A blog by Luke Akehurst about politics, elections, and the Labour Party - With subtitles for the Hard of Left. Just for the record: all the views expressed here are entirely personal and do not necessarily represent the positions of any organisations I am a member of.

Saturday, August 19, 2006

Bring it on

According to today's laughably mistitled "Independent" (a journal that currently combines the politics of George Galloway with the journalistic style and insight of the Beano) the equally laughably mistitled Campaign for Labour Party Democracy (who have mainly campaigned AGAINST One Member One Vote) is calling on CLPs to send emergency resolutions to Conference triggering a Labour leadership election: http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article1220294.ece

My reaction is, "bring it on". I can't think of anything more likely to consolidate Blair's position and rally the Party behind him than a leadership challenge from the clapped out remnants of the Bennite hard left. They made exactly the same tactical error in 1988 with the Benn/Heffer challenge against Kinnock which produced an 88% to 12% drubbing for Benn.

Anyone who has been to a Labour Conference in the last decade will know that the hard left are not well represented on conference floor - a situation that has been exagerated by their own tactic of discouraging CLPs from sending delegates by constantly complaining the event is a pro-leadership rally.

I would be prepared to bet on Gordon Brown taking to the rostrom to give the NEC response to this emergency resolution - calling on delegates to vote it down and not trigger a challenge to Blair.

I just hope Conference Arrangements Committee put it on the order paper so we can have a good laugh at the collection of flat-earthers who stand up to speak in favour of it.

5 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

"According to today's laughably mistitled "Independent" (a journal that currently combines the politics of George Galloway with the journalistic style and insight of the Beano) "

what's your favourite newspaper?

6:21 pm, August 19, 2006

 
Blogger Luke Akehurst said...

Bizarrely, I take the Guardian. I don't agree with its editorial line but the writing is high quality, it covers international issues better than the rest of the UK press, it is good on Labour Party gossip and I like the cultural stuff in it - food & drink stuff and arts reviews. It's kind of compulsory reading if you live in Stoke Newington. The FT is also well written but too thin for the price.

7:07 pm, August 19, 2006

 
Blogger Manchester University Labour Club said...

I agree this turns John McD's election campaign into an absolute joke.

10:01 pm, August 19, 2006

 
Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Bizarrely, I take the Guardian. I don't agree with its editorial line "

funny, Clare Short agrees with you in disagreeing with the Guardian's editorial line. She finds it to Blairite!


"but the writing is high quality,"

I thought the Guardian was known for his spelling mistakes.
I think (hope) they corrected it for the print version, but their online version carried an article about Wolfgang being elected to the NEC where they got the 6 successful candidates wrong and they left out Wolfgang!
Those kinds of mistakes are starting to appear even more often recently, in all papers. I think it's poor research by journalists part

10:33 pm, August 19, 2006

 
Blogger Luke Akehurst said...

The spelling mistakes were in the old-style Guardian, 2 revamps ago, back in the 80s. They were caused by the low quality of the type-setting and sub-editing, it wasn't that the actual journalists couldn't write or spell.

12:11 pm, August 20, 2006

 

Post a Comment

<< Home

 
Free Hit Counters
OfficeDepot Discount