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Most commentators would readily agree that the Conservatives have enjoyed a distinct edge over their rivals in the first few days of the General Election campaign, finding favour with business leaders and garnering most of the headlines with their plans to scrap Labour’s intended National Insurance increase.

Feeling very much left in the shade, Labour is now seeking to regain some of the lost momentum this week with the dual unveiling of their manifestos later today by PM Gordon Brown in the marginal Midlands (Birmingham) and also in Ravenscraig by his Scottish Labour colleagues.

Under the slogan ‘A Future Fair for All,’ Labour’s rather Blairite UK manifesto looks certain to set out a raft of policies designed to appeal to Middle England. Uppermost on Labour’s agenda will be the reform of public services, including plans which would see failing schools, hospitals and police forces taken over by more successful ones. Labour has also attempted an early strike on the ‘immigration issue’ too with a commitment that all migrant workers would have to pass an English language test to work in the public sector.

And in another early strike against the Conservatives and Lib Dems, Labour will also signal their intention to revolutionise the benefits system. If re-elected, Labour promises a job for all over-25s who have been unemployed for two years or more, and everyone under 25 unemployed for 10 months or more. More importantly here (and which will no doubt appeal to wavering potential Conservative/UKIP voters), Labour has pledged that if people reject the job offered then they would lose their benefits.

Scanning today’s early press coverage, it would seem Labour’s UK manifesto will likely pledge swifter action and enhanced support for people suffering from anti-social behaviour; offer assistance for first-time house buyers and a promise to build 10,000 council houses a year. Labour will, all seem to believe, pledge not to raise income tax rates, however, there will likely be no such commitment when it comes to VAT.

Also apparently included in Labour’s manifesto is a commitment to restrict the takeover of British companies. This comes in the wake of Kraft’s controversial takeover of Cadbury finalised earlier this year. Also likely to feature in Labour’s wish list: a planned referendum on removing the remaining hereditary peers from the House of Lords. This has been a regular staple of Labour manifestos, so quite when such a reform will be completed remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, here in Scotland Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy, along with Scottish Labour Group leader Iain Gray, is set to launch Scottish Labour’s manifesto in Ravenscraig, the site of the former steelworks and now the location of Motherwell College.

The location is highly symbolic. Ravenscraig has been selected to illustrate the Conservatives’ ‘backward-looking’ policies which will echo those of Mrs Thatcher in the 1980s: spending cuts and the destruction of local communities. Labour, in contrast, wishes to appear forward-looking, preparing and building for the future – hence the Motherwell College venue.

It should also be remembered that Scottish Labour is not just looking to the May 6 polls. The party has an eye on the future and also intends to steal a march on the campaign for next year’s Holyrood election. Tartanised manifesto promises therefore include a promise to introduce Calman reforms giving Holyrood greater powers in the life-time of the next Parliament; a guarantee to build two new aircraft carriers so preserving ship building jobs on the Clyde and at Rosyth in Fife; cash set aside for schools and hsopitals; as well as a commitment to tackle knife crime too.

Quite how psephologists and this evening’s headline-writers will react to the manifesto launches north and south of the Border today remains to be seen.

There are no attention-grabbing budget-busting spending commitments in Labour’s UK manifesto. There’s less money to go around, the country’s coffers are empty and Labour knows they just can’t afford costly initiatives. Labour will argue tough times call for tough measures and that they are the party best able to ensure every penny will be spent wisely. Meanwhile, the Conservatives, who are scheduled to unveil their own manifesto tomorrow are already crying that Labour are tired, fresh out of ideas and are merely ‘rearranging deckchairs on a sinking ship.’

And with their poll numbers stubbornly hovering under the crucial 40 per cent mark, the Conservatives are rightly concerned at their seeming inability to boost their vote share. In this, the first full week of campaigning, it looks like Labour might just gain vital traction from their largely populist manifesto commitments – eating into the Conservatives’ narrow lead as they plod steadily along to the May 6 finishing line.

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