Week in Westminster - 27/11/2010

Steve Richards of The Independent looks behind the scenes at Westminster The Education Secretary Michael Gove presented his White Paper on Schools in England this week. He is regarded in some circles as a radical reformer, in the mould of Tony Blair when it comes to the pursuit of excellence in education. Others point to mishaps in his handling of his brief, and question his ability as a politician. The journalist and writer John Rentoul sees him as an "heir to Blair", but Nic Dakin a new Labour MP who was previously a teacher for 30 years, has mixed views on his performance. Ed Miliband has been mocked for announcing that his party policy review would start with a blank sheet of paper. But how should an opposition leader plot a route for a return to power? Charles Clarke, who helped Neil Kinnock re-build the Labour party in the 1980s, and George Eustice MP, who worked at Conservative Central Office with both Michael Howard and David Cameron during their years in opposition, offer advice to the new Labour leader. Think tanks may well feel that a coalition government could pave the way for a greater cross fertilisation of ideas in social policy. Will Straw who set up the successful website Left Foot Forward, has now joined the think tank IPPR-the Institute for Public Policy Research. Does he see a chance for new ideas to thrive? In 1976 the then Labour government, was forced to seek a loan from the International Monetary Fund to pay off its public debt. How different were the circumstances then to what the Irish government is now facing? Lord Donoughue who worked for the Prime Minster James Callaghan at the time, and Mark Durkan an SDLP MP for Westminster, with a constituency which borders the Irish republic, evaluate the extent of Ireland's woes. The Editor is Marie Jessel.