BBC News - Gordon Brown 'stepping down as Labour leader'.
That's it.
The end of New Labour.
I will not mourn its passing.
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But there might be a pretty damn big appendix to the New Labour story if Brown stays on for a few months as head of a “traffic light coalition” with Lib Dems and others to drive through PR legislation. I wonder if it’ll happen? There are great dangers, but also huge potential to seize the progressive moment.
If someone had written the last few days as a political thriller it’d have been trashed as sensationalist nonsense. Amazing stuff!
New Labour is not dead yet. Mandy has decreed that Miliband will be the next leader. To kill off New labour even in opposition, would require a stake and a silver bullet
It is amazing. But all this talk of a “progressive moment” is simplistic.
Under any sort of PR Labour would lose 100 MPs at least. Not easy to get turkeys to vote for Xmas.
And how will public spending cuts be pushed through? There are strikes already lined up: would all the parties be able to hold the line. How will the English feel at the price of a coalition being increased funding to the Scots, Welsh and Irish when there is a general belief that Scottish, Welsh and Irish MPs should not be permitted to vote on many issues which affect England only?
More to the point, how can government function if the Tories and Unionists won’t play ball? The Tories and the Unionists come to 315. That means unless there is a gentleman’s agreement to pair up for votes – and that is unlikely – for every government motion there would have to be 316 MPs ready to turn up. Very difficult to achieve.
And every by-election becomes a nightmare.
I have always said the best result for the big parties at this election was to win a lot of seats but not enough to make a coalition. If the Tories are left as the opposition, they will be seen as having tried in good faith to make a coalition. They will not be blamed for the industrial unrest of the next 6 months. There will be immense public anger at having a PM foisted upon the nation by Labour MPs so soon after the public was told that the leaders elections was their opportunity to choose the next PM.
And if anything goes wrong with the rainbow coalition there would be an election within a year.
The best result for either Labour or the Tories is to be in opposition. For the LibDems, they are in an awful position.
MF – I’ll agree with you that the traffic light coalition would certainly be awkward and exhausting for MPs. Pairing would probably be dropped, yes – as it was in 1974-9. So that could mean wheeling ill MPs in on hospital beds etc. But that 1974-9 Labour govt lasted almost the full term before being brought down in a confidence vote – so this would probably hold up for a few months.
Labour could make the vote for the PR bill a confidence vote – so if Labour MPs don’t back it, there’s a general election (at which they would probably be annihilated). It’s very high stakes stuff, to be sure. I’m not sure if it’s advisable as a course of action – but it IS possible.
By-elections is a big problem to be sure, but again, I don’t think anybody would be looking for this to go on more than about 2 years before another election could take place under new voting rules.
Clegg is in a really tough position – but I think he’ll have looked closely at the idea of a Tory/Lib coalition and decided there is very little upside and huge risks for the Lib Dems. At least with the traffic light coalition there is a huge potential upside if they can get PR through (although obviously huge risks as well.)
Whoever forms the Government for the next few years is looking at a whole world of pain. There are no decisions that need to be made that could evenly remotely be described as popular and everyone from the 50% rate taxpayers to the lowest paid in society. I don’t think that could be remotely described as “progressive”. They wouldn’t have time to introduce PR even if they could get the Labour party to vote for it!!!
I’m beginning to think that a Lab/Lib/Scot Nat/PC/Green/SDLP alliance is the best thing that could happen. Give it a year to fall apart in bitter acrimony, another election, in with the Conservatives. Move forward after the really unpopular decisions have been taken!
Apologies if this sounds very cynical or Machiavelli. It’s all up to the Liberal Democrats to act in the country’s best interests, rather than their own!!!
I doubt it’s the end of new labour – look who’s calling the shots now – Peter Mandelson!! As for the “rainbow coalition”, heaven help us all when the balance of power will rely on the DUP – the newly elected Ian Paisley Jnr is looking mighty pleased with himself. We should all be very scared.
I would (best Kevin Keegan impersonation here) love it, just love it, if there was a rainbow coalition with that great uniter Ed Balls as the PM.
Please, please, please.