Seeing many Conservative friends pondering over which choice to make on the leadership is quite a sad experience really. Though, like any political leadership vote, it seems to bring out the worst in people.
I keep being asked how I would vote if I had one, but its like being asked “How you would like being run over, by a bus or a train?
The choice is woeful and normally you would want to push hard for a GE, but then, the choice is woeful.
So I didn’t watch the Panorama programme on exposing the Antisemitism within Labour until early this morning, having seen some of the reaction on Social Media last night, then I was bracing myself, but really it was much worse than I feared. But not just because of the antisemitism, but of the reaction, both within the documentary and outside of it.
The programme was damning. Its one of these things that when its laid out in front of you, with so much of it coming directly from those involved, that first hand experience. But also a lot of it straight from actual footage and emails.
The reaction from the Leader and the inner circle was as expected – deflection, whataboutary, and blaming everyone else. Most significantly is the assertion that this is a direct attack on Jeremy himself, therefore it can’t be true. Two things really came to light about this, firstly is the lack of reflection that there might be a problem, and secondly the rather clever move that this is a direct attack on Jeremy. I am still in two minds if Jeremy himself is actually antisemitic (either deliberately or through unconscious bias) or if he is just a figurehead with no actual ability to change the direction of the party. But one thing is very clear, that by focusing it as an attack on Jeremy, then everyone else who is actually leading from the back seats is delivering their own agenda through the figurehead and ensuring they don’t take the heat.
What is more distressing really is the hand wringing from members, MPs, and councillors. I kinda lost it with Darren Jones MP this morning, when I simply replied to his tweet of outrage with “So what are you going to do about it Darren”. I then followed up with a retraction of sorts, because its not just Darren. When you see tweets from Tom Watson and others, the deputy leader, saying how awful it is, then you have to ask :
WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN DOING FOR THE PAST 4 YEARS
This is not new news, this problem has been talked about as its escalated.
But all of that aside (that’s a lot to put aside), but for me its about how the staff have been treated, and glibly blamed/framed/scapegoated for this. For Labour staff members to have resigned and had mental breakdowns, to contemplate suicide because of their working conditions, and then to try to hush it up with NDAs. The party of the workers, who have staff that have been threatening to strike, who have been called all sorts of names and pushing them to the edge. Well WTAF!
Now, I’m not a member anymore, I resigned in protest, partially about this, the general and personal bullying and Brexit. But it still breaks my heart, because fundamentally Labour Values are still my values, I hope that one day this will all end and I can get back on board with a decent lefty party that cares more about communities and people. But whilst this shit is happening, and is still supported by decent people who do nothing more than tweet their anguish, then there is a point where the party will not recover, indeed, that might have already happened.
The Labour Party is supposed to be about helping those who need it. If you are a member and still paying to support this bullying and racism, then what are you going to do about it, are you going to tweet your anguish, or do something to actually make a difference? If you are staying to fight from the inside, then I can only suggest, taking cover until it all blows over isn’t working!
Even though its around 18 months since we moved away from Gloucester, I still keep a fond eye on what goes on politically, not only because of my own involvement, but because it is a bit of an indicator of what could happen nationally. There are council by-elections in Podsmead and Barnwood wards. One caused by a resignation and the other by the passing Lisa Noakes, a lovely lady who I was very sad to hear of her passing. I’m not going to comment on the Barnwood challengers, mainly because I fully expect it to remain Tory – but with a month to go, the runners and riders for Podsmead have been announced, and I can’t help but wryly smile over the stories behind some of the main contenders.
So Podsmead should be a hardcore Labour Ward, but it isn’t. It has had its share of some great councillors and candidates but it is a very personality driven area too, where I have seen some amazing candidates not get the seat (its a single councillor ward). Whilst it somewhat sticks in the craw to admit it, the last good proactive councillor they had was Jeannie Watkins. This was irritating as she is a Tory, but she did get stuck into the community stuff, and really brought some funding and spotlight to the area, which is exactly what Podsmead needed at the time. But what it needs now is someone who will hold the council to account, to ensure Podsmead gets its fair share and the attention that it deserves.
Its interesting to see the current Tory Candidate, Byron Davies. I say interesting because he was a strong Labour Supporter and was my right hand man in Podsmead when I was campaigning for the GE in 2017, and he did a lot of work there in 2015 too. He left Labour not long after the 2017 election because he saw the change in the local party, and whilst he was a strong Corbyn supporter, he seemed to become very disillusioned there too – I can’t blame him for that, after-all I have left and was never “illusioned” with Corbyn in the first place. But I don’t understand how he could jump from Labour to the Tories. He wants to campaign for the least well off, yet it is the Tories who have caused most of it with their ideological austerity. I think as a young man he has a lot of potential in Gloucester Politics, but I think he will struggle in the Conservative Party, he will find it very ideologically challenging when the gloss wears off.
I would love to comment on the Labour Candidate, Lisa Jevins, but I don’t think I have ever met her. I know she is active in one of the Podsmead groups, and has been for a number of years. She might have been a member for years, and I’ve just never seen her, but I suspect she might be a newer member, or a member who has been motivated by Corbyn to get involved. I guess to get a flavour, I would ask her opinion on the Chris Williamson debacle, and then you might get an idea of where she stands.
The Brexit Party is running candidates in both wards, as are UKIP and it will be interesting to see their results, particularly as this is the first local elections that the Brexit party has run in. I suspect they will take more votes from the Tories that people would be willing to admit, and Labour will suffer too, we have to remember Gloucester is a Leave city. Its this that could set the ground for some shocks in both wards, but particularly Podsmead.
The Greens are not standing aside in this fight either which will annoy the Liberal Democrats somewhat I should think. The LD’s are running Seb Field, an experienced Councillor from when he lived in that end of the city, and now he is living the other end of the City, he is clearly hoping to put some of that knowledge and experience to good use. At any other time I would suggest that the Liberals wouldn’t have a hope, but when you have a good community campaigner as a candidate, and the Tories and Labour bleeding candidates to Brexit parties then the Lib Dems may just do the business.
I have to admit to hoping Seb does well here. I have known him for a long time, and whilst we have differing political opinions and we have had some really good political debates (and the odd spat) over the years, I really respect the fact he has not only the good of his ward at heart, but the good of the city too. He thinks in the bigger picture and has lots of experience in working with the council to get results. I think he could help the Liberal Democrats redefine themselves to be more than just the protest vote.
So its Corbyn Labour vs Ex-Labour Vs Lib-Dem with some Brexit spoilers thrown in.
For the first time ever, I am endorsing a Liberal Democrat candidate in Gloucester. These are strange times indeed.
The Tories are running through the motions of selecting a new leader. But its already a farce, with the competition seeming to be about who is going to come second and have their future leadership run started. Boris is a clear favourite, not only with the MPs, but from hearing news coverage, with Tory Members too, therefore, unless something amazing happening, he is going to be our next prime minister. Yes, that gaff laden buffoon is going to represent us on a National Stage.
London, UK, 1st Sep 2015: Boris Johnson
Mayor of London seen arriving at Global House in London
But scarily, the Boris tactic of not screwing up seems to be not to turn up. Not deploying a gaff on TV is solved by not even being there. And yet, the Tories still think he is fit to address our country in times of crisis, to show compassion and feeling, and to improve our international reputation and respect. Lord help us.
The other candidates are all very nicely falling by the wayside for him, pretty much with the exception of Rory Stewart. He seems to be the only candidate who is challenging the Status Quo, the only one who seems to be vaguely moderate and trying to do things differently. If I had to choose, then I would choose him.
But that choice is still the least worst option, its like choosing what grade of sandpaper to use instead of toilet roll.
Fundamentally, right now there is no inspiration within Westminster – we need someone who will not just see us through the Brexit farce, but will be able to deal with the aftermath. There is currently no-one on the Green Beeches who could deliver community cohesion, many of them can’t even keep their own party together.
Guido Fawkes had an “exclusive” last night that suggested the Change UK MPs were getting cold feet and already talking about a split. With some, seemingly corroborative, comments in the Independent and New Statesman then it would seem that, if nothing else, the honeymoon period is over.
Lets start by recognising that the grouping, the Tiggers, did an incredibly bold thing, they stepped up and said “not in my name” and that has to be applauded. They gave people a reason to get excited about politics again, especially with the talk of challenging the status quo and doing things differently.
They did some rather cool things, like getting an Amendment for Peoples Vote on the table (granted, only for Labour to stab it in the back), they did make me reflect on my own actions and what I was doing with myself.
But that is kinda where the fairy-tale ends. They inspired a lot of people, an independent group supporters network organised itself as well as other social media groupings. But none of this was really linked or even influential within the main group.
The EU elections were probably the biggest mistake so far. They acted as a catalyst for rushed ideas and silly decisions. The fact they contested the elections was pretty dumb really. Lots of people put themselves up, but vetting such a list and getting selections done was clearly never going to go well. And within days of announcement, a number of candidates has their social media delved into and things were coming out which led to candidates standing down quite quickly.
But even before that, the registration with the Electoral commission was an interesting episode too. The name is ridiculous, as was the hamburger logo. As someone who works in usability and design stuff, it was just way too close to the menu icon we are all used to seeing on mobile websites.
****************************
Breaking News,
As I have been dipping into writing this, there has been confirmation of the split. Only 5 MPs are left, with Anna Soubry as leader, with followers Chris Leslie, Joan Ryan, Mike Gapes and Ann Coffey.
******************************
So, this really looks like the end of the road for Change as far as I see it. I thought it had potential, but never really broke out of the Westminster bubble. No doubt the party itself will continue, but quite frankly it will be more as the dinner party joke than a serious concern.
What is the more interesting question is what will Heidi, Chuka, Sarah, Luciana, Gavin and Angela do now – They are the more prominent and dominant force out of the group, you could argue they had the most to lose, have they lost it, or will the Lib Dems suddenly gain some dynamic people?
So Theresa is off, and quite frankly, who can blame her. She can say she tried her best. But when you not only start off with a lousy hand, and then try to bluff your way through the job, to only have a choice of being called or folding, then when you only hold a pair of deuces, then its probably better to fold. But the utter humiliation must be having been taken down by your own side, or maybe its not.
Its interesting because I know when she became prime minster and she make her initial speech outside No. 10, a lot of people in the Labour party were very worried. Her speech was very much aimed at the centre ground which was being vacated by Labour. There was lots of debates about how to take this on, but in reality that wasn’t the threat. The Tories have been that busy moving to the right that her ambitions were never going to be realised.
Its ironic, she has had the weakest shadow government in a long time, one that has hung itself on ideology rather than pragmatism, and on Europe, a staunch ally. Any competent leader should have romped home. And she clearly thought the same, hence why she called a GE. She won, but only just, with a dirty backroom deal, but she did win. How bitter victory must have tasted.
Her best speech, a bit like Ed Miliband, was her resignation speech. We saw some humanity and humility. If we were being generous, we could say she was sorry for the country she loved. But in reality, she was sorry for herself, and whilst I don’t blame her for that, an on a personal level I can sympathise, we should remember her legacy:
She had one job, deliver Brexit. She failed to deliver her own vote, never mind anyone else. She has increased division and intolerance within communities, families and friends, so it is quite right she vacates as soon as possible, indeed the bigger question has to be how did she survive so long.
So, now the race is on to see who will replace her. The field is wide and getting wider, but is any of them someone who can heal the Country and bring it back to prosperity, and not only that but heal our international reputation and bring back some dignity and respect?
More simply, does Boris inspire the words Dignity and Respect? No, didn’t think so. We are screwed!
Is the headline harsh, perhaps it is when you think that a leader is only as strong as their team, and quite frankly, when you have the two main parties that are so divided, how could we ever hope this was to be easy! And its not surprising that the representation in the commons is so divided when the country is too. However when we consider the situation we are in and the decisions that have to be made, what can we expect out of May and Corbyn. Will they actually have a proper discussion, will they come to a compromise, and will they but their compromise to the people?
Im guessing that it will either be a very short or a very long conversation. But I can’t see how it ends well. They both want Brexit, May because she wants to deliver it, despite being a Remainer, and Corbyn because he is a Brexiteer despite the Party policy of remain.
So, I think we will get one of two outcomes, either we get a lot of grandstanding and Corbyn cops the blame for a crash out, or we get a hashed together agreement, which will probably be presented to the Parliament, and then I would guess that it would be whipped by both sides.
That’s when the excitement really starts because each part of the deal will cause divisions. Most significantly will be the public vote. If its not part of the deal, then people will not vote for it on the left. It its not even mentioned then the left will fracture even more than it currently is. If the immigration and common market are part of the deal, then then ERG will kick off.
And who said politics was boring….
So, a few years ago, I started my own “Policies by Baz”, a short canter round some issues that I think would be good for the country. Now I am an Independent, what could those be now? Do they change? Actually, probably not very much. I was lucky enough to set the agenda for the majority of my own campaigns as well as organise Labour manifestos, so there are likely to be few surprises. However there are probably things that I hadn’t considered, or institutionally blind to. Therefore, I have put some ideas below, what do you think? What would you do differently? What would you change?
Fundamentally I think that all policies should be built on a set of values. That means you bring people together of the same heart, rather than just the same head. Whilst some politicians may see this as a career, it is peoples lives that we are working with. Fundamentally, we need to care, for ourselves and each other. But we should also be looking at:
There is a place for public ownership, and my view on this hasn’t changed. If a service can not meet my competition test, then they should be brought into public ownership.
Remove the middle tier of government and have combined authorities. The lowest level of government should be the town/parish or community council. In my heart , I think the lowest tier should not be political at all. But his may be difficult to achieve. The borough tier and country tier are often conflicting and there are more councillors than you can shake a stick at. Lets be clear, councillors are valuable, but you can have way too many of them. This move would save money and resources.
This, combined with a complete shake up of welfare, and the tax system, would increase everyone’s standard of living. If everyone has UBI, then the tax free element of salary would lower.
When you think about it, there is a slush fund of money that for those pwople in public sector get paid and immediately had a third of their tax back to the crown, who then give it back to them next month, and they then hand it straight back. This is generating work, and not being very effective. Therefore those people who are paid directly by national government (Forces, NHS, etc) should not pay income tax.
We take politics for granted and the majority of people do not vote. Voting should be compulsory but it should also be more accessible. IE voting should be in places that are accessible. Also, there should be voting online. Political education in schools is a must.
Change the voting system to an AV+ type system (Scottish/welsh versions) perhaps? I wasn’t a fan of that originally, but having been through the Police and Crime elections, I think transferable vote works, but I do think that anyone who wants to change it should probably win under the current method before doing so.
Libraries themselves are used by fewer and fewer people, for two reasons, firstly the change in readership to e-books and secondly the ability to access knowledge on the internet (smart phones and computers). We are seeing libraries increasing used for computer access, a place for reading based activities (for children etc). We should be building and ensuring every community has a community hub, which as a minimum has a community meeting room, a library room, an IT room, a social club and an area to meet your elected representative.
Social housing should be aimed properly at encouraging tenants to buy, if and when they can. However, this should be coupled with the demand that every house sold should be replaced by a new build house to go on stock.
Rather than hiving off bits of the NHS, bring it all together. End to end service. This should be a priority, but I have written more on this here
Drive more vocational skills in schools, teach hands on skills. Practical life skills as well as academic stuff. What is education there for, to educate children so that they will be useful members of society. Make school exciting and inspirational. Make it coincide with the working day. Talk to industry about their needs. Raise the bar for university, make vocational equivalents. Also we need to push for through life learning.
These are just a few of the ideas, areas we need to look at. I am looking at many things with new eyes, but my heart hast changed. However it is a fantastic time to look at everything openly and see at what opportunity we now have.
But what do you think – what does new politics look like to you???
Its probably slightly longer than two weeks, but having resigned from Labour, I feel much better, I guess I simply didn’t realise how much it was getting me down. My resignation has been further reinforced in my mind by the number of statements coming out from Labour about their floundering stance(s) on Brexit, as well the vast number of people who have been in touch, some to try and get me to change my mind, some to tell me I have done the right thing, and some (or one in particular) to inform me that “you always were a Tory anyway, so glad to see the back of you, you warmongering ba*tard”.
I was intrigued to see the new grouping by Tom Watson, but this (I think) further compounds the factional Labour problem and will simply further persist the problem. What is the party about, currently its about a string internal fight that has been going on for 3 years. Some say its going back to what values it should have, and not “New Labour” ones. And they are probably right, and that further reinforces why its right I have left. I think Labour in Government achieved great things, and when we are being made to forget or ignore that, then I refuse (to which people say “but Iraq”, as if that negated everything else, it really doesn’t).
The amount of press interest was surprising, though I guess in hindsight it shouldn’t have, but particularly in Gloucester I was amused that the local Labour party insisted that there was no problem and no-one wanting to leave, which was in direct contrast to the number of people that got in touch to say that they were in a similar position and had either left, or were close to leaving.
Fundamentally, the question that hit home the most was from a prominent Labour member who told me I should be fighting it from within, but then asked, quietly, “Do you feel better for it?” To which my answer was, and is, yes. I feel like I don’t have to apologise anymore, to worry about the backlash and steeling myself for abuse. To say what I feel.
My only regret is that there still a number of great people in the Labour Party who feel they have to stay and fight their own party. That is not why they got into the Party, they joined, as I did, to make a difference. My message to them is simple, if you feel you are still in the right place, then great and good luck. But don’t be afraid to leave, think about what is being said and done in your name. The Labour Party does not define you and your values, its just an organisation, its the people who define the party, and what did you join to do? Fight other members?
Amanda and I were lucky enough to get tickets and be at the Principality Stadium when Wales achieved their Grand Slam victory. It was a fantastic game to watch, and Cardiff is always a magnificent host for rugby games. Even afterwards, both Wales and Ireland fans came together to cheer on Scotland in their amazing comeback against England….
However, one moment that really choked me up was the minutes silence for the awful attack in New Zealand. I guess you have to have been to the stadium to appreciate just how noisy it is, how loud the singing gets and the chanting. To then hear it fall silent, and I mean properly silent, it was a brilliant show of respect, and certainly made an impact on me.
Well done Wales, on the result, and the Respect.
