Campaign in chaos after key figures say chairman had no right to order dismissals

Dozens of staff at People’s Vote have staged a walkout in protest at moves by the PR guru Roland Rudd to force two leading figures out of the organisation, plunging the campaign for a second referendum further into chaos.

The campaign was in disarray on Monday after James McGrory, the director, and Tom Baldwin, the head of communications, were asked to leave with immediate effect.

Rudd, who is the chairman of Open Britain, one of the organisations that makes up the People’s Vote campaign, sent an email to staffers on Sunday night saying it would be moving on to a “more structured basis”.

Patrick Heneghan, a former head of campaigns for the Labour party, was then appointed temporarily as acting chief executive of People’s Vote.

Quick guide Key figures in the People’s Vote row Show Hide These are the main players in the current and very public row within the People’s Vote campaign, which encompasses five interlinked groups, for control of the organisation. Roland Rudd The founder of City PR firm Finsbury, which he sold in 2001 for £41m, Rudd is a mainstay of wealthy and well-connected liberal left, pro-EU political circles. A former financial journalist and the brother of the ex-Conservative minister Amber Rudd, he chairs Open Britain, the best-known constituent part of People’s Vote. Rival factions within the organisation had feared Rudd was trying to seized control by forming a new company, Baybridge 2019 Ltd, in August, seemingly aimed at leading a remain-focused campaign. James McGrory The director of the People’s Vote campaign, who was among senior staff dismissed by Rudd on Sunday, McGrory was head press officer for Nick Clegg when the then Lib Dem leader was deputy prime minister in the coalition government. He then undertook the same role in the Brexit referendum for pro-remain group Britain Stronger in Europe. Known to journalists as approachable and eager, McGrory initially led on media briefings for People’s Vote before taking a more background leadership role. Tom Baldwin The former political journalist, who was spokesman for Ed Miliband until the then Labour leader’s tenure ended with the 2015 election, joined People’s Vote as director of communications in August last year and has been an energetic and regular briefer and spinner of the campaign’s view to journalists ever since. Baldwin has also been the public face of opposition to Rudd’s coup, describing the action as ‘putting a wrecking ball through the campaign’. Peter Mandelson While the New Labour grandee has long been close to Rudd – he is godfather to one of Rudd’s children – he is on the other side of the People’s Vote split, with leaked emails suggesting he was seeking to reduce Rudd’s control of the campaign. A leading pro-EU figure for decades, Mandelson was a senior minister in Tony Blair’s government and then an EU commissioner. He became a peer in 2008. Patrick Heneghan Parachuted in by Rudd to be interim chief executive of People’s Vote, Heneghan is a former head of elections for the Labour party. He held that role for some of Ed Miliband’s period as leader, thus crossing over with Baldwin. A long-standing grassroots organiser, Heneghan rose from local campaigns to key roles in Labour’s 2010 and 2015 campaigns. He has spent recent months as head of the European Movement, a long-standing pro-Europe organisation set up in 1949.

Rudd told staff he would address a meeting at 9am on Monday but he did not attend after Baldwin and McGrory turned up to work as usual. Instead, he appeared on Sky News to defend the reorganisation and sent Heneghan in his place.

About 35 staff members working for the various organisations that make up People’s Vote decided to walk out of the office in protest at Rudd’s actions, with only a handful left in the building.

They were told by email that they should take the day off and regroup with Rudd on Tuesday. In an escalation of the tensions, one People’s Vote source said Baldwin and McGrory had then been threatened with legal action for trespass.

Influential figures in the second referendum movement questioned the legitimacy of the sackings. Alastair Campbell, a former Labour spokesman and People’s Vote campaigner, tweeted: “Before people get too excited, a few facts … @RolandRudd is chair of Open Britain. He styles himself as chair of PV but this has never been agreed by all.”

Campbell claimed Rudd did “not have the right” to sack McGrory and Baldwin and appoint Heneghan as interim chief executive.

Stephen Dorrell, the chairman of European Movement UK, another organisation under the People’s Vote umbrella, echoed Campbell in voicing concern about the legitimacy of the firings. He said: “Roland Rudd is chair of Open Britain; the People’s Vote campaign includes European Movement and other partners who were not consulted about untimely management changes in Open Britain.”

The changes follow major disagreements within the People’s Vote campaign that have been developing for months about the movement’s direction and strategy.

Tension has stemmed from Rudd’s desire to move the campaign towards a more pro-remain position, with the campaign directors focusing on winning over soft leave voters and undecided Labour and Conservative members of parliament.

Play Video 7:05 On the ground with People's Vote marchers: ‘It’s not done by a long way’ – video

Baldwin, who was previously Ed Miliband’s spokesman, said Rudd did not have the authority to dismiss anyone.

“He’s making the mistake that I think a lot of businessmen do when they dabble in politics, which is to think that because they have a certain title and a board they then own the campaign,” Baldwin said. He said Rudd had made a “grotesque misjudgment” by proceeding with a reorganisation at such a time.

Baldwin added: “The clue’s in the title – People’s Vote campaign belongs to the people, not just one businessman who is hardly ever seen in the campaign. I think he’s been in the office three or four times in the last 18 months. It’s really not for him to tell the campaign what to do.”

Adding to the confusion, Rudd later appeared to argue that Baldwin had not been sacked, just moved so Heneghan could be the “one person to be in charge”.

Baldwin “has an opportunity for a different type of role, which is allowing one person to take up the reins and actually lead this thing”, Rudd told the BBC’s Today programme, saying they “need to have a proper, civilised chat about it”.

Rudd said one issue had been criticism within the campaign of Labour and the Liberal Democrats: “It’s not for us to write off any one particular party or any leadership.”

As part of the power struggle, Rudd has formed a new company to oversee a remain campaign in the event of a second referendum, even though parliament is still some way off support for one.