Who won?
There’s an episode of the West Wing where they are trying to work out how CJ (the president’s spokesperson) should deal with questions about worrying economic figures – she’s worried the administration will look like it hasn’t noticed the indicators. They don’t want to use the word recession in the White House so their code is ‘bagel’. It’s a blunt script device to make a point about out-of-touch politicians.
David Cameron might as well have told Ed about his favourite bagel fillings in the early exchanges at PMQs today.
By concentrating on the economy and particularly the job prospects – or lack of them – for women and young people Ed was speaking beyond the chamber to the concerns of the country. And in the initial exchanges when Cameron tried to claim the government was doing everything it could to help growth it just sounded hollow. People, real people, outside the Westminster bubble are worried, even where they are still in work. And Cameron sounded like he hasn’t noticed.
There is one continuing worry for me which was displayed in the later exchanges with Ed today. The Conservatives have very effectively cemented the idea that Labour’s plan would be to ‘borrow our way out of the crisis’. It’s not true, of course; we’d cut the deficit more slowly to allow us the flexibility to do things like reduce VAT to put more money in people’s pockets. But the rehearsal and fashioning of the message is successful and I think we still need to up our game on challenging this.
But Ed won. And if we can keep the narrative on the poor economic performance, a turn from an economy that was in recovery by the time of last year’s election, the government will be blamed.
Best question
Steve Rotheram securing a commitment to the Hillsborough debate. I’m not properly up on the finer minutiae of what parliamentary shenanigans happened last night to threaten the debate. But it’s over 22 years since 96 people were killed because of what essentially boiled down to poor management of a football match. The families still don’t know fully what happened or who’s responsible. They deserve this debate and they deserve the truth. Dogged MPs like Steve Rotheram will get there in the end, I’m sure of it.
Backbench watch
Two Alans – one Beith (Con), one Reed (Lib Dem) asked the same question on equalising the pension age and the awful impact on women who are nearing retirement age, who will lose out significantly – something that Labour has been campaigning on for months.
Cameron is obviously gearing up for an announcement about something that will soften the blow for women affected and that’s the commitment he made today. Twice.
Clearly the coalition parties are both so desperate to be able to claim credit on whatever the announcement turns out to be that they couldn’t agree who should ask the question on it. Expect campaign material and interview answers from both parties claiming the credit for whatever is announced in the coming weeks. And they’ll be able to say ‘look we got the commitment at PMQs’. Don’t be fooled though: if this policy is changed it will be because of an effective campaign from Labour and pensions and women’s groups. Not because two coalition backbenchers couldn’t agree who should ask a question at PMQs.
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Sarah Hayward is a Labour councillor in Camden
No Sarah I’m afraid you are very mistaken, too much time analyzing the PMQ’s and not enough time understanding people, Labours popularity will decline with the economy because it was on their watch when the disaster occurred. None of you can pretend your way out of this one and play all the little re-shuffles and games you like in Westminster it will not wash. The public are and will suffer and they will be more acutely aware of who to blame and will no time for spin, PR games or weird political class language that is meaningless and without any substance in their lives.
It does not matter what the Tories have said or will say, it was what was done and the reasons it was done. The expenses scandal and lobbying corruption that occurred and is still occurring along with the relationship between bankers and politicians narrowing, means one thing, total disregard for democracy and th real economy.
In the South I reckon people will stick with Tory as they will more readily believe the Tories will be consistent though some protest votes will define outcomes in bi-elections, in the North Labour will decline as the gap widens between the wealthiest and the poor and many middle class (as they consider themselves) find themselves struggling and having no real voice in Parliament.
After being accused (a very poor juvenile stitch-up courtesy of master Cruddas whose expenses and history are incredible for someone claiming to be on the “Left” but he used the email I sent him in the way I wanted him too…greedy ruthless and vindictive people are always predictable), of campaigning for the Tories lol (when there isn’t even an election on at the moment hahahaha) I have become an independent rather than face some mockery of a process put together by the dodgy Party. But if I was to use the narrative i know so well that would capture the public imagination I could quite easily capitalize on the situation of political and economic decline at the moment.
As it is I will be meeting a Tory Politician in London next week to discuss my options. If of course i don’t like the “feel” of them I will be aiding the Labour party on the quiet in a borough where i am not elected as a volunteer. As an Independent I can do what I like. Which is great now because on a Council as backward and repressive and undemocratic as Barking and Dagenham where control is the order of the day and residents come a poor last to self-interest, greed and political-economic madness (to quote its Deputy Leader “The banking sector will find jobs for the young people of Barking and Dagenham” without regard to the UKs balance of payments, the need to diversify our economy and have things to sell to the world in the Global context)) alongside the death threats I received and the bullying and the extremely dodgy dealings all finding their root source at the feet of John Cruddas MP and the Leader Liam Smith who oversaw the rise of the BNP in the first place and had nothing to do with getting rid of them (Jon was fighting the Tories at the last election).
Great because for the first time since being elected I can actually raise issues of concern on the Council, great because for the first time I can represent them rather than be forced to pretend the world is a perfect place and god-forbid anyone disagree with it. Since becoming officially Independent I have been inundated by calls from the public with their casework’s and am now working closely with the press as the issues are building up, coming in from people who do not trust the Labour Party.
Even now I am trying to help you all understand what a challenge you have to re-build trust with the public and not be a sleazy party (see Newsnight 11/10/2011) as sleazy as the Tories. I am now more powerful a Councillor than I have ever been in my life.
Its crazy!
I should never have been more powerful and potent a public servant than when I was a Councillor in the Labour Party, I should not be having a go at poor Caroline Flint MP for nepotism, I should not be asking and fighting a losing battle for democracy on a dodgy scrutiny based Council where all powers are taken by the minority behind closed doors and the financial incentives are there to resist change and keep the same people in place. On any Council everyone or as many people as possible should have a shot on the Executive to gain experience and develop as we cannot pre-judge elections and need everyone to be capable whether in power or in opposition.
What I should have been doing, what i should been ALLOWED to do with my Labour Party values is challenge the Tories not fight corruption on Barking and Dagenham Council within the same Party.
Remember I don’t need to be elected, I have got plenty of other things to do with my life, I am not even gutted that I am no longer in the Party, I am not bothered at all 😉 But I do care about the Labour Party and at the moment the Leadership are simply trying to believe their own rhetoric without any understanding of what they have to DO.
It appears to me looking and reading the blogs that the Party is far too happy in opposition and is deluding itself that on one hopeful day in the future those nasty Tories who believe in precisely the same thing the Labour Leadership does, will simply be slapped and go away as the people embrace the good old Labour Party of Social Justice..erm “social justice”, I am not sure that’s how the public see it any more.
Your decline in the polls has just begun, Ed has no depth or emotional intelligent experience which comes to the fore whenever he is pressed to answer questions in any depth, he struggles badly on some occasions, his intellect is based upon parrot fashion learning but there is no real conviction in him and it shows, we do not have anyone at the moment (sorry I am no longer in the Party lol), “YOU” do not currently have a person that can measure up to the current reality, which is grim.
But I wish you all the very best of luck.
There is a general acceptance among politicians of all colours that the first priority for the future health of our country is to reduce our national debt and that this must be done even at the cost of drastic cuts in public services and living standards. Like Ed, you accept that the British public will have to bear the bulk of debt reduction caused by outside institutions. The only difference between Labour and Tory is one of degree. Ed says ‘let’s make debt reduction our most important policy but at a slower rate than this government.’ I believe that this is a fundamental error in political governance since it puts the interests of money above those of the people – which is exactly what the global financiers did in 2007.
At the moment, the people of Greece are rioting because their society is being destroyed by their elected representatives caving in to IMF and ECB diktats demanding economic serfdom and I support those Greeks who refuse to be forced into social slavery. What a shame that Labour is complicit in this degradation of the economic backbone of Europe – the working class. Arrogant capitalists like Osborne (who blame the Greek government for incompetence) will have to invent new lies when social unrest spreads to Portugal, Spain, Italy, Ireland etc. in the near future. Politicians are burrowing their heads in the proverbial sand if they think the working class of Europe will accept levels of impoverishment envisaged by their governments. Even in docile Britain the social unrest may well be power-changing.
And what is Ed’s approach to the crisis? – ‘the working class should know their proper station in life: don’t challenge the financial penalties imposed by Cameron and accept the price paid by the working class to extricate the UK from global indebtedness is a price worth paying’. Such is the path of electoral failure.
I can understand why the Tories and Lib Dems prefer to keep the working class in servitude but it is beyond belief that a Labour leader would put credit ratings first and people’s welfare last. Why have I never heard Ed claim that the first priority of a Labour government will be to defend the living standards of the people?
Why do both he and you accept without question the assertions that ‘debt is evil’ and ‘you can’t borrow your way out of debt’ ? Debt is NOT evil – the moral qualms only apply to the ways the debt is handled. Borrowing one’s way out of debt (quoting Osborne) is precisely what this government is doing as we speak – to the tune of £500bn – so please ditch this blinkered and irrational approach to our economy and start putting our people before bankers and credit agencies.
is this financial crisis a conspiracy really and everyone else is being conned into maintaining profits for a section of ,well we can’t call it society but erm…. those that consider themselves the progenitors of wealth ?????? .Who ISN’T losing out ,lets sniff em out ,could be a very telling tale. Bet they are feeling that even they might have bitten off more than they can chew this time (you can swallow the whole world some of the time
and some of the world the whole time but this time you’re gonna choke ?) Werrity the tip of an iceberg ?