Cornish name for Cameron baby

I was very pleased when the Camerons decided to include a Christian name that had a direct connection to Cornwall following the birth of their daughter in the county the other day. Florence Rose are the first two names and they have added Endellion as a third, 'St Endellion' being the name of a parish close to where they were holidaying in North Cornwall. Endellion has got a nice ring to it I think, certainly my own parish 'Calstock' wouldn't quite work as a girl's name. It might be even worse if they had selected another village in this same parish (my parish is large in population terms with a lot of settlements). Take for example 'Gunnislake' or 'St Anns Chapel' or 'Harrowbarrow' - they wouldn't work either!

A quick note about St Endellion: its church has become very well known to serious music lovers because it is the location for two prestigious musical festivals each year. I've never been and would I think find the music on offer a little heavy for my taste. The website is here Having made this remark I have to say that there is plenty of wonderful classical music around, perhaps I don't devote the time and attention to it that it deserves. The other thing is that the inside of a church is a really special place to listen to good music as a rule.

I've just been looking at a press report on the internet and it seems that Gordon and Sarah Brown have sent their congratulations to Mr and Mrs Cameron on the new arrival. In his autobiography Tony Blair includes the words "Emotional intelligence, zero"in relation to Brown. That might generally be so and in many respects I find Gordon Brown pretty reprehensible. When it comes to people's children though his feelings are warm and genuine: I had commented before about the time when PMQs were cancelled following the death of Ivan Cameron. Brown was really choked (he can't do Blair style acting) - he did feel for the Camerons, partly perhaps because of the tragedy he and Sarah had in losing a very young child.

It sounds as if the new arrival in the life of the Camerons is doing well. Good luck to them.

First debate with Party Leaders coming up

This evening sees the first of the three televised debates between Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg. As I don't have a functioning TV connection I shall not be watching it live but might well listen to it on Radio 4. I guess the participants are more than a little nervous right now but who, if anyone, will come out on top? A common consensus seems to be that Clegg should benefit a lot because this is a rare occasion when his party gets equal billing with the Tories and Labour. And herein lies a problem: the Lib Dems might hold the balance of power in a hung parliament but they are not going to be, on their own, the next government. So in a sense what they promise, what their manifesto says is slightly irrelevant. With just the two main party leaders the thing has balance but the whole debate will be muddled in my opinion by possibly two of the leaders ganging up against the third. We shall soon know!

Cameron has a lot to lose because expectations are high that he will be very much better than Brown at least. What about Gordon then? This is not natural territory for him and I would hope that he gets well challenged. Surely he will have to get away from tractor statistics and slogans. But can he do that?

Cameron upsets some Tories

So David Cameron upset a few of his own side yesterday when he made it clear that should he become Prime Minister following the General Election he will NOT hold a referendum regarding the Lisbon Treaty. This all goes back to his piece in 'The Sun' ages ago and his "cast iron" guarantee. There was a link to this on someones blog which I read earlier today and I have to say that to me at least his phrasing is a little ambiguous. This leads to the age old problem that people will make their own construct from the words they read to suit their own agenda.

Realistically I suppose it was never on that one could have a sort of retrospective referendum, for better or worse the deal is done. My thinking is that we have gone more than far enough down the Federal Europe route. After Brown took over from Blair there was an attempt by a Tory backbencher to introduce a Bill whereby any legislation enacted in this country that had its origin in Brussels would have that fact stated in said legislation. Labour had the whips out on that one to make absolutely certain it would not make headway, a disgrace in my honest opinion. Cameron should ensure that such a proposal goes into the Conservative Manifesto.

Sky invites party leaders to TV debate

A very significant entry today by Adam Boulton on the Sky News political blog. Apparently Sky have hand delivered invitations to the leaders of the three main UK parties to participate in a debate before the next general election, now less than a year away. The possibility of such a thing happening has been on the cards for some time but Sky have stolen a march on their competition by actually putting the wheels in motion. A huge raspberry from me to the BBC by the way: although the Sky thing has been news all morning the Beeb have made no mention of it on their News website front page or even on their 'politics' page for that matter. This is an example of the BBC's arrogance that I'm afraid is all too common. I should mention as well that Sky are happy to let their rivals run the programme (unedited) on their own channels.

What of the response so far of the three said leaders? As expected both Mr Cameron and Mr Clegg have quickly said "yes" but at the time of writing nothing yet from Gordon Brown. In fairness to Mr Brown he, not before time, has said some more about the release of the convicted Libyan terrorist Abdelbaset Al Megrahi, so it could be argued that he didn't want to get sidetracked into commenting on the Sky invite. One of Brown's big problems (and many have commented on this) is that faced with an awkward question he is nowhere to be seen but failure to respond in the next day or two to whether he appears on the debate will only reinforce the suggestion that he dithers and lacks courage. It sounds as if we will see an empty chair if he fails to turn up - always assuming that he hasn't resigned or been forced out by then!

In this highly visual age Brown has the misfortune to be mediocre in front of the camera - witness his performance on that YouTube video. On the other hand both Cameron and Clegg are much more comfortable in these sort of surroundings and certainly the former can think on his feet in a way that Gordon certainly can't.

I have to say that I'm very pleased to see this move by Sky, it is high time that the electorate had the opportunity to connect with government in a way that has been lacking for many years now. One of my many criticisms of Tony Blair is that at election times it was next to impossible for the ordinary voter to get to ask him a question when he visited somewhere or other - his minders would hand pick his audience so that he wasn't faced with penetrating questions; in other words a total abuse of democracy! Fans of Blair might want to negate my view here, pointing out that he took on a TV audience at the time he was committing this country to the Iraq adventure, credit to him for that, but that situation had a single issue and obviously he could have his various answers well prepared in advance.

Any reservations on my part? The first difficulty is the little matter of finding the right person to chair the debate. Some might suggest Jeremy Paxman or John Humphrys as attack dogs who wouldn't let the politicians get away with things but they are wedded to the BBC and I can't imagine that organisation allowing them to do such a thing! Can someone totally neutral then be found who would make sure the party leaders did answer the questions posed. Also there are the minority parties such as UKIP, the Greens and BNP. I can imagine them crying "foul" if they don't get similar air time to put their points across. These last mentioned would I believe have to be in a separate programme because more than three parties at any one time is totally unmanageable if one wants to get in depth answers about policies. It seems that Sky would be happy to host separate programmes for Scotland and Wales (and presumably N Ireland) so that the nationalist parties from each of them could have their say. These doubts in my mind are relatively trivial though and it will be fascinating to see how things pan out.

Cameron sees drink problem for himself

In writing this blog I try to read what other bloggers have to say but obviously time constrains one from perusing too many other blogs. One frequent port of call for me though is 'Boulton & Co', the political blog from Sky News in which Mr Boulton and his chums comment on matters of moment. I don't have 'Sky' on my TV nor do I intend to in the future but this blog on the net is always concise and very readable. This recent entry by Cheryl Smith was one I found particularly interesting: she is reporting on a visit by David Cameron to Hull in which he is shown some of the booze taken off the streets by the police and is told just how incredibly cheap it was to buy when you think of normal pub prices. In her piece Cheryl includes a 'WebCameron' video in which the Tory leader gives his reactions to what he saw and what he thinks might be done about the anti social drinking problem. To be clear about this: I'm not trying to cast aspersions on Hull - I'm quite sure that it is typical of many many other places!

Back in 2007 I had remarked about the occasions when Tory MP Ann Widdecombe had confronted the likes of hoodies and prostitutes, the results of which were shown in TV documentaries. To me it is so important for MPs to get away from Westminster and get an understanding of the real world. Now whether Cameron could come up with workable solutions to the malaise he saw is arguable but he is at least aware of this sort of problem. A couple of asides here - Ann Widdecombe is retiring to Devon as she is standing down as an MP in her Kent constituency come the next General Election (I should put retiring in inverted commas perhaps as it seems that she will stay very active and, I understand, she is writing a novel). The other point is that prospective Tory candidate for Totnes, GP Sarah Wollaston, has a particular interest in confronting the anti-social drinking thing.

I'm not attaching myself to any political party here (I am a floating voter) but have to point out that when the opinion polls are very much in your favour then you are going to be much more motivated to look at the problems at the sharp end and maybe propose radical policies as a result. Compare that with an incumbent government, tired and in power for too long. I well remember the fag end of the last Tory government when John Major said he was "fizzing with ideas" - total nonsense, he was deluding himself and the public in my opinion. In 1997 it was time for a change and the same viewpoint will surely appertain at the next election.

One final point about D Cameron: he has come from a privileged background and has never been beset by financial worries so far as one can tell. In the old days one would have perhaps expected a Conservative MP of his type to be cut off if you will from the sort of lives of the ordinary man or woman in the street. But he does seem to take the trouble to meet the average sort of person and should be congratulated on that at least.

Brown hopeless again at PMQs

This might make me sound sad but if I'm in at midday on a Wednesday I will very often watch Prime Ministers Questions (PMQs). What has become increasingly unacceptable is the fact that Brown never gives an answer to a Cameron question, in fact even worse yesterday the former asked the latter a question. It is appalling that the Speaker, Michael Martin, doesn't call Brown to account - it's little wonder that people are turned off by politics.

Now of course the Leader of the Opposition will aim to ask if possible the sort of questions that a person would find difficult to answer, you know the "Have you stopped beating your wife" type of question whilst still demanding a simple "yes" or "no" response. The thing with Brown is that he is so wooden, he can't think on his feet. He just comes out with his rehearsed soundbites. Yesterday he just couldn't resist drawing attention to the known differences over Europe between Ken Clarke and David Cameron. Europe wasn't on the agenda question wise yet the idiot Brown had to make a political point. It was all so pathetic and predictable. Brown had just the one good line referring to Clarke as the "shadow Shadow Chancellor" but apart from that it was the usual lumbering performance from him and I have to repeat that the Speaker was not performing his duties to the House.

In case it's thought that I might be a Tory I can say "certainly not". I don't have any allegiance to any party - I don't support any one party more than another. It's quite possible that the Tories would also have brought the UK to its present perilous financial situation if they had been in power. I have to say though that I have very little confidence in Brown pulling us through the recession and its aftermath. Let's hope my worries about him are wrong.

Ken Clarke is high risk for Cameron

Labour today has unveiled its plan for an insurance scheme for the banks. Meanwhile David Cameron has been doing a front bench reshuffle of the shadow cabinet. This is not meant to be a primarily political blog although it may have seemed like it at times but the appointment of Kenneth Clarke to shadow Business Secretary Lord Mandelson is something I can't ignore.

Much is being made of Clarke's stance over the EU, something that's raised the hackles of some of the more right wing Tories and also some of that party's donors. Apparently Cameron and Clarke have agreed to disagree; rather like Basil Fawlty saying "don't mention the war" it seems now to be a case of "don't mention Europe"! When the General Election approaches the Tories will have to decide on whether to adhere to their previous commitment to include a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty in their manifesto, something potentially worth a lot of votes. What the Irish decide to do will influence this no doubt but Cameron will worry about Clarke. Ken by instinct is the sort of person to shoot from the hip, to use straightforward quite robust language and this is to many voters an admirable trait. The downside for the Tories is the risk that he'll go off message.

In the more immediate future the thing that concerns me about Ken Clarke is the lapse of judgment he showed over the VAT rate reduction. At PMQs last week Cameron tried to goad Brown on the disastrous decision to reduce the VAT rate. Brown tried to turn the tables by quoting Clarke's support for the VAT change. That didn't matter with Clarke sat on the backbenches but will be next to impossible to repeat in future confrontations with the PM. On reflection maybe that's why Cameron was keen to make the point last Wednesday realising perhaps that would be his last opportunity.

Another point about rehabilitating Clarke could be that he is at least very identifiable by the population at large. It's often difficult in a shadow cabinet to become a household name, alright for the political anoraks but how many of Cameron's team and their positions are known to the public at large? Cameron, Osborne and now Clarke but how many others? Having said this and casting my mind back to 1997 just prior to Labour coming into power the same question could have been asked. Certainly Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. Perhaps David Blunkett. Not many others I would have thought. Of course Cameron realises just how important communication is these days and if it were solely a contest between Brown and Cameron (using their communication skills) the latter would have a walkover.

Very interesting times to come, I'm sure about that.

Difficult balancing act for Cameron

All the boys and girls who represent us in Parliament have had their summer holidays and autumn conferences so this week has seen the start of the new session in the House of Commons. At the Tory jamboree in Birmingham David Cameron made a decent effort I thought to be statesmanlike and not too critical of Gordon Brown in view of the worrying financial situation the World is facing. But tomorrow, being Wednesday, means Prime Minister's Questions (PMQs) and I wonder if, in the bear pit of the HoC, his restraint will continue. In a nutshell I think that Cameron has a very difficult balancing act to maintain, maybe there will be a temporary cessation of hostilities.

Brown may have gained a little breathing space for the moment and his position is not under immediate threat but he is trying to recover from a very weak position. I can foresee plenty of banana skins for him to slip on, but the major problem for all parties is just not knowing how the effects of the continuing 'credit crunch' will pan out.

One thing is for sure: I am not going to predict the result of a general election that is unlikely to take place for another 18 months. For the sake of the country it's good that Brown is not having to constantly look over his shoulder to see if a potential assassin is likely to strike, he has more than enough on his plate without that particular worry.

David Cameron's Conference speech

Last week Gordon Brown made his conference speech to the Labour Party faithful, yesterday it was the turn of the Tories with David Cameron. I have to admit that for me Cameron did a good job. He always was going to have the advantage over Gordon in the presentational stakes and of course as the Tory conference follows that of Labour he could always amend his message to respond to what had happened before. There seems to be some consensus that Brown has been benefiting from the current financial turmoil in that he appears to be the solid experienced man with good international contacts, the right person (in his opinion at least) to navigate the country through the turbulent waters. It might be remembered that last summer when confronted with the abortive terrorist attacks, the foot and mouth outbreak and the flooding Brown was receiving a lot of praise with the way he responded. But I have pointed out before on this blog that this adulation was misplaced and that many another person could have done just as well under the circumstances. With the present problems in the banking sector it seems that Brown has been given some breathing space for the moment with a temporary truce in his party as regards trying to force him out. So Brown has again taken on the mantle of the person to be trusted to make the right decisions in our time of need. Hence his reference to this not being the time for a novice.

Cameron did a good job I thought in countering the experience argument although trying to draw a parallel with Margaret Thatcher in 1979 was pretty misleading bearing in mind that she had had ministerial experience in the Heath government compared with his relatively short career as an MP! But mention of her name let many of the Tory faithful get dewy eyed with their memories. As with Brown last week Cameron kept the jokes to the minimum, he smoothly ensured that his wife Samantha got a mention or two and he did look like a Prime Minister in waiting I thought. It has been suggested that Cameron and many in his Shadow Cabinet have never really had to struggle financially and therefore how could he empathise with the most downtrodden in society. I don't think that this is necessarily true and I suspect that some criticism in Cameron's case is because of envy of his wealth. He comes across as someone able to communicate at all sorts of levels - he is certainly a person I feel I could talk to!

Back to his speech I think he is right to stay 'policy light' - it could be nearly two years before the next election and in this fast changing world goodness knows where we will be when that day arrives. Much better the broad brush approach adopted indicating the general direction in which he wants to travel. Lots of plus points included the accent on personal responsibility, the promise of a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty and the reiteration of the policy outlined in my last post of an improved railway system at the expense of a third runway at Heathrow. Good to see that he wishes to remove the more crazy excesses of the bureaucratic system. He was right to talk about our troops very early on in his address, I'm not sure that I agree with him about our continued presence in Afghanistan but he was absolutely correct to highlight the fact that our forces have been let down in a number of ways - of course this was a very popular sentiment with his audience. Interestingly no mention of Iraq, only Afghanistan.

I believe that Parliament is back next week. What will be fascinating now is how Cameron approaches PMQs in view of the current world financial problems. Usually Brown is very wooden at this weekly event and doesn't come over well. What is certain is that all parties will be taking a very keen interest in the polls this weekend and in the weeks to come. Nothing sharpens the mind like the threat of losing what you thought was a safe seat when the electorate have a chance to voice their opinion - where it really counts!