Ed Miliband is stuck. He wants to lead One Nation. But Scotland got close to going alone. That independence referendum in mid-September showed Labour voters in its heartland authorities in Glasgow wanted out nearly as much as the SNP. UKIP, while tearing the Conservative Party apart, gave Labour a fright in the Heywood and Middleton by-election coming within 600 votes of overturning a so-called solid Labour majority.
Four years on from his election as party leader, Miliband is still shackled with Ed Balls as his shadow chancellor of the exchequer, a man he did not want in the job when first elected. A man whom Miliband was reported to have wanted to reshuffle (£) after his 2014 Party Conference. However, as former Conservative prime minister Harold Macmillan replied when asked what was the most difficult part of his job: “Events, dear boy, events”. When the reshuffle didn’t happen it was reported by Labour Uncut, that Miliband’s own leadership was unsettled by the Heywood and Middleton by-election close-shave. His cunning plan to move Balls, and replace him as shadow chancellor with his wife, Yvette Cooper, was reportedly shelved. Continue reading
Today, Labour’s national executive committee has been meeting. In the wake of complaints about certain candidates for internal elected office having access to all-members contact details, by fair means or foul, I wondered whether consideration was given to a comradely gesture. 
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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.