The old girl takes her rightful place- who paid for the statue?

Much as I could launch into a BenEltonesque rant about the "evils" of "The Thatch", I can't help feeling that the unveiling of her statue in the House of Commons' lobby is right and proper. It is nice that it has been displayed while she is still with us.

When Paddy Ashdown took a party of us from Newbury around the houses, he pointed to the empty lobby corner and said in tones of respect: "Some say that a lady with a handbag will take her place there in due course".

This unveiling marks a rare moment of near political unanimity. Even Labour MP Paul Flynn said the unveiling of a statue of "one of the four giants of 20th century politics" was a "very happy event".

One of the reasons for such unanimity is perhaps the fair, I might even say PR-like, way that the four corners in the lobby have been allocated. Clem for Labour. Lloyd George for us. Thatcher for the Tories. And then there is Churchill who is a sort of three-way split between Liberal, Conservative and everyone.

By the way, before I become too soft, I would point you to a balancing comment from Danny Angus:

Lest we forget; She may have been Britain's first woman prime minister, but don't lets let that statue rewrite history. She was a sociopathic megalomaniac who spent much of her term in office removing our freedoms and pandering to the yuppies and reactionaries of middle England. It is too soon to gloss over that.

Danny goes on:

I can only hope that they didn't pay for it with my money, if I were dead I'd turn in my grave.

Good point. Who paid for this statue?