Leader who’s lost the plot

February 19, 2019

Leader who’s lost the plot: Up to 50 MPs could resign to join new rebel group as poll reveals it’s ALREADY more popular than the Lib Dems

Seven MPs officially quit the Labour Party yesterday citing ‘antisemitism’
One said it would be ‘irresponsible’ to allow Jeremy Corbyn to become PM
On the eve of his party’s greatest crisis, Mr Corbyn spent hours on Sunday down at his allotment in north London

Jeremy Corbyn was told to prepare for more resignations last night as Labour was blown apart by the biggest split in British politics in 40 years.

Seven MPs officially quit the party yesterday, saying they could no longer remain in a party that was ‘institutionally anti-Semitic’, ‘racist’ and a threat to national security.

One said it would be ‘irresponsible’ to allow Mr Corbyn to become Prime Minister. But, on the eve of his party’s greatest crisis, the Labour leader spent hours on Sunday down at his allotment in north London.

Labour’s deputy leader Tom Watson warned ‘many others’ could quit and that the party ‘may see more days like this’. He admitted that he sometimes ‘no longer recognises’ his own party.

As many as 50 MPs are now understood to be considering their positions, with Labour sources expecting a ‘steady trickle’ of departures.

Jeremy Corbyn was told to prepare for more resignations last night as Labour was blown apart by the biggest split in British politics in 40 years

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The split threatens to deal a fatal blow to Mr Corbyn’s hopes of ever reaching Downing Street and throws Labour’s future as a potential party of government into doubt.

At the same time, the Labour defectors – led by MP Luciana Berger – appealed to Remain-supporting Tories and Liberal Democrats to join their Independent Group as they took the first steps to setting up a new centrist, soft Brexit force. On an extraordinary day at Westminster:

Former home secretary Lord Blunkett warned in an article for the Mail that ‘we are facing the potential disintegration of the Labour Party’;
An opinion poll for the Mail found the breakaway movement had gone from nowhere to being Britain’s third most popular political group overnight, damaging Mr Corbyn’s hopes of entering No 10;
Tom Watson pleaded with Labour supporters not to accuse the breakaway group of betrayal, saying the party urgently needed to confront the scale of its problems;
The newly-formed group immediately faced an online backlash from supporters of Mr Corbyn who branded them ‘cowards’ and ‘traitors’;
In an emotional meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP), Jewish MP Ruth Smeeth broke down in tears as she accused the leadership of failing to tackle anti-Semitism;
It emerged Derek Hatton, hard-Left ex-deputy leader of Liverpool council, had been let back into the party;
Several Remain-backing Tory MPs were on resignation watch as Nick Boles, Anna Soubry, Sarah Wollaston, Phillip Lee, Justine Greening and Heidi Allen all refused to rule out joining the Labour defectors.

The split threatens to deal a fatal blow to Mr Corbyn’s hopes of ever reaching Downing Street and throws Labour’s future as a potential party of government into doubt (pictured: Jeremy Corbyn and wife Laura Alvarez arriving home)

Shortly after 10am, the seven MPs appeared at a press conference at London’s County Hall to announce they had moments earlier quit Labour to found a new Independent Group.

Miss Berger, Chuka Umunna, Chris Leslie, Gavin Shuker, Mike Gapes, Ann Coffey and Angela Smith said they were ‘ashamed’ of Mr Corbyn’s leadership, condemning his handling of Brexit and anti-Semitism.

Announcing their decision, Miss Berger told the press conference: ‘This morning we have all now resigned from the Labour Party. This has been a very difficult, painful, but necessary decision.’

She added: ‘For my part, I have become embarrassed and ashamed to remain in the Labour Party.

‘I cannot remain in a party which I have come to the sickening conclusion is institutionally anti-Semitic.’

The Jewish MP – who has previously been the target of anti-Semitic tweets and was protected by bodyguards at last year’s party conference following death threats – accused the Labour leadership of ‘wilfully and repeatedly failing to address hatred against Jewish people within its ranks’.

As many as 50 MPs are now understood to be considering their positions, with Labour sources expecting a ‘steady trickle’ of departures

Mr Leslie, who described Labour as ‘rotten to its core’, said it would be ‘irresponsible’ to allow Mr Corbyn to become Prime Minister, warning that his policies ‘would threaten our national security’. He accused Labour of ‘betraying’ the country over Brexit.

The MPs called on both Tories and Liberal Democrats to join their new group, as they rejected comparisons with the Social Democratic Party, which was founded by the ‘Gang of Four’ breakaway Labour MPs in 1981.

In a direct appeal, Mr Umunna urged them to ‘leave the old tribal politics behind’, adding: ‘We invite you to leave your parties and help us forge a new consensus on a way forward for Britain.’ In a statement, Mr Corbyn said he was ‘disappointed’ by the announcement.

But Mr Watson, the deputy leader, warned the resignations were a ‘wake-up call’ for the party.

He said Miss Berger had fallen victim to ‘a virulent form of identity politics that has seized the Labour Party’.

In a stark message about Labour’s future, he continued: ‘I confess I feared this day would come. And I fear now, that unless we change, we may see more days like this.’

Rebels are already more popular than the Lib Dems

The breakaway movement launched yesterday by rebel Labour MPs immediately became Britain’s third most popular political group.

If they contested the next general election as a national party they would win 8 per cent of votes, damaging Jeremy Corbyn’s hopes of entering No 10.

The biggest losers are the Lib Dems, whose support slumps from 10 to 6 per cent.

These are among the findings of the first full-scale opinion survey conducted after the seven MPs formed the new Independent Group yesterday.

Alarmingly for Mr Corbyn, the Survation poll says nearly one in three Labour voters prefer the new group to the official Corbyn-led Labour Party.

A total of 56 per cent of members of the public say the rebel MPs were right to abandon the Labour Party; just 20 per cent said they should have stayed.

There is also clear public support for their reasons for leaving. More than one in two agree Mr Corbyn is a ‘threat to UK security’ and that Labour has been ‘hijacked by the hard Left’.

The poll suggests that if the Independent Group became a national party, it would cut support for Labour to 34 per cent, down two percentage points, with the Conservatives on 39, five points ahead, a slight increase in its lead over Labour.

Given a straight choice between Mr Corbyn’s Labour Party and the breakaway movement, most voters choose the latter. Among Labour supporters, 45 per cent back Mr Corbyn with 31 per cent behind the rebels.

The best-known Labour rebel, Chuka Umunna, is the clear public choice to lead the new group. Moreover, ominously for Mr Corbyn, Mr Umunna is seen as ‘best Labour PM’ by 28 per cent, three points ahead of Mr Corbyn himself on 25. Among Labour voters, 48 per cent back ‘PM Corbyn’ with 23 per cent in favour of ‘PM Umunna’.

Mr Corbyn gets most blame for the split: A total of 43 per cent of voters see him as the main cause; 23 per cent put it down to anti-Semitism in Labour, and 17 per cent say Brexit is the main factor.

A total of 28 per cent say the splinter group makes it more likely that the Tories will win the next election; 25 per cent say it makes it less likely.

But 57 per cent of voters disapprove of the rebels’ refusal to resign their seats and stand in by-elections, against 22 per cent who are content for them to carry on as MPs.

Survation interviewed 1,023 adults online yesterday afternoon.

A disaster for Corbyn … but what does it mean for Brexit?

Analysis by Jack Doyle

Why have seven MPs left the Labour Party?

Short answer: Jeremy Corbyn. Ever since Corbyn became leader there was always a chance Blairite MPs on the right of the party – who think a Marxist Corbyn government would be a disaster for Britain – would walk. They hoped he would flop at the 2017 election and be forced to quit but instead the result only consolidated his position.

So why now?

Brexit is one factor – most of these MPs are arch-Remainers determined to secure a second referendum and are furious Jeremy Corbyn has effectively jettisoned this option in recent weeks. Anti-Semitism is another, particularly for Liverpool Wavertree MP Luciana Berger who has endured appalling racist abuse from hard-Left activists – a problem Corbyn shows no sign of doing anything about. Finally, they fear that an influx of Corbynite activists in their constituencies means they are deselected in short order – if their local party chooses someone else to be MP before the next election. So they have jumped before being pushed.

Are by-elections next?

No. All seven have said they will continue to sit in the Commons but under the ‘Independent Group’ banner. They have not yet declared they will fight a general election but that is the logical next step, and there will be no shortage of disillusioned donors and moderate Labour supporters tempted to join up. Could the new party repeat Emmanuel Macron’s success in France with Republique En Marche?

What now for Corbyn?

It’s potentially disastrous. Corbyn and his allies have long feared a Labour schism – but have done little to discourage it. They look to the 1980s when more than 20 Labour MPs – including the ‘Gang of Four’ Roy Jenkins, David Owen, Shirley Williams and Bill Rodgers – quit the hard-Left Labour Party then led by Michael Foot, to form the SDP. The splinter party failed but peeled off significant numbers of votes from Labour, giving Margaret Thatcher a huge advantage.

Will other MPs follow?

More than likely. Dozens of Labour MPs hold similar views to the splitters. More MPs could walk if they too fear deselection or if the new group appears to be gaining significant public support. Brexit will be a key factor: if it goes through, expect more resignations. A handful of Tory MPs – Remainers like Sarah Wollaston and Anna Soubry – could also be tempted to quit their party and join the independents.

What does this mean for Theresa May?

A weakened opposition is always good news – and MPs leaving Labour will reinforce the impression that Corbyn isn’t up to the job, is failing to deal with racism, and that his policies would do lasting damage to Britain. But the Tories are also deeply divided and a wider split between moderates and harder-line Brexiteers is not impossible. If – and it’s a big if – the Tories can stay unified, a weakened Labour and the rise of a third party could deliver electoral success. It makes calling an election, at any time, more tempting.

Will this make any difference to Brexit?

In the short term, probably not – because these MPs were always viscerally opposed. But it could put pressure on Corbyn to take a stronger line on pressing for a second referendum.

What happens next?

As a result of Brexit and other factors politics in Britain is highly volatile and unpredictable. Our first-past-the-post system makes it very difficult for new parties to dislodge one of the incumbents. But the prospect of such a ‘realignment’ similar to that which saw Labour dislodge the Liberals after the First World War appears likelier than ever.

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