Why David Miliband can’t sweep Iraq under the carpet
Two Labour leadership candidates yesterday distinguished themselves by showing some candour over the issue of the Iraq War and a third, David Miliband, made me feel personally vindicated by yet again showing why he is the wrong choice to lead this party.
Don’t fool yourself that Iraq doesn’t matter because British troops are out; it matters for a few reasons:
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The Miliband commitment to climate change is mostly just rhetoric
The Miliband brothers both claim to be ‘green-leaning’ candidates, and this is part of what helps them to appear modern and progressive.
But the reality, given their actions when leading various government departments, is that their rhetoric masks a lot of inaction.
- That effort is being successfully conducted if emissions are going down. But most people don’t realise that our Co2 emissions are still going up.
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Tory MP says torture could be ‘a bonus’
The Coalition agreement makes a clear, unequivocal and welcome statement
We will never condone the use of torture.
Not all of its Parliamentary supporters agree.
As the Daily Mail reports, Monmouth MP appears to be not so much tacitly condoning torture as actively welcoming it, in the case of suspected Al Qaeda or Taliban members
The Conservative MP for Monmouth, David Davies, insisted that the Government should repeal the Act after the new commission has properly considered the legal implications.
‘Active members of Al Qaeda and the Taliban are living in this country and not being deported because of concerns about their human rights if something horrible happens to them if they are sent home,’ Mr Davies said.
‘Personally I would have thought that would be a bonus rather than a reason for not sending them back.
‘I don’t mind if the Act is torn up, changed or amended. But I hope that whatever this commission comes up with, the views of the vast majority of people in this country who believe it is fundamentally wrong are respected’
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cross-posted from Next Left
Does paying drug addicts to be sterilised work?
Barbara Harris, the founder of Project Prevention, is the definition of a social entrepreneur. She’s the kind of person who, under the Big Society ideology of the Conservatives, might be represented as a worthy provider of a public service.
She saw a social problem where she lived in LA, and she – with the time, money and inclination to do it – implemented her own solution. She even uses the language of entrepreneurship to describe the poor and desperate people she works with: they’re her “paid clients”.
And now, she’s bringing that solution to the UK, campaigning from the This Morning Sofa and the BBC’s Hard Talk.
The problem she identified is the birth of babies to drug-addicted parents. And the solution? Paying addicts to be sterilised.
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The differences between Diane Abbott and John McDonnell
The two left hopefuls: Diane Abbott and John McDonnell, are London MPs who have long political histories and who are both members of the Campaign Group.
McDonnell comes in a straight clear red, softened by his personable and thoughtful style while Abbott is more of a free thinking leftist who often does not conform to type. In other words she’s not as left-wing as McDonnell, but then again it would be hard to live up to his impeccable, mace wielding, credentials.
Well, I say impeccable…
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The truth about Oxbridge admissions: a reply To Dave Osler
Dave Osler wrote a piece attacking the “Oxbridge Mafia” yesterday. I thought I’d take it upon myself to offer The Family’s response.
So, cards on table: I graduated from Oxford in 2008 with (horror of horrors) a degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics – the very same degree that Dave singles out for particular disapprobation.
But for the record, I was also educated at a normal state comp and attended the local state sixth form college.
Firstly, I’d like to note something odd about one of Dave’s initial concerns: that the top level of politics is over-represented by people with Oxbridge degrees.
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The left should welcome Diane Abbott’s leadership entry
Diane Abbott’s decision to throw her hat into the ring has gotten some socialists annoyed. I think this is unwarranted. People can’t call for a more plural debate within the Labour party and then get all sectarian when another candidate threatens their preferred one. Let’s have a wide-ranging debate: even among socialists. Or is that not possible?
I spoke to Diane the day before yesterday. At the time she said that if she were to stand, and get less nominations than John McDonnell, then she would be happy to endorse him. This is the right approach because the last thing we need is a split on potential nominations for a left candidate. I hope John will agree to the same.
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How to democratise Oxbridge
Actually I do have a problem with the term ‘Oxbridge Mafia’. It is just so unfair to the Cosa Nostra, which at least welcomes working class applicants and is sufficiently discreet to ensure that members keep schtum about their adherence.
By contrast, the graduates of our elite universities flaunt their education for all to see, and make no pretence of their desire to monopolise every leading position in politics. Take, for instance, the Labour Party leadership race.
Runners so far include David Miliband, who has a degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from Oxford; his brother Ed Miliband, who has a degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from Oxford; and Ed Balls, who has a degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics from Oxford.
Just to inject some variety into the proceedings, Andy Burnham and Diana Abbott did at least go to Cambridge, which makes them les damnes de la terre in this context.
Lessons on reducing poverty
The latest set of information about poverty in UK, snappily titled “Households Below Average Income: An analysis of the income distribution 1994/95 – 2008/09″ was published today. You can have a look through it here, but here are some of the key findings:
There are currently 3.9 million children in the UK growing up in poverty. This is a fall of 600,000 compared to a decade ago.
There are currently 7.8 working age adults in the UK living in poverty. This is an increase of 1.1 million compared to a decade ago.
There are currently 1.8 million pensioners in the UK living in poverty. This is a fall of 1.1 million compared to a decade ago. continue reading… »
Coalition full agreement; what do you think?
The full coalition government agreement between Cameron and Clegg can be downloaded as a PDF document here.
What do you think? Any bits that jump out at you?
What is good and bad about it? Let’s hear your thoughts…
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