Westminster

So, yes, as several commenters pointed out, the timing of this post about David Laws proved unfortunate. James and Fraser have said much of all that needs to be said on the matter. Perhaps if Laws had been in any other cabinet post he could have survived this firestorm – though the alacrity with which he resigned despite entreaties from David Cameron and Nick Clegg that he should stay – suggests otherwise frankly. The impression given is of a man appalled by the consequences of his blunder and horrified by the impact of the fall-out on his housemate, family and friends. Contra Tom Harris and the opinions of some of

Earlier I suggested that this new rule, requiring that any motion to dissolve parliament must be backed by 55% of MPs was “daft, questionably democratic and should be quietly shelved.” That seems to be the majority view. Which means, naturally, it’s time to reconsider. Tom Harris and Hopi Sen are correct to suppose that if a Labour-Liberal coalition had proposed this the right would be in uproar. However plenty of conservatives are unhappy with this anyway. See Iain Martin for instance. Or Dizzy. Or Pete. But, unless I am hopelessly confused about all this, the provision has nothing to do with confidence votes. The government would still be brought down

It would be easy to highlight this Channel Four News interview with disgraced Livingston MP Jim Devine and observe that it highlights so much of what is so wrong with the Scottish Labour party. Easy and true. But while it’s obvious that the Jimmies are pretty grim, the broader point is that there are clueless fools (and worse!) in all political parties and it’s incumbent upon voters to choose the best man or woman for the job, regardless of their party affiliation. That means there are plenty of sitting Tory and Lib Dem MPs you shouldn’t vote for either. [Hat-tip: Mr Eugenides]

Andrew Neil’s guest on this week’s Straight Talk (BBC News Channel – Saturday at 0430 and 2230 and Sunday at 0130, 1530 and 2330) is former Speaker Baroness Boothroyd. There is a delicious anecdote about the time Boothroyd invited herself round to Bercow’s flat and advised him on several weighty matters, but I’ll leave you to discover what was said. With characteristic independence, Boothroyd set herself firmly against the decision to impose, presuming the election doesn’t alter the social make-up of Commons’ membership, quotas on parties to increase the number of women and ethnic minority MPs.    Andrew Neil:  If this General Election doesn’t make a major change in the number

I don’t pay enough attention to the Liberal Democrats to be certain about this but today may have been Nick Clegg’s best day as leader. The announcement that there will be not one but, god help us, three debates between Gordon Brown and David Cameron and that Clegg has been invited to participate as an equal partner in each of them is a triumph for the Lid Dem leader. He is the obvious benficiary of this precedent-setting agreement, not least because, in addition to granting him equal billing, he’ll be able, if he has any wit about him at all, to play Cameron off against Brown and vice versa, presenting

A few weeks ago Michael Heseltine wiped the floor with the rest of the Question Time panel. Last night it was Paddy Ashdown’s turn to do the same. It helped, of course, that much of the programme concentrated on defence issues, about which Ashdown really does know something. But it was still an impressive performance, not least since the Tory representative was William Hague and not some minor nonentity from the lower reaches of the Shadow Cabinet. Hague was fine and will, should the Tories be elected, be a perfectly reaosnable Foreign Secretary. But Ashdown was the star. All this was a reminder that, freed from the grubby business of