In praise of… the return of the Darling

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/sep/17/in-praise-of-alistair-darling

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A year from today, Scotland will vote on independence. If the SNP campaign to cut Scotland loose fails, then the former Labour chancellor Alistair Darling will get much of the credit. Mr Darling, whose career trademark at Westminster often appeared to be as the prototype boring snoring minister, was chief secretary to the Treasury in the Labour government of 1997 and was still in cabinet 13 years later, having saved the banks and put a handbrake on the British economy's slide after the 2008 crash. Yet, even at the peak of the economic crisis, this onetime Trot rarely troubled the headline writers. Now, as the leader of the Better Together campaign, the same sharp brain and quiet charm are welding the three main unionist parties into a pro-UK force to make the case for a no vote. His camp has a 20-point lead, but Mr Darling knows there's no room for complacency. You may never have realised he'd gone away, but he's certainly back.

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