If you could do me a favour and hold back on descriptions like ‘cowboy’ and ‘flag of convenience’ then it would be much appreciated. I do try to keep things accurate and as far as can be ascertained, Flying Lion Limited have an excellent safety record barring that one incident with the undercarriage and I think you may have picked up the ‘flag of convenience’ reference from GW which he later clarified as VP being designated to Bermuda which was what I had originally thought.

However, congratulations on hating Tories, I have no problem with that whatsoever.

I don’t quite get you point about incentives for more fuel efficient aircraft. This has been going on for years in the aviation industry as efficiency is a core component of competition, however with lifespans of 50 years, the turnover of aircraft is decidedly slow because airlines have to get their usage out of them for the capital investment. Yes there is the possibility of replacing some engines during a plane’s lifespan but most factors relating to efficiency come from the design of the overall plane, ie it’s aerodynamics and that isn’t going to change whatever you do.

On flights from London to Khartoum, you are right that BA doesn’t fly direct now. However, and I did look it up, they used to. Equally both Lufthansa and Qatar can do the journey with only one change.

I would be careful about making insinuations regarding the allegations of cash for peerages. You may have missed it but the CPS investigated and there was no case to answer. It’s curious that I’m getting criticism from those same people who’ve been banging on about that issue for what seems like an eternity and they’ve got completely nowhere nor produced any information that they have claimed to have. I simply deal in facts, not rumours. If that’s your cup of tea then I’m sure you’d have a much nicer time over at Guido’s place than here.

I hear no Labour voices raised against ministers who use private helicopters at tax payers expense, or against chancellors who increase aviation duty supposedly to dissuade air travel and then use air travel themselves. As for flights from London to Khartoum, I have no idea who does fly to Khartoum but at present British Airways does not, so if Lord Ashcroft wants to make his plane available to David Cameron for the purposes of such a trip, then I see nothing wrong with that.

Whatever the value of those gifts it is far less than some of the sums donated to the Labour Party by donors who, unlike Lord Ashcroft, appear to have done little for their chosen party, but appear to hae been doing so for whatever honour might come their way.

What they have not said, or the Vermin Party has said, is what were the real costs of these freebies compard with what was actually declared.

Mark you what I really want to see is that little report in “Lloyds List”
sole Dassault Falcon 900EX, registration VP-BMS. Crashed on take off at Stanstead. Reported Engine problems. No survivors. It is believed passengers included The Right Honourables David Cameron, William Hague , Lord Ashton etc.

And yes I am being very nasty.

See answers to Prat and Alex as regards why the Tories using an executive jet amounts to hypocrisy, not going to write it again.

Nice little dig about taxpayers money. I do love the myth perpetrated by Tory types that Labour is on some kind of taxpayers junket. Please remind me again which political party in the UK receives the largest amount of money directly from that taxpayer again? No, sorry, that doesn’t fit into your line of argument so I’m sure you’ll ignore that.

You make an interesting point about official HM Opposition business. I would have a little look through the PPERA and their definitions on this one. According to the register of members interests it’s down as a fact finding visit. Now this is of course open to differing interpretations but there is also a section that says that if it to develop party policy or for publicity then such things like flights etc should be declared as party donations, ie to the Electoral Commission.

Although I make no accusation because you could easily interpret the matter one way or the other, some people might question whether taking along a journalist from the Telegraph could amount to publicity for electoral gain and if the journey was not to develop policy then please tell me what he was there for? I don’t see that things have suddenly got better in Darfur since his visit nor what specific role the leader of HM Opposition carries in a constitutional sense by going on such visits.

‘If people like Iain Dale and Guido Fawkes wrote about every trivial adjustment to paperwork few people would read their sites. They would have traffic more like yours.’

Couple of points to this statement. Firstly, you do not know how much traffic goes through my site so you are unqualified to make any statements to that effect. I, unlike certain people am not a self-publicist nor do I blog for the aggrandisement of my own ego or to climb up any slippery poles. It’s my hobby and I enjoy it. I also actually know how to interpret traffic through my site unlike said persons who don’t seem to know the difference between hits, unique visitors or spambots and I’m quite happy with the amount of people who visit my site.

Secondly and I have said this before, more people read the Sun newspaper than all the broadsheets put together so your point is? Those that pander to the lowest common denominator get more readers as I’m sure they do. If the tittle tattle and homophobic comments on Guido’s site are what rocks your boat then feel free to go there, we live in a free society and I’m not forcing you to read my blog.