Answers on a Postcard

What message did Miliband get across? Did Ed Miliband deliver a speech that presented himself as a Prime Minister in waiting? For my money no, or at least not yet, and perhaps he didn’t need to. There isn’t going to be an election this year, but I was left more than a little underwhelmed. Did he do enough to maintain his grip on the Labour leadership? Yes, but he didn’t blow me away.

As a non Labour voter his speech was not meant to appeal to me. It should have been used to hit home to the undecided or indeed those people who voted Lib Dem and indeed Tory who may be thinking twice about doing it again. Did that speech do the job? I’m totally unconvinced. Having the live feed go down when you are delivering your keynote speech is never helpful, and why the Labour leader makes his speech in the middle rather than the end of conference is beyond me. Pity the organisations holding fringes tomorrow when many delegates have gone home.

His speech probably cheered the party faithful in the hall, though it’s surely a sign of political immaturity that delegates booed a Labour Prime Minister who delivered them three election victories. Miliband can only dream of being such a successful Labour Prime Minister.

I am left failing to understand how a future Labour Government would address the serious issues facing the country. All I know is that they don’t seem to like what Blair and New Labour achieved and they don’t like what the current Government is doing. Fine, but that doesn’t really tell me what a future Labour Government will look like and do. If anyone knows, then answers on a postcard please.

This article first appeared on Dale and Co

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