‘Ged’, flanked by Lewis Parker of Portland and Anna Phillips of Progress. He says they did not identify themselves or say how they would use the image.

First we were told the ‘vermin’ shirt showed the kind of person who supports Jeremy Corbyn – that they were the lowest of the low.

Then we were told the wearer had been duped into the photograph by the two people standing either side of him – Lewis Parker, who works for Portland PR, the company run by former Blair aides which many believe to have orchestrated the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) coup against Jeremy Corbyn, and Anna Phillips, who works full-time for Progress, the arch-blairite, secretively-funded party faction which includes Chuka Umunna, John McTernan and John Spellar among its members.

Then we were told it was a fake – that the words had been Photoshopped (other image editing software is available) onto the shirt by the smirking operators on either side.

Now, it seems, we find the shirt is genuine – but the wearer really was duped into having his photo taken with the right-wingers because they never told him who they were.

Now the man – Steve Walker of the Skwawkbox Blog calls him ‘Ged’ – says he is afraid for his job and his health as he doesn’t know how his employers will react.

He says the picture led to people avoiding him on the street, partly because rumours were circulating that he was part of a group that had been “inspired” (if that is the word) by the killing of the late Labour MP Jo Cox.

It seems ‘Ged’ may have a very secure case for libel against the other people in the photograph. Clearly it would not have been used in the way it has if they had not taken it, and then spread lies about it.

Would any lawyer care to take on the case? It seems easy money, to This Writer!

Much has been made by the mainstream media and those wishing to smear Jeremy Corbyn’s supporters – and by association, Corbyn himself – of a photograph of a man at a pro-Corbyn rally wearing a t-shirt bearing the words ‘eradicate the right wing blairite vermin‘.

The one person who has not had a voice in the whole matter yet is the gentleman wearing the t-shirt – the one person who knows why he was wearing it and who can humanise the caricature the anti-Corbyn camp would love us all to accept as reality. I’m pleased that the SKWAWKBOX has been able to interview him today. The interview with – let’s call him Ged – is reproduced below.

SKWAWKBOX: Ged, your side of the story has been conspicuously missing from this whole furore, so thank you for being willing to give this interview. That shirt – why did you wear it?

Ged: What it’s basically about, for years now there’s been no real opposition in mainstream politics, with the blairites going along with Thatcherism. When Corbyn started talking about opposing austerity, it gave hope to millions.

I first got the shirt on the May Day March in London – of course, people understood I was talking about political eradication. Then at the Corbyn rally, these two blairites picked up on it and publicised the picture, making out it was representative of threatening, abusive Corbyn supporters, which is just complete nonsense.

There was even stuff going around that I was part of an ‘underground organisation inspired by the recent murder of [Labour MP] Jo Cox’ – what absolute filthy rubbish. I did become extremely paranoid for a week or two and with good reason – people recognising me in the street, staring at me, giving me a wide berth. Nobody got physical with me, but I was very worried they might, especially as I was recently hospitalised for treatment for mouth cancer, which left me a bit messed up.

They’ve tried to make out as though it means something about Jeremy’s followers, but it was just one pissed off 61yr-old bloke making a political point, but they’re taking it literally and blowing it up out of all proportion.

I’m very angry about the way it’s been portrayed – like it was stirring up violence and hatred.

I’m a union health-and-safety and equality rep and we’re not exactly known for being hateful or inciting violence, so it’s just typical of the ridiculous lengths they’ll go to. Anything to smear Jeremy and his supporters!

S: How has the whole incident left you feeling?

G: Very worried, including worry about how my employers might react. I’m not in the best of health and it’s been a lot of stress.

For the full interview, visit: Exclusive: Interview with the ‘vermin’ shirt-wearer | The SKWAWKBOX Blog

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