Democracy is sometimes untidy.” With characteristic understatement, the Tory chairman, Michael Ancram, tried to explain yesterday how his party had ended up in such a mess over the mayor. The decision means that Mr Norris will tonight join five other candidates before an expected 1,500 party members at the crucial hustings meeting in west London.
As the former MP celebrated his reprieve with a round of typically forthright interviews, Tory backbenchers were furious that the selection had descended into “a shambles”.The 11th-hour move to restore him to the shortlist came after three days of further turmoil for a party already suffering from the trauma of Lord Archer’s resignation.William Hague stepped in yesterday morning to draw up the face-saving formula to allow Mr Norris another chance. Less than 72 hours after Steven Norris was dropped, Mr Ancram appeared on the steps of Conservative Central Office to announce that the flamboyant former minister was back in the race. It is rust-free, easier to push and half the weight of the conventional models which cause mayhem in stores and litter the countrysideBABY FEEDING SPOONThe spoon uses pigments within the plastic to change colour when it is used with food above a temperature of 40C – the safe limit suggested by paediatricians to feed infantsTHE ROYAL MAIL MILLENNIUM STAMPSThese were designed especially to mark the millennium and “convey powerful messages about the UK, its culture and achievements of the past 1,000 years”.THE NATIONAL MARINE AQUARIUM,PLYMOUTHIt uses the latest technologies to allow visitors to glimpse into the worlds of rivers, streams and oceans and their wildlifeTHE DYNAMIC BALANCE RUCKSACKContains two innovations: specially balanced pockets designed to reduce fatigue in the user and a harness that moves in tune with the movements of the body. He said: “It will be a triumph of confidence over cynicism, boldness over blandness, excellence over mediocrity. I defy anyone who sets foot in the Dome not to be awed by its sheer scale, variety or range of attractions.”BRITAIN’S FINEST: PRODUCTS BEARING THE OFFICIAL 2000 LOGOTHE AUTO-SUBAn autonomous, remote-controlled submarine developed by Southampton University for collecting matter from the seabed up to four miles beneath the waterTHE SUPERCART TROLLEYA shopping trolley made from recyclable plastic. They are also the foundations upon which our future economic success depends.”He also used the occasion to hit back at critics of the Dome project.

“What do they have to do with British design?”The Prime Minister told representatives of the companies whose items were selected: “Our future success depends on the qualities, you, your product and your company embody.”Each of you knows that creation and innovation are at the heart of a successful business. Items were nominated by the companies themselves.Sir Roy Strong, a former keeper of the Victoria and Albert Museum, said the entire selection process was a “load of codswallop”. He listed a range of selected items, including concrete roof tiles and a “waterbed for quadrupeds”, that were “better suited to the Ideal Home Exhibition”.”What do they have to do with the Design Council?” he said on Radio 4’s Today programme. Using the logo gives a real seal of approval,” said Stephen Barker, the managing director of B&H Liquid Crystal Devices Ltd, which produced a baby feeding spoon that changes colour when food is too hot. “This will really help sales.”The items named yesterday in the fifth and final list of official products were chosen by a panel drawn from a pool of more than 80 judges, who were selected by the Design Council from the worlds of design, the media, academia and industry. Many of the judges represented organisations whose products have been selected, including the BBC, the Body Shop, Jaguar, Marks & Spencer, Safeway and Dyson. Items previously named include the Teletubbies, Viagra and the Heathrow Express train.In addition to being allowed to bear the “millennium product” logo, the items will be displayed in the Spiral of Innovation, sited next to the Dome in Greenwich, in 2000.

The products will also be taken on a worldwide tour promoting British products.”It’s brilliant – this gives us a lot of oomph. “Each product is a symbol of Britain’s finest qualities – creativity, inspiration, hard work, imagination,” said Tony Blair after visiting the Millennium Dome yesterday.
“Just as the Dome should make us all proud of this nation’s creativity and imagination, so should each of the millennium products.”The 235 products – drawn from various fields including advertising, telecommunications and engineering – bring the total of specially selected items to 1,012. BULLETPROOF LIFE jackets, emergency shelters and heat-activated baby spoons were added yesterday to the list of official millennium products, chosen to represent the best of British innovation. “I was so angry that I considered resigning there and then,” he said.Sir Herman was persuaded not to resign by friends, but will stand down at the end of this year for personal reasons.Mr James’s fate now lies largely in the hands of the Chief Immigration Adjudicator, who will hear the remainder of the evidence next month.. He spoke of his fury when Mr Straw ordered Mr James be detained for deportation earlier this year.

Two years later he was forced to leave school and fend for himself when his family failed to pay his fees.Sir Herman said that, through his hard work and positive attitude, Mr James, from London, had become a role model for young black men. I think when you are Secretary of State for Home Affairs, with responsibility for race relations, you have to look at the bigger picture and take into consideration the benefits that come to society as a result of your decision and the disbenefits.”Mr James, 30, was brought to Britain by his father at the age of 14 and enrolled in a private school. Speaking in support of Mr James at a special immigration hearing in London, Sir Herman said that Jack Straw would “damage British race relations” if he insisted on removing the commodities broker from the country.
Sir Herman, who has never given evidence in an immigration case before, described Mr James as a “model citizen” and said it was in the public interest that he was allowed to stay in the country where he has lived for 16 years.He said: “I don’t think it would be conducive to promoting tolerance if we are seen not to be using the discretion available to us to show compassion in a case like this. Two thousand products was the target – 1,012 was the result and that figure included a postage stamp (invented 1840) and the Teletubbies. So very odd to have ignored the Transit.The author is former creative director for the Millennium Dome..