We can judge the salience of the Two Kitchens story by the fact that it is number 1 in the Telegraph 'Most Read' list, despite very strong competition. Ed even manages to trounce this story:
Talking of kitchens, I'd probably vote for any politician who could whip off a tablecloth whilst leaving all the knives, forks etc in place.
My general rule of thumb is that the posher the kitchen, the more steel, Dualit toasters, whizzo coffee machines and other expensive gadgets there are in it, the less actual cooking is done in it. They are Versailles-kitchens: all for show and to show how much money has been spent. Any half-decent cook can whip up a delicious meal in an area the size of a pocket handkerchief with no more than 3 gas rings, a couple of pans, a sharp knife and a sink. Oh - and some fresh food, of course.
We can judge the salience of the Two Kitchens story by the fact that it is number 1 in the Telegraph 'Most Read' list, despite very strong competition. Ed even manages to trounce this story:
How can this not be the most read top story? -"The species is deadly and its venom can kill a human in just two hours - but can also give male victims a four-hour erection."
An undertakers nightmare getting the coffin lid down, I'd imagine.
Good Morning. The real news this morning is that there's no news, except this little snippet of mine:
Richard Rogers @oowmygawd 10h10 hours ago In 2014 I put a £20 bet @ 100/1 with local bookie on UKIP winning 50-100 seats in May, tonight in the pub he offered to but it back for £500
mike kaye @atmikekayes3 10h10 hours ago @oowmygawd Now thats an interesting fact. Whats making your local bookie scared?
Richard Rogers @oowmygawd 10h10 hours ago @atmikekayes3 I`ve learned over the years,never believe what the media polls say on elections,if you want the truth, visit the bookie.
Richard Rogers @oowmygawd 10h10 hours ago @atmikekayes3 I think he realises it could be £2000 in May.I always watch the bookies odds in the run up to elections,odds 5/1 now.
Trouble is that PB bookies are not following Richard Rogers Bookie.
Mike, as I pointed out last night, the actual odds on UKIP winning 50-100 seats are currently 50/1, if not higher.
Which makes his £20 bet worth about £40.
And that's being generous. The main bookies would offer a cashout of ~£35
Ah, but if Richard Rogers and his bookie are right, the BIG bookies are in for a pounding. LOL
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
I know the area and houses very well. Maybe it's the company I keep but I've never seen a house in that area with two kitchens.
Until recently I'd never heard of people having such things, thinking it an affectation for those with more money than sense. I thought it was something limited to Orthodox Jews, Russian billionaires who never cook and Royals.
There is no political impact of this story but it is good fun mocking politicians. We all know he lives in a big house with probably a big kitchen. Why not just film himself in it (if he has to do it all)?
I've never been in a house w two kitchens to my knowledge but anyone who looks at that photo and extrapolates that a room like that in your house on top of a normal kitchen is somehow the height of luxury is either a complete cretin or a partisan fool who over reacts on a daily basis to every news story in the hope it might harm the party they dislike
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
Weren't the Lib Dems marvellous pre-election poll ratings largely built on the backs of the under 35s who subsequently didn't turn up?
Who are that group polling for now?
Anyone 25 or so in 2010 is now a thirty-something. With five years experience of austerity just as they were getting their homes together. Similarly a bright-eyed 20 year old student in 2010 is now a 25 year old post grad with a lower living standard than their older siblings.
.
Thanks for the analysis but some of us never voted for Blair. Also 28 year olds in 1997 couldn't vote :P
If you're 28 now you could have voted for him in 2005. The must culpable are those who did so in 1997, which isn't all 36-year olds of course. But I do always wonder, when I hear someone of that vintage bellyaching about house prices, what they actually did to stop it all.
Plenty of people in that age cohort voted for parties other than Labour.
This is nonsense. I don't remember housing being an issue in the 1997 election at all. I don't remember Labour promising to drive up prices and I don't remember the Conservatives promising to build lots of new houses.
Talking of kitchens, I'd probably vote for any politician who could whip off a tablecloth whilst leaving all the knives, forks etc in place.
My general rule of thumb is that the posher the kitchen, the more steel, Dualit toasters, whizzo coffee machines and other expensive gadgets there are in it, the less actual cooking is done in it. They are Versailles-kitchens: all for show and to show how much money has been spent. Any half-decent cook can whip up a delicious meal in an area the size of a pocket handkerchief with no more than 3 gas rings, a couple of pans, a sharp knife and a sink. Oh - and some fresh food, of course.
It says something about how filthy rich Miliband is that even in the smaller of his two kitchens, he's got what is clearly either a granite or a corrian worktop. That's about £3,000 of worktop right there. And how much would that induction hob behind Justine have cost?
What's the betting he expensed all of that and we paid?
If that's the crappy second kitchen, imagine how opulent the real one must be. Four ovens, minimum; warming drawer; swing larder; integral inline espresso machine and roasting microwave; island; five-ring hob. At least two dishwashers, one for the crockery and a separate one for the glasses. They would probably be those ones that project the remaining running time onto the floor beneath in red light. Travertine floor tiles for sure.
Good thing he dodged IHT on his share of his dad's house otherwise he might not have been able to afford it. I salute him - nothing's too good for the workers!
Business worried that we are going to elect the 'wrong' man?
Housebuilding fall drives surprise decline in UK construction output
The Office for National Statistics has published some weak numbers on UK construction output.
It fell unexpectedly by 2.6% in January, sharply below economists’ expectations of a 1.2% rise. It was the biggest drop since November 2013 and followed a 0.6% increase in December.
Housebuilding declined by 5% over the month, while commercial building such as offices and shops was down 6.6% and new infrastructure work fell by 2.7%.
A poor performance in January meant construction output fell by 3.1% on annual basis. Economists polled by Reuters had predicted a 2.2% increase.
Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit:
Official data indicated a steep downturn in UK construction activity at the start of the year, following a worryingly sharp decline in the fourth quarter of last year.
However, while there are signs that the sector is set to see a tougher year in 2015 compared to last year, survey data and corporate earnings suggest growth is merely slowing rather than collapsing.
What utility do you derive by having a second kitchen?
My daughter is very taken with the idea of a kitchen with an island in it, but why a second kitchen entirely?
A couple of years ago, we built an extension and ended up with two kitchens (and six toilets)
Clearly one kitchen is used exclusively for mutton vindaloo requiring six-a-loo
The funny thing is, the original downstairs toilet, I first started living in this house 34 years ago. In that time, I only ever used that toilet about 5 times, and only for number ones.
OT For fans of Latin music - I must recommend the OST for Dexter - it's epic. I love the series, but the soundtrack is something special. I used to be sniffy about OSTs, but I've been converted and now search them out. youtube.com/watch?v=WtVkvcMgdxs
The opening for Dexter always makes me hungry... Now I associate the theme with bacon & eggs & I do love blood orange juice.
We can judge the salience of the Two Kitchens story by the fact that it is number 1 in the Telegraph 'Most Read' list, despite very strong competition. Ed even manages to trounce this story:
How can this not be the most read top story? -"The species is deadly and its venom can kill a human in just two hours - but can also give male victims a four-hour erection."
An undertakers nightmare getting the coffin lid down, I'd imagine.
I have a feeling that those spiders are going to be very closely studied.
Poor old Ed: a vicious, petty article by Mrs Gove turns into a huge political embarrassment for him. That kind of thing only happens to fully-blown losers.
For what it's worth, the place where he lives was actually flats back in the day, like many others in that road once upon a time (many owned and rented out by the council). It may well be that the kitchenette he has is actually the kitchen of one of these that has not been converted or knocked through to make the sitting room bigger. Not that anyone gives a toss :-)
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
I know the area and houses very well. Maybe it's the company I keep but I've never seen a house in that area with two kitchens.
Until recently I'd never heard of people having such things, thinking it an affectation for those with more money than sense. I thought it was something limited to Orthodox Jews, Russian billionaires who never cook and Royals.
There is no political impact of this story but it is good fun mocking politicians. We all know he lives in a big house with probably a big kitchen. Why not just film himself in it (if he has to do it all)?
But does Mr and Mrs Average know he lives in a London pile worth a fortune by any normal standards? Or that Mrs Miliband is a London lawyer probably earning pots by normal standards? He makes a big deal of having gone to the local schools doubtless leaving us to draw the contrast with Cameron's Eton.
Nothing wrong with any of that at all of course, except whilst not exactly proclaiming he's "prolier than thou" he's not exactly putting his (presumably) very comfortable position to the fore is he? The "I feel your downtrodden pain" theme can start to look like being bit sanctimonious instead.
We can judge the salience of the Two Kitchens story by the fact that it is number 1 in the Telegraph 'Most Read' list, despite very strong competition. Ed even manages to trounce this story:
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
It isn't nonsense when he is trying to portray himself as the Leader who went to the local comprehensive and feels your pain etc
Are people who went to the local comp not allowed to have nice houses?
@DPJHodges: New Statesman's latest May2015 projection: "Tories lead by 20 seats and are now on course to win this election".
Which ragtag Gov't do you want ?
CON + LD + DUP + UKIP + North Down = 321
LAB + SNP + PC + GREEN + SDLP + Respect = 324
Both are ungovernable on those figures.
You need to look at what each party would prefer to do, and has said - from largest to smallest:
SNP - Prop up Labour for a decent price. Won't do any sort of deal with the Conservatives. No coalition. Lib Dems - Coalition with largest party. DUP - Supply & confidence with whoever. Issues: "Bedroom tax"; EU 2016 referendum. UKIP - S&C for EU 2016 Referendum PC - Same as SNP. SDLP - Will support Labour on key confidence issues. Green - Issue by issue basis for Labour based upon support for banning cars, growth and opening our doors to ISIS. Respect - Issue by issue support for Labour based upon establishment of George Galloway as head of the Bradford Caliphate.
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
Surprisingly stupid remark.
The Labour vote is weak. We know that. They are relying on reluctant half hearted prior supporters turning out to vote in May, mainly the White working class. Being reminded that the already-disliked Miliband is just as rich and out of touch as Cameron will not help motivate these people. At all.
Two Kitchen Ed also hinders Labour's class war. It's hard to attack Tories for being privileged Bullingdonians when it's just been revealed the Labour leader has installed an induction hob for his servants quarters.
But perhaps, earning £500k yourself, you miss the optics here.
To most of Britain, Ed's life is a fantasyland of easy London wealth.
Ed Miliband is no one's idea of a man of the people. This is not news.
Nor is it news that Cameron is an old Etonian and ex member of Bullingdon who gives, yes, kitchen suppers. Yet he tries to avoid mentioning all this. Why? Because he knows it damages him.
The next time Ed stands up in the Commons and bangs on about "Tory millionaires" he will be drowned out by scoffing remarks about his second kitchen.
You can argue that all this stuff SHOULDN'T matter. Nonetheless it does.
Incidentally it doesn't really matter why he has a second kitchen, even if for religious purposes, there was clearly an intent to showcase the down-market one, it would be a bit embarrassing if the other turned out to me some £100k Bulthaup confection.
For 'religious purposes'? Presumably that's one for bacon, and the other for Kosher.
As you say, the 'real kitchen' will be a slick interior designed number, perfect for a £2 million Dartmouth Park mansion.
(No doubt there will be some spin doctor waffle about it already being in the house when they bought it, brushing over the fact that the house cost well over 10 times the national average, and would be unaffordable for 99% of the population).
I remember Ed, or his aids, whipping the headlining away on a seat to hide the fact that he was travelling First Class. In my opinion he was perfectly entitled to travel first class, even on expenses. It is indeed the sham of it all, but its inevitable when you peddle the politics of envy as Labour do.
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
I know the area and houses very well. Maybe it's the company I keep but I've never seen a house in that area with two kitchens.
Until recently I'd never heard of people having such things, thinking it an affectation for those with more money than sense. I thought it was something limited to Orthodox Jews, Russian billionaires who never cook and Royals.
There is no political impact of this story but it is good fun mocking politicians. We all know he lives in a big house with probably a big kitchen. Why not just film himself in it (if he has to do it all)?
I grew up there and have seen plenty. It's because most of the houses were once divided up into flats.
Talking of kitchens, I'd probably vote for any politician who could whip off a tablecloth whilst leaving all the knives, forks etc in place.
My general rule of thumb is that the posher the kitchen, the more steel, Dualit toasters, whizzo coffee machines and other expensive gadgets there are in it, the less actual cooking is done in it. They are Versailles-kitchens: all for show and to show how much money has been spent. Any half-decent cook can whip up a delicious meal in an area the size of a pocket handkerchief with no more than 3 gas rings, a couple of pans, a sharp knife and a sink. Oh - and some fresh food, of course.
I was wondering if the posh kitchen housed an Aga which is why wasn't on show...
What utility do you derive by having a second kitchen?
My daughter is very taken with the idea of a kitchen with an island in it, but why a second kitchen entirely?
A couple of years ago, we built an extension and ended up with two kitchens (and six toilets)
Clearly one kitchen is used exclusively for mutton vindaloo requiring six-a-loo
The funny thing is, the original downstairs toilet, I first started living in this house 34 years ago. In that time, I only ever used that toilet about 5 times, and only for number ones.
Number twos aren't allowed downstairs.
I'm reluctant to ask but why the prohibition downstairs ?
We can judge the salience of the Two Kitchens story by the fact that it is number 1 in the Telegraph 'Most Read' list, despite very strong competition. Ed even manages to trounce this story:
How can this not be the most read top story? -"The species is deadly and its venom can kill a human in just two hours - but can also give male victims a four-hour erection."
An undertakers nightmare getting the coffin lid down, I'd imagine.
I have a feeling that those spiders are going to be very closely studied.
Well quite - I can now see why that minor detail was dropped from the Spiderman scripts.
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
It isn't nonsense when he is trying to portray himself as the Leader who went to the local comprehensive and feels your pain etc
Are people who went to the local comp not allowed to have nice houses?
We've been over this ground with numerous policiticans over many years. A lot of it is how comfortable and natural you are with the persona you portray.
Hiding and trying to look 'natural' in your second kitchen which looks like it's the day you've moved in is not doing that.
I honestly don't understand why Ed and Justine didn't just do the interview in his real kitchen. No one believes that he is a man of the people and trying to hide that fact just makes him look evasive or stupid.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
Excellent response by Miliband to a wide range of questions on the BBC 3 programme, very impressive indeed and bodes well for the debates.Shame some people saw only one question being answered. Lots of people running scared this morning, headless chickens come to mind.The polls are not pointing to a Tory victory despite the attempts of the Tory media. The reality of life in Tory Britain is the only campaign tool that will work for Labour; zero hours, bedroom tax , privatisation, cuts, closure of public services etc. etc.
We can judge the salience of the Two Kitchens story by the fact that it is number 1 in the Telegraph 'Most Read' list, despite very strong competition. Ed even manages to trounce this story:
The opening line of that story is magnificent. And the poor journalist that came up with it has got no credit for it.
Indeed, so it's a shame to point out that the identification of the species is pretty thin - a picture, presumably of an adult, on the internet that sort of looked like the young'uns in the bananas. But let's not spoil an opportunity for a good story, never mind that throbbing first line.
What utility do you derive by having a second kitchen?
My daughter is very taken with the idea of a kitchen with an island in it, but why a second kitchen entirely?
A couple of years ago, we built an extension and ended up with two kitchens (and six toilets)
Clearly one kitchen is used exclusively for mutton vindaloo requiring six-a-loo
The funny thing is, the original downstairs toilet, I first started living in this house 34 years ago. In that time, I only ever used that toilet about 5 times, and only for number ones.
Number twos aren't allowed downstairs.
I'm reluctant to ask but why the prohibition downstairs ?
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
I know the area and houses very well. Maybe it's the company I keep but I've never seen a house in that area with two kitchens.
Until recently I'd never heard of people having such things, thinking it an affectation for those with more money than sense. I thought it was something limited to Orthodox Jews, Russian billionaires who never cook and Royals.
There is no political impact of this story but it is good fun mocking politicians. We all know he lives in a big house with probably a big kitchen. Why not just film himself in it (if he has to do it all)?
I've never been in a house w two kitchens to my knowledge but anyone who looks at that photo and extrapolates that a room like that in your house on top of a normal kitchen is somehow the height of luxury is either a complete cretin or a partisan fool who over reacts on a daily basis to every news story in the hope it might harm the party they dislike
The luxury is in having two - not in what is in it, I suppose. I prefer simple basic kitchens rather than the nonsense they seem to have become and that is what mine is like.
It's a fun story for a Friday and has - or should have - no political impact.
Generally if politicians are going to show off their private home - and I would prefer it if they didn't - they should be straightforward about it and not try and pretend that they're something they're not. Inauthenticity is what's irritating.
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
Weren't the Lib Dems marvellous pre-election poll ratings largely built on the backs of the under 35s who subsequently didn't turn up?
Who are that group polling for now?
Anyone 25 or so in 2010 is now a thirty-something. With five years experience of austerity just as they were getting their homes together. Similarly a bright-eyed 20 year old student in 2010 is now a 25 year old post grad with a lower living standard than their older siblings.
.
Thanks for the analysis but some of us never voted for Blair. Also 28 year olds in 1997 couldn't vote :P
If you're 28 now you could have voted for him in 2005. The must culpable are those who did so in 1997, which isn't all 36-year olds of course. But I do always wonder, when I hear someone of that vintage bellyaching about house prices, what they actually did to stop it all.
Plenty of people in that age cohort voted for parties other than Labour.
This is nonsense. I don't remember housing being an issue in the 1997 election at all. I don't remember Labour promising to drive up prices and I don't remember the Conservatives promising to build lots of new houses.
By 1997 the economy was so thoroughly fixed, and the devastation Labour always does in office so thoroughly forgotten, that it became possible for Labour to win by claiming to be newer, fresher and less corrupt than those tired old Tories. Nobody who remembered better was listened to.
The age cohort likeliest to fall for this was the 18-30 lot, who until Blair were generally pretty disengaged but whose support made all all the difference to his majority.
He then proceeded to rule in a way that completely screwed that demographic. Specifically, he trashed the worth of a degree which made it worth less, while also making it costlier to obtain; he rendered oversight of the City totally ineffective, which drew firms to the UK and drove up house prices; and he allowed unfettered immigration, which drove up house prices. All of these choices made life worse for this new constituency of support, a fact very few of them want to face up to.
True as far as it goes. But causing house prices to drop and leaving million of middle class people in negative equity is a vote loser like no other, especially for the Conservatives.
Collapsing prices would be a disaster in many ways, not least in terms of the number of houses being built. Help To Buy has been a great success, giving just enough confidence for the housebuilding firms to really get moving again, without stoking up house price inflation.
If after years of 0.5% interest rates you owe so little of your property that you are end up in negative equity I think you have bigger things to worry about.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
Because he's doing spin and politics, rather than just being a person. He 'is' a north london leftie policy gonk, and trying to be anything else is a fail.
Just like Cameron is a posho eton public school man.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
After that action to his elder brother? I shudder at your friends concept of "a nice and thoughtful person".
We can judge the salience of the Two Kitchens story by the fact that it is number 1 in the Telegraph 'Most Read' list, despite very strong competition. Ed even manages to trounce this story:
Four hour erections are a pain, honestly after the first 15 mins it's no fun.
Ahem, so I am told.
But scared stiff
Apparently you get a better class of erection from Tesco bananas, where every little helps.
But "The species is deadly and its venom can kill a human in just two hours - but can also give male victims a four-hour erection." Do you get the choice or do you get both?
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
I know the area and houses very well. Maybe it's the company I keep but I've never seen a house in that area with two kitchens.
Until recently I'd never heard of people having such things, thinking it an affectation for those with more money than sense. I thought it was something limited to Orthodox Jews, Russian billionaires who never cook and Royals.
There is no political impact of this story but it is good fun mocking politicians. We all know he lives in a big house with probably a big kitchen. Why not just film himself in it (if he has to do it all)?
I grew up there and have seen plenty. It's because most of the houses were once divided up into flats.
Not Ed's - it was left to a charity by a musician who died after an op on the NHS.....
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
I know the area and houses very well. Maybe it's the company I keep but I've never seen a house in that area with two kitchens.
Until recently I'd never heard of people having such things, thinking it an affectation for those with more money than sense. I thought it was something limited to Orthodox Jews, Russian billionaires who never cook and Royals.
There is no political impact of this story but it is good fun mocking politicians. We all know he lives in a big house with probably a big kitchen. Why not just film himself in it (if he has to do it all)?
I grew up there and have seen plenty. It's because most of the houses were once divided up into flats.
So Ed's taking houses away from poorer people by converting many flats into one?
What utility do you derive by having a second kitchen?
My daughter is very taken with the idea of a kitchen with an island in it, but why a second kitchen entirely?
A couple of years ago, we built an extension and ended up with two kitchens (and six toilets)
Clearly one kitchen is used exclusively for mutton vindaloo requiring six-a-loo
The funny thing is, the original downstairs toilet, I first started living in this house 34 years ago. In that time, I only ever used that toilet about 5 times, and only for number ones.
Number twos aren't allowed downstairs.
I'm reluctant to ask but why the prohibition downstairs ?
House proud mother. Apparently using a toilet where people could hear the noises and the smell isn't appropriate.
I honestly don't understand why Ed and Justine didn't just do the interview in his real kitchen. No one believes that he is a man of the people and trying to hide that fact just makes him look evasive or stupid.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
Was Ed trying to hide the fact he has two kitchens? My guess is that he never even considered it for a second. This story erupted because Michael Gove's wife wrote an extraordinarily unpleasant article about the Milibands in the Daily Mail and one of their friends tweeted something in response.
Talking of kitchens, I'd probably vote for any politician who could whip off a tablecloth whilst leaving all the knives, forks etc in place.
My general rule of thumb is that the posher the kitchen, the more steel, Dualit toasters, whizzo coffee machines and other expensive gadgets there are in it, the less actual cooking is done in it. They are Versailles-kitchens: all for show and to show how much money has been spent. Any half-decent cook can whip up a delicious meal in an area the size of a pocket handkerchief with no more than 3 gas rings, a couple of pans, a sharp knife and a sink. Oh - and some fresh food, of course.
Nah, my kitchen is full of whiz bang gadgets and kitchen aids. They make everything so much quicker and we cook dinner 4 out of 7 nights a week and have people over for dinner quite often. Having the right tools makes a 45 minute job into a 25 minute job.
"As the Russian jet approached the US vessel, the electronic device disabled all radars, control circuits, systems, information transmission, etc. on board the US destroyer. In other words, the all-powerful Aegis system, now hooked up – or about to be – with the defense systems installed on NATO’s most modern ships was shut down, as turning off the TV set with the remote control."
Here is a story for all PB Defence and Navy aficionados, from last November:
We can judge the salience of the Two Kitchens story by the fact that it is number 1 in the Telegraph 'Most Read' list, despite very strong competition. Ed even manages to trounce this story:
Four hour erections are a pain, honestly after the first 15 mins it's no fun.
Ahem, so I am told.
But scared stiff
Apparently you get a better class of erection from Tesco bananas, where every little helps.
But "The species is deadly and its venom can kill a human in just two hours - but can also give male victims a four-hour erection." Do you get the choice or do you get both?
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
I know the area and houses very well. Maybe it's the company I keep but I've never seen a house in that area with two kitchens.
Until recently I'd never heard of people having such things, thinking it an affectation for those with more money than sense. I thought it was something limited to Orthodox Jews, Russian billionaires who never cook and Royals.
There is no political impact of this story but it is good fun mocking politicians. We all know he lives in a big house with probably a big kitchen. Why not just film himself in it (if he has to do it all)?
I grew up there and have seen plenty. It's because most of the houses were once divided up into flats.
So Ed's taking houses away from poorer people by converting many flats into one?
No, the Tories made Camden sell the flats off, some locals made a mint and moved away, and the area is now overrun by the very rich.
Talking of kitchens, I'd probably vote for any politician who could whip off a tablecloth whilst leaving all the knives, forks etc in place.
My general rule of thumb is that the posher the kitchen, the more steel, Dualit toasters, whizzo coffee machines and other expensive gadgets there are in it, the less actual cooking is done in it. They are Versailles-kitchens: all for show and to show how much money has been spent. Any half-decent cook can whip up a delicious meal in an area the size of a pocket handkerchief with no more than 3 gas rings, a couple of pans, a sharp knife and a sink. Oh - and some fresh food, of course.
I was wondering if the posh kitchen housed an Aga which is why wasn't on show...
Don't know about an Aga, but definitely a wine cooler and one of those double-door American fridges that cost £1,500.
You have to laugh when someone whose main principle is that it's moral to hate and envy prosperous people makes so much money out of it.
Could the pb Tories identify for me the section of the electorate that has to this point been loyally behind Ed "two kitchens" Miliband but which will now desert him?
It's another mark against his "I'm an ordinary bloke like you" shtick. Individually they mean little, but they add up to Ed being a phoney.
Please identify these people who to this point have believed that Ed Miliband is ordinary. "Nerd" and "weird" would be more recognisable descriptions.
The kitchen meme is boring nonsense. No one thought he was 'a man of the people', he doesn't try to sell himself as one, and the photog looked like it was taken in a converted pokey utiity room.
He lives in Dartmouth park, what did people expect his house to be like? A council flat?
I know the area and houses very well. Maybe it's the company I keep but I've never seen a house in that area with two kitchens.
Until recently I'd never heard of people having such things, thinking it an affectation for those with more money than sense. I thought it was something limited to Orthodox Jews, Russian billionaires who never cook and Royals.
There is no political impact of this story but it is good fun mocking politicians. We all know he lives in a big house with probably a big kitchen. Why not just film himself in it (if he has to do it all)?
I grew up there and have seen plenty. It's because most of the houses were once divided up into flats.
Not Ed's - it was left to a charity by a musician who died after an op on the NHS.....
My sister was friends with a girl whose Mum lived in the flat in what is now Ed's basement (where I would bet a lot of money his real kitchen is). That was a long time ago, mind.
What utility do you derive by having a second kitchen?
My daughter is very taken with the idea of a kitchen with an island in it, but why a second kitchen entirely?
A couple of years ago, we built an extension and ended up with two kitchens (and six toilets)
Clearly one kitchen is used exclusively for mutton vindaloo requiring six-a-loo
The funny thing is, the original downstairs toilet, I first started living in this house 34 years ago. In that time, I only ever used that toilet about 5 times, and only for number ones.
Number twos aren't allowed downstairs.
I'm reluctant to ask but why the prohibition downstairs ?
House proud mother. Apparently using a toilet where people could hear the noises and the smell isn't appropriate.
Your mother not looking for a bungalow in her retirement then ?
Talking of kitchens, I'd probably vote for any politician who could whip off a tablecloth whilst leaving all the knives, forks etc in place.
My general rule of thumb is that the posher the kitchen, the more steel, Dualit toasters, whizzo coffee machines and other expensive gadgets there are in it, the less actual cooking is done in it. They are Versailles-kitchens: all for show and to show how much money has been spent. Any half-decent cook can whip up a delicious meal in an area the size of a pocket handkerchief with no more than 3 gas rings, a couple of pans, a sharp knife and a sink. Oh - and some fresh food, of course.
Nah, my kitchen is full of whiz bang gadgets and kitchen aids. They make everything so much quicker and we cook dinner 4 out of 7 nights a week and have people over for dinner quite often. Having the right tools makes a 45 minute job into a 25 minute job.
For our friends who are gloriously missing the point:
Voters don’t mind successful politicians. Boris Johnson won two elections in a Labour city not by posing in someone else’s snack preparation area but by revelling in how plummy he is. Voters like politicians to be themselves.
And Ed Miliband’s fear of being discovered as a well-heeled Londoner is Romneyesque. His team’s level of artifice is either too high or not high enough to conceal the flaws in their candidate. Nothing is less attractive than a politician pretending to be someone they are not. If Ed doesn’t find away to address his inauthenticity problem soon, he’s toast.
I honestly don't understand why Ed and Justine didn't just do the interview in his real kitchen. No one believes that he is a man of the people and trying to hide that fact just makes him look evasive or stupid.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
Was Ed trying to hide the fact he has two kitchens? My guess is that he never even considered it for a second. This story erupted because Michael Gove's wife wrote an extraordinarily unpleasant article about the Milibands in the Daily Mail and one of their friends tweeted something in response.
Well he may not have, but I'm certain one of the spin team made sure they did it in the utility room rather than the massive kitchen. It's just like the bacon butty all over again. "Look at me, I'm a man of the people, I eat bacon and have a small kitchen just like you, I understand the cost of living crisis".
I honestly don't understand why Ed and Justine didn't just do the interview in his real kitchen. No one believes that he is a man of the people and trying to hide that fact just makes him look evasive or stupid.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
Was Ed trying to hide the fact he has two kitchens? My guess is that he never even considered it for a second. This story erupted because Michael Gove's wife wrote an extraordinarily unpleasant article about the Milibands in the Daily Mail and one of their friends tweeted something in response.
Well he may not have, but I'm certain one of the spin team made sure they did it in the utility room rather than the massive kitchen. It's just like the bacon butty all over again. "Look at me, I'm a man of the people, I eat bacon and have a small kitchen just like you, I understand the cost of living crisis".
The bacon sarnie was bad enough, but only Ed could cock up having a cup of tea in a kitchen. - Another unforced media stunt backfires.
I honestly don't understand why Ed and Justine didn't just do the interview in his real kitchen. No one believes that he is a man of the people and trying to hide that fact just makes him look evasive or stupid.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
Was Ed trying to hide the fact he has two kitchens? My guess is that he never even considered it for a second. This story erupted because Michael Gove's wife wrote an extraordinarily unpleasant article about the Milibands in the Daily Mail and one of their friends tweeted something in response.
Well he may not have, but I'm certain one of the spin team made sure they did it in the utility room rather than the massive kitchen. It's just like the bacon butty all over again. "Look at me, I'm a man of the people, I eat bacon and have a small kitchen just like you, I understand the cost of living crisis".
The bacon sarnie was bad enough, but only Ed could cock up having a cup of tea in a kitchen. - Another unforced media stunt backfires.
As I say below, it's the sign of a 24 carat loser that a vicious personal attack by the wife of a political opponent turns into a PR disaster for him. It could only happen to Ed. Still, he'll be gone in just a few weeks now.
I'm not one for polls analysis, but the last three, from different polisters, have shown a UKIP surge of +4, +2, and +3. So somethings up, or changed, or the voting public have cottoned on to what UKIP is all about.
I pointed out at the time, as a frequent user of the Manchester Pic to Euston service, you can and lots of people do first class upgrades as Virgin admit in that article.
Wasn't fieldwork done before the most recent 'lets quote Farage out of context'gate?
It straddled it, at a guess, 50% of the fieldwork was done before, and 50% afterwards.
UKIP have been coming out of hibernation a bit more recently though. Farage did the whole "Loose women" show. He's getting the 2% that vote depending on who is on the telly most favourably.
I honestly don't understand why Ed and Justine didn't just do the interview in his real kitchen. No one believes that he is a man of the people and trying to hide that fact just makes him look evasive or stupid.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
Was Ed trying to hide the fact he has two kitchens? My guess is that he never even considered it for a second. This story erupted because Michael Gove's wife wrote an extraordinarily unpleasant article about the Milibands in the Daily Mail and one of their friends tweeted something in response.
Well he may not have, but I'm certain one of the spin team made sure they did it in the utility room rather than the massive kitchen. It's just like the bacon butty all over again. "Look at me, I'm a man of the people, I eat bacon and have a small kitchen just like you, I understand the cost of living crisis".
The bacon sarnie was bad enough, but only Ed could cock up having a cup of tea in a kitchen. - Another unforced media stunt backfires.
As I say below, it's the sign of a 24 carat loser that a vicious personal attack by the wife of a political opponent turns into a PR disaster for him. It could only happen to Ed. Still, he'll be gone in just a few weeks now.
I honestly don't understand why Ed and Justine didn't just do the interview in his real kitchen. No one believes that he is a man of the people and trying to hide that fact just makes him look evasive or stupid.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
Was Ed trying to hide the fact he has two kitchens? My guess is that he never even considered it for a second. This story erupted because Michael Gove's wife wrote an extraordinarily unpleasant article about the Milibands in the Daily Mail and one of their friends tweeted something in response.
Well he may not have, but I'm certain one of the spin team made sure they did it in the utility room rather than the massive kitchen. It's just like the bacon butty all over again. "Look at me, I'm a man of the people, I eat bacon and have a small kitchen just like you, I understand the cost of living crisis".
The bacon sarnie was bad enough, but only Ed could cock up having a cup of tea in a kitchen. - Another unforced media stunt backfires.
As I say below, it's the sign of a 24 carat loser that a vicious personal attack by the wife of a political opponent turns into a PR disaster for him. It could only happen to Ed. Still, he'll be gone in just a few weeks now.
SO you continually mention that it was Sarah Vine who wrote the original article, but the simple fact is that she was right to do it. Clearly Ed's team were trying to put across this image of "normal Ed" to the public by sticking him in the small utility room that looked like a kitchen in an average or small London home. You are trying to play the man, or woman in this case, rather than the ball by bringing up the author, it is completely irrelevant to the story.
Why is it hypocritical of Labour politicians to be rich?
Not Labour politicians, no one cares that Ed is rich, but they care that he pretends not to be and that he claims to understand people who struggle to put food on the table. As always, it boils down to hypocrisy plain and simple.
I pointed out at the time, as a frequent user of the Manchester Pic to Euston service, you can and lots of people do first class upgrades as Virgin admit in that article.
Isn't it more expensive than doing it in advance? (Srious question - could be useful to know.)
@DPJHodges: New Statesman's latest May2015 projection: "Tories lead by 20 seats and are now on course to win this election".
Which ragtag Gov't do you want ?
CON + LD + DUP + UKIP + North Down = 321
LAB + SNP + PC + GREEN + SDLP + Respect = 324
Presumably he means that he expects the polls to keep moving between now and May. On course doesn't mean that you've arrived yet.
The trend's your friend.
(NB Note that UKIP have gone up by 20% with populus, after having gone up by 33% in Ipsos/Mori. Obviously there is a massive swing to UKIP that is building up and hasn't been noticed yet (TIC))
Comments
An undertakers nightmare getting the coffin lid down, I'd imagine.
What's the betting he expensed all of that and we paid?
If that's the crappy second kitchen, imagine how opulent the real one must be. Four ovens, minimum; warming drawer; swing larder; integral inline espresso machine and roasting microwave; island; five-ring hob. At least two dishwashers, one for the crockery and a separate one for the glasses. They would probably be those ones that project the remaining running time onto the floor beneath in red light. Travertine floor tiles for sure.
Good thing he dodged IHT on his share of his dad's house otherwise he might not have been able to afford it. I salute him - nothing's too good for the workers!
Housebuilding fall drives surprise decline in UK construction output
The Office for National Statistics has published some weak numbers on UK construction output.
It fell unexpectedly by 2.6% in January, sharply below economists’ expectations of a 1.2% rise. It was the biggest drop since November 2013 and followed a 0.6% increase in December.
Housebuilding declined by 5% over the month, while commercial building such as offices and shops was down 6.6% and new infrastructure work fell by 2.7%.
A poor performance in January meant construction output fell by 3.1% on annual basis. Economists polled by Reuters had predicted a 2.2% increase.
Chris Williamson, chief economist at Markit:
Official data indicated a steep downturn in UK construction activity at the start of the year, following a worryingly sharp decline in the fourth quarter of last year.
However, while there are signs that the sector is set to see a tougher year in 2015 compared to last year, survey data and corporate earnings suggest growth is merely slowing rather than collapsing.
Number twos aren't allowed downstairs.
For what it's worth, the place where he lives was actually flats back in the day, like many others in that road once upon a time (many owned and rented out by the council). It may well be that the kitchenette he has is actually the kitchen of one of these that has not been converted or knocked through to make the sitting room bigger. Not that anyone gives a toss :-)
Nothing wrong with any of that at all of course, except whilst not exactly proclaiming he's "prolier than thou" he's not exactly putting his (presumably) very comfortable position to the fore is he? The "I feel your downtrodden pain" theme can start to look like being bit sanctimonious instead.
That said it's all a storm in a tea cup.
SNP - Prop up Labour for a decent price. Won't do any sort of deal with the Conservatives. No coalition.
Lib Dems - Coalition with largest party.
DUP - Supply & confidence with whoever. Issues: "Bedroom tax"; EU 2016 referendum.
UKIP - S&C for EU 2016 Referendum
PC - Same as SNP.
SDLP - Will support Labour on key confidence issues.
Green - Issue by issue basis for Labour based upon support for banning cars, growth and opening our doors to ISIS.
Respect - Issue by issue support for Labour based upon establishment of George Galloway as head of the Bradford Caliphate.
In my opinion he was perfectly entitled to travel first class, even on expenses. It is indeed the sham of it all, but its inevitable when you peddle the politics of envy as Labour do.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/31866549
Well quite - I can now see why that minor detail was dropped from the Spiderman scripts.
Hiding and trying to look 'natural' in your second kitchen which looks like it's the day you've moved in is not doing that.
It's really weird because people I know who have met Ed say he is a nice and thoughtful person but nothing like that comes across when he is in public.
It's a fun story for a Friday and has - or should have - no political impact.
Generally if politicians are going to show off their private home - and I would prefer it if they didn't - they should be straightforward about it and not try and pretend that they're something they're not. Inauthenticity is what's irritating.
The age cohort likeliest to fall for this was the 18-30 lot, who until Blair were generally pretty disengaged but whose support made all all the difference to his majority.
He then proceeded to rule in a way that completely screwed that demographic. Specifically, he trashed the worth of a degree which made it worth less, while also making it costlier to obtain; he rendered oversight of the City totally ineffective, which drew firms to the UK and drove up house prices; and he allowed unfettered immigration, which drove up house prices. All of these choices made life worse for this new constituency of support, a fact very few of them want to face up to.
Just like Cameron is a posho eton public school man.
Do you get the choice or do you get both?
Here is a story for all PB Defence and Navy aficionados, from last November:
https://futuristrendcast.wordpress.com/2014/11/19/what-frightened-the-uss-donald-cook-so-much-in-the-black-sea/
If true, this is a turn up for the book. Can any of our PB defence experts advise?
Con 29 (-3) Lab 32 (-1) LD 8 (-1) UKIP 18 (+3) Greens 6 (nc)
http://populus.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/OmOnline_Vote_13-03-2015_BPC.pdf
You have to laugh when someone whose main principle is that it's moral to hate and envy prosperous people makes so much money out of it.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2992499/Clegg-s-Lib-Dem-leadership-rival-gives-party-score-2-10-Tim-Farron-says-party-blocked-Conservatives-health-reform.html
Voters don’t mind successful politicians. Boris Johnson won two elections in a Labour city not by posing in someone else’s snack preparation area but by revelling in how plummy he is. Voters like politicians to be themselves.
And Ed Miliband’s fear of being discovered as a well-heeled Londoner is Romneyesque. His team’s level of artifice is either too high or not high enough to conceal the flaws in their candidate. Nothing is less attractive than a politician pretending to be someone they are not. If Ed doesn’t find away to address his inauthenticity problem soon, he’s toast.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/ed-miliband/11469531/Ed-Milibands-two-kitchens-expose-the-plastic-inauthenticity-of-the-Labour-leader.html
"Ed Miliband is bad for Britain's economy, say 61 per cent of business leaders "
"The Labour party lagged significantly behind the Conservatives on every question YouGov asked business leaders. In terms of who would be best for shareholders, Labour scored a paltry 11 per cent, while the Tories polled 78 per cent."
"56 per cent said the Tories and 18 per cent said Labour."
http://www.cityam.com/211546/ed-miliband-bad-britains-economy-say-61pc-business-leaders?utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Email&utm_campaign=150313_CMU
Snotty, Arrogant Tories on the slide. LOL
UKIP seem to have certainly achieved this feat.
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/ed-miliband-tried-to-hide-that-he-was-travelling-first-class-6392684.html
"However, before the camera started rolling his team had carefully stripped off headrest covers bearing first class symbols."
I wonder how much of the UKIP jump to attribute to Farage and how much to Cl***son?
This is the sort of place where you need to live to succeed as a firebrand left wing leader.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1377051/Ed-Miliband-happy-pose-council-estate-seen-travelling-class.html
But at least he [edit} had paid in advance (presumably!). Compare Mr Osborne, on one version -
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2012/oct/19/george-osborne-standard-ticket-first-class-train
I do love eggs with soldiers. This makes them perfectly. amazon.co.uk/Egg-Boilers/b?ie=UTF8&node=11713161
And, for reasons we shall not explore, I once typed my password in using my right foot.
What was the Populus house effect at the last GE ?
The trend's your friend.
(NB Note that UKIP have gone up by 20% with populus, after having gone up by 33% in Ipsos/Mori. Obviously there is a massive swing to UKIP that is building up and hasn't been noticed yet (TIC))