Isn't it sweet irony?

At a time where the Labour Party's best campaigning asset is about to be hauled before a jury isn't it strangely ironic that the party is verging on bankruptcy? What a wonderful example of chickens coming home to roost the current shambles in the Labour Party is.

The honours bestowed to all of these rich businessmen may have bought them some short term extravagance, but now Labour are about £42million in debt, with no sign of them being able to pay them off. Imagine if Labour had have gone about accruing their campaign finance in a more appropriate way. They wouldn't be in the shit with the police and businessmen wouldn't be closing their wallets with the current gusto.

Let's be honest, the Tories were never going to win in 2001 or, for that matter, in 2005. Labour could have spent a tenth on electioneering at these two general elections and still won, such was the utter shambles of their main opponents. Lord Levy really didn't need to break the law (allegedly, of course) in order to secure a Labour government.

But now they have gone and truly fucked their chances of beating David Cameron now. Come the next election Labour may well have scraped together enough from the Unions to fight a perfunctory campaign. But with the Conservatives reputedly building up an enormous warchest it is inconceivable they would be even close to matching the Tories' spending. Labour are probably onto a hiding in 2009 or 2010 anyway, but the scale of any defeat will probably bankrupt the party.

Then they will have no alternative. With business and private contributions probably a thing of the past (and they will be when the Tories win... no-one likes backing a loser and in opposition you are classed as having totally lost) Labour will be forced to go cap in hand to the trade unions once more.

Perhaps we are seeing the death knell of New Labour.