Next leader of the Labour Party should be.....

[drat01]

Source?

Source

Another £1m for the Tories from 'shady financier' David Rowland

Days after dramatically quitting as Tory treasurer, secretive tycoon David Rowland has given the party another £1million donation, the Daily Mail can reveal.

The property millionaire – once branded ‘a shady financier’ in ­Parliament – stood down last month after a rebellion by Conservative donors at damaging revelations about his colourful personal life and ­business affairs.

But it has now emerged that Mr ­Rowland, who was a tax exile for 40 years but returned to the UK before the ­General Election to pump £2.7million into the Tories’ campaign war chest, has since made another massive donation.

Publicity-shy Mr Rowland’s decision to stand down as treasurer even before ­taking up the job caused grave embarrassment for David Cameron.

Questions will now be asked over whether it is politically wise for the Tories to accept another huge financial ­contribution from a man so recently mired in controversy.

It will also prompt debate over the ­party’s links to rich tycoons, coming after disclosures that City hedge fund bosses Louis Bacon and Jon Wood were behind recent donations totalling £750,000.

and more on the link

I hope this is OK for you Paul and would be very interested to see your comments in response to this continued funding

[Gringo]

No surprise really. Logical choice and now certian to be our next Prime Minister.

I am not so sure. I think it depends on whether the cuts force a greater recession or the economy picks up. I think that even though people don’t want the Tories, they probably still haven’t forgiven the Labour party and those who served with it. I think also that vast parts of the country won’t trust someone backed heavily by the unions (as vast parts of the country will).

Any labour leader is heavily backed by the unions. When the unions start backing tory leaders we know that it's all gone really pear shaped.

[Awol]

^ ^Thread creep? Thought this was about the Labour leadership?

[drat01]

10/10 for optimism fella, I'd bet Cameron and Clegg can't believe their luck. He'll take Labour to the Left which, while pleasing to its members, will make it unelectable as a Government - at least in England.

:-) - He will take Labour to the left - you sound so much like a throwback to the days of Thatcher with statements like that. Obviously you did not see his speech after the announcement nor have you followed much the dialogue during the election. It may have escaped your attention that the people are already turning big style against your boys. Cameron and Cuckold Clegg will cling to power by amending the rules of parliament, looking after their paymasters while royally shafting the country (with the exception of the favoured South east no doubt :-) )

Ed Milliband is a very good choice as leader of the Labour party.

[tonyh29]

Been driving home listening to the radio

Seems it was a very flat speech from Ed and not well received... MP's not happy with the choice but the unions are.

One thing he spoke about was change ... Just curious as the policies they had (i.e being the tories)won them 3 elections in a row , they only lost a fourth as they had Brown as their leader ... So is change really what they need ?

As a lot of commentators have said the real winner appears to be Cameron

[tonyh29]

Been told that Ed has won and is the new leader

Who told you?

Someone that clearly knew :-)

[Awol]

10/10 for optimism fella, I'd bet Cameron and Clegg can't believe their luck. He'll take Labour to the Left which, while pleasing to its members, will make it unelectable as a Government - at least in England.

:-) - He will take Labour to the left - you sound so much like a throwback to the days of Thatcher with statements like that.

ooh, Thatcher. That's original.

Obviously you did not see his speech after the announcement nor have you followed much the dialogue during the election.

I did watch it actually: Burnham looked like he was going to cry, I cringed with embarrassment for Abbott and the look of poison on Balls' face was priceless. But, Miliband senior stole the show, you could see the realisation setting in that by bottling it twice before he'd missed his chance. Bless.

As for Ed Miliband's speech (flat and uninspiring as it was) he seemed to say 'change' a lot and not much else. People won't quickly forget the economic ruin they inflicted on the UK last time out and I'll have a bet with you now that Labour will not get in next time, if you like?

Ed Milliband is a very good choice as leader of the Labour party.

Given the other options there is a sad truth in that statement.

[OutByEaster?]

They only lost a fourth as they had Brown as their leader

Really?

[Jon]

Well, i'm happy anyway. Good choice for labour. A new way forward, with some new left ideas.

I was converted to Ed Milly during the campaign. Dave Milly would have been Blair MKII, and surely that was not the wway forward for Labour?

[Gringo]

They only lost a fourth as they had Brown as their leader

Really?

Tories won in 1979 because of labour's economic incompetence

Labour won in 1997 because of tory economic incompetence

Tories won in 2010 because of labour's economic incompetence

However if a figure such as Alan Johnson had deposed brown in late 2009, I reckon we'd be looking at a liblab coallition at the moment as opposed to the current condem one.

[OutByEaster?]

I'd have thought that the war(s) would have had a pretty big influence. I also think that eventually people get fed up of whichever party is in power. I thought Brown if anything at least offered an alternative to glib fresh faced smiling liars of whichever party.

[C4rvillan]

The economy was on the rise before Labour got in in 1997. It was down to Tory sleaze that they were voted out, 'Time for a change' and all that. Milliband will not put fear into the government but then again I don't see why Labour should anyway.

[Jon]

I thought Brown if anything at least offered an alternative to glib fresh faced smiling liars of whichever party.

he did. It's just that it was a shit alternative. :winkold:

[Gringo]

I'd have thought that the war(s) would have had a pretty big influence. I also think that eventually people get fed up of whichever party is in power. I thought Brown if anything at least offered an alternative to glib fresh faced smiling liars of whichever party.

In 2005, labour lost a lot of it's core vote over the illegal war but the still held a very comfortable majority (and of course rupert's backing).

[drat01]

Well, i'm happy anyway. Good choice for labour. A new way forward, with some new left ideas.

I was converted to Ed Milly during the campaign. Dave Milly would have been Blair MKII, and surely that was not the wway forward for Labour?

absolutely Jon. It seems that the Tory side of VT especially are not impressed, but TBH I don't give a monkeys about that and the fact they are not is a very good thing.

To say the speech was flat is just petty and silly, the speech was perfect for the occasion, it didn't have to be triumphalist it just had to set out some clear expectations. It did that. If people actually looked past all of this marketing / image bollox which seems to be prevalent in what the Tory party tax cheats pay for, then actually start to discuss based on what their ideals and policies are. Obviously the Condem's are at a major disadvantage there because none of the policies for which people thought they were voting for are now valid - my how long is a few months in politics.

No doubt Cameron will continue to sit in the background and let Clegg try and "savage" Milliband.

[Mantis]

Pleased with this result. Hopefully the Tories will be a bit more right-wing now.

[Gringo]

The economy was on the rise before Labour got in in 1997. It was down to Tory sleaze that they were voted out, 'Time for a change' and all that. Milliband will not put fear into the government but then again I don't see why Labour should anyway.

That was the icing that paved the way to a 100+ majority. The major govt was a dead duck from 1994 onwards following all the ERM fun. They were no longer trusted with the economy and after that it was all up to labout to lose it, which they didn't - with a little help from the old fugger.

[OutByEaster?]

What was the speech like Ian, did it suggest a return to a policy lead Labour party of ideals and principles like Mr Kinnocks (that I liked but couldn't get elected) or did it continue the new labour feel of the Tories and their coalition?

I must admit I don't know much about Ed Milliband so I'll be interested to see if he offers anything different. What's your feeling on where he wants to go?

[C4rvillan]

All parties change their policies upon becoming government. Didn't labour say they were banning fox hunting in their first term, it didn't get through until the second. Tory tax cheats as opposed to all the stuff that high profile Labour MP's have done i.e. Mandelson's funding, Blunkett's au pair, Vaz'z dodgy dealings. Oh what a short memory you have. They are all as bad as each other.

[drat01]

What was the speech like Ian, did it suggest a return to a policy lead Labour party of ideals and principles like Mr Kinnocks (that I liked but couldn't get elected) or did it continue the new labour feel of the Tories and their coalition?

I must admit I don't know much about Ed Milliband so I'll be interested to see if he offers anything different. What's your feeling on where he wants to go?

It was a fair in no way a "we have won the lottery and screw you lot" sort, if you get the drift.

I am laughing at how some Tory people are already trying to make a big (bad) issue out of the Union vote here. What they fail to grasp is that you don't have to be a Labour party member or left or right wing to be in the Union and eventually get a vote. So if the man can get that vote then his views and policies must be what they want.

No doubt certain media outlets are now busily tapping phones and trying to get dirt on the bloke. Maybe a few more enquiries in dodgy funding via tax avoidance would actually get a few more people interested :-)