Published: December 13th 2009 - at 7:32 pm

Shadow minister attacks ‘gimmicks’ while…


by Sunny Hundal    

We get an email today from a PR company. It states:

PHOTO/INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITY

SHADOW MINISTER FOR UNIVERSITIES AND SKILLS, ATTACKS ‘GIMMICKY’ GOVERNMENT AS HE GETS HANDS-ON WITH PLUMBING APPRENTICES IN SOUTH LONDON

DATE: MONDAY DECEMBER 14
TIME: 10am
LOCATION: Pimlico Plumbers
Pimlico House
1 Sail Street
London
SE11 6NQ

David Willets MP, Shadow Minister for Universities and Skills, will attack the Government’s ‘gimmicky’ approach to apprenticeships, when he swaps the world of politics for that of u-bends, to rolls up his sleeves and work alongside apprentices at a South London plumbing firm.

Respect to David Willets for genuinely rolling up his sleeves and being interviewed / photographed.

Absolutely no gimmicks there at all.


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About the author
Sunny Hundal is editor of LC. Also: on Twitter, at Pickled Politics and Guardian CIF.
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Story Filed Under: News


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Reader comments


1. carrion

I know these posts are easy to write, fire people up and get the daily posting count up, but what do they really tell us? That politicians (of all stripes, by the way) do this kind of thing to score cheap points? Next we’ll be hearing the Pope’s a Catholic.

If blogging is going to get credibility as a good source of analysis, it’s hardly going to get it from churning out posts like this. Long, detailed, well-researched features on Really Big issues are what our political discourse needs the most; they’re also what journalists are doing less and less of, owing in part to traditional institutional laziness, in part also to staff cuts.

I accept that LibCon already does long features, but in my humble opinion, it’s not enough; the above article is simply a waste of time – time better spent doing proper research on long, penetrative articles.

2. Dave Semple

You aren’t a Tory, are you Carrion? Stuff like this is bread and butter; far from buying into the rubbish and lazy narrative of “they’re all the same”, it’s a quick and incisive way to point the finger at precisely those people who are hypocrites. So I say game on.

3. Sunny H

the above article is simply a waste of time – time better spent doing proper research on long, penetrative articles.

Well carrion – my email address is widely available. Feel free to pitch ideas to me and write the sort of articles you’d like to see more of.

4. Matt Munro

It just smacks of naked electioneering. Politicians use gimmicks, so what ?

5. John B

Jesus, people. Yes, of course all politicians use gimmicks to get attention – but if a politician decides to expressly attack gimmicks *through means of a ridiculous gimmick*, then he deserves to be called out on it. See: “screwing for virginity”.

6. Sunny H

Is it something inherent about right-whingers that makes it difficult for them to see irony?

7. Don

Isn’t this the guy who can’t change a light bulb?

8. Rich Green

What was the name of the PR company?

9. tim f

Yes, it would be interesting to see if it was a PR company run by a Tory PPC.


Reactions: Twitter, blogs
  1. Jenni Jackson

    RT @libcon: :: Tory MP attacks 'gimmicks' while… http://bit.ly/53AMzo

  2. Ben Powell

    RT @tom_watson Is this the most most ironically self-unaware, double-entendre laden press release of 2009? http://bit.ly/83GhBB

  3. Joe Anderson

    RT @tom_watson: Is this the most most ironically self-unaware, double-entendre laden press release of 2009? http://bit.ly/83GhBB Hands o …

  4. True_Belle

    RT @libcon: :: Tory MP attacks 'gimmicks' while… http://bit.ly/53AMzo

  5. Daniel Benfield

    RT @libcon: :: Tory MP attacks 'gimmicks' while… http://bit.ly/53AMzo (via @antonvowl)

  6. martincampbell

    RT @tom_watson: Is this the most most ironically self-unaware, double-entendre laden press release of 2009? http://bit.ly/83GhBB Hands o …

  7. Alex Marshall

    RT @libcon: :: Tory MP attacks 'gimmicks' while… http://bit.ly/53AMzo

  8. Liberal Conspiracy

    :: Tory MP attacks 'gimmicks' while… http://bit.ly/53AMzo

  9. antonvowl

    RT @libcon: :: Tory MP attacks 'gimmicks' while… http://bit.ly/53AMzo

  10. sunny hundal

    RT @libcon: Tory MP attacks 'gimmicks' while… http://bit.ly/53AMzo (@tom_watson)

  11. tom_watson

    Is this the most most ironically self-unaware, double-entendre laden press release of 2009? http://bit.ly/83GhBB Hands on ;-)

  12. Tom Redfearn

    RT @tom_watson: Is this the most most ironically self-unaware, double-entendre laden press release of 2009? http://bit.ly/83GhBB Hands o …

  13. uberVU - social comments

    Social comments and analytics for this post…

    This post was mentioned on Twitter by libcon: :: Tory MP attacks ‘gimmicks’ while… http://bit.ly/53AMzo...

  14. Leon Green

    RT @tom_watson Is this the most most ironically self-unaware, double-entendre laden press release of 2009? http://bit.ly/83GhBB Hands on ;-)

  15. kennington

    David Willetts MP is visiting Pimlico Plumbers this morning http://bit.ly/7VlgZ6





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