It’s a matter of record that, while talking about unity (to try to take credit for a Labour surge that has nothing to do with them) and demanding that Labour’s left-wing members (the vast majority) abandon ‘sectarianism‘, the Labour right is busily trying to organise to tighten its control of party structures and processes at this autumn’s annual Conference in Brighton, as it did by ignoring party rules and procedures during last year’s debacle in Liverpool.
The (laughably-termed) ‘moderates’ are trying to lever as many of their preferred candidates as possible into the Conference delegate count in order to vote down the democratic ‘McDonnell amendment‘ to ensure that members always have the option of a left-wing candidate in future leadership elections so that Labour remains a genuine alternative and doesn’t return to the pale imitation of the Tories that it became under Blair and worse still after 2010, as it abandoned its principles and embraced the austerity narrative.
A situation that ended with Corbyn’s election as leader but to which entrenched ‘red Tories’ long to return.
Factions such as Labour First have been advising right-wing CLP officers on how to prevent left-wing delegates going to Conference and there has been a general drive by right-wingers to limit CLPs (constituency Labour parties) to a single delegate, to facilitate right-wing control of Conference votes.
And now the SKWAWKBOX can reveal that at least one CLP has resorted to outright disenfranchisement of its members to prevent them having a say in whom (and how many) they send to the Conference to represent them.
This blog has obtained an email sent out by the exec of Enfield North CLP – the seat of a notoriously anti-Corbyn MP – informing them after the fact that it has appointed a delegate.
And deigning to offer them the chance to ‘advise‘ the delegate – but not to ‘mandate‘ (instruct) as they’re entitled to under the party’s rules:
From: Gina Needs
Date:25/06/2017 20:14 (GMT+00:00)
To:
Subject: Events and MeetingsDear Member,
May we please advise you of the following events and meetings:
1. Saturday July 1st – National Campaign Day. We will be having two street stalls – one outside Lidl Ordnance Rd / Hertford Rd, EN3 and the other at the corner of Brick Lane, Enfield, EN3. Both will start at 10:30am. Please email enfield_north@labour.org.uk to advise which stall you will be attending.
2. Contemporary Motions Meeting – There will be an All Members Meeting on 31st August 2017 at Celbic Hall, 77 Lancaster Rd, Enfield, EN2 0DW at 8pm to receive and debate contemporary motions which can be submitted for debate at the National Conference of the Party. Contemporary motions are those relevant to issues which arise from 1st August 2017. At this meeting, members may advise the CLP Delegate to Conference (Ms XXXXX XXXXX – Women’s Officer) who with the approval of the Conference Arrangements Office, was appointed by the EC in order to meet the conference timetable.In 2018, the delegate shall be elected at the February/March All Members Meeting.
[removed for brevity]
Lastly, may we take this opportunity to inform you that on Friday 28th July 2017 from 7pm at Celbic Hall, 77 Lancaster Rd, EN2 0DW, The Mayor of Enfield’s Charity Quiz Night with Fish & Chip supper will be taking place. Tickets are £15 per person (teams of 7, but if you don’t have a whole team, don’t worry, we’ll team you up). Alcohol will be available to purchase as will soft drinks. There will also be a Raffle with some fabulous prizes. Seats are limited, so book yours early to avoid disappointment by 21st July 2017 with Gina. Email xxxxxxx@gmail.com
It would be much appreciated if all future CLP correspondence from members be addressed to enfield_north@labour.org.ukYours sincerely
Peter Lamb Gina Needs
Chair of Enfield North CLP Secretary of Enfield North CLP
The excuse of lack of time to complete a proper selection of delegates does not stand up – Labour extended the deadline for selections to 9 July in order to give every CLP the opportunity, after the 8 June General Election, to hold selections at its monthly meeting.
Instead of observing proper process and respecting the democratic rights of members, a CLP has simply appointed one – and one only, even though the CLP will be entitled to send several – with the collusion of Labour’s Conference Arrangements Office.
As one Labour member in the constituency succinctly put it:
What the f***?!
But they can go for fish and chips – at £15 a head – so that’s some consolation.
This frank abuse of democracy is unlikely to be limited to a single CLP, so eager are right-wingers to prevent Labour’s pro-Corbyn member majority having its say effectively at the Conference. If your rights have been similarly bypassed, let the SKWAWKBOX know.
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I have had an auto-email as a party member to go to Conference. Not anything to do with my CLP who STILL can’t send messages to us. Does that mean I’d have no say? This is getting beyond ridiculous now.
Presumably you can go as a visitor but not as a delegate
WT absolutr F is their major malfunction?
Delegation’s not their ‘train set’. The sooner it’s made clear to rats like that, the better. PURGE!
So what is Momentum Enfield doing about it?
I feel very lucky to have a CLP which has all member meetings and is run very much to model Standing Orders, and agreed my proposal that no delegate should be constrained by lack of funds. This means our Youth Delegate will be fully funded, I hope and dearly wish that all CLPs will be able to function like ours, normally, as soon as possible.
I also hope that the RW are hoist by their own petard, as on the conference votes (show of hands) they will be singletons, outnumbered by the multiple delegates from the more enlightened CLPs.
Corbyn has got to be better than weak and stupid may s she can fork out money to support her minority government as she can’t lead on her own as she isn’t capable so she needs to be guided by other parties but she can’t give money to the NHS to keep it running smoothly so thanks to her stupidity the NHS is failing and putting people who need to be seen at risk as the people who need to be seen have to wait and that isn’t fair or right on none of us and people who voted for Theresa may are idiots and im sorry to say that but it’s true and im entitled to my opinion and thanks to whoever voted the stupid batch in are putting the NHS in jeopardy but it’s too late now as the damage is done and it will take a different more stronger and stable party to make the NHSBC safe for all of us as Theresa may isn’t giving the money where it should be going as we need the NHS. Get Theresa may out now to save our NHS and country before things get worse
WHEN WILL THESE MORONS CONCEDE, THEY LOST!
WE ARE, WHY THE LABOUR PARTY WAS BORN!
MOVE ON!
WE’RE THE BEGINING AND FUTURE, WE WILL DEFEAT, EVERY MOVE YOU MAKE.
TIME FOR YOU BACK STABBERS TO WAKE UP AND SHUT UP.
YOU’RE THE MAIN REASON LABOUR ISN’T IN POWER!
Reblogged this on elizapdushku's World.
The holdouts have viewed Jeremy’s ascent as a fight to the dead from the outset. This wasn’t immediately apparent to me but the thing that made it inescapable was their conduct during the leadership challenge,
They were sure enough of their collective success that they went all out for A.B.C., at any cost! The conduct of Watson, McNicol et al. was an absolute disgrace and they, and their co-conspirator, continue in much the same vein to this day, albeit less conspicuously.
Labour is indeed a ‘broad church,’ but not so broad as to accommodate outright treachery.
I hereby renew my enthusiasm for the idea of petitioning WikiLeaks to open up their #LabourLeaks reward fund to crowdfunding by Jeremy’s supporters, thereby going after the core anti-Corbyn conspirators within the party bureaucracy.
The chances of success are probably low (someone would need to have kept copies of emails/messages as insurance, and take up the offer) but it’s basically risk free and very high return if an even half-accurate account of their actions comes to light.
I do hope that, in spite of the all the chicanery, the movement behind Jeremy can push through the rule changes the party so desperately needs but I personally think we need to look at complementary strategies that Jeremy’s opponents have no way of blocking.
Misconduct during the leadership challenge might be old news in some respects but it’s also VERY BAD news for those concerned and those guilty of the worst misconduct are still in place and doing everything they can to hinder Jeremy’s reform of the party.
They are beyond shame, their disgrace and dismissal should be actively sought.
Funny is it not, that the Progress rentamob (only £1000 special membership fee) were only on Saturday castigating Paul Mason – see Angie from Enfield – and the Left in general for closing down debate & democracy within CLPs/The Party, only for us to discover this egregious move by the Rightists to gerrymander & pervert Conference as to yet once more undermine democracy and honest dialogue within the Party.
I wonder what Joan Ryan, Margaret Hodge, Lisa Nandy, Ed Balls and the rest of the Neo-Thatcherite faction within the Party will have to say about this fact – not much that’s for sure, but at least we know how dastardly these Progress/Labour First buggers are and the depth they’ll sink too to corrupt & pervert democracy within our Party.
Factual correction – deadline was extended to 7th July not 9th July