I would add to what Ian Duncan Smith says and say that the problem that the two resignations from Boris Johnson's’ entourage confirm is the absence of autonomous effective and serious thinking inside whoever constitute the ‘Team Boris’ now! Secondly, IDS is correct to make the particular criticism of the mass propaganda media. I entirely agree that none of those who have been damning ray Lewis would do anything really significant to save the kids and other young people. I have been very aware of this. And I knew, almost a year ago when Boris was being still rumoured to be the Conservative candidate, that he, Boris, would have to show a higher standard of morality and ethics than Ken Livingstone was showing. It was not a pleasant spectacle to see the BBC NEWSNIGHT programme wheel in Ken Livingstone to allegedly give the authoritative comment on the then unfolding ‘story’ around Ray Lewis. What Living stone said was as insignificant, as irrelevant and as untrue on Thursday night as what Livingstone had said a few weeks before the 1 May 2008 London Assembly and mayor elections. Livingstone has been allowed an irrationally unrigoroulsy promotion and platform by the BBC. And what the BBC does is in effect aped and replicated by the rest of ‘Fleet Street’. Yet the problems remain. The BBC has not done one single investigative report on the institutions in London and in the rest of the UK that are fully funded, fully staffed and fully failing. No wonder that there is no solution in sight. Except sound bites and media appearances. We have in Britain a thoroughly corrupted set of institutions. And after Blair and after the rest of the UK, the tragedy for London people - and those youngsters and their families and lives ones is that Lon don is left bereft of political representation.

What an astonishing thing for Iain Duncan Smith to say: "Everybody has a past." If you look at the allegations against Ray Lewis very few people (outside politics!) have that kind of past.

I'm afraid New Labour, the Tories and the Lib Dems are all as bad as each other when it comes to these lurid matters - indignant denials followed by shamefaced resignation.

No one who is squeaky clean needs to resign from anything.

Iain Duncan Smitth is so so wrong. Far from being "not a politician", Lewis is every inch one; a man not to be trusted with other people's money, a man who exaggerates his qualifications and and achievements, a man who gets into office with no-one around him doing anything to find out who he really is, a man with a track record of away from attempts to hold him accountable for his actions.

As for media manhunts: when local government and the House of commons is as corrupt as it is it these days, full of people who are only there so they can get their hands on public money, we need more, not less of these manhunts. The current generation of party yes-men - aspirants to expense accounts and little else, need to go. The trough snufflers should be hounded out of office, and if the political parties won't do it because they don't see how low they have sunk and clean up their act, then we need the media to help expose the appalling depths to which the nation has sunk and begin the clean up of the appalling stench which is hanging over our public life.

If Iain Duncan Smith can't see how bad things have got, he is part of the problem.

Iain Duncan Smith is so so wrong. Far from being "not a politician", Lewis is every inch one; a man not to be trusted with other people's money, a man who exaggerates his qualifications and and achievements, a man who gets into office with no-one around him doing anything to find out who he really is, a man with a track record of away from attempts to hold him accountable for his actions.

As for media manhunts: when local government and the House of commons is as corrupt as it is it these days, full of people who are only there so they can get their hands on public money, we need more, not less of these manhunts. The current generation of party yes-men - aspirants to expense accounts and little else, need to go. The trough snufflers should be hounded out of office, and if the political parties won't do it because they don't see how low they have sunk and clean up their act, then we need the media to help expose the appalling depths to which the nation has sunk and begin the clean up of the appalling stench which is hanging over our public life.

If Iain Duncan Smith can't see how bad things have got, he is part of the problem.

Technomist wrote:
Iain Duncan Smitth is so so wrong. Far from being "not a politician", Lewis is every inch one; a man not to be trusted with other people's money, a man who exaggerates his qualifications and and achievements, a man who gets into office with no-one around him doing anything to find out who he really is, a man with a track record of away from attempts to hold him accountable for his actions. As for media manhunts: when local government and the House of commons is as corrupt as it is it these days, full of people who are only there so they can get their hands on public money, we need more, not less of these manhunts. The current generation of party yes-men - aspirants to expense accounts and little else, need to go. The trough snufflers should be hounded out of office, and if the political parties won't do it because they don't see how low they have sunk and clean up their act, then we need the media to help expose the appalling depths to which the nation has sunk and begin the clean up of the appalling stench which is hanging over our public life. If Iain Duncan Smith can't see how bad things have got, he is part of the problem.

Once again Technomist, you astound me at being the only person to comment on any story that actually has something sensible to say. The willingness to resign rather than prove his innocence - or indeed own up to past mistakes and promise the public that that will bear no relation to how he now acts and the services he will provide for London - is a trait all too common in politics. Doesn't matter with your blue, red or yellow (insert your own pun there) as soon as someone digs deep, it's abundantly clear they're all scratching their own, or their family and friends' backs. NOT prioritising the people who's money and lives they toy with.

Sarah wrote:

Technomist wrote:
Iain Duncan Smitth is so so wrong. Far from being \"not a politician\", Lewis is every inch one; a man not to be trusted with other people\'s money, a man who exaggerates his qualifications and and achievements, a man who gets into office with no-one around him doing anything to find out who he really is, a man with a track record of away from attempts to hold him accountable for his actions. As for media manhunts: when local government and the House of commons is as corrupt as it is it these days, full of people who are only there so they can get their hands on public money, we need more, not less of these manhunts. The current generation of party yes-men - aspirants to expense accounts and little else, need to go. The trough snufflers should be hounded out of office, and if the political parties won\'t do it because they don\'t see how low they have sunk and clean up their act, then we need the media to help expose the appalling depths to which the nation has sunk and begin the clean up of the appalling stench which is hanging over our public life. If Iain Duncan Smith can\'t see how bad things have got, he is part of the problem.

Once again Technomist, you astound me at being the only person to comment on any story that actually has something sensible to say. The willingness to resign rather than prove his innocence - or indeed own up to past mistakes and promise the public that that will bear no relation to how he now acts and the services he will provide for London - is a trait all too common in politics. Doesn\'t matter with your blue, red or yellow (insert your own pun there) as soon as someone digs deep, it\'s abundantly clear they\'re all scratching their own, or their family and friends\' backs. NOT prioritising the people who\'s money and lives they toy with.

Very flattering Sarah, but you are discounting several stupid comments I have made previously about various things because I did not know enough about what I was talking about. Luckily there are plenty of people who come on here who are better informed and have things to say. As a group, contributors here can generally tease out some sense from the things reported here. It doesn't seem to change much about the way the numpties we pay to serve us behave, though, does it?

Yeah, it's funny how IDS is pointing out how unfair the press is. I seem to recall a campaign run the by evening standard and that 'reliable' man Andrew Gilligan just before the mayoral election on the LDA. So far nothing has been proven and no word from the police, who I suspect will quietly wind it up later this year as there doesn't seem any basis for the allegations made. This was the number 1 campaign issue (corruption) and hugely affected the vote. The press is out of control and needs stamping out. I wouldn't get away with making baseless accusations - so why do the press get away with it? How can I find truthful and factual information regarding politics these days - answer? NOWHERE!