Tom Harris prepares for reshuffle

"Just taking a short break from blogging before ministerial duties, reshuffles and conferences start to take up more of my time...." is how Tom Harris MP and Minister for Transport explains his absence from blogging for the next few days.

Now, I wouldn't presume to have had any major influence over his decision but it's interesting that he has taken this action following some of my comments on one of HIS recent posts:

"I keep coming back (to your blog) only because you write such amusing tosh. This particular example clearly demonstrates that you watch Dave TV. How deliciously ironic."

".....you really should get out more and understand how low the Labour Party - and Gordon Brown in particular - is held in the public esteem. We are at laughing stock phase at the moment and will soon move into the anger and hatred stage. Mark my words..... "

"Just to cheer you up even more, Tom, I thought you'd be interested in just one of the comments on Iain Dale's thread on the SNP picking their candidate for Glenrothes ahead of Labour. ... I'm one of those card carrying active members of the Labour party in one of the safest seats in country (one of the 20 odd we would not lose even with a Glasgow East swing). Its completely true that there is a malaise that has gripped even the party membership. I always wondered what it would be like to be a Tory in the mid-90s with the electorate as a whole having nothing but apathy for you. Now I know. I thought you'd like to know too, Tom."

"Still, I'm sure the party conference will see you surge back (even lower) in the polls. Ed Balls will make the speech of his life urging the faithful to re-adopt Clause Four, Alan Johnson will surge in popularity as he moves a motion to increase the powers of the Unions' block vote while David Miliband amazes everyone by agreeing to be publicly hung, drawn and quartered for the sake of the Party. Gordon will be symbolically crucified on stage but rise again on the third day and all the delegates will return to their constituencies to prepare for an inevitable drubbing in the local and European elections next spring. Stranger things have happened......."

It would be nice to think that Diablo's incisiveness and wit had given the rather louche Mr Harris pause for thought while he considers his political non-future but, as he reveals himself, he has rather more lofty things on his mind - "I’ve got the third season of The Office, plus 30 Days of Night and goodness knows how many books to get through before then."

Nice one, Tom!