Labour's Harriet Harman and the Highland ginger rodent, Danny Alexander

Labour's Scottish conference in Oban seemed to be going so well until the new Labour new generation same old Party's Deputy Leader, Harriet Harman MP called Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander a "ginger rodent".

"Now, many of us in the Labour Party are conservationists - and we all love the red squirrel," Ms Harman said.

Danny Alexander is a Lib Dem MP in the north of Scotland "But there is one ginger rodent which we never want to see again - Danny Alexander."

Labour's former Equalities Minister, Harriet Harman went on to attack Mr Alexander's other party colleagues north of the border, telling delegates:

"There's something deeply unnatural that's happened in Scotland.

"Without asking anyone in Scotland, the government has been carrying out a programme of genetic modification - political genetic modification.

"This mutation has contaminated every Lib Dem councillor, it's affected every Lib Dem MP and Lib Dem MSP.

"They've all mutated into something alien to Scotland - Tories."

It is a little bit rich for Harriet to name call and get involved in this childish kind of playground politics, however, she is the Deputy Leader of a Party that has saddled us with a daily payment of £120million just in interest on the amount they borrowed!
Danny Alexander is an excellent MP and is proud of his roots - both hair and where he represents - and had the last laugh just moments before Harriet Harman was forced to apologise after a public backlash.

Danny Alexander tweeted;

I am proud to be ginger and rodents do valuable work cleaning up mess others leave behind. Red squirrel deserves to survive, unlike Labour

Anyway, although the BBC are now saying Harriet Harman has apologised, it is only via a spokeswoman it appears, so hardly sincere is it?

A spokeswoman for Ms Harman said later:

"Harriet Harman has today apologised for her comment about Danny Alexander and says it was wrong."

The reason this angered me, was two fold, one I think childish name calling like this is exactly how playground bullying starts - believe me, I received enough of it to know first hand.  I cannot understand given her former job as equalities minister how she fell into that trap?

Secondly, this is the kind of politics that turns the public off, but it does just show that Labour are not above it and actually enjoy it.  The Labour Party are still out of touch with public opinion, perhaps they should take a break and return when they have grown up.

While the Labour Party participate in childish playground antics it is the Scottish Liberal Democrats led by Tavish Scott, who are fighting for Scottish jobs, reforming public services and wanting to restore the excellence back to Scottish Education.

David Miliband quits conference; Shadow Cabinet next?

So, David Miliband has quit the Labour Conference early following a spat with Harriet Harman.

Will David Miliband even bother to serve in his brother's cabinet, the signs are not looking good, with only 19 hours until nominations close there is no sign of any paperwork from David, now back home in Primrose Hill, London.

Although David stayed in Manchester for Ed's speech, he was spotted by an ITV camera apparently snapping at Harriet Harman.


As Ed Miliband criticised the war in Iraq at the podium, David turned to the party's deputy and said: "You voted for it, why are you clapping?"

Harriet Harman apparently replied: "I am clapping because as you know, I am supporting him."

The Ed versus David saga is not going away and it will take labour's best spin doctors to sort this one out.