Anthony Barnett (London, OK): Earlier this month I noted that Peter Mandelson had said "It is not for me to express a view on the UK’s domestic decision". That was about a referendum, on which he promptly proceeded to give his opinion though now working for the EU. Yesterday there was a shameless story by Patrick Wintour in the Guardian entirely on Mandelson, saying he had ended his feud with Brown, thank you very much, and was not going to brood. This announcement had already been much leaked. Now it was larded with Mandelson's boasting about Labour's unity and praise for Blair and his followers like himself for "No clinging on, no backseat driving, no trying to steal the headlines".
Oh yeah... According to yesterday's Financial Times Peter Mandelson, went out of his way to tell them, "I can't really see the case for not having an election now".
I call that a clinging, backseat headline stealer.
The FT describe him as as "EU commissioner and mastermind behind past Labour election triumphs". How he manages to get journalists to lick him so cravenly I don't know. He's reputed to be commissioner for trade, and the EU is the world's leading trade bloc. Given the financial crisis and general volatility in world markets you'd think he'd focus on this and not try to position himself for future greasy poles when he returns. Perhaps the mastermind should deploy his tactical genuis to zip his mouth.
