And so the infamous “Falkirk episode” comes to a conclusion by way of a press release squeezed out on a Friday afternoon. The co-accused, Karie Murphy and Stevie Deans, have had the suspensions from the party lifted, and the powers-that-be conclude there is no case to answer. Reciprocating, Murphy has now withdrawn her interest in […]
Posts Tagged ‘Falkirk’
Enhance the union collective role in the party, don’t reduce it
Aug 30th, 2013 by Martin Mayer.Ed Miliband’s proposals to “mend” the trade union/Labour Party link were prompted by an internal battle for the soul of the Labour Party. This culminated in a bitter row over Falkirk, when the right wing – Blairite shadow ministers, a majority of the PLP and the New Labour pressure group Progress – cried “foul “over UNITE’s success in building support for yet another working class trade unionist candidate.
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Young Labour: “any weakening of the union link should be opposed”
Aug 23rd, 2013 by Newsdesk.The national committee of the Labour Party’s young wing, Young Labour, vowed on Wednesday night “to defend the right of trade union members through their affiliated trade union to take part in the selection of candidates at every level of the party”. Young Labour joins scores of grassroots activists and party units in expressing concern […]
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Time to publish the Falkirk report and revise Lord Collins’s brief
Aug 17th, 2013 by Jon Lansman.As we reported three weeks ago, the BBC has already concluded that”there was no major vote rigging scandal in Falkirk.” Tom Watson, interviewed in today’s Guardian, goes further. Unite didn’t recruit anyone in Falkirk without their knowledge, he says, indeed the original allegations, written by a third party and now withdrawn, were made by people not […]
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The best speech that Ed Miliband has never made (and it was written by a Tory)
Jul 30th, 2013 by Jon Lansman.You’d expect us to say that Ed Miliband “shrinks from showing pride in Labour’s links with the unions. He treats them as if they are embarrassing relations from an earlier generation. He knows he owes them a lot, but takes care not (to) be seen very often with them in public, and hates it when […]
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“There was no major vote rigging scandal in Falkirk” say BBC
Jul 28th, 2013 by Jon Lansman.An excellent BBC Radio 4 investigation into the Falkirk row was broadcast on Thursday evening following the Scottish police announcement that there was insufficient evidence to justify an investigation, never mind bringing any charges. It described the row as “much ado about nothing” and concluded that there was no major vote rigging scandal. You can listen […]
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Our union link: the status quo is worth defending
Jul 26th, 2013 by Andy Newman.The conciliatory tone of Len McCluskey’s recent speech on the Labour Party, and Ed Miliband’s proposed reforms, should be welcomed, as it steps away from escalating what seemed to be a growing crisis. There has been a witch hunt atmosphere surrounding Unite, that we need to defuse. Len says: Ed Miliband has made some bold […]
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It’s time to really mend the Labour trade union relationship
Jul 26th, 2013 by Mark Seddon.News that the police have dropped their inquiry into the Falkirk selection because of a lack of evidence does not come as a surprise to me. Having spoken at length to people who had read the Labour Party’s internal investigation and to a number of those directly involved in the selection, it became pretty clear that this […]
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London Young Labour defends the trade union link
Jul 25th, 2013 by Newsdesk.Britain’s biggest regional Young Labour group last night (Wednesday) vowed to defend the link between trade unions and the Labour party, following Ed Miliband’s announcement that he will seek to end automatic affiliation of membership. The London Young Labour executive committee voted in favour of a motion that also resolved to call on Labour chiefs […]
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Another political attack on free speech
Jul 17th, 2013 by Keith Ewing.The Battle of Falkirk is a symptom of a bitter civil war in the Labour party. On the one side are the cavaliers, the Blairite faction led by Progress, a well-funded campaign group. On the other side are the roundheads, a trade union grounded interest, committed to return the Party to its roots. Both sides […]
