Corbyn warns ‘suspension without explanation’ is bringing Labour Party officers into disrepute
![In the letter to Iain McNicol, Corbyn calls for the reason for suspension and name of complainant to be given to the suspended party member [Image: Jane Barlow/PA].](https://voxpoliticalonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/160828-Jeremy-Corbyn.png)
In the letter to Iain McNicol, Corbyn calls for the reason for suspension and name of complainant to be given to the suspended party member [Image: Jane Barlow/PA].
If the manner in which member suspensions are being handled is “damaging the reputation of the Labour Party”, then those responsible may themselves be suspended – with the possibility of worse to follow – for bringing the party into disrepute.
It’s why some high-profile Corbyn-supporting members were suspended earlier this year – most of whom have now been reinstated after investigations revealed no cause for concern.
It seems some party functionaries are becoming reckless.
Jeremy Corbyn has accused Labour officials of suspending members without letting them know why or giving them the chance to appeal, as tensions surrounding the party’s leadership election intensified over the weekend.
The Labour leader has written to the party’s general secretary, Iain McNicol, about a spate of suspensions warning: “The online and press speculation around the reasons for suspension and how these are being dealt with are raising concerns about whether members are being treated in a consistent and proportionate manner,” he said. “This in turn is damaging the reputation of the Labour Party.”
In the note, seen by the Guardian and which he signed off “JC”, Corbyn said he wanted Labour to bring forward the recommendations made by Shami Chakrabarti in a recent report into antisemitism and racism within the party. She called for the party to “uphold the strongest principles of natural justice” including giving people a timeline in which their case will be dealt with, offering the identity of any complainant and telling people why they are being suspended. Corbyn has called for a meeting of Labour’s equalities committee to discuss the issue in early September, before the end of the leadership battle.
ADVERT
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
Got my rejection letter today, says it’s for things I put on Twitter June 30 and July 23. My Twitter is @normal4Norfolk if you want to see what I said
How did they know your Twitter handle?
No idea, I use Facebook and don’t hide the fact I’m a supporter of Corbyn but on Twitter I only have 10 followers and never use it
I really don’t understand how twitter works, I joined and have basically never used it as I can’t fathom it! So I searched for you and it says peterrogers@normal4norfolk. Is that you? If so I can’t find a tweet since June 12th. Confused!
Yes, I haven’t used Twitter for months for the same reason as you. I’ve sent The Labour Party detail’s of my account to prove that fact. It seems to me a spurious reason they randomly came up with
I see nothing for you on those dates. I even checked @normal4Norfulk to see if they had mixed up but only 1 post. So their allegations of postings is false.
Totally random accusation which of course won’t be looked at until after the vote is closed
Iain McNicol should be suspended for dereliction of duty
From the NEC meeting, which decided to bar those who had been members less than 6 months (after Jeremy Corbyn left) to the court case and now suspensions without explanation, the whole saga is painting the party as one that will do whatever to achieve the result that a select few desire.
The Tories need do nothing but sit back and watch the Labour party destroy itself.
The suspensions need to stop now and, after the leadership result, we need to examine the whole debacle. Iain McNicol, as chair of the NEC, must accept responsibility for any findings of wrongdoing.
Things must change. We cannot carry on self-destructing
Mr McNicol is a non-voting secretary of the NEC. He can speak, and take notes, but he cannot vote.
Paddy Lillis chairs the NEC. He’s a trade union member.
From Unite Community;
“It appears some are being purged and not allowed to vote in the current Labour leadership election.
The Electoral Reform Services have been appointed by the Labour Party to oversee the election process and will provide assistance very quickly.
They can be contacted on- 0208 365 8909
Twitter- @ERSVOTES
Email- [email protected]
Reports suggest they are resolving issues very quickly indeed for those who have found themselves purged within hours in many cases”
They’re following a scorched earth policy. If they can’t inherit the Labour ‘brand’ intact, then no-one gets it in one piece.
What Corbyn has to do is juxtapose this conduct with Labour’s history, ethos, their internal rules, policies, procedures and ask a rhetorical question…
“How is this promoting the interests of the party?”
Conveying that message to the public is the difficult bit.
For non-Blairite prime ministers ‘ conveying .. the message to the public is [always] the difficult bit’ given the institutionalised bias built into English media organisations.