Ed Miliband needs to tell us what he stands for

by Dan McCurry

So YouGov tell us that Ed Miliband is regarded as “honest but untrustworthy”? What to make of it all? I’m sure his speech on Thursday will sort out all the confusion. What I think he need is to show us what he stands for.

There has been recent comment about whether Labour should reveal it’s policies, with Alan Johnson arguing that Miliband has already “shown too much leg”. Others, including myself, argue that a lack of openness creates a lack of trust. We’re both right and wrong. The confusion is in the distinction between policy, and aims/values.

The media always demand to know what the policies are, but the public want to know what the aims and values are. Policies are a list of promises while aims and values represent what we care about and what kind of a world we want to live in. It’s our aims and values to stick up for the small guy. It’s the aims and values of the Tories to stick up for big business and lobbyists.

Both parties try to present aims and values through slogans. The Tories say “We’re all in this together”, while Labour talk of “One Nation”. The Tory slogan is better because it’s about their intention to reduce the deficit. Ours was created as an attack on Tory hypocrisy, but has since been shown to mean little else.

It seems to me that Ed Miliband is forever working on the manifesto, instead of communicating what he stands for. Welfare is an obvious example. He chose to rise to the bait when Cameron challenged him on welfare, but then failed to put a lid on things when the “bedroom tax” got out of control.

This communicated that he was hazy about where the party was going. If he wasn’t waiting for think tank report he would have been on the case and ready with an answer. It’s as if everything is put on hold until we have a fully costed policy, when the proper way to do things is to define our aims and values and allow policy to rise from that.

Few people believe that austerity works. We won the argument on that one. Nor do I think that many people blame us for the banking crisis, per se. But we were in a weak position to deal with the crisis when it came, and that did cost us. Now the British people expect a smaller state. It’s not what we want, it’s what the public want. They employ us not the other way around, remember.

Ed Balls seems to get it, judging from his speech yesterday. We will demonstrate that we are credible about the indulgence of the public sector and the cost of welfare. We may commit to sustaining of the Tory welfare reforms.

For some, that idea is galling, but perhaps necessary. We are no longer in a position of strength, but a position of weakness. The main reason we are ahead in the polls is because the Tories look divided right now, but there is no guarantee that they’ll continue banging on about Europe. In fact, at the height of the Tory rebellion, some of the hardest nuts had distinctly flexible positions. That tells me that they are more bark than bite. We can’t rely on their disunity.

The most important thing is for Ed Miliband to get his message and his beliefs across. I’m still baffled as to why he doesn’t enter the Europe debate. After watching the Polish foreign minister on Newsnight, I see this as an argument for the winning. I’m sure Miliband is pro-EU, so why doesn’t he come fight the corner? It’s an opportunity.

Sometimes a politician can look stupid, if they pick a fight that they lose, and then refuse to move with the consensus. Boris Johnson did this over Heathrow expansion. He dug in his heels when everyone else moved on, and it has hurt him within his own party.

So I’m not suggesting that Ed Miliband should pick any fight, or be stubborn if the facts change. What I think is that if the public regard him as being honest, then there are plenty of people to win over, but they won’t be won over if all they see on are issues raised by the Tories, with no debate coming from the Labour bloke.

Maybe I’ve missed a trick here. Maybe the strategy is to be sparing about public appearances? Maybe there is mystery or grandeur in being fleeting? If that’s the strategy, I don’t think it works. Ed Miliband needs to pin down what he stands for. He won’t do that by hiding away. He’ll do it by actively looking for a debate and then entering and winning it. People need to know what he is about.

Dan McCurry is a Labour activist who blogs here


Tags: , , , , ,


17 Responses to “Ed Miliband needs to tell us what he stands for”

  1. Nick says:

    People have cottoned on. They have worked out that politicians are liars and thieves.

    Here are some examples. We will have a register of the lobby. Not because we will stop lobbying, there is too much money to be made out of that. No, because with a register we can check to see if we are being set up.

    Similarly with statements like migration is down, or immigration is down. It isn’t. Its the rate of increase that has come down. Just another form of lying.

    However that leaves the two big issues that aren’t being talked about.

    1. 40,000 avoidable deaths each year in the NHS
    2. 7,000 bn of debts, mainly pensions, that you can’t pay. So who loses?

  2. Matthew says:

    “Ed Balls seems to get it”.

    I stopped reading at this point as I realised this is clearly a satirical article.

  3. swatantra says:

    Time to get the old soapbox out, and go on the hustings trail, starting with Seakers Corner Hyde Park. EdM has to be seen and heard to be believed he is in the land of the living.

  4. aragon says:

    Ed Miliband and Ed Balls don’t stand for anything, it is not our position that is weak but the Leadership.

    Ed Balls only supports investment in infrastructure because the IMF supports this approach. And at the same time he abandons principle validates the Tories on welfare saving ‘lose change’.

    Ed Balls was Gordon Browns brain and Gordon Brown was an idiot.

    Ed Miliband doesn’t have a message, he is made of fudge. He can’t construct a argument. He just reflects the cliches he absorbs from others.

    Ed M is honest and clueless and Ed B is devious and vacuous.

    And the Tories are just mendacious and stupid.

  5. McCurry says:

    @Aragon,

    David Cameron couldn’t beat Gordon Brown in an election. So if Gordon is an idiot, what does that make Cameron?

  6. james says:

    `Few people believe that austerity works. We won the argument on that one. Nor do I think that many people blame us for the banking crisis, per se. But we were in a weak position to deal with the crisis when it came, and that did cost us. Now the British people expect a smaller state. It’s not what we want, it’s what the public want. They employ us not the other way around, remember.`

    We are not in a period of austerity – we’re in a period of cutting back on our spending so that the increase is lower than it was before. You only `won the argument` as people think that there is austerity. So come on then, give us the details on what you’d spend extra and how that would bring down the deficit.

    They want a smaller state or rather a changed state as they realise that Labour conned people into giving them a majority on 35% of the vote in 2005 by saying that they’d ended boom and bust. In reality, the surplus spending was unsustainable and the real economy (ie the one that we should have had if Labour hadn’t decided to buy the election) is what we are faced with now.

    Of course people are upset about the choices of the coalition government – that’s what grown-up decision making is all about – telling people what they need to know not to keep on inflating bubbles to keep them sweet.

  7. Clr Ralph Baldwin says:

    The most important thing and the item that matters most is that the Labour Leadership are truly barren of ideas…beyond protecting lobbying/corruption etc etc all the things they want to do should they take power and are taking to max as far as they can whilst in opposition.

    They are at the moment merely reading through a list of benefits and saying the rich can’t have this and the rich can’t have that….this is the full policy composition at the moment of their press releases…it’s very amusing to watch the clueless blundering about from Left to Right without a clue. But that’s ok it’s PR politics the career of a lifetime! Maybe Ed can just keep on re-inventing himself….because there are many flavours and smells of dung you just have to know how to market the brand it right lol. An odd Minibrand…….

  8. dude 503 says:

    Oh come on!

    We all know what Ed stands for.

    – getting on with the job

    – doing the right thing

  9. Fred says:

    “I’m sure his speech on Thursday will sort out all the confusion. What I think he need is to show us what he stands for.” God give us strength, a speech is going to make a difference. Do you wear giant sponge hand gloves singing I believe……

    “The media always demand to know what the policies are, but the public want to know what the aims and values are.” This is baseless rubbish.

    “Few people believe that austerity works. We won the argument on that one. Nor do I think that many people blame us for the banking crisis, per se. ” This is baseless rubbish that Labour wonks want to believe. The overwhelming lack of confidence that the public has in labours ability to manage the economy is evidence of that.

    “Ed Balls seems to get it” Yes he is so popular _ NOT.

    “The most important thing is for Ed Miliband to get his message and his beliefs across.” Lets all play state the beeding obvious and as a truthful politician what he’s not going to do.

    “Maybe I’ve missed a trick here.” Yes you have McCurry, you string a load of words together and show yourself up as being the ill-informed pundit that you are, contradicting yourself and lacking and coherent argument.

    Another crap article from McCurry, what a joke.

  10. John Reid says:

    It’s not whether he public blame is for the banking crisis, Its what we were going to do to stop it, as for austerity not working, the Idea of spending our way out of a recession, doesn’t work either,

  11. Terry Casey says:

    I have come to the conclusion the Labour Party do not want power just yet, maybe they feel there is worse to come or they want the Tories to do all the dirty work for them and say when they do get power that they will not be able to reverse them.
    If the NHS reforms are not mandated to be repealed and a huge housebuilding programme announced I for one will not vote Labour next time, I might as well vote Tory which I have never done in my life because there is no difference, one has followed the other and cut the average working man’s standard of living which has gone on unabated since 2002, the rich get richer and the poor are getting close to abject poverty.
    Labour has and is failing it’s core vote and are in fact the champaign socialists we have heard so much about, they no longer serve their constituents but the City and the rich, they seem to have no answers to the present crisis, Miliband has a huge job convincing people he is in it for them.

  12. Lynne says:

    If Labour are not offering an alternative to austerity, then what’s the point of voting for them. At the moment the coalition have the advantage, because it’s a case of better the devil you know.

    Although I dislike what the Tories stand for, I don’t actually dislike David Cameron.

  13. John Reid says:

    But Lynne that’s like saying if labour wasnt offering an alternative to capitalism in 79 what was the point of voting for them, we did offer he public an alternative to capitalism In 83.but the public didn’t like it, when they could have been crying out for labour due what the Tories were doing

  14. Rob says:

    John your a comedian you are one, how long have you been doing stand up…

    Labour Tory , Tory Labour the difference is unknown

  15. Terry Casey says:

    It’s like watching a tribute band, It’s the Tories but not quite getting it right, the lead singer trying like mad to be Freddy mercury and sounding like Freddy Garrity from the dreamers.
    WTF has happened to the Labour Party? they are a mess.

  16. John Reid says:

    Rob, what part of my statement saying that those who said in 79 we’re too like the Tories lets swing left, as we’ll win then and there’s no point existing otherwise, do you think was supposed to be a joke,

  17. Tim Clark says:

    The Labour Party should be warned they are sleep walking to a shocking election defeat.
    I have been a Labour supporter all my life I am 53 years old and am a full time carer to my disabled wife and son, AND I DONT KNOW WHAT LABOUR STANDS FOR ANYMORE .There is a systematic and sustained attack on the welfare state and Labour just doesnt have a clue,where has my party gone? Who will stand up for me and my family?
    I along with my family for the first time will not be voting Labour at the next General Election and be warned we are not alone.David Milliband is a terrible leader and it just seems to me he has no ideas or plan to help ordinary people,and i dont mean “hardworking families” boy oh boy do i hate that that tired and insulting phrase.
    Has the party i once campaigned for Gone?

Leave a Reply