News in Brief

Lots happening today, so just a few short notes...

Rocking the Boat

Following on from the story yesterday evening, Geoff Hoon and Patricia Hewitt have sent out a letter calling for a secret ballot on Gordon Brown's premiership. There are claims that Charles Clarke is associated with it, and rumours that Harriet Harman might be behind it - as deputy PM, a leadership challenge would make her de facto Prime Minister for a few weeks. Haven't heard anyone reporting anything from the Milibands yet...


"I'm just big-boned"

Metro (p11) this morning - 'Bone risk to diet girls' - saying "Those with higher levels of fat tended to have larger and thicker bones, Bristol University scientists found". In other words, they've proven that a fattie/big-bones correlation exists, so we can expect to hear that line a lot more now that it's been scientifically proven.


DNA F-A-I-L

Metro (p12) this morning also has a story on the DNA database. It only helps in 1 case in 150. On burglaries - a crime characterised by the culprit having buggered off by the time the homeowner returns, so theoretically ideal for tracking technology like DNA or fingerprints - the database has less than 40% success. Shouldn't we be scrapping this huge, expensive, illegal mess and spending money on solving crimes?


Flav still 'fit and proper'

Flavio Briatore's lifetime ban from F1 has been overturned, so he can keep his QPR job, and he's been awarded a paltry £13,500 in compensation. The FIA says it will appeal but, now that Max Mosley has gone, does anyone really care? Bury it with the other scandals of the last decade and move on...


Monsters from the ID

Cambridge is to be used as a testing ground for ID cards for foreign nationals, according to David Howarth MP (h/t fanf). I wonder if this is designed to wind up the local NO2ID and security research people? Or to scare off world-class academics/scholars in an anti-elitist move? Or if it's just a conveniently large location sufficiently far from London that they can expect lower press scrutiny?


Also, it's snowing. Bet the 18:23 out of King's Cross is cancelled.

- KoW

Old Professions

Last week, Harriet Harman insisted that a foreign government take action against a website that's legal both in its jurisdiction and ours.

As far as I'm aware, prostitution is still legal in the UK. Having an opinion about a service most definitely is! And yet here we have one of the most powerful politicians in the country creating an international incident over something she personally dislikes, on the flimsiest of excuses (very few prostitutes are trafficked...).

Tom Miller, Labour PPC for Woking, has suggested that since the site isn't doing anything wrong and is in a foreign jurisdiction, Ms Harman should take matters into her own hands with an illegal (in both jurisdictions) Denial of Service attack. WTF? Is that not Hate Speech?

I wonder how long before the Internet Watch Foundation is either replaced, or leant-on, to block access to Politically Undesirable sites such as PunterNet. As most ISPs in the UK - covering something like 98% of users - accept the IWF blacklist, that would be a rather trivial step... and yet another towards 1984.

Here's a radical notion: websites don't create demand for prostitutes.

A review site simply makes the existing market more efficient by providing a basis for price information, and might even reduce consumption by adjusting the supply curve. Not that I expect our business-illiterate government to understand that argument...

(Hat tip to Dizzy, for Tom Miller's imbecilic contribution to the debate)

- KoW

... but some are more equal than others

The BBC have an interesting story about Harriet Harman flouting the Highway Code. I always thought that one was required to stop and exchange insurance details (a note under the wiper blade if the other car was unattended, and report to the police), not drive off with a Do You Know Who I Am comment to a witness.

The date was given as 3 July, yet the law requires the police to be notified within 24 hours at most - so the fact that this is three months later and the police are investigating it now doesn't look good...

(Hat tip to Guido)