Why The Labour Leadership Race Is Now Wide Open http://t.co/vYXT50nkOA pic.twitter.com/jSzjee9fWr
— Sky News (@SkyNews) August 7, 2015
1. Why the hell is it taking so long?
Yes, I know the party said it wanted to have a full debate about the future after the election night disaster but this is ridiculous. We are still more than a month away from the winner being announced. It'll be 128 days since the election by the time it comes out. The message sent the to electorate is that they don't know what they're doing. I know Parliament is off for its usual lengthy summer off but, given that the candidates have been known for some time, couldn't this have all been wrapped up by now?
2. Why so nasty?
Maybe the inordinate amount of time take has led the contest to becoming so bitter? It certainly has looked more fiercely and angrily fought than the election itself, even if this has largely been from the respective 'camps' rather than the contenders themselves. The criticism of Liz Kendall for being 'childless' was shameful. Whatever you think of her that was poor and, again, gave the electorate more reason to see the party as being out of touch.
3. Any ideas?
It's not enough for the other candidates to shout and bellow at Jeremy Corbyn for being 'unelectable'. How about explaining which of his ideas and policies won't work - since there are legitimate debates on this front - and countering them with different suggestions? Too much of the talk from the other camps has been about throwing negatives at Corbyn's door while trying to avoid promising bold policies that can't be defended in an election manifesto.
4. Can Corbyn win?
I never actually thought Jeremy Corbyn would come remotely close to winning but the veteran MP finds himself in front. I still get the impression he might be overtaken but his rise has been a surprise. Perhaps it shouldn't be though. Having someone like him on the ticket was always likely to show the others up for spouting too many soundbites. He represents genuine change in a way that none of the others have come close to doing and he hasn't been afraid to throw up some bold ideas. As things stand Yvette Cooper and Andy Burnham seem to be mopping up supporters with similar outlooks. You feel that one of them will have to surge ahead to knock Corbyn out of the race.
5. Clause 4 mistake
Corbyn did make a big mistake when hinting that he wouldn't be against a return to 'Clause Four' in this weekend's Independent on Sunday. Yes, he actually referred to coming up with something new in the same spirit but bringing it up by name simply gave ammunition to others of a return to the past. Labour should look for a snappier more modern way of defining itself - but not in the form of the cheesy soundbites attached to the leadership campaigns or retreading the steps of the past.
6. Heir to Blair
Labour has a huge hang up about Tony Blair but surely it's about time it dropped it. I know many of the party's members can't look past Iraq (and granted that's a massive issue) but the failure to accept and celebrate any of the positives from his era paved the way for their opponents to paint the entire time in a bad light. Labour has to admit Blair was an electoral success and learn why.
7. Image matters
One of the lessons to come from the Blair era is the importance of having someone who looks and sounds like a leader. In many respects it's sad that the public cares about image so much. Having strong ideas and convictions ought to come first before the ability to 'sound good on the telly' but they don't. Take a look at the last Parliament. Even when Labour was ahead - during the days of fuel crises and the unravelling budget of caravans and pasties etc - David Cameron was way ahead of Ed Miliband when it came to asking the public who would make the best PM. It's an odd thing that we elect parties and MPs yet focus most of our attention on a presidential style contest between one or two combatants. Until that changes, Labour needs a leader with wide appeal.
8. The wrong contest?
It's easy to forget that Ed Miliband deserved to win the last Labour leadership election. Yes he gained the support of the unions but, actually, he did perform well in the contender debates. The trouble was that it came down to a student debating contest that wasn't necessarily helpful for the role of leader of the opposition.
9. Voting system
It might have seemed like a nice idea, but will inviting people to pay £3 to become eligible to vote backfire? The talk of a joint infiltration of Telegraph readers and the far left - not normally bedfellows - seems to have be overblown but it does seem that if Corbyn wins he'll have to shake this tag off just as Miliband did the 'in the unions' pocket' jibe.
10. Taking on Boris
Theresa May and George Osborne may have their eyes on the Conservative Party leadership but surely the stage is set for Boris Johnson to be the leader by the time the next election comes around? Labour will need a strong candidate to take him on. I can't help thinking that old BoJo might struggle against a formidable female...
