When I voted for Ed Miliband I knew he would never be a stellar platform orator.

But these days, is this so important? Are there other qualities that trump stardust and stage presence?

For me, it was his willingness during the leadership contest to admit Iraq was a mistake. That marked him out from the rest of a timid field.

When asked by Jon Snow about the personal qualities he brings to the job of Opposition Leader he cites authenticity.

A good answer that reminds me of the theatrical performances of the actor Blair and also, I suppose, of Broon who struggled to present a public persona that was the polar opposite of the private one.

Ed tells the Liverpool Conference that Fred the Shred’s knighthood was a mistake but stops short of saying it should be forfeited – as it should.

If Fred had been a member of the Institute of Bankers he would have been thrown out.

It was his great good fortune that he was not a member of a professional association that had powers to expel him  – one of the things that can trigger the forfeiture of an “honour”.

Ed compares Goodwin's salary to that of the saintly Sir John Rose, former Chief Executive of Rolls Royce.

I met Sir John Rose from time to time over the years as I had a big RR plant in my old Pendle constituency. I found him to be an engaging captain of British industry.

But, like others before him, he didn’t think twice about exporting British jobs overseas if the interests of RR shareholders demanded it.

He was the driving force behind moves to transfer core RR technology to Singapore.

The Wide Chord Fan Blade – the key component of RR engines – is made in Barnoldswick but from 2012 they will also be made in Singapore.

The company maintained it was too risky to have all its WCFB eggs in one British basket.

The unions pressed for a second facility in another UK location but RR pressed ahead regardless with its strategy.

Singapore will be manufacturing 6,000 fan blades a year, going up to 9,000 by 2018.

So much for the promises, so often made, to keep high value, core technology in the UK.

Ontario elections

Ontario with over 13 million people is Canada’s most populous province so the elections on 6 October matter.

Acres of coverage about Tuesday’s election debate where the three main Party leaders traded blows. Or, perhaps, danced around the ring.

Liberal premier, Dalton McGuinty, was full of facts and figures, slicing the air with his hands to emphasise points. Tim Hudak, his Conservative challenger, seemed to me as if he’d been rehearsing his lines for a week beforehand.

The NDP’s Andrea Horwath came over well though some commentators felt she didn’t bring much policy to the table.

I am surprised she didn’t make any reference to a stinging report by the Auditor General of Ontario who is required to publish  a pre election report on the province’s finances before every election. (see attachment below)

The auditor says that the Liberal’s plan to hold health and education workers to a zero % salary increase in coming years is “optimistic”.

One of the Government’s key assumptions is that hospitals can limit their expenditure growth to about 3% per year by holding unionised hospital workers to a 0% increase in compensation. Given past wage settlements – such as the Ontario Nurses’ Association’s recent three year contract awarding nurses an average annual pay raise of about 1.5% and increases to their benefits – we believe such an expectation is optimistic rather than cautious. (page 25)

On education, the Auditor’s report says

…the Government assumes that, when the current collective agreements with teacher and other unions expire in August 2012, school boards will be able to negotiate a 0% increase in compensation for the next two years…   the government informed us that, as is the case with hospitals, school boards will be expected to operate within their funding allocation regardless of the result of their compensation negotiations with teacher and other unions. (page 29)

The Liberals promise to eliminate the Province’s deficit by 2018.

But, curiously, they choose not to mention the role of public service workers who are expected to help deliver it.

Tar sands pipeline protest

A pipeline is planned to take oil from the Canadian tar sands of Northern Alberta to the Gulf Coast. 

Here is the CBC coverage of the Ottawa protests.

Attachments:

Ontario 2011pre-election_en.pdf

[Auditor General's Review of the 2011 Pre Election Report on Ontario's Finances]

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