The Heavies
It's sad to see that once great Liberal news- paper, the Guardian, degenerate to little better than a mouthpiece for Transport House. Like most converts, it has embraced the new faith with an uncritical zeal that must make many a dyed- in-the-wool trade unionist blench. It would do well to take some lessons from the robust quasi- independence of the Daily Mirror. Last Saturday, for example, it devoted some forty column-inches of its Election Campaign page to a vast list, without comment, of all the pledges in the National Plan and the 'action' taken to redeem them. Thus against 'employment of more married women and older people' was written the stirring news 'Government study in progress.'
But the climax of the Guardian's election campaign came on Monday, with its leader 'The decision on Thursday.' On the economy, the choice was expressed in this fair-minded way : 'The question is whether improvement is likely to come faster by letting Labour continue with its National Plan or by going back to Conserva- tive ad hoc management . . . with them [the Conservatives] we may soon find ourselves back in the cycle of stop-go-stop.' Surely someone at the Guardian must be aware that we are already back in the cycle of 'stop-go-stop' and that the National Plan has become a dead letter. If not, I commend them to read John Brunner's article on page 396. After that, perhaps they might think twice before composing leading articles from the Labour_party's speaker's handbook.
The Guardian still has some good points. Peter
Jenkins is one of the best reporters in Fleet Street and the independent back-page column is an excellent feature. But all in all, what a sorry decline there has been.
Stink Bombs Not so with either the Financial Times, which has given itself a discreet but worthwhile typo- graphical lift, acquired a crossword and the right to publish the Gallup Poll, and generally seems to be busting out all over. Nor with The Times. It was, I feel, a little unfortunate that its second thundering leader—The election campaign is a tawdry business'—appeared opposite what, to The Times, was evidently the main political news of the day : 'Mr Wilson Hit in Eye by Stink Bomb.' But at least we'll soon be getting all the latest news about stink bombs on the front page.
NIGEL LAWSON
Previous page
