The new advertisements are as panicky as they are unprincipled, writes David Puttnam. Plus letters from Alexandra Smithies and Alan Fairs
Nesrine Malik is profoundly right (Why Labour’s ‘law and order’ tribute act feels hollow and overblown, 10 April). The direction adopted by these new adverts, and the mentality that inspired them, can only ultimately damage the Labour party.
Labour will win the next election as a direct result of successive calamities brought about by a dozen years of brain‑dead Tory government. This new advertising campaign is as panicky as it is unprincipled. It’s this lack of belief in the common sense of the electorate that sent Tony Blair scurrying off to meet Rupert Murdoch in Hayman Island in 1995, creating a relationship that blew Labour off course throughout its term in office.
