Classic Newsnight: Did You Threaten To Overrule Him? (links to Real Player video)

Tom Watson has more on Michael Howard here. It’s worth a read, in case you need your memory jogging about the nasty little man who will be leader of the opposition (but, god help us, hopefully never the country). The man introduced the poll tax and clause 28. He’s pro-war, anti-abortion, against a woman’s right to statutory maternity leave, opposes the Human Rights Act…

“AND – remember Michael Howard sat through 14 years of Tory Government (from his election in 1983) loyally voting to privatise the railways, water, electricity and gas, sell off School Playing Fields, cut benefits, install the internal market into the NHS, run down public services and destroy local democracy not to mention presiding over the worst recession for decades, the spectacular failures over economic policy starting with Sterling’s ejection from the ERM and the spectre of negative equity… And in opposition this is the man who has voted against the London Mayor, National Minimum Wage, the New Deal, against devolution to Scotland and Wales, against all of Labour’s budgets and against paid holidays for all workers, full time rights for all workers and the vast majority of all the Government’s achievements over the last 6 years.”

Oh, and he also said last year that he’d never stand for Tory leader again.