Category: Labour
-
Labour’s Scottish gamble
Politico has an intriguing nugget on Scotland: And while a serious revival in Scotland appears unlikely — one party official admitted only 15 seats north of the border are competitive for Labour, and that “we won’t win them all” — aides are bullish that Tory warnings about Starmer needing a backroom deal with the SNP to secure…
-
Hardline security bills pose dilemma for Labour
Several bills going through the House of Commons at the moment demonstrate the Johnson's Government's commitment to the hard edge of state power, in both its overt and covert forms. While this legislation raises significant human rights concerns, Labour has been cautious in challenging the Government so far. This may reflect Keir Starmer's strategy of…
-
Ferrier decision could set up SNP-Labour battle
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has today called on one of her own party’s MPs to resign from the House of Commons. The SNP withdrew the whip from Rutherglen and Hamilton West MP Margaret Ferrier after it emerged she had taken a train from Glasgow to London while Covid positive.
-
Jeremy Corbyn – The DUP connection
The DUP could talk to Labour in a hung Parliament, but only if it was led by someone other than Jeremy Corbyn, Arlene Foster suggested at the weekend. However, there are signs that some in the DUP take a more nuanced view. The Belfast Telegraph's political editor Suzanne Breen noted that East Antrim MP Sammy…
-
Justice for the Forgotten to speak on Troubles Legacy in London
The legacy of the Troubles in Northern Ireland is unusually high on the Westminster agenda at the moment, so it worth taking note of a very timely meeting being organised by the Labour Party Irish Society next Monday: We want to alert you to an extremely important event we are organising for MONDAY 2 JULY,…
-
The Mitrokhin Playbook – How Cold War smears failed in Italy
In a couple of posts last week I noted that the Conservative campaign to link Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to Eastern bloc espionage had long-standing precedents in British politics. Tonight, however, we have entered a phase more reminiscent of events on the continent.
-
Sun doubles down on the Czech connection
Tonight’s Sun doubles down on allegations this morning’s attempt to link Jeremy Corbyn to Czech intelligence. I examined the initial story here. There’s also a useful account of one of the Sun’s sources, Professor Anthony Glees, at Political Scrapbook. The new element in the follow-up is an intervention from former MI6 chief, Sir Richard Dearlove,…
-
Corbyn, McDonnell, and the Irish peace process
As many people expected, the election campaign has brought rigorous scrutiny of Jeremy Corbyn’s past statements on Ireland, as well as those of his shadow chancellor, John McDonnell. Both are London MPs with close links to the Irish community in the city, particularly significant in Corbyn’s constituency of Islington North.
-
Brexit Terms and the Commons – The Numbers for Round Two
Back in October, I looked at the likely voting numbers in the Commons ahead of Labour’s motion for a parliamentary debate on Brexit strategy. Despite a notional Government majority of 16, the Government elected to accept Keir Starmer’s opposition motion on 12 October, suggesting that they feared defeat. I have updated the figures below ahead…
-
Labour’s Scottish dilemma
The Herald is reporting that Jeremy Corbyn will rule out an electoral pact with the SNP during an upcoming visit to Scotland. Compass Chair Neal Lawson has criticised any such move in an article for Labourlist. My thoughts from the Labourlist comments here: