From Allen Keep

Sunday 9 June 2024

I'm really pleased to see this post from Simon. I hope he has better fortune than I have had in actually trying to encourage a real discussion about the nature of the current Labour Party and the prospects for the left both inside and outside of Labour. 

I fear however, that this opportunity will again be spurned in favour of complicit silence within the hostile environment for socialists in Labour or subject to sound-bite comments usually containing unsubstantiated assumptions and ad hominem attacks on those who are speaking out against the demonisation and purging of socialists within Labour and Labour's offensive against left wing views in general. Let's see.

I believe the de-selection of Faiza (not Shazia, Simon) Shaeen will prove a landmark episode in the history of Starmer's Labour as will the "selection" on the same day, of Luke Akehurst in North Durham. These two decisions mark an all-time low for Labour and will surely make an increasing number of people question why they are members/supporters of Starmer's Labour or even vote for them (which I will not be doing). 

Dr. Shaheen has been de-selected on absolutely nonsensical grounds because she is too good a candidate. She could have been a beacon for the left in Labour but Starmer is quite happy to weaken significantly Labour's chance of winning a key marginal by removing her and the threat to his hegemony she represents. She has been replaced, of course, by a Zionist Starmer loyalist. Dr Shaeen is now standing as an independent. No doubt she will be described as a splitter and Tory enabler. I hope she smashes the Tories and Labour.

Speaking of Zionists, Luke Akehurst founder of the "we believe in Israel Lobby Group" and who refers to himself as a "Zionist shit lord" is a man who openly supports Israel's offensive in Rafah (I thought that was against Labour policy?!) and refers to the UN as anti-Semitic (also not Labour's policy) has been parachuted into North Durham (not literally sadly) from Oxford as a reward for his nauseating brown nosing of Starmer but not before he apparently deleted over 2000 tweets from his account many of which are coming to light. He's a misogynist, Islamophobic bully. Perfect for Labour it seems. 

What is astonishing is that we hear absolutely nothing, as far as I can tell, from the "left" in Labour about these decisions of which many similar have been made all over the country. I've heard the arguments again and again that we mustn't rock the boat pre-election, that we all have to be on the same page and that anyone who isn't is effectively supporting the Tories. "Unity" is the cry. Unfortunately, it's the unity of the graveyard.

I wonder what would have happened to Josh Fenton Glynn in our constituency if he had similar politics and was as open and courageous as Faiza Shaheen (sadly, not the case). The hardworking local candidate and all-round good egg (who unlike Faiza Shaeen lost to a bigger majority in 2019 as opposed to very nearly winning) would have been similarly ejected no doubt. I wonder what the local Labour intelligentsia would be saying then? Fortunately for Josh, the Labour bureaucracy clearly helped him out in the selection process before the local Labour Party members were given the privilege of actually voting on their preferred candidate from a shortlist.

It would be good to hear from Labour supporters/ activists/ supporters on these issues. It's a really important discussion. One of the more depressing things about political discourse in this town of ours recently has been the lack of preparedness of people to actually engage in a genuine debate and discussion. It feels to me like the flattest, most miserable pre-election period I can remember in many decades.

See also: the HebWeb General Election page