I wasn’t sure I entirely agreed with the Times’ interpretation of its David Miliband column today in which the Labour leadership candidate said the party shouldn’t naively return to its ‘comfort zone’. That newspaper wrote it up as an all-out assault on his brother.
(The splash was Gloves off as Miliband rounds on his brother – attack on naive rivals for Labour leadership).
But that hasn’t stopped Ed Miliband reacting as if he was the sole intended target of the column. (See his statement below). Most striking are his comments about not just carrying on as old New Labour, and not squabbling in public. Is this the point where relations start to fracture in public?
“As we head towards the ballot papers going out, all of us as leadership candidates must take special care to continue our debate in the spirit we started out. I will continue to conduct this campaign in that spirit.”
“There is clearly an honest disagreement about the future of the Labour Party and different views about the scale of change needed to take Labour back to power. It is a genuine debate about the direction we must take.”
“I will keep campaigning on my message that Labour must change to win, and that change must be real and fundamental. Remaining in the New Labour comfort zone would consign us to opposition.”
Jim Pickard
Kiran Stacey