Mandy, It is too little too late!

The FT is saying that:

Lord Mandelson has been charged with recrafting Labour’s political rhetoric for the recession, in an effort to find an upbeat but realistic message to win back public confidence.

and

The rethink is testimony to the difficulty ministers have faced in discussing the economic crisis without appearing over-pessimistic or out of touch. Labour strategists know that the next election may be fought without voters seeing many tangible signs of recovery.

then

Some ministers believe Mr Brown will have to confess to “mistakes” as chancellor before a full relaunch is possible, an embarrassing step he has vehemently opposed.

But rhetorically the biggest challenge for Lord Mandelson may be finding a new tone that blends patience, optimism and a sober acceptance of how bad the recession is likely to be.

As I argued yesterday, Mandy is now going to change the game plan as he realises that defeat is inevitable.  The problem for Mandy is Brown.  Moses is only interested in tactics not strategy.  He will also slip back into type at the first hurdle.

Moreover this new strategy breaks Mandy's first rule of spin.  Labour will now be seen to be reacting to events (the bank bonus saga is already an example) rather than making the political weather.  That is why it will fail.

As Churchill said:

However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.