There are many roles in life I wouldn’t like to occupy. Quite high on that list is Labour party strategist. What on earth is the next move? Is the party genuinely in a tailspin? Or are current reports of internal strife the confection of a largely right wing […]
You can find one or two brave souls who are willing to put a positive spin on Ed Miliband’s speech to the Labour party conference yesterday. But the dominant view among the commentariat seemed to be that it all felt rather flat and unfocused. Given this was the […]
The Commentariat might, for once, be pretty much unanimous. The run up to General Election 2015 is going to be vicious. The focus isn’t going to be measured debate on the pressing issues of the day – when was the last time that happened? – but mud slinging […]
And so it came to pass. Almost as you would have anticipated. Labour’s bid to win today’s vote against the so-called “bedroom tax” was defeated. There was speculation during the day about how many Liberal Democrats would vote with Labour. The answer, when it came, was two. The […]
What a difference a speech makes. The reaction to Ed Miliband’s speech on Tuesday has been remarkable. The initial press reaction was hysterical. In a matter of minutes Miliband went from an ineffectual leader who was frittering away Labour’s poll lead through inactivity to a clear and present […]
[Originally posted at The Conversation, 25/09/13] The commentariat has gone into overdrive in the wake of Ed Miliband’s speech to the Labour party conference. Does it represent, at last, the shattering of the neoliberal consensus? Is it the articulation of a vision for a more inclusive and humane social democratic […]
The Independent columnist Owen Jones occupies a slightly strange position in the political landscape. He has been ranked in various lists as one of the most influential thinkers on the left. He has a reasonably high profile in the broadcast and print media. He’s quite active on social […]
Under the heading A One Nation programme with new ideas to begin turning Britain’s economy around yesterday Ed Miliband outlined six bills that would appear in Labour’s alternative Queen’s speech. It is good to see him offering some policy detail, at last, but to what extent are we […]
I don’t normally read the Times. But I bought it yesterday because it carried a half page opinion piece by Nick Clegg under the title Carping Labour must come clean about cuts. We’ve been told that 2013 is going to herald a stronger message from the Liberal Democrats […]
There will no doubt be much soul-searching at this week’s Labour party conference. There will no doubt continue to be subtle – and not so subtle – attempts to distance the party from the legacy of the Brown government and its cataclysmic electoral implosion. Without, of course, suggesting […]
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