The Croydonian gets cynical about Martin Linton's campaign to limit party spending in constituencies.

Who's afraid of Lord Ashcroft?
Nick Palmer (Lab) Broxtowe - Maj 2,296
Martin Linton (Lab) Battersea - Maj 163

Or so it would seem from quite how strongly they are opposed - out of principle, clearly - to spending in constituencies between elections.

The Guardian reports that the Labour Party spent almost £1m preparing for the General Election that didn't happen. They specifically mention Martin Linton.

Meanwhile, Labour candidates in some marginal seats had already printed letters to go out to supporters. One, Martin Linton, who has a majority of 163 over the Conservatives in Battersea, south London, sent out letters to thousands of Labour members and supporters asking for their help. Because of the postal strike, hardly any reached their destinations until well after the election was called off.

Sadiq Khan and Martin Linton have been spending more time together. This week they were at a coffee morning.

On the Friday of my return from conference, I took part in the Macmillan Cancer Support Coffee Morning at St Georges Hospital. Each year, the event is bigger than the year before. More than £1000 was raised last year and I am confident this was surpassed this year. Martin Linton MP for Battersea was also present and you can see a photo of us by clicking HERE. This has been the third Macmillan Coffee Morning that I have attended at St George's as Tooting's MP, and every year has been bigger and better than the previous one. I hope to attend many more, as they are a really fun way to raise both the profile of a wonderful organisation and funds for them to use. You can find out more about Macmillan's excellent work by clicking HERE

The New Welsh Right blog mentions Martin Linton as one of the Labour MPs who have started a campaign to limit the amount of money that parties can spend in constituencies annually.

At a meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party last night Martin Linton, David Borrow, Stephen Ladyman and Celia Barlow called for Gordon Brown to limit the amount of money that may be spent in constituencies each year rather than just at election time.

Of course, being Tories, they have either completely misunderstood the issue or choose to deliberately misrepresent it.

Linton, representing highly marginal Battersea (and you thought it was out of the goodness of his heart) led the charge and argued, basically, that he was scared that the people of Battersea might like his Tory opponent better than him and that this was very bad indeed. He also pushed the point that Parliament should use its power to write laws (usually fairly serious things that require a bit of thinking through) to hobble his opponent early on. This was to take the form of banning him from spending much on advertising, leaflets, phone calls and all those other tools of debate that nobody ever died or got sick from.

The Grimmer Up North blog mentions Martin Linton in passing when discussing the election that never was.

On our side, even Tony Lloyd, chair of the PLP and usually a loyal Brownite, is critical of the PM today. Others like Peter Kilfoyle, David Winnick , Martin Linton and John McDonnell have spoken out against the posturing and political game-playing which has drained much of the goodwill which Brown was given on taking over from Tony Blair.

A French blog comments on Gordon Brown confirming that there will not be an election. Martin Linton is mentioned.

Certains disent que quoi que Brown ait décidé, il aurait fait une erreur politique. Le travailliste Martin Linton vient pourtant à son secours : "Quand on regarde de précédents Premier ministres qui ont convoqué des élections anticipées, ce n'est pas très encourageant, ça a été un fiasco. Je pense qu'il a eu raison d'agir comme il l'a fait."

Which Google Translate renders into English as

Some say that whatever Brown's decision, it would have made a political mistake. The Labour Martin Linton has yet to his rescue: "When you look at previous Prime Ministers, which convened early elections, it is not very encouraging, it was a fiasco. I think it was right to act as he did."

Another Spanish blog commenting on UK politics. In this case it's a report on Gordon Brown deciding that there won't be a General Election. The report mentions Martin Linton.

Designado por Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, pretendía apuntalar y legitimar su mandato con los comicios. Sus cada vez menos incondicionales como el laborista Martin Linton creen que hay ejemplos previos de jefes de Gobierno que han convocado elecciones y las han perdido, que demuestran que Brown ha hecho lo correcto.

Or, almost in English (via Google Translate)

Appointed by Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, sought to legitimize and strengthen its mandate in the elections. Their increasingly unconditional as Labour Martin Linton believe that there are previous examples of government leaders who have called and have lost elections, which show that Brown has done the right thing.

The Havant Conservatives mine the BBC web site for comments on the General Election that never was. They include a quotation from Martin Linton.

We've as good a chance of winning now as we would in two years' time. We're ready for it at any time. If you're in a marginal like this you have to be ready for it at all times.

Clearly the prime minister has considered the possibility of having an election now and he has decided against it, which I think is the right decision.

People don't want to have an election now unless it's absolutely necessary.

This is slightly unusual. It's apparently a Colombian blog commenting (in Spanish) on a statement that the Labour Party issued about relationships with Columbia. Martin Linton is listed as a signatory.

For anyone who isn't fluent in Spanish, Google Translate is really useful.

Tooting MP Sadiq Khan's blog continues to be a better source of information about Martin Linton than Linton's own site. This week the two MPs have been talking to the Wandsworth Primary Care Trust.

I also attended the AGM of the PCT, which was held in Battersea. Martin Linton MP and Cllr Tony Belton (Leader of the Labour Group of Councillors) were also there. It is a real shame that no Tory Councillor or MP in Wandsworth could bother to turn up to this important event.

The Democratic Upper House blog has an entry about a rally on Lords reform that is to be held at the Labour conference in Bournemouth. It mentions that the rally will be

Followed by a Labour sing along led by Martin Linton MP and the Battersea Singers Choir.

The Politics and Media blog has an entry which includes a quotation from Martin Linton about the relationship between the politics and the media.

Martin Linton has been on both sides of the barricades. He was a journalist for the Guardian before becoming a Member of Parliament. "I'm afraid a lot of journalists have a deeply ingrained desire to do politicians down and to interpret everything they do in a snide and over-cynical light, maybe because journalism is one of the few professions which is trusted even less than politicians. There's no point in lecturing journalists. It just makes them even more paranoid. But don't you think it would be good for the ordinary citizen if there was a source of simple straightforward information - not comment - from the Government that was unmediated by the media?"

The Stop the Cheques blog talks about the problems of MRSA in London hospitals. They quote the numbers of cases from January to March 2007 at various hospitals together with the names of the MPs whose constituents use the hospital. This list include St. George's Hospital.

There were 132 cases at Whipps Cross (Harry Cohen MP), 123 cases at St George's Healthcare NHS Trust (Sadiq Kahn MP & Martin Linton MP) and 118 at Kingston Hospital (Ed Davey MP).

The Feesabilillah blog mentions a Stop the War Coalition protest about Guantanamo that will take place at Martin Linton's surgery at Balham Library.

Shaker Aamer is a resident in Martin Linton MP's constituency. Martin Linton has a surgery in Balham library this coming Saturday. Some Wandsworth StWC members who are his constituents will go to the surgery to persuade ML to do something about getting Shaker Aamer (and indeed others), out of Guantanamo. Wandsworth StWC will have a presence in Balham High Road too.

London Unlocked, the London transport blog, quotes from a Wimbledon Guardian story which mentions Martin Linton.

Clapham Junction could be on the Tube map in time for the 2012 Olympics, Martin Linton MP claimed, as he stepped up his campaign to bring the underground to Battersea.

The Battersea MP took part in a debate in Westminster Hall to put pressure on transport and treasury ministers to fund the extension of the East London line to Clapham Junction.