Media: Talk of the Trade: Birmingham welcomes Mr Hanna's harangue

VINCENT HANNA, the television reporter who was needling politicians before Jeremy Paxman was a glint in the camera's eye, has a less well-known second career as a 'communications consultant'. He surfaced as such last week with a blistering report on the publicity efforts of Birmingham City Council, commissioned by its leader, Sir Richard Knowles. Mr Hanna declared the city's image to be 'gauche and provincial . . . arrogant and class-ridden'. He said its V-shaped logo 'looks as though Birmingham is giving a V-sign to the world' and concluded: 'In communications terms, Birmingham has got a chip on its shoulder.' But just as politicians seem to relish Mr Hanna's plain-spoken style, so did the council: his report was welcomed both by the Labour administration and the opposition.