Members hail vote as ‘turnaround from old war-supporting regime’
Labour members in Streatham may have accelerated the departure of now-LibDem MP Chuka Umunna by voting at the end of January to switch to an ‘all-member meeting’ format for their constituency meetings – Umunna supporters had tried to stop the switch by warning members Umunna would leave the party and start his own if it passed.
Umunna and his allies had long maintained an iron grip on ‘CLP’ (constituency Labour party) affairs by means of the old delegate-based structure.
After Umunna jumped ship – briefly – to the ‘Tinge’/CUK party in February, the newly all-member CLP celebrated by electing a left-wing executive – and have now taken a step further from what they consider the ‘bad old days’ by voting overwhelmingly to affiliate to Stop the War.
An email sent out to members by the CLP’s campaigns head confirmed the decision – and invites them to a demonstration at Downing Street this evening:
The core of the demonstration will be the delivery of a letter to Number 10 by the excellent Labour MPs Laura Pidcock and Emma Dent Coad.
The full text of the email reads:
On Monday night, Streatham Constituency Labour Party voted overwhelmingly to affiliate to Stop the War and oppose all future military intervention. This is a big decision for Streatham CLP, whose general committee voted in 2015 to support bombing Syria. Since then, the CLP has changed to all member meetings, which has enabled the wider membership to express its real opposition to war.
At a time when America is once again manoeuvring towards war in the Middle East, we need, once again, to give full support to the anti-war movement to demand the UK not join the US’s recklessness. Jeremy Corbyn has been consistently right when urging caution in the past and we should listen now as he expresses doubt about the latest piece of dubious intelligence, in respect of Iran. Streatham Labour Party is proud to support him in opposing the move to war, opposes any future military action by the UK government and argues the UK must break with its special relationship with America to develop an independent foreign policy based on co-operation and diplomacy.
Stop the War has been an essential voice in opposing the permanent state of war the UK has created, along with its allies, in the Middle East. We are proud to offer Stop the War our support, and to use the platform of the local Labour Party to promote Stop the War.
Today at 5pm, Stop the War will be handing a letter to No. 10 alongside MP’s Laura Pidcock and Emma Dent Coad. Streatham CLP will be represented at Downing Street, and you are warmly encouraged to join us.
The event will run from 5pm to 7pm this evening. More details can be found on its Facebook page.
A Streatham member told the SKWAWKBOX:
What a turnaround this is in Chuka’s old war-promoting regime. All-member meetings have revived the CLP’s democracy and allowed us to affiliate formally to Stop the War and campaign for peace instead of bombing innocents in Syria, as happened previously.
SKWAWKBOX view:
What a turnaround indeed. Mr Umunna might just be grinding his teeth on his new orange rosette.
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I know I should have read Labour’s rule book but I couldn’t be arsed.
Sorry.
What are the preconditions for challenging Watson for the deputy leadership?
I’m asking because I can’t think of a better way of telling our enemies that the days of Labour turning the other cheek are over – than Chris Williamson challenging him TOMORROW .
David McNiven 26/06/2019 at 10:23 pm
From the 2019 Labour Party Rule Book
Chapter 4, Clause II
2. Election of leader and deputy leader
A. The leader and deputy leader shall be elected separately in accordance with rule C below, unless rule E below applies.
B. Nomination
i. In the case of a vacancy for leader or deputy leader, each nomination must be supported by 10 per cent of the combined Commons members of the PLP and members of the EPLP and either:
a) 5 per cent of CLPs; or
b) At least 3 affiliates (at least 2 of which shall be trade union affiliates) compromising 5 per cent of affiliated membership. Nominations not attaining the thresholds under either a or b above shall be null and void.
ii. Where there is no vacancy, nominations may be sought by potential challengers each year prior to the annual session of Party conference. In this case any nomination must be supported by 20 per cent of the combined Commons members of the PLP and members of the EPLP. Nominations not attaining this threshold shall be null and void. The sitting Leader or Deputy Leader shall not be required to seek nominations in the event of a challenge under this rule.
Thanks SteveH.
I’ve met people who believe “prior to” means “close in advance of” but there is no such implication.
Any time before conference, such as today, complies with that rule.
I wonder how many members would sign a petition asking for Chris to be nominated?
I wonder if @chunkymark (artist taxi driver) or @Rachael_Swindon – or someone else with a huge following – might if asked run a petition on their Twitter account to convince Chris to run?
Would he even want to run?
And talking about @Rachael_Swindon, I hope this link works:
https://twitter.com/Rachael_Swindon/status/1141223229543112704
Max Hastings, Boris Johnson’s former boss at the Telegraph, writing in the Guardian:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jun/24/boris-johnson-prime-minister-tory-party-britain
“in my own files I have handwritten notes from our possible next prime minister, threatening dire consequences in print if I continued to criticise him” … this in the way of personal corroboration of the nature of the man as illustrated by a previously-quoted threatening phone call by Johnson to the BBC’s chairman.
I want to know why Hastings hasn’t reproduced these handwritten notes on the front page of one of the newspapers that would jump at the opportunity.
Doesn’t the public deserve ALL relevant evidence of our possible next prime minister‘s “qualities?”
sorry – previously cited, not quoted.
‘So bless these dying moments.
Of what has been a good day.
Chris is back in the place that he belongs.
And Streatham shows the way.’
My prayers have been answered yesterday in My despair of our party and the NEC in removing loyal supporters.I ouoted the 1997 song ” Things can only get better:…….Yes they did and a loyal comrade and our best mp Chri s Williamson suspension removed😇
‘Things can only get bitter!’
Coming up on Sky News at 7.45am: Was Labour right to re-instate Chris Williamson? We talk to his “colleague” Ruth Energy 😈
I wonder how that will go…
Smeeth, fer Christ’s sake!!
How the fuck does spellcheck get Energy from Smeeth?
Spelling came easy to me as a child and I always have spellcheck turned off on my devices – but when commenting here I still keep seeing the wriggly red spelling worm that thinks it can spell better than I can.
Grrr.
When I couldn’t remember how “Rachael Swindon” had formatted her name on Twitter I just searched as I wrote it above. Previously that would have triggered a drop-down of up to a dozen matches and @Rachael_Swindon would be among them – but not now.
The fact that Twitter “can’t” find the most famous Rachael Swindon on Twitter – a left wing icon – makes me suspect enemy action.
My spelling is fine, I just haven’t bothered looking for how to disable spellcheck. I really ought to. Or else proof-read before posting!
Yeah whenever I don’t read it through there’s a good chance of a typo or a cup and taste fupuck.
As per usual, Tony Greenstein tells it like it is regarding the fake anti-semitism black op, and calls out all the usual suspects doing their fake outrage bit regarding the reinstatement of Chris Williamson, including Boris ‘letterbox’ Johnson, who has also bleated about it. But there’s one thing you can be absolutely certain of, and that is that not a single one of them – whether an individual such as Margaret Hodge or Ruth Smeeth, or an organisation (and I use the term loosely) such as the Jewish Labour Movement – will report Chris to the police, which they WOULD do of course (and would have done at the time) if they REALLY thought and believed Chris had said something anti-semitic, and the reason they haven’t is of course because they know that nothing would come of it PRECISELY because they know that their accusation is a falsehood.
And it is precisely for the same reason that NONE of them ever reported Ken or Jackie or Pete or Marc etc to the police! THEY – the false accusers – are always making the claim that JC isn’t doing enough about anti-semitism in the LP, so surely *THEY* should be reporting all those they have accused of A/S to the police, AND done so at the time it happened:
https://azvsas.blogspot.com/2019/06/we-welcome-reinstatement-of-chris.html
NB It would be more than a little interesting if Skwawkbox could ascertain just exactly how many LP members and politicians HAVE been charged and convicted of racism (as in anti-semitism) since JC was elected leader, and also contact Margaret Hodge and John Mann and JLM et al to ask them if they have ever reported any of the people they have so readily accused of A/S to the police. And IF not, WHY not.
And I wonder if the Equality and Human Rights Commission will be opening an investigation into Islamophobia in the Tory Party:
https://mcb.org.uk/press-releases/muslim-council-of-britain-submits-formal-complaint-to-ehrc-over-conservative-party-islamophobia/
Our accusers are relying on the slug-like speed of an EHRC investigation ensuring that it won’t report Labour’s innocence on all counts until well after the next general election.
According to IHRA definition (adopted by NEC) it is Anti-Semitic to say that Israel is a racist endeavour, but is it illegal? Peter Gregson was told by police outside last year’s Party Conference in Liverpool that it was illegal to carry a banner proclaiming it, but no organisation, including EHRC will confirm. It seems like everybody is sticking the tail on the donkey when it comes to defining it. IHRA definition contravenes Freedom of Speech Act, Article 10.
As Williamson has come up on this thread, my view is he was targeted because he is a staunch anti-imperialist and Socialist. Anti-imperialism is red line for neoliberals and ‘woke’ lefts in and around the LP.
I’m glad he has been reinstated and am sure he will not stop talking about important issues so many wish to ignore. LP needs more outspoken MPs not afraid to stand up for what is right and draw attention to difficult issues, this strength and integrity is sorely lacking in the PLP!
Here is Vox Political’s take. https://voxpoliticalonline.com/2019/06/27/outrage-over-chris-williamsons-reinstatement-reveals-more-labour-mps-are-ripe-for-deselection/
Thanks, as always, for the excellent link Maria.
You are welcome, Paulo. Glad you found it interesting.