Tears, anger and the 'betrayal' of Labour first lady who never was

It is enough to make you want to break a Stradivarius over your brother-in-law’s head.

That at least would seem to be how David Miliband’s violinist wife feels about her husband being trumped by his younger sibling.

On Saturday night Louise Shackelton is said to have reacted with ‘absolute fury’ at the realisation that trade union votes had pushed Ed Miliband to unexpected Labour leadership victory.

That gave way yesterday to a flood of bitter public tears, as a beaten but magnanimous David faced the party conference to ask for unity behind the newly crowned Miliband minor.
Miss Shackelton, 49, wept backstage and had to be comforted by her husband after he’d finished his speech.

Witnesses said that Ed stood awkwardly to one side, looking on ‘in fascinated horror’.

Frantic efforts last night by Labour spin doctors to play down the outburst and deny any rift between David Miliband’s wife and brother seemed to be, well, just so much spin.

It now seems likely that Miss Shackelton will try to persuade her husband to turn his back on a place in his brother’s shadow Cabinet.

The result has been bitter pill for her. Staunch though she was during the campaign, Miss Shackelton has not always been so ambitious for her husband to get the top job.

It is a journey fraught with obvious pressures; not only on him, but the young family the couple had fought so hard and so privately to have.

She is said to have been central to his decision not to attempt to succeed Tony Blair in 2007, at a time when the Milibands were adopting their second child.

Her stance changed – only for the prize to be snatched away at the last moment by a most unlikely and upsetting rival; the man who had been a witness at their wedding, who had talked her husband out of standing against Gordon Brown on at least one occasion; his own kid brother.

‘The people around David are particularly aggrieved by what has happened and obviously Louise is one of them,’ said a conference delegate last night.

‘She is very, very angry and doesn’t seem to mind anyone seeing how deeply she feels about the betrayal.’

A Labour source close to David Miliband confirmed: ‘Louise is devastated. She has been in tears and this is a seminal moment. Everyone is shattered.

‘But any idea that there is any enmity between her and Ed or anger towards the unions is wrong. She is not like that.’

However friends say Miss Shackelton has been furious with Ed for months over his decision to stand against David, who was the favourite for the leadership until the final hours of the contest.


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1315752/Tears-anger-betrayal-Labour-lady-was.html

Secondly, Miss Shackelton is not a politician, and her opinion of the matter is not really relevant to the leadership.

No one likes to suffer a political defeat. Especially, in my observation, within their own party. And especially, no doubt, at the hands of their baby brother. But nevertheless, I hope that both Milibands will be able to unite against the real enemy: the Tories.

So would mine be. But making a story out of it?

Only in the Wail.

The Skin