A day in the race: September 13th

By Mark Ferguson / @markfergusonuk

Today the candidates have been at the TUC, attending the penultimate hustings of the leadership campaign, before the final televised tussle on Thursday when they clash on Question Time. As a Populus poll for the Times puts Labour just two points behind the Tories, the race to be next leader – and perhaps next PM – is hotting up.

DAVID MILIBAND wrote for LabourList today on the importance of education, which he called his passion. David said:

“Education is my passion; it’s why I got into politics. It’s also why I started the Building Schools for the Future Programme so that every child and community could benefit, and it’s why I am committed to realising the comprehensive ideal. Like Crosland I believe improving education is central to our Labour mission. His vision of a fairer society taking “shape in the form of bricks and mortar, more and better teachers, a longer school life in ample, imaginative surroundings” is what we should be striving for and what I will strive for as Leader.”

As the candidates were all at the TUC today, and with the conference dominating the headlines – David wrote a blogpost in which he attacked Francis Maude for his comments on the union:

“Francis Maude’s talk of a ‘genuine partnership’ with the trade unions is a fig leaf for the government’s plans to cut public spending in a way that risks damaging jobs and growth and hits the poorest hardest. Each year they are spending less and less on crucial public services that people rely on for services and jobs. The government’s own Office for Budget Responsibility said this would mean 610,000 public sector job losses – and the TUC’s research now shows that it will mean an equivalent 20 per cent cut for the lowest income households.”

His team also released a video of Miliband and his wife Louise phone banking – if you listen closely, you can hear a couple of mini-Miliband’s in the background. David says to his volunteers “You can’t do politics if it’s not fun”. We couldn’t agree more:

ED MILIBAND‘s team are now increasingly pushing the message that Ed is set to win, after yesterday’s YouGov poll which saw Ed move ahead of his brother when 2nd and 3rd preferences are taken into account.

Ed’s campaign are now briefing that he has a very clear path to securing the party leadership with a clear majority across members, unions and MP/MEP sections. This is no doubt something which David Miliband’s team would refute very strongly – especially as David has a firm lead in the MP/MEP section. LabourList will be looking into second preferences in the coming days, so keep an eye out for that.

It was interesting to see Unison pulling hard again for Ed today in another email to members on the day of the TUC hustings – with a high turnout anticipated in the union section, this kind of GOTV work from member unions could be crucial for the younger Miliband.

Ed was also the first of the leadership candidates to record an exclusive video pitch to LabourList readers:

ED BALLS renewed his attacks on BSF today – highlighting the government’s own equality impact assessment in this morning’s Guardian

Ed also visited a new school in Tameside today, an area which has seen 9 other new schools axed, and spoke with local MP Jonathan Reynolds:

Balls then then met members in Worsley and Eccles South at lunchtime, before heading to the TUC tonight, where he will remain tomorrow.

On the day that the candidates were at the TUC DIANE ABBOTT outlined her support for the trade union movement in a feature for the New Statesman:

“The Labour-union link has been at the heart of the party’s fight for power, and has helped us do great things once we got there. Unions win vital funds for Labour when our opponents are lavished with donations from rich individuals; they promote equal representation; they protect the party from political extremism; above all, they ensure that the voice of working people stays at the heart of Labour’s vision for the future… The challenge for trade unions in the 21st century is how to reach those people who do not see the point of them. While former New Labour ministers may find cushy jobs in the Con-Lib government, trade unions are not fair-weather friends. Their support for the party has seen us through the good times and the bad. Together, we can look forward to a bright future.”

From what i saw of the hustings, Diane seemed to get the best response of any of the candidates, which mirrored the first hustings at the GMB from back in June. It may be too late, but it was another strong, powerful performance from Abbott.

ANDY BURNHAM today attacked the rules of the leadership election, and suggested that they favoured the candidates with the most money, according to the BBC.

Andy has struggled with funding throughout the campaign, and has received gifts in kind (including all of his staff being volunteers, and the Burnham battle bus) which have kept his campaign going. It’s hard not to feel for a candidate who is struggling to raise cash – but cash is often an indication of which candidates are viable in internal elections.