Shadow cabinet liveblog

By Mark Ferguson / @markfergusonuk

18:35: Well – what a day that turned out to be after last night’s drama. You’d have got pretty long odds on the final shadow cabinet line-up as recently as yesterday. Thanks for sticking with us today – and keep an eye out for “Party Lines” this evening, where we’ll be bringing you the pick of the Labour media appearances from today.

18.23: The new shadow chief secretary of the treasury, Angela Eagle, has talked to Radio 4 about what’s next for Ed and his new team:

“We will now be focusing on the spending review. I think Alan johnson is a fantastic and experienced member of our team and I think Ed is entitled to appoint who he thinks best to each role.”

17.23: Speaking to Sky News this afternoon, shadow chancellor Alan Johnson said he thought Alistair Darling had “got it just about right” on deficit reduction:

“Alistair Darling’s plans are our starting point, I’ve never agreed Alistair’s proposals were over too short a period, I think he got it just about right.”

Meanwhile, on Radio 4, Diane Abbott said that appointing Johnson was “clever”:

“Well I think presentationally it is very clever…I think he will compare very favourably against George Osborne.”

15.51: Speaking to BBC News earlier, Ed Balls said:

“The most important thing isn’t about who’s doing particular jobs, it’s about winning the argument.”

“The shadow home secretary brief is very important, I’m looking forward to doing it.”

15.16: Speaking to the BBC, Cooper has been talking up some of the additions to the shadow cabinet – particularly the new women, saying:

“We have some very important new editions to the shadow cabinet, people like Meg Hillier, Mary Creagh, Maria Eagle, all with their own departments. I think that that is very important.”

15.11: Speaking to Sky News, Yvette Cooper says she’s pleased to be doing the shadow foreign secretary role:

“I’ve got such a great job to do…I think Alan Johnson will be a great shadow chancellor”

15.00: Speaking to Sky News earlier, the new chief whip Rosie Winterton said it was “ridiculous” to suggest that Yvette Cooper will be disappointed with the shadow foreign office brief, saying:

“The role of shadow foreign secretary is hugely important, the idea that that would be in anyway some kind of disappointment is ridiculous.”

14.45: Margaret Beckett has responded to Alan Johnson’s appointment in an interview with the BBC, saying:

“It’s a very interesting choice. The whole issue of how we handle the economy, what we do about the deficit, what it means for different people. Every member of the shadow cabinet is going to be involved in those conversations… it is something which is going to require a collegiate approach. It’s very much an independent judgement of Ed’s, I think it might turn out to be quite a smart judgement.”

She also described Ed Miliband as “a politician of his word.”

14.39: John Healey responds to being chosen as shadow health secretary:

“I am delighted to be appointed Shadow Health Secretary. The Government’s plans will damage care for patients and dismantle the NHS as our national health service. The British public are proud of the NHS, and it’s always been at Labour’s heart. I look forward to working with Ed Miliband to show clearly and quickly what the Tory plans will mean for people and their families.”

14.37: All eyes will be on treasury questions on October 12th for the first chance to see Johnson vs. Osborne – which should give us a good idea of how the CSR on the 20th will pan out.

13.41: Well that was all over much quicker than I anticipated (see 12.50) – decisive stuff from Ed Miliband – but stick with us, we’ll be bringing you all of the reaction from Labour figures throught the day.

13.33: Sadiq Khan has responsibility for political and constitutional reform in his portfolio – which suggests that he (rather than Harriet Harman) will shadow Nick Clegg on AV and boundary changes.

13.30: Jon Trickett will also be attending the cabinet as Shadow Minister of State for the Cabinet Office.

13.22: Ed Miliband’s statement on his new shadow cabinet:

“I am delighted with my new Shadow Cabinet, drawn from a broad range of talents across our party.”

“My team is united in one central mission for the future – to win back the trust of the British people and take Labour back to power.”

“Together, this new generation of Labour will work together to reject the pessimism of this coalition government as we set out our vision of what Britain can achieve. Our values are those of the British people, and this Shadow Cabinet will ensure that the hopes and concerns of working families are at the heart of our offer to the country.”

13.11

Deputy and International Development – Harriet Harman

Treasury – Alan Johnson

Home office – Ed Balls

Foreign Office/ Women and equalities – Yvette Cooper

Education/election co-ordinator – Andy Burnham

Justice – Sadiq Khan

DWP- Douglas Alexander

BIS: John Denham

Health: John Healey

Communities and Local government: Caroline Flint

Defence: Jim Murphy

Energy and Climate Change: Meg Hillier

Leader of the Commons: Hillary Benn

Transport: Maria Eagle

Defra: Mary Creagh

Chief Secretary to the Treasury: Angela Eagle

Northern Ireland: Shaun Woodward

Scotland: Ann McKechin

Wales: Peter Hain

Culture, Media and Sport: Ivan Lewis

Olympics: Tessa Jowell

Cabinet Office: Liam Byrne

Chief Whip – Rosie Winterton

13.09: Sky News reports than Alan Johnson will be shadow chancellor, Ed Balls shadow home office and Yvette Cooper at foreign office. You’d have got long odds on that combination this morning…

12.55: Steve Richards (who has spent a lot of time in and around the Labour Party working on his recent radio documentary and book) is “sure” that Alan Johnson will be offered shadow chancellor.

12.50: So now we know who the 19 members of the shadow cabinet will be. We’ve talked through some of the possible candidates for top jobs – now the waiting begins. I’ll be liveblogging Ed’s shadow cabinet decisions, from the rumours to the final announcement, for as long as it takes. Plenty of people are expecting a quick resolution – but I’ve heard it could take until early next week to nail down all of the positions.

So far the main rumour today is that Alan Johnson might be considered for shadow chancellor. Labour Uncut are pushing the rumour on twitter – but George Pascoe-Watson has heard he doesn’t want it.

We’ve also had Ed Miliband supporter Stephen Pound banging the drum for Ed Balls at defence on BBC News this morning, but little else on that since.