18th March, 2010, 8:12 am BBC: Hague knew about Ashcroft tax status in 2000 – 8 in the morning, March 18th Alex Smith Share this article: By Alex Smith / @alexsmith1982 * BBC alleges William Hague knew about Lord Ashcroft’s tax status in 2000, much earlier than previously claimed. * After another day of Tory attacks on Charlie Whelan, the Guardian plays down his “informal” role, saying “it is away from No 10 where his presence is felt most.” * Evoking the pager system introduced by New Labour in the mid-nineties, Conservative candidates will be kepy on message with new iPhone and BlackBerry applications. * Tensions between speaker John Bercow and Conservative MPs escalate. * The Fabians’ Stuart White questions Labour activists’ confidence in the government’s policy on retention of DNA samples. * George Osborne risks repeating John Smith’s mistakes of 1992 in next week’s budget, argues the Times’ Anatole Kaletsky. * Nadine Dorries is involved in a plot to damage Esther Rantzen’s election campaign in Luton South, reports the Telegraph. * The Conservatives drop a point in the latest YouGov poll, bringing the gap with Labour to four percent. Alex Smith Alex is the founder and CEO of The Cares Family. He was editor and first director of LabourList in 2009-2010, during which time he established the site as the number one Labour blog, and later an aide to Ed Miliband. @alexsmith1982 View all articles by Alex Smith Subscribe to our daily email More from LabourList Comment ‘Young people are doing everything right – so why are we shutting them out?’ When we talk about opportunity, we often focus on education, employment and housing. But in my Westminster Hall… Josh Dean MP 30th October, 2026, 2:31 pm Analysis WATCH: Expert economist MP reacts to Budget 2026 Who is the perfect guest to help the LabourList team dissect the politics and economics of the budget?… LabourList Staff 30th October, 2026, 1:05 pm News Labour members back Budget but split over Rosebank, exclusive poll reveals Labour members widely endorse the government’s Budget measures, but are divided on approving development of the Rosebank oil… Daniel Green 30th October, 2026, 6:00 am
Alex Smith Alex is the founder and CEO of The Cares Family. He was editor and first director of LabourList in 2009-2010, during which time he established the site as the number one Labour blog, and later an aide to Ed Miliband. @alexsmith1982 View all articles by Alex Smith
Comment ‘Young people are doing everything right – so why are we shutting them out?’ When we talk about opportunity, we often focus on education, employment and housing. But in my Westminster Hall… Josh Dean MP 30th October, 2026, 2:31 pm
Analysis WATCH: Expert economist MP reacts to Budget 2026 Who is the perfect guest to help the LabourList team dissect the politics and economics of the budget?… LabourList Staff 30th October, 2026, 1:05 pm
News Labour members back Budget but split over Rosebank, exclusive poll reveals Labour members widely endorse the government’s Budget measures, but are divided on approving development of the Rosebank oil… Daniel Green 30th October, 2026, 6:00 am
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