On Channel 4 News on Friday Alastair Campbell gave his take on the government's poor poll ratings and what needs to be done to turn them around. His answers show that his famed prescience for the key issues hasn't left him.

In a sentence Campbell's strategy is that Labour must destroy the 'time for a change' narrative and stress the political choice facing voters - the reading being the starker that choice is the better Labour's chances. A surprisingly large number of voters do indeed consider their vote an opportunity to give a thumbs up or thumbs down to the sitting government every 5 years with little consequence beyond that - a vote for someone is often just a proxy vote against someone else. There is polling evidence that the Tory lead is heavily dependent on disaffection with Labour rather than any tremendous affection for Cameron and while that's always the case I suspect it's more so this time than it was for Blair / Major in 1997. That presents Labour with an opportunity.

So expect things to get very nasty if Campbell's view prevails. Labour's revamped website already hints at this shift with widgets for bloggers and supporters highlighting differences in minimum wages and maternity leave from when the Tories were in office - a perfect example of elevating the 'choice' theme above the 'change' one. In his first speech as leader last year Gordon didn't mention David Cameron or the Tories once - I suspect things will be different this afternoon...