Concern within the Labour Party that Jeremy Corbyn is doing well

If one of the essential elements in choosing a Labour leader is that he/she must be acceptable to the right wing press, then we might as well give up.

I was very disappointed with Harriet Harman this morning. She seemed to be saying initially that Labour would go along with the vast majority of George Osborne's budget because that's what the electorate wanted. She then proceeded to pull the budget apart, saying how unfair it was. I found it all very confusing.

HH is buying into the right wing agenda in saying that Labour's "left wing" policies were to blame for not attracting enough voters. Isn't it possible that at least some of those potential Labour voters finally chose not to vote at all because they felt the party's policies were not sufficiently differentiated from either of the other mainstream parties?

Like you, Anniebach, I feel very disheartened.

Nicola Sturgeon is as left as Jeremy, but Scotland is strong socialist heartland , she was admired throughout the UK for straight speaking but would she have won votes in middle England ? This is the problem the party has now, the Sun in Scotland did not follow the Sun in England and Wales , they slaughtered Michael Foot and that papers attacks on Brown and Kinnock were brutal too

With you Eloethan. I wanted to slap HH this morning

I think HH's analysis of what makes Labour electable is fundamentally wrong. Nicola Sturgeon is, clearly, eminently electable.

Part to Sturgeon's appeal is her straightforwardness. She actually answers the question and can get to the heart of an issue. She gives an impression of sincerity and strength.

That's an admirable quality and rare in a politician. She is in truth a Leader.

anya and all the other grans I so agree. In truth we do not have a Nicola Sturgeon and that is precisely what we need. This has then left me floundering and disappointed with the choice now before us. I am quite sure in my mind that Labour will not succeed with any of the current policies or leader, especially with the boundary changes about to take place.

One lesson the Labour Party should have learned since 2010 and has so far signally failed to do is to change the narrative, just as the SNP has done in Scotland. HH together with other Labour MPs, by supporting the budget is clearly accepting the Tory narrative with regard to the economy and we know that there is an alternative. This is where they need to start.

Fear won the election for the Tories , I spent months telephoning and door to door canvassing , when the Tories started their attack on the SNP running the country many voters believed them

Yes Annie but if the left was dominating the narrative this fear would never have fooled the voters.

I agree whitewave, but the media dominate . Ed eating a bacon sandwich Cameron feeding an orphaned lamb ! The Mail, Sun, Express are the most wildly read . TV political reporters !

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-33503188

No wonder Labour is in a mess. Harriet Harman cannot agree with herself a day later.

Just received mail from Jeremy , he is not going to wait for the election of a new leader to oppose the cuts, he has started a petition . Harriet really was stupid but Liz Kendall is supporting her

Good

www.politics.co.uk/blogs/2015/07/13/labour-opposes-child-poverty-but-supports-measures-which-inc

The problem is that Harriet Harman is now seen as the voice of Labour and seen as supporting cuts which increase child poverty.
That's not what the Labour party should be about.
Thank heavens for Jeremy Corbyn. Is that a petition in parliament or for the country? Do you have a link?

I can't post links jen, if you look for his site it sure to be there

I think it would be good to go back to a proper right and left parties way of government. Much more interesting.

Harriet Harman is being honest. She is putting policies she believes in, before party political politics.

She was wrong to speak for the shadow cabinet and labour MP's , fair enough if she said - I think we should support etc, she said - we will support etc

Well, she is acting leader.

Yes she is acting leader but this doesn't mean she can say how the party will vote when it has not been discussed and agreed on

Found it, Annie, and signed.

Surely politics is not about what is interesting but about what you believe in jinglbellsfrocks?

By the time these bills are actually going through the new leader could turn everything on its head. HH is only acting leader - a caretaker.

Can't it be both? Of course it can.

Jeremy Corbyn seems principled, consistent in his beliefs and says what many want to hear. Apart from the people who don't like socialists being in the Labour party, others say he's too old - he's 66! I think both these things should work in his favour - haven't we had enough of these synthetic, sound-bite smoothies who've dominated politics for years now?

I give up, just give up, discussing the leadership with a young party member he said for him - Liz Kendall because she will appeal to Tory voters . I don't want the party to appeal to Tory voters I want a party that sticks with it's core beliefs , betraying it's core beliefs has almost wiped out the Libs

We have labour, Libs , UKIP ,Tories and Thatcherism

Sticking with core beliefs only can make a party very minor too?