Blunkettgate: The view from EC1

First of all let me berate David Blunkett for having a surname that lends itself so poorly to having a "-gate" suffix.

Secondly, allow me to add my name to the growing list of people - both from within politics and from without - who feel the time has come for Mr Blunkett to resign with what little dignity he has left. There surely can be no doubt left in anyone's mind that this is a man who - intelligent and politically adept as he has proven himself to be - has clearly let his years as a cabinet minister go to his head. True, Blunkett's latest offence of neglecting to consult with the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments over his position as director of DNA Bioscience before the May general elections seems relatively minor, and in retrospect the appointment or the shares involved never came into direct conflict with his work at Westminster; however, it's the way in which Blunkett does precisely that - admit to his mistakes retroactively rather than prevent them while he had the chance - that makes him such a liability. It's more than a little ironic that a man so consistently careless with his own job should be made Secretary for Work and Pensions.

In spite of all this, however, the simple truth is that Blunkett is not the issue here. Whether he resigns or not is almost immaterial (and given today's backing from Number 10, it's unlikely that he will); Blunkett himself is merely a symptom of a government that has grown complacent after too long in power. I say this as someone who voted Labour at the last election and I stick by that decision.

This isn't a failure of Labour as a political ideology, it's what happens to any party when they've ruled for so long they begin to believe they are the only option. When it comes to internal Labour skirmishes, too much attention over the past few years has been given to Brown vs. Blair, at the expense of all else. It seems the last time anyone stopped to take serious stock of the abilities of a senior Labour player was when Robin Cook and Mo Mowlam died. And they weren't even in the cabinet anymore! Perhaps understandably, Blair has a history of sticking by those closest to him, defending their actions until the bitter end, whether it's Alistair Campbell or Peter Mandelson. Continuing this trend with David Blunkett, Blair runs the risk of losing a serious level of popular support from the people Labour is supposed to be reaching out to the most.

The Labour Party has clocked up some fantastic achievements over the past eight years, of which it should justifiably be proud. However, Labour also needs to be able to own up to its mistakes and repair its weaknesses instead of just denying they exist. Or else how are we expected to take it seriously about anything anymore?