Labour leader Ed Miliband says he will show the country his party can govern
Miliband: We can be a government
Joseph Watts, Political editor
Saturday, September 29, 2012
6:30 AM
When Ed Miliband became party leader he launched a policy review proclaiming Labour would consider all ideas on how to run the country. He would start with a “blank page”.
While enduring accusations that he had no ideas, he kept on confident in the knowledge that he was following a path well trodden by both Tony Blair and David Cameron.
That is; it pays not to have many ideas in opposition. A party with fewer solid ideas cannot be attacked, and so the focus falls on how well the government performs.
But that trick can only be performed for so long and midway through this Parliament calls from Miliband’s own ranks for a solid sign of what he would do as prime minister have reached a new pitch.
Only yesterday the party’s Norwich North candidate Jess Asato told the EDP she wanted more “meat” on the bones of Labour policy proposals. Today senior Labour figure and former Norwich MP Charles Clarke follows suit.
“What Ed Miliband and the party have to do at this conference is to outline an absolutely clear direction for the way in which Labour would govern the country in all aspects of policy; economic and social,” he told the EDP.
“That means articulating a vision of the country we want to create and setting out some more of the policy background than we have done so far.
“The key task is to convince people through the country that Labour both knows what it wants to do and how it wants to achieve it.”
He added: “The key is not giving a great deal of detail, but making it clear how we would approach issues, for example, dealing with the fiscal deficit.”
The message has reached party headquarters. In the shadow cabinet room earlier this week Mr Miliband told the EDP he knew what he had to do.
He said: “We will be putting forward solutions in particular to the economic crisis that our country is facing and showing how we can build an economy that works, not just for a few people at the top but for all people right across the country.
“We’ll be talking at conference about issues of prices and living standards, issues of how we help small business, how we build the long term reforms of our economy that we need and also how we tackle the jobs crisis.”
He added: “We are a party that is not only a responsible opposition, but I believe will this week show how we can be an alternative government.”
To kick things off he announced a ‘youth jobs task force’ which will see him direct Labour councils around the country to come up with schemes to help young people find jobs.
We can also expect policy on the green economy; business opportunities presented by the country becoming more environmentally friendly, such as in the renewable energy sector.
Last week Lib Dem energy secretary Ed Davey stated such business opportunities, which firms in Norfolk and Suffolk hope will provide 1,000 jobs by 2017, would help the country pull itself out of recession.
Mr Miliband said: “The government have catastrophically undermined the case on renewable energy. It’s hard to remember now but David Cameron is the guy that went to the arctic to hug a husky.
“But he’s now appointed an environment secretary [Owen Paterson] that says he doesn’t believe in climate change and [their] economic policy seems to be that if you help the environment it hurts the economy.
“That is not my view. I think that actually the way you have a successful economy is by promoting green jobs.”
Meanwhile the leader was clear on his opposition to plans announced by George Osborne to explore introducing locally negotiated pay deals for public sector workers.
Currently a state sector worker gets the same wage where ever they work in the country. But if regional pay bargaining was brought in wages would be more closely tied to those in the local private sector.
In the East of England that may mean public sector workers taking between a 10pc and 15pc pay cut. Mr Miliband even neatly side stepped the fact that it was Labour that introduced regional pay rates in the court services when it was in power.
“There are isolated examples that people can point to, but I think the question is whether you want it wholesale, in schools and hospitals and elsewhere,” he said.
“My sense is that actually it’s not going to help our kids. It’s not going to help patients in hospitals. We’ll look at their proposals, but as I say we’ll approach them with deep scepticism.”
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16 comments
Ps - Where do you put your name down for one of Ed`s 30K houses?
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BG
Monday, October 1, 2012
Peter Watson - One flaw to your plan Boldrick. The sale has yet to take place and no one knows how much it will bring in. Who knows when Labour will be in power again and the money from the sale will be long gone by then. Bit like the money GB got from the last auction which instead of investing in UKPLC he used it to pay off some of our debt. Kettle, pot and black come to mind at the moment.
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BG
Monday, October 1, 2012
Terrific from Ed Balls-100,000 jobs in construction funded from mobile phone sale-do it now say the CBI.
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Peter Watson
Monday, October 1, 2012
Chucka Umunna's absolute farcical denial in yesterdays set up BBC round of questioning, of possibly wanting to become Labours leader, we always want what America already has, as well as the revelation that Labour agrees with cutting 16.000 police jobs, was the only information I got from the first day. This conference will be inconsequential bluster, hard talk and no policy whatsoever.
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ingo wagenknecht
Monday, October 1, 2012
13 years of misery . NEVER AGAIN
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milecross
Sunday, September 30, 2012
13 years of misery . NEVER AGAIN
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milecross
Sunday, September 30, 2012
So you are all fed up with Party politics, are you? We will see whether its possible to elect a truly Independent PCC on Nov. 15th. For this occasion, they have changed the voting system to SV, you have tow votes, but you can also just vote for your first preference, it will count.
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ingo wagenknecht
Sunday, September 30, 2012
John Smith he would do alot worse, how many tax rises were there under Labour? How much money did they waste? How many people did they and would they pay to sit on there backsides and do nothing. This country can not afford another Labour Government they should be banned from ever being in charge. The idea of Miliband in No10 is a very sick joke.
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Sweet cheeks
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Well he can't do much worse than the current lot. It's disgraceful to think that since the election over half a million pounds of salary and expenses have gone to Richard Bacon MP (aka Emperor Nero). Just what have we got in return for that?
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john smith
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Well he can't do much worse than the current lot. It's disgraceful to think that since the election over half a million pounds of salary and expenses have gone to Richard Bacon MP (aka Emperor Nero). Just what have we got in return for that?
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john smith
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Watched Ed`s Q & A session this afternoon. He should have been a hypnotist. He put them all too sleep without trying. Came so naturally.
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BG
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Of course you can Ed, of course you can. Now go with these nice gentleman in their white coats. They will look after you.
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BG
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Got to like that photo of Miliband, all it needs is the caption ---"ooo ooo ooo the funky gibbon"---
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ggj666
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Of course you can So much experience and talent just waiting to deliver it all to help the UK INCLUDING sCOTLAND forward Why dont you take a sabbatical for 10 years until you decide what and who you stand for
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No to tory boy
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Amazing!! This lot are not fit to run an ice cream kiosk on the seafront! Have they forgot the 13 years of misery! No point in Blaming Cameron anyone who inherited Labours mess is on a NO winner!
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dave123
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Amazing!! This lot are not fit to run an ice cream kiosk on the seafront! Have they forgot the 13 years of misery! No point in Blaming Cameron anyone who inherited Labours mess is on a NO winner!
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dave123
Saturday, September 29, 2012