Enough Already

No-one could accuse Labour of not being thorough on consulting the membership and wider public on the election of a new leader.

Since May, they have held dozens of meetings, many of them must have been almost identical. The BBC allowed them one last re-run of old slogans for Question Time on Thursday.

Of course, many who are voting have their old allegiances and new prejudices against former Ministers. But any neutral could see David Miliband stands head and shoulders above all candidates in stature, record, debating ability and even personal charm.

It seems frankly amazing his brother Ed has managed to make this a two-horse race. Besides sounding like (according to Rory Bremner) Tony Blar with a cold, he struggles to demonstrate any kind of heavyweight support. His boast of having endorsements as far and wide as "Frank Dobson and Frank Field" would have impressed no-one outside the Labour party and very few in it.

Diane Abott has carved a place in Parliament, is a good speaker (gave a a belter on 90 day detention) but her campaign has been lacklustre not helped by her pinning the cliched "heir to Blair" badge on Miliband (D) constantly.

Ed Balls has had a good summer. He gave Gove a good kicking on free schools and has got some meaty aphorisms into the media reminding what he's good at swinging. But that will earn him shadow chancellorship this time. His soft-spoken, nice guy act cuts no ice with people who really know what he's like behind closed doors.

Poor little Burnham could hardly get a word in on Thursday and Dimbleby, forgetful at the best of times, kept passing over him. When he did get a chance to speak he barked how he was the only candidate equi-distant politically from Blair and Brown. Hardly the most inspirational of qualifications.

By Saturday afternoon David will take up his post and soon cleave to mould of leader. The party needs one badly. The country could do with an Opposition too.