Those of us who have suggested David Miliband’s latest political intervention may have – let’s say – ulterior motives have received a bit of flak. Must he stay silent just because any public pronouncement may be misconstrued by the media? Why can’t he contribute to the debate about the party’s future like anyone else? Bookmarks Hide [...]
Posts under ‘Activism’
Socialism: it’s nothing personal
Feb 2nd, 2012 by Owen Jones.I’m almost feeling sorry for Fred the Shred. ‘Humbling of Mister Godwin’, mocked the Daily Mail; ‘Goodwin is shredded’ (geddit?) bellowed the Daily Telegraph; ‘Once A Knight Fred’, echoed the Sun, a newspaper always keen to win the most imaginative pun stakes. It’s more than tempting for the left to jump on this populist bandwagon. [...]
The reform of Labour policy process is unstoppable: Ed’s office please take note
Jan 30th, 2012 by Jon Lansman.As the extended period of consultation about Refounding Labour reaches its conclusion tomorrow, it has become clear that the determination to democratise decision-making extends across the party and its affiliates, and across the political spectrum. It cannot be stopped by the desire of the Leader’s advisers to force trade unions to give up yet more of the [...]
The real divisions in the Labour Party and what Ed should do about it
Jan 25th, 2012 by Jon Lansman.Most Labour party members are, above all, loyal to their party. They have a strong inclination to back their leaders, even when they disagree with what they’ve said or done. And disagree they did, by and large, when Ed Balls announced that “the starting point….is we’re going to have to keep all these cuts” and accept [...]
Give us back a fair process for choosing Labour parliamentary candidates
Jan 24th, 2012 by Peter Willsman.Regular visitors may have read here that the Labour Party is piloting a revised and truncated procedure for the selection of prospective parliamentary candidates. This has been operated in 26 seats identified by Labour’s national executive as ‘early bird’ marginals. The executive’s Organisation Committee has undertaken to properly review this pilot lot this year in time [...]
10 ways in which Refounding Labour might actually happen
Jan 23rd, 2012 by Jon Lansman.Were you or your local party consulted about our new commitments on freezing public sector pay or not reversing Tory cuts? No? And what about or policy review more generally — have you felt any more involved than you did in the New Labour years? We thought not. As it happens, you’ve got one more week [...]
Labour Party members’ policy reps: gagged for 2-years, now facing elections
Jan 9th, 2012 by Peter Kenyon.For those of you braced for late night tomorrow glued to CNN and the GOP New Hampshire primary spare a thought for Labour Party national policy forum (NPF) consitutency labour party(CLP) representatives facing an election next summer. Since taking up office in the autumn of 2010, these haplessindividuals (55 in total – five per Labour [...]
Support centre-left candidates for Labour’s national executive
Jan 9th, 2012 by Jon Lansman.The Campaign for Labour Party Democracy (CLPD) is today writing to all constituency parties and supporters calling for nominations of six candidates for the six constituency party places on Labour’s National Executive (download leaflet here). The deadline for nominations is Friday 30 March 2012 and the all-member postal ballot will take place in May and June. [...]
Visitors from Mars demand fair play
Jan 9th, 2012 by Jon Lansman.Over at LabourList, the Blairites are up in arms .about the “political cancer at the heart of the Labour Party“. Even with some of their own. Luke Bozier says Tony Blair is “partly to blame for today’s mess” because he failed on succession planning: “David Miliband was a weak successor in waiting without the fire [...]
Where do activists go to be active?
Jan 1st, 2012 by Will Howley.In 1996 at the Labour Party Annual Conference I asked a well known Political Editor from TV what he thought of the Blairite administration? His reply was coy. Political Editor: Same as you I expect. Me: No really, what do you think of them? Or what do you think the Blairites are in size? Political [...]
