Jeremy Corbyn will defend his Labour leadership at a rally on Saturday February 23, 2019 Jeremy Corbyn is set to defend his leadership of the Labour Party after nine MPs quit this week. The MPs quit to become independents with concerns over Corbyn’s approach to Brexit and the wider allegations of anti-semitism within the party. Corbyn is expected to remind supporters of the huge support he received at the 2017 [...]
Labour MP Ian Austin quits ‘broken’ party, saying he cannot ask people to vote for Jeremy Corbyn February 22, 2019 Ian Austin has quit the Labour party this morning, in another blow to Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership. However, the Dudley North MP said he does not plan to join the Independent Group, an alliance of 11 Labour and Tory MPs who have abandoned their parties citing a “failure of British politics”. Read more: Eighth MP quits Labour [...]
DEBATE: Is the timing now right for a new centre party like the Independent Group to flourish? February 22, 2019 Is the timing now right for a new centre party like the Independent Group to flourish? Ben Kelly, commentator for Reaction, says YES. There is no doubt that the odds are stacked against a new centre party, but it’s a case of “if not now, when?”. The far left has completed a successful top-down takeover of [...]
Theresa May tells quitting MPs the Conservative Party is not ‘warped’ like Labour February 21, 2019 Theresa May has insisted the Conservative party has not become “warped” after three resigning MPs accused it of being in the control of zealots. In an open letter to Anna Soubry, Sarah Wollaston and Heidi Allen – all of whom quit the Tories on Wednesday – the PM rejected any comparisons between her party and [...]
Tories and Labour brace for more defections to Independent Group as Brexit patience wears thin February 21, 2019 The newly formed Independent Group could soon be welcoming more disaffected Labour and Tory MPs as a number of senior figures took to the airwaves to warn of more resignations. Former Tory MP Heidi Allen, who resigned from the party yesterday along with Remain-supporting colleagues Anna Soubry and Sarah Wollaston, told ITV last night that [...]
Labour plunged deeper into chaos as another MP quits Corbyn’s ‘Stalinist’ party February 19, 2019 The Labour party has been plunged further into chaos after an eighth MP quit to join a new independent group, attacking leader Jeremy Corbyn for presiding over a culture of antisemitism. Joan Ryan, who has served in the Labour party for 25 years, said she was “appalled, horrified and angered” by Corbyn’s failure to address anti-Jewish [...]
Labour’s Magnificent Seven just made a no-deal Brexit more likely February 19, 2019 I am old enough to recall the “Gang of Four” in the eighties, when Roy Jenkins, David Owen, Shirley Williams and Bill Rogers left Labour to set up the Social Democratic Party. We know that all ended acrimoniously, with a reverse takeover by David Steel’s Liberal Party that created the Liberal Democrats. This week, we [...]
Jeremy Corbyn: MPs who split didn’t take opportunities to influence Labour policies February 19, 2019 Jeremy Corbyn says he “regrets” the decision of seven MPs to quit Labour but insisted they had ample opportunity to influence the direction of the party. In his first public appearance since Luciana Berger, Chris Leslie, Ann Coffey, Angela Smith, Gavin Shukar, Mike Gapes and Chuka Umunna broke away from the party yesterday, the Labour [...]
Jeremy Corbyn warned of more Labour defections as MPs ‘think hard’ about future February 19, 2019 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has been warned that more of his MPs will jump ship unless he listens to their concerns over Brexit and anti-semitism. Ian Austin, Ian Murray and Tom Watson were among the MPs sounding the alarm bells today following the decision of seven Labour MPs to quite the party to form a [...]
DEBATE: Have the Labour splitters helped the Conservative party? February 19, 2019 Have the Labour splitters helped the Conservative party? Lauren McEvatt, managing director at Morpeth Consulting, says YES. After the next election, the UK government will either be run by the Labour party or the Tory party. That’s the reality of the electoral system. The seven Labour splitters have denounced the modern Labour party as bullies, [...]