Red city – politically at least – Liverpool

Earlier this week, some thirty-odd centrist MPs and a handful of peers and MEPs signed a letter to Jeremy Corbyn to demand that he initiate a vote of no-confidence and claiming that if it failed, then Labour’s conference policy required Labour to immediately begin campaigning for a new EU referendum – the arrogantly-titled “people’s vote”.

Labour Party chair Ian Lavery put out a series of three tweets showing why the move would be counterproductive.

But the letter was also inaccurate. Labour’s policy does not commit the party to campaigning for a new referendum – instead it simply states that the party will keep all options open while working to defeat Theresa May’s dire Brexit deal and to force a new general election.

Now two Liverpool CLPs (constituency Labour parties) have condemned their MPs’ decision to sign the letter.

The elected officers of Wavertree Labour party sent an open letter on behalf of their members to their MP Luciana Berger this morning. The letter condemning the MPs’ letter as ‘premature’, corrected its inaccuracy regarding Labour policy and criticised the focus on Brexit instead of the ‘most vital issue’ of removing the burden of Tory government from the millions suffering under it, in or out of the EU.

It also stated full support for “the leadership’s tactics and timing”:

The ‘exec’ of Garston and Halewood CLP, whose MP Maria Eagle appeared among the letter’s signatories, put out a similar statement on its Twitter account.

Other CLPs around the country are expected to follow suit.

SKWAWKBOX comment:

The patience and foresight of Labour’s leadership in biding time over the tabling of a no-confidence motion has been fully vindicated by news of the challenge to Theresa May’s leadership of the Tory party. Members should be glad Corbyn and his team refused to be ‘bounced’ into a premature move.



Whatever the outcome of that challenge, Labour must continue its strategy of working for both leavers and remainers – and reject the arrogance and the abandonment of leave voters that is implicit in the call to rush toward a so-called “people’s vote”.

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Note: SKWAWKBOX editor Steve Walker is chair of Garston and Halewood CLP. The Garston & Halewood statement was a decision of the full officer team of the CLP, passed with no votes against. He had no involvement in the decision of Wavertree’s executive to issue its letter.

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