Is Labour like its leader just too tired?
Or was today another boost for AJ4PM?
So another battering at by the voters and if things run to form then there’ll be more leadership speculation followed by Brown’s September conference speech which all Labour loyalists will acclaim.
We’ve been here before – the only difference now is that the election is much closer and Labour is finding it even harder to get people to vote for the party.
Fourteen months ago at C&N the Tories achieved a massive swing because so many extra people came out to vote for them. At Norwich the swing was about the same – but was caused by Labour supporters abandoning the party.
This is how John Rentoul sees it on his Indy blog: “…Paradoxically, though, that means that the AJ4PM campaign is also on course. Even if Labour manages to do much better in the Glasgow by-election caused by the resignation of Michael Martin, the Speaker, the collapse of Labour support and morale in Norwich North speaks volumes of Gordon Brown’s unelectability in England.
I expect that there’ll be another Labour leadership spasm in September, and a fourth and final one in January. Alan Johnson could be in Number 10 in six months’ time.”
I agree with Rentoul on Brown in England- I’ve argued for four years here that he’s an electoral liability as has been obvious in poll after poll. But having been a hawk for so long on an early Brown exit I’m now not so sure. Labour just seems resigned to its fate. It gives the appearance that it’s tired and can’t be arsed and that will keep Gordon there if he wants to stay.