Uk politics

Wednesday

The Spectator

Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour conference speech, full text

We meet here this week as a united Party, advancing in every part of Britain, winning the confidence of millions of our fellow citizens, setting out our ideas and plans for our country’s future, that have already inspired people of all ages and backgrounds. And it’s a privilege to be speaking in Brighton.  A city that not only has a long history of hosting Labour conferences, but also of inspirational Labour activists. It was over a century ago, here in Brighton, that a teenage shop worker had had enough of the terrible conditions facing her and her workmates. She risked the sack to join the Shop Workers’ Union, after learning

Steerpike

John McDonnell’s business charm offensive falls flat

John McDonnell has never had an easy relationship with big business. The shadow chancellor thinks there is a ‘lot to learn’ from Karl Marx and says one of his favourite pastimes is ‘fermenting the conditions to overthrow capitalism’. McDonnell is hoping his latest charm offensive to woo businesses will help them to forget those remarks. But the shadow chancellor might have to try a bit harder to win them over. The Labour Business Fringe Reception at the party’s conference last night was a chance to do just that. A smattering of businesses, including Microsoft, were there. The only problem? John McDonnell was nowhere to be seen. After waiting over an hour

Tuesday

Steerpike

‘Where is he?’: No-show Corbyn heckled at Israeli fringe event

This year’s Labour conference has been largely overshadowed by a row about anti-Semitism. At a Labour Friends of Israel event on the final night of the party’s conference, Jeremy Corbyn had a perfect opportunity to send a message of support to worried Jewish Labour members. Instead, he didn’t show up. Labour MP Joan Ryan, who was chairing the event, said she was ‘disappointed’ Corbyn didn’t come. Some in the crowd were not happy either at the Labour leader’s decision to stay away, with cries of ‘Where is he?’ and ‘Why is he not here?’ greeting the announcement that Corbyn would not be coming: It’s something of a surprise that Corbyn didn’t show up:

Steerpike

Corbynista MP: Media bias is the real story in Venezuela

Despite admitting in an interview in this morning’s edition of the Morning Star that he was ‘no bloody expert on Venezuela’, Chris Williamson, the Labour MP for Derby North, made it quite clear this afternoon who he believes is to blame for the socialist country’s problems – and it most certainly isn’t Maduro’s socialist government. Speaking at a Solidarity with Venezuela fringe event at Labour conference, Williamson described how the country – a place where women now exchange sex for nappies for their babies and where the capital city is the most murderous city on earth – was undoubtedly witnessing ‘difficult and tough times’ and that ‘mistakes had been made’.

Isabel Hardman

David Lammy: We should be more like Farage

Brexit has been an odd sideshow to the Labour conference, with pro-Corbyn factions such as Momentum working hard to keep the topic away from any awkward votes on the floor of the Brighton Centre hall. Perhaps that’s why it took more than an hour for anyone to mention it as a potential issue the party needed to think about at tonight’s Fabian Question Time fringe. By this point, we had run over the same arguments for solving the housing crisis that are wheeled out and then packed away without much progress, tax avoidance, and the Labour Party’s problem with anti-semitism (none of the speakers tried to claim this didn’t exist,

Katy Balls

Tom Watson signs up to the cult of Corbyn

At this year’s Labour conference, party moderates are an endangered species. A lot of centrist MPs have given the event a miss – while those that are in attendance rarely make an appearance in the conference hall. So, Tom Watson’s speech today marked a turn up for the books. Labour’s deputy leader was given a whole ten minutes to speak despite being deemed a Corbyn-sceptic. But much like with Sadiq Khan’s speech the day before, Watson used his platform to channel his inner Corbynista. In a marked contrast to last year, Watson came across as one of Corbyn’s true comrades – even embarking on a cringeworthy chant of ‘oh, Jeremy Corbyn’ before praising the

The Spectator

Tom Watson’s Labour conference speech, full text

Conference, thank you for being here. Thanks for your enthusiasm, for your passion,  for all your hard work on behalf of the Labour Party, on behalf of our country. I’m grateful to every one of you. Last week, the Prime Minister made yet another speech to reboot, yet again, her Brexit strategy. She chose to deliver this latest oration in the great city of Florence, though no-one seems to know why. For politicians, Florence, even more than the city of Dante, the Medicis and Michelangelo, is the city of Niccolo Machiavelli. I can only assume Michael Gove picked the venue. Michael Gove, who undermined his own Tory leadership bid last

Isabel Hardman

Labour’s lost moderate MPs adopt ‘sleeping crocodile’ strategy

One of the reasons this seems to be the happiest Labour Party conference in a long time is that there is very little conflict between the two very different factions in the party. Before the snap election, it seemed as though Labour was going to split – or at least that what was left of it after an electoral drubbing was going to split. But the result meant that the Corbynites have won the argument and sealed their ownership of the party. The factions aren’t at war any more. The most obvious symbol of this victory is the way MPs haven’t been given passes for the conference floor. Some argue

Steerpike

Chris Williamson blasts fellow Labour MPs over Venezuela

Venezuela’s crisis shows no sign of stopping: protesters have been gunned down, opposition leaders rounded up – and the country recently unveiled a plan to combat food shortages by telling people to eat their rabbits. The country’s situation ‘ain’t perfect’, admits Labour’s Chris Williamson. In an interview with the Morning Star – where else? – the Corbyn ally is still keen to look on the bright side though: ‘I accept that Venezuela has its problems still…But look at where they’ve come from and where they’ve got to’ Admittedly, Williamson is angry at the ongoing situation. But instead of directing his fury at the country’s leadership, he turns it elsewhere: towards

David Sinclair

In banning Uber, London is fighting the future

For the last ten months I have been working as an Uber driver in London. It is an amazing company to work for. Totally flexible, constantly innovative, fair and prompt in its payments. I’ve driven old people, youngsters, businessmen, drunks, choirgirls, cancer patients, a woman about to give birth, athletes (fit and injured) and visitors from every corner of the globe all over our great capital without any problem. It is a fantastic social enabler for anyone on a budget in the metropolis. And I’ve found it to be a perfectly fair and reasonable provider of income for self-employed, self-motivated people, such as myself. I first started working in London

Steerpike

Listen: ‘Disgruntled Blairites’ blamed for Labour anti-Semitism accusations

Labour’s anti-Semitism row spills on to the front pages of today’s papers. ‘Labour is the real nasty party’, says the Daily Mail, following up remarks made at an event on the fringes of Labour conference. The party votes today on rule changes aimed at sending out a message that Labour will not tolerate anti-Semitism. But at another event at Labour’s conference last night, a speaker suggested that many of the charges of anti-Semitism levelled at the party were simply ‘politically motivated’. Speaking at the launch of Jewish Voices for Labour, Oxford Professor Avi Shlaim told the audience that: ‘I shall argue that many of the charges of anti-Semitism that have

William Cook

Why artists should stay off Question Time

Do you have to be a boring lefty to enjoy the films of Ken Loach? The reason I ask is, the British Film Institute have just rereleased three of Loach’s finest films on DVD, and though I loved them when they first came out, when I sat down to watch them again, after twenty years, my heart sank. Why? Because nowadays, when people mention Ken Loach, I don’t think of his masterpieces like Kes (one of the greatest British movies ever made) so much as his dreary appearances on political discussion programmes like Question Time. Ken Loach is a socialist filmmaker – whatever that means. If you’re a socialist, maybe

Isabel Hardman

How ‘safe spaces’ make life harder for people with mental illness

Oh, how wonderfully hilarious: Labour conference has a safe space. It’s exactly what you’d expect from a Party now led by eccentric former rebel backbenchers who’d probably still rather be making jam in peace in Islington, isn’t it? I ventured into the room marked ‘safe space’ in the Brighton Centre this week, half expecting to find a group of Blairites huddled in one corner and a group of members who just couldn’t cope with the idea of a debate on continuing single market membership in the other. Disappointingly, it was just a bare room with a few chairs and an odd hatstand which seemed to be brandishing a bin. The

Katy Balls

What a Stop the War fringe tells us about Labour foreign policy

This year’s Labour conference has proved a topsy turvy affair for the Parliamentary Labour party. Moderates feel as though they have switched places with the far-left protesters that usually lurk on the outskirts of conference. As Ben Bradshaw put it, for the first time he found himself in the protests outside (as part of the anti-Brexit march) while the usual placard-carrying socialists dominated proceedings in the hall. Nowhere was this new order more apparent than at last night’s Stop the War event. Two frontbenchers – Diane Abbott and Richard Burgon – turned up at the anti-war group’s fringe event. Andrew Murray – Corbyn’s close ally and former campaign strategist – also spoke. He talked

Tom Goodenough

Labour’s conference, day three: The Spectator guide

It’s Tom Watson’s turn to address Labour’s party conference today. Last year, he said it was ‘time to get the band back together’ – earning himself a standing ovation from delegates and a somewhat muted response from Jeremy Corbyn. Here are the highlights we can look forward to on day three: Labour conference:  9.30am: Financial reports; NEC and CLP constitutional amendments 10.30am: Rebecca Long-Bailey 12.30pm: Angela Rayner 2.30pm: Jon Ashworth 5pm: Tom Watson Fringe events: Midday: Repowering Britain: Building a progressive truly-left vision for England that doesn’t reinforce racist values Buddies Cafe Bar. Speakers: Lisa Nandy; Clive Lewis, Naz Shah 12.30pm: Scrutinising Brexit in a new political landscape GB2, The Grand. Speakers: Hilary Benn; Emily Thornberry 12.45pm: Brexit

Monday

Steerpike

Watch: Corbyn joins Keith Vaz to celebrate ‘Diversity Nite’ comeback

After a conspicuous one year absence, Keith Vaz’s ‘Diversity Nite’ has made a comeback at Labour’s conference. Vaz kept a low profile at last year’s party gathering in the wake of allegations surrounding a pair of rent boys. This year, Vaz’s big conference bash – which involves members of the shadow cabinet dancing while Vaz presides on stage – made a return. Behind Vaz flashed up pictures of the likes of Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela and Rosa Parks, as guests munched on Leicester’s finest Biryanis. On stage, Jeremy Corbyn was presented as the guest of honour by Vaz to chants of ‘Oh, Jeremy Corbyn’ from the crowd. Here’s a video of Jez’s

Steerpike

Big business struggles to make friends at Labour’s conference

Big business is back with a vengeance at this year’s Labour conference. Twelve months ago, in the wake of Jeremy Corbyn’s re-election as Labour leader, the party’s gathering was largely shunned by corporate firms. The likes of Google – who had exhibited in 2015 – stayed well away. But in the wake of the party’s relative success at the general election – and with no sign of Corbyn going away any time soon – the companies are back. Google are among those exhibiting at the conference. Microsoft are here, too. And so are BP. But it seems like their efforts might have been in vain. While delegates crowded around stalls

Katy Balls

Sadiq Khan discovers his inner Corbynista

When Sadiq Khan spoke at last year’s Labour conference, his speech was deemed hostile to Jeremy Corbyn. Fresh from victory in the London mayoral election, Khan managed to say ‘power’ a whole 38 times – in what was widely interpreted as a thinly-veiled attack on the Labour leader’s lack of electoral appeal. So, what a difference a year – and a surprisingly good snap election result – makes. After weeks of rows and attempts to prevent Khan from taking to the stage this year, the Leader’s Office must have today been left wondering what the fuss was all about. The Mayor of London fell into line – using his last-minute speaking slot to

The Spectator

Sadiq Khan’s Labour conference speech, full text

Conference, it’s great to be back in Labour Brighton. And it’s great to see our Labour Party so fired up under Jeremy Corbyn. Labour confounded all expectations at the general election this year. Let’s be clear, Theresa May called this snap election to try and wipe us out. And boy did she fail. It was inspiring to see millions of people vote for the first time – especially so many young people. And it was inspiring to see so many people who used to vote for our Party return home to Labour. We made huge progress in the general election and the credit for that goes to one person –

Isabel Hardman

John McDonnell’s speech showed Labour is now comfortable in its new skin

If you wanted a clue to how much the Labour Party has changed over the past few years, you wouldn’t have had to sit through much more than the first few lines of John McDonnell’s conference speech. He started it with the words ‘I’d like to thank Ken Loach for that wonderful film’. Loach hasn’t been the most loyal supporter of the Labour Party over the years, but is now firmly back in the fold thanks to Jeremy Corbyn. Party members, normally tribally opposed to those who set up rival parties, gave the veteran filmmaker a standing ovation. The Labour Party has been changing for a while, but this conference