Right Field.

News that David Cameron has appointed former Labour welfare reform minister Frank Field, to repeat his role that he carried out for Tony Blair in 1997 comes as no surprise.

Field was told by Blair ('to think the unthinkable) in terms of social security reform but his plans fell, after they met hostility from both Gordon Brown and Harriet Harman.

Field an admirer of Margaret Thatcher has long perplexed me in wondering just what he was doing in the Labour Party . I know that under Blair Labour was often only a "Hair Breath" from the Conservatives but his views often matched them.

One wonders how someone who already has “thought the unthinkable” can keep an open mind on the subject, and how long he needs to confirm what he obviously believes should be carried out?

Field's position on welfare shows the contrast between the Media treatment of left wing dissidents within the Labour Party, and right wingers like himself who are portrayed as an Independent minded hero. To his credit He was a significant critic of the abolition of the 10p tax rate but the reason for the praise lauded on him from the London press was because of his right wing credentials and an opportunity to embarrass Gordon Brown.

I have no doubt that Field is sincere in his views on welfare reform , but that does not make him right ,and it certainly means he can not have an open mind in when he carries out his enquiry.

All Field is doing is legitimising the Con-Lib freemarket agenda (which he probably agrees with) and the part played in this by Ian Duncan Smith and David Laws. Neither of who can be seen as relating to the poor of these Islands.

Clearly it would be impossible for the Con-Lib government to reject any proposals that Frank Field delivers but then they (as I do) already have a good idea what the outcome will be.