FactCheck have uncovered three blatant lies about Mr Blair’s record in his manifesto, and a number of dodgy claims.

Here are the Labour lies:

The UK has the lowest unemployment for 30 years

Actually, we have higher unemployment that in 1979. So unless we’ve been magically transported to 2009, that’s a blatant lie.

Longest Period of uninterrupted growth in modern history

I guess it depends on your interpretation of ‘modern’, but he’s clearly not including 1948 to 1973. Since his Chancellor was making claims about ‘since 1701’, then this is clearly another lie.

We will invest more in renovating and building new kitchens as well as investing an extra £210 million in school meals.

Except the £210m was already in the education budget. So how can this possibly be classed as extra money?

And now for some general dodginess:

Crime has fallen by 30 per cent overall, with almost five million fewer crimes a year than in 1997

According to one set of statistics – the British Crime Survey. Mr Blair says the BCS is ‘the most authoritative crime survery overall’. So why, in the exact same manifesto, does he criticise the Tory figures using the Recorded Crime Statistics, instead of the BCS?

The number of asylum applications has been cut by two-thirds since 2002.

How can Labour possibly even begin to claim the credit for this, when the number of refugees has fallen worldwide?

How could anyone want to re-elect a party which can’t even be honest about its record in its own manifesto? After eight years, they should be shouting from the rooftops about their acheivements, not having to lie about them to be re-elected. It’s crazy.

Today’s swing figure:

» 2.73% swing to the Conservatives «

Unless something drastic happens in the next few days (which, with the announcment of the Conservative tax proposals, it just might) then it looks like Labour are going to storm this election once again, with a three-figure majority. I just hope that this doesn’t happen, as I highly doubt that it would be good for the country to have a third Labour party victory with such a big majority.

Today’s swing figure:

» 3.38% swing to the Conservatives «

This comes as two new polls are included today, which has given a small boost to the figure, albeit well within the margin. The Conservatives are still a whole point down on their position from this time last week, so it’s still not going well for them.

If you didn’t witness the premiere of This Week‘s eleciton titles on Monday, you’re clearly not a dedicated enough viewer of the late night political show. But you can always have a gander by clicking on the above link.

That seems like an appropriately cheery link for my 500th post!

I’ve had little more than a flick through the Labour manifesto, but one thing immediately jumped out at me:

New Labour’s record:
The contract delivered Our country is changing for the better, because we fulfilled the promises of our 1997 and 2001 manifestos.

This jumped out for two reasons: Firstly, it’s in absurdly large type. Secondly, it’s not true: It’s another Labour lie.

Back in March last year I listed a number of Labour Lies and broken promises, six of which were drawn from the 2001 manifesto. You can look for yourself, here. And here’s another list of nine, which I originally posted on an internet forum:

» We will now give British people the final say in a referendum on the single currency
Not delivered.

» We will now reform the appointments system so that by the end of 2005 every hospital appointment is booked for the convenience of the patient making it easier for patients and their GP to choose the hospital and consultant that best suits their needs.
Will not be delivered anywhere near on time.

» We want to help the Post Office keep up with the best in a fast-changing market.
Apparently by allowing hundreds of branches to close.

» We will not introduce ‘top-up’ fees and have legislated to prevent them.
So what happened to this legislation when Labour broke their promise?

» By 2004, patients will be able to see a GP within 48 hours.
Not fully delivered.

» Same day tests and diagnosis will become the norm.
The fastest I’ve seen an out-patient blood test come back is 48hrs.

» We will give every citizen a personal smartcard containing key medical data giving access to their medical records.
Have you got yours?

» The Criminal Records Bureau will help stop paedophiles and others who are a danger to children from working with them
Except it didn’t work for the Soham girls, did it?

» By 2004 we are pledged to reduce teenage pregnancy by 15 per cent.
Complete and utter failure.

So, given that the first jump-out page of the new manifesto is a lie, which bits of it are things that Mr Blair actually means, and which ones are bits that he’s saying just to get votes? I think we should be told.

Today’s swing figure:

» 3.30% swing to the Conservatives «

For the first time since I started doing these updates, there’s no change today in the swing figure. Whether today’s news will change the figure, with the launch of Labour’s manifesto, we’ll just have to wait and see!

Ignoring MediaGuardian‘s inability to use words to form proper sentences, take a look at this quote:

And controversy surrounding the party’s election slogan, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” surfaced when which turned out to be the catchphrase of a pair of Australian children’s TV characters called Bananas in Pyjamas.

If the fact that the Conservative slogan is the same as that of Bananas in Pyjamas is the best attack that it’s rivals can come up with right now, then they should be polling at around 98%. It’s a ridiculous (though comical) statement to make.

Today’s swing figure:

» 3.30% swing to the Conservatives «

More bad news for the Conservatives today, with the publication of an NOP/Independent poll. It’s not looking good for Mr Howard recently, but Mr Blair will be smiling to himself. Let’s just hope that things will pick up again soon!

Alistair Campbell this time, with some nasty negative campaigning.

Well there it is – the Tories have published their manifesto today and all around you can almost hear the country’s civil servants asking “how on earth do we turn that into a policy programme for government?”

Thin or what?

Well they never managed to turn your 2001 manifesto into a policy programme for government, did they Alistair? After all, you made lots of commitments in that which you’ve completely failed to keep, and several that you’ve done a complete U-turn on. So I don’t think you can start insulting other party’s manifestos when you can’t even live up to your own pitifully low standards. And I notice that you chose the word ‘thin’ very carefully, since you’re about to launch the smallest manifesto in British electoral history, what with it being pocket-size and all.

I suggest we move on. Moving on is something you’re keen to do, after all.

But more than that, the Tory “manifesto” is dangerous. Economically dangerous above all. As Tony and Gordon said yesterday, you cannot cut tax and increase spending and reduce borrowing with the same money at the same time.

I think you’re a bit simple. I don’t necessarily agree with the Conservative economic plans, but I do know that they’ve been fully costed, and, unlike Labour’s plans, several economic experts agree with their proposals.

How can you cut tax, increase spending, and reduce borrowing, all at the same time? By reducing government waste, and then splitting the money you save between those three policies. Was that difficult to understand? Probably not enough spin on it for you.

I remember the agonies we went through in opposition to make sure Labour policies stacked up and the sums added up. It is apparent that Mr Howard and the ludicrous Letwin have shown nothing like the rigour Tony and Gordon did back in 1997.

Such agony that you promised not to raise taxes, and then – erm – did. That doesn’t sound much like a policy that adds up to me. And it’s nice to see that you made all of your policies add up in 1997. Did you not bother in 2001, or indeed this time?

The Tory manifesto, the thinnest in history, confirms that the Tories intend to fight a totally negative, small bore campaign focusing on a series of negative messages and without even an attempt to put a positive vision for the future.

Point to the positive vision that you’ve emailed me up to now, and I’ll give you a banana.

It is a campaign based on fear and grievance.

This from the party that says that our whole country is at risk if we vote Conservative. That sounds like a campaign based on fear to me. And is it not right for the opposition to have grievance with the government? Most of the people of this country have.

You can see it from their posters and the messages that come pouring out of Mr Howard, his hidden away Shadow Cabinet and “immigrant” Australian campaign managers.

Hidden away members of the party? Doesn’t that describe you? Hidden away until your role in the election was exposed? And what about the internet guru who’s registed Michael Howard domain names, and was shamed in America for comparing George W Bush to Hitler? The Labour party won’t even tell us what he’s doing!

To call the Tory party campaign managers ‘immigrants’ is a cheap shot and you know it. The Conservative party, whose immigration policity I personally abhor, are not saying that immigration should halt, which is the myth you are helping to perpetuate. They have different, some think more sensible, policies than you. That does not mean that your policy is better, and it doesn’t mean that their’s is better. It invites reasoned comparison. Not dishonest lies.

And which memebers of the Shadow Cabinet have been hidden away? I’ve seen most of them on a number of political shows. If anybody’s hiding a member of the cabinet, then it’s your party hiding it’s head, by featuring him on only a handful of election materials.

But the Labour Party can still take nothing for granted. The Tories have a lot more money than we do. They have more for posters, more for campaign materials, more for organisation.

So the Conservatives can actually do some things better?

They have several newspapers led by the vile (interestingly an anagram of evil) Daily Mail willing to pour out free pro-Howard propaganda and ridiculous anti-Labour bile for them.

The Daily Mail is vile? Was it vile when it supported you vociferously in 1997? Was it vile when you took nearly every policy cue from them? Or is this a new development, now it’s gone all Conservative on you?

So we have to use every way we can to get over positive messages about our record and above all our future programme for a third term if we are elected.

Well you’re not doing very well. I have yet to hear anything positive from you. Everything has been a slur on the Conservatives. Even your election slogan is a dig, with it’s ‘not back’ tag.

Party election broadcasts are a well known way of trying to get over a message during the campaign. Tonight the first is aired. It focuses on our greatest strength, the economy, and does so by recording a series of conversations between Tony and Gordon. They are the two main architects of New Labour and drivers of progress in the last eight years.

I was supposed to believe they were spontaneous conversations? That whole broadcast was a joke. It couldn’t have been a more clearly crafted attempt to show Blair and Brown as united if you’d put up a caption saying ‘We’re not fighting’. And nobody believes it. In fact, nobody believes anything Labour says any more. And, hilariously, that’s largely your fault.

Watch it. Get your friends to watch it. I defy anyone who does to say afterwards that Mr Howard and Mr Letwin should take over from them.

It didn’t even begin to show anything that would make me favour Mr Blair over Mr Howard, or indeed Mr Brown over Mr Letwin. It did provide some light entertainment though, with the poor acting and Mr Blair’s steely resolve not to smile. After all, the focus groups don’t like smiling.

Best wishes,
Alastair Campbell

I don’t think I even need to reiterate my personal feelings about you. The worst aspect of your nature is that you’re not even very good at what you do, as I’ve detailed before. You symbolise everything that’s wrong with Labour. But, just in case you’ve forgotten, here’s what I think of your role in the election campaign.

I said it then, and I’ll say it now. Labour should be ashamed to have you back on board, and it can do nothing but harm to their campaign.

Today’s swing figure:

» 3.27% swing to the Conservatives «

A weekend without campaigning has been quite damaging for Mr Howard, increasing Mr Blair’s predicted majority to about 102. However, with the election campaign stepping up a gear on Monday, and with no more predicted gaps in campaigning, Mr Howard should be able to build on his good results of last week. He just needs to keep up the pressure.

If this kind of figure continues, however, and proves not to be a minor blip, then there may have to be some big changes to the Conservative strategy. I’m fairly sure this is just as a result of the lack of weekend campaigning, though, so Mr Blair shouldn’t be getting too excited quite yet.