Two MPs And A Flannelled Fool

In an otherwise routine day at Westminster, events have been livened up by an MP’s resignation, and the livening up has not been down to the person resigning, but by a fellow MP, and a flannelled fool who claims to be a journalist. Events began when Hackney Labour MP Diane Abbott ended her membership of a cross-party group on abortion counselling, and then it all kicked off.

This was not unconnected to the presence on the same group of (yes, it’s her again) Tory MP for Mid Bedfordshire Nadine Dorries, recently restored to Twitter after two previous efforts had been abandoned. The fragrant Nadine was not happy about Ms Abbott’s departure, but instead of keeping quiet – Nad doesn’t do quiet – decided to take to the airwaves and put the boot in.

Thus she Tweeted “The cross party committee has had two and a half meetings – Daine [sic] fell asleep throughout the 1st, missed the 2nd, was late for the 3rd”. This did not endear her to the rest of the Twittersphere, and nor did it counter Ms Abbott’s belief that the committee was a “front” for pushing “anti-choice” proposals.

Ms Dorries, undeterred, ploughed on with another Twitter intervention: “Diane [correct this time] Abbott’s real reason for leaving the committee could be because she hasn’t got a clue what is going on!” she continued, still not addressing Ms Abbott’s expressed concern, nor that of BPAS CEO Ann Furedi, who talked of “ideologically-driven demands of a handful of MPs”.

And there was another Dorries Tweet, following on her previous accusation: “Despite having been given an unprecedented opportunity to influence the Govs consultation document. The word lazy springs to mind”. No reference to Ms Furedi’s assertion that “it is wrong for an important aspect of care to be politicised in this way”. And then came the flannelled fool.

Gofering to the perpetually thirsty Paul Staines at the Guido Fawkes blog, the serially clueless Henry Cole, believed to be close to Ms Dorries, went after Ms Abbott. In a post which contained no citations, the last paragraph began “Given that she fell asleep in the first meeting of the group, was half an hour late to the second and didn’t turn up to the third”.

Did you put the pages together the right way round?

Eagle eyed readers will already have spotted the elementary transcription error: Cole has got the second and third meetings the wrong way round – as well as inventing how late Ms Abbott is supposed to have been. Yes, the Laurel and Hardy of the blogosphere can’t even transcribe a Tweet correctly. Number One? Full of Number One, more like. And wind.

Another fine mess, once again.