Corbyn Privy Council Press Hypocrisy

After Young Dave lost his cool with Jeremy Corbyn yesterday in his not-so-jolly-good-speech, and smeared him as a terrorist sympathiser - forgetting that he brought to the Commons a proposal to get involved in Syria that would have put the UK on the same side as ISIS, or whatever they’re called this week - his pals in the press are working themselves up into a suitably righteous frenzy over Jezza’s Privy Council status.

Is he that scary?

The prosaic facts of the matter are that there is to be a Privy Council meeting today, and that Corbyn has sent his apologies, citing a diary clash. This has been the cue for The Usual Suspects to cry “snub”, suggest that this is some kind of republican mischief-making, and claim that all Serious Politicians (tm) would have attended.

The Mail was swiftly out of the traps: “Corbyn refuses to meet the Queen: Labour leader accused of snubbing monarch after saying he's too busy to attend Privy Council ceremony today … Labour leader declined invite to attend ceremony with the Privy Council … Had been expected to be sworn in by body which involves meeting Queen … Staunch republican claimed diary clash was reason he could not attend”.

Had Jezza “refused to meet the Queen”? Well, no he hadn’t, but line to take already decided, and all that. The piss-poor Sun Nation website is also on the case: “Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn will not attend today’s Privy Council meeting because he is too busy, his team say … This of course has nothing to do with the fact the devout republican might have had to go on one knee and kiss the Queen’s hand in order to join the council”.

No, it doesn’t have anything to do with it, nudge nudge, wink wink, A Nod’s As Good As A Wink To A Blind Bat, say no more. This crude attack has been joined by more desperate opportunists, such as Tory MP Alan Duncan, who blustered “Jeremy Corbyn seems to want to put his politics above the Queen”, without realising, despite his many years in the Commons, that politics IS above the Queen, whose role is purely ceremonial.

And, just to make sure that he never leaves any opportunity to knife his own party leader in the back, Rochdale’s nominally Labour MP Simon Danczuk wibbled “I think there is an expectation that the leader of a major political party in the UK is patriotic and believes in British values and believes in a monarchy”. So he had nothing useful to say, either.

It was left to the Labour supporting Mirror to point out that “When Cameron was elected Tory leader in 2005, he missed at least two opportunities to kneel for the Queen … Mr Cameron was approved to join the secretive group on December 14, 2005, when he was elected Leader of the Opposition … But it wasn't until three months later, on March 8, 2006, that he bent his knee, kissed the Queen's hand and pledged the oath”.

Any explanation from Young Dave? “We contacted Downing Street to ask why Mr Cameron had not attended the meetings, but they had not responded at the time of publication”. Quite so. Do as his predecessor “Shagger” Major: stay silent while the press are putting the boot into your opponent. The standard of the knocking copy isn’t getting any better, is it, lads? Must try harder.