Skip to content

Well, yes, obviously Labour needs to draw candidates from a wider pool

Why Ed Miliband needs to widen Labour’s MP selection pool
To reconnect with the British people, Labour needs candidates from a diverse cross-section of the electorate – not Westminster insiders

Diane Abbott MP

This is obviously true, of course it is. An interestingly, sufficiently, wide selection pool would ensure that the likes of Diane Abbott never got anywhere near a Commons seat. Improve Labour no end that would.

22 thoughts on “Well, yes, obviously Labour needs to draw candidates from a wider pool”

  1. ” And it can be argued that the shortage of both working-class and black MPs are two sides of the same coin.”

    I’m only going on personal anecdotes here- but the black fellas I’ve worked with, past and present, are unlikely to become mps because of the no brainer decision between a) spending their youthful years making a bit of wedge, and enjoying the fruits of said wedge and b)fart-arsing around Westminster, hacking for a party.

    It really does take a certain type who wants to become an MP. Its the Groucho club principle.

  2. “the likes of Diane Abbott never got anywhere near a Commons seat”

    and that can’t be a bad thing
    I expect an IQ test would succeed in ruling her out.

  3. She’s missing the point. The problem isn’t a lack of talent – there’s no end of bright young things in both parties – but a lack of jobs in the HoC for them to go into. With so few job vacancies, you’re forced to sit around on your arse for a decade or two waiting for someone to retire, resign or die. It’s no surprise that anyone with an ounce of enterprise about them would rather do anything – anything! – than give up yet another weekend to traipse around the streets of their wannabe constituency in the rain, getting swore and spat at, or sacrifice another evening to go to a party fundraiser where some dreary fat fuck drones on and on.

    Her ‘solution’ totally fails to recognise that it’s long-term MPs like her that are the problem.

  4. God forbid that Labour should increase the pool from which their MP’s are drawn. That might increase their chances of getting elected.

    The predilection for recruiting their parachuted-in MP’s from the chattering classes of Islington will eventually cause the death of the party – I mean look at Milliband, no real person would elect this clueless imbecile whose only redeeming feature seems to be some form of speech impediment.

    Carry on Labour, right out of the door and into oblivion.

  5. I actually feel sorry for Miliband in a strange way. He is like some spoiled child who demanded the right to sing in front of an audience, but as soon as they open their mouth it’s clear they can’t sing a note and everyone’s just sitting there hoping they’ll eventually stop and the embarrassment can end.

  6. I’d venture to disagree – Diane Abbott is proof one group of people – outright racists – are welcomed the Labour Party. I think the even more offensive Lee Jasper moved to Respect but Abbott is second only to him as the most prominent racist in mainstream politics…

  7. @ IanB — They say when you start feeling pity for political figures, then that’s a good sign that it’s not going to go well for them come election day.

    The one that REALLY pissed me off to no-end, was Tony Benns 17 year old grand-daughter being selected as candidate for (I think croydon) a while back. 17. Still doing her A-Levels!

    One of my favourite what ifs scenario, is Miliband losing his Doncaster seat to a UKIP surge. Probably not going to happen, but if Farage and co really decided to go for it — good local candidate, lots of resources, etc — it’s not totally unthinkable.

    That’d be excellent – makes me smile just thinking about it. The Miliboy standing there whilst the results are being read out — a strained rictus grin all over his gormless face while the bucket of shit slowly drips all over him. Splendid.

  8. @ IanB

    That analogy is perfect.

    @ Dan

    If his constituency was proper Donny types then there would be a chance, but it seems to be pretty rural. ‘Immigration unfriendly’ parties got 16% at the last GE. Miliband got 47%, the the Lbour share has fallen from 70% in 97 and, prior to that, a sold baseline of c60%.

  9. Diane Abbot’s great redeeming merit; on the telly she said, away back then: Everyone knows two things about the OJ trial. (i) He did it. (ii) He’ll get off.

  10. A narrow range of MPs is fine if they are competent and honour their obligations to the public. It’s that they are generally incompetent and dishonourable that is the problem. All too often this leads them to try and present themselves as ‘ordinary’ when so many of them plainly are not.

    The gist of Abbot’s whining is that the Labour party went from parachuting in union journeymen to parachuting in New Labour ones when they should have been parachuting in minorities instead.

  11. Come to think of it we need more transgenders in parliament, more disabled, more mentally ill, more young people, more pensioners and so on.
    All the groups that say they have been hit hardest by the cuts (which adds up to about 150% of the population) should increase their numbers in parliament.

  12. The fault lies not in the stars but in the voters.
    Disbar anyone who voted in the last two or three election -on the ground that they have done enough damage already.

  13. So Much for Subtlety

    Dan – “One of my favourite what ifs scenario, is Miliband losing his Doncaster seat to a UKIP surge. Probably not going to happen, but if Farage and co really decided to go for it — good local candidate, lots of resources, etc — it’s not totally unthinkable.”

    I would crawl on my knees to Doncaster to hand deliver wads of cash and any support I could offer if UKIP gave it a good try.

    It would be hard to think of anything that would make me happier. Except perhaps Diane Abbot losing.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *