Call me a cynic Sunny but this

“Both initiatives will also be useful in gathering new email addresses for their databases.”

sums up perfectly for me what this is all about.

If Balls and Miliband had wanted their campaigns to have some impact surely the most effective thing to do would have been to launch a co-ordinated joint campaign, in partnership with women’s organisations and others. But no, they had to turn this into yet another pathetic pissing contest, a cynical attempt to secure the women’s vote in the leadership contest.

I am glad they have put pressure on the government. But in the context of an election campaign of their own, I can’t say I 100% trust they would follow through when in power. If they ever are…

As I write these comments, there is a picture link to LS article reporting the original announcement – “Govt cuts scheme to help women from abuse”. I’m old enough (quite old in fact) to be very cynical about lots of things, and also to be quite picky about how words are put together in the media to give a misleading or even false impression of an event or persons veiw. I think that your headline here is a bit misleading . “candidates oppose domestic violence law”. Really. I thought they were opposing the government decision to cut the “scheme to help women from abuse”.

Cynical I may be – but clearly if Ed Balls is emailing this to people he’s only able to do so because the party database already holds the persons email address. Having received the email (although not necessarily a supporter) I took it to be rather in his shadow cabinet role of (what was) schools and families.

Also not sure how someone emailing May and Featherstone because they have looked at David Milliband’s website provides new email addresses. And anyway, who looks at David Milliband’s website every day? If you hadn’t mentioned it here – who would have known?

#2 They’re both arguing that the government should keep a law introduced by Labour, so I think it’s pretty likely they would “follow through” in this case as a Labour government has already introduced the legislation.

I don’t see why this can’t be both principled opposition to the coalition AND an attempt to build their databases. The two aren’t mutually exclusive.

WTF?

Cath Elliot

If Balls and Miliband had wanted their campaigns to have some impact surely the most effective thing to do would have been to launch a co-ordinated joint campaign, in partnership with women’s organisations and others

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They did that while in Government; it resulted in the Domestic Violence Protection Order.

A shame you can’t support their calls to keep the scheme.