Mandelson is tiring of his 'toy'
James Forsyth 10:41am
Patrick Wintour’s piece on Peter Mandelson in today’s Guardian is the most thorough explanation that we’ve had yet of Mandelson’s ‘Garbo-esque silence’ since the PBR. Mandelson was clearly intensely frustrated and disillusioned by the PBR, and the presentation of it, backing away from his smart cuts strategy and instead returning to the crude investment versus cuts dividing line. One also gets the impression that Mandelson was irritated by Brown’s fundamental failings as a politician. Wintour writes that those who spoke to Mandleson before Christmas “heard a man frustrated by the prime minister's lack of focus, decision-making capacity, and strategic guile.”
One thing that jumped out at me is that Ed Balls and Yvette Cooper were pushing in the PBR negotiations for the 50p rate to hit anyone earning over £100,000. We can be pretty sure that this will return as an issue in any post-election Labour leadership contest. Intriguingly, though, Wintour reports that even Balls has privately aired concerns about Brown’s electability.
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James
January 6th, 2010 11:36am Report this commentTough. Mandy knew - we all bloody well knew - about Gords failings as a politician. He did not have to jump back into bed with him and could have brought him down when Purnell resigned.
Also, can we stop making him out to be a political giant. He has had to resign twice and should be banned from public office. Just because someone is good at intrigue does not make them a graet politician.
RMH
January 6th, 2010 11:55am Report this commentSo Balls and Cooper seem to be this super tough couple. why, pair of plonkers imho!
Shepley Tory
January 6th, 2010 12:05pm Report this commentWhy are we surprised at Mandelson tiring of Brown? Mandelson got what he wanted, the Lisbon Treaty, even if he failed to get Tony elected as President.
I always suspected that Mandelson would distance himself from Brown once he had what he wanted.
Vulture
January 6th, 2010 12:07pm Report this commentBalls is worried abt Gordo's electability?
SO are the rest of us - worried that there are still enough loonies in the land to vote Liebour.
More to the point : Balls' new seat at Morley is by no means invulnerable. Wouldn't it be wonderful if he gave us all a Portillo moment?
NorthernJohn
January 6th, 2010 12:35pm Report this commentVulture - your schadenfreude would be short lived. I live in the constituency next door but I'm giving serious thought to going out and campaigning for him so that he can play his lead role in dragging the Labour Party into oblivion, via its own civil war.
David J
January 6th, 2010 1:17pm Report this commentHe and Milliband kept him on life support after the Purnell coup attempt to avoid triggering an election that would have killed their beloved Lisbon Treaty.
It was obvious they'd knife him after he served his purpose. Another example of Dan Hannan's observation about Europe's "hideous strength" - its ability to subvert the domestic behaviour of politicians to advance its aims. In this case, the politicians were willing supplicants.
That they kept this train-wreck of a PM in power at such a vital moment is shocking, wasting valuable time that could have been spent trying to rectify the economy. And of course he used this period to continue his "scorched earth" economic policy, knowing the ashes would be left to the Tories.
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