By Harry PhibbsFollow Harry on Twitter During the General Election the defining moment for many in the Labour Party was when Gordon Brown was caught describing Gillian Duffy as "a bigoted woman" after she had raised concerns about immigration.They felt that it was the moment which showed Labour out of touch with many of its own […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter Ed Miliband is supposedly the Tory Party's greatest asset but the latest YouGov survey for The Sunday Times (PDF) finds that his net disapproval rating is now no worse than that of David Cameron: Although Tory HQ is worried about the weakness of the Prime Minister's numbers – a weakness […]
By Harry PhibbsFollow Harry on Twitter I doubt that any faction in the Labour Party can have found much in Ed Miliband's speech to the National Policy Forum today to enthuse them. For a start there was what he didn't say. What was his response to the growing and gathering civil war in the Party between […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter Click on image to enlarge. Last year he lost in Scotland. Last month he lost Bradford West. Today he's almost certainly lost London. If Ed Miliband can't even win in his traditional heartlands there must be huge question marks over his ability to win the next election.
By Matthew BarrettFollow Matthew on Twitter. Ed Miliband, in his interview with the Guardian this morning, came out with a rather bizarre proposal. He said that Labour is considering "organising the bulk purchase of cheap electricity to sell at a discount" to ordinary households, to be distributed through Labour's grassroots: "Miliband said: "It is an […]
By Matthew BarrettFollow Matthew on Twitter. Ed Miliband appeared on the Andrew Marr Show this morning. The big news to come from the Labour leader's interview was that he appears to want to take the lead on party funding. At first glance, his comments seem to present a fairly radical approach to party funding: "I’m […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter Ed Miliband didn't win in Scotland. He didn't win in Bradford West – his candidate was humiliated by one of the most odious people in British politics. What if Ed Miliband doesn't win in London? William Hill have already cut the odds on Mr Miliband being ousted. Ed Balls is […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter The five pledges are: Stop the Government’s raid on pensioners and block its £40,000 tax cut to 14,000 millionaires End rail rip-offs by capping fares increases on every route Force the energy firms to cut gas and electricity bills for 4 million over-75s Stop excessive fees charged by banks and […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter Alex Hilton – formerly editor of Recess Monkey and Labour Home, and Labour's candidate in Kensington and Chelsea at the last election – has written an open letter on Labour List to Ed Miliband in which he addresses his leader as follows: "Because you believe in power over principle, […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter I wrote a long blog yesterday on the factors that are leading David Cameron to worry that another hung parliament is very possible and that he may need a continuing relationship with Nick Clegg's Liberal Democrats after the next election. I got a call from one Tory minister who asked […]
By Matthew BarrettFollow Matthew on Twitter. Ed Miliband and his supporters boast of his willingness to stand up to the big, vested interests, the corporate behemoths who delight in victimising hard-working people. However, his attacks on rail companies for increasing fares, on energy companies for high fuel prices, or on Fred Goodwin's knighthood don't quite […]
By Matthew BarrettFollow Matthew on Twitter. A week on from Ed Miliband's sixth re-launch, it would be timely to review his progress. Has he managed to persuade the public of his credibility at last? Has he managed to thrash the Coalition in the polls? Is his Party settled and united behind his leadership? It seems […]
By Joseph Willits Follow Joseph on Twitter In today's Sunday Times (£) there were yet more unnerving polling results for Ed Miliband, receiving his lowest (negative) rating so far as Labour leader from the party's supporters. 49% of those who vote Labour felt that Miliband was doing badly, compared to 46% who believed he was doing well. The YouGov […]
By Matthew BarrettFollow Matthew on Twitter. Ed Miliband's much-talked-about relaunch speech today (his sixth relaunch, which is Iain Duncan Smith territory and worse than John Major) is, on the face of it, an attempt to square the social democratic principle of redistribution (or "fairness") with the harsh reality of there probably not being much to redistribute […]
By Joseph Willits Follow Joseph on Twitter Over the past week, Ed Miliband has come under criticism from various figures in the Labour party – including from mentor and architect of 'Blue Labour', Lord Glasman, and other Labour MPs. Adding to this list today, both Alan Johnson and Alistair Darling have expressed their concerns. In Saturday's Guardian […]