CSM Deputy Leadership hustings

Well it was fairly well attended, although due to one or two problems getting there, I was late and so missed Hilary Benn's Q and A bit (was told afterwards that he made an emphasis on reconnecting the Party with the electorate), which was a pity. The others had some interesting things to say. Harriet Harman mentioned Women's Rights, Peter Hain mentioned the importance of campaigning for a Fourth Term and economic responsibility, Jon Cruddas mentioned the Party structure and the importance of the Deputy leader being outside the Cabinet (I see his point, but that job can equally be done by the Party Chair). I didn't hang about afterwards, as I felt I didn't have anything unique to ask the candidates and am glad I did because there were problems getting home.

With hindsight I felt the evening was okay, with broad agreement between the candidates about what the Party needed to do to move forward and it has left me with the feeling that, provided we can show that we are capable of renewal as a Party and show up the shallowness of David Cameron's campaigning style then we can win the next general election.

Apologies BTW for the poor quality of the photos, was struggling with the flash and I didn't want to cause a distraction