What’s this week told us about the next election?
Have both cleared the decks for a battle on the centre ground?
After an extraordinary week it’s worth sitting back and reflecting on what we’ve learnt about what will dominate the next four and a half years – the general election planned for 2015?
There’ve been two developments which have been very telling – the Tory move on child benefits and Ed Miliband’s shadow cabinet appointments. For with both the two leaders have shown their readiness to ditch their natural constituencies in the battle for the centre ground.
Cameron is risking upsetting aspiring middle class families while the appointment of Alan Johnson as shadow chancellor points to a much more moderate approach from EdM’s Labour to the cuts packages. His union backers in the leadership election might not be so pleased.
A Labour with Alan Johnson as shadow chancellor is a totally different proposition than with one of the Balls duo.
Both involve massive risks and both strategies, I would argue, are absolutely right. The territory they are targeting is where general elections are won and lost.
EdM’s recognition of that is hugely significant.