Is Clarke fed up with the Labour party?

Is the real object of Charles Clarke's frustrations members of his own party? The former Home Secretary has never made a secret of his own feelings - that Brown was a deluded control freak who was likely to fail as Prime Minister. For Charles, Brown is merely living down to expectations. That's why on one level his remarks do not make a crisis in themselves.

But in both in the New Statesman article and the broadcast interviews this morning, the secondary object of Clarke's anger is those who "whisper behind their hands" about a leadership plot or need to improve - but never do so publicly. He labelled as "disreputable" Labour MPs who believed the party was heading for defeat but believe there is nothing they could do about it .

He seems perplexed that there is not more of an appetite for change amongst the Cabinet, and that nobody is speaking on the record. Why is nobody doing anything, he seems to wonder?

It's no doubt a complete coincidence, but as Paul Waugh's excellent blog pointed out, Charles will be speaking at the Liberal Decmorat conference fringe this year. Now there's a party who know how to knife their leader properly....

Comments

[Neil]

I don't know whether Charles Clarke is fed up with the Labour Party, but I am pretty certain that most of the country is.

[Chuck Unsworth]

Maybe the question should be 'is the Labour Party fed up with Clark?'.

Actually I think the answer is No. There are many, I suspect, who are pleased that someone has the guts to attempt to tell it like it is - even if it happens to be Clark.

[D Baker]

Gordon Brown is wrapped in his own gobbledygook, mumble jumble, confusion and panic.
He is bereft of simple ideas and actions, everything he does has to be under several layers of incoherent rhetoric and confusion.

[Brian Christley. Abergele]

Government Ministers who now rubbish Charles Clarke seem to forget that it was only a few years ago they were telling us that he was the best brain in the cabinet.

[Andrew]

Charles Clarke addressing the Lib Dems is fairly amazing. It would be hard to imagine a more illiberal person if you tried. It would be like Gary Glitter addressing the NSPCC conference.

[paul connolly]

Gordon Brown- a man who never missed an occasian to let slip an oppurtunity.

[Barry Harvey]

Clarke's fed up with Gordons continued public gaffs and so is the rest of the country which will be reflected in the next Election. Bring it on I say.

[David]

Whatever Mr Clarke thinks, please don't let him into the Tories, he was a hopeless home secretary and if the Lib Dems will have him, let him go there, a backwater is probably the best place for him

[David]

Whatever Mr Clarke thinks, please don't let him into the Tories, he was a hopeless home secretary and if the Lib Dems will have him, let him go there, a backwater is probably the best place for him

[R Coomer]

I don't think members of the Labour party trust each other any more than we trust them! It's quite incredible to me that they've papered over the cracks and deceived much of the electorate this long... I predict that voter apathy at the next general election won't be quite as high as it has been and smaller parties at either end of the spectrum (like the Greens & UKIP or BNP) may gain. With Labour & Lib-dems unelectable and many still carrying a grudge against the Conservatives, I think many will want to vote but perhaps not for the main parties...

[coco]

The trouble with goverments ( all the western world) is that they worry MORE about whats going on in other countrys
and not there own...

[Jamaica]

Looks like he's fed-up using a razor! Good job he's not in the Army, hey whatt...?? Fed up with Labour!! Just who wouldn't be?? In my opinion the most deceitful/sleazy British Government on Par to Mugabee Of Zimbabwe surely??

[martin]

There is a clear distinction between The Labour Party and nulabor. The former is the honest, decent caring organisation, the latter is the corrupt, elite cadre that has taken over The Labour Party to form this institutionally corrupt government. Clarke has been the victim of nulabor, and his move is consistent with the slow purging of nulabor from The Labour Party. It is too late to save The Labour Party from a humiliating, crushing defeat in 2010, but, once nulabor is dead, there is at least the chance of a revival.

[Gary Hills]

Charles is right, we are getting fed up Gordon. And it's good he speaks out and we do need more Cabinet Ministers current or former to start talking for the good of the party. The Labour Party is not Gordon Brown and it has plenty of scope to relaunch itself and set a new vision and solutions with a new leader. People should not confuse Gordon Browns woes with that of the party. They are separate. The rush for Cameron would be a bigger disaster as he is equal only to Thatchers views and all the gloss in the world has not changed his party one bit.

[James Fowler]

The sight of one damaged ego, still smarting after having his place at the trough given to some other self server, bleating about doing the honourable thing merely reinforces my view of politicians.

[Judge Dread]

'Is Clarke fed up with the Labour Party?' ermmm.... isn't Clarke a has-been embittered ex-cabinet minister who was forced to resign?? So what? Surely his public utterances on Brown et al are somewhat irrelevant? Methinks Charles is one of Gordon's least worries....

[Paul]

Its a bit difficult as the Labour party ceased to exist a decade ago. Perhaps he is just moving through to the final stage of grieving....acceptance.

[David Marusza]

Charles Clarke was creating tensions before this leadership and has been unhelpful to the party throughout it. Considering he is a man who made a spectacular failure of Asylum policy during his tenure at the Home Office, and who was detested by the teaching profession during his stay at Education, perhaps his views on how the party must move forward will be given due (i.e. light) weight.

[Matt]

The point that David Marusza seems to miss is that if Gordon Brown did not like a fellow minister (and this includes his view on Tony Blair) he would do his damnedest to destroy that minister's efforts to run their ministry by failing to provide the funding they needed.

[rose]

Could someone list Clarke's top five political achievements ? For someone supposed to be so clever has he ever actually done anything ? LIberals beware

[Carl]

While I must thank Charles Clarke for rounding on Mr.Bean, I still could not forget the bumbling and bimbling along he was renowned for. The man is as incompetent as the rest of the imbeciles in this failed, corrupt, serially dishonest, & laughable excuse for a government.

I will watch with great pleasure as this bunch of fools implode over the coming 18 months, but at the same time dread to think what damage they can further inflict on the UK that is sinking faster than Titanic.

[B.Garvie]

Mr Clarke echoes the thoughts of millions of former Labour supporters.

There is no doubt this 'fag end' government has imploded and the country is effectively rudderless.

Brown's first big mistake was to attack pension funds in 1997 and alienate the population. He continues to upset families & pensioners with increased fuel and food prices.He should have led and managed the way by insisting energy companies cap their prices to 5%; (as in France).A 'windfall tax' on energy companies is too little too late.

Having despised families,pensioners and other 'poor groups', he has no chance of surviving.

This Government's mismanagement of the economy is absolutely atrocious.

[Robert]

I will be honest the Conservatives must be thinking boy we are going to be in power for years and years and years, and to be honest I think so as well.

I spent 40 years in the Labour party 40 years to long.

It is time for change we should allow the Tories a chance to see what they can do, can it be worse then Labour well yes it can of course it can, will it be worse then Labour or Brown I doubt it you'd have to be a right idiot to be worse then Brown.

[Rose]

Robert, I am horrified. Budget holding GPs: no diagnostic scans, too expensive.
Private cleaning in hospitals: MRSA, C Difficile
Banks: lending loadsa money without a ceiling.
Hunting: sheer cruelty back on the Tory agenda. How could you bear it?

[Paul G]

Talking to the Liberal Democrats? This is the man who thought that 42 day pre-trial detention didn't go far enough. Maybe his desire to address the Lib Dems has something to do with the fact that his seat is on their target list.