Things seem to be falling apart somewhat!
Christina
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BBC ONLINE 8.9.09
Labour 'lacks a compelling case'
Labour is in serious danger of drifting into opposition, influential backbench MP Jon Cruddas has warned the party.
Mr Cruddas told a meeting arranged by the left-wing think tank Compass that Labour did not know what it stood for.
He said: "There are plenty of initiatives and announcements but no sense of animating purpose, no compelling case for re-election."
But the Dagenham MP said he still thought Labour could win the next election if it re-engaged voters.
Mr Cruddas, a former Downing Street official, is a longstanding critic of Labour's tactics.
He has accused the party of ignoring its working-class heartlands in favour of swing voters in "middle England".
In his speech he said: "Whether Labour remains in government or returns to opposition, we need a fundamental re-examination of our identity and the kind of society that we hope to create."
Mr Cruddas was joined on the platform by the former work and pensions secretary, James Purnell, who resigned from the cabinet earlier this year arguing that Gordon Brown's continued leadership of Labour made a Conservative election victory "more, not less likely".
Mr Purnell described Mr Cruddas's speech as "brilliant" but did not echo its comments.
Mr Cruddas failed in a bid to become Labour's deputy leader in 2007 and refused a ministerial role when Mr Brown became prime minister.
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