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Archive for September, 2010

Shadow cabinet: Vote for Ivan

15/09/2010, 03:03:41 PM

From: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Sent: Thursday, September 09, 2010 XXXXXXXX
To: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Subject: Shadow Cabinet Election

Dear XXXXXXXX,

Shadow Cabinet Election – A fresh Start

I am writing to ask for your support in the Shadow Cabinet election. This election provides an opportunity to ensure new voices and fresh ideas can play a key role in shaping the renewal of our party.

I offer:

1. A substantive track record of delivery and innovation

In my nine years as a Minister I demonstrated that Government can transform people’s lives through strong political vision and leadership underpinned by Labour values.

Some examples

In Education – I created young apprenticeships which give talented young people the chance to fulfil their potential via vocational education and developed the first ever Government led anti bullying programme which to this day is impacting in every school across the country.

In Health – I moved the complex issues of social care and dementia from the margins to the top of the political agenda.

2. An engaging style of politics

In every Ministerial role I developed an authentic two way dialogue with people on the front line building mutual trust and respect beyond Whitehall. This included road shows in every region and meant I was able to champion the need for reform while maintaining goodwill towards the Government. I treated Trade Unions as social partners not “embarrassing relatives”. As Social Care Minister the media presented me as more of a campaigner for change than a politician defending a failing system.

3. The courage to stand up and be counted

I am a loyalist but also someone who is willing to speak his mind when necessary. Three years ago I was the first Labour politician to warn that there was an urgent need for us to reassure both working and middle class voters that we were still the party of fairness and “on their side”. Sadly, while we subsequently adopted fairness as our political mantra by that stage too many people no longer believed it was our true mission. As a Labour team we must never allow such a disconnect to happen again.

In the weeks ahead I want to hear your views and will be expanding on my vision for the future. I ask for your support with humility but also a genuine belief that I can make a serious contribution to renewing Labour as an effective opposition and credible alternative Government.

Best wishes.

Ivan

PS If you would welcome a chat please call me on XXXXXXXXXX

Ivan Lewis MP

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Shadow cabinet: Vote for Barry

15/09/2010, 02:57:09 PM

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First of the ShadCab “vote for me” letters

15/09/2010, 02:46:15 PM

We’re going to post these until we get bored of them.

We think it’s more likely to be days than weeks.

From: IRRANCA-DAVIES, Huw
Sent: 14 September 2010 20:00
Subject: Shadow Cabinet Elections

Dear Colleague,

I am writing to let you know that I am standing for the Shadow Cabinet, and to ask you to use one of your votes for me. My guarantee is this: I will draw on all the talents of the PLP to turn our government-in-waiting into a government in power.

With the clear direction of a new Leader, the Shadow Cabinet team must quickly capture the imagination and hopes of the public with bold ideas and a clear vision of the Britain we want to see. Our cabinet must be truly representative of wider society, with a blend of old-hands and new faces, of gender and ethnicity, of intellect and ideas and passion. We need people with varied life experiences – in direct contrast to the Coalition Cabinet of multi-millionaires.

As a member of the Shadow Cabinet, I will work directly with members of the PLP because we simply cannot ignore this wealth of talent and knowledge. For me, this is more than words: the hallmark of every policy and piece of legislation I have taken through the commons as a Minister – including the Marine and Coastal Access Act last year – has been an active and constructive engagement with colleagues.

My experience as a Minister for the Environment, in the Wales Office, as a Government Whip, and as a parliamentary aide in the Northern Ireland Office, DCMS and DWP has provided a thorough and varied preparation. Alongside my experience in negotiations with devolved administrations and at the European Council, I can confidently say that I am ready to serve in the Shadow Cabinet.

Before Westminster, I had a successful career in public and private sector management, and in Higher Education, but I began as a sports centre recreation assistant. My wife – an NHS front-liner – and I juggle the responsibilities for three boys aged 14, 13 and 12 with our work. I’ve been through the shock of redundancy – a real lesson in life – subsequently working as a night-shift security guard. These experiences – the knocks and the successes of life – make us what we are, connect us with the people we represent, and make us better politicians.

I have campaigned for this great Labour Party since I was young, as a grassroots activist and community organiser. Having served the party in many capacities, I am now ready to serve in the Shadow Cabinet in preparation for our return to government.

I ask for your support, and I look forward to speaking with you in the next few days.

Regards,

Huw

Huw Irranca-Davies

Shadow Environment Minister

***************************************************************************************

From: BLACKMAN-WOODS, Roberta
Sent: 15 September 2010 11:54
Subject: Roberta for Shadow Cabinet

Dear colleague,

Sorry to add yet more to your overloaded inbox but I want to let you know that I am standing as a candidate for the Shadow Cabinet and to ask for your support.

Since I arrived in Parliament in 2005 I have shown myself to be a hard working MP who is not afraid to take on the opposition and speak up strongly for the Labour cause.

I am pleased that colleagues elected me a number of times onto the Parliamentary Committee as one of your six representatives. I was a Deputy Minister in the last Parliament and am currently a Shadow Minister in BIS. I have served on the Education Select Committee, the Science and Technology Select Committee and the BIS Select Committee. I also served on 13 Bill Committees and spearheaded new legislation on private rented accommodation and licensing. Along with other MPs I also led the campaign for universal free school meals in our primary schools.

Before entering parliament I had a successful career in higher education and I now chair the All-Party University Group. I also chair the Associate Parliamentary Group for Afghanistan and the Balanced and Sustainable Communities Group. I have previously been Co-Chair of the Women’s PLP and colleagues recently elected me to Labour’s most senior position within the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association as Vice Chair.

I write this to demonstrate that I would very much want to use this experience and expertise to help make the Shadow Cabinet a really effective fighting force.

I am a good listener too and would want to keep open a real dialogue with the PLP. I think this is ever more important as we seek to develop a new set of policies. These need to challenge the Coalition’s damaging and divisive agenda, driven by a right-wing ideology that we need to expose and defeat.

I think it is vital that we elect members of the Shadow Cabinet who not only have stamina, and can inspire and motivate others, but are also team players. Resources are much scarcer in opposition and members of the Shadow Cabinet must be able to make the most of the talents of the Shadow Ministerial teams and the PLP. I think I can do this, but we can also draw on wider support which can help us win our arguments.

For example, there are sympathetic academics I know who will help us gather the evidence we need to undermine the policies of the current government. We didn’t always manage to do this when in government, and it is essential that we do it in opposition so we can win the argument and shape a renewed progressive agenda for Labour.

If elected I would also make sure we keep listening to our party members. They too have expertise and knowledge that we need.

Please do get in touch if you would like further information. I won my Durham seat this year against the odds because of relentless campaigning and hard work, a reputation for listening and delivering, and by mobilising a truly collective effort. I now want to offer these skills and commitment to serving the Labour Party in our Shadow Cabinet.

I hope that you will give me your support.

Best wishes

Roberta Blackman-Woods

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As the cold war begins, so do the defections

15/09/2010, 11:45:43 AM

What have Liverpool, Exeter, Hull and Rotherham got in common? Football clubs not playing in the champions league tonight? Too easy. All places that charmless hacks would patronisingly dismiss if any poor lamb from the capital were ever forced to live there ? True, but still not quite right.

Add in the midlands authority of Sandwell and the preposterously well informed among you will have guessed we are in the glamorous world of post-election defections. We’ve all heard about the thousands of new members joining Labour since May, but there is one standout group – local councillors crossing the floor to join the party with no leader.

Observers of British politics see local government in the way casual sport fans view county cricket – it’s an interesting diversion but it’s only really important when it affects the national team. This may well be true, but just like in county cricket, what goes on in the provinces can tell us an awful lot about the direction of travel for the wider game.

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We need a more sophisticated response to the big society, says Peter Watt

15/09/2010, 09:00:11 AM

I know what is best for me and what is best for my family. You don’t.

I suspect that most people in the Labour party feel the same about themselves and their families. By and large, we are a pretty independently minded bunch which doesn’t take kindly to being told what to do, how to think and how to vote in (say) internal elections. Presumably this is because we think that we are intelligent, capable of free thinking and able to take decisions for ourselves?

So why do we think that voters want us making so many decisions for them? We have set rules about what school people can send their kids to; what, when and how their home-support services are delivered if they are infirm; when they can visit the GP; which part of town they can live in and even what sort of food they can eat or feed to their families. Of course if you are wealthy enough then you can bypass the rules that we set and decide for yourself. No, our rules are very inequitable and only apply to those who can’t afford to buy their way out of sticking to them. Understandably people are beginning to say “enough – I want to make some decisions for myself.”

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Wednesday News Review

15/09/2010, 07:16:00 AM

Closest since 2007

Factor in the usual caveats about polling so soon after a change of government, but the latest Sun/YouGov poll is still pretty eyecatching. It has the Tories on 40 percent, Labour on 39 and the Lib Dems on 12 – the smallest gap between the two main parties since the election-that-never-was in October 2007. Here’s a graph of the the two parties’ positions since the beginnning of the general election campaign:

The Spectator

David twice as popular

David Miliband is the choice of Labour voters to be the next leader of the party, according to a ComRes survey for The Independent. He is more than twice as popular as his nearest rival, his younger brother Ed, when Labour supporters are asked to name their preferred candidate; who would make the best leader of the opposition; the best prime minister and have the best chance of leading Labour back to power. The poll, conducted among more than 1,500 people who have voted Labour at least once since 1992, found that David Miliband was also the most likely of the five Labour leadership candidates to win over floating voters and those people who backed Labour in 2005 but switched to the Liberal Democrats or Conservative Party this year. – The Independent

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Shadow Cabinet bun fight begins

14/09/2010, 11:32:02 PM

Following on from last week’s ballot of the PLP on the process for selecting the shadow cabinet, its make up, and whether to elect the chief whip, the decisions have all been accepted in a yes/no ballot today.

After the PLP voted in favour of a minimum 31.5% of the shadow cabinet being women, it has been set out today that each MP must vote for a minimum of 6 women and 6 men for their ballot to be valid.

The nominations for the shadow cabinet will kick off from the Sunday of conference, with the coronation of the leader likely to be a side show to those MPs plotting and scheming to ensure they make the final shoot out for the big jobs. Many are already hard at it, canvassing support, buying pints and calling in past favours – Paul Waugh appears to owe John Healey one or two.

The winners and losers will be announced on the 7 October, when the real fun will start for the new leader as they try to make the best of what they’ve been given.

From: O’DONOVAN, Martin
Sent: 14 September 2010 17:32
Subject: YES/NO BALLOT ON THE SHADOW CABINET ELECTIONS

FAO LABOUR MPs

The result of today’s ballot was as follows:

YES – 113

NO – 24

The PLP has now AGREED the changes from last week’s ballot and the standing orders will be updated accordingly.

We will now proceed to a postal ballot to elect our Shadow Cabinet, as set out in the below timetable. As agreed at the PLP last night, the election of 19 members of the Shadow Cabinet and the election of the Chief Whip will be held simultaneously.

Please bear in mind that all ballot papers need to be returned to the PLP Office by Thursday 7 October at 5pm.

BALLOT PAPER

A reminder that, in order to cast your vote in the Shadow Cabinet election, PLP members must cast a minimum number of 6 votes for women and 6 votes for men otherwise it will not be a valid vote.

TIMELINE FOR ELECTING OUR SHADOW CABINET

(Saturday 25 September   pm         New Leader elected)

Sunday 26 September      11am     Nominations open for Shadow Cabinet

Weds 29 September        5pm        Nominations close

Thursday 30 September 9-12       Ballot papers available in PLP Office at Conference. After this time they will be sent in the post to the same address as your ballot paper for the Party Leadership election.

Mon 4 Oct–Thurs 7 Oct    10-5     PLP Office open for MPs to vote in person.

Thursday 7 October       5pm         Start counting votes in PLP Office

Thursday 7 October       9pm         Announce results of election

Monday 11 October                       Parliament returns

Weds 20 October                            Comprehensive Spending Review

If you have any questions on the above please email me or call me on the numbers at the bottom of this email.

Best wishes

Martin

Martin O’Donovan
Director of Unit and PLP Secretary

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We must make sure the country is with us on the union fightback, says Ruth Smeeth

14/09/2010, 05:19:39 PM

For the 18 years of the last Tory government, the trade union movement faced attacks on its legitimacy, relevance and role in society. Most of these attacks were based either on ignorance of the role that unions play, or outright hostility to the position of organised labour in the UK. So when we finally beat the Tories in 1997, we faced a mixture of hope and optimism as activists in the labour movement.

From 1997 unions had a clear role in both the British political establishment and the workplace. Amongst other things, they secured the adoption of the European Social Chapter, re-instatement of the GCHQ workers, legal rights to join trade unions, the adoption of a maximum working week and new legislation for agency & temporary workers. These incredible achievements were hard fought and necessary for the development of the kind of society that all in the labour movement both want and require.

The 13 years since 1997 should, however, have been about more than just securing changes to employment and health and safety laws in the UK. They should have also been a period of reflection for the trade union movement. Our leaders should have been working together to ensure that whilst the going was good under a Labour government, they prepared for the future should the situation change.

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They won’t even give you the time of day now so what hope for the future?

14/09/2010, 11:45:02 AM

As elections go, the Labour leadership contest might go down as one of the dullest ever. If ‘none of the above’ had occupied a slot on the ballot papers, I am sure it would have romped home.

As the two front runners are both related, we have even been robbed of the fun of a bit of viciousness and proper negative campaigning.

All polls point to the Milibands being way ahead of the rest, which has castrated the battle and is making the scramble for second preferences the only lively aspect of the race.

David’s campaign are so desperate they are now relying on the ‘Tories fear him’ argument, and Ed seems to be saying anything to anyone to get a vote, which is never a good sign for a future leader. Let’s see which way he jumps when the inevitable strikes come along.

The entire list of candidates lacks the depth of the party. Call me an inverted snob, because I am, but the fact that all the leadership contenders are Oxbridge educated is a bloody tragedy for Labour.

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Blair was always the cynical grit in Labour’s oyster – which we still need, says Kevin Meagher

14/09/2010, 09:00:58 AM

“A cynic”, the American critic Ambrose Bierce noted, “is a blackguard whose faulty vision sees things as they are, not as they ought to be.”

Tony Blair has been called a lot worse than a blackguard. He may well be a ‘faulty visionary’. He is, however, certainly a cynic; a 100% signed-up viewer of the motives of men as inherently base and self-interested.

As he briefly floated in and out of our parochial little orbit last week, our emeritus PM, now peacemaker-at-large and aspirant bookseller, had no shortage of cynical observations to dispense.

In his new memoir, A Journey, he breezily trashes signature Labour policies like the ban on fox-hunting and the freedom of information act. The former, in his view, unworkable, the latter too unpredictable. In a familiar riff on the obsolescence of ‘left’ and ‘right’ he even concedes that he does not consider himself on the left any more. He goes on to warn that voters do not want the state becoming a “major player” in the economy and that a drift leftwards will consign Labour to two terms in opposition. (more…)

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