10/01/2013 This Week

The stars are are out. Join us for Political Stargazing Live.

On planet Westminster, the Prime Minister and his deputy return to

work. The Daly Mail's, Quentin Letts, studies a galaxy of

coalition claims. Earth to coalition. The Government

is in mid-term and it is time to apply the rocket boosters. We will

be calling them direct from our stewed studio. Join us later for

the great link up! The Government is worrying about

the cost of benefits and feeling the -- filling the deficit black

hole. Janet Street Porter has gone into orbit.

As the PM accuses UKIP members of being space objects, we look at the

creatures from the political universe.

Well, Andrew don't hop into your space suit too quickly. You are so

normal, you are almost a freak! Look up in the sky, we can see

Uranus. Oh, evening all. We can to This

Week. Our first offering of the New Year and as I fight back the non-

existent tears, I I can't believe I am saying these words - this is our

tenth anniversary show. The clue is in the balloon. Yes, our tenth

anniversary show. Filling the cultural void between David Bowie

albums. Baffling to anyone who pays the licence fee, which includes

some of you watching, it is a decade since the yen the Yentobs

decided that it was bliss. With the name of This Week, the product of

multiple focus groups and away weeks in the Maldives. So fuelled

by a diet of of cheap German wine and and cheap shot at our political

masters, it wasn't long before we were ignored by viewers the length

and breadth of the nation and the lack of luxuriesries like a descent

set, a descent presenter, we managed to funnel enough money to

where it really mattered, Diane Abbott's private school fees. I am

joined on the stained ten-year-old sofa by two men who do what it says

on the tin! Think of them as the Heinz tomato soup. I speak of

hashtag man on the left and sad man That's the programme budget gone in

one blast! Michael, your moment of the week? Mr Barroso, a what is one

of two men who claim to be president of Europe. He claimed the

your owe is now safe. -- euro is safe. It is unwise of politicians

to predict what will happen to currencies because markets have a

way of undoing their best intentions, but I thought it would

be of a consolation to know that the euro is out of the woods for

those 27% of Greeks who are now unemployed. Greece today over took

Spain in the number of unemployed, 56% of their youth are unemployed,

15% of the youth in Spain are unemployed, but it is good to know

that for the idealist that the European currency is safe.

Your moment of the week? My moment of the week is a footballer playing

for AC Milan in a friendly. A big section of the crowd were hurling

racial abuse at him. Nice people. He kicked the ball into the crowd.

Took his shirt off and walked off the pitch. That happened a couple

of times before. What was unique, the rest of the team followed him

and half the stadium applauded them off. It was, I think think, a great

moment, Seb Sepp Blatter said, "You shouldn't runaway. What that player

has done is more than Sepp Blatter has done in a hole career.

It was interesting that the crowd applauded. And the team walked.

And the team walked with them. was only a friendly.

Now, the coalition says cutting the deficit means hard choices and

tough decisions including cutting the benefits to the needyest and I

say quite right, there are more important things to spend our tax

money, take example the railways minister, Simon Burns. He is

responsible support above inflation price rises. He commutes from his

home in Essex using his chauffeur driven car an an rather than using

the cramp trains and it only costs �85,000 a year. It does make it

harder to convince well off pensioners for example, of which

there are many these days, to give up their benefits benefits without

a fight at the next election. We asked Janet Street Porter to give

us her bus pass, but she gave us I am a pensioner and a working one

at that. For a long with millions of over 60s like me up and down the

country, I am enjoying the benefits of old age. A pension, winter fuel

allowance, a Freedom Pass for the buses and trains and most of all,

my senior rail card and so I bloody well should.

I have worked hard all my life. I am a striver. Not a shirker. So why

shouldn't I enjoy a fuel State funded benefits in the autumn of my

years? After all, I've paid for them. Now in the week when the

Government decided to scrap child benefit for the richest 15% in the

country, it seems they might have pensioners in their sights next. It

is said that after the next election, they are talking of

taking away some of our benefits. The Government seem to be listening

to critics who think that wealthy pensioners should give up some of

the benefits and even possible bli be means-tested, well you do so at

Politicians so far have shied away from targeting older people and

with very good reason. We are, the most politically engaged group. We

are the people that put them in power in the first place. It seems

to me pathetically unfair to take away our meagre few benefits. We

have got no guarantee that they will be put to any good use. They

will just disappear into that big black hole that is called our

deficit. Now, Mr Cameron is only one way

that you can persuade me and millions of people like me to give

up this and that is to ring-fence, to completely ring-fence any money

that you save by taking away our benefits and give that money

directly to worthy causes like more apprenticeships for school leavers.

What most people want are practical policies that will make a real

difference. They are not interested in which party is in or which party

is out. They want a fair Government. One that comes up with policies

that will help us all, not just to score political points.

But the best thing that politicians could do, you want my honest

opinion, leave us pensioners and Janet Street Porter from Waterloo

Station to our little station on the the other side of the river in

Westminster. Welcome to This Week. Michael and Alan, let's get

straight to basics, should the pensioner benefits be protected?

think the Government would be ill adviced to change it. I don't think

it is morally justified to give money to pensioners who don't need

it, but it is complicated to means- test things. It would be

misunderstood and lots of pensioners would think they will be

affected and and it will cause le sentiment and -- resentment and it

won't be spent any better anywhere. Alan? I always saw the child

benefit change as perhaps leading to a change elsewhere which is why

I was worried about it. I will give you a suggestion for what we should

do because another generation are going to retire later. They are

going to get their State pension later and yet, still, when you hit

the magic age of 65, you stop paying national insurance. Now if

pensioners are going to work longer, there is an argument they should

continue to pay national insurance and that might abcontribution,

rather than attacking universal benefits.

You think they should stay? Yes. This is good, the three of you

saying the same thing. I am going to have to fight hard. I don't mind

giving up some of my perks. I don't mind if politicians good afternoon

guarantee that the money will be ring-fenced and go to deserving

causes and not swallowed up. We can say we would be prepared to pay

higher tax and higher VAT. Let's stick with the principle. Nour you

are a wealthy -- now, you are a wealthy striver. These are tough

times. And people on lower incomes than yours are hurting. Isn't it

lewdious that the State should be using tax money to give awe free

bus pass or winter fuel allowance? If you take away our winter fuel

allowance that's going to be over 1% of the total welfare budget. It

is a drop in the ocean. Look at, why is it that pensioners have

become a big problem? The P word, isn't it? Pensioners are a problem.

We sit in care homes. We use up the National Health Service, but look

at it another away. If you are a politician, you can't afford to

lose pensioners. We are the only people that vote for you of the the

political parties have not managed to attract younger voters or

middle-aged voters. Sure, but that's politicians

running in fear of a powerful lobby which the Americans call the Great

Pan that. -- Great panther. You could do any of these and it

wouldn't make a difference to the quality of your life? What about

Iain Duncan Smith saying... don't need a winter fuel allowance?

Talk about pensioners overall. Why should I be means-tested? Means-

testing is impossible to implement and will cost more than it would

raise. Why don't you you consider that pensioners are an asset. They

are an asset. They are not using the police force or breaking the

law. They are not committing crimes. Why is it demonising a pensioner,

to say that a wealthy person like yourself does not need the winter

fuel allowance? I have paid more than my fair share of tax. I am not

like the captains of industry moving my tax affairs overseas. My

tax affairs are transparent and so I would believe are 99% of the

pensioners in this country. They feel they have spent their life

since leaving school, working, paying tax, paying national

insurance, and we've paid in. And for for Iain Duncan Smith to say

yesterday that pensioners in the future need to have more savings.

We are the only people saving. We It's clear that David Cameron isn't

going to do anything about it this side of the election. Do you think

he'll be under pressure to do something about it the other side

of the election? Isn't this going to be an issue? The crucial time is

the election itself. Until now, all leaders have always said these

things are entirely off limits that they'll not be touched. The great

danger is if David Cameron decides to say no, this time I'm not giving

that guarantee... Which was bounced into by Gordon Brown in the TV

debate wasn't he? Then Labour will run stories that if the benefits

are not guaranteeed that could mean that nearly everybody will lose

their winter fuel allowance and that nearly everybody will lose

their free bus pass. This will enable the Labour Party to run the

most momentous... Would you exploit it? There's no chance Labour would

want to go down this road as well? Is Labour comfortable with someone

who lives in Marbella getting a winter fuel allowance? It's not

only pensioners who've been attacked this week, it's child

benefit that's been taken away, it's children. I'm still attached

to the principle for some of the reasons Michael mentioned. Taking

that away will lead to an horrendous mess in terms of how you

can late that now. I come back to the pensioners. But what is the

fuel allowance there for? It's because the state pension was very

low, it's a tax-free lump sum and people now are equating their state

pension entitlement as their weekly payment, plus their winter fuel

allowance. It's impossible now to separate the two and until you get

to a situation, as you will eventually because of changes being

made now, occupational pensions now, replace a big chunk of what was

previously expected from benefits et cetera, I think a politician

changing it would be doing something perilous to their future.

Many of these things were introduced as short-term political

gimmicks, the fuel allowance was once �50 then �100 now �200.

Pensioners' Christmas bonus? �10. And free TV licences. All were

introduced I think, or most, by Gordon Brown. Ted Heath did the

Christmas bonus. Yes. Gordon Brown as Chancellor or Prime Minister.

was to tackle pensioner poverty. to buy votes. Once you have given

something out, why take it back? Give than pensioners are loyal

voters, I think... A very ungrateful lot. I speak for

millions of pensioners who've seen their savings diminish in value and

you are saying, save more and by the way after the next election, we

might take away the fuel allowance. There's nothing principle about

this. The politicians are just frightened of the grai vote. Older

folk vote, they are organised, they've got time on their hands to

do it. It would be politically disastrous to remove these things

entirely for more pensioners. one's suggesting that. No, no, but

give than... Are you saying that's how it will be presentd? Give than

we accept that, is it worth the Haas toll remove it from very few

people which will cost a lot of money and which will risk giving

many more pensioners the impression that they are going to lose out, it

might be the reality. I would say it's a no-brainer, don't touch it.

While we are in the midst of cynicism, there were 2.6 million

pensioners living in abject poverty, women who didn't qualify for the

state pension. We are talking about how it was originated. The reason

why more pensioners go out to work isn't because they are babyboomers

and like socialising, it's because financially they have to. We have

two categories of people who're working against their will, that's

mothers with very young children and pensioners over 65 who'd rather

be retiring. They're both doing it because they can't exist on the

money that's available. Janet's also introduced an interesting

point which is that you reach a point in life where you have paid

in and you don't accept means testing because you believe that at

some point in your life, you want some pay back. They call old people

living treasures in certain places, in this country we are a big

problem. Do you think you have intimidated them into doing what

you don't want them to do? If I was running Britain, I would look after

the national asset, pensioners, at the moment they are demonised.

tonight. Thank you for being our first guest of the New Year on our

tenth anniversary programme. It's late, very late and Janet's got to

catch her night bus back to bingo night at the club. She's always

there! For those outside her media circus, stick with us, because

waiting in the wings, Amy Le may here to talk about the joys of

being different. Since most viewers are weird, you have probably

clocked that already. Don't forget, you can express your love for the

programme and for Janet in particular on the Twitter,

Fleecebook and the interweb. To be a successful politician, you would

need to be sauck Cescful communicator, something which

passed Michael and Alan by -- successful. Old Cleggover is not

content with being the Deputy Prime Minister, he's hosting his own

radio phone-in show. I wonder if we could be Deputy Prime Minister for

an hour. Not to be outdown by professional cross dressing, we

called Quentin Letts for his youndup of the political week --

round-up of the political week. Good evening, Britain. Alan

partridge couldn't be here so you have got me instead to present your

phone-in show. The host, with the most.

It's late, you're tired but don't get to bed, because it's time for

call Quentin! Right, time to flip some vinyl pancakes. Hello, we are

going to start with a couple who've been in a relationship for some

time. This week they've chose tonne renew their vows, a very touching

story. One of them is on the line now. Is that Dave from Westminster?

Good afternoon. Very nice of you to join us Mr Cameron, do you have Mr

Clegg with you? Tell us about your situation. It's a Ron sale deal,

does what it says on the tin. We said we'd come together, form a

Government, tackle the problems and get on with it in a mature,

sensible way. Done as a PR stunt perhaps but tell me, Mr Clegg,

would you describe it similarly as a Ronseal deal You could call it

the unvarnished truth - I thought it was all right! You are still

laughing at each other's jokes, you are in it for the long haul then

are committed to doing what we have said, doing what it says on the tin.

Behind every marriage there can be another story, did Dave and Nick

tell us everything? What is the detail behind the detail? We are

getting a call here from Ed from Primrose Hill North London. Welcome

to the show. What is your point? Can the Prime Minister tell us why

on Monday when he published the mid term review, he failed to publish

his audit of coalition broken promises? We'll be publishing

absolutely every single audit of every single promise, all 399

pledges set out in the mid term review. The advisor said they

shouldn't publish it because it had problematic area, it would lead to

unfavourable copy and lead to unbroken pledges. Not his greatest

performance. We'll fade him out. What was that man next to him,

Balls, he'll have to go! Another call. Thomas Galloway, Dunlop but

rue, Galbraith. I understand we can call you Tom, is that right? Dave

from Westminster earlier loves coalitions. What do you make of

them? All of us would rather be in a single party Government this was

an experiment though in 2010. Some of it has been messy and difficult.

But largely it's produce what had we wanted it to do. That that's why

you resigned this week. He's gone. It's an Englanding batting collapse

with the Lords all gone. You are listening to Call Quentin, the show

that matters. Please, please, call, we've got to fill the air time

somehow. On to the issue that can decide the next general election.

Workers versus shirkers. Ian from Chingford, you are on the line.

They spent taxpayers' money like drunks on a Friday night. They are

spend more, tax more, borrow more and let the next generation pick up

the bill. This bill creates a heck of a mess and asks Britain's

working familys to clear it up. a call from somebody we haven't

heard from for a very long time. Dave in Primrose Hill as well, how

about that! Good to have you back, what do you have to say for

yourself? This ransid Bill is not about affordability. It's not. It

wreaks of the politics of dividing rhines. They all want a say on this.

Caroline from Brighton? A mean and miserable piece of legislation from

a mean and miserable Government. shall be voting against the second

reading of the Bill today with a heavy heart. That will be a topic

we hear more from in the run of this show. Another topic - Europe -

Mr Barack Obama from Washington. How's Tyne & Wear? Sorry, it's not

Tyne & Wear, it's Washington DC, district of Colombia. How di, how

can we help you, what do you think about Europe? We think it's in our

interests to see a strong British voice within the EU. This is a

response from Dave in SW1, saying that the US wants an outward

looking EU with Britain in it and so do we? Speak for yourself, mate!

We are nearing the end of the show and I've got a call myself to make.

Hello, Nick, good to talk to you. I know I make it look easy but take

advice from a phone-in professional like me. What's that, serious calls

to make?! Cheeky monkey. Are you a man of the people and have you ever

worn a onesy? From your constituency, have you ever ever

worn a onesy? I was give an big green onesy in Sheffield which I

have kept in its packaging, so I haven't worn it yet but I've got

one. That's your lot, folks, it's been a toasty pledge but it's over.

To my colleagues in that inferior medium television. Andrew, over to

you. Quentin Letts. We are joined by

Miranda Green, as we always are at this time. Tell me, Mr Clegg, Mr

Cameron, said they were committed to the coalition lasting the full

five years. Should we take it for granted that the parties won't go

their separate ways some time in 2014? It's a good question isn't it.

Five years seemed like a very long time when they negotiated this

coalition in 2010. The election has been feeling imminent for quite a

while now. It's going to be very difficult,

this task, for the second half of the Parliament, to keep the

coalition ship on track without fracturing. There is a bit of

fracturing on both sides now. It had been worse on the Tory sides, a

bit of Liberal Democrat fracturing as well. On the welfare reforms?

Which is significant actually. things are still dire for the

Liberal Democrats in 2014 and if they have a very bad European

election, which is perfectly on the cards, the Tories could have a bad

one too, surely there will be irresistible pressure maybe A on

the leadership and B, to put some distance between them and the

Tories by getting out of Government? I don't think that the

European elections will be seen as any sort of make or break test.

Even if you come fifth? Well, you know, the UKIP factor is bad for

all the established parties, it's not particularly a message to the

Liberal Democrats, you know, with the Greens we have seen this

European election thing happen before, but I think that the point

behind your question is a good one. The pressure is going to increase

and obviously one thing they were doing this week is quite rightly

saying these are the big challenges facing Britain, we have made a

start on these big projects that will take a long time. That has its

own challenge because it means you have to talk about projects that

last longer than two-and-a-half years sowhat does that mean nor the

coalition project. Do you think the coalition will go all the way to

2015? I do, partly because they've Leggetted for it an they have to

continue the austerity programme for the longest period of time to

have the best chance of proving the success, partly because they enjoy

being in office and they might as well stay there for as long as they

possibly can, but for all of those reasons, they'll go the distance.

Because they've Leggetted for it, doesn't mean they can stick

together. You could see a situation where the Liberal Democrats

withdraw from coalition in 2014, maybe the autumn around the time of

the Party Conference which could be rough. But that doesn't provoke an

election, the Torys are a minority through to 2015? That is the likely

scenario, Andrew. They've Leggetted for a five-year Parliament. Without

much debate. Five years, rather than four. So the only way that can

change is if something like 80 Liberal Democrats vote with us,

that won't happen. They won't go anywhere near the electorate any

time before 2015 so I think perhaps withdraw to a confidence and supply

arrangement, maybe for the last year, interesting question for me

is whether Clegg goes. You couldn't have that under Nick Clegg I don't

think, a partial withdrawal. think if that happens it would be a

new leader? I don't think that will happen myself but if it were, you

couldn't have it happen under Nick Clegg. There is Mr Cable waiting in

David Miliband, is he preparing for entry into front-line politics?

David just wanted to speak. He wanted to speak in that debate. Now,

there is has been speculation... What do you think? He is too big a

talent, I think, to stay on the backbenches, but this is a very

personal thing. David talks about the Kremlinology. If he came into

the Shadow Cabinet, everyone judging everything by how his

brother reacts and David's point is it would be bad for the party. He

is itching to do something rather than sit on the backbenches.

It struck me how uncomfortable international international front

front benchers look on the backbenches. He looked

uncomfortable, he was feeling nervous about the situation. Should

we rule out entirely? Durel durel entirely durel David Miliband as

Shadow Chancellor? That's unlikely, but I think we are going to go into

the next election with Ed Balls as Shadow Chancellor. There maybe a

return to the frontbench, but in what position that would be, I

don't know. Even his intervention posed a major

challenge to the existing frontbench. He talked about

priorities within a reduced ability of the Government to spend and

that's a much... He tackled the Clegg point. The Clegg point was

how else are you going to pay for this.

Mr E Miliband wants to run against a bit of what Labour did last time.

He wants to distance himself from some of the things the last Labour

Government did that. It is difficult to do that with Mr Balls

as his Shadow Chancellor? Ed was a member of the Government as well.

If you bring David in, he was a member of the Government as well.

He is more prepared to distance himself? This st what you get -- is

this is what you get if you are you are looking for re-elected after

four years. If you are trying to get after being rejected by the

electorate, you are almost bound to face that problem and that's why it

is a bigger challenge for Ed and why he is doing so well when you

compare him to other leaders of the opposition in that first period

after an election defeat. Ed Miliband suffered at the

beginning from the idea that he finished off his brother.

But to have a number of brothers as Leader of the Opposition and Shadow

Chancellor, that goes down badly with the public. He did Latin for a

year! Well, I slept under one of those.

The English has been a problem, but the Latin stuck!

The resignation of Lord Strathclyde and Lord Marilyn, not household

names, but the timing was significant, wasn't it? It was

incredible. It was designed to cause damage? It is peculiar. I

don't equate the two resignations. Strathclyde is the sort of person

you miss. The House of Lords needs such careful management. Even

without a coalition, even with just one party because Lords are very

independent people and lots of them are clever and lots of them have

ideas and lots of experience and so you can only cajole them or you can

reason with them, you can make them feel guilty that they are they are

voting against the Government because you are such a good guy.

And people liked him? Strathclyde had those qualities. People didn't

like to let him down. He said the coalition had broken

down in the Lords already? Well, there has been a lot of rebellions

in the Lords before now and I imagine they will go on, but losing

one minister, losing two ministers, it doesn't really say a lot again

about David Cameron's ability to run his own team. Again on time, we

had the State Department coming out saying they want Britain to stay in

Europe and effectively saying don't have a referendum. Nothing new

about that. That's always been the State Department policy, but timing

was interesting. James James Forsyth says Mr Cameron isn't going

to say anything to satisfy the real Euro-sceptics and this could now,

there is the potential for this to lead to the greatest split in the

Tories since the corn laws. Discuss? Well, it is the great eggs

split in the cories -- the greastest split in the Tories since

the corn laws this. Is a long continuing problem in the Tory

Party. As far as the American intervention is concerned, I am not

sure myself that it was calculated or planned in the way their

implying, but I do think that the Americans actually do not have a

strong understanding of the European issue. They don't have a

strong understanding of Britain's position on Europe and I am not

sure that they understand their own interests. One only has to

speculate where America would have stood over Iraq and Afghanistan if

there was a single European foreign policy because a single European

foreign policy would not have authorised Britain to join in the

endeavours alongside American forces.

We have to leave it. We will be talking about Europe, Alan. Hold

what you have got to say for future weeks. Miran darks thanks -- --

Miranda, thank you for being wuss. Wearing a gold me dollian and -- me

dal -- medallion and driving a bright sports car is a sign of a

crisis. Maybe nijal If UKIP is joining the mainstream, does that

mean Britain is becoming a less colourful place? That's why we have

decided to embrace those who plough a lonely Pharaoh and put odd people

From Albert Einstein to a Czech presidential candidate. Everyone

knows an eccentric character. With their poll rating soaring, it looks

like UKIP can no longer be dismissed as the odd balls of

British poll politics. Unless, you are the Prime Minister, of course.

Do you regret using fruit cake and and closet race racist for terms

for UKIP. There are Odd people.

Their leader seems keen on his party's outsider image.

I mean compared to Cameron, Miliband and Clegg, I spent 20

years having a job which of course, none of those guys have.

Who is to say cap call me Dave isn't weird? He does let his wife

dress him. Others like the Mayor of London are just accepted for their

quirky ways. Even Middle England companies like Waitrose are busy

bracing eccentricity, parting company with Delia and employing

Heston. Even a man who made a career out of being a rockstar from

outer space has fallen back to earth!

So where are we now? Well, Mr Cameron, if the polls are to be

believed, the space oddities from We are joined by Amy. Do you think

odd and eccentric is a good or a bad thing? Well, maybe you should

tell me, Andrew. But I think actually the UKIP situation is

really interesting because David Cameron's comment, you know,

basically there are a lot of UKIP members and supporters that are ex-

Tories. So effectively, he is calling his own people, "odd and

weird." By saying that people are odd or strange or weird, you have

to look at opposite of that and that means that there is some sense

of what is normal and I don't really believe that. Would you

describe yourself as eccentric? I don't think that one can describe

one's self as eccentric, it is for someone else to decide really.

Do you think the Brits are more open to oddness than the Americans?

Mm, well I think eccentricity is a British trait. Wouldn't you agree?

I think that... London is a place where it thrives. That's maybe

perhaps why I feel so add home here. You know, sure, there are eccentric

Americans, but I think you can go to any major European country and

any European city and walk down the street and people look boring and

then you come to London and it is a feast for the eyes. It is more part

of our culture and we like it more? Absolutely.

There is a case for more eccentric politicians. We are an age of

boiler plate politicians? Absolutely. Jacob Ree s Mogg should

be from a bygone age. He is stylish and he is different and he does not

fit any template. One of the things you hear is when an outstanding

member of the House of Commons dies, you will hear people say, "He was

the last great character. He was the great eccentric." People think

that politicians have become very very homeo genius indeed. And what

we are seeing is, you know, that that Boris who cultivates

eccentricity is doing well. We saw George Galloway who was on a

reality show lapping up cream as a pussycat is elected with a by-

election landslide and it looks as if the exsen eccentrics are doing

very well. Galloway is a real character.

Farrage is a real character. I agree with the point, Nigel

Farrage looks likes a Conservative Conservative cira 1974 in Gerrard's

Cross, he doesn't look eccentric, out of time maybe.

I think it is insulting to eccentrics to link them with UKIP

supporters. I mean, in my opinion UKIP supporters are vile, they are

not eccentric. Sticking to the issue of

eccentricity. Could we do with more eccentric politicians? No, actually.

I don't think so. I actually prefer my politicians to be able to do

their job. I am not bothered whether they are wearing a funny

tweed coat or bizarrely covered braces. They just need to do the

job properly. You were close to Sarah and Gordon

Brown. A lot of people thought that Gordon Brown was an odd character

character? No, I think he is wonderful.

Did you have your hen party in ten Downing Street? Yes, I did.

Did Gordon turn up? Yes, of course, he was there. No, we cancelled the

stripper and had gord Gordon instead.

You could do with more characters on the Labour side.

If you look at Parliament it doesn't look as if there is anyone

eccentric there. Or even characters P Jacob Ree is a

character. You don't need men wearing anything other than dark

blue or grey suits. There is no different styles that you see. You

don't get people there who are kind of like Grace and Perry coming into

Parliament who would I would -- who I would call a real eccentric.

Let's put things in prospective here about eccentricity. Amy, thank

you. That's your lot. It is our tenth

anniversary party in Annabel's tonight. Diane has been there since

she clocked off work at 3pm. She has already downed three bottles of

of Blue Nun. Here are some highlights. The the mistake known

to everyone as the Amarillo mental breakdown. Somewhere in this clip,

the serious now political editor of Newsnight is playing the six foot

chicken! It was the role of her life. There could be an Oscar in it.

Nightie-night. Don't let this week bite. Poppers. Oh yes!

# We are on the way to election Sunday

# Dreaming dreams # Sha-la

Hsha-la # La # Mark Mardell and Portillo

# The rars is on for Number Ten # Will Michael, Tony end up PM?