This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/uk_politics/5337604.stm
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Labour deputy race gathers pace | Labour deputy race gathers pace |
| (10 minutes later) | |
| David Miliband says he is not planning to run for Labour's deputy leadership - but Northern Ireland and Wales Secretary Peter Hain is to go for it. | |
| Mr Miliband told BBC News: "I am not a runner nor a rider for any of the jobs that are being speculated about." | Mr Miliband told BBC News: "I am not a runner nor a rider for any of the jobs that are being speculated about." |
| The former Downing Street policy chief was speaking at the TUC conference. | The former Downing Street policy chief was speaking at the TUC conference. |
| Meanwhile Mr Hain told the BBC: "I can confirm that I do intend to stand for the deputy leadership... when that contest happens next year." | Meanwhile Mr Hain told the BBC: "I can confirm that I do intend to stand for the deputy leadership... when that contest happens next year." |
| Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott is expected to quit his job at the same time as the prime minister. | |
| Both Mr Hain and Mr Miliband, who was one of a number of Cabinet ministers seen as a possible contender, say Gordon Brown should be the next leader. | |
| Loyalty pledge | Loyalty pledge |
| Mr Hain has reportedly been wooing the trade unions, which will have one third of the votes in the deputy leadership contest. | Mr Hain has reportedly been wooing the trade unions, which will have one third of the votes in the deputy leadership contest. |
| Peter Hain has apparently being courting union chiefs | Peter Hain has apparently being courting union chiefs |
| Announcing his candidature, he said: "I will be seeking that office not for its own sake but in order to take forward the process of party reform and renewal." | |
| Mr Hain said there was no "ideological schism" inside Labour but renewing the party in government would be difficult. | |
| "We need to reconnect the leadership with the grass roots in the party and we need to reconnect the government to civil society and people and citizens outside," he said. | |
| "I have been very concerned and have spoken out on occasion about the disconnection there has been between policies often handed down from on high." | |
| Labour's senior command's communications with party members often felt like "a lecture rather than a dialogue", he said. | |
| Mr Hain pointed to four policy areas he wanted to address: | |
| |
| Mr Hain also said a debate was needed on the limits of involving the private sector in running public services - a key flashpoint at this week's TUC conference. | |
| These changes could reassemble the coalition which brought Labour to power in 1997, he said, admitting the party had lost large parts of that alliance in last year's poll. | |
| Mr Hain said he hoped to be a "bridge" to the future for New Labour. He said the party must not turn its back on its success - saying that had been the mistake made by Al Gore when he fought George W Bush in the US presidential elections. | |
| Climate plea | |
| Earlier, Mr Miliband used his platform speech at the TUC to argue that trade unions have a key role to play in tackling climate change. | |
| He said: "The trade unions were absolutely central to economic and social improvement in the 20th Century. | He said: "The trade unions were absolutely central to economic and social improvement in the 20th Century. |
| "My message to them today is they can be at the heart of environmental improvement in the 21st." | "My message to them today is they can be at the heart of environmental improvement in the 21st." |
| The environment secretary faced questions about the effect of rising fuel prices for those living in poverty. | The environment secretary faced questions about the effect of rising fuel prices for those living in poverty. |
| One delegate blamed the privatisation of UK energy companies, asking whether markets were really the right way to ensure energy stability. | One delegate blamed the privatisation of UK energy companies, asking whether markets were really the right way to ensure energy stability. |
| Mr Miliband countered that oil prices were not set in the UK but were a global issue. | Mr Miliband countered that oil prices were not set in the UK but were a global issue. |
| The high prices made renewable sources of energy more competitive, he said, but the obvious down side was that they made life more expensive, especially for those in fuel poverty. | The high prices made renewable sources of energy more competitive, he said, but the obvious down side was that they made life more expensive, especially for those in fuel poverty. |
| He said the answer was to increase energy efficiency programmes. And the winter fuel allowance for pensioners, introduced in 1998, was now coming into its own. | He said the answer was to increase energy efficiency programmes. And the winter fuel allowance for pensioners, introduced in 1998, was now coming into its own. |