Wendy’s Referendum Problem

A reader has chided me for failing to publish more political comment lately. But what more – despite the acres of newsprint devoted to the matter – has there been to say about the Obama-Clinton match-up that was not said six weeks ago? Precious little. She still can’t win; her continuing campaign makes Obama’s job in November more difficult.

Meanwhile, in Scotland Wendy Alexander, the pocket-sized Scottish Labour leader, announces that she’s fed-up with Alex Salmond winning all the headlines month after month and, consequently, says she’s quite happy to have a referendum on independence after all. This, despite constant assertions that it was the last thing the country wanted or needed. In London, this has been interpreted as a humiliating blow to Gordon Brown. Wee Wendy, after all, is one of his creations. Doubtless there is some truth to this and Brown, whose ministry is probably over anyway, could have done without this extra blow to his authority.