LEADERSHIP CANDIDATES - WHAT A FABULOUS BUNCH !

What a fabulous choice Labour Party members face as they look for a replacement for the bearded wonder, Jeremy Corbyn.

Corbyn's ultra-left wing agenda was roundly rejected by the electorate in the recent general election but at least some of the potential candidates to take over at the helm seem to have closed their minds to this. In particular, Clive Lewis seems to be hell bent on running a campaign which could even be more extreme than Corbyn's although his supporters seem to be few and far between. Rebecca Long-Bailey, Corbyn's all but anointed successor, is also an adherent of the same Marxist policies as her mentor but seems to be somewhat more acceptable to her peers, Lord knows why. A vote for Long-Bailey would surely be nothing but a vote for a Conservative victory in 2024 or whenever the next general election takes place.

Whatever Emily Thornberry thinks is probably irrelevant as she appears highly unlikely to attract the support of more than a handful of her fellow MPs and MEPs; clearly, they've rumbled her and realised that her arrogance and snobbery render her an impossible candidate. Jess Phillips, the loud and somewhat foul-mouthed MP for Birmingham Yardley since 2015, has been no supporter of Corbyn and appears to have more support than Thornberry but can anyone really see her as a potential Prime Minister ?

The MP for Wigan since 2010, Lisa Nandy, may not have a particularly high profile but she does appear to be well respected. Her support amongst fellow MPs and MEPs is very similar to that recorded for Long-Bailey and Phillips although she is a very different character. As an opponent of Corbynism, Nandy has apparently spoken well at gatherings of the party faithful and made a very good impression; she actually seems to have the beginnings of a plan for restoring the party to a more sensible and acceptable pathway.

Finally, there's the front runner, Keir Starmer. Starmer has spent the last few years sitting alongside Corbyn on the Labour front bench but now wants everyone to believe that he's not really a 'Corbynista'. It is clear that he's a strong opponent of Brexit and has no record of opposing Corbyn's policies, other than his resignation from a shadow cabinet position in 2016 when there was a significant revolt against the leader. However, his subsequent return to the shadow cabinet suggests that the resignation was far more about positioning himself than about any principals that he may have had. What looks like hypocrisy is backed up by his acceptance of a knighthood in 2014 while apparently wanting the consequential title of 'Sir' to be omitted when he's addressed. A serious case of personal ego conflicting with public persona and career ambitions, perhaps.

What a bunch. Not a statesman, or stateswoman, amongst them, not even a player with any real charisma or political weight. Thank God the choice between them isn't mine to make.

LABOUR RIPS ITSELF ASUNDER

With more and more of the hierarchy of the Labour Party coming out against the prospect of having Jeremy Corbyn as their new leader, one starts to see how little connection there really is between the 'Party' and its members.

Current polling shows Corbyn with a huge lead over his rivals for the leadership; a YouGov poll today shows that 53% of eligible voters support him against the best of his competitors, Andy Burnham, with 21%. Clearly, Corbyn's campaign and ideology reflects the views of a very large part of the Party's grass roots members, while the ideology of his opponents is seen as vague and non-representative. However, the Party's hierarchy see things very differently and voice their ever-increasing alarm at the prospect of a 'lurch to the left' under Corbyn; they would much rather see a continuation of the bland 'middle-of-the-road' politics espoused by the likes of Tony Blair for the simple reason that that approach won them power. In other words, blow the ideology and the views of Party members, our way gets US into power.

This is not a situation unique to the Labour Party and, indeed, the Conservatives are exactly the same. The Party establishment inevitably opts for the 'safe' alternative whenever a new leader is needed, and the result is usually 'more of the same' rather than any radical thought and real progress. The one shining example of this not happening was in the election of Margaret Thatcher as leader, but then the 'big-wigs' in the party probably saw her as a stopgap who could easily be controlled; after all, she was only a woman.

Electing Corbyn as its new leader may well be problematic for the Labour Party, but it seems that it would be reflective of the views of a majority of its membership. Electing any of Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper or Liz Kendall, the other candidates, would be reflective of the hierarchy's desire to maintain the 'status quo' and get back into power as soon as possible, without having regard to what the membership wants. Frankly, the Party is 2 parties and needs to accept this truth; if I was Corbyn, I'd be campaigning on behalf of the 'Real Labour Party', and leaving Burnham, Cooper, Kendall and the rest to carry on being 'New Labour'.

Whatever the result and whoever wins, the Conservatives must be licking their lips and laughing all the way to the 2020 polling booths. Labour looks unlikely to mount any form of serious challenge for at least a decade, maybe more.

LABOUR, LIBERALS AND UKIP IN TURMOIL.

Following the surprise election results of last week, the losers have been tearing themselves apart while the winners, the Conservatives and Scottish Nationalists, are simply rising above it all. While Cameron and Sturgeon are appearing in statesmanlike mode, Miliband and Clegg have gone and Farage has gone and returned in the space of a few hours; Labour, the Liberal Democrats and UKIP are all in turmoil.

The departure of Miliband was inevitable after his party failed so miserably. A number of his former colleagues and supporters have come out of hiding and clearly laid the blame for their poor showing fairly and squarely on his shoulders; even his brother has had a dig and left the question of his return to British politics very much open. While he stays in his well paid job in New York, the Labour party is desperately looking for a replacement for young Ed, and has a pretty poor bunch to choose from. So far, the declared runners, Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper, Liz Kendall and Mary Creagh, hardly inspire excitement. Very curiously, a much stronger runner, Chukka Umunna, announced his candidacy, was declared the bookies' favourite and then withdrew from the race a couple of days later. That Umunna was seen as the front runner must be a comment on the paucity of available talent and one can only wonder what the outcome of the leadership election will now be. For what it's worth, I'd be inclined to look to an older and more experienced hand, such as Alan Johnson, to take the reins for an interim period while one or 2 younger candidates are developed for the future, unless, of course, Miliband major can be enticed back from the USA.

While Labour simply has a paucity of talent and experience, the Liberal Democrats have almost no one left from whom to choose a new leader. The obvious candidate must be Tim Farron but he's not exactly set the world on fire in the past. However, he has only 7 possible opponents, the party having been all but wiped out at Wesminster, and none of them is any sort of 'Big Beast'. Whoever gets the job, it's likely to be a miserable experience for years to come.

While Labour and the Liberal Democrats at least know what the position is, UKIP have made a pigs' breakfast of the whole leadership issue. Having said that he'd resign if he failed to win a seat at Westminster, Nigel Farage did just that, only to have his resignation rejected by the party's national executive; consequently, he's remained as leader but has been subjected to a barrage of criticism and comment from certain party members and supporters. It does seem strange that he didn't argue his corner with the executive and at least push for an election to test the feelings of his party; that the executive, which is only partly elected itself, has denied the membership the opportunity to confirm, or otherwise, it's support for Farage seems wrong. Regardless, UKIP is now in a state of civil war which is doing it no good at all.

Somehow, Natalie Bennett, the hopeless leader of the Green Party, has avoided being sacked and seems likely to remain on our screens for a while yet, as does Leanne Wood, the leader of Plaid Cymru. Whether they or Farage will be around at the next General Election in 2020, is for the future to decide, but we do know that Cameron has said he won't be and we know that Labour and the Liberals will both have new leaders; the only survivor from this time around may well be Nicola Sturgeon - there's a thought.