George Osborne 'forced to pay £160 first class train upgrade'

ethan · 20 Oct 2012 at 00:19

Tunney said:
You'd think the person looking after our money would be a bit more prudent and buy their 1st class ticket for cheaper in advance.

Perhaps it was thought more prudent to cheat?

Tummy · 20 Oct 2012 at 00:26

Can't be travelling with those commoners now can we?

Danthus · 20 Oct 2012 at 03:13

Labour will milk this because it means that people will not be talking about how various members of the shadow cabinet have been coining it in, all within the rules of course.

Energize · 20 Oct 2012 at 03:13

This story is indeed disgraceful, £190 to upgrade to a first class train ticket. Have Virgin hired Gordon Ramsey to personally cook the meals in first class now?

Pestilence · 20 Oct 2012 at 03:25

Energize said:
This story is indeed disgraceful, £190 to upgrade to a first class train ticket. Have Virgin hired Gordon Ramsey to personally cook the meals in first class now?

Nope, Gary Rhodes. For shame!

StriderX · 20 Oct 2012 at 04:42

Energize said:
This story is indeed disgraceful, £190 to upgrade to a first class train ticket. Have Virgin hired Gordon Ramsey to personally cook the meals in first class now?

Would that require another train to bring in the food from his warehouses?

regulus · 20 Oct 2012 at 06:54

Judgeneo said:
This is easily the most exciting piece of news I've heard all day

Totally. According to the BBC article this ITV nobody who 'broke' this event had it down as 'breaking news'. Pulitzer is as good as hers.

regulus · 20 Oct 2012 at 06:55

'Harry said:
Haha they drama that a lame story creates. One is amused.

This is the drivel people seem to be fascinated with. Go figure.

robgmun · 20 Oct 2012 at 07:52

A Virgin Trains spokesman said that the Chancellor's aide found the train manager as soon as the train left Wilmslow station near Manchester "to explain the situation and arrange to pay for an upgrade".
They added: "It was agreed that the Chancellor would remain in first class and an amount of £189.50 was paid by the aide to cover the upgrade for Mr Osborne and his PA.
"The situation was dealt with amicably between the train manager and George Osborne's aide. "At no time was there a disagreement or a refusal to pay for the upgrade. Nor was there any discussion between the train manager and Mr Osborne."

So this now raises the question, Why did ITV reporter Rachel Townsend feel like she needed to tell a barefaced lie on Twitter? Personally i think more of a fuss should be made of the reporter totally getting her facts wrong for the story, just so to embarrass her into never making stuff up again!

regulus · 20 Oct 2012 at 08:05

robgmun said:
So this now raises the question, Why did ITV reporter Rachel Townsend feel like she needed to tell a barefaced lie on Twitter? Personally i think more of a fuss should be made of the reporter totally getting her facts wrong for the story, just so to embarrass her into never making stuff up again!

Reporters sell stories, they hardly report any more. She knew full well that her version will be lapped up in anger by whoever is interest in this particular event.

I don't know how twitter work but if there's a way to message her, it might be a good laugh calling her out. Or ask ITV directly whether her low standards are representative of ITV as a whole.

Locky · 20 Oct 2012 at 08:19

Reporter telling lies shocker, who would have thought?

kitch9 · 20 Oct 2012 at 08:24

StriderX said:
Would that require another train to bring in the food from his warehouses?

That was another annoying non story.... He is the chef, not the journalist. How can a journalist criticise his methods, especially if his customers are happy?

High end chefs cook stuff slowly in bags all over the world as it makes the most flavourful food. Who cares how it was distributed?

robgmun · 20 Oct 2012 at 08:25

Locky said:
Reporter telling lies shocker, who would have thought?

If they want to be taken seriously then they should just as accountable for their lies just as much as the politicians are.

kitch9 · 20 Oct 2012 at 08:27

robgmun said:
So this now raises the question, Why did ITV reporter Rachel Townsend feel like she needed to tell a barefaced lie on Twitter? Personally i think more of a fuss should be made of the reporter totally getting her facts wrong for the story, just so to embarrass her into never making stuff up again!

She was squirming in the TV news report, you could see she wasn't over confident with her supposed scoop.

robgmun · 20 Oct 2012 at 08:34

kitch9 said:
She was squirming in the TV news report, you could see she wasn't over confident with her supposed scoop.

Oh link me up please! I want to see that!

Locky · 20 Oct 2012 at 08:40

robgmun said:
If they want to be taken seriously then they should just as accountable for their lies just as much as the politicians are.

Thing is, the truth doesn't sell papers and get votes.

kitch9 · 20 Oct 2012 at 11:23

robgmun said:
Oh link me up please! I want to see that!

It was on last nights Calendar, you could tell she was trying to create a story where there wasn't one.

"Admittedly, standard was full, BUT, there was the odd seat.... George could have sat next to me for instance!" was one of the more cringe worthy lines she came out with..... I think it actually went further than she intended, what was meant to be a light hearted story has turned into an overblown scandal grabbed onto by lefty headbangers and somehow got dragged into the plebs thing.

She's going to be dragged under a microscope if proven to be lying, it looked like she was aware of that last night, and it appears to be already happening.

Biohazard · 20 Oct 2012 at 11:25

kitch9 said:
It was on last nights Calendar, you could tell she was trying to create a story where there wasn't one.

"Admittedly, standard was full, BUT, there was the odd seat.... George could have sat next to me for instance!" was one of the more cringe worthy lines.....

He could have.

Watching this conservative Government lurch from one disaster to another, unabated, has made for an interesting year or two.

kitch9 · 20 Oct 2012 at 11:53

Biohazard said:
He could have.

Watching this conservative Government lurch from one disaster to another, unabated, has made for an interesting year or two.

He could have yes, but then he would be criticised for trying to run the countries finances on the back of a fag packet, because that's all the room he would have had.

The last government lurched into one of the biggest financial disasters we've ever seen whilst banging the despatch box shouting "The end of boom and bust!"

That and the £500 billion or so it cost us appears to be no longer important, a £160 train ticket and a lying journalists story is.

Awesome.

Biohazard · 20 Oct 2012 at 11:55

Scotsman said:
CHANCELLOR George Osborne has been forced to pay a £160 train ticket upgrade after sitting in first class with only a standard ticket.

He boarded the train at Wilmslow, Cheshire, to travel to London Euston with his special advisers yesterday.

Virgin Trains confirmed the Chancellor’s political aide had initially refused to pay the £160 supplement on his behalf, telling the ticket collector Mr Osborne did not want to move into standard class. It is believed the adviser agreed to pay after a second request.

A Metropolitan Police officer was reported to have told the train manager in advance that Mr Osborne did not have the right ticket.

The Chancellor did not comment on arrival at Euston.

The stand-off was observed by TV reporter Rachel Townsend, who was on the train and tweeted: “Very interesting train journey to Euston Chancellor George Osborne just got on at Wilmslow with a STANDARD ticket and he has sat in FIRST CLASS.”

Ms Townsend said later: “George Osborne got on the train with aides at Wilmslow and went straight to first class. Then his aide approached the ticket collector right next to me. He said he is travelling with George and he has a standard ticket but can he remain in first class? The guard said no.

“The aide said Osborne couldn’t possibly sit in standard class. The guard replied saying if he wants to stay, it’s £160.”

Virgin Trains spokesman Jim Rowe said Mr Osborne had been treated like any other passenger.

Shadow cabinet office minister Michael Dugher said: “Just like Andrew Mitchell, George Osborne obviously thinks it’s one rule for him and another for the plebs he’s so keen to sit apart from. So much for ‘we’re all in it together’.”

It was not Mr Osborne’s first indiscretion. He was caught claiming a £440.62 bill from taxpayers for a 200-mile car journey from Cheshire to London in November 2005.

One would surely not sit down in the same seats as the plebs afterall...