The fight for the soul of the party

Published 14 August 2008

The battle lines are now drawn between the two factions fighting for the Labour succession

In the Red Corner

The Candidate: David Miliband

The Organisation: Progress, the Blairite magazine and campaign group previously led by Peter Mandelson

The Thinkers: Phil Collins (former No 10 adviser and speechwriter) and Richard Reeves (new director of the Demos think tank and former special adviser to Frank Field)

Cabinet backers: James Purnell, John Hutton Popular appeal: Instantly recognisable. Women like him

Back-bench support? Doubts about loyalty but centre right trusts him

In the Even Redder Corner

The Candidate: Jon Cruddas

The Organisation: Compass, increasingly influential left-wing campaign group within the Labour Party

The Thinkers: Neal Lawson (founder of Compass and managing editor of the Labour journal Renewal) and John Harris (pop music writer and Guardian columnist)

Cabinet backers: None Popular appeal: A "bit of a lad". Unions like him, but an unknown quantity

Back-bench support? Liked by traditional Labour MPs and old Labour diehards, but modernisers see a dangerous lefty

Read "The factions square up"
By Martin Bright

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7 comments from readers

TJP62
15 August 2008 at 16:31

At least Cruddas could grow a beard and has worked in a real job. That makes him preferable to many.

james
15 August 2008 at 19:53

One is just a Tory light, the other a real Labour MP.

swatantra nandanwar
15 August 2008 at 21:18

Ah, but which one James? I think that Milburn could come through as the compromise candidate. He's a lot 'tougher' than Milliband, a Northerner, and the true son of 'Progress'.

writeon
15 August 2008 at 22:16

what real difference does it make who wins? I think we live in a post-democratic society already. Democracy has become a mere ritual with little real content.

The people don't rule, as one would expect in a functioning democracy, the people are ruled.

God knows, traditional "bourgeois democracy" had it's faults and only really empowered the middle-class, but it was preferable to the one-party state we've got now, where the state is systematically dismantling the niche of democracy we've known and replacing it with the strong state.

Martman
16 August 2008 at 12:32

I agree writeon

Democracy is just about dead and neither of the above candidates have shown any will to reveive it. All todays politicians cling to the centre ground. Our F.P.T.P system allowes a party to gain power with large majorities in Parliment with a minority of general Election votes. We desperatley need someone with courage to compleatly change our voting system.

writeon
18 August 2008 at 12:13

I particularly dislike the use of religious symbols and metaphors to describe the troubles of the New Labour party. That said, it hasn't really got a soul anymore, it sold it to the Devil.

john frost
20 August 2008 at 21:01

A charismatic female on the ticket may save the day and at least 50 seats by blunting Cameron's flirtatious grillings at PMQs. After all he has a keen eye for a well turned handbag.(Will you tell squeaky clean Caroline Flint her hour is nigh or shall I) Brown is an irrelevant victim of history and his own foolishness.There is a perception of a lack of democracy due to the castration of Local Authorities via the surcharge system. Councillors are impotent lickspittles of Central Government , Housing Associations and other PFI tarts.They have been so for years now