{UAH} Labour party leadership Gordon Brown says Labour must become 'credible' once more
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Comrade Akim Odong/WBK,
Former PM Gordon Brown made his anticipated intervention in the
leadership election this afternoon. While acknowledging that Mr Corbyn
represents the true spirit of the Labour Party, he is again warning,
like Mr Blair did, that the party should concentrate more on winning
back power rather than "principles" and that the party can not win
back power with Mr Corbyn at the helm as he is associated with
protests for the last 32 years he has been an MP. Mr Brown's warning
may boomerang, as Mr Blair's did, as it has become clear the entire
Labour establishment is opposed to Mr Corbyn. Some have even tried to
have the elections halted as a desperate measure to stop Mr Corbyn. I
think making him a victim of attack by the establishment will win him
even more support.
George Okello
Labour party leadership
Former PM breaks silence on Labour leadership contest, saying it is
'not an abandonment of principles to seek power'
Sunday 16 August 2015 09.21 BST Last modified on Sunday 16 August
2015 15.33 BST
Gordon Brown says the Labour party has been grieving following its
crushing defeat in May's general election and must become credible
once more if it is to regain power.
The former prime minister broke his silence on the Labour leadership
contest on Sunday, saying it was "not an abandonment of principles to
seek power".
"The best way of realising our high ideals is to show that we have an
alternative in government that is credible, that is radical, and is
electable – is neither a pale imitation of what the Tories offer nor
is it the route to being a party of permanent protest, rather than a
party of government," Brown told an audience on the South Bank in
central London.
His intervention comes after warnings that Jeremy Corbyn would be
electorally disastrous from senior figures including Tony Blair, Alan
Johnson, Jack Straw, and Alastair Campbell, which have failed to dent
the leftwinger's status as the favourite to win.
Andy Burnham has stepped up the assault on Corbyn in an interview with
the Sunday People, claiming that electing the Islington MP would drag
Labour back to the infighting of the 1980s.
"I'm the only person in this race who can beat Jeremy," he said. "In
the 80s, we started fighting each other and left the way clear for
Margaret Thatcher to bulldoze her way through Labour communities. I'm
not going to let that happen this time."
Burnham's remarks came as a ComRes study of 2,035 adults in Britain,
for the Independent on Sunday and Sunday Mirror, found 31% of those
polled thought Corbyn would worsen Labour's prospects of electoral
success.
However, 21% of voters thought Corbyn would improve the party's
election prospects – putting him ahead of Burnham on 19%, Yvette
Cooper on 15% and Liz Kendall on 11%.
A Survation poll on Friday found that Corbyn ranked the highest of all
the candidates on a range of questions about his personality and
politics. Burnham had a narrow lead on who would be best as prime
minister by 25% to 24% for Corbyn, but the two men tied at 26% on who
would be most likely to win the 2020 election.
After a week of intense attacks from senior Labour figures about his
credibility as a leader, Corbyn sought to calm fears that he would
have an anti-business agenda by setting out plans to support
entrepreneurs and small traders.
He told the Observer: "The current government seems to think
'pro-business' means giving a green light to corporate tax avoiders
and private monopolies. I will stand up for small businesses,
independent entrepreneurs, and the growing number of enterprises that
want to cooperate and innovate for the public good.
"My Better Business plan will level the playing field between small
businesses and their workers who are being made to wait in the queue
behind the big corporate welfare lobby the Tories are funded by and
obsessed with."
Labour frontbenchers concerned about Corbyn's electability have been
trying to mobilise in recent days to minimise his chances of victory.
Kendall's camp is understood to believe that only Burnham has a chance
of winning. During behind-the-scenes negotiations on Wednesday, she
said she was willing to stand aside but only if Cooper did so as well.
Cooper publicly rejected this after her speech on Thursday, saying she
would not agree to a plan in which the two women gave way to the two
male candidates.
Speaking on BBC News, Kendall acknowledged Corbyn's status as the
frontrunner but said she would not quit the race.
Given that the first batch of ballot papers have now been sent out,
there is little point in any of the trailing candidates withdrawing,
especially since the second and third preferences of their supporters
would be redistributed among the other contenders in later rounds of
voting.
The procedure of the contest has also been under scrutiny over the
last week. Some frontbenchers have been trying to persuade Harriet
Harman, the acting leader, to hold a shadow cabinet meeting at which
there would be calls to halt the contest because of worries about
infiltration by non-Labour supporters, but this has been rebuffed.
There is also a row going on in the party about a decision not to
publish how MPs and MEPs have voted. The rules for the contest say
they will be made public as soon as possible after the announcement of
the results. This is now under review, according to a party spokesman.
One MP supporting Cooper said it looked like a move to try to hide how
little support Corbyn has among the parliamentary party in the event
that he wins.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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Disclaimer:Everyone posting to this Forum bears the sole responsibility for any legal consequences of his or her postings, and hence statements and facts must be presented responsibly. Your continued membership signifies that you agree to this disclaimer and pledge to abide by our Rules and Guidelines.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com or Abbey Semuwemba at: abbeysemuwemba@gmail.com.
Former PM Gordon Brown made his anticipated intervention in the
leadership election this afternoon. While acknowledging that Mr Corbyn
represents the true spirit of the Labour Party, he is again warning,
like Mr Blair did, that the party should concentrate more on winning
back power rather than "principles" and that the party can not win
back power with Mr Corbyn at the helm as he is associated with
protests for the last 32 years he has been an MP. Mr Brown's warning
may boomerang, as Mr Blair's did, as it has become clear the entire
Labour establishment is opposed to Mr Corbyn. Some have even tried to
have the elections halted as a desperate measure to stop Mr Corbyn. I
think making him a victim of attack by the establishment will win him
even more support.
George Okello
Labour party leadership
Former PM breaks silence on Labour leadership contest, saying it is
'not an abandonment of principles to seek power'
Sunday 16 August 2015 09.21 BST Last modified on Sunday 16 August
2015 15.33 BST
Gordon Brown says the Labour party has been grieving following its
crushing defeat in May's general election and must become credible
once more if it is to regain power.
The former prime minister broke his silence on the Labour leadership
contest on Sunday, saying it was "not an abandonment of principles to
seek power".
"The best way of realising our high ideals is to show that we have an
alternative in government that is credible, that is radical, and is
electable – is neither a pale imitation of what the Tories offer nor
is it the route to being a party of permanent protest, rather than a
party of government," Brown told an audience on the South Bank in
central London.
His intervention comes after warnings that Jeremy Corbyn would be
electorally disastrous from senior figures including Tony Blair, Alan
Johnson, Jack Straw, and Alastair Campbell, which have failed to dent
the leftwinger's status as the favourite to win.
Andy Burnham has stepped up the assault on Corbyn in an interview with
the Sunday People, claiming that electing the Islington MP would drag
Labour back to the infighting of the 1980s.
"I'm the only person in this race who can beat Jeremy," he said. "In
the 80s, we started fighting each other and left the way clear for
Margaret Thatcher to bulldoze her way through Labour communities. I'm
not going to let that happen this time."
Burnham's remarks came as a ComRes study of 2,035 adults in Britain,
for the Independent on Sunday and Sunday Mirror, found 31% of those
polled thought Corbyn would worsen Labour's prospects of electoral
success.
However, 21% of voters thought Corbyn would improve the party's
election prospects – putting him ahead of Burnham on 19%, Yvette
Cooper on 15% and Liz Kendall on 11%.
A Survation poll on Friday found that Corbyn ranked the highest of all
the candidates on a range of questions about his personality and
politics. Burnham had a narrow lead on who would be best as prime
minister by 25% to 24% for Corbyn, but the two men tied at 26% on who
would be most likely to win the 2020 election.
After a week of intense attacks from senior Labour figures about his
credibility as a leader, Corbyn sought to calm fears that he would
have an anti-business agenda by setting out plans to support
entrepreneurs and small traders.
He told the Observer: "The current government seems to think
'pro-business' means giving a green light to corporate tax avoiders
and private monopolies. I will stand up for small businesses,
independent entrepreneurs, and the growing number of enterprises that
want to cooperate and innovate for the public good.
"My Better Business plan will level the playing field between small
businesses and their workers who are being made to wait in the queue
behind the big corporate welfare lobby the Tories are funded by and
obsessed with."
Labour frontbenchers concerned about Corbyn's electability have been
trying to mobilise in recent days to minimise his chances of victory.
Kendall's camp is understood to believe that only Burnham has a chance
of winning. During behind-the-scenes negotiations on Wednesday, she
said she was willing to stand aside but only if Cooper did so as well.
Cooper publicly rejected this after her speech on Thursday, saying she
would not agree to a plan in which the two women gave way to the two
male candidates.
Speaking on BBC News, Kendall acknowledged Corbyn's status as the
frontrunner but said she would not quit the race.
Given that the first batch of ballot papers have now been sent out,
there is little point in any of the trailing candidates withdrawing,
especially since the second and third preferences of their supporters
would be redistributed among the other contenders in later rounds of
voting.
The procedure of the contest has also been under scrutiny over the
last week. Some frontbenchers have been trying to persuade Harriet
Harman, the acting leader, to hold a shadow cabinet meeting at which
there would be calls to halt the contest because of worries about
infiltration by non-Labour supporters, but this has been rebuffed.
There is also a row going on in the party about a decision not to
publish how MPs and MEPs have voted. The rules for the contest say
they will be made public as soon as possible after the announcement of
the results. This is now under review, according to a party spokesman.
One MP supporting Cooper said it looked like a move to try to hide how
little support Corbyn has among the parliamentary party in the event
that he wins.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--
Disclaimer:Everyone posting to this Forum bears the sole responsibility for any legal consequences of his or her postings, and hence statements and facts must be presented responsibly. Your continued membership signifies that you agree to this disclaimer and pledge to abide by our Rules and Guidelines.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com or Abbey Semuwemba at: abbeysemuwemba@gmail.com.
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