It's A Scandal!

Yesterday we saw a fine example of the dire state of British journalism and politics. There was this scandal at PMQs, doncha know. Well, actually there wasn't; merely the lamest and most laughable smear story since the summer of 2013.

The Mirror brought us this earth-shattering news, you see.

A Tory MP heaped praise on the e-cigarette industry at PMQs today - but didn't mention he'd been treated to a lavish day out by a global vaping giant. 

Conservative Mark Pawsey enjoyed more than £1,600 worth of hospitality at a Rugby World Cup match in September, with Japan Tobacco International (JTI) picking up the tab.

And guess what? David Cameron then cited evidence from a government-funded organisation stating that e-cigs are massively less harmful than smoking, before picking up ASH's statistic of over a million quitters having done so by using e-cigs, and finally delivering his view that e-cigs "are a very legitimate path for many people to improve their health and the health of the nation".

Shocking, isn't it? It's quite clear what happened here I think. While at the rugby, Pawsey was obviously distracted while some evil Big Tobacco kid-killer implanted a solution which turned him into a walking hypno-weapon. 

Hypno-Pawsey, pictured yesterday

One look from Pawsey and the UK's Prime Minister was reduced to a quivering wreck, fit only to endorse a product which is entirely useful, has helped millions of people at no cost to the state, and he did so with nothing but a wealth of solid untarnished evidence to back it up.  

It's a national scandal, I tell ya! Those JTI bastards!

Except for a few things. In September, did you say?

The Rugby MP has become a strong advocate for the e-cigarette industry within Parliament in recent years. In November 2014 he set up an All Party Parliamentary Group on e-cigarettes.

Oh I see, so he's been a firm advocate of e-cigs well before this rugby match in September, then (which he had already declared since that's how the cartoon Mirror hack knew about it)? So couldn't possibly be swayed in favour of e-cigs by one day out? Fancy that!

And this "global vaping giant", are they really talking about JTI? The same JTI who only recently entered the e-cig market after buying E-Lites by way of catch-up, and who would happily admit that they are country miles behind the curve when it comes to effective vaping products. The same JTI who only make cigalikes and whose investment in the e-cig market probably makes up around 0.5% of their total business. The same JTI who would probably breathe a massive sigh of relief if e-cigs were banned tomorrow since their rivals are streets ahead of them and they're struggling not to become another Kodak or Nokia with the advent of the new emphasis on tobacco harm reduction? That JTI?

Therefore, what they did to fix this - apparently - was to give Mark Pawsey a day out at the rugby so that he could go to PMQs, ask a question, and get the PM to legitimise something which threatens just about every incredibly lucrative tobacco product which comprises JTI's core business. All over the world. 

Yes, that kind of "global vaping giant"!

The guy who wrote the Mirror article is quite obviously an unrepentant moon-howling tool who shat the bed on this story, but the reaction of a vacuous Labour MP is even worse!

Labour's Anna Turley MP said: “Mark Pawsey needs to explain why he chose not to declare these relevant interests when asking his question. 

"Parliament urgently needs to rebuild trust with the public and incidents like this make that job all the more difficult.”

No, you female humanoid-shaped toothache, what the public are sick and tired of is politicians playing their childish games in parliament and beyond while forgetting they are there to serve our interests. Here we have an entire article dedicated to political mud-slinging over a Conservative MP who is earnestly trying to make a serious point - about smoking which the left despise, no less - while a lefty MP focusses on whether he ticked the right box instead of commenting on the very real and important issue being discussed. 

It seems that trying to get an opposing MP censured and smearing industry is far more important to Labour and the Mirror than actually indulging in adult debate about an emerging technology which is proving beneficial to millions of people. Most people grew out of that kind of puerile nonsense around about college age, but then others are just too immature to cope with sensible grown-up stuff. 

It's just sad so many of them are in Westminster and writing wibble in online media sites. Now that is what I'd call a scandal.

Pic courtesy of Ordinary Morning