Friday, September 19, 2008

Iain Dale: Ken Clarke Should be Cameron's Chancellor


I'm not sure the loveable old rogue Kenneth Clarke will still be in Parliament if Cameron ever gets to be PM. My guess is that Cam will lose the next general election and lose interest. Quickly being ousted and settling back to his millions. But Iain's vision, or is it just linkbait, of Ken Clarke as Chancellor could see the shorting snorting hedger-backed Osborne sidelined.

Which we like. As he hasn't a clue. And a tobacco magnate in number 11, an oil magnate down at trade, housing and development and health magnates in other cabinet chairs, and the still unsacked Nanny Spelman presumably in charge of propriety and/or justice.

The people of this country cannot be serious if they are really about to elect a Tory government again. I'm sure they'll come to their senses. And the small print in even the worst of the polls tends to show this - five more years for the comrades - as a distinct possibility.

4 comments:

Jeff said...

I'm sorry, I guess my eyesight is going, where exactly is the small-print that suggests we're going to get 5 years of Gordon Brown as PM?

I'm no fan of Cameron, but to suggest his victory is close to inevitable is crazy...

Jeff said...

(that, of course, should read "to suggest his victory is anything other than close to inevitable is crazy.")

Chris Paul said...

Close to inevitable? That's a hedger's turn of phrase if ever I saw one.

In the Populus Poll with June or July fieldwork - with one of the worst ever headline figures - respondents came down 44% to 42% in favour of a Labour Government.

Even in the current ipsos MORI poll - which most of the Tory gain incidentally at the expense of the yellow peril - Gordon Brown gets 51% approval for handling of the economic situation, 9% net.

Correct me if I'm wrong but that is a humungous improvement on most of the last 10 months of PM polling. And assuming that the headline numbers lag behind the leader perceptions a bit that is surely a positive sign for the likes of old me?

Inevitable victory is a terrible burden. Kinnock's was inevitable the day before, never mind 20 months out ...

Ted Foan said...

So you've stopped tipping June 09 as the date for the General Election? What's changed?