A downbeat speech, but one that may pave the way to some big ideas

This morning in front of a large and expectant Fabian audience (at their biggest conference yet), Ed Miliband gave the first speech of what will be a defining year for the Labour leader.

Lets cut to the chase. It could have been more upbeat. It was a little flat, considering the content of the speech should have lent itself to a more strident delivery. But it’s the first week back after Christmas, and the Fabian audience (despite being very much Ed Miliband’s “home team”) aren’t necessarily what you’d call a demonstrative bunch.

Much of the content of the speech was at I expected it to be when highlighting the 5 key points this morning, but there were a few sections of the speech that could be quite important for Labour (and potentially a future Ed Miliband government) which have gone largely unreported so far.

On housing – a touchstone issue for Labour Party members – cracking down on unscrupulous lettings agencies is a good idea (although quite similar to what Jack Dromey was saying late last year). What is genuinely new though, and very welcome for the millions it impacts on, is a pledge to make long term private sector renting a reality. That creates stability for families who can’t afford to buy, and also allows those renting in the private sector to put down roots without the risk of losing their home at short notice. It’s also good for landlords too, because they have secure long term income from their property. For many families it would make more sense than buying, which is why in other parts of Europe it’s incredibly popular. It’s not a substitute for building the millions of new homes necessary to solve Britain’s housing crisis, but it’s a policy that could set well alongside something that radical.

There was also a quite downbeat but crucial section of the speech which focussed on the importance of devolving power away from national government and handing power to local communities (councils?). That’s something Ed hinted at last summer but he was clearer about what that meant here. If he extends that to community budgeting, for example, or greater rights for local people to petition local government on issues that matter to them, then we might have a policy that is both “One Nation” and transformative. Then again, which major politician hasn’t promised to localise power in recent years? Miliband’s opportunity is to be the first potential Prime Minister to talk about such a radical change to the way British government works, and then actually do it. Most politicians abandon the idea once they become PM – Ed mustn’t.

Although it may have been the aim, I’m not quite sure that this was a speech that fleshed out what One Nation is. In part that’s because as well as being a strong slogan, it contains within it a complex set of often conflicting ideas. Reconciling the rhetorical and the ideological will be a key part of making 2013 a success for Labour. Today was a start on that road – nothing more. But the building blocks for paving that road may have been in today’s downbeat and modest performance.

Today’s policy announcements were welcome, but bigger thinking will be required between now and 2015.