What would public ownership of rail signal about Miliband’s Labour?

What would public ownership of rail signal about Miliband’s Labour?

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Henry G on whether the party is on the right lines John Major’s decision to privatise British Rail is probably one of the least popular privatisations of the Thatcher-Major years. I don’t know anyone who enjoys rail travel in this country anymore. The tickets are extortionate, the services are fragmented and the feculent odours of Virgin Cross Country train is not quite the private sector innovation the public were promised. Yet for 13 years New Labour saw next to no…

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WANTED: A Tory MR/MRS NASTY

WANTED: A Tory MR/MRS NASTY

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Does Dave need an attack dog? Following my early morning post on George Osborne I received an email from a Tory friend. He wrote:- “As I see it, the problem between Osborne and Balls is an extension of a more broad problem for George and Dave. The lack of an attack dog within the Cabinet.” Mrs T had Tebbit and Parkinson etc. Blair and Brown had Blunkett, Reid, Balls etc. etc. The PM & Chancellor have no alternative to put…

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Can George go on with declining backbench support?

Can George go on with declining backbench support?

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Could his obsession with Balls be his undoing? Yesterday’s fierce clashes in the Commons between Osborne and Balls have raised further questions about the future of the chancellor coming as it does after what are widely regarded as his budget cock-ups According to a report behind the paywall in the Times there’s growing unease amongst Tory MPs over his approach to the LIBOR scandal and the way that he’s allowed his response to ” be dominated by personal attacks on…

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Ann Romney says the VP pick might be a woman

Ann Romney says the VP pick might be a woman

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Should punters take this seriously? In a CBS TV interview this morning Ann Romney gave a hint that Mitt is thinking of choosing a woman as his running mate. She said that she and her husband had “been looking at” the possibility of choosing a woman to run alongside him. “And I’d love that option as well”. Take that as you will but if you think that there’s something in it then it narrows the field down for those betting…

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Ed Balls: Labour’s LIBOR lightning conductor?

Ed Balls: Labour’s LIBOR lightning conductor?

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Will this shield the party from Osborne’s attacks? As we all know big buildings are protected from lightning strikes by having a lightning conductor. The idea is that if lightning targets building it will strike the lightning rod and will be conducted to ground instead of passing through the building, where it could start a fire or cause electrocution. Isn’t this what could be the role for Ed Balls as more information comes out about links between the last government…

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Suddenly people aren’t saying “Ed is crap” anymore

Suddenly people aren’t saying “Ed is crap” anymore

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Is he now safe until at least the general election? There was a time not so long ago when hardly a week went by without what became known on PB as an “Ed is crap” thread. This was mostly driven by a series of less than convincing public appearances and his poor leader ratings. At one stage at the start of the year Miliband was barely getting the backing of a majority of his party’s supporters. Three months of solid…

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Had George just seen his negative ConHome ratings?

Had George just seen his negative ConHome ratings?

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Is the leadership slipping away from his grasp? For me the most striking feature of today PMQs was the look on Osborne’s face as he sat next to David Cameron. I wonder whether he’d seen the latest “poll” on ConservativeHome which for the first time has the chancellor showing a negative rating. He’s on -2 joining a select group of Tory cabinet ministers who get a minus number when percentage of those saying they are “satisfied” is deducted from those…

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