Jabbing With The Right

‘WHETHER it’s rescuing Blackie the donkey, keeping Germans off our sunbeds or saving the great British conker, newspapers love a campaign.

The Express’s current campaign, which began yesterday, is to get Tony Blair to tell “THE TRUTH” about whether his son Leo had the single MMR vaccine – which has been linked with autism – or three separate jabs.

The front page is determined to get to “THE TRUTH”. “The Queen told the nation that her children had been vaccinated against polio…so why won’t Tony Blair come clean about Leo?” the paper asks.

The Express says the Prime Minister is under “growing pressure” to “come clean” after Dr Laurence Gerlis , billed as a “top Harley Street doctor” and “personal friend” of the Blairs, apparently told one of his female patients he “knew for a fact” Leo had been taken to France for the single jabs. (Even if yesterday Dr Gerlis told the paper he’d heard this alleged fact from another source, and can’t remember who.)

Inside the paper, there’s lots more on what the Express believes is a story of grave importance. “Blair should break his silence over Leo’s jab,” says the paper’s lead article.

Readers hear in another article how Cherie Blair’s half-sister Lauren Booth has spoken publicly about her refusal to give her daughter the single MMR jab.

And then there’s Julie Kirkbride, a Conservative MP, popping up like a rash of measles in two more stories. There’s an entire page given over to Julie (“Labour talks about ‘choice’ all the time but tries to lay down the law on MMR”).

Julie says this is a “vexed issue” that “won’t ever go away” – much like the Express’s obsession with Princess Diana. And she’s soon back on yet another story (“Queen told the nation her children had jabs. Now it’s the PM’s turn”). Julie says what’s good enough for Her Majesty should be more than good enough for the Blairs.

It’s certainly a cause the Express wants to champion, but before you commit to it know that it’s not the only campaign being waged. There’s the Sun’s continuing drive to get its readers to support the Government’s plan to allow terror suspects to be locked up for 90 days without charge.

The paper says a “whopping” 100,000 of its readers have called the papers hotline at 10p a shot to get behind Tony Blair. That’s a lot. The Sun’s Army has been mobilised. Although given the fact that around three million copies of the Sun are sold every day, 100,000 readers doesn’t sound much, especially if you factor in repeat callers and people looking to vote on the X Factor and misdialling. Perhaps the headline should read “Millions don’t back Sun campaign”?

We aren’t told how many readers back the Mail’s “CHRISTMAS KILLJOYS” campaign, just that it’s spotted yet another example of meddling, politically correct do-gooders spoiling the fun.

“Land of Hope and Glory is banned at war pals’ reunion,” says the paper’s headline. The story goes that as 200 evacuees were sat around Union Flag-bedecked tables “to celebrate the comradeship and camaraderie that had bound Britons together during those valiant years” of World War II, the plug was pulled.

Instead of being treated to a blast of Land Of Hope And Glory and There’ll Always Be An England, the Evacuees Reunion Association’s members were left with the sound of dumb silence.

The Warners holiday camp in Corton, new Lowestoft, had heard four songs already, and that was enough. Anxious not to offend other guests, they stopped the party.

“Can’t these people wait until our generation are dead before they take the pride out of the country?” asks association member Fred Taylor.

But with no hotline number to dial to answer Fred’s poser with a “yes” or a “no”, we can only guess…’

Posted: 9th, November 2005 | In: Tabloids Comment | TrackBack | Permalink