Nadine Dorries Smears Critic as “Stalker”, then Expresses Mirth at “Nutter” Jibe

Nadine Dorries MP, in May:

MP Nadine Dorries has taken her blog down and closed her Twitter account claiming she has been advised to do so by the police.

Ms Dorries… says she has been having “problems” with political blogger Tim Ireland.

Ms Dorries said: “I have been in consultation regarding his behaviour with the Westminster division of the Metropolitan Police, and the House of Commons police, for more than a year.

“Their advice was to close down my blog and Twitter account and thereby remove the ‘oxygen’ upon which he fed. As an election was imminent, I ignored this advice.

Dorries also claimed that the stabbing of Stephen Timms contributed to her decision, even though the stabbing occurred a week after she closed her blog. It is far more likely that, following the Conservative election victory, Dorries decided it was best to start in government with a clean slate of opinions. Bringing Tim into it was a just spiteful bonus – Tim’s blog has satirised her mercilessly, and he has persistently called her to account on various matters. He has never, though, either threatened her or crossed the line into anything that could be regarded as invasive of her as a private person.

Since the publication of the above, Tim has asked Dorries for details about her contact with the police (as have I) – the police have not spoken to Tim. The accusation is not just annoying: last year Tim’s home address was posted on-line by a cyber-thug named Charlie Flowers, who disliked our investigations into on-line “anti-jihad” pseudo-activism. Flowers and his accomplices stated that their aim was to force Tim to “go back to Australia”, and Flowers later claimed that he enjoyed the support of Dorries and had been in contact with her; while this is unlikely to have to been true, smears by an MP helped to create a climate in which lies and threats could be made with impunity. More recently, an anonymous and sinister site was created containing lies about members of Tim’s family.

Dorries hasn’t responded to Tim’s request for information, or acknowledged that the threats he has faced from someone who claims to have links with her go beyond “flame war” acrimony into more sinister territory (and she does know the situation). So, Tim contacted Andy Rayment, who chairs the Conservative Party in Dorries’ constituency. Rayment also refused to explain anything, but he found time to send an abusive response. Bedfordshire on Sunday reported that

…The Tory chief has a clear opinion on Mr Ireland’s email replying: “I do not waste my time communicating with nutters so do not expect me to respond to any of your communications, electronic or otherwise.”

Dorries, meanwhile, sees no more need to continue to pretend that Tim has ever really made her feel afraid:

…when a ‘nutter’ began bombarding my association with telephone calls and emails, this made me laugh out loud http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/Blogs/John-Balls-Diary/Monday-September-20.htm

I have heard that when a copy of this was leaked to my local newspapers, in indignation, it caused much mirth in the newspaper offices too.

How can anyone take seriously anything this person says?