WHAT'S this - another millionaire's election bandwagon being rolled out?

For hard on the heels of the launch of the anti-EU Referendum Party by tycoon Sir James Goldsmith comes Mohamed al-Fayed, owner of Harrods, with his secret "Reform Party" and a reported £23 million election fund.

Reforms? A BIll of Rights, abolition of the House of Lords, a slimmed-down monarchy (There goes your shop's royal warrant, Mo), and re-nationalisation of the utilities are apparently on offer in the al-Fayed bazaar.

Fine, ours is a democracy and the more parties the merrier, and more interesting the fight.

But, all the same, isn't there something a little disturbing about rich men shelling out fortunes in order to sell us their ideas of how the country should be run?

Isn't it a bit like being asked to buy tickets for their private ego trip?

Still, at the end of the day, it's the humble, ordinary voter who has the power over their ideas and ambitions.

And Mr al-Fayed's emergence on May 1 as a contender may prove apt - as hereabouts emerges also the mayfly for its frolic in the spring sunshine and doom soon after .

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.