Finally, It Begins

So, as predicted, David Miliband is positioning himself to be a challenger for the Labour leadership when Gordon Brown is ousted. Attempting to hide my delight would be a largely futile exercise which I shall forgo. That said, I am more than a little disappointed at predictions and talk that, despite Mr Milliband's intervention, Mr Brown is unlikely to be gone until late September at the very earliest. Of course, I am an incredibly impatient person. David Miliband's article in the Guardian helps dispell asertions that he is a Blairite. What it does do is show Labour that there is a way forward that has the posibility of a conclusion other than anihilation.

David outlines his case for a radical change in policy that could help revitilise Labour activists and bring the donors back to a party which, despite paying down some £5million of debt is still £19m in the red. In his article, David returns to the radical positions that he continually proposes, but that are always aborted when he moves to a different department. The most important thing that comes through in his article, is his willingness to acknowledge not just the successes of his party, but also its failures. This is something that Mr Brown is completely incapible of. On so many issues, such as Iraq, he clearly believes that the party made mistakes, but will not openly admit it. In comparison, David says in his article "we needed better planning for how to win the peace in Iraq, not just win the war". As I said in my last post, we need someone who is prepared to acknowledge mistakes.

While we are far away from a leadership challenge, it is a very positive sign that David has thrown his hat into the ring. In a sign that we are on the right track, according to the Telegraph Jacqui Smith is against replacing Gordon Brown "I don't think that's what we want at a time when people are worried about the economy". You always know you are onto a good thing when Ms Smith disagrees.