Fantasy shadow Cabinet
politics.co.uk gives its take on what the shadow Cabinet should look like.
By Ian Dunt and Alex Stevenson
Not only are the odds of this becoming reality vanishingly thin but our fantasies have also been restricted, rather cruelly, by the number of MPs going for the front bench. These politicians have been picked from the 49 Labour candidates who are standing for a place on the 18-person shadow Cabinet. Six of them must be women, adding an extra level of complexity.
Ed Miliband’s talk of a “new generation” implies flooding the posts with new blood, but experience of government is invaluable, especially when the press are keen to brand him a lightweight. We’ve taken the view that the promising new talent will be inserted into junior ministerial roles, to be gradually promoted through reshuffles until, by 2015, Miliband has a credible team to take into government.
Shadow chancellor – Yvette Cooper
Ed Balls’ view of the deficit is too different to Miliband’s for him to work effectively as shadow chancellor, despite his obvious eloquence on the subject. It risks fault lines in Labour’s image in the exact subject area where division would be most damaging. Far better to have Balls’ wife, Yvette Cooper, take the role. Capable, unknown to the public, popular in the party and female in a system that demands a certain number of them – the job should be hers. She is also far more likeable and telegenic than George Osborne. For a public worried about the effects of cuts, she’ll be a reassuring image next to him.
Shadow home secretary – Peter Hain
Hain’s record as a progressive on constitutional and liberty issues makes him the perfect choice for this uniquely delicate position. The opposition will now be accepting much of the government’s Home Office brief, given Miliband’s approval of civil liberties issues. He needs someone who will work with Theresa May on that but then speak with authority when drawing a line on matters such as DNA retention. Hain, who comes as close to being well-liked outside Westminster as politicians get, is the man for the job.
Shadow foreign secretary: Alan Johnson
A famously useful brief this, as Gordon Brown discovered when he used it to neutralise David Miliband as a leadership threat. It allows the leader to denote huge status while relegating the person in question to an area of government that traditionally receives little attention. Alan Johnson should have been out in the cold once he said David Miliband was “head and shoulders” above his competitors. Making him foreign secretary will reassure centrists and make it less likely that Johnson continues to issue curt appraisals of Miliband’s liberal civil liberties and crime policies, as he has been doing over the last few days.
Shadow health secretary: Ed Balls
Most commentators assume Balls will become shadow home secretary if he isn’t given the shadow chancellor role. His third-place performance in the leadership race and tribal nature means it would be dangerous to demote him. Miliband will also be aware that he won the election off the back off Ball’s second preference votes. But the shadow home secretary brief is completely wrong for Ball’s qualities. It is here that Miliband’s progressive ideas on civil liberties will mean he will cooperate with much of the coalition government’s programme. That’s a waste of Balls, who is the Rottweiler of Labour. Instead, health directs him right at the government’s weak spot. The ideas in the health white paper weren’t well promoted before the election and they didn’t really appear in the coalition agreement. The public are always wary of talk of privatising the NHS by stealth. It’s a weak spot. Miliband should let Ball off the leash to tear it up.
Shadow education secretary: Andy Burnham
Some consider him average, but Burnham can find his voice when railing against metropolitan elites or attacks on the welfare state. Many in Labour consider Michael Gove a weak link in Cabinet, although that may say more about Balls’ impressive performance as shadow education secretary than it does about his counterpart. Burnham’s northern accent and man-of-the-people posture could play well against Gove’s posher, intellectual tones, however. Ultimately, he did well enough in the leadership contest to deserve a post, and this sideways move from the health brief should suit him well enough.
Shadow communities and local government: Diane Abbott
After raising her profile – and credibility – through the Labour leadership election, Diane Abbott deserves a place in the shadow Cabinet. The obvious position would be women and equalities minister, but that seems patronising. As one of Westminster most impressive constituency MPs she can make a genuine contribution to the local government and communities brief. Also, the thought of her going toe-to-toe in the Commons with Eric Pickles is just too enjoyable to pass up. We would literally pay for tickets.
Shadow culture, media and sport secretary: Chris Bryant
The former Europe minister has not been shy since May 6th, constantly pestering Commons Speaker John Bercow with points of order to raise his profile. His efforts finally succeeded when he complained about the phone-hacking row. Bryant is young, untainted by New Labour – and, even though he backed the wrong Miliband, exactly the kind of fresh blood the new leader will be looking to bring in. Whether the public will be able to tell him and Jeremy Hunt apart is another matter.
Shadow energy and climate change: Sadiq Khan
As Miliband’s leadership election campaign manager Khan might expect a more prominent position than this. There are rumours of him getting the shadow home secretary or shadow justice role, given he has a very impressive track record on civil liberties and first-hand experience of anti-social behaviour problems in his London constituency, but he simply hasn’t grown enough as a politician yet. The shadow home secretary brief seems too big a promotion and Ken Clarke would make mincemeat out of him if he got shadow justice. What better position to give him, then, but Miliband’s old job? After all, if the new Labour leader’s proved anything, it’s that energy and climate change can lead to big things.
Shadow international development: Harriet Harman
Loved by Labour, respected in parliament, but despised by a sizeable chunk of the public, this role rewards Harman for her stewardship during the leadership race and also shuffles her off into a fairly low-key role. She’d be facing up to the untested Andrew Mitchell and would be likely to focus on the tagging of aid with defence – an issue which is hardly electoral dynamite but which really does upset those few people that it upsets. Could easily conduct the role alongside her deputy leader responsibilities.
Shadow business, innovation and skills: Pat McFadden
If there’s one portfolio where Labour can justify retaining an element of continuity, it’s business. The party have nothing to be ashamed of from their efforts to help struggling firms, which show Labour intervening to help businesses directly. Although overshadowed by Peter Mandelson at the time, McFadden was at the heart of Labour’s business policies. He is the man to point out the flaws in the coalition’s approach.
Shadow justice: Angela Eagle
Well-respected and intelligent, Eagle has some experience of justice issues from her stint in the Home Office before Tony Blair got rid of her. She’s personable and human, giving her a decent chance of sounding a coherent tone in a position which will see some cooperation with the government, specifically on minimising shorter sentences. She’s also a colourful figure – part of a pair of identical twins in parliament and the first openly lesbian MP – helping Miliband with his ‘new generation’ spiel.
Shadow environment, food and rural affairs secretary: Ben Bradshaw
This role lost all of its media attention when climate change was given its own department. Most people simply forgot Hilary Benn was still doing it. It’s a good spot to dump another David Miliband supporter, one who does his job perfectly capably but without much spectacle. Bradshaw will make a good enough fist of it.
Shadow transport secretary: Caroline Flint
A perfect opportunity to bring Flint back into the fold. Party officials like her because she has the vanishingly rare confluence of attractiveness and political skills. Her dramatic exit from Gordon Brown’s government saw her tell all and sundry that it was because she was a woman, so Miliband can rebuild a few more damaged bridges by giving her this relatively innocuous post. She’s also young and female, which helps.
Shadow work and pensions: David Lammy
A competent performer in various junior posts, it’s about time Lammy was given a step up. He’s also young and black, again contributing to Miliband’s goal of visibly injecting new blood into his frontbench team. There is the air of liability to him and the brief is tough, but he should be up to it.
Shadow chief secretary: John Healey
John Healey has developed a reputation within the Labour party as a safe pair of hands. He managed to reach the housing minister post for the last year of Gordon Brown’s administration and is well-regarded across the House. Becoming Yvette Cooper’s number two on the economics brief would continue his steady, if unremarkable, upwards trajectory.
Shadow defence secretary: Jim Murphy
Closely associated with David Miliband’s leadership campaign, handing Jim Murphy a middle-ranking Cabinet role would confirm Ed’s determination to match words with action when it comes to party unity. This is a promotion, no doubt about it; but Murphy’s able performance at the Scotland Office makes it justifiable.
Shadow Northern Ireland secretary: Douglas Alexander
The chair of David Miliband’s leadership campaign, Alexander might hope for something a little more substantial than this brief. But it’s one which requires his tact and sensitivity. He may sometimes come across as intellectual – but has previously been trusted with small tasks like managing general election campaigns. Dealing with the powersharing executive is well within his abilities.
Shadow Commons leader: Tessa Jowell
This role cries out for a senior, well-respected figure – someone with experience of how parliament works who won’t just be swatted away by the well-respected Sir George Young. Tessa Jowell, always on the fringes of the last government, might just be the woman for the job. It’s a role which requires cooperation as well as confrontation with her opposite number. She has the charm as well as the clout to take charge of the opposition in the Commons. It’s also good practise to get another prominent Blairite and close friend of David Miliband into a prominent but relatively powerless position.
