Labour Uncut

UNBOUND: Friday News Review

17/09/2010, 07:00:28 AM

Miliband: 'winning support'

For the first time in thirty years, the Labour Party is electing a new leader without knowing in advance who it is likely to be. There are other parallels with 1980: Labour has recently been evicted from office, and its successors are turning out to be radical remakers of the state. – The Economist.

“I went into a briefing on a white paper for children [as chairman of the council’s children’s services scrutiny panel]. There was nothing in there for the children of the borough or anywhere else in the country. They are going to put the weakest to the wall. That was the last straw” – Barnsley councillor Lynne Brook on defecting from the Lib Dems to Labour BBC News.

With delegates heading to Liverpool for the annual conference of the Liberal Democrats, the challenge for Nick Clegg is to keep his party behind him as the government begins to flesh out what will be cut from its budget. His party is tanking in the polls and the mood among rank and file may not have been lifted by an interview he gave defending cuts to welfare. – The Guardian.

‘I’m winning support from MPs, members, unions and people outside the party, so I think all claims should be taken with a large pinch of salt. It’s my ideas for the future that have put me in the lead in this contest. I have been a candidate standing for what I am for in the future and not what I am against in the past. – David Miliband, Metro.

Admit it, Clegg, you’re in love. You rise each morning with that ache of uncertainty in your breast. You choose that tie, that suit, those shoes with him in mind. You scurry early to the office, practising the phrase that will please him, the gesture he will notice. When you first see him in the corridor … you can’t help it. The knees go. He is adorable. – Simon Jenkins on Nick Clegg’s leadership love The Guardian.

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INSIDE: You can’t pour a quart into a pint pot

16/09/2010, 01:30:58 PM

As the inboxes of Labour’s 257 Members of Parliament continue to clog up with subtle (and not so subtle) appeals for support in the forthcoming beauty contest that is the shadow cabinet election, our back-of-a-fag-packet calculations indicate a potentially embarrassing problem for the boys.

Rule changes reserve at least 31.5% of the 19 places (that’s 6 in old money) for women, two more than the last time Labour elected its top team in 1996.

However the current shadow cabinet contains 19 men (excluding Nick Brown as chief whip). When you remove declared retirees like Alastair Darling, Bob Ainsworth and Jack Straw you drop to 16. Then take out one of the leadership contenders so we’re down to 15. But there are no more than 13 places available for those with an Y chromosome. This is before insurgents from the lower ranks break through. And, of course, there may well be more than six women elected. Sunder Katwala has a good piece on this over at Next Left.

An embarrassing game of political musical chairs beckons if the 15 run as expected:

– A Miliband

– Ed Balls

– Andy Burnham

– Liam Byrne is said to be marauding

– Pat McFadden

– Alan Johnson has thrown his hat in

– John Denham

– Sadiq Khan has declared

– Hilary Benn

– Douglas Alexander

– Shaun Woodward

– Jim Murphy

– Peter Hain

– John Healey looks likely

– Ben Bradshaw

So at least two male former Labour cabinet ministers could face an unceremonious ejection from the shadow cabinet.

Or will some drop out of the process rather than risk denting their reputations?

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INSIDE: Shadow cabinet: vote for Wayne

16/09/2010, 12:27:17 PM

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INSIDE: Shadow cabinet: vote for David

16/09/2010, 11:36:34 AM

From: HANSON, David

Sent: 16 September 2010 11:15

Subject: Shadow Cabinet Elections – David Hanson

Dear colleague

I write to ask for your support in the forthcoming elections to the Shadow Cabinet.

I believe it is important that the Shadow Cabinet focuses on three key tasks:

1) To challenge the Tories and the Lib Dems in the Chamber and articulate a strong Labour alternative

2) To galvanise the party throughout the country and work with the new leader to ensure we develop a campaigning role across the UK

3) To work with the PLP to develop effective policies to tackle the challenges of the 21^st Century

As a member of the Shadow Cabinet I would use my 18 years of experience in the House of Commons to help the new leader achieve these aims.

Since the General Election I have taken the fight to the Tories from the front bench in my current shadow roles at the Home Office, Ministry of Justice and the Treasury and as a regular back bench questioner.

Prior to the election I served as Minister for Policing and Counter Terrorism, where I developed the policing White Paper; as Minister for Prisons and Probation, where I oversaw the development of an integrated prisons and probation service; and as Northern Ireland Minister where I ran four, now devolved departments, and supported Cabinet Ministers in restoring the Peace process

I also served as Wales Office Minister at the start of devolution and spent four years as Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, working in Downing Street as the liaison between the PLP and Prime Minister. This role in particular gave me a deep understanding of the importance of working in partnership with the PLP. I also have experience working in the Whips Office in government. All of this I believe will be invaluable in helping to get Labour back into power.

Having had five years as an opposition MP, I am aware of the task ahead and have first hand experience of forming a constructive and effective opposition.

Prior to my election to Parliament I worked as Director of a National Charity and was Leader of my local council.

I am pleased to have the support of all of the former Cabinet Ministers with whom I worked with when I was a Minister in government:

The Rt Hon Alistair Darling MP

The Rt Hon Peter Hain MP

The Rt Hon Alan Johnson MP

The Rt Hon Paul Murphy MP

The Rt Hon Jack Straw MP

I would be happy to speak to you about my candidacy on xxxxxxxxx and I hope for your support.

Best wishes

The Rt Hon David Hanson MP

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INSIDE: New MPs’ open letter endorsing David Miliband

16/09/2010, 11:17:08 AM

Why we are voting for David Miliband

As new MPs, we have thought long and hard about who should be our first preference in the leadership ballot. We are voting for David Miliband because we have been inspired by his campaign and the way he represents the change our party needs to win again.

Most of all, we want to give Labour the best chance possible of returning to government quickly rather than slipping back into being a party of perpetual opposition that is powerless to tackle injustice. Read the rest of this entry »

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UNCUT: Making childish noises at the unions is not the way to lead Labour, says Dan Hodges

16/09/2010, 09:00:56 AM

Re-watching Tony Blair and Andrew Marr earlier this week reminded me of Denis Healey’s classic put down of Geoffrey Howe, in which he compared an attack by the Tory grandee to being savaged by a dead sheep. Perhaps Marr had on off day, or maybe he’s mellowed since his forensic and rigorously sourced examination of Gordon Brown’s mental health. Whatever the reasons, it’s safe to assume that ‘Marr/Blair’ will not be appearing at our cinemas any time soon.

But one exchange was revealing. When asked about his dalliances with business, Blair replied:

“I had far more trouble, if I may say this to you, with union leaders demanding something back than I ever did with high value donors”. Read the rest of this entry »

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UNBOUND: Thursday News Review

16/09/2010, 08:29:35 AM

Mili-sagaThe battle of the Miliband brothers exploded yesterday – when David claimed Ed risked being a “heroic failure” if he won the Labour leadership. Ed privately told union bosses at the TUC he thought he had it sewn up but David said his younger sibling could repeat Michael Foot’s mistakes in 1983’s election disaster. He warned: “We cannot allow ourselves to become heroic failures again.” But Ed, lifted by a poll putting him two points up, told the BBC: “I am increasingly confident.” They will appear on Question Time tonight with rivals Andy Burnham, Ed Balls and Diane Abbott. – The Mirror

David Miliband has won the support of more of Labour’s new generation of MPs than his younger brother, Ed. Allies of the shadow Foreign Secretary trumpeted his lead as they sought to fight his brother’s claims that he has the momentum in Labour’s leadership election. Of the 64 Labour MPs elected for the first time in May, 29 have now declared their support for David, and 25 for Ed. In a statement, those backing David made a coded criticism of Ed, who has been accused of telling Labour members what they want to hear during the campaign. They said: “We think that David has best understood how we must regain the trust of those who have turned away from us. That not only must we re-energise our supporters and shape a new movement together, we must also reach out to the whole country and never be satisfied with simply talking to ourselves.” – The Independent

Read the rest of this entry »

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INSIDE: Shadow cabinet “vote for me” letters

15/09/2010, 09:29:16 PM

The shadow cabinet race is well under way, and a welcome distraction from the leadership contest. The decisions have been made and confirmed. The nominations must be in by Wednesday 29 September and the canvassing has begun.

So far we have seen “vote for me” letters from:

Roberta Blackman-Woods

We will keep posting over the coming days until we, like Bob, get tired of them: