Alan Johnson quits for personal reasons, Ed Balls is new shadow chancellor

[Hopeless Romantic]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-12242397

Alan Johnson is one of the good guys but should never have been made Shadow Chancellor. I wish him the very best, whatever his personal issues may be.

Ed Balls is going to be a disaster imo. He's much more up to speed economically but he is a deeply unpleasant man and that comes across in his public persona.

I'd much rather his wife had been given the role.

[Jeneral2885]

1. Liam Bryne

As Work and Pensions??!!!!! No!!!!!

And Doug Alexander as Shadow Foreign Secretary? Bet he's happy to be back in that sort of position after his experience in DFID

Hope in Labour is diminishing

[LeftishBrit]

2. I actually think Balls could be good in that post

I think he is competent and intelligent. He is certainly abrasive as a person (maybe you learn to be tough if you have to go through life with a name like 'Balls!). But perhaps a bruiser is needed to deal with Osborne. And anyone whom the Tories were so eager to smear and defeat (their target for a 'Portillo moment of 2010') must have some good qualities!

Although Alexander has a rather too Blairite, pro-Iraq past for my taste, I've been finding him pretty good as shadow Work and Pensions secretary; so let's hope he'll be good as shadow Foreign Secretary.

Byrne? Ugh! One of those immigration ministers who sometimes seemed unsure if they were Labour or BNP; and from what one hears, a real little tyrant to his staff. And called London taxi drivers 'low skilled' - REALLY!? (London taxi drivers have indeed featured largely in studies of how even in adult life, parts of the brain can grow in response to extensive learning!)
And that memo to Laws, '"I’m afraid to tell you there's no money left" was unforgivable under the circumstances: just playing into the hands of the ideological cutters.

Sorry to hear about Johnson going!

[T_i_B]

3. I think Ball's big problem

is that he's been fast-tracked for promotion since entering parliament and as such hasn't felt any need to ingratiate himself with too many people outside of Gordon Brown's inner circle. It's an issue with other senior politicans of his generation who've come into parliament as careerist Westminster insiders from the very start.

[Hopeless Romantic]

4. Maybe, but his bigger problem, in my view, is that he is an arrogant bully

is completely self-focussed, has far too high an opinion of himself, has a highly developed sense of entitlement and has absolutely no qualms about who or what he has to step on, climb over or destroy to progress his own interests

[T_i_B]

6. You could say that about any of them.

I fail to see how that's any different from Cameron, Osbourne, both Miliband Brothers, Clegg or any of the other careerist hacks at the top of British politics.

[Hopeless Romantic]

7. True enough. But Balls seems very inept at hiding it.

[T_i_B]

8. I'm not convinced...

...that hiding your true personality is a mark of a good politican. If that's want people want they can go to the cinema to watch actors and actresses.

[Jeneral2885]

5. Balls Alexander Bryne

Balls: Wil be debating so much with Osborne that I'm not sure if thery go anywhere. And will he work with his colleague Angela Eagle?

Alexander: Didnt do much as DFId minister, Shadow DFId was too partisan and yes was good at Shadow DWP. Dont think he's a good candidate for FCO.

Bryne:Not a good choice to be a full Shaodw SoS.

[LeftishBrit]

9. 'I'm not sure if they go anywhere'

With regard to Osborne, the only place I would like him to go is as far away as possible, preferably that place which never freezes over!

[Dutch]

10. Balls is a massive improvement over Johnson in every respect.

Johnson was a right-wing Blairite with nothing to offer on economic matters than utter ineptitude.

Balls brings a mastery of the subject and - most importantly - the right arguments to the job, and behind any Tory bravado Osborne is terrified.

The personality politics are irrelevant, although as far as it goes Johnson was always a slimy, untrustworthy character anyway.