I saw about thirty minutes of the opening event in the hustings to choose a new Labour leader from the line-up of four. The first thing to say is that whoever is chosen will be most likely up against Boris in 2020. If not it will be May or Osborne. All of these are big hitters. Boris is a political mega star, celebrity and national treasure all in one. So the winner will have to measure up.
My impression, and of course this can easily change as one gets to know these people through the progression of the campaign, is that Burnham means well but is too lightweight in personna to win votes in the south and Reeves is too far to the right. With her why not get the real thing and vote Tory? So that leaves Cooper, who came across as a much more engaging and connected personality than I had previously thought, with a sharp political instinct, who may become the front runner. And Corbin. He was powerful, focussed, answered the questions actually put in plain words which were to the point and got the most applause. Watch him.