New editor of Evening Standard: George Osborne

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

This for me is unbelievable and unacceptable. A prominent member of the government editing a widely circulated free newspaper - and staying on as an MP. Is this not the kind of thing we criticize Putin for?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39304944

 

[rigsby]

This for me is unbelievable and unacceptable. A prominent member of the government editing a widely circulated free newspaper - and staying on as an MP. Is this not the kind of thing we criticize Putin for?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39304944

Who was you expecting.....Diane Abbott.

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

Who was you expecting.....Diane Abbott.

nope, I was expecting it to be someone who isn't an MP

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

This for me is unbelievable and unacceptable. A prominent member of the government editing a widely circulated free newspaper - and staying on as an MP. Is this not the kind of thing we criticize Putin for?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-39304944

He's not a prominent member of the government.

If anything, given Corbyn's ineptitude creating a vacancy, he's a prominent member of the opposition.

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

He's not a prominent member of the government.

If anything, given Corbyn's ineptitude creating a vacancy, he's a prominent member of the opposition.

you are happy with members of the government simultaneously being editors of newspapers?

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

you are happy with members of the government simultaneously being editors of newspapers?

He is not a member of the government.

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

He is not a member of the government.

people have strange priorities sometimes, for example when it is announced that a sitting MP is to take up a 6th job - this one being as editor of a newspaper - rather than get angry some people will prioritise an opportunity to be pedantic.

He is not currently in the cabinet, he is currently an MP for the Conservatives who are in government.

Your reaction to this is telling. Thanks for your input.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

people have strange priorities sometimes, for example when it is announced that a sitting MP is to take up a 6th job - this one being as editor of a newspaper - rather than get angry some people will prioritise an opportunity to be pedantic.

He is not currently in the cabinet, he is currently an MP for the Conservatives who are in government.

Your reaction to this is telling. Thanks for your input.

There's a fundamental difference in being part of the executive as compared to being part of the legislature.

If you don't understand that then that's your issue.

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

There's a fundamental difference in being part of the executive as compared to being part of the legislature.

If you don't understand that then that's your issue.

if an MP being editor of a newspaper is not something that troubles you then that is my issue because I have much higher expectations of members of the public and I am going to have trouble moving my expectations that low

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

if an MP being editor of a newspaper is not something that troubles you then that is my issue because I have much higher expectations of members of the public and I am going to have trouble moving my expectations that low

I find it an eccentric choice for the Standard but I'm not sure what precisely your objection is, apart from him being a Tory and therefore automatically evil in your view.

Surely you are not labouring under the misapprehension that the British press has a duty to be neutral? The BBC needs to be neutral - although that didn't stop them appointing then sitting MP and former Cabinet Minister James Purnell. The British press though is deeply partisan and an MP being an editor is not anything new. The subject of my dissertation was simultaneously a (Labour) MP and an editor. It did not create any conflicts of interest then and I'm not sure why it should now. Compare this to Osborne's role at Blackrock which would seem to me to be incompatible with being an editor - Piers Moron's City Slickers scandal seems to have been forgotten.

I'm not sure how he's going to juggle the time demands of being an editor and a MP but he's hardly unique in the Commons in having more than one job. This applies to both sides of the House and is indeed a feature of our constitutional arrangements through the fused legislature. I suspect the constituents of Tatton are going to be short-changed but no more than before Lebedev appointed him or no more than the constituents of Sedgefield were whilst Brown was PM and Blair was sulking.

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

He's not a prominent member of the government.

If anything, given Corbyn's ineptitude creating a vacancy, he's a prominent member of the opposition.

I think Mrs May created the vacancy.:winking:

 

[rigsby]

if an MP being editor of a newspaper is not something that troubles you then that is my issue because I have much higher expectations of members of the public and I am going to have trouble moving my expectations that low

You don't mind murdering 2m Iraqis in the name of 'Regime change'. So no you won't have trouble moving your expectations.

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

I find it an eccentric choice for the Standard but I'm not sure what precisely your objection is, apart from him being a Tory and therefore automatically evil in your view.

Surely you are not labouring under the misapprehension that the British press has a duty to be neutral? The BBC needs to be neutral - although that didn't stop them appointing then sitting MP and former Cabinet Minister James Purnell. The British press though is deeply partisan and an MP being an editor is not anything new. The subject of my dissertation was simultaneously a (Labour) MP and an editor. It did not create any conflicts of interest then and I'm not sure why it should now. Compare this to Osborne's role at Blackrock which would seem to me to be incompatible with being an editor - Piers Moron's City Slickers scandal seems to have been forgotten.

I'm not sure how he's going to juggle the time demands of being an editor and a MP but he's hardly unique in the Commons in having more than one job. This applies to both sides of the House and is indeed a feature of our constitutional arrangements through the fused legislature. I suspect the constituents of Tatton are going to be short-changed but no more than before Lebedev appointed him or no more than the constituents of Sedgefield were whilst Brown was PM and Blair was sulking.

You are an intelligent person but if you are not sure what my objection is then I probably don't have the necessity vocabulary at my disposal to explain it to you. I am surprised that my reasons are not self-evident. Plenty of other people will understand as it is a very simple concept.

I will put you down as not outraged by this appointment, and its clear that I am outraged by this appointment. And the discussion between us can have a nice clear end. If anyone else has an opinion on this I'm sure they will chip in.

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

You don't mind murdering 2m Iraqis in the name of 'Regime change'. So no you won't have trouble moving your expectations.

'the war in Iraq happened, nothing after that has any significance' apparently

Mods - could you change the titles of all threads to 'Iraq onward' and then amalgamate them into a never ending thread about things that have happened since Iraq but are not really worth mentioning - that would be grand, thanks.

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

In tonight's Evening Standard there is an article announcing that the Conservative MP George Osborne is to be the new editor of the Evening Standard.


There is also an article of around twice the size reporting that Jeremy Corbyn was criticised for not attending the vote to approve the £370 million Buckingham Palace renovations.

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

Boy George is going to have to resign from at least one of his three jobs.

It'll be interesting to see which he drops first.

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

Boy George is going to have to resign from at least one of his three jobs.

It'll be interesting to see which he drops first.

I have been messaging numerous MPs asking them to ensure he is forced to leave one in particular

 

[Tangled up in Blue]

I have been messaging numerous MPs asking them to ensure he is forced to leave one in particular

I was rather hoping that Tatton would be first on the list.:thumbsup:

 

[Another Surrey Shrimper]

Osborne cracking jokes about it in Parliament and offering up no acknowledgement of why this is an issue. I'm not sure if he really is that stupid and he genuinely doesn't understand the need for a separation of Parliament and the media or if he just doesn't give a ****. The fact no Tory MP spoke out against this appointment in the debate just shows a contempt for democracy and for his constituents.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/m.huffpost.com/uk/entry/uk_58cffcc9e4b0be71dcf6684f/amp

 

[superblue24]

Osborne cracking jokes about it in Parliament and offering up no acknowledgement of why this is an issue. I'm not sure if he really is that stupid and he genuinely doesn't understand the need for a separation of Parliament and the media or if he just doesn't give a ****. The fact no Tory MP spoke out against this appointment in the debate just shows a contempt for democracy and for his constituents.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/m.huffpost.com/uk/entry/uk_58cffcc9e4b0be71dcf6684f/amp

I think you (and maybe Barna) are the only people who care about this. Why don't you arrange a protest march?