If you're high profile political career is about to be terminated because of a change in leadership, wouldn't you have a pop at the new management team on your way out of the door? I know I would, after all, you probably wouldn't be making a CLM (see the second one down). This is what I would've expect from John Reid, yet it doesn't look like it will happen as he steps off the stage.
When I heard yesterday about his announcement, along with his endorsement of Brown as leader, my initial thoughts were of curiosity. Let's be honest, it's a funny way to endorse your support for someone by effectively telling them you can't work with them. This said, it's been suggested Reid was been told he would to be demoted under Brown, so he walked.
Just a few points on that. Firstly, for a man who has nearly been in charge at every Government department his promotional options were limited anyway. Foreign Secretary and/or Chancellor? Yeah right. The only ever direction he could go to from Home Secretary was down unless he himself was leader.
Second, being demoted though - even when on the balance of probability it's your only direction of travel - can't be particularly pleasant. It's not inconceivable to imagine a very angry John Reid after the conversation. I wonder how much of that anger will fester and erupt on the backbench a la Geoffrey Howe?
5 comments:
Maybe he realised that Labour could lose the next general election and didn't want to be a part of it in any way shape or form. Or the promised revelations about his past (the promise conditional on him standing for leader) are about to come out anyway.
I think being attacked by Reid, back-bencher or not, is unlikely to be described as:
"like being savaged by a dead sheep."
S-E
I sat across the aisle from John Reid on a train two yaers ago. What I witnessed was not pleasant. The Doctor on the back benches will make Robin Cook seem saintly.
Plus, could there be any truth in the rumour that there were tabloid tales about to be told?
am i right in thinkin he will still get the £20k handout an MP gets when leaving the cabinet?
i think i read Blunkett had actually got the payoff both times he quit.
He'll be back. Still plenty of time for him to make a move once the great clunking fist has made a mess of things and has lost the next election.
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