Time has run out. When you’re in a hole, you should stop digging.

With massive regret, and I’ve been willing Ed along for ages, but I have decided once-and-for-all that time has run out for Labour under its current leadership.

Sending out a message that we have to agree with the cuts agenda for 2015 gives us no room for manoeuvre, and straight-jackets the unions into looking impotent. They are the paymasters of Labour, but more importantly Ed has failed to make the case that they represent important stakeholders in our society. Ed has also shown absolutely no leadership in explaining the problems with the NHS Health and Social Care Bill, which poses very complicated issues about price, quality, cost, competition and health. More importantly, the private limited company in English law is there to maximise shareholder dividend, and Ed Miliband has failed to get his head around this simple concept as to who exactly profits from the NHS. Under legislative proposals, corporate entities from abroad could be honoured with an ability to make a ‘fast buck’.

Ed had a very potent theme in his conference speech on a topic known to be important to us in business and law, corporate social responsibility, but the sheer delivery of it was terrible. In an issue which matters to me, welfare reform, it was left up to bloggers Kaliya Franklin and Sue Marsh with others to bring us the #Spartacus report, and on the destruction of universal legal aid, there has been no credible discussion as to how to solve the legal aid funding disaster that faces England. As a disabled citizen, I will not have access to legal aid for the DLA which has been stopped without any notification, and I personally am disgusted.

Labour had plenty of time to get a new leader. The new leader had plenty of time to get some policies. Regrettably, I feel it is now time to get rid of Ed, before lasting damage is done to my party. Maybe Luke Bozier was right after all…

About shibleyrahman

Shibley Rahman has seven degrees in law and medicine from Cambridge and London, and is currently studying for an eighth (a Master in Business Administration). He was written three books and around fifteen first-author peer-reviewed original articles on dementia. As an alcoholic in recovery for over 50 months, he strongly believes in academic innovation, and that the GMC should not ignore sick doctors. He is looking forward to doing the Legal Practice Course in January 2012. His father died in 2010, whom he adored. He lives with his Mum in Primrose Hill. View all posts by shibleyrahman →