Is Harriet the one in tune with Labour voters?
| Oldham E & Saddleworth decision – right or wrong? (YouGov) | All voters | CON voters | LAB voters | LD voters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Right | 71 | 82 | 65 | 82 |
| Wrong | 7 | 4 | 12 | `8 |
| Don’t know | 22 | 14 | 23 | 10 |
| Should there be laws to stop candidates lying about their rivals? (YouGov) | All voters | CON voters | LAB voters | LD voters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| “It is right that there should be laws†| 74 | 86 | 69 | 77 |
| “Such laws are a restriction on free speech and risk preventing robust debate†| 9 | 5 | 13 | 10 |
| Neither | 6 | 2 | 8 | 8 |
| Don’t know | 11 | 6 | 9 | 4 |
How will the Woolas-backers react at PMQs?
Today being Wednesday means it’s PMQs and with Cameron & co in China it will be Hattie who’ll be facing Nick Clegg across the dispatch boxes.
Will, I wonder, the backers of Phil Woolas be enthusiastically backing their party’s stand-in and how is the whole affair of the Old & Sad saga going to play out?
One thing that is absolutely clear looking at the detailed data from yesterday’s YouGov poll for the Sun is that the deputy leader’s approach chimes most with Labour voters and the backers of the former immigration minister are wildly out of line.
Supporters of the red team are not that far out from voters as a whole with 65% saying the decision was right and just 12% saying it was wrong. It’s the same broad picture with the second question asking about the principle of whether there should be laws to govern this area.
So where will this all go? How’s Ed Miliband going to respond when he returns from paternity leave?
As Labour activist, Henry G, was saying in his guest slot last night there is “a nagging concern that Ed Miliband has so far failed to stamp his mark on the Labour Party.” Maybe it is on this issue that he needs to take a firm stand?
Assuming that the by election does go ahead then the continuing dissension is not going to help Labour The factors leading to the court case are likely to be a big campaign issue and the attitude of Labour MPs, particularly from the North West, could undermine their party’s efforts. The word “barmy” comes to mind.
I notice that some parts of the media are inserting the word “lying” before Woolas in their coverage of the affair. That is not good.
This week: I’m visiting my grand-children, having meetings in London and tomorrow giving evidence to the official inquiry into party funding. The result is that I’m not following the news as closely as usual or monitoring the site.