One meeting Peter Mandelson isn’t invited to

Westminster is in awe of Peter Mandelson’s power. There is no doubt that he has almost unparalleled access and a remarkably wide-ranging remit; as Rachel Sylvester noted he sits on 33 of 39 cabinet committees. But it seems there are still some Brownites who are not yet ready to welcome him into the inner circle. Kevin Maguire, no friend of Mandelson, reports in his New Statesman diary  that:

“The great guessing game over the date of the election has overlooked a regular gathering in No 10 on Wednesday afternoons. Chaired by Gordon Brown’s mini-me, Ed Balls, the eclectic collective includes Miss Moneypenny Sue Nye, the spinner Damian McBride, the union money man Charlie Whelan, Colin Byrne (corporate link), the fixer Tom Watson and Labour’s generalissimo Ray Collins, plus an assortment of other influential figures. What could they be discussing?”