First time as tragedy second time as farce

Hey, here’s no surprise. I find the TIG almost uniquely abysmal. One could I suppose admit that the SDP did have an ideological position, even if it was impossible for it to avoid the contradictions of that position when there was another left of the Tories, right of Labour Party already in situ in the British polity. And there was the particular tragedy that their approach was incredibly destructive in terms of blocking the Labour Party from power in the 1980s. Tellingly many of them made the journey back to the LP. Where else was there for them to go?

The TIG are a group with a programme so vague and insubstantial as to be worthless. They have said they won’t put forward a leader until late in the year. Why ever not one wonders. Perhaps because, and this has been seen in formations this side of the Irish Sea, to do so would generate (or deepen) fissures between what appears to be a remarkably egocentric crew.

As to the effect of the polling, read this and weep. They have already worked a malign magic on the rating of the BLP. One can only hope that as they move forward they demonstrate the vacuity of their project. The acceptance of a possible second referendum by the BLP (something I’m not sure is wise) is at least tactically not a bad move in terms of undercutting them, as IEL noted the other day. One can hope.