You really can't blame the Labour Party ...

... for arranging for a few dozen of their activists to protest outside the Conservative Party conference, cunningly disguised as "financial services workers". It's just the cut and thrust of politics, and while a neutral observer might wonder how the Tories are implicated in the current crisis, having been out of power for eleven years, trying to associate them with the sins of the incompetent banking fat-cats is all part of the game.

But did BBC Television news tonight have to (prominently) report it straight-faced as a demo "by financial services workers" ? Even my (thin) cat could see the whole thing was a set-up. Are the Labour Party paying them, or do they do it for love ?

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'A Canadian Conservative Party speech-writer...'

Seasoned members of the BBC audience will know immediately from that introduction – with the political affiliation rammed to the forefront – that the following story will not reflect well on the Conservatives. Even they, though, might be surprised just how insignificant, and how old, the 'scandal' it reports is. However, for the trusty BBC team it is, of course, front page news.

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Compare and contrast

There's been much already written about the difference in treatment the BBC has shown to the Conservative and Labour conferences, and it is a real contrast. Even less arguable, though, is the extent of the coverage. Look at the website, where this is easiest to evaluate. By this stage in the Labour conference last week, and in fact earlier than that, there wasn't a single mention of the opposition parties on the politics page. Every one of the 40+ stories related to Labour - and most related to the conference. Now, with the Conservative conference ready to close, well less than half focus on them. And it's not just the bank bailouts: strip away the stories relating to that and there's still room for concerns about plans for 42 detention; the Ghurka's battle to stay in the UK; the millions of young in poverty; Afghan talks; observations on Lembit Opik's facebook page; and Cherie Blair's relief she didn't have to pose with Carla Bruni.

The point is not that these shouldn't be covered (well, apart from the one about Cherie Blair), but to illustrate just how over-the-top the BBC's enthusiasm and interest in Labour politics is and the extent to which this is never shared in its attitude to the official opposition.

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DON'T IT MAKE HIS BLUE EYES BROWN?

Was listening to a BBC discussion between Ed Stourton and a reporter on Today this morning just after 6am. Were I a Conservative, I would be engaged. It was asserted that there would be NO post conference bounce for the Tories and in fact the only way forward for Cameron was to set aside any notion of suggested tax cuts and instead prepare for tax increases. They then agreed that Gordon Brown's "steady as she goes" reputation (!!!) was likely to bring about a situation where Labour could seriously challenge for a fourth term.

At the moment, the BBC seems unable to have a sentence with the words David Cameron in it without also adding the words Gordon Brown. The word "novice" is also getting a tremendous amount of play. Of course this idea that Brown is "Prudence incarnate" is so risible, so detached from all reality that only the Save Gordon crowd at the Beeb would dare run with it. Then there is the BBC hatred of tax cuts. They are plainly using the current turmoil in the markets to force Cameron to commit to ruling out any prospect of the State taking a little less of our cash.

I don't know about you but whilst I am no fan of Cameronian Conservatism I think the BBC has been outrageous in how it has treated the Conservative conference this week. After the orgiastic coverage afforded to GordonSarah last week, Call me Dave was gleefully sacrificed this week. And another point that stands out for me is this; In the States, the financial mess is attributed to the failure of the incumbent Republic President, but in the UK, the financial mess is sold to us as a reason to support the incumbent Labour government. The BBC has not a shred of balance in this situation, it shows itself as biased, as hateful, and as political as many of us here fear.

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McCain Irresponsible?.

I was listening to an item on the Today programme just before 7am concerning Iraq and was struck by the comment from the BBC report who said that he was stunned when John McCain claimed last week that the US was "winning" in Iraq. Further, he added that this was "an irresponsible" comment. He went on to state that although the Surge had worked, a lot of success was down to "the awakening" (Former Ba'athists who had fought against the US now working for them) and the acquiescence of the Mehdi army. Naturally, no criticisms of Obama who opposed the surge, no praise of the US military who have prosecuted it. The BBC relentlessly propagates the idea that Iraq is another Viet Nam, that we have no business there, and that victory is not an option. Now I accept that some out there may think these thing (I don't of course) but the BBC role is to provide balanced opinion and on this issue it spectacularly fails time and time again. The only drumbeat is that encouraging cut and run and so when John McCain and others press for victory, the little defeatists in the BBC attack them.

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