Rachel reeves

Whether or not he did accidentally suggest that he knew what tomorrow’s GDP figures will be at Prime Minister’s Questions, David Cameron did have a jolly good point about the way Labour responds to good news on the economy. He told Ed Miliband: ‘It’s only a bad week if you think it’s bad that unemployment’s coming down, it’s only a bad week if you regret inflation coming down… every piece of good news sends that team into a complete decline, well, I can tell him, the good news will keep on coming.’ As Fraser blogged at the weekend, Ed Miliband’s strategy is predicated on the government continually cocking up. It’s

David Cameron finds himself in the midst of a blue-on-blue barney over the charity tax, which has prompted rumours that ministers may dilute the current proposals by adopting an American-style legacy deal. Tory party treasurer Lord Fink has said that the proposed changes would ‘put people off giving’, and some boisterous Conservative MPs are openly challenging the leadership. Zac Goldsmith has penned a diatribe in the Mail on Sunday in which he says: ‘I am ashamed that a Conservative Chancellor has not only announced measures that will undoubtedly depress giving in this country; he has spun a narrative in which philanthropists are now the enemy.’ Meanwhile, David Davis told the

The Labour reshuffle is an attempt to bring more energy and aggression into Ed Miliband’s top team. It is also a recognition that the party has failed to cut through on public service reform, hence new shadows at both health and education. Chuka Umunna’s rapid promotion to shadow Business Secretary will, I suspect, dominate coverage of the reshuffle. Having been an MP for less than 18 months, Umunna now finds himself up against Vince Cable. If he succeeds in this role, he’ll rapidly become the leader in waiting. But there’s also a danger that it might all be too much, too soon for him. Umunna is one of five new

Those now leaving Liverpool are indulging in some shadow Cabinet reshuffle speculation. This chatter has been sparked both by the fact that Miliband has now abolished shadow Cabinet election and by how many of the media rounds in the past few days have been done by members of the 2010 intake notably Stella Creasy, Chuka Umanna and Rachel Reeves. Expect them to be in line for rapid promotion. To make way for them, some of the under-performing members of the shadow Cabinet will have to be sacked. One name touted as being in the frame is John Healey, the health spokesman. Healey has long infuriated some in the leader’s office