Guido Backs Abbott - Most Revealing

When the Huffington Post launched its UK operation in 2011, the assembled guests, and sundry hangers-on, repaired to the Sky Bar, on the 29th floor of the Millbank Tower, for snacks (not many of those) and drinks (rather a lot of those). It was an excellent opportunity to see who was friends with whom. And who was not.

For the perpetually thirsty Paul Staines, accompanied by his tame gofer of the time, the odious flannelled fool Master Harry Cole, there was, for much of the time, only one drinking companion, and that was Mark Wallace, then of the so-called Taxpayers’ Alliance. Thus the birds of a feather were seen to be flocking together.

Why is this so important? Ah well. One recent political mystery is how former Australian PM Tony Abbott came to be put forward as a trade expert (no laughing, Oz people) who would be useful to the UK Government. Then, after Abbott’s appointment came under sustained pressure yesterday, came the giveaway that supplied the answer.

That Abbott’s hire is generating pushback has been confirmed by the Guardian this morning, the paper making the issue its front page lead under the headline “Pressure on PM to drop ‘misogynist’ trade advisor”. But the fightback had already begun, and yes, it was The Great Guido that had issued a suitably defiant rallying cry.

Under the headline “10 Reasons Why Boris Should Not Buckle To Media Pressure Over Tony Abbott”, Fawkes replacement teaboy Tom Harwood brings us “The Real Tony Abbott”. Readers not yet asleep are told “Left-wing news outlets have been hitting out at Abbott over old quotes and his Catholic faith”, but not to worry, because “Guido thought he would balance the record with ten reasons to appoint Tony Abbott”.

The Great Guido waddles to the rescue

The ten reasons are particularly lame, especially the attributing what Abbott’s Government did to him personally, and the final, supposedly clinching reason, “He reads Guido”. What is not told, quite apart from Abbott being ditched as a liability by his own party, and last year losing his supposedly safe seat, is his back story in “think tank” land.

Abbott was close to the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA), which, following its shift to the right during the 1990s, now occupies the same ground as the so-called Taxpayers’ Alliance and the rest of London’s alphabet soup of Astroturf lobby groups, like the CPS, ASI, IEA and Policy Exchange. He was at the IPA’s 70th birthday bash in 2013 (while leader of the opposition). So were Gina Rinehart and Rupert Murdoch.

And look who else is here

The Fawkes massive is close to those lobby groups too; in fact, the impression was given yesterday, after Harwood conveniently appeared in Tufton Street to smear Extinction Rebellion, that they may be physically close, too. And that is where the pushback against Abbott’s detractors is coming from. Plus the Murdoch press (hello again Master Cole).

That, in turn, tells you just who is running the country right now. And it isn’t alleged Prime Minister Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson. The lobby group infestation has accompanied chief Downing Street polecat Dominic Cummings into the centre of power.

Now we know who’s backing Abbott. And who now runs Britain. Good work, Guido.

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