The political week on Twitter
By Phil ScullionFollow @PhilScullion
The week's best political tweets in one handy location.
Travellers at Dale Farm earned a brief reprieve as the decision on their eviction was postponed by an injunction:
@unslugged – For all those calling #dalefarm residents "criminals" – planning law is civil, not criminal law. Your prejudice is exposing your ignorance.
@duckmangler – So #DaleFarm gets a reprieve until Friday? Bad news for the protesters who now have to spend 5 days with their arms encased in concrete.
@fieldproducer – Pouring superglue in that bike chain lock probably doesn't seem such a good idea now the residents have got a reprieve till Friday #Dalefarm
@Hylandlan – The #dalefarm residents have won an injunction until Friday? They could have a theme park up by then.
@mydaydemons – #DaleFarm this is a joke on British law. I'm going to buy a field and build on it. No rent or mortgage sounds good to me. Precedent set.
@owls_4life – Funny how #dalefarm people & protesters want everyone to abide by the court when it rules in their favour but not when it doesn't. #ukfarce
The Liberal Democrat party conference dominated the political airwaves and Twitter:
@johnprescott – I'm sick of listening to talentless, attention-seeking wannabes. So I'm turning over to #xfactor #LDConf
@LouiseMensch – joke variant from Lindsay Moody on my FB: "Why did the LibDem cross the road? To reach the other fence." #ldconf
@nickjbarlow – Is #ldconf having a debate about being in favour of good things and against nasty things? Because that's how it sounds from my timeline
@CllrGarethKane – The press keeps trying to catch MPs off message at #ldconf. But we're always off-message, that's what we're all about!
@pete_boyle – Ed Davey tells Lib Dems to campaign on their record – The record of supporting NHS privatisation, Trebbling fees, raise VAT etc #LDConf
@_Jock – So that's the end of #ldconf. A few days of Lib Dem's telling us how they're not Tories before going home to enact Tory policies.
Embattled energy secretary Chris Huhne's appearances were a particular highlight:
@DThompsonYork – Chris Huhne wants to drive us all to being wiser energy consumers. Oops, sorry – to passenger us all to being better energy consumers.
@MarcNykolszyn – Has anyone ever taken a picture of Chris Huhne without a ridiculous facial expression?
@JamesWorron – Statistically this satellite is most likely to land on Chris Huhne's ego.
@NickMotown – Seeing Chris Huhne repeat "we're all in this together" while terminal patients were informed of benefit cuts was a special treat yesterday.
@ZombieW00F – Chris Huhne – "Public too lazy to change energy suppliers" ; hopefully too lazy to have affairs and force others to take our penalty points?
@GNdhlovu – Chris Huhne is dreaming. When you swap energy companies to a supposedly cheaper one, it also hikes its tariff. It's a lose-lose situation.
Children and families minister Sarah Teather's put in a less than convincing attempt at comedy during her Liberal Democrat conference speech:
@nok32uk – When's Sarah Teather on Live at the Apollo? I must get tickets… #bbctw
@superfurryandy – I'll give Sarah Teather this, she's funnier than Michael McIntyre… #BBCTW
@MONeil1974 – Oh, Sarah Teather. Still embarassed for you.
@ToryShorty – Ahmadinejad clearing the UN building faster than sarah teather at the Lib Dem conference
Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg was unsurprisingly Twitter's main focus throughout the conference:
@AaronPorter – Clegg: "we can tell people until we're blue in the face". Most people think you aren't just blue in the face Mr Clegg. #ldconf
@ncguk – For those not watching, Nick Clegg is just standing on stage screaming "Did you see what I did? Look what I did! I ruined everything!"
@sixthformpoet – Nick Clegg says everything in the unconvincing tone dads use to tell their kids the fox lying splattered by the road is "just having a nap".
@AaronWood1986 – There is no doubt Nick Clegg can talk well but the truth of a good leader is putting his ideas into action and he hasn't done that. #Failure
@jayneylee74 – Blimey, Nick Clegg throwing everything into his speech! So far quoted, Churchill, self belief, freedom, women, children, kitchen sink….
@tompeck1000 – Not bad from Nick Clegg, but hard to ignore that Wham is trending and he isn't.
@chrisjenkinson – Top quality speech from Nick Clegg – so passionate about an equal start in life for all children #ldconf
@grimreaperblog – Nick Clegg: "Kids, here's £50million. Spend it any way you want, but please, don't riot. Please". #LDconf
@catherine_mayer – Nothing brings out cynicism like a well-crafted, nicely-delivered, thoroughly decent leader's speech
@AdamBienkov – Clegg makes cast-iron pledge to keep the Human Rights Act. That's that doomed then #ldconf
This week's BBC Question Time featured the quick wit of Have I Got News For You stalwart Ian Hislop pitted against newly elected Conservative MP Priti Patel:
@erbins – Ian Hislop for Prime Minister? He speaks directly and truthfully with humour, unlike any politician on earth. #bbcqt
@Trudski2012 – Priti Patel is a poor stand in captain for Paul Merton #bbcqt
@richsimcox – #bbcqt summary: Priti Patel supports death penalty cos it's a deterrent to innocent people to not commit crimes they didn't do #pritivacant
@iainsmith – "Capital punishment is not a deterrent if you kill innocent people." Ian Hislop
@caitlinmoran – Well, I'm 36, I've never heard a logical case for capital punishment before, and Priti Patel has again failed again to provide one #bbcqt
@WandaOpalinska – I love Chris Morris's new spoof #bbcqt show *Love* the Priti Patel character: 'Capital punishment is a deterent. They won't do it again.'
@rpelley – #bbcqt The reoffending rate for criminals who have been executed is acceptably low.
@eggynewydd – I love Ian Hislop. It is so important that people like him exist, still practising real journalism, exposing hypocrisy. #bbcqt
@KerronCross – See how many times Priti Patel says "This is a fact…" and then follows it with something which isn't a fact. #bbcqt
@RopesToInfinity – Priti Patel looks like the sort of person everyone would hate on The Apprentice #bbcqt
@TheCurlyLucy – Has anyone done the "Priti Vacant" joke, yet? #bbcqt
@Saggydaddy – Fully support Priti Patels right to say whatever she wants. If she didn't I wouldn't have laughed so much at #bbcqt"
@edward_quigley – actually, my lyric should have been sung during #bbcqt "hey you with the Priti face, welcome to the human race"
@blairmcdougall – Good grief Priti Patel is like someone totally out of their depth in a dinner party conversation about politics.
@martin_oneill – Priti Patel: the self-presentation of an Apprentice semi-finalist, with the mind & soul of a sclerotic golf club bore #bbqt
@PeatWorrier – Why does Priti Patel answer every question as if she is being interrogated by a skeptical toddler? "I believe this, I really do…" #bbcqt
@Gary_Bainbridge – Do not spend more than you have. Good advice. *buys £257 house* #bbcqt
@Fraz86 – Did everyone see the man with the blatant toupee on #bbcqt last night? I enjoyed that bit almost as much as Priti Patel's ridiculousness
@oliverchalliner – "man in the blue shirt" "woman in the yellow blouse" "that man there with the preposterous WIG!" #bbcqt
@davesusetty – That guy must be a Whig. #bbcqt (correct hashtag this time)
Potential Eurozone collapse was met with trademark detached bemusement on Twitter:
@colmtobin – The Eurozone is a lot like Eastenders. Lots of people stuck together who shouldn't be. And somebody always gets murdered before Christmas.
@philip_waller – How arrogant of Cameron to lecture Europe on how to mend the eurozone when dogmatic Tory policies plunge the UK into the economic abyss #in
@VeryBritishDude – Dear Eurozone, We told you so. Sincerely, a Euroskeptic.
@crunchychi – I remember 10 years ago in my GCSE's I learnt the pro's and con's of a #Eurozone, 10 years on the #sceptics are right #fail
