[Oboogie]

Go and start campaigning in Gorton they said, what did 30p Lee do instead?

Enjoy.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Not a local poll, but a national one.

Like the Lib Dems tend to in by-elections, the Greens will probably do better than their national polling in Gorton and Denton, simply by being noticed by people who haven't noticed them before. But there are risks in that. How much of the electorate thinks "yeah, leave NATO and scrap our nukes, because Putin will" or "let's just print a load of money, that always works"? Are that many people bothered about the Government being "complicit" over Palestine, when they've actually recognized the country now? And will Galloway and pick up that rump of voters anyway?

Westminster Voting Intention:

RFM: 25% (+1)
LAB: 21% (+2)
CON: 17% (-1)
GRN: 16% (-1)
LDM: 14% (=)

Via @YouGov, 25-26 Jan.

We'll find out.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Goodwin

I will stand up for the local people of Gorton and Denton against the broken Westminster establishment. I will demand Britain fixes its borders, invests in our National Health Service, and clamps down on crime and antisocial behaviour.

So far so standard. I wonder if we'll see any "left on the economy" in his campaign. He kept telling people to read his book, because it was in there, it was just an unfortunate fluke that he spent all his time on "right on culture". He's certainly got the chance to project that now.

Except he almost certainly won't. Even if he ever believed it himself, it's not remotely the vision of Farage and his new defectors.

[Abernathy]

Labour has put five local Manchester councillors on its long list for selection as its by-election candidate :

Rabnawaz Akbar
Abid Latif Chohan
Angelika Stogia
Julie Reid
Eamonn O’Brien.