Liam Fox

[Pondlife]

It's in the mash

Meanwhile, as Labour MPs said the controversy exposed typical Tory attitudes to government, Peter Mandelson perused the latest instalment of Dr Fox's troubles, mumbled 'fu<king amateur' and then checked his appointments diary.

[PAH]

the defence secretary is gay

That was my first thought too when hearing how many times they'd met up on foreign trips.

Then newsnight disclosed what the pair were doing for day jobs at the time, and I found it more than coincidence that whenever Fox changed government roles, his best man was running a company that mirrored that role, thus potentially profitting from Fox's knowledge and power.

The equivalent of inside trading?

Maybe the pair will be glad if the media go for the gay slander route if they were up to some naughtier less legal business.

[EternalOptimist]

You cant blame Grayling for his stance, but labour are pure hypocrites. First they banned fox hunting, now they are in a pack bloodthirsty for the kill

[Zoiderman]

Is this guy subtly sticking the knife in?



Either way, it sounds like he's finished to me, at least for now. Maybe he'll pop up again later on but there is too much of a kerfuffle for him to stick around at the moment, IMO.

I think his 'best man' will be appearing with his own article in the sun soon, once he reads the news today that when Fox was burgled, he had another man with him, that Fox was keen to make clear wasn't his 'best man'...

[doodab]

Is this guy subtly sticking the knife in?

Employment Minister Chris Grayling acknowledged that "the gossip is certainly circulating" but stressed that Mr Fox and his wife had always appeared to him "a very happily married couple".

Asked about rumours that the defence secretary is gay - described by Mr Fox himself as "smears" in a 2005 interview - Mr Grayling said: "If you look around the Westminster village you will find all kinds of wild gossip about all kinds of individuals in all parties. That doesn't mean they are not good at their jobs.

"I've known Liam for many years, I've known Liam and his wife, they've always struck me as being a very happily married couple. The reality is that the gossip is certainly circulating.

"I thought we had got past the point in politics though where we needed to worry about people's private lives. The question is, is somebody doing an important and capable job."

He added: "I've not seen anything emerge in any of this that would give me rise to believe that Liam has done anything substantially wrong or would call his position into question."

Either way, it sounds like he's finished to me, at least for now. Maybe he'll pop up again later on but there is too much of a kerfuffle for him to stick around at the moment, IMO.