Thursday, May 17, 2007

It's Sarah Mackinlay Who's to Blame, not Andrew!


At 18 Doughty Street we have a delightful colleague called Sarah Mackinlay. She's the daughter of Labour MP Andrew Mackinlay, who became the guilty party 308th MP to nominate Gordon Brown today, and gift him the Labour Party leadership. It turns out that it was Sarah who advised her father to hold out and not nominate too early. And boy was she right. She tells me her father's phone has been ringing off the hook tonight. Surely it is only a matter of time before Mackinlay senior is made a Cabinet Minister! See what Sarah had to say here...



UPDATE: The Spectator Blog thinks Mackinlay's role provides poetic justice.

17 comments:

Ross said...

The main thing I recall when Andrew MacKinlay's name is mentioned is that he was the first Labour MP to use PMQs as an opportunity to condemn the sycophantic crawling of his own party's backbenchers. That was back in 97 or 98.

Anonymous said...

3 June 1998 at col. 359.

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm199798/cmhansrd/vo980603/debtext/80603-23.htm

He's a good man!

Ross said...

Anon, thanks for the link. The fact that John Hutton, then a backbencher, stood up almost immediately after MacKinlay, to ask one of the ultra sycophantic questions that had just been denounced makes it all the sweeter.

pommygranate said...

The Speccie has a blog?

You mean i pay $400 a year when i can find out about Taki's latest brush with the nouveauxs for free?

Raedwald said...

Mackinley senior will I fear be better remembered for his brutish bullying of Dr David Kelly in Select Committee. The man is a thug in the mould of Reid.

Anonymous said...

Mackinlay genuinely believed that Kelly was not the source of the 45 minute claim, and had been put up before the Foreign Affairs Committee by the MoD as a diversion from the real source.

He described Kelly as "chaff", a word he used with a specific meaning: that of radar countermeasures (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaff_%28radar_countermeasure%29)

He has a consistent record of championing parliamentary government and the accountability of the executive.

But I don't expect Raedwald cares about that.

Anonymous said...

Mackinlay accepting a Ministerial position?!

The man himself would find such an offer hilarious, and would take immense satisfaction in turning it down, methinks.

Newmania said...

"Wayne’s World" is of course the recognised template for the superior wag. Thank you for your timely reminder anon.

Not .

( Po faced twerp )

Hamer Shawcross said...

Nice one - d'you only employ Labourites if they are fruity and have important daddies (in the best traditions of the Conservative Party)?

Newmania said...

What happened there ? That was a bit of harsh deletion wasn`t it ?

Hamer Shawcross said...

Not that I mind...I like a bit of nepotistically appointed totty as much as the next man - arf!

Anonymous said...

Sarah, you are gorgeous! We love you so please make more appearances on 18 Doughty Street

Newmania said...

Think so anon ? She`s like a gorgeous person refelected in the back of spoon I suppose.

The Huntsman said...

Andrew MacKinlay was, if I recall aright, one of those MPs who went after the late Dr. Kelly like a ferret down a rabbit hole when that unfortunate gentleman was formed up in front of the Star Chamber for daring to drop Blair in it during the BBC/Gilligan affair.

Perhaps Iain you might care to give us your take and that of the Party on whether Broon should take over forthwith or whether he and Blair should now be allowed a US style transition and six weeks free publicity?

Anonymous said...

Huntsman, you don't recall aright. Look at 9.14 am.

Anonymous said...

Not the back of a spoon newmania...just straight to camera. Come on Iain, can we have an assurance that we will see more of Sarah.

I don't want to have to start a huge campaign over this, but I am truly smitten!

Anonymous said...

Lets leave the personal comments about appearance to one side...

Mackinlay senior seems to be an honest if fiery character but not I would say a 'brutish bully' as referred to in an earlier post.