Labour MP, Bob Marshall-Andrews, is an Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society and a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association, but despite this, I like his maverick style. He has some honour and sense of fairness: traits not normally associated with many of his colleagues of late.

On his official website at epolitix.com, we are reminded of the unceremonious ejection of Walter Wolfgang from the 2005 Labour Conference with an article entitled, "Our PM Is Nothing But A Bully - Just Ask Old Walter."

The frail 82-year old Mr Wolfgang, who has devoted his life to the Labour Party, had the audacity to propose that Jack Straw was being less than honest about Iraq.

Mr Marshall-Andrews writes: 'For this offence Mr Wolfgang is seized by a massive, apparently anonymous "steward", physically manhandled from his own conference and detained by police as a suspected terrorist. A nearby delegate, attempting to intervene, is himself assaulted by another massive example of New Labour's finest. Hours later, Blair delivers an apology wholly typical of the man. "I'm sorry," he says, "but I wasn't there."'

The public meeting used to be the way for politicians to get their message across, but increasingly - through the 20th century - it was replaced by the soundbite on the broadcast media.  In many ways this was a bad development (though undoubtedly the 6 o'clock news reaches more ears than the biggest of public meetings).  Today, new developments in the media - particularly the internet and the existence of 'blogs' - opens up new possibilities.  It can, indeed, bring the public meeting back into focus and bring it to a bigger audience.  The website 'Youtube' has primarily made headlines because of its potential copyright breaches of pop music videos, etc.  But the site includes home produced videos of all sorts of things and that is increasingly including political videos.  Sometimes that includes short films and documentaries that individuals have made to push for a particular cause.  At other times, it is home videos of speeches at public meetings.  It is this development that might represent a renaissance for the public meeting.

I include a selection here.  They are mainly from anti-war demonstrations.  Of course, one thing about public meetings is that they are of the moment, and watching them back sometimes a month later you are a surreal and unintended audience.  But we can make a great deal of use of this technology in the future.  When we talk about what happened at a meeting, why not include part of that meeting itself.

New NEC member uses his first day to attack the government

Walter Wolfgang has been elected onto the NEC. Interesting times for the NEC!

I want to help to make the 2006/8 NEC an effective advocate of concerns of Labour Party members and other working people. I will consider myself accountable to Labour Party members and will regularly report to them.

Walter Wolfgang, the 82-year-old Labour party activist ejected from last year's Brighton conference for daring to shout "Nonsense!" during Jack Straw's speech, stands a fighting chance of winning a seat on the NEC.

Thought I would let everyone know that Walter Wolfgang is standing for the NEC. I hope that he gets all our support.