Gordon Brown's roadshows about "Britishness" are such a flop that the government are paying people to turn up.
Just ten ordinary members of the public have gone to the eight debates held so far.
Desperate civil servants have paid 455 people between £75 and £85 each to be 'an invited member of the public' - adding up to more that £35,000. The events so far have cost an estimated £1 million.
The first debate, hosted by Jack Straw in Leicester two years ago, attracted 21 local councillors - but none came to the latest two events in Gateshead and Birmingham last month.
Shadow justice minister Eleanor Laing, who forced the Ministry of Justice to reveal the figures, said "The public has spoken: Gordon Brown's Britishness roadshow is a colossal waste of money."
I wonder if they pay travelling expenses too. It was around -8 here last night so an away day isn't too bad an idea right now.
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The term money for old rope springs to mind. Not even the English are falling for Britishness anymore.
I remember Paxman sneering at Alex Salmond at the low numbers attending National Conversation ( was 5-15,000 by memory).
You didn't get paid to turn up to a National Conversation meeting.
Paying people to come to a political meeting? Is this not a form of 'gerrymandering'? Either way it is paying people in the hope of changing their voting intentions.
Everything this upside down reverse King Midas touches falls apart immediately.
Good comparison with the national converstation. Maybe there will be less criticism from the Labour Party about it now.
Sorry SR. I didn't know you'd posted on this when I did mine...
Hi Tris too right it does fall apart, yet the faithful lap it up.
I didn't realise you'd posted on it either tris or I'd have done a link.
Only an outfit as inept as Browns regime cold have hosted such a banal roadshow.
If they want to promote 'Britishnes', they would do well to let 02 sort it, as they did with disgraced Blairs Dome.
I did mine after yours SR. I just hadn't noticed. I've put up a link now.
And they could only get 10 of the party faithful to attend the first show, and then paid selected people, if I read the story right, to attend the rest?
And this whole charade cost a million quid?
Has any one, with the ability, facilities, access to data and time, ever added up the amount of cold hard cash, that these fools and incompetents have cost this country in the last 12 years in pure waste? It would be an interesting figure!
D.
...and no doubt they could give away prizes by way of encouraging the punters to attend.
Like for instance...
32-inch Phillips LCD colour televisions at £549 a throw.
Serano TV stands worth £79-99 each.
How about a nice comfy chair worth £379 to watch the telly on.
...and perhaps nice pouffe worth £199 for to rest the weary feet on.
...or maybe splash out with a nice £899 sofa bed prize to watch a £599 Panasonic LCD television prize in style complete with a £24-99 Matsui set top box prize.
..or if bored with telly listen to a £89-00 Pure Evoke digital radio prize whilst scoffing a £17-99 prize of Coffret Guanaja chocolates and reading a £3-60 copy of Harper's bazaar or a £1-50 copy of Private Eye.
Maybe even use a £139-99 Sony Ericsson mobile phone prize, complete with £50 in top up vouchers during telly ad intervals.
Then there were the £1-50 a throw tobacco prizes to collect.
...and how about a £9000 prize to refurbish the surrounds including a black glittery toilet seat.
That's the prizes the good Dr Reid aquired when he attended meetings as a Westmidden MP.
He surely could have been charitable and given away his prize of a £274-78 Dyson DC24 Vacuum cleaner?
Ah mean to say, he certainly didn't need that to clean up. Did he?.
Source; The Airdrie and Coatbridge Advertiser entitled John Reid's expenses under the spotlight.
.
And not forgetting a £119-99 Beko fridge prize to hold the cold drinks.
...or a £89-99 Goodmans microwave oven prize to heat up the hot drinks.
Auch Tris, that's kind of you.
Britishness is dead banned. He's flogging a dead horse and with our money.
Apogee, I think it would take an army of accountants to work out where this government has spent our money. Just auditing the quangos would take years.
Jings, wisnaeme, I think you should volunteer to audit the government's books. What a haul for John Reid!
Don't think many of us are surprised though.
But we all know a referendum on independence would cost too much in a recession--right?
That's what we're led to believe Jeanne. We're told it often enough.
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