We hacks love an old-style political scrabble... Labour knocking Tories down, Tories tripping Labour up, Lib Dems coming in from behind with a cosh to the head. But at times, on subjects of major import to local readers, we just have to rise above this temptation to make our politicians appear chaotic and sniping. Take the New Street Station story. Labour government agree on first stage grant, but fire a number of hardly-shrouded messages suggesting that the full grants won't come unless the Tory-Lib Dem coalition at Birmingham City Council sorts out its leadership, its value-for-money proofing and its private investment strategy. The Tory-Lib Dem coalition's first response is shock, horror and offence that anyone would think they haven't got everything right. It's all there if you concentrate and read our submission properly, they seem to say.
A dream for a newspaper? 'National government and local council lock horns over New Street station' or 'New Street chaos after politicians fall out'. Easy headlines.
But wrong. Through the mist at these times a newspaper has to almost bang heads together itself, insist that answers to questions, however invalid it is felt they are, are given. 'New Street will happen leaders promise' is the line we are working on this very minute...