The Sketch: Miliband would rather be dead than Red Ed
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.But is he for the strikes or against them? The workers have great grievances. Is that a Yes? No. Then is it a No? What was the question again? Is he for the strikes? Let us admit to an operationally negative tendency which may traverse the argument spectrum by Wednesday.
On that happy day there'll be a million Labour voters on the streets looking for a national voice. Will Ed at his wither-wringing best plead the cause of primary school teachers? Or will he calculate he'd rather be dead than Red Ed?
It's a defining moment but at his big speech, he wasn't what you call definite. He lacked what you call definition... Both sides were at fault. Each had to give ground. "A strike is always a failure."
That may not go over as well as he hopes, facing a million of them in Hyde Park. He strides to the microphone, opens his arms in that Freddy Krueger way, puts on his alien's face and directs his furious, glaring eyes at them and shrieks: "FAILURES!" It's not what they want to hear.
What was disgraceful was – obviously – David Cameron. The out-of-touch, complacently-risky leader of the same old Tories. "I honestly say to you," Ed Miliband said with a wriggle of sincerity, "your plan isn't working." That's true. The Prime Minister has said as much. "I never thought I'd hear a government saying 'There's nothing we can do'." But that's not quite as true, is it? They're doing all sorts and nothing's working. When they do kick in the extra £20bn stimulus, that won't work either. Ed more or less admitted it.
It was in response to a question I asked. Normally I don't interfere but it has been bothering me, and here he was, a sometime-economic adviser to the Treasury.
That £20bn from Labour's five-point plan – would it produce more than £20bn of activity or less? If more, how much more?
He seemed confident it would help rather than hinder over the years to come. If anyone else is as confident, perhaps they'd put a figure on it for us?
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments