The difference between Gordon Brown and David Cameron's spin doctors.

Gordon Brown employed a spin-doctor who spread vicious personal attacks, a few true, mostly horrible lies, about his boss's political opponents. Initially mostly about Gordo's opponents within the Labour party, although ironically McBride was caught when Guido Fawkes discovered he was planning to do the same thing to prominent Conservative politicians and their wives.

David Cameron employed a spin-doctor about whose conduct in that job there has not been one word of complaint, but has now been convicted of offences committed during his previous job.

David Cameron gave a full and complete apology for employing Andy Coulson yesterday wtihin about an hour of the court verdict.

Gordon Brown took five days to apologise for what Damian McBride did while working for him. And the present leadership of the Labour party were close colleagues of Gordon Brown at the time when McBride was his "enforcer."

All parties need to learn lessons from the toxic culture of spin and unhealthy relationships between politics and the media, starting with the need for a degree of humility. All parties also need to beware of self-righteous hypocrisy.

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