Saturday, May 12, 2007

I Had A Dream

It is not fair. There is speculation about the make-up of a Gordon Brown Cabinet, but I have not seen any speculation about the make-up of a John McDonnell Cabinet. Yet I can see it now through the ether and via an intelligent look at the make-up of the Socialist Campaign Group. The membership of the Group neatly fits the current posts.

Prime Minister...............John MacDonnell
Deputy Prime Minister........Jeremy Corbyn(1)
Chancellor of the Exchequer..Kelvin Hopkins
Chief Secretary,Treasury.....Mike Wood
Foreign Secretary............Bob Wareing(2)
International Development....Diane Abbott(3)
Home Secretary...............Neil Gerrard
Education & Skills...........Lynne Jones
Health.......................Ian Gibson
Environment..................Alan Simpson(4)
Trade & Industry.............Mick Clapham
Work & Pensions..............Katy Clark
Defence......................Harry Cohen
Justice & Lord Chancellor....Lord Marshall-Andrews QC
Community & Women............Ann Cryer
Culture, Media, Sport........Bill Etherington(5)
Social Exclusion.............Linda Riordan
Transport & Scotland.........David Hamilton
N.Ireland & Wales............John Austin(6)
Minister Without Portfolio...Dave Anderson(7)
Chief Whip...................Austin Mitchell
Leader of the Commons........David Taylor
Leader of the Lords..........Lord Skinner of Bolsover(8)
Lords Chief Whip.............Lord Cook of Stockton

Notes

1 = This appointment is on the assumption that Jon Cruddas wins the Deputy Leader vote and is committed not to take the linked post of Deputy Prime Minister. If someone else wins the Deputy Leader vote, then Jeremy will be appointed as British Ambassador to the United States.

2 = Bob's first visit will be to Belgrade.

3 = Diane is seen as the new Claire Short.

4 = As part of the deal under which Michael Meacher dropped out of standing for Leader in favour of John, he will job-share with Alan.

5 = Bill qualifies as Sports Minister because he is a Sunderland supporter and the Stadium of Light is in his Constituency.

6 = For John's past services to Sinn Fein.

7 = Dave's membership of the Socialist Campaign Group seems to have lapsed. If he pays his subscription he will be given a Portfolio.

8 = Dennis's appointment is in order to usher legislation to abolish the Lords through the Upper House. The nation will then be known as Skinnerville.

Comment

I hope that my former Comrades in the Campaign Group forgive the above. Some of the appointments would actually be rather good ones. And if we are given the choice, I will be voting for John.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Harry,

I read this post - as well as the one concerning the "13 wasted years" of New labour - with attention and interest.

It's good to see that see that there is alighter side to current events (as shown in this post).

Though pyour argument in favour of Peter Hain does make quite some sense - Hain is by far the least "new" of all cabinet members - but I still don't know, frankly.

If you had time, could you please tell me what it is that makes opt for Hain over Cruddas, now that the former will settle for the Deputy Leadership race and, thus, fails to walk the whole distance?

Thanks Comrade,

Mikael

Harry Barnes said...

I go for Peter for Deputy because we are likely to loose the next General Election and are then likely to have a fresh Leadership Election. If Peter was then Deputy, he would be well placed to become Leader. I was also unimpressed by Cruddas's failure to make an impression or show any significant radicalism in the 2001-5 Parliament. I feel that he has just worked out a career pitch.

Compass Youth Group said...

"I was also unimpressed by Cruddas's failure to make an impression or show any significant radicalism in the 2001-5 Parliament."

As opposed to Hain, who...

Hmm.

Harry Barnes said...

Peter's error is to try and have his cake and eat it. He likes to give coded messages to show that he is still a libetarian socialist, but he accepted the serious confines of office with its form of collective responsibilty which was essentially a New Labour dictat. But in today's Labour Party we have to try and judge what would be the best option for democratic socialists in alien circumstances. From seeing Peter in action over the years, I judge that he is the best hope that is on offer. But he has restrict he move to that of a possible Deputy.

In politics you can't always have the ideal. For instance I am a member of Compass, but recognise that it is essentially a Left New Labour Grouping and not the form of Democratic Socialist body I would favour. "The Good Society", for instance, rejects "anti-capitalism"(page 18). But we can't use even a mild democratic socialist rhetoric without it having anti-capitalist implications. I think that Peter knows that - and it gives him problems in the modern Labour Party!

But I have now had to move into the John4Leader camp even though he pushes the boat out too far in our current circumstances (see the post above this on Gordon Brown).