Ed Miliband’s ‘dead hand’ criticised by top adviser

The Labour party’s policy chief has attacked party leader Ed Miliband and his inner circle, claiming they wield a “profound dead hand at the centre”.

Jon Cruddas, who is responsible for formulating Labour party policy ahead of the 2015 election, made the comments at a meeting of the left-wing pressure group Compass.

His comments were reported by the Sunday Times based on a sound recording it obtained of proceedings, when Mr Cruddas reportedly said bold policies had been blocked in favour of “cynical nuggets of policy to chime with our focus groups and press strategy”.

He is not frustrated, he is excited about his political agenda Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls on Jon Cruddas

Mr Cruddas (pictured below) warned that “the clock is ticking” ahead of “a profoundly important” general election, but said that “interesting ideas” were “not going to emerge through Labour’s policy review”, according to the paper.

Growth plans

But shadow chancellor Ed Balls denied Mr Cruddas was “frustrated” with a lack of big Labour policies, saying the party was “all working together on these big reforms”.

“I talked to John a couple of days ago, he is not frustrated, he is excited about his political agenda,” he told the BBC’s Andrew Marr show.

Mr Miliband is expected to unveil a report on growth next week by Labour peer Lord Adonis that recommends transferring £30 bn to city and county regions.

He said Labour’s plans were about “big reform” rather than “big spending”, adding that Mr Cruddas shared a commitment to “radical” ideas.

“This is just one of many ideas he has to nurture skills, help small businesses thrive and ensure innovation flourishes,” he added.

The comments from Mr Cruddas come as Mr Miliband faces persistent questions about his leadership as the general election approaches.

Poor ratings

His personal ratings have been lagging far behind those of David Cameron, while a recent poll found voters thought his brother David would make a better prime minister.

Labour peer Lord Mandelson has appeared to offer Mr Miliband only lukewarm support, saying recently that he is “the leader we have”.

He said Mr Miliband was “choosing a different course” from ex-prime minister Tony Blair, adding that it “may work”.

“What Ed is trying to do is approach politics in a rather different way from the way in which Tony Blair and New Labour approached it,” he told the BBC’s Newsnight.

“In my view he is the leader we have and therefore the leader I support, and somebody who I believe is capable of leading the party to victory.”