David Miliband: Labour should build a living, breathing movement for change

By Alex Smith / @alexsmith1982

I’ve just watched David Miliband on the Andrew Marr Show this morning. I thought it was a very strong showing, and it’s worth watching on iPlayer if you’ve got fifteen minutes spare. Scroll to 20m35s.

Miliband talks about his belief that Labour should become a community organising force, immigration, housing, Israel and Gaza, and how he would like to be known as “a Milibandite, not a Blairite”.

Talking about local party reforms, which I also wrote about on Friday, Miliband says:

“The Labour Party succeeds when it is a movement for change in communities, not just at Westminster. And we saw this in the general election campaign. I went on Friday night to the victory party of Gisela Stuart in Birmingham, Edgbaston – a remarkable result achieved not just by members of the Labour Part but the wider community who came together to support her. And what I’m saying in my campaign is that for the Labour Party to become an effective fighting force at Westminster again, it needs to be a fighting force right across the country; not just in the Birmingham Edgbaston’s of this world.”

And the interview continues:

ANDREW MARR: So how do you persuade people to get involved in politics after all this time?

DAVID MILIBAND: Well people are passionate about affordable housing, safer streets, decent jobs, and what I …

ANDREW MARR: (over) They’re not passionate about sitting in party meetings.

DAVID MILIBAND: Exactly, and that’s what I was addressing yesterday. Because there’s been a historic breach between a tradition of community organisation, which is where the Labour Party started a hundred years ago, and traditional politics. And what I said yesterday was that as part of my campaign for the Labour leadership, I’m going to devote funds that I raise for the campaign to train at least a thousand community organisers, learning the best of the Labour movement tradition and of the community organising tradition. And that may be good for my campaign, but – win or lose – it will be good for the Labour Party that only succeeds as an electoral machine when it’s a living, breathing movement for change in communities.