Tribune – Comment, news and reviews from Britain's democratic left

There may be a fairer voting system, but Labour is running out of time to make the case for it, says Peter Kenyon

It is musical chairs at the Department of Health again, as Andy Burnham becomes the sixth Secretary of State in 12 years.

Politicians need to change their ways rather more than they need to change the voting system, argues Jon Craig

Having your pants spread across the tarmac is never the way you see yourself entering or leaving a new country. But then this is Baghdad International Airport. And nothing here could be described as normal.

Divided, out of touch and heading for defeat say the polls. I have weaknesses, I have strengths, I will dedicate myself to a new spirit of public accountability and greater transparency in government, and I will listen, Gordon Brown tells his MPs.

In exactly one year, the football World Cup will kick off in South Africa – a vital first for the African continent. In the lead up to it, however, there has been much sniping from other countries, mostly Western nations, suggesting that either we are unlikely to be ready in time or the event itself will be badly organised.

Labour and the Church of England are both navel-gazing while calamity awaits them, says Nigel Nelson