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azzuri
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Labour rebels plans to avoid Brown ‘coronation’.......see - http://www.theherald.co.uk/politics/56534.html
| Quote: | Labour rebels plans to avoid Brown ‘coronation’......
Rebel Labour MPs are planning to put up a stalking horse candidate against Gordon Brown when Tony Blair steps down as prime minister, it emerged yesterday.
Labour left-wingers want to stop the chancellor being "crowned" as premier and Lynne Jones, back-bench MP for Birmingham Selly Oak, confirmed last night, that if no other candidates came forward, she would throw her hat in the ring.
"I think there should be a contest and so does everyone else in the Labour Party," she told The Herald. "I doubt it will me who stands, but if no-one else does, then I said I would."
Dr Jones spoke out as Tony Woodley, the general secretary of the Transport and General Workers Union, made clear the unions did not want the chancellor to continue the Blair agenda under his reign.
He said Blairite policies were "vote losers" and that a "Blair II" was not the answer.
Mr Woodley said he did not believe there was an alternative future leadership candidate to the chancellor, adding that Mr Brown had done a "fantastic" job.
The chancellor said last week he would welcome an open leadership contest.
"Gordon would relish the chance to be able to demonstrate he is no left-winger and show that he will continue the reform agenda," a source said.
Meanwhile, Mr Brown faces further job cuts in his constituency after the University of Dundee announced it is to close a nursing and midwifery school. The decision to close Kirkcaldy school is expected to be passed at a meeting of the university court today. |
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SLG
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I hope there is a challenge, and that it is from someone with a profile. I think as it gets closer, there may be quite a few who fancy their chance. On the other hand, if Labour are down in the polls, a potential leader may feel it is better to let Brown lead the party to failure in 2009, and then make a challange.
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Morph
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I still feel that there shouls be a general election when Tony Blair stands down. Then this way the man who was Prime Minister would have the peoples mandate. Although the way Labour is performing at the moment this may not be desirable for them
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azzuri
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It's not a presidency (even if TB treats it as such!) so there shouldn't be a GE.
It's up to the Labour Party to elect their leader who is in turn Prime Minister. Although people ARE starting to vote more and more for parties due to their leaders and not the parties themselves, if they don't like the next PM then they simply vote Labour out which looks likely to happen anyway.
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SLG
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The election last year was fought on the assumption that Brown would be taking over at some point, they ade that pretty clear. If anything you could argue that there should be an election if Blair doesn't go soon, after he made it pretty clear that he would. The way Blair's going, it will almost be the next election by the time Brown (or whoever) takes over.
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Morph
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And if things keep up then labour wont keep power so it really doesnt matter for Brown.
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Rinty
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theThe longer it drags on the less chance of Brown taking over, in my opinion.
If I was Labour, I would be thinking that the replacement for Blair should be elected at their conference in the autumn or announced at the conference. That way Blair will see through his eu and G8 presidency and his education bill. If they delay it until next year it is better for the rest of the parties as Brown would be a better leader for Labour going into 2007 (even if he did fark it up in Dunfermline).
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