Labour’s malfunctioning front bench

The old adage that it’s hard to make an impact in Opposition is ringing true. Dan Hodges has denigrated Labour’s opposition thus far in the New Statesman’s political column today. He charts the party’s competing interests to create the sense that Miliband’s lack of direction, which is marketed as consensual politics, is the prime cause for Labour’s passivity. A listening exercise and numerous policy reviews are under way, but Labour is still stuck at Robert Frost’s fork in the road. Sooner or later, Miliband will have to act. Without firm leadership, shadow ministers are being left to their own devices; which perhaps allows the coalition to escape misfortune because often inexperienced shadow ministers don’t do much opposing. The left-wing press is becoming frustrated. Sunny Hundal wrote a recent article titled, ‘Is the Shadow Cabinet half asleep?’; and Tribune has turned on John Healey ‘the most depressing [performer] of all’. (To my mind, Labour does well by saying nothing