Monthly Archives: May 2015

‘Persuade the public, frighten the Tories and Labour could win again’, Observer, 24 May 2015

No one really knows who first declared that “insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”. But somebody should tell the LabourParty – and quickly. It is May 2010. Labour has just gone down to one … Continue reading

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‘As Nicola Sturgeon demands more powers, is a second Scottish independence vote inevitable? Yes.’, CityAM, 18 May 2015

The genie is out of the bottle, the toothpaste out of the tube. Pick whichever metaphor you like, but be sure of one thing: it’s a case of “when”, not “if”. The SNP is simply biding its time, waiting for … Continue reading

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‘It’s the economy, stupid: time to regain credibility?’, Progress, 19 May 2015

Restoring Labour’s reputation for economic competence – or perhaps I should say resuscitating or even raising it from the dead – has to be the number one task for whoever becomes its new leader.  It may sound, and it may … Continue reading

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‘What should Cameron do next’, Conservative Home, 17 May 2015

‘The problems of victory’, Winston Churchill told the House of Commons in November 1942, ‘are more agreeable than the problems of defeat, but they are no less difficult.’ As a pragmatist and a realist, David Cameron almost certainly realises this … Continue reading

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Where did it go wrong for Ed Miliband, New Statesman, 12 May 2015

So Ed Miliband has joined the roster of Labour leaders never to have become Prime Minister, and already plenty of people have been more than happy to tell anyone who’ll listen that they always knew he was a loser. Many … Continue reading

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‘The Conservatives: what happened and what next?’, QMUL Post-election Breakfast Briefing, Westminster, 11 May 2015

David Cameron is the first PM since Margaret Thatcher in 1983 to increase the number of Tory MPs in parliament from one election to the next, and the first Tory PM since Anthony Eden in 1955 to increase the party’s … Continue reading

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‘Behind the Political Masks’, Financial Times, 4 May 2015

It’s been a no-surprises campaign — or so runs the conventional wisdom. Yet, almost in spite of themselves, nearly all the party leaders have told us something worth knowing. From Natalie Bennett, we’ve learned that the Greens have picked a … Continue reading

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‘The guys who crashed the car: why Labour is still in a mess over spending’, New Statesman, 1 May 2015

When it comes to being interrogated on live television by members of the public, as they were on the BBC’s Question Time last night, most politicians, even the most testosterone-fuelled, tend to follow the advice of Estravan, the androgynous lead … Continue reading

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‘Want to get your research noticed by politicians? Work with a think tank’, Guardian, 27 April 2015

Academic impact on politicians can be a hit and miss affair. Indeed, when it comes to direct influence, it may well be more hit than miss. Carefully crafted press releases and the launch of new institutes is one thing. But … Continue reading

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‘Cameron looks more like a captive than a captain of his party’, ConservativeHome, 26 April 2015

You don’t have to have succumbed to full-blown “Milifandom” to notice that Labour’s leader seems to be having a better election than his Conservative counterpart. He can’t possibly be as ubiquitous in real life as he’s been on Twitter of … Continue reading

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