Look Inside America: David Miliband will be back

This week it emerged that the 47-year-old Labour MP for South Shields and former Foreign Secretary, David Miliband was quitting politics to run a charity in America. The news comes two and a half years after his brother, Ed beat him narrowly in a Labour party leadership run-off, leaving his ego severely battered, and his political capital spent.

His non-election was a refreshing piece of substance over style for the Labour Party; Ed is the less glamorous and urbane sibling, and his politics are more aligned with Gordon Brown than Tony Blair. Because of this left leaning approach he’d earned  he alias of ‘Red Ed’ - a moniker he has worked hard to kill off.

It is probably the case that Ed is the right man for the job available. On most policies, the Conservative / Liberal Democrat coalition is thoroughly centrist, so a more leftwing opposition has additional credibility and is more likely to deliver viable and genuine alternatives to the government. The fact that Labour have struggled to establish a unified voice under Ed Miliband is indicative of a party that don’t really believe they can win under their current leader.

Indeed, I wrote a piece in this column a year ago where I identified David Miliband as the next Prime Minister and today - despite the widespread media opinion - I’m sticking to it.

In fact, the move has clarified the Labour Party’s long term strategy - that they do not expect to win in 2014/5 and may find themselves installing David as leader in time for the following election. In this age of "helicopter grandees" - that is - professional politicians younger yet more experienced than incumbents, David Miliband can return in two or three years with an asset that could be considered exotic - real world experience.

Additionally, the Atlanticist element gives added cred; potential leadership rivals Ed Balls (shadow chancellor), Chuka Umunna (shadow business secretary) and Douglas Alexander all lecture in the States. New Labour borrowed many of its founding principles from the American Democratic party, so it’s hard to deny David’s political vision will benefit from seeing it first-hand. His absence allows the Chukas and Douglases to smoke themselves out in opposition.

Fundamentally though, whether in politics, sport or whatever, the world loves a winner. And the impression of being a winner is every bit as important as the actual wins. Outside of the actual Labour Party and Westminster Village, much of the public know very little about David Miliband other than he got beaten by his brother.

However, that perception will change once Ed Miliband loses in the next election. This is when we will see David resurface, and take the Labour leadership to challenge for the big prize, and as someone who will probably vote for him, I’m glad to see he has the vision to take time out from the UK.

As Rudyard Kipling noted in The English Flag: ‘And what should they know of England who only England know