Sep/10
13:37 21
Leaked Labour leadership campaign memo lays bare “Twitter bitching” strategy
The bad-tempered arguments between supporters of the various Labour leadership candidates has not gone unnoticed. Until now, however, it was not apparent that this had been encouraged officially by a campaign team.
The strategy document below, from leadership hopeful Jim Garner MP, suggests activists should “bitch about the other candidates on Twitter”, adding “If Ed Miliband farts in the woods and no one is around to hear it, I want you to say you were there and it smelt like he’d followed through.” The memo also carries annotations from an unknown aide suggesting Labour MP Stephen Pound should abuse DWP minister Chris Grayling in Parliament.
Garner’s campaign is perhaps best known for its videos (see his candidacy announcement), which the document indicates will be making a return shortly. A source close to the Garner campaign told Scrapbook that Labour members can expect new material as early as next week.
In the meantime, check out his website at Jim4Leader.org.uk
Sep/10
23:14 9
Shadow Cabinet update: Alan Johnson to run
Former Home Secretary Alan Johnson has declared he is to run for the Shadow Cabinet in the forthcoming elections. It had previously been thought that Mr. Johnson would follow top-cabinet colleagues like Alastair Darling and Jack Straw in stepping back from the political front line.
Johnson’s decision could potentially scupper the Shadow Cabinet plans of leadership contenders as it would be hard to sideline such a high profile and popular figure. Since Scrapbook last covered the Shadow Cabinet elections it has become increasingly clear who the major players are and what jobs they fancy.
In the event of a Miliband (D) victory Douglas Alexander is being lined up as a potential Shadow Foreign Secretary, with fellow Scot (and campaign organiser) Jim Murphy being considered for either Defence or Work and Pensions.Harriet Harman is rumoured to be getting the Justice brief regardless of who wins, and though he fancies the Shadow Chancellorship speculation is rife that Ed balls is being lined up as a Shadow Home Secretary – a prospect that may have been scuppered by Johnson’s announcement.
Top posts are filling up fast.
And this is before trying to squeeze in whichever of the Milibrothers comes second.
Sep/10
16:32 5
Belching for Oona
Not content with holding rallies at The Ministry of Sound and having the support of Idris Elba From The Wire (Coolest TV Show In The World™), the Oona King for London Mayor campaign has today received another boost in the hipster stakes with a YouTube video by comic actor David Schneider:
The video was both conceived and written by Schneider, who earnt his comedy chops on The Day Today and I’m Alan Partridge, and is certainly a little different to the videos Ken’s campaign has uploaded so far – although word has it that his 18 minute, two-part housing policy launch is the talk of Shoreditch at the moment.
Perhaps he could re-record Ernold Same with Blur?
Aug/10
13:25 15
As few as 11 MPs will vote for Diane Abbott
UPDATE 14:15 From what we’re hearing it might be less than 11!
For a full list of her original nominators (and who they’re really voting for) see our updated breakdown.
It was widely known that many of Abbott’s nominators wanted her on the ballot but would not support her in the final vote. Notwithstanding this fact, the extent to which she has bled support throughout the campaign surprised Scrapbook when updating our original article on her nominations yesterday. By our reckoning, just 11 of her 257 Labour colleagues intend to vote for her when postal ballots hit doormats from 1 September. This is exactly one third of the MPs required to nominate for the contest:
- Ronnie Campbell (Blyth Valley)
- Katy Clark (North Ayrshire & Arran)
- Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North)
- John Cryer (Leyton & Wanstead)
- Kate Hoey (Vauxhall)
- Kelvin Hopkins (LutonNorth)
- Sian James (Swansea East)
- John McDonnell (Hayes and Harlington)
- George Mudie (Leeds East)
- Dennis Skinner (Bolsover)
- Mike Wood (Batley & Spen)
A more generous assessment might include left wing PLP Chair Tony Lloyd, who backed her on the final day of nominations after coming under pressure from Labour members. This would bring her tally to 12 but this still includes 8 MPs who originally preferred John McDonnell and brings into question her claim that she could attract support “not just from the left”.
Abbott was at once blessed and cursed with the charity of David Miliband. A loan of his backers got her onto the ballot but meant her original list of “support” shrivelled over the Summer as the Mili-D camp slowly dripped announcements (notably Jack Straw) that they had kept in their back pocket. This strategy benefited the frontrunner as much as it did Abbott.
The “We’re backing Diane” section of her website has a grand total of, erm, two endorsements and one of these is by someone who will vote for Ed Miliband! Halifax MP Linda Riordan is clear that, while it was important to have a left-wing voice in the contest, she will not be voting for Abbott:
“To have the broad strand of Labour opinion represented required a candidate from the left. This is why, as in 2007, I nominated John McDonnell and when he fell short of the numbers, transferred to Diane Abbott. Already, thanks to Diane’s inclusion, issues like Iraq, tuition fees, and ID cards are being debated … That is why it was so important to have a candidate from the left involved, to enable the debate to happen.”
Abbott is currently 229/1 with Betfair. As Hopi Sen wrote in July:
“I have a greater chance of being Labour leader in my lifetime than Diane Abbott does.”
Aug/10
23:27 8
Currygate: Lily Allen teases David Miliband over restaurant choice on Twitter
The leadership campaign took a turn for the surreal this evening as David Miliband found himself being chided on Twitter by Labour-voting muso Lily Allen. [Yes, honestly!] When asked in today’s Evening Standard as to the “best meal you’ve had in London”, the shadow foreign secretary said:
“I had a fantastic takeaway from Masala Zone in Camden recently. When you spend lots of time away from home, which I am at the moment, it’s a rare treat to stay in, relax and enjoy a curry.”
The response had Allen choking (with laughter) on her Jalfrezi:
With Allen’s 2.3 million followers (more than the membership of the UK’s biggest union Unite) Mili-D rose to the challenge and upped the stakes with an invitation to a fundraiser at his favourite takeaway:
But he fell foul or the maxim to never work with children or animals (or popstars) as it all seemed to deteriorate from there:
“@DMiliband I’ve eaten there myself and while the food is perfectly nice, I very much doubt that it is the BEST meal you’ve had in London.”
“@DMiliband quite a well considered answer for a campaigning labour politician though. MOR.”
“@DMiliband hang on, are you getting free curries for mentioning them?”
“Why did David Milliband cross the road ?”
“To get to the middle…….#VoteEd“
The closing hashtag left hacks scratching their heads as to which Ed she had endorsed. The constituency most pleased by this episode won’t be the Edwards, amused Tweeters or even the proprietors of Masala Zone but gossip-starved Sunday newspaper diary columnists.
That’s one story sorted then.
Aug/10
09:49 18
David Miliband cannot spoll
You can always spot the tweets from David Miliband himself because they’re sent via text message. And he can’t spell anyone’s name right. First up, Dianne [sic] Abbott:
The next victim of David’s deed poll service is John [sic] Cruddas:
Suffice it to say the International Brotherhood of Jon were not impressed:
See me after class.
Aug/10
16:32 20
The defection rumour mill: Charles Kennedy to be given ballot in Labour leadership contest?
UPDATE 20:05 Following more than 24 hours of conspicuous silence from Kennedy (save an email to Clegg which they didn’t release) he will resurface tonight/tomorrow in an interview for Scotland’s Sunday Mail.
UPDATE 23:50 The full Mail interview isn’t online yet but AP has some quotes “It is absolute rubbish … I am not joining the Labour Party and have not had any discussions about it with anyone from the Labour Party … I will go out of this world feet first with my Lib Dem membership card in my pocket”. Very good, Charlie, but why didn’t you say that 24 hours ago? Not a very good week for Liberal Democrat pressers.
Where on earth is Charles Kennedy? It is now late afternoon and he still hasn’t gone on the record to quash speculation he is is plotting a defection to Labour. Denials, however strong, from ”a spokesman for the Lib Dems” or “Lib Dem sources” simpy ain’t the same thing as word from Kennedy and, embarrassingly, leave the whole party establishment in the dark.
As Liberals scramble to cobble together a “this is a silly season rumour” narrative, the bog standard rebuttal from pundits has been backed up by arguments around timing. Iain Roberts writes on Lib Dem Voice:
“One thing would be very odd indeed were the story to be true: the timing. The information clearly hasn’t come from Kennedy, but from the Labour Party. Yet if a party – any party – has a defector crossing the floor, they move heaven and earth to time the news release for the maximum media impact; and that’s not in the dead days of August. The party conference season is just a few weeks away.”
However other sources have questioned the conventional wisdom of a conference season bombshell. Scrapbook can reveal one mooted strategy is a defection before September 1st, just in time to back the younger Miliband in Labour’s leadership contest:
“I’m told that he has been in talks with Ed Miliband and will be endorsing him. The plan would be to defect just before ballot papers go out so he has a vote.”
It is possible the whole thing will transpire to be a shot across Nick Clegg’s bows. But if Charles Kennedy’s intention to cross the floor is in doubt, his antipathy for the coalition is not. With a habit of missing whipped coalition votes, he reportedly remarked to one colleague “I don’t want to vote for these bastards”.
If he doesn’t go on the record soon just watch the negative briefings (and the muck) start to fly. With the copy deadline for Sunday papers looming large, Kennedy will be under enormous pressure to clarify his position.
The journalists will definitely be looking for Charlie this evening.
Aug/10
09:04 9
Scots keep bucking the trend: poll puts Labour on course for victory next year
Earlier this year Scotland bucked the national trend and recorded an increase in the Labour vote of 2.5%, and this shift to Labour shows no sign of letting up. Today’s IPSOS/MORI Holyrood poll gives Scottish Labour an 8% boost since February this year in the constituencies, and a 9% boost on the regional vote. This translates to Labour winning 57 seats in the Scottish Parliament – more than Labour won at its high point in 1999 - and just five seats short of an overall majority.
And while the SNP melts away, the Conservatives are experiencing a slump in support and are expected to drop from 17 to 14 seats.
Scots Labour Leader Iain Gray is particularly fond of the famous American ‘turtle on the fence post‘ analogy. With polling numbers like this one can easily understand why.
Aug/10
18:40 8
Ed Miliband ratchets up the rhetoric: “we’re within touching distance of winning”
With the most confident language used by any candidate thus far, Ed Miliband has claimed he is “within touching distance” of securing the Labour leadership. An email to supporters sent within the last hour repeats familiar riffs about winning back lower-income voters and casting David Miliband as the “big money” candidate while positioning the campaign as having the greatest momentum as the contest enters the home straight.
Postal ballots will be hitting doormats from two weeks tomorrow.
Be careful, David. Little brother is watching you!
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