Morrissey for mayor – is it really so strange?
This week we learned that former Smiths frontman Morrissey is “considering very seriously” an invitation by the Animal Rights Party to enter the London mayoral race. Could the idea of the outspoken singer joining the election fray cause panic on the streets of London? Quite possibly when you consider some of his more outrageous views, such as his description of Chinese people as a “subspecies” because of their poor animal rights record. Last year, Chinese investment in the UK property sector reached £3bn, a figure that CBRE predicts could be topped in 2016. But perhaps not if Morrissey becomes mayor of London – “home of the brash, outrageous and free”.
MIPIM’S Flight of fancy
MIPIM, as we all well know, is legendary for its size and extravagance. So, what to do if you are planning on standing out from the affluent crowd from the get-go? One company is offering a refund on your plane ticket in exchange for paying a cool €1,450 (£1,120) for a seat on a private jet. But Diary can’t help wondering, if the flight fills up with deep-pocketed passengers, does it still count as a private jet? #mipimproblems
Protest over protesters
Dealing with protesters is par for the course when you are a politician, and no doubt one of the first lessons they learn in politico school is how to deal with them. If Zac Goldsmith could be considered a model pupil, then lesson number one must be “blame someone else”. The Conservative London mayoral candidate was responding to the proposals set out in the London Housing Commission report this week when he was forced to acknowledge the angry cries of demonstrators just outside the door of the auditorium of the Geological Society in Piccadilly, W1. “I don’t think they are here for me,” he stated, looking around at his fellow mayoral candidates and Lord Bob Kerslake, who was sitting nearby. “Bob, are they here for you? I think you should go talk to them.” The protesters then went eerily silent, and were presumably given their marching orders. Something tells us Goldsmith won’t be seeing the back of them for good though. And there won’t always be someone else around to blame.
Speaking of housing…
That same event began with a collective chuckle when, in the short speech to address matters of housekeeping, the WiFi password was announced as “sediment” – remember, we were in the Geological Society. And, arguably, that is all that will be left of London’s housing sector if the commission’s proposals are ignored.
Bringing up the rear
There’s nothing quite as pleasing as a well-focused marketing campaign. Guess which cycling-mad member of the EG team got sent this little gift – a bike seat cover, if you can’t tell what it is. Diary isn’t sure exactly what is being implied by the message, but we’re certainly glad that Graphicks.co.uk has got our backs… or rather our behinds.
