Events today confirm Starmer knew content of Corbyn’s public statement before NEC panel reinstated him – clear ‘political interference’ – before then reneging on agreement after it was made
The SKWAWKBOX’s revelation two weeks ago has been confirmed by events today – that Keir Starmer’s office was fully aware of what Jeremy Corbyn was going to say on the morning before an NEC panel met to end Corbyn’s suspension for making comments about antisemitism in the Labour party that the EHRC report said he had a legally-protected right to make.
Corbyn’s advisers had been in frequent communication with Starmer’s team, which had seen and approved the words Corbyn would use that morning – and had agreed his full reinstatement. But Starmer u-turned under pressure from right-wingers disgruntled at the fact that the right-dominated NEC panel had received legal advice that there were no grounds for Corbyn’s suspension – and withdrew the Labour ‘whip‘.
Both the ‘deal’ and the subsequent withdrawal of the whip are clear examples of the kind of ‘political interference‘ in Labour’s disciplinary process that the EHRC report – which Starmer had promised to implement in full – forbids.
‘Maintream’ reporters have today pressed Starmer’s spokesperson to confirm or deny that the Labour leader’s office had full sight in advance of Corbyn’s statement – and refused to deny it, even swerving on the original version of the non-denial in the course of the day, as Sky’s Tom Rayner noted:
If Starmer and his team had not seen what Corbyn was going to say, they could and would have said so. Hiding behind ‘not going to comment on private conversations’ is an admission that they did.
And a statement seen, without objection, is a statement approved – and Keir Starmer then weaseled on a deal that had been agreed, compounding his political interference in the disciplinary process by then bypassing Corbyn’s legally-sound reinstatement.
Political interference and bad faith in the same moment. Starmer is unfit to be leader of anything. Watch out for a scapegoat or two to be thrown to the wolves to distance him from blame, as SKWAWKBOX predicted last month.
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