The new CW

Ian C

At 32 he has not even wet his first political nappy. And he has chosen the dead end of climate change minister - something that will one day win the prize for the most stupid ministry ever invented.

He's bright - but even bright people are stupid - and he is far too young to take over in 18 months time when Borwn fails. Cruddas will lead the left and probably the party.

Mike, Brighton

One problem with that is that Ed has zero personality and zero charisma and those are essential qualities needed to become PM....er um like er er unlike Mr Brown

David

It's good that you had a backup commentator, since reading this

"By the end of the year, the two main parties will have switched positions in the polls, with the Conservatives heading into 2010 languishing below 30 per cent"

really doesn't give one confidence in the remainder of Mr MacIntyre's predictions.

mark

Ed might be popular with the party but most people with eyes and at leat 2 brain cells see him as something nasty that you need to scap of your shoes

drakesdrum

strange, I was talking to an elder statesman of the commentators club on the telephone the other day. I was told that the person to watch, seriously, was little miss hunny bun, the cheerful chipmunk Miss Hazel Blears!

Apparantly she has tremendous support and could, if she moved, take Brown's job when the opportunity arises.

Contrary to the Westminster Village correspondents. The New Labour Party are not a happy lot and the worry about Brown still exists. Should he lose the election - watch Miss Blears FLY!!

For unpolitically correct reasons the Milliband's will lose out big time.

Monty's lad

drakesdrum - the was a contest for deputy leader of the Labour Party about eighteen months ago. Here are the results from the first round:

Jon Cruddas 19.39%
Harriet Harman 18.93%
Alan Johnson 18.16%
Hilary Benn 16.40%
Peter Hain 15.32%
Hazel Blears 11.77%

The chipmunk was the first candiate to be eliminated so I'm not sure that your theory is completely watertight.

Pete, Yorkshire

WHAT? Ed Milliband doesn't look or talk human.

Matthew Blott

@ drakesdrum

Hazel Blears came last in the deputy leadership election last year.

Ken

Would that be the younger banana in the Miliband bunch then? Why does Coffee House so love to punt spotty teenagers for Labour leadership? The pair of them will be Milli-who's? inside of 5 years.

Dave B

I don't agree that, "the political energy is now on the more statist left".

I think the 'political energy', is with devolved decision making, and less government interference.

http://www.direct-democracy.co.uk/

Roll on the general election :-)

Ted Tedford

How did it come to this?

I'm no fan of Labour, but the fact that lick-spittle dwarves like Ed Miliband (or his glottally-challenged brother) and Hazel Blears are even in government, let alone suspects for future leadership, must make the average party member want to cry.

cityboozer

What is "CW"?

Nicholas

Oh dear. Is the Speccie becoming ageist? I thought you preferred politicians of wisdom, experience and gravitas?

32? Come on. Mr Ed the Talking Donkey needs to sign up for a couple of years and come back to politics after a spell in the Army. Oh, sorry, forgot, New Labour don't do armed forces.

Unsteady Eddie

cityboozer, is it complete winker? or something?

BTW 'sexiest portfolios'? I was all moist by mid paragraph

JohnAnt

James - this is a wind-up - right?
Both Milibaender together do not have enough nous for one normal human being.

TGF UKIP

Careful Ian C, young Ed is first and foremost Secretary of State for Energy and as I have been posting for a while energy is very likely to soon become a sexy political issue.

Very large and controversial decisions are soon to be made on energy and the Tories will be massively out of sync with the public and where Gordon intends to position Labour.

If you want a laugh go to the Tory Party website and look at their energy policy documents particularly the one titled "Energy Policy Paper - The Decentralised Energy Revolutution." With an already creaking power plant structure, 12 plants scheduled for closure over the next ten years, a number of coal plants becoming illegal under the European Emissions Directive, that document is about as relevant to Britain's real and imminent energy problems as a copy of The Beano.

When energy does become a political issue Brown intends to frame it in terms of Daffy Green Dave against Keep Yer Lights on Gordon.

James Forsyth

City Boozer, CW stands for conventional wisdom.

Ian C, I agree Cruddas will be formidable. He has the great weapon of being a genuinely good bloke.
Best, James

Frank P

cityboozer

"What is CW?"

Why, communist wanker of course!

Graeme Stewart

In reference to TGF UKIP's comments. Labour will be or will have just finished being in charge when the lights go out. Nobody's going to look at the policy documents when they only have a candle to read by. If the Conservative's get in then they should continually point the finger at Labour for every failing that occurs.
Every party's position on Energy is mince (ask Fraser S for the translation) and there are going to have to be a series of U turns by all the party's if the this country's energy needs are to be met.
Today the wind turbines will be shut down as the wind will be too strong. Last week there wasn't enough wind to start them up. Excluding tidal, green energy can only have a marginal impact and it is expensive.