ground by one of Giffords' aids and arrested.

Giffords has been a target of the Tea Party movement for her backing of health care reform and "supporting immigration control, embryonic stem-cell research and the right to abortion." Ironically she is also a strong supporter of the right to bear arms.

Last year her office was vandalised after a key health care vote and the Tea Party rhetoric about resorting to 'second amendment methods' if they fail at the ballot box has been given new, horrible, meaning today.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Jesse Kelly, the Tea Party Republican rival that Giffords beat at the end of last year seems to have taken the irresponsibility to new levels. The Arizona Star reported;

Jesse Kelly, meanwhile, doesn't seem to be bothered in the least by the Sarah Palin controversy earlier this year, when she released a list of targeted races in crosshairs, urging followers to "reload" and "aim" for Democrats. Critics said she was inciting violence.

He seems to be embracing his fellow tea partier's idea. Kelly's campaign event website has a stern-looking photo of the former Marine in military garb holding his weapon. It includes the headline: "Get on Target for Victory in November. Help remove Gabrielle Giffords from office. Shoot a fully automatic M16 with Jesse Kelly."

The event costs $50.

Quite in spirit with Sarah Palin's "target" strategy (below) of opponents (including Gabrielle Giffords) that were to be targeted. This is idiotic behaviour on the part of a high profile politician, although I was pleased to see he posted that "Senseless acts of violence such as this have absolutely no place in American politics" after the news emerged at what had happened.

This kind of rhetoric has to stop. It's time for the Republicans to purge the Tea Party from their ranks.

Salmaan Taseer murdered

Just a few days ago I wrote about the tensions building in Pakistan over the proposals to amend the blasphemy laws. I mentioned in passing high profile Punjabi governor Salmaan Taseer who was an outspoken advocate of the reforms. He was the focus of much bile and criticism from the religious right. Today he was murdered. Shot by a member of his own security detail.

Pakistan is in crisis. Caught in a vice like grip between the West and the East, between democratic values of equality and tolerance and murderous religious fundamentalism.

The government is both violent, weak and split. The economy is in a poor state and much of the country is still suffering badly from flooding. These are not happy times.

Although Taseer and Shahrbano Rehman, the outstanding woman moving the amendment, are both members of the ruling party the government has been at pains to distance themselves from the proposals and, it seems, that numerous death threats against themselves and their supporters have been ignored by the authorities - leaving reformers exposed.

But while the government has taken no action against leading religious figures condemning Taseer and Rehman it seems that one man did react. After Taseer's guard shot his charge dead he handed himself in. "The police guard who killed him says he did this because Mr Taseer recently defended the proposed amendments to the blasphemy law. This is what he told the police after surrendering himself."

Just a few days ago Taseer had spoken at a rally commemorating the third anniversary of the death of Benazir Bhutto at the hands of an assassin. There are strong forces for progress in Pakistan, but they have a huge mountain to climb. Meanwhile, good and principled people like Taseer are dying.

Post script: “You live life once, you live it by your principles and you live it courageously — that’s what it’s about.”

• NY Times has more details on the assassination.
• Mosharraf Zaidi on the implications for Pakistan's politics.
• DNA India on political reactions.
• Hindustan Times on worker protests at the assassination.
  

Damn the corruption in football

A fascinating little side story has emerged from the whole World Cup bid thing. England have called off a friendly in Bangkok due next year because the game was only arranged to secure the vote of Worawi Makudi, president of the Football Association of Thailand in England's World Cup bid.

The bugger took our bribe but then didn't vote for us, the corrupt bastard.

It's very interesting to me that many of the people who are denouncing Fifa as corrupt because it didn't go for England's bid a) would be saying no such thing if our bribes had been more effective than Russia's and b) often seem to be the same people who've been critical of the press for exposing corruption.

Personally I don't think you can have it both ways and anyone who tries to stop the press from reporting illegal activities because it doesn't suit Britain's interests is a friend of corruption, not an opponent of it.

Trouble in Ecuador

New austerity laws have left Ecuador rocking with an uprising of the police and army protesting at the withdrawal of their benefits.

Around 150 members of the air force stormed the main airport, other soldiers and police officers set light to tires and began looting while others still confronted the President in a tense stand off at the regimental barracks.

The Guardian reports the President said during the confrontation ""I'm not taking one step back. Gentleman, if you want to kill the president, here he is, kill him if you have the guts." The rebel officers responded with shouts, stones and teargas canisters, prompting Correa's bodyguards to spirit him from the scene."

"The protests were triggered by a law passed by congress yesterday on Wednesday that would end the practice of giving medals and bonuses with each promotion. It would also extend from five to seven years the usual period required for promotions."

The FT reports that later President Correa, who was trapped in a hospital, said “It is a coup attempt led by the opposition and certain sections of the armed forces and police. Whatever happens to me I want to express my love for my family and my homeland.”

They report that "Civil society groups joined the government in vowing to free Mr Correa, before marching on the hospital where he was cornered by protesting police officers."



Some in the government are saying that the majority of the army and police are loyal and a coup is not about to take place, others are beginning to mobilise to prevent a coup. It's certainly true that the President has been attacked and hundreds of armed forces personnel are on the move.

Unions decide leader of the Labour Party

And so it came to pass, the person who got the most votes from the members didn't win the Labour Leadership selection. Welcome Ed Miliband, the brother whose smile leans to the left, as the new opposition leader.

As predicted it was a toss up between Ed and David Miliband, but the nature of the electoral college system where three colleges (MPs/MEPs, members and unions and affiliates) each count for a third of the vote each.

David won more MPs/MEPs *and* more party members in the vote but because the unions gave their support so heavily to Ed it was the younger brother that won. Well done him.

Final round results;

David Miliband 49.35%

17.812 from MPs/MEPs, 18.135 from members, 13.40 from unions and affiliates

Ed Miliband 50.65%

15.522 from MPs/MEPs, 15.198 from members, 19.934 from unions and affiliates

For those who are interested in the breakdown you can find it here. You wont be surprised to hear that Diane Abbott was first to fall, then Andy Burnham and in third place was Ed Balls.

What was more interesting was that Diane came last in the members' vote, which was always the one she was going to have to crack if she was to do well. You will not be shocked to know that Andy Burnham did not do well with the unions.

What the implications of this election will be is any one's guess. Labour members will hope that a more soft left posing Miliband will help rejuvenate their vote - but let's see how they take on Post Office privatisation, the ongoing occupation of Afghanistan and trident replacement.

Green Party Launched in Spain

I've often wondered why there was no Green Party in Spain, and by often I mean I once wondered it. Well I need wonder no longer because they've decided to set one up.

Spain has an active environmentalist movement but the government sadly is not always sympathetic, for example they abolished the environment ministry two years ago subsuming it within the department of agriculture.

Alexander Sanchez, head of SEO Birdlife and Juantxo Lopez de Uralde, former head of Spanish Greenpeace (pictured right doing something weird) made the announcement this weekend and ICV, a Catalonian Green Party which receives 9.5% of the regional vote and has Parliamentary seats is backing the initiative towards a national party.

Greens have certainly stood at elections but have previously been part of the United Left which has disappointed many environmentalists by backing subsidies for new coal power stations. It looks like there's a reasonably friendly parting of the ways and with a ready made, if modest, electoral base and well known figureheads they certainly have potential.

El Pais says that the party will be of the left, but not necessarily of the traditional variety. De facto leader Uralde also pointed out that the party would occupy a unique political space as the only party to oppose bullfighting, or with a commitment to renewable power.

Uralde says that years ago ecology was just about seals and whales but now it is a far broader political project. He went on to say "La aventura puede ser loca, pero los aventureros estamos cuerdos", which I'm loosely translating as "It might be a crazy adventure, but we adventurers are level headed."

Lobbying vs Spam

When I hear a politician saying that "lobby groups are becoming a nuisance" I have to say my first instinct is to think "Good! That's their job." A campaign group that is comfortable and uncritical with the great and the good is not helping shape the political agenda.

However, the awful truth is that Conservative MP Dominic Raab has a point. Spamming politicians is extremely ineffective.

The campaigning website 38 degrees has generated a bit of news for itself when Raab asked to be removed from their automated emailing system - a request that has been widely misreported as an attempt to prevent constituents from emailing him, which is clearly false.

Having seen the results of these automated systems from the receiving end (not me, people I was supporting) it's clear that dozens, or hundreds, of identical emails all coming from the same website do not influence candidates in the least. You will at most receive a standard cut and pasted response to your standardised cut and pasted email, and I'm not sure you deserve any more than that anyway.

During the election I saw automated emails on such unanswerable questions as whether the candidate opposes cancer, is in support of children or believes in road safety. Each and everyone of these emails were far more about the organisation sending the emails attempting to feel important than they were about influencing policy.

The emails that do get taken seriously are the ones that are written from scratch addressing a question shaped by the constituent not a lobby group. This correspondence gets read and responded to properly in a way that the junk organisations like 38 degrees sends out cannot dream of.

If organisations want to influence MPs they need to understand that spam is not simply a very weak form of communication, it's likely to actively bring you into disrepute because of the massively pointless inconvenience it creates for the receiver. I don't want public money going on the salaries of people sitting laboriously replying to emails that the sender couldn't even be bothered to write - it's hardly a sign that the sender cares about the issue that they let a robot do their thinking for them.

Email spam is different from demonstrations, petitions and other forms of mass communication with your MP because spam takes no effort, it is no longer a meaningful form of communication. More-over as time goes on and more people are able to programme their site to send out this stuff it becomes even *less* effective because politicians get in the habit of ditching automated emails straight to junk.

Improved web technology has also spawned the habit of constituents sending emails to every elected person they can think of, so they'll fire off emails to their London Assembly member, both their Mayors, all their councillors and their MP on issues that sometimes aren't even the responsibility of any of them, let alone just the one.

Effective lobbying needs to targeted, meaningful and specific. Asking someone if they oppose cancer is pointless (and there were at least three organisations sending these out), asking them if they support a new cancer ward in their local hospital is not.

If an MP receives three written letters on a particular subject they outweigh three hundred identical emails any day of the week. Just because you can programme your site to do something does not mean that the human being at the other end is going to be anything other than annoyed at your stupid organisation.

Democracy Turfed Off

It's so long ago it gives me a little warm glow of nostalgia, but time was that New Labour tried to ban the largest demonstration in British history, all for the sake of some grass. No, no, no - not the sort Ministers stuff into their crack pipes, the grass in Hyde Park of course.

The demonstration, which eventually attracted over a million people, making it the largest mobilisation in the history of the UK, was to be cancelled because the grass issue may also mean "People can get crushed, people can break their legs - there are a lot of things that happen at this time of year and it would be very unwise of us to take such a risk" which, as an official statement, reads more like a local mafioso saying "Shop windows can get.... broken... if you're not careful."

This all flooded back to me when I saw that Boris Johnson had made these comments about the eviction of the "Democracy Village" camped outside Parliament. "I think it's wonderful that as a city we can protest. But it is nauseating what they are doing to the lawn."

Quite correctly Johnson has identified that democracy is a lovely idea, but not when it comes at the price of a nice bit of the green stuff. You need to pamper your pampas, after all. (Evening Standard has pics of the great grass massacre, here)

However, while I have little sympathy for the argument that grass has more rights than people, I am slightly more concerned about the rights of individuals to permanently rob everyone else of common land. It's not simply the uber-hierarchical model of moralising protest that Brian Haw typifies, it's also the fact that if you're opposed to, say, privatising public property, you shouldn't then claim personal ownership over common land yourself.

These protesters made the Square unusable for everyone else, and they hoped to do this on a long term or permanent basis. Is that democracy or simply giving yourself property rights over land that was held in common? Is it wrong for the State to sell off public property but ok for a self-appointed group of randoms to rock up and claim our land for themselves?

Even those poor little blades of grass were part of the common treasury until this small squad of elitists squatted on them. I'm not entirely sure I 100% approve.

I'm certainly not saying that these issues are not complex and, usually, require some sort of negotiation but I am saying that democracy is not just about everyone being allowed to do whatever they like, no matter how anti-social.

Zac Goldsmith interviewed on Channel Four news

This is absolute gold - do watch! New Tory MP Zac Goldsmith was on C4 News to be grilled over his potentially dodgy election expense returns, but in 13 minutes of interview he spends the almost entire time trying to skewer Jon Snow on some minor point of scheduling that no one cares about.

When he does get round to speaking about the issue in hand he utterly bungles it, and it's clear he knows he's on very dodgy ground. In my view he'd have been hard put to come across more like an aristocratic baddie even if he had a duelling scar and a henchman hovering just behind his right shoulder.



Goldsmith is clearly a man who regards the media making legitimate enquiries as total impudence.

Philip Hollobone MP is a toad

I'm not impressed by Philip Hollobone's private member's bill aimed at banning the veil in public. Thankfully it's unlikely to gain majority support or much Parliamentary time but people like Hollobone think nothing of fueling the fire of anti-Muslim opinion with stunts like this.

At least he doesn't dress up his suggestion as somehow protecting women by criminalising them, which some do. No, he falls back on the bigot's old faithful "the British Way of Life" which includes regulating what we can wear, apparently.

I must have missed that ancient tradition. I think he must be referring to those old traditions of being bloody horrible to foreigners... perhaps he could clarify.

He justified his Face Coverings (Regulation) Bill by saying "I think it's inappropriate to cover your face in public, whether it's a burka, a balaclava or anything else." Brilliant. Almost every motorcycle crash helmet banned at a stroke. Clearly this is his real agenda - he hates Jerey Clarkson and the 'Stig'.

This is why you need health and safety

This is why you need health and safety at work. What is it with racing and sadomasochism? First we had Mosley with his extended spanking and dungeon settings and now the owner of RPM Motorsport, an ex-motorcycle racing champion Robin Mortimer has been found dead at an S&M club in Belgium, 'Torment Towers'.

Two women, Mistress Lucrezia and Mistress Juno, have been arrested although it looks like the authorities do not suspect that they meant to kill him, which only really leaves the possibility that some sort of violent session got out of hand and was not conducted in a safe manner.

According to the prosectution he may have choked on a rubber ball or died after taking an anaesthetic designed to prolong sadistic sex sessions. Legalised brothels and proper health and safety legislation and it's all so much safer.

Is there something about petrol or high speeds that encourages this sort of thing - or is it just a coincidence?