Skipper

It was a curious kind of debate but at least it was a debate and it is a contest. All these candidates are dead keen and want to win and that's good. The problem with such hustings though is that they bring appearances into the frame when really it's the arguments and the qualities which should be foremost. At first I assumed Hazel Blears must be sitting down and possibly had a bad back or such like but then realised that she was in fact standing up. Placing her alongside the lofty Hilary Benn only made things seem even more bizarre. Paxo seemed unusually gruff and schoolmaster-like so the atmosphere was less than relaxed.

Harmon showed more strongly than I expected but Blears was a bit squeaky and lightweight though undeniably feisty. Cruddas gained valuable publicity for party members like me as, not being a minister, he lacks face and name recognition. He will have gained leftwing brownie points for urging withdrawal from Iraq(not Gordon's line at present) and I was attracted by his view of the job as purely a nexus between party and leadership. But I have to confess that throughout I found his face a little hard to like- shameful I know, but I'm trying to be honest. Peter Hain seemed a bit awkward. His mien is rather superior as if he's senior to everyone else and he dresses in more senior and superior way (don't ask about that permatan). He almost seems as if he shouldn't be there. He handled the questions like a true professional but that was part of his problem - he seemed like too much one of the New Labour 'establishment' and trust suffered accordingly.

Alan Johnson was impressive. He is transparently honest and refreshingly direct but I think he struck a slightly wrong note for this contest when he denied any restrictions should be placed on high level earnings on the grounds that this was 'non aspirational'. Just at the moment there is much muttering in activist ranks about 'fat cats', City bonuses and the growing inequality gap and a less honest, more finessed response might have served him better- most of the other candidates- with the exception of Hain- tacked in this latter direction. Some polls have shown Johnson leading the pack but for me the most impressive person was Hilary Benn.

His height and natural courtesy lend him authority, something which his ministerial experience has enhanced. His voice too- so much like his father's- is soft and persuasive but with a strong hint of underlying toughness. He charmingly evaded questions such as who he would vote for if he were not standing himself by saying he was happy to leave the matter to the party membership. According to the excellent Political Betting Benn leads Johnson in the stakes with the rest some way behind.

Given his name recognition and his inherent communication skills I cannot see who can now stop him, despite his earlier difficulty in acquiring sufficient MP nomination numbers. He also benefits from the Labour Party members' 'leftwing conscience' effect. For years we kind of knew with our hearts Benn senior's arguments were right but in our heads reasoned they were impractical. This election, by proxy, enables us to vote with our hearts for once. The contest- as this tends to confirm, must be Hilary's to lose from now on.