Nationwide Labour Party Shenanigans
15 Feb 2010
It would appear that the issue surrounding the selection of candidates in the Labour Party is not exclusive to Stoke-on-Trent.
In this week's Tribune, the magazine for Labour supporters, there is an article by Chris McLaughlin which exposes yet another example of candidates imposed or excluded against the wishes of the rank and file membership.
In this case it is the last remaining London seat to select a candidate Leyton & Wanstead.
Maybe the most telling passage in Chris's article is: "A shortlist of candidates was due to be drawn up by a special panel of the party’s National Executive Committee on February 11, after Tribune went to press.
But concerns have been raised over the process used to eliminate candidates before the shortlisting meeting. At least three members of the London Assembly were rejected, one by email and without explanation within 48 hours of applying.
Of a longlist of nine, only two candidates were women, just one was from the constituency, but all are understood to have east London connections.
The rejection message was sent by a party official on behalf of the NEC’s special selections panel. No information has been issued about the method or criteria for the whittling down process, the total number of applicants or those involved in the elimination process. The panel appears to be operating an unofficial ban on any incumbent elected member at council, regional or city level.
Just what is going on within the party that claims to be representative of their grass roots membership?
Just how can this party attract new members when it is quite clear that the membership have absolutely no say on the candidates who will represent them.
The Labour party is facing a massive financial crisis and many commentators think that the party will struggle to finance the elections. You would think that the party would make sure that it sells itself to everyday men and woman and that they feel that the Labour party is an inclusive institution and offers the same opportunities to all it's members.
We have just seen the British National Party act on a ruling by the Equality and Human Rights Commission to allow BME citizens to apply for membership of their party and yet it was passed by the house of Commons to allow the imposition of all women shortlists where parties feel that is is right to do so.
The Labour party have been openly accused of using all women shortlists to effectively stop candidate that the executive judge to be hostile.
Surely any discrimination is wrong, be it on race, colour, religion, gender, or sexuality?
Locally we have still to be informed who the official Labour candidates for the local elections will be. We have been told who won't be standing and who the party's executive have deemed as unsuitable or hostile.
There are more rumours circulating that there may well be an attempt to remove the Chair and Secretary of Stoke Central at the AGM this week. I have also been tipped that at least one branch will ignore direction and select their own candidate for the local elections.
NEC member Peter Kenyon is aware of what has gone down here in Stoke-on-Trent and he is also aware and concerned of what has taken place in other areas of the country.
Peter suggested that local party members should be allowed to observe the selection process in Leyton & Wanstead, this was rejected.
Peter said: "There is no transparency in the whole process."
I think this comment sums up the actions of some members of the NEC selection committee, the regional officers [PAID] and members of the local hierarchy perfectly in the selection process here in Stoke Central.
Hardly a ringing endorsement for someone considering Labour Party membership is it?
Oops Tony - in your list of
Oops Tony - in your list of things not to discriminate against you missed out .....AGE.
The incredibly old and wrinkled
Mick Williams
Quite right Mick, my
Quite right Mick, my apologies. Old people eh? You can't beat 'em...... pity! - Only joking of course.
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I love Stoke-on-Trent. We Are just trying to get the stories out there... follow me on Twitter @Tony_Walley
Discrimination is wrong and
Discrimination is wrong and those that offer discrimination as a tool of power are not to be trusted. How can you?
They will eye you up and down, check out your colour, guess your race and sexuality and run the rule over your politics. Then they will make a decision on which way to act.
I wouldn't trust any political party that uses discrimination and I wouldn't trust any member that turns a blind eye to it.
"I was only following orders"........
and then the trap door opened.
Another day, another attempt
Another day, another attempt to select its candidates to fight the 2010 local elections botched by the Labour Party’s high command, it might have happened in the London seat of Leyton and Wanstead this time but the situation seems worryingly similar to events that have played out here over the past few months.
It’s enough to make you wonder if the party, on a regional and maybe even national level, is in some way trying to destroy itself. Nothing else could explain the leadership’s engagement in a far from amicable divorce from the grassroots membership.
The sad thing is that in Stoke, and I’m sure the same is true in Leyton and Wanstead; the members who have been thrown so thoughtlessly aside by the party hierarchy are still working hard to help fight the coming election.
That says a lot about their loyalty and strength of character, what a shame those don’t seem to be things the party they continue to serve so well values any longer.
The above views are expressed in a personal capacity.
Surely any discrimination is
Surely any discrimination is wrong, be it on race, colour, religion, gender, or sexuality?
Hey up is this the BNP or Labour lol.
I have no aims or values
I have no aims or values consistent with the Labour Party, I am booted off any and all panels and not worthy of representing Labour in my ward, this City or at national level.I am considered an embarrassment, anti women and my ward went 'all women shortlist'.
Phew! Talk about a demolition job!
All I've done is to support a pensioner who is being discriminated against by a political party.
(He has the full support of all three CLPs, local, regional and national Co-op movement and near entire membership of the Labour Party in Stoke-on-Trent) (apart from Rob and his little helper).
Now I'm told that the Sandwell vultures (Birmingham forever and un-voted!) are circling me for my role in Stoke Central.
Help!
Has not it been the case for
Has not it been the case for some time now that some selection meetings are fixed. It used to be said in the 1950s that Hugh Dalton a senior figure in the party used to fix selection meetings in the north east for likely lads. Usually this meant Oxbridge men.
In 1995 I experienced it myself in Leek when Charlotte Atkins became PPC in the Moorlands. It was evident that Walworth Rd were pushing her and that she had got a membership list at least 18 months before the selection contest. A Labour Party friend of mine was called on unexpectedly at her home by Charlotte months before the contest who just happened to be passing.
Most activists in leek were supporting a local Councillor from Cheddleton- Alistair Pegg- although another strong contender was Charle Clarke. I went to the final selection conference as a non voter as I had transferred my membership of the party down from West Lancs so I did'nt have a vote. At the conference it seemed clear to me that Clarke was the best candidate although Charlotte won easily.
It caused a gret deal of bad feeling in Leek for months afterwards.
I'm not saying that Charlotte has not proved an admirable MP; but definately paths were smoothed.
People may also recall the incident when Rob Flello was sending post cards to Stoke South party memebrs when he was at the Labour Party conference in 2004. How did he get hold of the list of names and addresses?
On the subject of the Labour Party there was a tribute in the paper to Albert Booth former minister in the Callaghan government who has recently died. He came to Stoke for a union dinner my father organised in the late 70s when Booth was Employment minister.
Unlike many when Booth left Parliament he refused a peerage and stuck to his non nuclear principles which cost him his seat in Barrow. A union activist and a local Councillor he never wanted anything other than to represent his home town. He represents the best of old Labour and while we are on the subject his eventual successor as Labour MP for Barrow was the very new Labour John Hutton described by his fellow Labour MP Paul Flynn in the following way
"I have criticised John Hutton as a shallow politician who has never been accused of having an original thought. He has trained himself to be a Blair clone. He dressed like Blair and abided by the ten commandments of Blairism. He even started to imitate the way that Tony Blair speaks, starting every other sentence with 'Look!....'. In all his many jobs he has parroted the usually bad ideas that lobbyists have crammed into his head. He fell head over heels in love with nuclear power and said, “Nuclear is UK's new North Sea oil”. He promulgated unattainable ‘choice’ in schools and hospital with religious fervour.
Now he has given us a hint on why he resigned as Secretary of State for Defence. He wanted to send 2000 mores troops to Afghanistan even though they would be fresh targets for IEDs. It’s a policy that's populist but deadly. Again he caved in to pressure this time from the military. The truth may be beginning to emerge.
We may wait to hear how much money John Hutton will get from his nuclear French masters. It might all be voluntary work of course. Somehow, I think not. I can't wait to get back to parliament to get stuck into this outrage of an appointment. I wonder if John Hutton can be persuaded to come back to justify himself before the Select Committee. I shall start sharpening up the adjectives now ready for our discussion"
Ouch! but if you want a good analogy of the direction the way in which Nu Labour has travelled then look at the careers of the two Labour MPs for a Cumbrian town
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"No one in this world, so far as I know,has ever lost money by underestimating the intelligence of the great masses of the plain people. Nor has anyone ever lost public office thereby". HL Mencken
www.billcawleyresearch.co.uk
Good to have Bill's
Good to have Bill's recollections of individual failings and it brought to my mind (in the wake of the scandalous takeover of Cadbury's by Kraft) the actual legislation which allowed this to happen.
In 2002 the Secretary of State for Business was a certain Patricia Hewitt whose 'Enterprise Act' of that year actually decreased her powers to intervene in takeovers and mergers - which had been the case previously. This made possible the £11bn takeover of Boots by an American private equity group (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts). What's wrong with that ? you may ask. Nothing really, except that the taken over Boots now employs Patricia as a 'special consultant' on £50,000 a year. Is this a token of gratitude or was a deal done prior to the takeover ?
Is her recent attempted coup (with Geoff Hoon - who has now said he will be standing down at the election) yet another cock-up on her part or is it another device to get to a position where she can influence legislation on behalf of her REAL constituents (private sector takeover specialists) ? The nation should be told.
Remember, the price of freedom and democracy is eternal vigilance (and a good memory comes in useful too).
Mick Williams,
Convenor, D4S.
Bill, I was given great
Bill, I was given great encouragement (by the Tories at national level) to go along to the Crewe with my CV with a view to becoming a potential shortlister for the Labour Party. It's a long story.
As soon as I put my name in the hat, the Tories started to send me photographs of who won (Tamsin), her children, her car,her husband, her mother and her house!
They told me that Labour was corrupt and I was a fool.
I thought, hello! The shortlisting isn't until a week on saturday and the selection some time after, who are these jokers? But it became apparent that the 'shoe-in' was needed with the class card to go with it.
When we lost (we didn't lose, this lot did), a new list as needed and so I reapplied, knowing that all is fair in love and war. I went to the open evenings on which we all got to know each other.
Within half an hour, I knew who was to win, his wife's name, his former job and how he did it!
I was aksed by one old die hard (Councillor), what I could do for the Crewe and Nantwich CLP?
Win it was my answer.
How he inquired?
By telling you the truth at all times, I replied.
One old Lady(Councillor) asked me what I knew of Crewe?
You have Council House estates that people should complain about more, I went into great length of her theatre and how her bus station should be demolished.
I named the Alex squad! I also suggested that Crewe town centre should be moved approximateley 1 mile towards the railway.
I never took up the invitation to be shortlisted, but chose instead to stick my fingers down my throat.
Gary
PPC ***** *****
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