Archives for April 2010

It's one of the first real gaffes of the campaign - and it didn't come from a politician.

Bristol City Council - which has done some great work signing people up to the Electoral Roll - has sent out thousands of wrong postal voting cards.

More than 2,000 homes in the Bristol West constituency have received forms for Bristol East, and it's left some voters concerned.

The council has apologised, blaming a computer error.

"Everyone affected (2,378 voters) has been sent a letter advising them to destroy the incorrect papers," a spokeswoman said.

"Replacement postal votes will be sent out and should arrive no later than May 4."

Anyone who's filled in the postal voting form already will need to fill in another - so there's still time to change your mind.

At least the error was spotted - albeit by concerned voters - so the candidates can breathe a sigh of relief.

Yes honestly.

You couldn't get much further from rock'n'roll superstardom than the North East Somerset town of Keynsham (do enjoy this delightful guide).

But it was here that rock legend Brian May came to campaign.

The Queen guitarist is passionate about animals, and angry that the hunting ban could be reversed under a Conservative government.

So he came to support Labour's Dan Norris, who as the local MP worked hard to push it through Parliament.

This was not your normal political meeting.

"I would much rather not be here," he announced. "I'm not by instinct a campaigner."

He's not even a Labour man - for most of his life he's tended towards the Conservatives.

And it was the first time I've seen half of the audience queue for an autograph at the end.

In case you ever wondered if politics was heavily spun, an insight from the prime ministerial debate staged in Bristol.

My pass meant I was one of a handful of journalists able to broadcast live from the front of the venue, the Arnolfini arts centre.

But watching the three leaders coming and going wasn't anything like as intriguing as observing their acolytes on the prowl in the nearby press centre during the televised contest.

The walls and even ceiling were crowded with screens. The tables and chairs were creaking with journalists hammering away on laptops.

In between watching the debate, I played 'spot the famous politician'.

What struck me was how casually they looked at the screens, all the while chatting on phones or with aides and journalists. Paddy Ashdown may be nearly 70, but looked more like a teenager with his mobile never out of his hand.

Didn't they need to watch?

Or had the spin doctors already worked out the lines they'd feed the media afterwards?

The irony cannot be lost on anyone.

UKIP's candidate for Weston-super-Mare, a gentle and well-spoken GP called Steven Pearse-Danker, has had to stand down at the eleventh hour.

Fear not though, UKIP voters: he has been replaced.

The clue is in the name.

Dr Pearse-Danker is a Danish citizen - and therefore ineligible to vote in a general election, and definitely ineligible to stand as a Parliamentary candidate.

"I am disappointed," he said. "I would have liked to have got elected and help the country where I've lived since my teenage years."

He says he was vetted by UKIP HQ and thought there'd be no problem as he's stood in local elections in the past.

The guidance from the Electoral Commision though, was clear - although UKIP initially thought it was a printing error.

And he maintains there's no double-irony in a Dane standing for UKIP.

"Not if you understand UKIP's position. We stand for self-determination in UK and we also support this in all European countries," he said.

He's lost no money this time - maybe just a little bit of face.

Jacob Rees-Mogg has been accused of being a somewhat elusive character.

He's the Tory candidate in the marginal seat of North East Somerset, and, with his Etonian and family background, attracts much national media interest.

So given the chance to catch up with him on the stump with the veteran politico, Francis Maude, we swung into action, despatching a reporter and a cameraman to Keynsham.

But the pre-arranged meet-up didn't go to plan.

Jacob was nowhere to be seen: would it be another wild goose chase?

After some furtive calls with the local press officer, a new rendezvous was set up - away from the busy high street. Our crew would be met and taken to the meet.

The minders for the job?

A pair of middle-aged woman in a very small car.

"Are you the BBC?" came the question.

It was perhaps the nicest "kidnap" in history - although The Sunday Times may not have been treated so graciously, after their recent article about trying to track Jacob down (he told us later he was around, and easily findable!).

"We were bemused," my colleague told me. "Would we make it back from Tory HQ? Or would they keep us there for the duration of the campaign? It was the most surreal moment."

After being taken to a secret location our team caught up with Mr Rees-Mogg, and grilled him on class, campaigning and changes to the boundary.

To find out more about what he has to say, watch The Politics Show of Sunday 18th April: he debates with the Labour and the Lib Dem candidates.

Never let it be said though that we won't go the extra mile for that elusive interview.

Manifesto launch day: top Tories criss-crossing the country, facing the cameras cheered on by the party faithful.

It's all very planned, and in the way of modern politics very stage-managed.

But there is one factor hard-nosed press officers cannot control: the public.

When the Shadow Health Secretary came to College Green in Bristol, it wasn't just activists and candidates who posed for the cameras.

In the front row, clutching blue Conservative balloons they'd got their hands on, were four giggling girls.

As Andrew Lansley started his speech, they struggled to stifle their laughter.

But as time - and the speech - went on, their emotions and expressions changed.

With cameras rolling there was nothing they could do but wait until for him to finish before they could, at last, make their getaway.

Conservative converts? Hmmmmm...

Dark mutterings among the green-tinged folk of the Stroud constituency.

Two local papers carry a full-page advert encouraging voters in this key marginal to support David Drew.

He's referred to as 'a green MP'; his eco-credentials are listed in detail.

The backers who paid for the ad are named: they include two former Green Party officers, as well as others involved in the environmental movement.

But there is one major omission: of the 350 printed words, not one of them is 'Labour'.

The Green Party, for whom this seat is their best hope in the West, are angry.

They've had puzzled comments and confusion from local supporters.

It's culminated in the party taking legal advice - and accusing David Drew's backers of dirty tricks.

At the same time the incumbent has had a boost from the other end of the political spectrum: the UK Independence Party are encouraging supporters to back him - though they acknowledge voting Labour may be too much for some to stomach.

4,000 votes went to UKIP or the Greens last time; David Drew's majority was 350.

Suddenly a seat which many experts thought was a dead-cert Tory gain is looking much more interesting.

"I'm terribly embarrassed," confesses David Cameron.

"It's my first gaffe of the campaign."

Yes, it's only week one and already minds are muddled.

The Conservative leader was speaking live on BBC Radio Gloucestershire's breakfast programme on Thursday 8 April.

Asked by presenter Mark Cummings about target seats in the county he could only name Gloucester and Cheltenham.

After much fumbling and some clues the Conservative leader remembered Stroud, a key marginal which his party lost last time by just 350 votes.

Was it just the early hour? Or does it show the Tories aren't thinking about Stroud because they reckon it's already in the bag?

No, not the latest celebrity endorsement - but a case of mistaken identity!

Standing outside Parliament on the last day the Commons is sitting before the election, Bristol North West's Doug Naysmith recounts a lovely tale from the campaign trail.

The bearded Labour MP reveals he's sometimes been mistaken for the Aussie entertainer Rolf Harris.

Not generally by voters, but by their children who answer the door when he's out canvassing.

It's come to light because their physical similarities have been officiallly recognised.

Both have been named in a campaign group's list of the most notable beard-wearers in public life.

A nice final flourish for the 69-year-old MP as he stands down.