Paddy the hypocrit. Like Farage his private persona differs hugely from his public image

Lib Dems have a long history of rank hypocrisy. At the 2010 election Clegg,then the Lib Dem leader,  was signing pledges for students in front of TV cameras saying he would not support putting up student tuition fees . Two weeks later, with his feet safely under the Cabinet table, Clegg was part of a government putting up tuition fees. Students should remember this is  what LibDems mean when they pledge to support young people, just long enough to get their vote and get LibDems in the back of the chauffeur driven ministerial limo. The LibDems cynically thought come the 2015 the students would have forgotten this betrayal. The had not and in the South West rightly wiped the yellow stain of LibDummery off the political map of the South West even in Yeovil Paddy's old seat.

Paddy is my village neighbour and is now getting very tetchy.He accused me of writing up private conversations (with him presumably) in this blog.  I have not. Other than pleasantries when I bump into him outside the pub the only significant conversation I have ever had wth him was in front of around 100 people in the village hall during the referendum campaign  so hardly a private.conversation

When he accosted me on this topic last Saturday evening it was not a conversation but a long rant from Paddy on what a bad boy I had been. He did not do me the courtesy of waiting to hear my answer but turned his back on me in best Royal Marine parade ground style and stormed off up his neighbours drive before I could answer so no conversation there either.  He is quite simply a bully.

Some months after the referendum I had to endure a similar rant from his son witnessed by Paddy and Jane saying I had robbed his children of their rights and I was also  responsible for Trump beinng elected US president so no conversation there either. Both allegations were patent rubbish but neither Paddy or Jane saw fit to correct their son.

He seems to think politics is something that happens in London in that lavishly funded government care home that is the House of Lords and not in Norton Sub Hamdon and ordinary mortals like me should defer to these Lords and Baronesses. He wants to  bully me  about what I write in this blog. Sorry Paddy this Jock is not for being bullied!  I thought it was time for me to take a look at the history of Paddy and how he got the sobriquet Pantsdown.

But let us start in the early hours of 24th June 2016 with Paddy being interviewed by Julie Etchingham for ITN

https://youtu.be/-Bv_1z2lFlw

Listen to his fine words. He is now doing all he can .with his unelected Lib Dem Lords and Ladies, to sabotage Brexit and thwart the will of our democratically elected House of Commons.. That is why I call him a hypocrit.

Let us dig a little deeper into his history. The most accessible account is in the Daily Mail and you can read it on the link below:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1363112/Paddy-Ashdowns-mistress-behaved-like-real-trouper--threw-dogs.html

It is written by former  Lib Dem president and founder of Shelter, Des Wilson and is well worth reading. The lady, one Tricia Howard, comes out of it well,  and is reported as rejecting an offer of £50000 by the News of the World for her kiss and tell story. A consderable sum in those days probably sufficienr to buy her a flat in London.

The piece is headlined:

His mistress behaved like a real trouper... but he threw her to the dogs: 

I quote from Des Wilson's piece

"I ( Des Wilson) was, therefore, angered by a reference to her in a leader in The Times, which commented harshly that she had not appeared averse to publicity. This was outrageous. I spoke to Ashdown about it.
'Someone should write to The Times and defend her,' I said. 'At the least they should be told she acted on our advice and that she rejected £50,000.'
He looked at me, then said: 'Well, I'm not going to do it.'
I could not but feel that Tricia Howard had been thrown to the dogs. I wrote a brief letter to The Times which, to its credit, it published at the top of the letters page the following day."

Neither Paddy or Jane come well out of the whole business.





Jane is reported as decribing Tricia in unflattering terms. I never knew Tricia but from that photograph she looks just an ordinary decent woman.


I believe Paddy wrote of the affair in his diaries which I cannot recommend buying. The extract below was published in the Belfast Telegraph, 13th Nov, 2000

Paddy Ashdown wrote about his ex-mistress Tricia Howard in his recently published diaries, so ineviitably she has retaliated with her own damning account of their affair.

Ensuring that he will now be known as Paddy Pantsdown (But Not For Long), she delivers a withering version of their hasty sex life: "He was at my house and my son went out to walk his girlfriend home. We said: "Quick, here's our chance" and wondered how quickly we could do it. We timed it and it lasted nine-and-a-half seconds. For him, anyway."

So with this sort of stuff  in the public domain what is Paddy's gripe about what I write in this blog? Its just typical Lib Dem hypocrisy but I am shocked at what I found out researching this piece about Paddy.

But this is all history. On 5th May we go to the polls in local elections. Many people think of the Lib Dems as a party of integrity. They are wrong. I was in UKIP for a three or so years where I got to know Nigel Farage and his supporters. Nigel also had a few stories printed about his adventures with the ladies. I see no difference between UKIP and the Lib Dems. it may be all political parties are the same at the top. Just don't be conned by the Lib Dem's high moral tone. They are no different from any other political party and will say anything to get your vote so don't give it to them. Vote for any independent candidate standing in your ward.