citydiary Rubin's pact on the home front An Obstacle to the 4

JAMES Rubin, or Jamie as he apparently likes to be known, has got himself a new job. The former Assistant Secretary of State under the Clinton administration, who devoted much of his time to trying to sort out international hotspots such as the Middle East and Kosovo, will resurface next Tuesday as a partner of financial PR giant Brunswick. Rubin resigned from the State Department last May so he could be with his Londonbased wife Christiane Amanpour, CNN's famed Kate Adie equivalent, and look after their baby son.

"There were a lot of jokes about diapers and Mr Mom," he said at the time. "But marriage is about compromise. This is a time for me to compromise in her direction, and another time, she will compromise in my direction." Perhaps the time has come, with Rubin now destined to look after slightly older toythrowing boys.

IAN Russell is just three weeks into his new job as Scottish Power chief executive and he's already taken his eye off the ball. Asked whether the new job is as easy as he'd expected, Russell replies: "Only if Arsenal win the Cup  that's the key in the next couple of weeks." And I thought they got their energy from good oldfashioned chicken, beans and chips.

PAUL Austin, spokesman for spread better IG Index, was in his local bookie last weekend (they just can't stay away), about to put on a 121 horse called Naked Oat, when his mobile phone rang.

He went outside to take the call, and ended up having to explain to an Observer journalist just why his chairman Stuart Wheeler's donation to the Conservatives had nothing to do with Tory MPs' attempts to cut IG Index's tax bill.

By the time he got back inside, all bets had closed on the 4.35 at Southwell, but no prizes for guessing which horse won. "The Observer cost me moans Austin. "And I don't think Stuart will be subbing me."

TWO more bookies, Blue Square and Paddy Power, have got their knickers in a bit of a twist.

Blue Square reckons Paddy nicked its odds for the upcoming World Poker Championships in Las Vegas, since their websites both offer almost identical odds on the same 120 contenders, from a total 650.

"Ours were posted first," insists Blue Square. "They've even quoted one of our own guys who no one knew was taking part.

"And they've copied our incredibly juvenile decision to make Stuart Wheeler the rank outsider at 2001."

"I'll have to plead the fifth," a Paddy spokesman says. "But there'll be a public hanging later in the car park." It was IG Index who had the last laugh, however. "It's the worst 2001 shot in betting history," sniggers Paul Austin (him again). "Stuart Wheeler's not even going."

THE crusties' May Day protests have inevitably spawned "The Bankers' Retaliation", an email that's been doing the rounds for the last couple of days.

Bankers are invited to congregate for the International City Day of Action, wearing their finest pinstripe, with mobile phone glued to ear, and to "head off down to Brighton to disrupt as many dreadlocked men and women with dogs on string as possible."

The plan of action includes picketing henna tattoo stalls, storming the dole office and gluing the doors shut, handing out photocopies of salary slips, raiding offlicences and destroying cans of Special Brew, Tennent's Super, Thunderbird and cheap cider. All very ironic, I'm sure.

Car burnings rise as France threatens to take euro crisis to plane , says hedge fund boss Michael Hintze.

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