The SKWAWKBOX warned at the weekend that the next anti-Corbyn coup was already underway – and showed yesterday that it is a ‘coup of cowardice’, with right-wing malcontents attempting to inflict maximum damage on the Labour Party before peeling off to form a tiny new party. This was subsequently confirmed by information leaked to the Daily Express.
Now the SKWAWKBOX can provide further details about how the shaky ‘rebels’ hope to execute their plan – and cowardly barely covers it, but is combined with an arrogance that puts on display an astonishing sense of entitlement.
The malcontents hope to create a new party – but without disaffiliating from the Labour Party. They hope this would result in a formal ‘party within a party’ – along the lines of the Co-operative Party’s current status – consisting of MPs ‘temporarily’ suspended from representing Labour,
Their idea is that they will only rejoin if Jeremy Corbyn is no longer leader – and they hope to cultivate pressure to force Corbyn to quit for the sake of reunification of the movement.
The ‘soft rebels’ hope to number twelve to fifteen – but insiders say five is a more likely number. Nonetheless, they entertain an ambition to hold the balance of power in a hung parliament and to leverage this to force Corbyn’s resignation, thereby disenfranchising not only most Labour members but the public who votes for him.
The 5-15 – already down from the 12-20 mooted when the SKWAWKBOX broke the news of the plan some weeks ago – consist of ‘usual suspects’ that will surprise few if any Labour supporters.
However, they think they have soft support from a wider number of Labour MPs on the basis that they guarantee not to contest Labour marginals, which. explains how an East Midlands MP knew about the plan – but such a promise is currently a sticking point.
There are issues with the plan, however – particularly that it only works if the plotters make their move after an election. If they do it before, they will be expelled from the party, won’t get any campaigning resources and will have no chance of selection for their own seat.
This suggests that. they are hoping to retain their position as Labour candidates and then spring the breakaway party on election day – this would be overtly cynical and would not go down well with those who just voted for them as a Labour candidate, but it could be done.
But a post-election move would be irrelevant to the question of Labour marginals – suggesting a two-phase plan, with new candidates attempting to win – or prevent Labour winning – marginal seats, followed by a ‘defection’ by the ‘soft rebels’. But the marginals plan is stymied by the need for an accommodation with other centrist MPs.
It appears that their containment and self-imposed isolation has fostered delusions as well as a flawed plan, however.
A senior Labour insider, asked what the party’s response would be, stated flatly:
That we don’t negotiate with terrorists – and that the local phone-box is already occupied by the LibDems.
The SKWAWKBOX understands that recent polling, which showed Labour as much as five points clear of the Tories, was a huge shock to the plotters and a considerable spanner in their works – which puts much of what followed in a clearer light.
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Does this post mean Skwawkbox is back in its regular place?
I dont understand this?
Ah! Now I do!
Recent smear attempts have persuaded me that mandatory reselection is probably the most pressing issue for the Labour party. The New Labour lot will sabotage everything in their attempts to topple Corbyn, so allow the local party to pick a candidate who doesn’t look like a semi-Tory.
Good to see the site back up. It’s an invaluable resource.
As soon as I write my comment, Swawkbox posts an article about mandatory selection. Great minds think alike (or “fools seldom differ” as my dad used to say).
Good to see that you have the site back up and running.
The fact that there are plenty of people ready to fund a new party but the plotters choose to remain and fight from within, shows just how split they really are. I reckon each of they thinks they should be the leader and can’t agree with each other on a candidate they could all support.
If they think they can force JC out they had better think again. I would guess around 90% of his supporters would go with him and most of the current MPs, except for the traitors, and the sooner they go the better. Can these traitors not be made to sign a vow of loyalty to the Party, and if they don’t they get no financial support in the event of an election. We should not tolerate these back stabbers.
Labour traitors; best way to help Corbyn is to leave & take Tory votes with you!!!
Look what happened to the SDP – in fact how people remember the SDP? There is no doubt in my mind that a large majority of the over 550,000 membership of Labour supports Jeremy Corbyn. Any attempt by a small group of so-called ‘centrist’ MPs trying set up a centrist grouping is bound to fail, there simply aren’t enough of them. But, more than that the sea change in British politics for which Corbyn is the catalyst will simply wash away these ‘out-of-time’ MPs.
So glad you reproduced this great article that I read earlier on your emergency back up word press account. Glad you are up and running again, keep up the good work.
It has always been my contention that that these MPs will stay in the party as long as they can do damage to Labour, then at the right moment leave and gain from supporters discontent. I think it is long before time to withdraw the whip from those that have already proved where their loyalties actually lie. We need people to take their place who can articulate facts rather than sound bites or Neo-Liberal propaganda.
Regarding the Cash the cooperates may bankroll them if it loos like Labor could win it may be there main plan for avoiding Taxation rises to buy some of these neo liberals off to prevent Corbyns program at all costs.
Jeremy has allowed this to brew and stew, he should have stamped his authority on the party sooner and expelled some of the detractors. The Hodge case was a prime example where instant expulsion was justified. Jeremy needs to show a lot more leadership now.
Suspension or expulsion of MPs is up to the Whips office with advice from Jennie Formby. It isn’t up to JC though doubtless he makes his feelings heard.
How long will take to bring in mandatory reselection after the vote? This is needed urgently now and will put the cat amongst the chickens.
This is really scary.We should require every candidate to sign a declaration that they will not defect after the election, otherwise elections become just a mockery.
+1, Chris. I’d like to see even more commitment required though.
Undertakings to uphold and abide by the rules, to fulfil the duties of whichever position is offered to the best of one’s ability and to commit without mental reservation to the party, to the manifesto, to the leadership and most importantly to all Labour’s core principles and beliefs – not going to list them, we all know what they are – but which may be open to review as outside circumstances dictate.
They are so predictable we all know what their next step is. Early september, they are going to threaten to split if labour doesn’t accept the 11 exemples of the deeply flawed IHRA definition so lets see if Jeremy and his team really have what it takes to resist pressure or if they will back off (as i believe they will) and show all this revolution maybe a fluck after all.