January 2009 Archives

Guardian blogger, Dave Hill mentions Martin Linton's comments on the Evening Standard being purchased by Lededev.

It can only be better, I think, than what's gone in the past...they've turned the Evening Standard into a sort of south-eastern newspaper which actually has very little in it about London...it seems to be written for people who live in Tunbridge Wells and commute to London every day and what something to read on the way back.

Linton was speaking on The Politics Show. There will be more detail on their web site.

The Wandsworth Guardian speaks to Conservative Putney MP Justine Greening about her views on the third runway at Heathrow. Martin Linton is mentioned as another local MP who opposes the runway.

The Evening Standard reports on a poll which claims that 25% of Labour's London seats are in danger at the next General Election.

With a majority of only 163, Martin Linton is obviously high on the list of endangered MPs.

Martin Linton had quite a lot to say in this debate.

Firstly, in the discussion of Schedule 3 he made a couple of brief points (1, 2) and then moved an amendment. He then withdrew his amendment.

Later on, he raised a small point in the debate on Clause 9, but he got heavily involved in the debate on Clause 10. He moved the initial amendment and then made another six speeches in the debate (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).

Oliver Kamm was also at the recent meeting at the Royal Society of the Arts. He writes about it in his Times blog. He doesn't have a very high opinion of Martin Linton.

Someone else not to be taken seriously, I discover, is Martin Linton MP, who recalled that the first President Bush had withdrawn loans to Israel. Bush did no such thing: Linton is confused between the concepts of a loan and a loan guarantee. The George H.W. Bush administration in any case did not withdraw loan guarantees from Israel but made them conditional on cessation of West Bank settlement.

InTheNews.co.uk reports on a meeting at the Royal Society of the Arts which discussed the ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip. Martin Linton was at the meeting.

Speaking at the same event, Labour Friends of Palestine chairman Martin Linton said Israel's wider actions in the last few years had threatened moderate party Fatah's control of the West Bank.

"In the last few years, it has become clear that Israel wants to colonise the West Bank," he said.

"In doing so they completely undermine the position of Fatah and all other moderate politicians.

"Unless they stop the expansion of settlements, the West Bank will go to Hamas if we continue in this way."

The Wandsworth Guardian looks back over 2008 and has this to say about Martin Linton in March:

Wandsworth's two Labour MPs, who campaigned side by side with residents to save local post offices, have been labelled hypocrites, after they backed the Government's plans to close branches.

Tooting's Sadiq Khan and Battersea's Martin Linton were accused of betraying communities last week after they voted against a motion to stop the closures.

A Conservative motion to suspend the post office closure programme was narrowly lost by 288 votes to 268 on Wednesday night, with 19 Labour MPs revolting.

Both MPs claimed they did not back the Tory motion because it was flawed and said they would continue working to save branches in Battersea and Tooting.

mi2g (no, I'd never read of them either) have also picked up on the letter that we mentioned last week.

They've updated the figures slightly and now say that it has been signed by 97 MPs and 9 Members of the House of Lords.

In recent days this story has also been mentioned by Liberal Conspiracy and Therion.

Fair Deal Phil picks up on a quote from Martin Linton, commenting on the number of Palestinians who have died in the recent Israeli attacks.

If every time the IRA killed a British soldier, 100 Catholics were killed on the Falls Road, people would think it was outrageous.

Linton was speaking on the BBC news.

The Labourhome blog has an article about 53 Labour politicians who have written a letter to the Foreign Secretary calling for action to stop the bombing of civilians in Palestine. Martin Linton is one of the MPs on the list.

The letter itself is printed in the Guardian.