BLACK DOG: Suave de Bois turns to de Booz

By BLACK DOG FOR THE MAIL ON SUNDAY

Published: | Updated:

No Tory is prouder of his reputation as a Brussels-bashing Eurosceptic than suave Enfield North MP Nick de Bois,  who decided to get to the bottom of  treasured family folklore that they are descended from fine upstanding French Huguenot Protestants.

But sacre bleu, he discovered the family’s original name is the less than flattering de Booz. Worse, they come from Belgium. 'I wish I hadn’t bothered,' says Nick.

Brussels-bashing Eurosceptic Nick de Bois has discovered his family are originally from Belgium

Brussels-bashing Eurosceptic Nick de Bois has discovered his family are originally from Belgium

 

Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls swallowed his disdain for the super-rich to accept the invitation of Fulham FC – owned by Pakistani-born billionaire Shad Khan – to be a guest of chief executive Alastair Mackintosh at last week’s FA Cup match against Balls’s Norwich City.

Norwich lost 3-0, a soccer version of the 'triple dip' disaster Balls wrongly predicted for the economy. His standing among Labour MPs is so low, some would happily give shambolic Ed’s job to swashbuckling Shad. No prospect of a dip in his fortunes.

 

Mistaken identity for 'Vladimir' Marr

Andrew Marr was once dashing through the Kremlin, en route to interview a Russian politician, when he noticed that the guards all stood to attention and clicked their heels as he passed.

Briefly flattered, the rouble then dropped – they thought he was Vladimir Putin. Now the BBC man has met his doppelganger for an interview aired today: Marr is on the left...

Resemblance: Andrew Marr was once mistaken for Russian President Vladimir Putin by guards at the Kremlin

Resemblance: Andrew Marr was once mistaken for Russian President Vladimir Putin by guards at the Kremlin

 

Silly Southend MP David Amess emailed nearly 300 Tory colleagues, urging them to back Penny Mordaunt before her appearance in last night’s Splash! celebrity diving show on ITV.

He said their support was vital to counter the public’s loathing of their elected representatives. ‘As a politician, she could be on a hiding to nothing,’ says Shameless Amess. ‘I hope that as many of us as possible will vote for her.’ Dog would hate to see an MP accused of vote-rigging.

 

Shriti puts party first

Gordon Brown’s feisty crony,  ex-Labour Minister Shriti ‘The Shriek’ Vadera, was renowned for throwing boozy all-night parties for Brown’s motley crew of No 10 apparatchiks at her swanky home in London’s Holland Park.

Now she is performing a similar favour for Ed Miliband, who worked with her when Brown was Chancellor. He declares  a £4,402 donation by Baroness Vadera for bankrolling a party bash in December.





 

  • Randy moths infesting Commons wardrobes are being tackled with a new hormone treatment which makes the male insects uninterested in the opposite sex. ‘Maybe the French should spray some over President Hollande,’ smirks one MP.
  • It’s back to school for Westminster officials in charge of the TV screens that alert MPs to debates. Last week, they flashed up a message declaring that a Commons group was to discuss ‘dislexia’.

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