Britannia holds on to her Trident
Thursday, March 15th, 2007
I jokingly asked a Labour whip the day before the vote whether he had a knuckle-duster ready for use. He rather sardonically replied that it would take a bit more than that…..
The Liberal Democrats, all over the place and increasingly marginalised and irrelevant, argued that we had to wait until 2010 to decide, a view more to do with their own divisions. The overall majority was made possible by the Conservative vote, not a joyous moment for the Government. Labour MPs not only looked at the future of Trident per se, but also had the opportunity of giving the Prime Minister a bruising. Discipline within the party is breaking down as Labour MPs look beyond the Blair reign.
When the wheels begin to come off a Government, they continue to do so. If Gordon thinks he will restore calm, trust and discipline to his Party he has an unwelcome surprise ahead of him. The vote was simply another sign of more to come.