TMP Online

Seema Malhotra, Director of the Fabian Women’s Network, says that “our [British] political systems does – inadvertently if not deliberately – support the selection and election of men and white women”.

Writing in the current issue of Tribune Magazine, Malhotra argues that Sri Lanka and India have been blazing a trail in terms of female representation globally for several years now but Britain has been lagging behind. Pratibha Patil became the first female President of India in July last year, whilst the late Sirimavo Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka was the world’s first female prime minister, holding the post three times between 1960 and 2000.

To read Malhotra’s piece, click here.

Senator John Kerry, the U.S. Democratic Party’s nominee in the 2004 presidential election, has come out for fellow Senator Barack Obama.  More to follow on this story here soon.

Labour London Mayor Ken Livingstone will go face to face with his Tory challenger, Boris Johnson, in a television debate to be aired at 11pm on ITV1 in London on Thursday. They will be joined by Liberal Democrat candidate Brian Paddick and the debate will be chaired by former Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq.

Johnson, who was recently described as a “clown” by Paddick, has been accused of running scared from such a debate and this will be the first time that the candidates for the May 2008 London Mayoral election will debate together.

Commenting on the debate, Livingstone said,
“It’s the first time I’ve been able to pin Boris Johnson down to one. I’m really looking forward to it and I’m sure Londoners are looking forward to it.
“I would have thought radio and broadcasters would have set aside two or three slots a week for the candidates to debate. It’s very cheap TV and it gives Londoners a chance to ring in and ask questions.”

For information on Livingstone’s campaign, you can sign up at www.kenlivingstone.com.

It’s a draw in the race to win the Democratic Party’s nomination for the U.S presidential elections in November, after Senator Hillary Clinton managed to stage a come back in New Hampshire over night. Clinton won 39% of the vote against her main challenger, Senator Barack Obama, who won 36% of the vote. Former Vice Presidential candidate, John Edwards, continues to trail in third place, winning 17% vote.

It is thought that Clinton’s show of emotion at a diner when asked what it was like running in the tough race helped win women voters back over to her after Obama had picked substantially more women’s votes in Iowa. Clinton’s husband, former President Bill Clinton, has been noticeably more low key over the last few days, perhaps suggesting his wife’s team recognise the dangers of being linked with the past, given the success of Obama’s “change” message.

The next big test for the Democratic candidates is in the South Carolina primary on 26 January in a just over a fortnight’s time. Obama is presently averaging a 13 point lead over Clinton there and it remains to be seen what affect the New Hampshire result will have in that state.

Between then and now there are less significant primaries in Michigan on 15 January and Nevada on 19 January – Nevada only sends a small number of delegates to the Democratic Party’s national convention which chooses their presidential candidate, whilst Michigan has been excluded from sending delegates for breaking the rules on when it is holding its primary.

Commenting on Clinton’s victory, Obama said,
“I want to congratulate Senator Clinton on a hard fought victory here in New Hampshire. She did an outstanding job, give her a big round of applause.”

Senator Barack Obama appears to be leading in the battle of hearts and minds in the New Hampshire primary, the next stage of the contest to win the Democratic Party’s 2008 U.S. presidential nomination.

In the latest CNN/WMUR poll conducted after the Iowa caucus, he has a 10 point lead (on 39%) over Senator Hillary Clinton (on 29%) with former Vice Presidential candidate, John Edwards on 16%. Another recent USA Today/Gallup poll gave Obama a 13 point lead.

The candidates spent the weekend campaigning in New Hampshire yesterday ahead of the primary vote there tomorrow. It got off to a rocky start for Clinton on Friday when she was booed at a Democrat fundraiser when seeking to highlight Obama’s alleged inexperience. Then on Saturday she came under sustained attack from Edwards during a televised debate between the candidates.

News is awaited of the post Iowa caucus polling from Hew Hampshire. Supporters will want to see whether Senator Barack Obama has benefited from a bounce there after his victory in Iowa on Thursday, the first test in the race to win the Democratic Party’s 2008 presidential nomination. Meanwhile, the commentariat has been busy analysing the results:

The Guardian - Gary Younge, “Obama reshapes US presidential race”
The New Statesman – Andrew Stephens, “And the next US president is…”
The New York Times – David Brooks, “The two earthquakes”
The Washington Post – E. J. Dionne Jr, “A whiff of revolution from Iowa”

This week the Economist publishes an in depth report into global migration, an introduction to which can be listened to below.  The report argues that migration has been good for countries receiving and sending immigrants and points to the role that migrant remittances have been playing in aid flows to developing and third world countries (echoing arguments made on this site by Jon Cruddas MP and Murad Qureshi AM.

London’s Muslim community leaders, in an unprecedented intervention, have come out in support of Ken Livingstone’s re-election as Mayor of London today.

The British Muslim Initiative (BMI) has issued a document supporting Livingstone which has been signed by more than sixty mainstream Muslim organisations and figureheads who are said to represent the majority of London’s Muslims.

The BMI was formed to fight racism and Islamaphobia, combat the challenges Muslims face around the world, encourage Muslim participation in British public life, and improve relations between the West and the Muslim world.

The document states:
“Since June 2000, Ken Livingstone has been an outstanding Mayor of London. He has stood out in support of a multi-cultural society and has supported the Muslim communities of the city against racism and Islamophobia as well as all other minorities against all types of prejudice. His stands and policies have constantly championed justice in the Middle East and around the world, freedom for the Palestinians and withdrawal of occupying troops from Iraq; a rare trait of modern-day public figures. He has enhanced London’s standing in the world and helped improve the lives of all of the city’s communities. For those and many more traits continuously and consistently demonstrated by the Ken Livingstone, we the undersigned believe that it is in the best interest of the Muslim communities of London, and indeed all Londoners, to back Mr. Livingstone in this year’s mayoral elections.”

Commenting on the statement, Sir Iqbal Sacranie, former General Secretary of the Muslim Council of Britain said,
“I have followed closely the political career of Ken Livingstone for many years and had the pleasure of working closely with him. As Mayor, he has served the diverse communities of our capital with true distinction. Under his stewardship London’s Muslims and people of faith communities were given a voice and encouraged to be part of the mainstream as equal partners and genuine stakeholders. Things could only get better for all Londoners under his continued leadership”.

Prof Tariq Ramadan, a Senior Research Fellow at St Antony’s College, Oxford and also a signatory to the statement said,
“Ken Livingstone has consistently used his office to oppose war and promote the cause of peace. He has stood firm against racism, championed the rights of minorities against prejudice and discrimination, and been one of the strongest advocates for a diverse and multicultural society. At home and abroad he has supported those struggling for justice.

Livingstone is standing against the Conservative candidate, Boris Johnson (left), and Brian Paddick for the Liberal Democrats in the election in May this year.  Earlier this week Paddick attacked Johnson for behaving like a “clown”.  Anas Altikriti, spokesperson for the BMI said,
“Muslims in London feel that for the Conservative party to choose Boris Johnson who wrote that Islam is ‘the most viciously sectarian of all religions’ and that ‘Islamophobia seems a natural reaction’ was nothing short of an insult to London’s Muslims as well as its ethnic and religious minorities”.

A full list of the signatories to the statement can be found here.

New figures released by the Institute for Public Policy Research reveal the continuing poverty amongst the working poor.  According to the IPPR research more than a million children in Britain are living in poverty despite the fact that at least one of their parents is in work.

Studies show that poverty and child poverty, in particular, disproportionately affect ethnic minorities. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation published research last year which showed that the poverty rate for Britain’s minority ethnic groups stands at 40%, double the 20% found amongst white British people.  The Child Poverty Action Group has also conducted research which shows that children from ethnic minorities are more likely to be living in poverty in Britain than their white counterparts.

The new research from the IPPR released today shows that, although 600,000 children have been lifted out of poverty in the last ten years in the UK, the total number of poor children in working households has stayed the same at 1.4 million. Half of all poor children now live in a working household.

The report argues that lifting these ‘forgotten million’ children out of poverty requires action to tackle high numbers of poor children in working couple families and improve wages at the very bottom of the labour market. Specifically ippr recommends a package of measures to improve work incentives for low income couples and increase financial support through tax credits, along with action to boost the effectiveness of the minimum wage.

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2008 got off to a good start for Senator Barack Obama. A new poll carried out for the Des Moines Register of Democrat caucus voters in Iowa, published on New Years Day, showed Obama leading by 7 points over Senator Hillary Clinton, after a string of polls had suggested it would be a dead heat in the state between Obama, Clinton and former Vice Presidential candidate John Edwards.

Obama polled 32 % whilst Clinton trailed on 25%, with Edwards on 24% in the poll. A 7 point lead will provide encouragement to the Obama camp as it is large enough to account for the poll’s sampling error of plus or minus 3.5%.

However, 6% of those surveyed said they were undecided or uncommitted, and approximately a third of those polled said they may change their minds before the caucus vote on Thursday, suggesting there is still all to play for.

The Iowa caucus is the first test for those seeking the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination for the U.S presidential election in November.

UPDATE: TMP sources in Iowa indicate that turnout is likely to be high with many previously politically apathetic voters likely to take part in the caucus and attending candidate rallies.