DARLING FROZEN OUT OF FIGHT TO SAVE UK
Ex-Chancellor sidelined after crisis summit
ALISTAIR Darling has been sidelined in the campaign to save the UK f ollowing crisis cross-party talks. A host of Labour big-hitters are to be drafted in to the
Better Together campaign amid growing concerns about the former Chancellor’s ‘lacklustre’ performance as leader. Members of David Cameron’s inner circle are understood to have voiced anxieties about how Mr Darling was faring against First Minister Alex Salmond.
One source claimed that following discussions over recent weeks between senior Conservative, Labour and Lib Dem figures, it was secretly agreed that while t here would be no f ormal
announcement of a change, Shadow Foreign Secretary Douglas Alexander should effectively take charge.
Ex-Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who fell out so badly with Mr Darling when he ran the Treasury that the two are not thought to be on speaking terms, is also now expected to take a more prominent role in the run-up to the September 18 independence referendum.
One source said: ‘The decision was taken in secret talks between Cameron, Clegg and Douglas Alexander – hence Gordon Brown re-emerges.’
Fellow Shadow Cabinet member Jim Murphy, and Lib Dem First Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander will also play a much more prominent role.
One recent poll found that the proindependence Yes campaign, which once trailed by a huge margin, is now only three points behind. The patchy performance of the No campaign has prompted bitter infighting, with factions said to be ‘barely talking to each other’.
One Tory source said Mr Darling had the air of a ‘middlingly competent accountant’ and was not the ‘big figure’ needed. Another source denied that Mr Darling had been ‘dumped’ but confirmed he was being ‘sidelined’.
Another source familiar with the latest discussions confirmed the campaign was being shaken up, but insisted: ‘Reinforcing Darling is not the same as sidelining. Alistair is doing an excellent job and Douglas is going to be helping with campaigning and strategy in the final months.’
In an indication of his newly prominent role, the Shadow Foreign Secretary used a speech in Scotland to highlight his party’s commitment to a ‘new package of powers’ for Holyrood.
Mr Alexander said they would mean ‘more decisions taken here in Scotland, by the people of Scotland, backed up by the strength, stability and security of the United Kingdom’.
Speaking to No supporters at Our Dynamic Earth, in Edinburgh, he said that he fully expected voters to reject independence, adding that the SNP would then ‘face an existential issue if their raison d’etre is rejected’.
Afterwards he added: ‘My sense is the Nationalists are divided. Some have suggested they will carry on campaigning. Nicola (Sturgeon) is on record as saying a generation is 15 years.’
However, the newly prominent role of Mr Alexander may alarm his
‘Fighting for every vote’
critics, who point to a dubious campaigning track record.
He ran Mr Brown’s disastrous 2010 General Election campaign and David Miliband’s unsuccessful bid to replace him as Labour leader. He also played a key role in the Labour Holyrood election campaign which saw the SNP seize control of the Scottish parliament.
Nationalist MSP Stuart McMill an said there was ‘growing support for Yes and falling support for No’. He added: ‘The UK Government must surely be coming to the same conclusion as everyone else: that a Yes vote in September is increasingly likely.
‘It’s time for David Cameron to finally show some leadership and agree to a head-to-head debate with t he First Minister, as supported by the vast majority of people in Scotland.’
A Better Together spokesman said: ‘As we approach the final stages of the campaign, Alistair is bringing more and more people into the team. This is just what you would expect.
‘The SNP will be throwing everything at breaking up Britain. We must make sure that we have our best people involved so that we can win the arguments.
‘All of the polls, including one at the weekend that showed we command a 20 point lead, show that we speak for Scotland on this issue. Alistair and the entire team will be fighting for every vote between now and polling day.’
Comment – Page 14 SNP’s fantasy island – Page 15