A new dawn for LabourList
‘With this in mind, LabourList is changing. Our name remains but our approach has altered.
We
will speak to and for those within the Party, and interested observers
from outside, who believe in Labour’s values. We will challenge the
opposition parties – and the Government too – on the basis of those
values and the views of rank-and-file Party members.’ – Alex Smith, LabourList
‘Two weeks ago I posted on LabourList and said I was sorry for my role in the Damian McBride affair. Of course I regret ever receiving the infamous email and I regret my stupid hasty reply. Instead I should have said straight away that the idea was wrong.’ – Derek Draper, LabourList
‘A lot of vitriol has been thrown at Derek Draper who despite everything, staged quite a remarkable political comeback in the last two years. Some of the bile has been undeserved, but having been a close observer of e-campaigning and new media, I find it unsurprising. There were many things that Derek did wrong, but at the root of it all was a fundamental misunderstanding of how political debate and campaigning had been developing on the internet and how Labour activists needed to work with it.’ – Jessica Asato, labourwomen.blogspot.com
‘The controversial ex-spin doctor at the centre of a row over e-mails smearing senior Conservatives has quit as editor of the LabourList blog.’ – BBC
‘fair tips, fair pay’
‘The Independent’s “fair tips, fair pay” campaign scored a decisive victory yesterday when the Government rejected pleas from employers and announced that restaurants and cafés will be banned from using tips to pay basic wages from October.’ – Martin Hickman, The Independent
Labour fights back
‘Alan Johnson, the health secretary, will tomorrow launch a pointed
attack on David Cameron, saying the recession has seen the Tories
revert to their default position of cutting public services at the
expense of the most vulnerable people in society.’ – Patrick Wintour, The Guardian
‘Next month’s European elections are unlikely to be decided on European
issues. But as Europe is the one foreign policy area where William
Hague has said he has major differences with the government it is
important to clarify what is at stake. As Conservatives commemorate the
30th anniversary of Mrs Thatcher’s election in 1979, they would do well
to remember one reason it all ended in tears was Europe.’ – David Miliband, The Spectator
Gurkha debate continues
‘Gordon Brown has promised to come up with a solution to the issue
of UK settlement rights for Gurkhas by the end of May, the actor Joanna
Lumley said yesterday.’ – Allegra Stratton, The Guardian
‘The chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee has written to
Gordon Brown asking him to clarify the government’s position on the
rights of Gurkhas.’ – BBC
‘More state is not the answer’
‘People who are losing their homes and their jobs are struggling to understand how banks and financial institutions got it so wrong. They are angry and looking to politicians for action. Progressive politics needs to learn the lessons of that era of excess and to acknowledge what went wrong. The trick is to do so without heralding a new era of economic protectionism and state interventionism. Such an approach might be tempting in the present but it is not the answer for the future.’ – Alan Milburn, The Independent
‘Mr Milburn detects a vast blank space where the Labour manifesto ought to be. If the party is to stand a chance of being elected it needs new policies on education, housing, training and childcare. It needs to offer new ways to reduce crime, create jobs, regenerate communities and protect the environment.’ – Leader, The Independent
Science Sats to be scrapped
‘Science Sats taken by 11-year-olds in England are to be scrapped and replaced by teacher assessments and national sampling, ministers have agreed’ – BBC