{UAH} ‘Corbyn is the only person who’s got the integrity to be Prime Minister’

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'Corbyn is the only person who's got the integrity to be Prime Minister'

In an exclusiv

#EXCLUSIVE:Glastonbury's iconic founder MICHAEL EAVIS tells Sue Wheat about his support for the Labour leader and how the festival is leading the fight for our environment.

GLASTONBURY founder Michael Eavis put all his weight behind Jeremy Corbyn as future prime minister during the 49th anniversary of the festival this weekend, and called for everyone to "fight to the death knell" for political change.

"After 40 bloody years of a Tory government — I'm including Tony Blair and Gordon Brown of course — a so-called Labour government — but Tory policies for over 40 years — we really deserve a change — only to be fair, to be half reasonable. It's not a big ask is it?"

He also unequivocally opposed Boris Johnson as a viable leader. "He's just a complete cow really isn't he? But people like him…. I don't know what people seem to like about him really. He's not going to bring about the change we need."

Apart from a short period during the Iraq war when he suggested Labour voters should switch to the Green Party, Eavis has been a lifelong Labour supporter. "I go door knocking in the election campaigns — people invite me in all the time but I have to say I'm too busy," he joked.

"Corbyn is the person to be Prime Minister," he continued. "He's the only person who's got the integrity and the history of being right through his whole political career."

"Every single thing he said about foreign policy has been right and everyone else has been wrong. It's a hell of a record. He got such a bad name with the press — but he's the one I've got faith in, and he hasn't been given a chance."

Eavis also believes Jeremy Corbyn is the only politician who will act on the climate emergency. Glastonbury Festival has ramped up its already strong environmental messaging to festival goers this year, supporting not just its regular charities Greenpeace, WaterAid and Oxfam, but also embracing Extinction Rebellion, championed by his daughter Emily Eavis, who now runs the festival.

Extinction Rebellion's new and rapidly expanding movement of "climate rebels" brought central London to a standstill for 10 days this April, demanding the government "tell the truth" about the existential threat being faced by humanity because of climate change.

Eavis feels this year's Glastonbury was "the best ever" with so many additional elements, including the backing of the Extinction Rebellion message in signage all over the festival site, video messages on the stages, a day of climate talks and an Extinction Rebellion procession through the festival on Thursday.

The procession culminated in speakers from around the world on the Kings Meadow stage watched by thousands of festival goers and hosted by musician Disraeli. International "elders" spoke to the crowds from the now famous Extinction Rebellion pink boat which was central to the Oxford Circus blockade during the April protests.

As one of the world's most popular festivals, Glastonbury is also setting an example to other festivals with a whole raft of environmental site management changes, including banning single use plastic bottles and gazebos — often abandoned on site, building the largest temporary recycling centre in Europe, manned by 400 volunteers for paper, cans, plastic and food composting. Much of the site's electricity is also supplied by solar energy and anaerobic biodigestion from the methane in slurry from the farm's cows.

A lifelong CND member, Eavis is also passionate about the fact that Jeremy Corbyn is the only politician who can deal with the nuclear threat — despite the Labour leader saying he respected the party's decision to commit to renewing the Trident weapons system.

"He promised me personally when he came to Glastonbury two years ago to speak — I asked him: 'what are you going to do about this nuclear thing?' And he said 'I promise you…I'll get it done.' I really believe him.

"The British nuclear deterrent it's a real joke, half of them don't work anyway. We'll be a number one target — for bloody things that don't work. … it's ridiculous. It's such a bad deal."

Asked if himself, Jeremy Corbyn, Sir David Attenborough — who was a surprise guest on the Pyramid stage on Sunday — and the various other notable environmental experts who've attended Glastonbury this year, including Prof Sir David King, former chief scientific adviser to Blair and Brown and specialist climate adviser to Cameron, could work together as a powerhouse of action, he was without doubt: "We will!" adding, "Let's get Jeremy in power and somehow we'll make it happen."

- Sue Wheat is a journalist specialising in environmental and social justice issues. Follow her on Twitter @SooStow.

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