Ed Miliband
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Ed Miliband is the current Leader of the Opposition in the United Kingdom, having been voted electable[1] Leader of the Labour Party in 2010, succeeding Gordon Brown. Given the Labour Party's commitment to diversity, Ed and his brother David were the two leading candidates to become party leader. There was plenty of controversy surrounding his election, as he has less support among Labour MPs than his brother. He is an atheist,[2] leaving just one party leader as a believer.
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[edit] Background
Ed was born in London, however his parents were Polish Jewish immigrants who had escaped the Holocaust.[3] His father was a Marxist.[4] He studied PPE at Oxford and did a master in Economics at LSE.
[edit] Early Parliamentary career
Ed seems to be pretty good on climate change and served as Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change. He was described as a 'saint' of the expenses scandal, having not claimed much at all.
[edit] Leader of the Labour Party
Ed won the labour leadership election with the backing of the trade unions, with his brother gaining more support from Labour MPs in the House of Commons. This led to questions of his ability to lead the party properly and the nickname, "Red Ed" from the shitty tabloids. He has smiled and waved, occasionally ranting about child benefits, while the Tories have told the whole country that the financial problems are all Labour's fault. Despite pointing out, now and then, that most countries have a huge deficit right now, he hasn't done a great job of putting across the alternative view.
While his performances against David Cameron leave a lot to be desired, he has gotten better of late.
[edit] Footnotes
- ↑ UK polling report
- ↑ Article on Ed Miliband's beliefs in the Daily Heil. September, 2010.
- ↑ Article on the Miliband family history in the Daily Telegraph. May, 2010.
- ↑ Article on the Miliband brothers in The Guardian. February, 2010.