Alan Milburn should join us

Reading the latest volumes of Tony Benn's Diaries, I was struck by suggestion from Benn that the Labour MP and former cabinet minister Alan Milburn should join the Conservative Party. In his entry for Saturday January 15 2005 Benn wrote:

"Alan Milburn was on at the Fabian Society Conference. I find the man absolutely impossible to watch, but he said New Labour has got to reform and reform and reform all the time, more New Labour; it will be very controversial but it's got to be done. It's just a programme for the Tory Party including the privatization of Housing Association houses. Milburn ought to join the Tory Party. He'd be a wonderful leader for them."

In that speech Milburn had said:

"A home is the biggest asset most people will ever own: given a choice, most people would choose to buy, not rent."

He added that Housing Association tenants should be given the right to buy and that the Labour Party's "failure to respond to council tenants' aspirations to own their homes" in the 1970s "had led voters to turn their backs."

I was reminded of this by a recent article by Milburn in The Sunday Times: "With both David Cameron and Nick Clegg inching towards a smaller state Gordon Brown could find himself, by default, defending a big
state," said Milburn.  Much of the article suggests Milburn doesn't think Cameron is going far enough in plans to shrink the state. Milburn suggests cutting the size of the civil service by a quarter and giving parents and patients their own budgets to pay for private education and health.

Benn is right. Milburn should defect.

Comments

[Michael Rutherford]

Sadly like a lot of Labour MPs that should defect to us, they would simply lose their seats because of how strong a Labour area they're in.

It would be good though, his politics are more like the Conservatives than Labour now.

[Anthony Frieze]

Harry,
As his Conservative opponent in Darlington at the last election, I can tell you that, on a personal level at least, that we would not want him. And he would not come: he is deeply tribal and anti-pathetic to Conservatives. You should hear the comments made about him to me on the doorstep by former neighbours and other local residents who have come into contact with him over the years.
Anthony

[London Tory]

We don't want him. Even by New Labour standards, his journey from the hard Left to the SDP right has been something to be hold.

And that fake posh Geodie accent too.....

[Malcolm Dunn]

He's going to more good for us where he is ie Damaging the Labour Party.

[David]

It seems like some people still believe the old nonsense about Blairites being in the wrong party.

Milburn etc may believe in a slightly smaller role for government, but they are quite clearly cultural leftists.

[Richard Calhoun]

Hang on here!!

I can quite imagine both Gordon Brown and Tony Blair advocating a smaller state, however would they mean it and does Milburn.

If Milburn wants to join the Conservatives let him do so but on no account recruit him.

[Buckinghamshire Tory]

Tony Benn? Who cares about Tony Benn?

We're talking about the man who have placed himself on the wrong side of just about every major political question after World War II.

[IRJMilne]

On Milburn - he may be more of a Whig than a socialist, but he is not a Tory.

[Mr Angry]

The lesson to be learnt here is not that Milburn should join the Tories but rather that we should be considering RSL Right To Buy as a possible vote winning policy.