Thoughts on Today’s Labour Party

I spent my first twenty years being a Labour Party supporter and the next fifty being a wannabe Labour supporter (and never quite making it to being an actual one) – but more of that later …

I got to gathering these thoughts together and doing another of my political blogs after reading one of the news stories to be found in today’s Southend Echo: “Southend Labour’s Ian Gilbert lost leadership vote”. The article begins: “SOUTHEND’S Labour leader was deposed by just one vote following a leadership coup driven by left-wing group Momentum, a well-placed insider has claimed. A reliable Labour source said councillors who supported former leader, Ian Gilbert, were shocked by the bid to oust him. The source said the leadership challenge was triggered by Momentum, in an “opportunistic alliance”. However it was stressed that the new leader, Stephen George, was not a member. It comes as Labour remains the biggest partner in a “city alliance” with Lib Dems and the Independents to continue running Southend Council. The Labour source said: “We spent months fighting the elections only to turn round and see some people plotting against us” …”.

According to Wikipedia: “Momentum is a British left-wing political organisation which has been described as a grassroots movement supportive of the Labour Party; since January 2017, all Momentum members must be (or become) members of the party. It was founded in 2015 by Jon Lansman, Adam Klug, Emma Rees and James Schneider after Jeremy Corbyn’s successful campaign to become Labour Party leader and it is reported to have between 20,000 and 30,000 members in 2021. The organisation has polarised Labour politicians and journalists since it was founded. Although Momentum has been compared to the Labour Party’s Militant tendency, its grassroots engagement and effective, low-budget informational videos (such as those used in the 2017 general-election campaign) have been praised. The organisation originally set up — and maintains close ties with – The World Transformed”. As folk who follow me know, I often quote Wikipedia despite its evident bias reporting on things controversial. No doubt Labour friends (Momentum and not Momentum) will have their views on this local bombshell and the part Momentum plays in matters to do with the Labour Party. While outsiders will note (some with glee) this apparent division, I know it occurs in the Conservative Party too (as Conservative friends have confided) – they just seem to be better at covering their tracks and uniting behind whoever happens to be leading the Party at any time.

So back to my story … I grew up on a Council estate and my parents were staunch Labour. Given their working-class associations, it seemed nigh unthinkable to be anything else. Besides the appeal of helping the “have nots” rather than the “haves”, there was the logic of my mum who, whenever she heard the Tories boast it was they who put an end to war rationing, pointed out that afterward prices went up such that poor people could not afford what then became on offer. I became more politically aware when Harold Wilson became Labour leader in 1963, who around that time was my hero, who I supported in his endeavours of undoing the worst effects of “thirteen years of Tory misrule” and was all set to become a Labour Party activist, but then I got religion and my spiritual mentors managed to dissuade me against getting involved in worldly pursuits like political activism and focus on higher things instead.

Onto university and college, and my first job as a teacher. While mildly interested in things political, I set on a lifetime journey of being a political neutral and/or floating voter. In the light of what I observed and experienced as a student and teacher, I even began to see things the Conservatives stood for as being desirable, such as upholding the rule of law, free enterprise and small rather than large government. Moving on, I liked Harold’s successor, Jim Callaghan, but things took a step for the worse with Michael Foot becoming leader. Even so, the SDP and the gang of four, that arose, never fully persuaded me. I was not impressed with Tony Blair, who I can now see as the globalist villain he is, despite his achievements making the Labour Party electable. Besides occasional good guys like, ironically because of his Left credentials, Tony Benn, no Labour leader ever impressed me, except for the best Prime Minister Britain never had – John Smith, who died prematurely. I note that seven years to the day I blogged: “Where next for Labour?” and, oddly enough, I made similar points then as I am making now.

So, we are where we are. I have a number of Labour (I think / hope) friends and in time past voted for some, like Ashley Dalton, despite her wholly unacceptable Brexit views. Having noted many changes in my time, I see concepts, like social justice, diversity and inclusion, coming to the fore (in principle, good things), but there is always something going on to put me off from being a true Labour follower, like supporting the taking away of our freedoms and subscribing to the Coronavirus lie, even more so than the Conservative Party, and pushing pro-choice, something I feel strongly over, on conscience grounds. In my “The Hegelian Dialectic and British Political Parties”, I gave my views on the main parties and it included reasons why in all conscience I couldn’t vote on for any of them. Would I consider standing for political office? – the answer is no! Life is short; I haven’t got long left and, besides, energy levels are low to do what needs to be done if elected, and there are other things I should be doing in my “gospel preaching, community activist, watchman on the wall” capacity. But I can encourage and pass on my “wisdom” to the next generation of political activists, especially those who can see through the Hegelian Dialectic, prepared to work on behalf of all and sundry and question the lies many succumb to.

On matters to do with Labour, I am down today to attend Southend City’s (neutral) mayor making ceremony. Congratulations to Margaret Borton (Labour) for her service this past year and I thank her for making the charity, I helped start, one of her nominated charities – Trust Links. And best wishes go to Kevin Robinson (Labour) about to be crowned 2022/23 Southend mayor. I understand he is making SVP, another charity I have been involved in, his charity. While my own focus, especially in the recent past, has been helping charities at the sharp end, but what they achieve can be so much more when politicians help to address the reasons why these charities were set up in the first place. It brings me to religion – what we need is a revival in true religion, and that is my focus!