“A very particular type of politician thrives in the House of Commons. One that can deal with the yah boo of prime minister’s questions, the everyday heckling and intimidation. It makes for amusing theatre, but probably not for good politics.” Read the whole piece at Guardian Comment
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LabourList | Labour’s approach to EU budget reform is all wrong
“If anyone in the Labour Party should know how the European Union works it’s Peter Hain. A member of the Convention of the Future of Europe in the early 2000s, Hain will have seen how sensible proposals, compellingly argued, can lead to results at EU level – the permanent President […]
LabourList | What are we actually trying to achieve through school sport? Do we even know?
“The political debate around the legacy of the Olympic Games over the last few days has revolved around whether every kid in every British school should have to do two hours of compulsory sport every week.Cameron thinks not, while Boris Johnson and Kelly Holmes think they should.” Read the whole […]
LabourList | Farage is right: the UK is not a self governing nation (but not in the way he sees it)
“Everyone’s favourite damp-rag bashing rumbustious politician Nigel Farage has been at it again, claiming today that he “could not care less” who wins the next general election as the UK. “The penny is beginning to drop […] that we are no longer a self-governing nation” he continued.” Read the whole […]
LabourList | What’s Labour’s answer to the Tories’ likely election – renegotiate – referendum on the EU approach?
“So William Hague has launched the FCO review of the competences of the EU (essentially, an examination of the powers the EU has an how they are used). It’s no surprise that just a few days earlier the EU Fresh Start group of Tory MEPs released its 200+ page PDF […]
LabourList | Who coordinates internet politics for Labour?
“Labour’s website lists 115 MPs and Lords* in the Shadow Cabinet and shadow teams that assist them. Yet which of those people is responsible for internet politics for the party? I ask this because the SPD in Germany has such a person – Lars Klingbeil, profiled (in German) by Cicerohere. […]
LabourList | Labour’s next selections: the European Parliament. Here’s what needs to change.
“Now I’ve freed myself from the nightmare of participating in the process personally, I’m at my liberty to examine the absurdities of the system for the next important selections in the Labour Party, namely for candidates for the European Parliament elections in 2014. If the NEC adopts a similar schedule […]
LabourList | Labour needs a new leader for London to take the attack to Boris
“Mark Ferguson was quick off the mark with his post profiling candidates who could be in the running to be Labour’s candidate for Mayor in 2016. The problem is that before we ask who the candidate should be, we need to ask how to position such an individual between now […]
techPresident | My Government’s Commitment to the Surveillance State – the UK Queen’s Speech
“The Queen’s Speech is closest the UK has to some kind of State of the Union address. In the speech, delivered by the Queen in all her archaic royal splendor, the government of the day sets out its legislative agenda for the coming year. Press and politicians alike analyze every […]
LabourList | Strasbourg: One step forward and two steps back
“The good news: President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz seems to have confirmed his commitment to a single seat for the European Parliament in a Swedish radio interview (very short summary from EUObserver here ). Problem: he wants the seat to be Strasbourg and not Brussels. While such an […]
LabourList | Labour online comms: needing to do more than wringing the last little drop of activity from our members
“Obama taught us one major thing in how to use the net for politics: done the right way, online activism can be a great way to engage and motivate people who are already – largely – on your side. The Obama team had a rather wide appeal; European efforts to […]
LabourList | Helmer’s defection to UKIP ultimately the result of Tory confusion about selection processes
“At one level I can’t get very worked up about Roger Helmer MEP defecting from the Tories to UKIP today. Helmer has long held views on the EU-phobic right of the Conservative Party, in many ways closer to UKIP, so his defection is not a great surprise. Conservative Home has […]