The Labour leadership are publicly backing a “radical” offer. So what are they waiting for?

It’s a week after “that letter” and we’re still talking about Labour’s policy offer (if you haven’t already, you can vote in our survey on what Labour’s priorities should be). Will Labour go for a big offer, or will the offer be “shrunk”? In the coming weeks we’ll have a far clearer indication of the scope of Labour’s ambition, but recent days have been telling.

Yesterday there was the (re)announcement that Labour would lower tuition fees and consider a graduate tax – a clear attempt by some within the party to nudge the leadership towards a clearer offer to the electorate. It’s not a bad start, but we’ll need better than that to sustain Labour’s already wobbling poll lead through to election day.

And yesterday morning, Douglas Alexander was on Marr, talking about the need for a manifesto that was both “credible” and “radical”. That presumably puts him the same camp as those calling for a big offer – no-one in the Labour Party wants a manifesto that isn’t credible (although an incredible manifesto, I could take). The Shadow Foreign Secretary said:

“I think one of the insights of this generation of Labour leaders is that it’s a totally false choice to be credible or radical. If you’re not credible then people won’t trust you with the governance of the country. If you’re not radical people will just say ‘oh, you’re all the same’. That’s why I believe we will offer both credible and radical policies.”

That was a notable intervention, because just last week Alexander was being cited in The Times as a proponent of a “narrowly-drawn offer”. I’m told that the leader’s office were keen for Alexander to speak out in favour of a big, bold, radical offer on Marr yesterday (and repeat such a call on ITV’s The Agenda this evening) to quash claims that the Labour’s Election Chair was a roadblock to big ideas, something he was happy to do. Clearly Alexander agrees that to win a majority – which is his aim – then we need to have a big offer .

But if Alexander – the name that had repeatedly come up as the proponent of a tight and lean offer –  wants a “credible and radical” manifesto, then who in the Shadow Cabinet is arguing against boldness? Jon Cruddas has staked his reputation on pushing through a transformative policy offer on rebuilding our cities, devolution, transport and housing (for starters), and is thought to be working closely in tandem with Ed Balls. So if neither Alexander or Balls are against going big, and Miliband himself has proclaimed time and time again the importance of a big offer and big ideas, what are we waiting for? If no-one stands against a big offer, then lets have one.

So what does radical but credible look like?

How about devolving housing benefit to local authorities so they can spend money on building homes rather than subsidising landlords?

How about taking the rail franchises back into public ownership as they expire? (Which could save the taxpayer money long term)

How about universal childcare that gets more parents back into work, cutting unemployment and boosting growth?

How about properly pushing equal pay for women, which could boost GDP by as much as 4%?

How about tackling the social care crisis head on by merging health and social care?

All of these policy ideas are being seriously considered by the Labour leadership and Jon Cruddas ahead of the party’s manifesto, but so far little of this is breaking through into the public conversation. If party members were writing the manifesto, it’s likely all of these proposals would get a fair hearing, but it’s possible none of these will make the final document. The push back against big ideas still exists, but no-one will put their name to it.

Today we can see how much of an impact a bold, popular, radical and costed policy can have. Miliband’s game-changing energy price-freeze policy still resonates on the front page of the Times, as energy companies admit they’ve let the public down. Meanwhile the Sun front page attacks “Rip Off Britain” – again referencing energy prices, but also talking about the Cost of Living Crisis.

Where Miliband has gone big he’s set the agenda. When he’s been silent – as he was post-budget – the agenda has been set by Osborne and the Tories. The next election will be a battle of ideas and a fight for the agenda of a nation. So lets go with the biggest and best ideas we have. Miliband, Balls, Cruddas and Alexander are all in favour. What are we waiting for?