Vapid Distraction or First Shot Across the Electoral Bows?
By Emma.
What on Earth was the Chris Huhne/Baroness Warsi press conference this morning about?
General feeling in and around my office/twitter feed is that they are merely trying a desperate, transparent attempt to distract attention from today’s dire announcements from the Bank of England that we’re heading – careening even – towards a double dip recession. The main thrust of today’s meeting seemed to be Labour are horrible and should forgo their severance pay. No look at me I’m dancing like a clown! Don’t look at than boring Mervyn chap with all the long words and complicated graphs! We’re they remotely serious about the severance pay issue, they might have contemplated the (probably small, but you know this is supposed to be the age of austerity) cost of holding a press conference rather than simply writing (and leaking if you want it public) the letters.
However, some could see this purely political event (not a single policy announcement, nothing but partisan posturing) as the first shot in the next election campaign. This kind of campaigning against the opposition usually happens much closer to an election than 5 years, so either the coalition have decided that the American system of permanent electioneering rather than governing and running on your record is preferable (and given what their record is going to be like, you can see why they might); or the next election is closer than we all think (and if so, the Lib Dems must have been offered a coupon deal to be going along with it after jettisoning such a huge amount of their support).
So which is it, vapid distraction or poisonous campaigning?
*UPDATE* It seems that the event was at least politically funded as well as motivated, so the taxpayer aren’t footing the bill. How wise it is for the Lib Dems to do joint political work with the Tories is up to them.
