Thirty years ago yesterday. The Bermondsey by-election is certainly a contender for the nastiest by election in Britain. Peter Tatchell refers to it as “the lowest point in modern election campaigning: the most violent and scurrilous election in Britain in the 20th century and the most homophobic election in British history.” Losing a safe Labour seat on a swing of 44.2%, the largest by-election swing in British political history, was also an electoral disaster for Labour but one which was to a large extent self-inflicted. Continue reading
Tagged with John Spellar
Labour Party must pay £123,000 compensation to sacked Asian councillor
The Labour party has been ordered by an employment tribunal to pay former Birmingham Labour councillor Raghib Ahsan £123,000 after a 13-year legal battle. Although Raghib’s legal costs were funded by the Commission for Racial Equality, Labour’s own legal costs will bring its total bill to well over £500,000.
Raghib Ahsan, although now a solicitor, used to work at the Rover works, was president of the Birmingham Trades Council in the 1980s and a councillor for the Sparkhill Ward between 1991 and 1998. Three years ago, the Law Lords found unanimously in his favour on his claim that he was discriminated against by a selection panel in the run-up to the 1998 local government elections in which he was replaced with a white candidate who had not even been a member long enough to qualify under the party rules. Raghib Ahsan was also prevented by party officials from standing for Labour’s national executive for which he had been backed by the centre-left Grassroots Alliance. Continue reading
