There are fewer “safe seats” in Scotland for Labour than they might like these days, but if they lose Mid-Lothian then they really have been routed.

Luckily they’ve chosen a candidate there to give them the maximum possible chance of screwing it all up: Calamity Kenny! 

Congratulations to Kenny Young who was selected last night.

As Guido revealed he would be in January.

Remember Kenny Young? He was Ed’s ‘Press Manager’ who departed Team Miliband after the infamous ‘Blackbusters’ Twitter gaffe in 2012. It seems Calamity Kenny was playing the long game by going down the councillor route, and is now firm favourite to replace Scottish Labour stalwart Davie Hamilton in Mid-Lothian. Hamilton, in declaring he wasn’t sticking around to be beaten up by the SNP, left a coded signal in his resignation statement about who his successor should be :

“I believe that it is the right time for me to stand aside to allow the Labour Party in Midlothian to select a younger member, with fresh ideas and the hunger to meet the challenges of this changed landscape.”

Guido hears the Scottish Labour machine has already decided Kenny is their man. There is a combination of uproar and tears of laughter on the inside…

Guido’s favourite Labour spinner Kenny Young has departed Team Miliband. Apparently “after five years it’s time to do something different”. Calamity Kenny shot to fame when he was snapped, literally, waiting on hand and foot for Gordon. After being involved in Duffygate he joined Team Ed for the Labour leadership battle and again had some trouble with doors. When Ed won Kenny went from Head of Press to Press Office Manager, but his finest hour was still to come – his now infamous Blackbusters tweet which was written from his boss’ account:

So long Kenny, we’ll miss ya…

Morning Kenny,

https://twitter.com/#!/EdMPress/status/171512192380841984

https://twitter.com/#!/labourpress/status/171516899006484480

When recycling old attacks on Brown, it’s probably best to clear the line with everyone…

Labour are having a spectacularly bad week. Ed finally surfaced today to commiserate the death of TV’s Bob Holness, star of Blockbusters:

A is at the other end of the keyboard from O. A source in Ed’s office was quick to spin that given Kenny Young, the Press Officer Manager with emphasis on the manager, is in charge of the twitter feed, “and not much else”, this is most certainly his handy-work.

We are told that a “relaunch speech” is currently being “desperately cobbled together” for Monday or Tuesday. What could possibly go wrong?

Things must be getting bad for Miliband when even the most loyal of apparatchiks are beginning to lose faith. Guido hears readers’ favorite, and Ed’s campaign press officer, Kenny Young is telling people he’s down in the dumps and disillusioned. Having been demoted to Press Office Manager, with the emphasis on the manager, apparently Kenny’s heart isn’t in it as much as it once was. With the constant failure to get on the front foot and set the agenda, even Ed’s loyal gatekeeper and former SpAd Polly Billington is said to be exasperated. Time to brush off those CVs…

Sounds like Tom Baldwin isn’t exactly top of his game either:

http://twitter.com/#!/FelicityParkes/status/80301829145108480

Guido would be crying into his pint too..

UPDATE: Jon Craig has also noticed the glum faces on the Labour press team. Do these progressives need Prozac?

http://twitter.com/#!/joncraig/status/80957231092342784