There are reports today that should Ed Miliband win the Labour leadership on Saturday he would make his elder brother David shadow chancellor. There is obvious logic to this — David would need a very senior post indeed — but somehow it doesn’t feel quite right. Some would argue it would look dynastic, though that should be dismissed on the grounds that — regardless of their blood relationship — the Miliband brothers were the two front-runners in this contest. Instead, the position may not make the most of David Miliband’s strengths, and he may of course not want it.
Instead, the only role I can think of that David may want to do under Ed, if any, may be his current one: shadow foreign secretary.
Meanwhile, David will be thinking about what to do with Ed. Shadow chancellor may suit Ed a little better, and some have suggested shadow home secretary, though that would certainly not play to Ed’s strengths. Instead, one role could be shadow deputy prime minister with responsibility for constitutional affairs.
It is going to be a tricky week for the new leader. But soon the speculation will soon be pointless. I’ll be blogging from the result in Manchester on Saturday. For my piece on the shadow cabinet see the new issue of the magazine.
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