Cross-posted from Left Outside I don’t think Labour really know that the game has changed. We will have an election in 2015 and there is very little chance of one before that. The move to fixed term parliaments means that Ed Miliband et al find themselves in a totally different position to someone like Cameron [...]
Fancy living on 62p a day? Thousands of families are going to have to do exactly that if the government’s Welfare Reform Bill becomes law, and the benefit cap comes in. Never mind the 100,000 children who’ll fall below the poverty line, or the projected 20,000 people who’ll be made homeless by it. Never mind [...]
Paul Kenny is right. The Tories will be rubbing their hands with glee at the current spat between Labour and the unions. But they won’t be doing so simply because Ed Balls’ now-notorious speech to the Fabian Conference is a sign that Labour support the government’s cuts agenda – while neither the speech itself nor [...]
So today brings news that former Labour Party official Luke Bozier is defecting to the Conservatives. Many people will be asking “Who the hell is Luke Bozier?”. Those who know of him may ask “Why did he defect?”. Meanwhile, those who’ve read his remarks about joining the Tories will be asking “On what planet does [...]
Today was my first day in Wapping. Moving there from Green Lanes was something of a culture shock. Gone were the less-than-salubrious kebab shops, the ubiquitous fried chicken places selling sumptuous heart attacks and the 95p store. In their place, riverside bars, Fitness First and a Waitrose. Walking into the supermarket earlier today, I realised [...]
Alan Johnson announced he’s resigning as Shadow Chancellor for family reasons. Reading between the lines, could it be because he knows nothing about economics, frequently clashes with Ed Miliband and is just a little bit shit? Let’s hope Ed picks someone a bit more suited to the role next time, who’ll really go for the [...]
There is mold growing on my bathroom wall. A couple of weeks back I engaged in a spot of serious cleansing and triumphantly declared that it had been been vanquished. Yet when I went downstairs this morning I noticed that, for the umpteenth time, it had reappeared. All of which brings me to the matter [...]
So, according to the Honourable Member for Falkirk at Labour Uncut, politicians lie because the electorate lies too, so we shouldn’t be so hard on poor benighted souls like Phil Woolas when they get caught out. It’s not that they’re any worse than anyone else; they’re just under more scrutiny, that’s all – and who [...]
Frank Field was recently dubbed the government’s ‘poverty tsar’ after the PM asked him to produce a report on inequality, particularly concerning the effects of childhood development on adult life. Today he came out in favour of a 1950s-style ‘tough love’ approach to parenting as a way to shrink inequalities at school. The remedy for the often [...]
Sunday’s Right to Work demonstration was an extremely important first step in building up momentum behind a campaign to stop the cuts. Full reports are available here, and if I manage it I’ll post up some pictures. A significant feature of the demo was the (still far too small) presence of Labour Party activists and [...]
