Former health minister joins Pepsi

He used to run the government department charged with persuading us to ditch the fizzy drinks and snacks but now Alan Milburn the former secretary of state for health has joined Pepsico’s UK advisory board.

After much pressure the department of health had worked with the department for education to limit school kids’ access to fizzy drinks and crisps, like Pepsi owned Walkers. They have also been heavily criticised by some newspapers as an example of the nanny state.

Collective nouns

Writing that post a minute ago got me thinking… what is the collective noun for journalists?

One suggestion is a scoop of journalists.

Perhaps it could be a phalanx.

Apparently, it cannot be a medium of journalists.

Who would have bet on that?

No-one saw it coming.

Journalists were reporting the battle in the House of Commons over the venue of the UK’s new ’super casino’. Bloggers were discussing Guido’s Newsnight piece on journalists’ relationships with politicians (set against a blogger’s position outside the system) and his subsequent kicking by a group of said journalists (i.e. here and here).

Then, with the speed of a zimmer frame traveling downhill with a tail wind, those cunning peers pounce. They killed the government’s casino plans irrespective of the super casino site and showing that any cosying-up to politicians the lobby correspondents have been doing it has plainly not been with the right politicians!

Stephen Pound resigns too

They were predicting it yesterday, now he has resigned as Hazel Blears’ PPS so that he doesn’t have to wear the T-shirt vote for replacing Trident.

Another government Trident resignation

… but Blair need never fear the Tories are here!

Jim Devine, Robin Cook’s successor as MP for Livingston, has resigned as a PPS at the Department of Health.

This BBC article says that Stephen Pound, Hazel Blears’ aide, may also resign.

As the BBC also says, Tony Blair need not worry - despite the rebellion in his own party, the Conservatives will be supporting him. Norfolk Blogger suggests their reasons for this run deeper than simply agreeing with the prime minister on replacing Trident.

Trident vote resignations start

Nigel Griffiths is the first minister to resign ahead of Wednesday’s vote on Trident’s replacement.

The Deputy Leader of the Commons could be the first of many who’ll join rebel Labour MPs voting against the government’s nuclear weapons plans. This BBC poll quite rightly leads Ian Dale to ask if this will be the largest Labour rebellion yet.

After the Lib Dems’ vote on replacing Trident at their recent conference I am not sure whether they will vote with or against the government.

Hazel’s nuts about clothing

Now I see why there are so many pieces of clothing available from the Hazel Blears Campaign Shop.

In May 2005 the Sunday Times reported:

Hazel Blears, the minister for antisocial behaviour, says teenage offenders should be forced to wear US-style distinctive uniforms while carrying out community punishment. The uniforms would identify offenders and reassure the public, she says.

“I want them to be identified.”

Hazel’s nuts

Pint sized blairite biker Hazel Blears is running for the deputy leader of the Labour Party.

This much I knew.

It wasn’t until reading this from Ian Dale that I discovered the wonders of the Hazel Blears Campaign shop. I’m tempted to get a hoodie to see if ex-minister for anti social behaviour branded hoodies still get you an ASBO or barred from shopping centres.

And it seems they are going for the German market…

One’s not a Virgin

Many of the comments on the BBC’s web page about last week’s train accident praise Richard Branson’s company for leasing the new trains that may have saved the lives of many.

I took one of these trains to Wolverhampton last week. Today, however, I’ll be travelling to Norwich. This means taking one of Virgin’s old trains now painted in One’s colours. I’ll try not to think of all the comments about how the Pendolinos are much safer than what they replaced!

Another Tory poll boost

Curly’s blog alerted me to a story I missed this morning - an 11 point Conservative lead in a poll for the Indie. The Telegraph’s quite excited about it.

I thought last week’s poll in the Guardian, that showed a Tory lead but produced an even better one when they named Brown, Cameron and Campbell in the question may not be sustained. After this new poll, and yesterday’s news from the Electoral Commission about the strength of the Conservative’s fundraising, it seems that Cameron’s work, aided by lame ducks elsewhere, could be paying off.