Grayling's wobble

"No matter how hard shadow home secretary Chris Grayling tried to sound convincing, there was a little wobble in the back of his throat betraying the fact he wasn't even persuading himself.

He was trying to refute claims the Tory party had misrepresented statistics to make it look like violent crime had gone up more than it actually had under Labour.

But within seconds he began to sound like someone with a complex for being short, who stands in front of the mirror telling themselves that size doesn't matter."

Read the Evening Post Parliamentary Correspondent's full column here.

A gaffe of the highest order

Unfortunately it was not the Government, but his own party that was doing it!

Theft at Tory conference

My desk in the media room at Tory conference resembled a scene from CSI earlier – albeit with slightly podgier police officers.

A hack had some equipment go missing and apparently someone was caught on the CCTV system near it.

The cops came in and took fingerprints off the desk and note-books and then took them away in little plastic bags.

And all not that long after Chris Grayling gave his speech on clamping down on crime.

Tories target counties

Look at where the shadow cabinet is going to launch the Tory local election campaign today and you’ll see some of the authorities at which the party believes it can make the greatest gains.

It’s no secret they’re targeting the midlands counties like Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, where Labour councils are scared the Government’s unpopularity might see them unseated.

Liam Fox is in Devon, Michael Gove is in North Yorkshire, Alan Duncan is in Essex, Chris Grayling is in Lancashire, Francis Maude is in Derbyshire and Theresa May is in Notts.

Meanwhile George Osborne is in Somerset, Eric Pickles is in Warwickshire, Grant Schapps is in East Sussex and Caroline Spelman will go with David Cameron to Tynemouth.

Unbroken expenses rules, broken ethics

The most irritating response to questionable ethical behaviour is “no rules have been broken.”

That is especially so when said rules are set by the people behaving questionably.

We hear today that Jacqui Smith stayed at her sister’s house and then claimed back her rent money from the tax payer.

She says she paid her sister market rates, but it is not clear what that means yet.

Why can’t MPs see that such an arrangement is dubious when tax-payers' money is being used?

Right now senior ministers should be looking to be spotless in terms of expenses.

At Home Office questions today Lobbydog wants to see people haranguing Ms Smith over this on the Commons floor.

It should provide something for newbie Chris Grayling to get his teeth into.