Just a word of of thanks to all who have been coming here, site traffic has surged in recent days as we record new record numbers of unique visitors. I assume the BBC and Daily Telegraph links have caused new people to come over and join with us at ATW. Because of the seriousness of affairs here in Northern Ireland, I have deliberately not blogged on other topics. That is not to say I am unaware o...

The press watchdog investigates the Daily Telegraph's use of undercover reporters to record Lib Dem ministers' thoughts on the coalition government.

The Scottish Press awards were a slightly more subdued affair this week. The usual banter between the Daily Record and the Sun curtailed by the fact that no-one from the Record was there. Journalists from the Record and its sister paper, The Sunday Mail, boycotted the event ahead of a three-day strike over jobs cuts. Meanwhile, senior management weren't there either, as they were preparing to...

I think that the newly elected Labour councillor for the Forth ward, one Cammy Day, could have set a new record. That record being for the quickest demanded resignation – the election was on the 6th and there were calls for his resignation yesterday. Under a fortnight! He doesn`t even take his place as a councillor in the city chambers until today. If this isn`t a record it’s a fairly ...

I think that the newly elected Labour councillor for the Forth ward, one Cammy Day, could have set a new record. That record being for the quickest demanded resignation – the election was on the 6th and there were calls for his resignation yesterday. Under a fortnight! He doesn`t even take his place as a councillor in the city chambers until today. If this isn`t a record it’s a fairly ...

In my column in this newspaper last week, www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/p... I predicted that the next U-turn to be staged by the Government would be over ID cards. Things appear to be happening faster than I thought. A Cabinet minister told the Independent, off the record of course, that the Government would have to consider shelving the scheme to save money. www.telegraph.co.uk/news/new...

Nothing to worry about apparently. Just as well. Wouldn't want an august journal of record being hacked in any way that would be disrespectful. This is the paper that had Gordon Brown as guest of honour at their big party this year after all. James Kirkup's article today has an amusing angle: www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/gordon-brown/4961897/Gordon-Brown-is-a-cunt.html

Telegraph View: The Ministry of Defence has been notorious for decades for its shambolic procurement record, while the number of bureaucrats it employs has been a standing joke.

The White House presented its Mid-Session Review of the Fiscal Year 2009 budget today, and with it announced a new record -- a budget deficit of $490 billion. That is quite a record indeed, considering that during the President's first year in office the nation enjoyed a budget surplus of $236 billion. Much was made of record deficits during the Reagan Administration, but the worst of those, in 19...

Telegraph View: Gordon Brown showed that he has learned nothing from Labour's record