Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Thu Sep 26, 2013 9:33 am  

cod'ead wrote:

Mandelson's now joined the band of Miliband critics...

Aye, The Prince of Darkness won't like a shift to the left.
It's as clear a signal of separation from Blairism and New Labour as we are going to see, I reckon.

Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Thu Sep 26, 2013 12:12 pm  

cod'ead wrote:

Mandelson's now joined the band of Miliband critics. That should be reason enough for Ed to continue. So far all the moaners and frothers are waaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyy eclipsed by those in favour and last time I looked, energy companies do not get a ballot paper in a general election

This price freeze may last for about a year by the time they've got through a potential judicial review and then through parliament. Something like this will need an act of legislation, probably in the form of a change to the Energy Act. That will take time to do.

Given that the quoted average household energy bill is ~£1300 and price rises are on average 9% per year recently, then it will "save" the average household £117 for the year.

The problem is, what happens after that ? Where is the safeguard to stop energy companies waiting until the price freeze ends and then hiking up prices massively to recoup their "loss" ? We might well find that saving £10 a month for a year leads to paying an extra £20 a month the year after, which will hit the poorest even harder.

Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Thu Sep 26, 2013 12:20 pm  

Derwent wrote:

... The problem is, what happens after that ? Where is the safeguard to stop energy companies waiting until the price freeze ends and then hiking up prices massively to recoup their "loss" ? We might well find that saving £10 a month for a year leads to paying an extra £20 a month the year after, which will hit the poorest even harder.

I guess that's the time for the replacement for OfGen to flex its muscles.

[DaveO]

Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Thu Sep 26, 2013 2:02 pm  

Derwent wrote:

This price freeze may last for about a year by the time they've got through a potential judicial review and then through parliament. Something like this will need an act of legislation, probably in the form of a change to the Energy Act. That will take time to do.

Given that the quoted average household energy bill is ~£1300 and price rises are on average 9% per year recently, then it will "save" the average household £117 for the year.

The problem is, what happens after that ? Where is the safeguard to stop energy companies waiting until the price freeze ends and then hiking up prices massively to recoup their "loss" ? We might well find that saving £10 a month for a year leads to paying an extra £20 a month the year after, which will hit the poorest even harder.

You are making a lot of assumptions there but the policy would be rather pointless if the time in which prices were frozen wasn't used to sort out this countries energy policy because at the moment those 9% price rises are just not sustainable. Leaving the provision of energy to market forces is not working.

[DaveO]

Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Thu Sep 26, 2013 2:07 pm  

cod'ead wrote:

Mandelson's now joined the band of Miliband critics. That should be reason enough for Ed to continue. So far all the moaners and frothers are waaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyy eclipsed by those in favour and last time I looked, energy companies do not get a ballot paper in a general election

I agree but who needs enemies when you have friends like him? It also won't do Miliband's standing with people who can vote much good because despite the idea being popular its just another stick to beat Miliband up with over his overall competency. If Mandelson is still a member of the party the chairman needs to drag him into his office and tell him to keep his trap shut.

Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Sat Sep 28, 2013 5:53 pm  

As the energy companies have said, the lights will go off, not because they need to but because the energy companies will try to manipulate the situation. At this point the government should invoke emergency measures and take them over as we welcome electricity generation and the national grid (the clues in the name) back into the state ownership that it should never have been allowed to leave.

Then its time to start on water, gas, coal, public transport, NHS and prisons.

Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Wed Oct 02, 2013 8:00 am  

I suspect with things swinging his way a little this week thanks to Dacre's inability to be a responsible editor, it will be some time before Labour feel the need to get rid of Ed.

Another spectacular misjudgement by the D**** M***, which they'll take time to recover from (and hopefully never will)

Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Wed Oct 02, 2013 8:10 am  

Chris28 wrote:

...Another spectacular misjudgement by the D**** M***, which they'll take time to recover from (and hopefully never will)

I wouldn't be so sure, they managed to survive after supporting Fascism.
Never underestimate the selfishness of a Daily Mail reader.

Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Wed Oct 02, 2013 9:52 am  

Chris28 wrote:

I suspect with things swinging his way a little this week thanks to Dacre's inability to be a responsible editor, it will be some time before Labour feel the need to get rid of Ed.

Another spectacular misjudgement by the D**** M***, which they'll take time to recover from (and hopefully never will)

It's quite something to make chunks of the populace who have never liked or trusted Alastair Campbell cheer for him, but that Newsnight segment managed it.

Jon Steafel was totally out of his depth, having sent there by the coward that is Dacre.

Incredible to hear Steafel suggesting that mentioning Rothermere's support of the Nazis was irrelevant, when the Mail had used a diary entry by a 17-year-old, written over 70 years ago, as its 'evidence' for the entire smear.

The problem isn't even Dacre, though: it's the readers who do take the Mail as gospel or are at least influenced by it.

[DaveO]

Re: When will Labour ditch Ed M? : Wed Oct 02, 2013 10:17 am  

Mintball wrote:

It's quite something to make chunks of the populace who have never liked or trusted Alastair Campbell cheer for him, but that Newsnight segment managed it.

Jon Steafel was totally out of his depth, having sent there by the coward that is Dacre.

Incredible to hear Steafel suggesting that mentioning Rothermere's support of the Nazis was irrelevant, when the Mail had used a diary entry by a 17-year-old, written over 70 years ago, as its 'evidence' for the entire smear.

The problem isn't even Dacre, though: it's the readers who do take the Mail as gospel or are at least influenced by it.

They are playing into Ed M's hands as well. The Mail is dead set against the Levison recommendations such as they are, Milliband is for them and can now point to this episode.

In addition at the culmination of the Tory party conference it's Ed M who is getting the headlines. Talk about one own goal after the other.