Labour's deputy leader has urged the party to stop internal debates and focus on rebuilding a radical programme, warning that endless navel-gazing is damaging its electoral prospects. In a stark intervention, she said the party's obsession with the Blairite versus Corbynista divide is obliterating the political agenda and leaving it unable to address pressing national issues.
The comments come after Labour suffered a heavy defeat in the Copeland by-election, which she described as an 'open-and-shut disaster' with no mitigating factors. She criticised the 'hyena-like circling' of Jeremy Corbyn's leadership, arguing that delighting in his allies' defensive answers only fuels the sense of siege that keeps his project alive.
She also dismissed the usefulness of the term 'Blairite', noting that all of Tony Blair's worst errors are now repudiated by the party, while his successes go unmentioned for fear of association. Instead, she called for judging potential successors by their actions and policies, pointing out that Chuka Umunna's views are close to George Osborne's, Dan Jarvis says little, and Keir Starmer is often to the left of Clive Lewis on many issues.
The deputy leader, who supported Corbyn's leadership in the hope of a radical programme, admitted that this programme has not materialised. She argued that being anti-austerity is not a plan, and that wanting to deal with injustice lacks direction without a clear map. She also urged the party to address immigration concerns directly rather than dismissing them as misplaced, warning that failing to do so will leave Labour out of touch with the mainstream.
