James Macintyre's Blog, page 3

Has Yvette Cooper ruled herself out of shadow chancellorship?

Shadow welfare secretary backs her husband Ed Balls on the deficit

Westminster rumour has it that Yvette Cooper, the shadow work and pensions secretary, is being lined up to be shadow chancellor. The logic is that Ed Balls has made it impossible to serve in that role, certainly under David Miliband, having said he disagrees with Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling -- and David Miliband -- on the need to halve the deficit in four years. Balls has stated:

I told Gordon Brown and Alistair...

Cameron-Harman love in as Labour prepares for a new leader

Though PM ducks questions on human trafficking and PMQs itself

There was a strangely jolly, almost flirtatious mood at Prime Minister's Questions today, as David Cameron paid tribute to Harriet Harman as a "credit" to her party. Facing Harman for the last time before the Opposition elects a new leader, Cameron joked that Labour's acting leader was the "most popular" of the three Labour leaders he has faced including Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. And he reminded the House that "it's au...

Whoever wins the Labour leadership must distance the party from Murdoch

In defence of Caroline Crampton

I have been surprised by the number of Labour people who have got in touch today to question the wisdom of my colleague Caroline Crampton's blog last night suggesting that David Miliband should look into the relationship between New Labour and the Murdochs. Surprised because the very idea of Labour distancing itself from the mogul's empire appears to be a non-starter int he eyes of many.

The ultra-close relationship between New Labour and Murdoch -- needless ...

Breaking: John Prescott appears to back David Miliband, contrary to reports

Former deputy PM, loved in the Labour party, speaks out over the leadership

John Prescott, the former deputy prime minister who holds considerable sway in the Labour party, appears to be backing David Miliband for leader, contrary to reports. There has been speculation in Westminster over which leadership candidate is preferred by Prescott, who has so far refused publicly to endorse because he is running to be Treasurer of the party. But apparently after one claim at the weekend that he...

John Prescott appears to be backing David Miliband, contrary to reports

Former deputy PM, loved in the Labour party, speaks out over the leadership

John Prescott, the former deputy prime minister who holds considerable sway in the Labour party, appears to be backing David Miliband for leader, contrary to reports. There has been speculation in Westminster over which leadership candidate is preferred by Prescott, who has so far refused publicly to endorse because he is running to be Treasurer of the party. But apparently after one claim at the weekend that he...

Standard's Paul Waugh quits for Politicshome.com

Is it a sign of the times?

Health warning: this is a Westminster village story!

The website Politics Home has now confirmed that Paul Waugh, the highly respected deputy political editor of the Evening Standard, is to join the website as editor.

Though Waugh regularly writes for the capital's paper, he is perhaps better known for his razor-sharp 'Tweets' and well-informed blog, which has just come second in a poll of list of best journalists' blogs by the influential Total Politics.

The news h...

Tebbit: odds "even" on whether there is "real trouble" ahead for the coalition

But the real rumblings will come from the Lib Dems next year

On his ever-interesting blog, the Tory right's guru and former party chair Norman Tebbit has this to say in relation to recent divisions within the coalition over the Alternative Vote:

It will be interesting to see whether the potential disunity of the coalition benches is greater than the bonds binding the Coalition together. There are some formidable Tory backbenchers, Richard Shepherd, David Davis, Chris Chope, Charles Walker...

Quote of the week

Former Tory MP Michael Brown on a text message from his old friend David Davis

Just catching up with some of the comment pieces of this week, an extraordinary anecdote caught my eye, somewhat buried inside a column by the Independent's Michael Brown, the former Tory MP. Brown says this of his old friend David Davis:

Something odd has happened to the former Tory leadership contender over the past two years. Last year I was interviewed, on Mr Davis's regional Yorkshire BBC TV news programme...

Boris's dilemma

Mayor still has ambitions for David Cameron's job. But his chances -- always slim in reality -- have taken their first real knock

"He was stuck between a rock and a hard place," said a London Tory councillor of Boris Johnson's dilemma over whether to stand again as mayor of the capital. My source, who knows Johnson, explained that Johnson knew that had he pulled out, he risked being branded a "bottler" in the inevitable subsequent attempts to find a Parliamentary seat. His ambition to...

David Miliband boosted by Dennis Skinner's endorsement

Team DM has broadened its base

David Miliband's campaign team has been looking round for some time for an endorsement that would broaden the look of its base, as part of the attempt necessarily to shed the "Blairite" image that threatens to harm their candidate.

Now it has found its man. Here is Dennis Skinner:

The big question is who are the Tories afraid of? Who is the best candidate to stand up against Cameron at the dispatch box? Who has the best chance to beat Cameron in an election...