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Teesside comes to Brighton today as some of the workers from the arrive in town.

They're here for a Fringe meeting I'm chairing this evening.

It's a Question Time with me acting as the referee between the unions and the Government.

The situation at Corus is perilous.

There's .

The , and so the search for new contracts is tough.

Some say the market might not recover for five years.

Once it does, then the plant can be competitive again - but first and foremost it has to survive to see that revival.

There are no precedents for a steel mill reopening after it's been shut.

The workers are looking for to ensure the plant does survive.

Business Secretary Lord Mandelson has been invited to the meeting. I'll let you know if he shows, and whether he has any positive news.

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I missed the meeting unfortunately but Darlington MP Alan Milburn caused a bit of a stir with his appearance at the Conference Fringe.

The young Mr Milburn was a member of CND, but it's been a long time since he advocated nuclear disarmament.

But he told a meeting organised by the that the Government .

Instead, he said the money should go into the NHS.

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The big news here of course is what's in - a rarity at a Labour Conference I admit.

Delegates here though appear to be buoyed rather than disheartened by its decision to back Cameron.

The amongst Labour members is full of anger and defiance.

It might even motivate more of them to push harder for a Labour revival.

So whatever the result of the election The Sun might still be able to say "It was us wot won it".

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• - What's this?

Gordon Brown's speech was certainly .

A genuine attempt to prove that Labour could still come up with new initiatives after 12 years in office.

A National Care Service, "supervised homes" for teenage mums, a referendum on reform of the voting system.

Almost too much content to remember.

But it was also a very Gordon Brown speech.

Few oratorical flushes, almost no jokes, no real revelation.

It went down well in the Hall but the mood didn't match that generated by Lord Mandelson yesterday.

And my viewing of the speech was slightly unusual this year.

As journalists we're packed into one part of the hall, so it's usually the corner where nobody's clapping or cheering.

But one delegate had somehow found herself in the media area, sat next to me.

She stuck out a bit like a sore thumb among the impassive journalistic mob when she was brave enough to applaud.

She certainly seemed enthusiastic, although she muttered about having heard it all before when Gordon Brown started talking about the NHS and his eyesight.

I don't think it changed her mind though about what she liked and didn't like about her leader or her party.

And I do think we as journalists can get a little obsessed with the importance of setpiece speeches.

I can't think of many - or perhaps any - occasions when they've transformed the fortunes of our political parties on their own.

I don't think this speech was an exception.

The key for Labour lies in not what happened today, but what happens from now on.

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• - What's this?

It was the traditional gathering of Northern delegates here at the in Brighton last night.

A chance again for the party to rally its troops and stamp on any despondency and defeatism.

It's an event that's always graced at some point by the PM (as long as he or she's Labour!)

Rather curiously though Gordon Brown turned up ten minutes before the advertised starting time - a busy schedule apparently.

There was enough warning of his early arrival to get an audience together, but I must confess I turned up fashionably late to discover he'd been and gone.

Harriet Harman showed up later though, as did David Miliband.

I decided not to bid in the fundraising auction for tea for two with Nick Brown. I'm sure he's seen enough of me.

The mood was relatively jolly. Much talk of Mandelson's speech.

But I'm not sure there's much resurgent confidence on show here.

There's perhaps more determination to make a fight of the election, but certainly nobody staking their second home on winning it.

I did manage three "medicinal" glasses of red wine last night, but the Man Flu is still overcoming my fightback.

Incidentally, I must correct a crucial journalistic inaccuracy from yesterday.

On closer examination and consumption, the biscuits in my hotel room appear to be Dutch not Italian.

The trouser press is definitely made by Corby though.

imminent. Will blog again later.

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• - What's this?

Peter Mandelson may have been many things over time - feared, respected, loathed - but I'm not sure he's ever been loved.

But there were definitely some warm and fuzzy moments for Labour delegates in the Hall in Brighton .

Plenty of applause and a standing ovation at the end.

It was self-deprecating and had some good jokes, and it also did what delegates like best - attack the Tories.

It tried to portray Labour as the underdog.

This seems to be a now.

Perhaps a typical piece of Mandelson rebranding. One person's underdog might be another's loser!

The question is - will it work for the party's leader?

Gordon Brown the underdog? We'll see.

Anyway, it was certainly less bizarre than Mandy's now infamous rant he delivered when he was still Hartlepool's MP.

There's one problem though.

Tony Blair said he'd only know the New Labour project was truly complete if the party .

Looks like it just may be all over!

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• - What's this?

I can exclusively reveal that a leading political figure IS surviving day-to-day on painkillers.

But it's , it's me.

I have made it to the in Brighton complete with Man Flu germs collected at last week's Lib Dem gathering.

I'm only hoping that, in the interests of political balance, I don't have to catch an equivalent dose of Labour infection.

So onto the hotel check:

Biscuits: Small Italian jobs. Quite tasty, but personally I'd prefer a good Bourbon Cream.

TV Channels: Approx eight, including CBeebies and ITV2, which only ever seems to show Midsomer Murders.

Corby Trouser Press: Present and correct. (By the way does anyone else make trouser presses?)

Anyway, much of my week here will be dominated by people whose careers are under threat.

Not Labour's MPs' (although I'm sure that's dominating their thoughts) but workers at the .

Some of them are at the Conference this week, possibly , but definitely at a Fringe meeting I've been asked to chair on Wednesday.

They're pushing for more government aid to save the works. Some want to see it nationalised.

The line taken by Nick Brown at last week's Grand Committee was that everything possible was being done.

But he says he's open to ideas. I'm guessing nationalisation isn't one of them though.

The Corus workers will be pushing for answers from Business Secretary Lord Mandelson though.

That's if he manages to !

He's been invited to this evening's meeting, and I'm now chasing him too.

And if he doesn't agree to an interview, I'll cough on him. That'll teach him.

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• - What's this?

An interesting - and perhaps unique - experience on Friday; Parliament coming to Middlesbrough.

The first - and possibly last - meeting of the was an odd experience.

At one point, a member of the public wandered into the venue in Middlesbrough Town Hall with their weekly shopping - something I can't quite imagine happening in Westminster.

Its chairman Frank Cook warned us all sternly at the start to silence our mobile phones, only for his to go off in the middle of the meeting!

The whole idea though was to bring politics closer to the people.

And some of the issues that matter most to the region.

There were , , and the .

But although the public could watch, none of them could ask a question.

That left 11 MPs - 10 Labour and 1 Liberal Democrat - to put regional minister Nick Brown through his paces.

Sir Alan Beith, the one Opposition voice, tried his best,

So worthwhile exercise or waste of money? You can see more here, and let me know by posting a comment.

But at least I may have witnessed a little bit of history.

The Conservatives are unlikely to persist with the Grand Committee if they win the next election, making its visit to Middlesbrough a curiosity.

So I may get a souvenir T-shirt printed - "I was there when Parliament came to the 'Boro."

Anyway, I'm heading off to Brighton now for the , full of the man flu germs donated to me by the Liberal Democrats in Bournemouth..

Unlike some of the Labour party I haven't though.

I'll be blogging regularly and you can follow every cough, splutter and tweet on .

I'm hoping for a sea air cure to my malaise. Let's see whether it can help Labour mount a recovery too.

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• - What's this?

Nick Clegg has clearly been studying his Barack Obama.

His closing speech was peppered with references to "real change" from the Liberal Democrats, and "fake change" from Cameron's Conservatives.

, with himself as the real deal and John McCain as the "fake".

It was also a speech which majored more on optimism than his of earlier in the week.

And all with an aqua-blue rather than a yellow background.

We'll have to see in the next few months whether the public buys his claims to be the real alternative to Labour - and whether it can deliver seats like Durham City, and Newcastle's North and East as well as saving seats in the South.

He may have restored his standing within the party at least after an uneven week.

Incidentally, his warm-up man was Westmorland and Lonsdale's Tim Farron, who seems to have turned into a bit of a Conference darling here.

Anyway that's that from Bournemouth.

The highs:

Seeing .

My near the hotel. No Ginsters, but a lifesaver. Although I didn't bump into Charles Kennedy in there as I had done in a previous year.

The Corby Trouser Press - I haven't done a Partridge there, it's in mint condition.

The lows:

One of my favourite Bournemouth cafes has become a Vodka Bar - cue moan about the inexorable decline of society.

The stultifying heat of my hotel room.

I did manage a fair bit of work in-between all that mind, before you complain.

I've been tweeting too, you can . And co-incidentally we're talking about MPs and social media this weekend on the .

It includes an entertaining tale I gleaned here about Phil Willis, a mobile phone and a public toilet, and features the design of a Facebook page for Blyth MP Ronnie Campbell!

What more could you ask for?

Oh, yes - a look ahead to the . Onwards to Brighton!

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• - What's this?

I have a confession to make.

I know you'd expect me to be lapping up every moment of political debate here at the .

But last night, frankly I'd had my fill.

So instead of dabbling on the Fringe, I watched a lot of people being splattered.

Relax, it wasn't a ritual slaughter of Lib Dem dissenters. Just a trip to the cinema to watch .

And I must admit a good dose of gore and gruesome aliens (and a political subtext I hasten to add) has left me far more refereshed for the day than the equally X-rated Lib Dem sing-song.

But my thoughts are also turning to Friday and the excitements of Parliament coming to Middlesbrough.

It's the to be precise - a new wheeze which aims to hold the Government's regional ministers to account.

Basically, the North East's MPs will gather together to question Nick Brown and debate the state of the economy.

There'll be a novelty value to having a parliamentary committee meet in Middlesbrough Town Hall.

But also some contention.

Alan Beith will be the only non-Labour MP there, as the only other possible Opposition attendee - Peter Atkinson - is away.

When I spoke to Sir Alan the other night, he seemed up for the challenge, but some will question its rigour and usefulness.

The because so few MPs turned up.

It'll be interesting to see whether there's a better response in a Labour heartland.

We'll be covering the committee and the debate surrounding it on Look North this Friday and on the on Sunday.

Make the most of it, if the Tories win the next election it might turn out to be it's one and only incursion into the region.

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• - What's this?

Been to interview Nick Clegg.

Talked to him first about .

In case you missed it, the Lib Dems' decided that they would keep the line in public ownership until the franchise finishes in 2015.

some time next year.

Nick Clegg and his party's view is that what the line needs now is stability.

He points to the failure of GNER and National Express as evidence that the State needs to take control even if it's just for the next five years.

There'll be some of this on Look North this evening.

I pushed him on the future of Regional Development Agencies too - the Lib Dems have put them on a hitlist of quangos to scrap.

His answer was a bit more confusing on that.

He accepted was doing a good job, but still wanted it abolished.

His argument centred on the poor performance of its Southern counterparts, but also on the possibility it might not do a good job in the future!

Not sure that'll wash with many local Lib Dems.

Confusingly, a newspaper colleague tells me Vince Cable said One North East might not be abolished.

Perhaps they need to get together.

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• - What's this?

Northern Lib Dems were pretty chipper at their Reception last night.

For a start, unlike their southern counterparts, they are not facing a fierce Tory onslaught and the prospect of losing seats.

Instead they may even add to their numbers, with real hopes of gains in Newcastle and Durham.

But they have some grumbles.

The from a pledge to an "aspiration" hasn't gone down well,

Especially when you consider how important the student vote might be in Newcastle and Durham.

And there was more grumbling about the leadership's proposal to scrap regional development agencies like One North East and Yorkshire Forward.

There was some talk last night though about the way the party could change after the next election.

The power balance of the party is in the South at the moment, but if Lib Dems lose seats there while gaining them in the North that might just shift.

For instance, Northern Lib Dems tend to be on the left of the party.

Many became politically active during and because of Thatcherism.

So a party with their influence to the fore could look very different in 2010.

That might even influence who they'd stomach supporting in the event of a hung parliament.

Oh, and much to my joy I also spotted on the way to the Lib Dem northern night.

I decided not to push her on the Big Ted issue - see previous post.

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• - What's this?

, I gather (a gentle one - this is the Lib Dems after all), between Nick Clegg and Newcastle's City Council Leader John Shipley.

as part of plans to cut public spending.

That, of course, includes . Councillor Shipley just happens to sit on their board.

I understand there was some awkwardness then when the issue came up as they shared a platform this weekend.

John Shipley defended One North East and its record.

But Nick Clegg is concerned not just about the cost of the agencies, but also the lack of public accountability.

The future of RDAs does look increasingly deathly as the Conservatives see little future for them either.

Yet, as demonstrated by John Shipley, One North East does have a fair bit of cross-party support in the region, and its record is respectable.

The same also seems to be true of the in Cumbria too.

The problem is their southern equivalents are viewed with contempt by many of their local politicians.

Expect the region's Labour MPs to attack the Lib Dems for their hostility to One North East, but I'm not sure the public will be too exercised by the debate.

I'll be interested to see what Northern Lib Dems make of it all at their reception this evening.

I'm popping along so will let you know. It'll delay the devouring of the hotel biscuits for an hour or two anyway.

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Incidentally I was sad to miss the big celebrity Lib Dem draw this weekend -
Apparently she's a big supporter.

As for any other Play School-related political endorsements, Hambel, Humpty and Jemima are refusing to be drawn, while Big Ted is leaning towards the English Democrats.

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• - What's this?

Made it safely to Bournemouth. I'm sure you're so relieved.

I had a brief moment of concern when I thought my hotel room wouldn't lock from the inside - imagine the potential glee of groupies!

Fortunately, the door is secure and I slept unmolested.

Quick hotel rundown:

Corby Trouser Press: present.

Biscuit availability: Small caramelised biscuit jobs but at least they're there!

Television channels: Just the four (my daughter would be horrified. She thought we'd gone back to the Cretaceous Period when our holiday cottage this Summer only had four channels).

Anyway, to business, and a big slice of Cumbrianness was on show at the this morning.

Westmorland and Lonsdale's as the party's rural affairs spokesman.

He kicked off by talking about an unexpected triumph at the .

Despite completing the six-mile run 20 minutes after the winner, the organisers took pity on him.

As there were no entries from any women aged over 60, they awarded him the trophy for that category!

Anyway, he went on to pepper the speech with lots more references to his Cumbrian constituency and policies which could be designed for it. (It is after all a highly marginal seat).

The Lib Dems are now committed to:

- Introducing a Food Market Regulator to enforce fair trade for UK farmers.

- Giving councils the power to increase taxes on second homes.

- Turning more disused farm buildings into affordable homes.

- Stopping all post office closures.

- Setting up hill farm apprenticeships to stop the exodus from the fells.

- Making some members of National Parks directly elected.

Incidentally Mr Farron appears to be much in demand for his campaigning expertise too.

, ended 100 years of Tory domination in Westmorland and Lonsdale, and activists in other target seats are keen to know how he did it.

He's addressing a number of fringe meetings about how to win over voters.

MInd you looking at the polls, it might be LIb Dem seats that are vulnerable to a Tory surge this time round.

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• - What's this?

Interesting selection in Newcastle Central on Friday night.

Labour picked as their candidate from an all-women shortlist.

If elected, and thanks to boundary changes the seat is a safer bet than in 2005, she'll be the first black female MP in our region.

She was born in Wallsend and brought up in the Newcastle though has worked away from the area.

Expect some of the losers to resurface in Newcastle North - another all-woman shortlist.

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If you weren't still tramping round Tyneside on the Great North Run, or basking in the unseasonal sunshine, you'd have caught an interesting and lively discussion on the Politics Show about the future of care for the elderly.

It came down to who you believed really.

say there's just not enough money to keep their day care centres open and give older people individual budgets so they can choose what care they want.

Local Labour MP Denis Murphy disputes that and blames the council for cutting back unnecessarily.

The problem is .

The Lib Dems still say they can't afford to keep the centres open, but because they are in a minority in the council chamber, the decision has been blocked by Labour and the Conservatives.

So for the moment, there are day care centres, but no individual budgets.

There'll be plenty of talking to do amongst the parties between now and the next full council meeting.

The question is, can they put political differences aside and come up with a solution.

There does appear to be a real danger that unless they do, more and more decisions in Northumberland will fall victim to politicking between the factions.

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I'm off now to Bournemouth for the Lib Dem conference. Will be blogging daily from there I hope, and you can follow me on .

Sunshine forecast, so might even pack the Speedos* - apologies if I've turned your stomach.

* Other brands of indecently skimpy trunks are available.

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• - What's this?

Now, Durham and Carlisle are cities that I enjoy filming in.

But the question is - are either of them

Both fancy their chances and have submitted early bids to become the UK's city of culture in 2013.

It's the domestic equivalent of the beat Newcastle and Gateshead too (I can't bring myself to call it ) - like winning the FA Cup instead of the Champions League, I suppose.

At stake is loads of kudos, and the chance to host events such as the and the .

This week the is looking at the two contenders in the patch.

Carlisle's bid appears .

Critics say it has no hope as it has .

Instead their main venue - - doubles as a sports hall. Nice and flexible perhaps, but maybe not the venue Brits winners are used to.

(I'm just imagining the notice going up - "Sorry all five-a-side is cancelled on Friday because of the Baftas.")

might just bring the theatre the city craves.

. And for the most part, .

But .

Bids from the likes of , and might not sound too intimidating (not to mention one for the whole !?).

But big hitters such as , and are also competing.

And so the make unhappy reading - Durham 25 -1, Carlisle 33-1.

And although there are no detailed figures for how much the bids will cost, they'll certainly run into tens if not hundreds of thousands of pounds so they represent a gamble.

Then again most wouldn't have bet on Liverpool winning the European crown.

And perhaps if this prize is to mean anything it should go to somewhere like Durham or Carlisle where it might make more difference than in the big cities.

Let me know what you think.

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• - What's this?

Ah, election night.

The rustle of ballot papers, the worried frowns on candidates' faces, the joy and despair as the declaration comes.

We political journalists love it.

It's a night when politics is centre stage, and sports halls up and down the land have to cancel their pilates classes to make way for the count.

But someone is out to spoil it for us.

Instead of counting as normal on Thursday after the polls close, .

, but what does it do for democracy?

Might it just rob the election of some of the political theatre that makes them so special?

Imagine having to wait till Friday for moments like the , or .

Logistically, it could also be a nightmare for broadcasters as we try and find a way of keeping enough staff awake to cover declarations on both days.

But apart from robbing political journalists of their night of excitement (and of any sleep) it could be confusing for the voters to find some counting on Thursday night and some counting on Friday.

And as North East Minister Nick Brown pointed out to me, the reason votes were originally counted on Thursday night was to avoid the possibility of fraud.

Having ballot papers and boxes hanging around overnight might not be wise.

Especially as some of the region's closest contests - Newcastle North and East, Tynemouth, and Stockton South could all end up being Friday counts.

to preserve the traditional election night.

It might not win the support of the Thursday-night pilates class, but at the very least we ought to think carefully before consigning the election night tradition to history.

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• - What's this?

The thorny issue of the future of rail - both Metro and main line - dominated today's agenda on the .

You can see what Minister for the North East Nick Brown had to say about both issues here.

The is a tough one for many on the left to swallow.

Many Labour supporters are wholly opposed, even though you could argue the exercise looks almost designed to prove that the existing public sector service is running everything efficiently.

Similarly,as proof that the Conservative privatisation of the railways was a failure.

The Government though knows that would be a bruising and risky process.

They would then be to blame for every ill on the line - from the wrong kind of snow to the standard of the sandwiches.

Instead I'm sure they will find another firm to take over next year.

Interestingly, - the German company likely to be amongst the Metro bidders - .

I suspect Nick Brown is right on one thing though.

The public probably would rather see concrete improvements to our transport network now, rather than hold out entirely for a high speed rail line that could be 20 years away.

But the big question is how will improvements - whether high speed rail or upgrades to existing lines - be funded in an era when public finances are likely to be incredibly tight?

The Moss Week:

Reading: by Amitav Ghosh. Swashbuckling, opium, salty seafarers. What is there not to like?

Watching: . Free entry on Saturday, sunshine and a 5000-strong crowd in the lovely Riverside ground.

Clicking: . With a General Election round the corner, it's always checking on the size of an MP's majority and see how things are swinging.

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It's a tale of two coasts.

The West Coast has a Main Line with a shiny new upgrade. Its appears secure.

Under it'll also get a new High Speed line.

Then there's the East Coast.

It's a line reaching capacity. And train operator is l less than two years

And to add insult to injury,

So how might a deteriorating service damage the North East's economy?

Badly according to . It wants urgent action for the here and now and the future.

It wants the franchise mess sorted double quick.

to Newcastle, Durham and Darlington to avoid the area becoming an economic backwater.

Cumbria for once looks like a winner though.

For many years some Cumbrian commuters hopped across the Pennines to Newcastle because it was quicker to get to London that way than going down the West Coast Line.

That's no longer the case, and with a high speed link to London, the economy could get another filip.

And Cumbria can also boast a major motorway - the M6 - while the North East has a few token stretches here and there.

I suppose unlike the North East, they might have a line to argue about anyway.

And even without a stop,

It's no wonder then that transport issues are the ones raised most often with North East Minister Nick Brown.

And we'll be questioning him on them on this Sunday's Politics Show too.

The Tyne and Wear Metro "sell-off" and even the A1 could also come up.

Let me know if there's any point you'd like me to make to him.

* By the way three days after his demotion, I still have no answer on whether Alan Duncan is still Shadow Minister for Tyneside. I'm not sure how long we can cope with this power vacuum?

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• - What's this?

Despite my best efforts, so far I've failed to confirm whether the has kept his position as Shadow Minister for Tyneside!

After being removed from the Shadow Cabinet and downgraded to Prisons Minister, it would be another indignity to be stripped of the title.

The Tories I've spoken to in the region believe he'll keep the role, but the Conservative press office in London have so far failed to confirm that.

It doesn't list it amongst but then I'm not sure it ever did.

So are there top level discussions going on about it? Can he cling on? Am I being sarcastic?

Errr...yes. I'd guess the future of the post hasn't merited much discussion which is why there's not been a definitive answer.

If Alan Duncan has kept the post, then his critics may question why if he's not good enough for the Shadow Cabinet, he's good enough for Tyneside.

On the other hand, it might give him a bit more time to spend up here, and he might welcome the odd day release from prison (as the shadow minister responsible of course!)

To be fair, he's been reasonably active and high profile in his role.

And it would disrupt any relationships he'd built up if his dalliance with the region is over.

But I'm sure his MPs on "rations" comments have gone down as poorly here as they have done with his leader.

Don't fret though, the region isn't without a representative in .

, is also Shadow Minster for Teesside.

Middlesbrough 1, Newcastle 0?

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• - What's this?

Just got the news through that we might get interviews with all three of the major party leaders at the conferences.

In the past, the and have been happy to be interviewed at conference by regional correspondents, but the PM - whether it be Blair or Brown - has refused to play ball.

That may be another (small) indication that could finally become a reality come the General Election.

Perhaps realises there's nothing to lose, especially with the polls being so consistently dire.

with Cameron and Clegg, but with low expectations, any overperformance could be seen as a triumph

I have mixed feelings about a TV debate.

The journalist in me is excited. It would be real political theatre, and it could encourage more people to take an interest and vote.

But there's part of me that also feels it'll make our system even more presidential than it already is.

I think one of its strengths is the need for every MP to be elected by their constituents.

Hopefully though, we in the regions can play a part in reminding voters that the election is also about who represents them locally as well as who runs the country.

Let me know what you think.

Anyway, the Conferences are a couple of weeks away yet. (I've still got to break the news to the cats that I'll be away - there'll be hell to pay).

More immediately, the is back on air this Sunday. A transport theme is emerging. More to follow.

.

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• - What's this?

So .

by the Thirsk and Malton party.

But it must have been a pretty bruising experience.

And there are some deep and open wounds which need to be healed.

The fear is though, they may fester.

After last night's meeting there were that she was the local candidate.

There were some who also don't see the saga as being over. The words "damaged goods" were used by some.

But realistically any attempts at a coup are now over.

The rank and file of the party came out in force to back her, and the party must try and move on.

It's still unclear though what made so many, so unhappy.

There seemed to be a feeling that some parts of the area were being neglected.

Clearly there is a a challenge for an MP who's currently representing what's largely another constituency - Vale of York - to also have an eye on her new seat.

And Anne McIntosh may now face problems motivating some of her opponents to do the hard yards of door knocking come election time.

The saving grace - Thirsk and Malton on paper should be a cast iron Conservative seat (), with almost any candidate.

And I got to sample some pub grub in Malton while waiting for the result.

Don't get carried away though - it was far from glamorous. I spent most of the evening in my car in the dark, sheltering from the torrential Yorkshire rain.

And the time I got home - quarter past midnight. I know - your heart bleeds etc.

I did . The first time I've broken a story on Twitter. I'm so 21st Century.

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• - What's this?

Can you spare any sympathy for councillors?

They're probably not up there with fluffy animals and cute kids, but sometimes I do feel a pang of sentiment.

Take .

The there wants to close seven of them.

As you can imagine it's not gone down well with the older people who use them.

I saw the strength of feeling yesterday when half a dozen of the daycare users - all fairly frail but formidable - struggled out to tell me how upset they were.

Yet the alternative that the council's offering does seem on the face of it more modern, and perhaps more dignified.

Older people will be handed control of their own budget to spend on the care they want.

The problem - many of the existing users just want to be able to go to the daycare centres that'll no longer be there.

The problem for the council is they're expensive - according to the authority they're twice as pricey as those run by charities and the private sector.

There's also a feeling that daycare centres will begin to die gradually anyway as a new generation of older people will have different demands.

A new generation of older people, I suspect, may well prefer more control over their care.

But of course whether that's right or wrong, closing them makes the council look callous.

Other councils may face the same unpalatable choice in the future.

It'll be a test for Northumberland to see how well they manage the needs of different groups of older people.

Let me know what you think.

------

It's the crucial Anne McIntosh selection meeting tonight - see earlier post.

So I'm off to Malton to see what happens.

I still find it hard to believe the local Conservative association will deselect a Tory front bencher purely because of personality clashes.

But there does seem to be a group who really don't like her, so it's all in the balance.

I hope to blog on the result tomorrow, but if you want the news earlier, you can follow developments on - just follow Richardpolshow.

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