James Forsyth James Forsyth

Whelan suggests Brown will turn up to Labour conference

A poll in today’s Daily Mail might have the Tories down to 29 percent (in part due to a very large number of undecideds) but it is Charlie Whelan’s interview blaming Peter Mandelson for Labour’s election debacle that is getting all the attention.

In a fit of campaign nostalgia, CCHQ has tweeted out a bunch of lines from it. But I suspect it is the last Whelan quote in the piece that has them smacking their lips.  Whelan says, ‘Labour has not fallen out of love with Gordon. Quite the reverse. If he tips up at the Conference – which I think he will – he’ll go on stage and he’ll be cheered to the rafters.

This is hardly going to help the new leader of the Labour party, who’ll be announced on the eve of conference. An appearance by Brown would be a distraction from the new leader’s attempt to introduce himself to the public and a reminder of why the public lost faith in Labour.

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