The first day of the Parliamentary session always has a slightly back to school feel to it. There are two, traditionally, witty speeches that are full of in jokes. The leader of the opposition then makes a speech that mixes the serious with humour and the Prime Minister replies in kind.
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James Delingpole
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But today won’t be remembered for the jokes but the shifts in Labour’s position that Harriet Harman attempted to execute. First, she confirmed that Labour would now support the EU referendum. But then, more surprisingly, she announced that Labour was ‘sympathetic’ to Tory plans to reduce the benefits cap, the amount that an able-bodied family without anyone in full time work, can receive in benefits to £23,000. Given Labour’s opposition to the introduction of the cap in the last parliament, this is quite a shift in Labour’s position.
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