I have some questions for those tipped to contend the Labour leadership. My worry is any one of them could make things worse.
Angela Rayner
Why did she fail to pay her tax on time? As she lectures the rest of us to pay more taxes and to refrain from trying to find ways to reduce tax bills, surely she should have paid up to start with, or as soon as she knew she had made a mistake? Isn’t it one rule for her and different rules for others?
Why did new housebuilding fall whilst she was responsible for delivering 1.5 m new homes this Parliament? Does she now accept that target is a unattainable? When will she tell us the truth about new homes?
Will she accept that the Employment Rights Act has destroyed many new job opportunities for young people and helped drive unemployment up?
How would she describe Tories?
Ed Miliband
Is he proud of his accelerated closure of the North Sea oil and gas industry? What does he say to all those losing their jobs?
Why does he think we should import Norwegian gas instead of getting our own out of adjacent fields?
Why is it right to burden the world with 3 x as much CO 2 importing LNG than using our own gas?
Does he admit that for the next ten years we will have less nuclear power as he closes old stations and fails to bring any new ones on line apart from Hinkley he inherited?
Why has he been unable to cut our energy bills by £300?
Does he agree the UK will not be generating only carbon free power in 2030 but still needing gas power stations?
Wes Streeting
Why has he not made it easier for more people to get a GP or hospital appointment?
Why are Drs still going on strike after the big pay awards he made them to end the strikes?
Where is his alternative King’s Speech programme?
How would he get the UK back to work?
Andy Burnham
Why would he give up the big job of Mayor he said he wanted? Why should anyone believe his promises, as he promised to serve a full term and offered things he has not delivered?
Where is there a seat you could win in a by election? How does he win Makerfield with its small majority in 2024?
Why should the National Executive change its mind over telling him to do the job he has got?
Does he have so little belief in 403 Labour MPs that he thinks none of them could be PM?
Conclusion. So far a badly organised coup . None of the front runners have a good alternative programme to get people back to work, to control the cost of living and to smash the gangs. Pity the poor country with months of uncertainty and a badly damaged PM who might now survive.