Here at Lib Dem Voice we don’t often cut’n’paste directly from party press releases, but sometimes it’s worth making the exception.
Commenting on Gordon Brown’s cabinet reshuffle, in which Peter Mandelson is to return to a senior post, Chief of Staff to Nick Clegg, Danny Alexander said:
“Gordon Brown is deluded if he thinks that Peter Mandelson can help him convince the British people that his party still has what it takes to govern this country.
“Resurrecting ex-ministers from the political graveyard is not going to breathe new life into Gordon Brown’s zombie government.”
Over at the Beeb, we have what is presumably a literary reference from Norman Baker – can anyone explain who else was wrapped in chains and thrown into the Volga?
It is astonishing to see Peter Mandelson back in government yet again. It seems no matter how many times he is wrapped in chains and thrown to the bottom of the Volga, up he pops again. True to form, he is attempting to gain power again and, this time, without any accountability to the electorate. As a member of the House of Lords, he will not be subject to the usual scrutiny in the House of Commons at Question Time.
And over at the Telegraph, we have a bizarre volte-face on the Volga.
Norman Baker, Liberal Democrat MP for Lewes
“I am absolutely delighted. Peter Mandelson was a very effective Cabinet Minister, both in Northern Ireland and other portfolios. On top of that, he has unique experience in Europe and I think this is a superb appointment. I am 100 per cent delighted. I have this volcanic reaction partly because he knows a heck of a lot about it and partly because he will carry great weight with the Prime Minister. All the old baggage is past history.”
That doesn’t sound like the Norman Baker we know and love?
Ah. All becomes much clearer when you realise that the Beeb has the name of the person giving the quote before the quote, and the Telegraph has the name after the quote.
“It is astonishing to see Peter Mandelson back in government yet again. It seems no matter how many times he is wrapped in chains and thrown to the bottom of the Volga, up he pops again. True to form, he is attempting to gain power again and, this time, without any accountability to the electorate. As a member of the House of Lords, he will not be subject to the usual scrutiny in the House of Commons at Question Time.”
Norman Baker, Liberal Democrat MP for Lewes
“I am absolutely delighted. Peter Mandelson was a very effective Cabinet Minister, both in Northern Ireland and other portfolios. On top of that, he has unique experience in Europe and I think this is a superb appointment. I am 100 per cent delighted. I have this volcanic reaction partly because he knows a heck of a lot about it and partly because he will carry great weight with the Prime Minister. All the old baggage is past history.”
Tam Dalyell, former Labour MP and former father of the Commons
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4 Comments
Putting Boney M to one side could Rasputin be strictly classed as a literary figure?
It does seem to be a literary question. If I remeber the literature correctly, the more eminent vampires (the princes of the darkness) come back time after time, and are extraordinarily difficult to kill. The only thing that is sure to do the trick is full daylight on them and their affairs.
It is a reference to Rasputin, who famously took a long time to die when he was finally conmfronted by his assassins.
The story goes that he was invited by the conspirators to dinner. They had poisoned his food and wine, but looked on in shock as he ate and drank enough poison to kill 6 people, and didn’t seem to show any symptoms at all. So, they switched to plan B: they shot him. Still he didn’t die. They beat him up. He was still twitching. They cut his penis off, and let him bleed for a while. Still he kept breathing. They stabbed him repeatedly, but he still didn’t die. So they wrapped up his broken, breathing body, chained it to weigh it down, and threw it into the freezing Volga. Apparently when they came back and recovered found the body next day, there was evidence that the chains had been loosened considerably before he finally died!
There are some ‘literal’ discrepancies with Norman’s comparison with Mandy (Rasputin was only thrown in the Volga once) but you get the general idea.
Another apt comparison would have been the Black Knight in Python’s ‘Holy Grail.’ 🙂
The river they threw Rasputin in was the Neva; but the idea does apply.