Derby South MP and former Foreign and Health Secretary Margaret Beckett infamously claimed, when it began to look like Jeremy Corbyn might win the Labour leadership election in 2015, that she was a ‘moron’ for nominating him to ‘broaden the debate’.
So when Sky News’ Sophie Ridge interviewed her and asked her opinion about the Labour leader, she and her channel might have been expecting a different outcome to the one they got:
Beckett admitted that Corbyn had surprised her – and that even Tory former Chancellor Ken Clark had praised Corbyn’s leadership of the Opposition, particularly interesting because as an arch-remainer Clarke does not echo the laughable smears of so-called ‘centrist’ remainers.
SKWAWKBOX comment:
The best-laid plans and all that. But as the SKWAWKBOX reported last week, Corbyn has won the respect and support of far more of his former back-bench opponents than the media wants to acknowledge.
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When I look at Margaret Beckett, I see someone with no real beliefs at all. But if she acknowledges that Corbyn is better than expected, then that is good.
Some of the Labour Party professional election staff admitted during the general election that Corbyn’s whole strategy was better than expected.
It is good to see that Michael Dugher is leaving the Labour Party.
Old news. She had acknowledged this a long time ago.
It shows we members no best, not the 04% of the Labour Party that makes up the PLP!
I presume she wasn’t asked about what she thought about her Dossier turning out to be a huge damp squib and whether she now accepted that her allegations about widespread LP antisemisitsm were based on false premises?
Thought not
That’s a different Margaret. It’s Margaret Hodge with the dossier.
Funnily enough Simon’s not the only one confusing the two. I’ve said a few times on here it was Hodge who regretted giving Corbyn a chance.
D’oh!
The patronising way in which people like Beckett and Frank Field nominated Corbyn in 2015 just to “broaden the debate” demonstrated how hopelessly out of touch and dismissive the establishment of the Labour Party was with its own membership.
The plan to play the Unions off against a growing but submissive membership while it retained all the power came back with a vengeance and bit it well and truly on the arse. We can see with all the talk of the setting up new parties that for some the permanency of the shift in power that it has brought about within Labour is just beginning to sink in. The sooner it does and the sooner the spoilers either get in to line or get out the better.
When John Smith died, it was assumed by many in the Labour Party that his deputy would become our first female leader. She was elbowed out of the way by…………………?
Margaret Beckett breaks down in tears………. crocodile tears that is! (all Blairites are phonies with zero integrity):
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3665585/Never-wildest-dreams-did-think-Former-Labour-leader-Margaret-Beckett-breaks-tears-joins-calls-Jeremy-Corbyn-quit.html