Watching BBC's Question Time the other night, Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair's former Director of Communications 1997-2003, appeared to hit the nail on the head when he said that problem for Labour at the moment isn't Jeremy Corbyn. Rather, it is his inner circle, his organisation of the party from the top, and the fact that he has become the focal point of a social movement that in many ways stands alone from the Labour Party altogether. This is particularly worrying for a party which has ambitions of government, and I believe this is behind the revelations that an opposition party have never been further behind a current government in the polls.
One thing that is clear is that there ought to be a place in modern politics for the likes of Jeremy Corbyn. Corbyn is in many ways the ultimate backbench MP - he has a clear set of principles which aren't compromised, he is elusive of the party whip and seemingly untainted by the party politics which constitutes the 'establishment', sensitive to the more specific issues facing ordinary constituents - which is unsurprising considering he's spent 32 years as one. Perhaps more unsurprisingly, the allure of Leader of the Opposition has not changed Corbyn's demeanour. This is a point his supporters emphasise enormously, and seem to give his pledge of a more 'honest politics' much credence. Much of this is to be welcomed.
Yet this brings with it some very crucial problems for Corbyn as Leader of the Opposition, which should worry non-activist Labour voters. Firstly, Corbyn often seems to pick the wrong issues. Unphased by leadership, it seems as if Corbyn asks the same questions as he would have done had he not won the Labour leadership last September. For example last week, for the first PMQs after the summer recess, he chose on all six questions to go on housing. Although this is undoubtedly an important issue and an area where successive governments, both Labour and Conservative, have failed to adequately address, it is not the issue of our time right now where government accountability is needed. This is surely the EU referendum, its aftermath, and perhaps his role in it. It has been left to the SNP leader in Westminster Angus Robertson to badger Theresa May on the government's vision for Britain outside the EU. This is highly embarrassing.
Whoever gives Corbyn advice on which questions to go on and issues he wants to fight on has constantly misread the extent of the importance of issues - something New Labour were particularly good at exploiting. Indeed, we saw this week that when Corbyn goes on the right issue - in this case the dismal policy of returning to a selective education system - Corbyn does have the ability to unite his party and put the government on the ropes. But this has been too little too often in the last year, and Corbyn seems largely to put his personal politics and values above those of the party.
This has been amplified by the fact there is somewhat of a personality cult surrounding Corbyn. This is demonstrated by the fact that there is relatively little difference between Corbyn and Smith on policy, normally the dividing line for prospective leaders taking a party forward in a certain direction. This leadership challenge has been all about the ability of Corbyn to lead Vs. those who have bought into the persona, politics and principles of the MP from Islington North (see Ben Bradshaw's telling piece in The Guardian). It is therefore not surprising that Corbyn is the bookmakers standout favourite.
Moreover, Corbyn appears to have become a focal point for the grassroots movement Momentum, the more radical wing of the party, which has unashamedly mobbed MPs offices and threatened MPs with deselection - a rather illiberal sort of internal politics not seen since the 1980s. It is a success that Corbyn has enticed so many new members to Labour, but the fact that many of these new members are not contributing to a debate and set themselves so vehemently against New Labour is a clear failure of leadership and a direct consequence of one person and his politics being held above the party. It is clear that if you do not wholly buy into Corbyn, you're a 'Blairite' who is not wholly principled who has never wanted Corbyn to succeed.
The tragic irony is that Corbyn was nominated last year, rather patronisingly, to 'broaden the debate'. The reality now is moving in rather the opposite direction. Labour is once again facing its classic issue of Power Vs. Principle, as highlighted by Fotiadou and Kippin. For the party to move forward, there clearly needs to be concessions on both sides. However, the disturbing truth is that this leadership contest is about precisely that - leadership. Given the aura surrounding Corbyn from the vast majority of the party's membership, and the disdain towards the PLP for not accepting the chosen leader, the party is facing a rough decade. Much the worse for British parliamentary democracy
One thing that is clear is that there ought to be a place in modern politics for the likes of Jeremy Corbyn. Corbyn is in many ways the ultimate backbench MP - he has a clear set of principles which aren't compromised, he is elusive of the party whip and seemingly untainted by the party politics which constitutes the 'establishment', sensitive to the more specific issues facing ordinary constituents - which is unsurprising considering he's spent 32 years as one. Perhaps more unsurprisingly, the allure of Leader of the Opposition has not changed Corbyn's demeanour. This is a point his supporters emphasise enormously, and seem to give his pledge of a more 'honest politics' much credence. Much of this is to be welcomed.
Yet this brings with it some very crucial problems for Corbyn as Leader of the Opposition, which should worry non-activist Labour voters. Firstly, Corbyn often seems to pick the wrong issues. Unphased by leadership, it seems as if Corbyn asks the same questions as he would have done had he not won the Labour leadership last September. For example last week, for the first PMQs after the summer recess, he chose on all six questions to go on housing. Although this is undoubtedly an important issue and an area where successive governments, both Labour and Conservative, have failed to adequately address, it is not the issue of our time right now where government accountability is needed. This is surely the EU referendum, its aftermath, and perhaps his role in it. It has been left to the SNP leader in Westminster Angus Robertson to badger Theresa May on the government's vision for Britain outside the EU. This is highly embarrassing.
Whoever gives Corbyn advice on which questions to go on and issues he wants to fight on has constantly misread the extent of the importance of issues - something New Labour were particularly good at exploiting. Indeed, we saw this week that when Corbyn goes on the right issue - in this case the dismal policy of returning to a selective education system - Corbyn does have the ability to unite his party and put the government on the ropes. But this has been too little too often in the last year, and Corbyn seems largely to put his personal politics and values above those of the party.
This has been amplified by the fact there is somewhat of a personality cult surrounding Corbyn. This is demonstrated by the fact that there is relatively little difference between Corbyn and Smith on policy, normally the dividing line for prospective leaders taking a party forward in a certain direction. This leadership challenge has been all about the ability of Corbyn to lead Vs. those who have bought into the persona, politics and principles of the MP from Islington North (see Ben Bradshaw's telling piece in The Guardian). It is therefore not surprising that Corbyn is the bookmakers standout favourite.
Moreover, Corbyn appears to have become a focal point for the grassroots movement Momentum, the more radical wing of the party, which has unashamedly mobbed MPs offices and threatened MPs with deselection - a rather illiberal sort of internal politics not seen since the 1980s. It is a success that Corbyn has enticed so many new members to Labour, but the fact that many of these new members are not contributing to a debate and set themselves so vehemently against New Labour is a clear failure of leadership and a direct consequence of one person and his politics being held above the party. It is clear that if you do not wholly buy into Corbyn, you're a 'Blairite' who is not wholly principled who has never wanted Corbyn to succeed.
The tragic irony is that Corbyn was nominated last year, rather patronisingly, to 'broaden the debate'. The reality now is moving in rather the opposite direction. Labour is once again facing its classic issue of Power Vs. Principle, as highlighted by Fotiadou and Kippin. For the party to move forward, there clearly needs to be concessions on both sides. However, the disturbing truth is that this leadership contest is about precisely that - leadership. Given the aura surrounding Corbyn from the vast majority of the party's membership, and the disdain towards the PLP for not accepting the chosen leader, the party is facing a rough decade. Much the worse for British parliamentary democracy
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