WATSON COULD BE FORCED OUT TODAY
Momentum founder behind plot to axe Labour deputy
TOM Watson could be ousted this morning in a coup led by allies of Jeremy Corbyn.
Jon Lansman, founder of the Momentum faction, tried last night to force a vote on whether to axe Mr Watson’s role as deputy leader.
The bid failed on a technicality, but has been retabled for a meeting of Labour’s ruling National Executive Committee this morning.
Allies of Mr Watson last night pointed the finger at Mr Corbyn for the putsch – and predicted it would succeed, plunging the party into a civil war. one source said: ‘It looks like Tom is going to be ousted tomorrow. There is no way this happened without Corbyn’s backing – his people control everything Lansman does. And he has the votes on the NEC to get his way.’ The Conference battle came as:
• Mr Corbyn failed eight times in an interview to say whether he supported Leave or Remain. But he said he would campaign for Remain if delegates vote against his neutral position at the conference.
• John McDonnell said Labour would never back a Tory withdrawal agreement while fellow frontbencher Emily Thornberry said the party might – in return for a second referendum;
• Mr McDonnell ruled himself out as Mr Corbyn’s successor, saying the next leader must be female;
• Labour promised new workplace rights for menopausal women;
• Miss Thornberry was criticised for comparing the Liberal Democrats to the Taliban over Brexit;
• Harriet Harman vowed to continue her fight to be Commons Speaker after Corbynites issued a threat to force her out of her seat.
Mr Watson’s fate will be decided by a simple majority at the NEC meeting. It will then have to be rubberstamped by a vote on the conference floor, where Mr Corbyn and his union allies have a majority.
Former Labour leader Ed Miliband led opposition to the move last night. ‘The move to abolish the deputy leader post without warning or debate is undemocratic, wrong and should not happen,’ he said. ‘Those who came up with the idea for the eve of Labour Conference have taken leave of their senses.’
Shadow health minister Justin Madders said: ‘ Party conference weeks before an election should be about putting forward a strong , unified message and showcasing
‘Watson allies point finger at Corbyn’
the policies that will win that election. Anything that detracts from that reduces our chances of winning that election.’
Another Labour MP said: ‘Just when you think we can’t get madder than the Tories expelling 21 MPs we go and try and oust the deputy leader in a grubby backroom vote.’
Former Labour adviser Charlie Whelan described the coup as ‘bonkers’, adding; ‘These people are obviously not interested in defeating the Tories.’
Labour’s Conference war move follows years of bad blood between Mr Corbyn and his deputy, who is seen as the unofficial leader of Labour’s moderate MPs. Mr Watson has embarrassed the Labour leader by calling on him publicly to get a grip on the party’s anti-Semitism crisis.
Allies of Mr Corbyn have been trying to get rid of his deputy for months but have been unable to gather the signatures of the 50 MPs needed to trigger a contest under the party’s rules. Mr Watson sent his apologies to the meeting of the NEC, citing childcare issues. Mr Lansman then tabled a motion calling for the abolition of his post. The motion was ruled out of order by the chairman of the meeting, at which point Mr Lansman forced a vote.
The motion was passed by 17 to ten, but failed to secure the necessary two thirds majority. However, Left-wingers have tabled the motion again for when the NEC convenes in Brighton this morning. Mr Corbyn was also absent from last night’s meeting but a source close to Mr Watson said this appeared to have been arranged to distance him from the plot.
Mr Lansman is understood to have argued that Mr Watson is out of step with Labour’s leadership, citing his call for an election to be delayed until after second referendum.
A Momentum source told the Huffington Post: ‘No one person is more important than beating Boris Johnson, ending austerity and tackling the climate change emergency. We just can’t afford to go into an election with a deputy leader set on wrecking Labour’s chances.
‘A moderate Labour source said: ‘They didn’t have the guts to try to take Tom on in an election so they have tried to do him in in the most cowardly way imaginable.’
Earlier this week Mr Lansman led a successful attempt to abolish the Labour Students organisation for being too moderate.