Fears for Barbary Ape after it offers Romford MP a sound bite

according to the Mirror and the Sun there are grave fears for the health of a Barbary ape (actually a Macacque and therefore a monkey and not an ape) after Romford MP Andrew Rosindell (actually a tunicate and therefore not an Homo sapiens)

Apparently Rosindell wandered too close to one of Gibraltar's famous monkeys as she nursed her baby. The monkey gave him a clear sign he wasn't welcome but Romford’s least wanted did not take the hint and was bitten. "It firstly tugged at my sleeve to say clear off. Then about 10 seconds later it went for me. It bit me on my left arm. There was a lot of blood, it was quite bad” said Rosindell.

The shaken monkey was rushed to hospital where it was tested for rabies, BSE, Scrapie and the Marthambles. In a statement vetinarian Maria Bossino stated “Visiting British MPs are a major threat to the Barbary ape population. In the last three years there have been 27 cases of apes succumbing to psychosis and delusions of adequacy after biting MPs. Mr Rosindell, a frequent visitor to Gibraltar, has been viewed as a particular risk to the colony.”

Perhaps next time Rosindell will have the wit not to go near a nursing monkey or at least heed its warnings but then again, perhaps not.

Agreeing with Galloway and Rosindell

Like many other deep line tube stations Bethnal Green was used as an air raid shelter by many East enders. Although the Blitz had subsided by 1943 (and the V-1 and V-2 attacks were a year into the future) the station was the site of an incident that saw the death of over 170 civilians. At 8:17 pm on 3 March 1943 an air-raid warning sounded, causing an orderly flow of people down into the station’s booking office. Ten minutes later an anti-aircraft battery at Victoria Park a few hundred yards away launched a salvo new anti aircraft rockets. The weapon was secret, and the unfamiliar explosion caused a panic. As the crowd surged forward towards the shelter, a woman, possibly carrying a baby, tripped on the stairs, causing many others to fall. Within a few seconds 300 people were crushed into the tiny stairwell. 173 people were dead at the scene, with one more dying in hospital later; 62 of the dead were children. It is believed that this was the greatest loss of civilian life through any single incident in Britain during WWII

It was not until 50 years after the disaster that a discreet commemorative plaque was erected at the site; survivors want a more permanent memorial. Andrew Rosindell has tabled a Commons motion to support the campaign. The motion has been backed by nine other MPs. Last year George Galloway introduced a similar early day motion which attracted the support of 37 MPs.

Both readers of the Poor Mouth will probably realise I have little time for either Gorgon George or Poltroon Rosindell but credit where credit is due.I wish his EDM had received more support.