Labour has wasted a long time before asserting its claim to be listened to on economic policy – but this could be a new chapter
In the seasonal half-light of December days like those through which we are living, TS Eliot once caught a gleam of what he called a midwinter spring. Bright with hard frost and brief sun, the midwinter spring was its own season, offering an illusory appearance of blossom and bloom in the dark time of the year.
The Labour party’s current sense of an opportunity, which triggered and was reflected in Ed Miliband’s speech on government spending on Thursday, may prove to be a midwinter spring too. It may be the political equivalent of something bright amid the cold coming of the current opinion polls. But there is no disputing that Labour scents a chance of making ground at the moment. And it may be that Labour is right.
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