The Liberal Democrats today [Monday] called on the Government not to use the wall-to-wall media coverage of Barack Obama’s inauguration on January 20 to release all of its ‘bad news’ stories. In a letter written to the Minster for the Cabinet Office, Liberal Democrat Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, Jenny Willott called on the Government to ensure that there was no repeat performance of the ‘good day to bury bad news’ memo sent by a Government spin doctor on September 11 2001.
Commenting, Jenny Willott said: "The media mania over Barack Obama’s inauguration must not be used as a smokescreen for the Government to hide its bad news stories.
"This Government has got into the cynical habit of taking out its political trash on the busiest media days. The appalling ‘good day to bury bad news’ memo sent on September 11th is an extreme but illuminating example.
"This strategy erodes public faith in the transparency and honesty of our democracy.
"The public have the right to expect their Government to be open and honest about its failures as well as its successes. The Government should start to repair the damage done by its handling of bad news in the past by ensuring that Obama’s inauguration is treated like any other media day."
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