The chair of the LibDems’ LGBT equality group has dramatically quit the party after Jo Swinson accepted ex-Tory ‘homophobe’ Philip Lee’s decision to ‘cross the floor’ (video) this afternoon.
“It doesn’t matter if we already have others as bad. You don’t make bad things better by adding more bad things.
“I thought we had a soul and principles. But apparently as long as you are on the right side on brexit we’ll take you.”
Jennie Rigg published a statement on her blog saying that she would not ‘share a party’ with ‘homophobe, xenophobe’ Lee.
Ms Rigg wrote:
I’m feeling devastated. The powers that be have let Philip Lee in.
A homophobe, a xenophobe, and someone who thinks people should be barred from the country if they are ill.
Fuck this.
Fuck this so hard.I thought the Lib Dems were not a single issue party.
I thought we had a soul and principles.
But apparently as long as you are on the right side on brexit we’ll take you.Well, I’m sorry, but no.
It doesn’t matter if we already have others as bad. You don’t make bad things better by adding more bad things. It doesn’t matter that he will increase our numbers in parliament by ONE. He thinks me and people like me are a lower class of human. I will not share a party with him.
I know you only get to do this once. I know I am ripping up almost my entire social life here. I know I am causing a lot of people a lot of organisational difficulties. And I’m sorry for all that. But there are some principles I will not compromise.
Journalist Jon Stone pointed to Lee’s voting record as evidence that “the LibDems will apparently take anyone”:
SKWAWKBOX view:
Lee’s defection has not only thrown the Tories into chaos – it has exposed the LibDems as the unprincipled opportunists and ‘yellow Tories’ Labour supporters have long considered them.
And now at least one ex-LibDem thinks the same.
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2018 Dr Phillip Lee, a junior justice minister whose responsibilities include human rights, was speaking at the launch of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s (EHRC) new report detailing Britain’s progress in implementing the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Minister suggests ‘realities of the world’ mean government will not halt attack on rights” https://www.disabilitynewsservice.com/minister-suggests-realities-of-the-world-mean-government-will-not-halt-attack-on-rights/ via @johnpringdns
The stars are aligning. Can you feel it, Jeremy?
Labour govt imminent. Don’t fuck it up!
There is one thing which unites Lib Dems, it is cowardice. Cowardice combined with confusion is a combination which results in untrustworthiness.
They will never get into power by their own efforts and therefore they hang on to the coat tails of anyone who offers them a sniff of a job. Swinson typifies all that is bad about the Lib Dems.
Jack T, do you remember the Monty Python Spanish Inquisition sketch? 🙂 Thanks for reminding me of it.
I like it especially because it diverged into the one where Cleese had the best one-liner ever as he was taking one of the actors to a different set in a lorry:
“I wanted to be in programme planning – but I have a degree.”
Skwawky- big typo in the story- should read Ms RIGG said… not Ms LEE.
Let’s hope this whole rotten system is falling apart, just like the blue and mustard tories.
Just saw a montage about their glorious leader. How on earth did that arise?you
The Tories are falling apart because a Brexit of ANY complexion was one of the most incredibly stupid ideas to cross their tiny minds. Dinosaurs in the LP and some whose only interest was in protecting their own union jobs have colluded in this complete waste of time and the loss of £billions which will never be recovered.
Sounds like the record broke, Jack.
The sign of tiny minds is an inability to think of anything except the European Union, in any circumstance.
There is likely to be an election soon in which the real issue: “what sort of country do people want to live in and leave to their kids” is going to displace the non issue of the EU.
It can’t come soon enough.
Hardly a non issue. Without power to restrict the free movement of capital any serious anti-austerity programme is dead meat.
You can’t do anything without power. Let’s stop the faux outrage because parliament is being prorogued and let’s think about getting in to number 10.
We can’t change this country for those most in need by handwringing and marching over an austerity loving neoliberal elite in Brussels. I mean why would you march to save a bureaucracy?
Christopher Fox, I think you’ll find the outrage is genuine.
Pitchforks-and-clogs genuine.
If you think the EU is a non-issue it’s a sign you don’t really have a clue of the enormity of the calamity which could befall us and an indication that you have lost the argument.
“Sounds like the record broke”
The record has been broken ever since the right wing neoliberal scam of Brexit started dominating the horizon, aided by the Tories’ little helpers – the Lexteers, taking over the role of the SNP.
All the ensuing fuss has actually been about trying to mend the record and get back to other key political issues.
Jack T
I’ve continuously opposed a no deal Brexit but believe we need a deal. No one knows what will happen, no-one has left the EU. Just because we don’t know what will happen doesn’t mean we should not leave. If every scientist started from the premise that they would not experiment because they were unsure of the answer we wouldn’t have anything new or interesting that would change our lives.
Our parliament have been against the result from the start (It reminds me of governments who had such a result would have the attitude of, there, there you’ve had your protest. We’ll take over now and everything will be the way it was before). I’ve said it before, we need the votes from leave voting areas to bring about radical change for this country under Jeremy’s leadership. Your attitude and those who think what happened today will bring those votes to Labour from leave areas are living in cloud cuckoo land. It brings the prospect of the Brexit Party with the fascism and racism at its heart a fertile feeding ground for these areas because once again we’re listening to London elite rather than those who need Labour’s help the most! I know I’m on the side of those who’ve had austerity since Thatcher. It’s about time people thought about the most vulnerable in our society because their problems didn’t start in 2010 or after the referendum. We need to think about them more and bring this country together.
Oh, have you seen the lurch to the far right in Europe? Or for that matter the Franco-German Alliance crumbling due to their lack of investment and as the EU gets bigger that doesn’t translate to being stronger. With 27 nations it becomes harder to control, scrutiny and oversight becomes harder. The democratic link between MEP’s become more distant. They’ve overstretched themselves.
Christopher Fox. Your science analogy is good but you have misread how it applies. The EU its self was an experiment and we stood on the side lines whilst it was being run. Only when we had seen a number of countries join and had witnessed the benefits did we decide to join.
To leave now and put 50% of our economy at risk by taking a leap in the dark because of the obsession of right wing fanatics like Farage is worse than stupid.
What would they have spent the money on?
You thought the lib dems had a soul and principles class? What made you think that?
Well at least this stupid nieve lib dem aimed her arrows at Swansong IT just beggars belief that she didn’t know her party was the most treacherous vile bunch of political degenerates of the last 3 decades.They have been the enablers,….the scheemers,…..the liars…..please don’t accept her into the Labour party….we’ve enough watching our own malcontents plotters.She’s only worried now it effects her!…She might make a good candidate for the Tory party?
2017 election results:
Phillip Lee (Con) 32,882 (58.8%, +3.1%)
Paul Bidwell (Lab) 16,866 (30.2%, +13.3%)
Patrick Smith (LibDem) 4,186 (7.5% +/- 0.0%)
Len Amos (UKIP) 1’521 (2.7% -13%)
Olivio Barreto (Ind) 437 (0.8% + 0.8%)
So Phillip Lee thinks he best serves Bracknell by joining the party slightly less than 5% of its 83k residents voted for.
Bracknell has however swung from 47% remain to 53% remain since the referendum according to Focaldata.
Labour apparently took almost all of UKIP’s vote. I’ve no raw data & I haven’t known Bracknell at all since 1973 so can only guess at the significance of that.
Why didn’t she speak up when the United Nations announced that her Tory friends had killed 130,000 vulnerable UK people and counting?
Or perhaps she’s in full agreement with the ongoing slaughter?