In 2016 which way will the Labour Party go? Centre Left or Hard left? Many could become ABC - Anyone but Corbyn

Tony Blair is the most successful Labour Prime Minister ever. He won by persuading people that Labour were interested in the centre ground of politics, did not oppose business, and believed in security, aspiration, academies, competition in the health service, reform of public services, low taxes, and so much more. Recently he wrote a strong defence of his record:
http://blogs.new.spectator.co.uk/2015/12/in-defence-of-blairism-by-tony-blair/


Since Blair's demise, brought down by Gordon Brown, the Labour Party has engaged in a slow and now fast, journey to the hard left, via Brown then Miliband, and now Corbyn. The Labour Party is now led by a man who was a poor joke in the House of Commons from 2010-2015 for his views on so many things, his friendships with everyone from Hamas to Venezuelan Communists, and his disconnect from the realities of economics, security, the need for armed forces and so many more things too numerous to name. The Shadow Chancellor McDonnell cites Chairman Mao, will forever be known for his views on the IRA, and is manifestly worse on economics than Ed Balls. Who could have thought we would look back on Miliband / Balls and think they were not really that bad?


This blog is not an attack on the Corbynbistas, nor is it a defence of Blair. If Momentum and the Corbynistas want to destroy their party then so be it - given their behaviour so far there is little to stop them. But the serious question is where does the Labour Party go in 2016? Because if Corbyn does not improve the standing of the party in Mays elections, then many will say Miliband did well in 2015. My suspicion is that the campaigners for a centre left Labour Party will form an Anyone But Corbyn approach. One thing is clear; all my door knocking shows that Corbyn is not the answer. And it helps no one in this country if Labour is not a proper opposition.

The blog Awards for political moment, mistake, speech of the year, surprise winner + more

• Speech of the Year – Hilary Benn, shadow Foreign Secretary, during the Syria debate. Best House of Commons speech I have heard for a long time. 

• The ‘Oh God what have I done moment?' – Chi Onwurah, Sadiq Khan and Frank Field and all the other Labour MPs who genuinely do not support him but for reasons nobody can fathom chose to nominate a man they have no respect for in Jeremy Corbyn to be Labour leader. That clearly went well....

• Highlight of the Year – Winning in Hexham, closely followed by the realisation that Balls was gone, Farage had lost and many of my Women2Win protégées had won

• Political Achievement of the Year – Jeremy Corbyn winning the Labour leadership.

• Most Unlikely Political Moment of the Year – John McDonnell as Shadow Chancellor, Bringing out his well thumbed copy of Chairman Mao's little red book during the autumn statement debate, and referring to it favourably. But then he (McDonnell) is a very odd man, who makes Miliband and Balls look like two twin economic colossus. 

• Most bizarre appointment -Ken Livingstone, who opposes all military / trident etc etc to co-chair Labour’s defence policy review. How logical!

• The New MPs showing promise: too numerous to name and not showing any preference, and in no particular order - Maria Caulfield (ex cancer nurse now new conversatve MP for Lewes), my Northumberland neighbour Anne Marie Trevelyan, who triumphantly won Berwick after 9 years of campaigning, after a desperately ugly and viscious campaign against her by the liberals. Seema Kennedy, is impressing in the north west, alex chalk in Cheltenham, Johnny Mercer and Scott Mann in the West Country. I could name many more. The liberals have no new MPs and are a rump rarely seen in Westminster. They may go down to two MPs after the next election. Labour - see below. Their best new MP is probably their newest = Jim McMahon, who won Oldham, not Corbyn. For the Scots Nats Hannah Bardell is very good. Alex Salmond is a fading force, whose expanding waistline is in inverse proportion to his influence and ability. 

• Mistake of the Year – The ‘Ed Stone. Enough said. Talk about bad advice. Imagine the strategy meeting - which comes out of the The Thick of It. "I know Ed, let's get a huge tablet, full of meaningless catchphrases, which somehow you would transport to the number 10 garden , when you win ...."

• Political Worry of the Year - Donald Trump

• Comment of the Year – Jess Phillips, new Labour MP telling Diane Abbott to ‘f**k off’.
• New political party - the ABC party= anyone but Corbyn
• Odds on Corbyn being ousted as labour leader after May elections in Scotland, Wales and London? Pretty good I reckon, although the mechanics are difficult. The longer the labour MPs leave him there the greater their prospects of deselection before 2020. 

Progress on Northumberland broadband - more money, new villages, bigger rollout, better speeds -we are getting there!

Broadband is one of my biggest campaigns. I accept that we need to do more and that there are still not spots and problem areas but slowly but surely we are genuinely getting there.


By the end of September, the government’s Superfast Broadband Programme had provided coverage to over 3.3 million homes and businesses. In Northumberland alone, the programme has allocated £10.6 million of government funding to extend new, faster online connectivity across the region.


What does this mean for the Hexham constituency? In total 15,303 premises had been covered by the scheme by the end of September this year. On top of this, a further 1,327 premises are due to be covered by the end of 2016. This is excellent news for residents, business, and especially those that work from home for whom online connectivity is so vital.


Beyond this though, the government wants to go even further. Last month the Prime Minister announced an intention to implement a new broadband Universal Service Obligation, with an ambition to set this at a speed of 10 Mbps. This will give all consumers with speeds below the specified level the right to request an upgrade from a designated provider, no matter where they live. This will be subject to a consultation next year, but demonstrates the level of ambition this government has for a fully connected, superfast UK.


If you have specific complaints please, as always, get in touch.