Don’t have a strop, Change UK, because Labour will contest an election IN THE NORMAL WAY
Gavin Shuker: Labour wants to run a normal election campaign so he’s going to sulk.
How ridiculous of the most ridiculous political organisation to turn up (until the Brexit Party arrived).
Apparently Change UK, the Green Party and the Liberal Democrats have been discussing the possibility of uniting behind an independent candidate in the upcoming Peterborough Parliamentary by-election.
This candidate would have supported remaining in the European Union and would have advocated for a “People’s Vote” second referendum on that subject.
There was nothing to stop them from doing this.
But it seems the candidate they chose to support has now withdrawn, after the Labour Party said it would not join this alliance and would campaign to win the constituency on its own terms.
This should come as no surprise because Labour is not a “Remain”-supporting party – or “Leave”-supporting, in fact. Labour respects the result of the referendum but is sceptical about the possibility of negotiating an acceptable decoupling deal with the EU and will support another referendum if a workable deal proves impossible to achieve.
And this is a by-election for a Parliamentary constituency – not a mini-referendum on Brexit – so Labour is well within its rights to want to campaign on local issues.
Change UK’s response was to throw its toys out of the pram. Here’s part of Gavin Shuker’s statement:
“Senior Labour figures, including senior figures campaigning for a people’s vote, made it clear that they would strenuously disrupt the campaign and obstruct an independent candidate, driven by fears that it would harm their party in Peterborough.”
In other words, he was whining about Labour holding a normal election campaign.
One wonders whether this outburst was prompted by the fact that Change UK didn’t manage to register a candidate of its own in time (the Greens and Lib Dems did).
Reaction on the social media has been acid:
Good god almighty, Change UK The Independent Group _whining_ about the fact that Labour intends to campaign in the Peterborough by-election & try to win it https://t.co/zCU9lwWUyi
— Edmund Griffiths (@EdmundGriffiths) May 9, 2019
You know what Gavin, I expect the Tories & maybe even the Brexparty will try to "obstruct" your candidate as well, bc however much you go Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa about it they are different political parties & they are not under any obligation to be nice to you & let you win
— Edmund Griffiths (@EdmundGriffiths) May 9, 2019
https://twitter.com/GarethFearn/status/1126532154350030855
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They could all have a by-Election of their own if they stood in their own constituencies. and let people have a by election and chose if they still want them to represent their wards.. instead of Peterborough. But they won’t. They know they would lose.
The only change from Change UK would be to stand for election. They’ve not done that before. They’re not elected and might never be.
Och, the irony; the Party, called Change U.K. that appears to want things to stay the same!
Lisa Forbes will be my MP.
I am fighting with all my will.