Labour’s women live in fear of Corbynista bullyboys
As Yvette Cooper is the latest target, MP warns:
A LABOUR MP has accused Jeremy Corbyn supporters of a targeted attempt to ‘control, isolate and manipulate’ party moderates after they launched a vicious online attack against Yvette Cooper.
Supporters of the Labour leader posted on Twitter a picture taken surreptitiously of Miss Cooper while she was on a train, along with the menacing boast that ‘we’re in charge forever’ [sic].
The Twitter account, which uses the pseudonym ‘the Reel Politik’, published the image of Miss Cooper in a First Class carriage with the caption: ‘Was it too busy in standard?’
After users criticised the picture, which was taken without Miss Cooper being aware, as creepy, the account added: ‘Face it, Yvette’s a bell**d and a busted flush, you’re a c*** and we’re in charge for ever.’
Jess Phillips, the Labour MP for
‘Utterly shameful’
Birmingham Yardley, said the tweet was part of a wider campaign to bully and intimidate female MPs.
She wrote on Twitter: ‘This can no longer be seen as individual incidents, this is targeted to control, isolate and manipulate. It has to stop.’
She added: ‘If I caught someone taking stalker pics of me, I’d throw their phone on the train tracks.’
The attacks against Miss Cooper come after she made a speech on Saturday condemning online abuse of journalists and politicians.
The former Shadow Home Secretary said she was ‘sick to death of the vitriol poured out from all sides towards [BBC political editor] Laura Kuenssberg’.
She also complained about the ‘unacceptable’ and ‘utterly shameful’ antiSemitic abuse directed at Labour MP Luciana Berger, who has been targeted by supporters of Mr Corbyn over her past criticism of the leader. Frankly Labour Party members should be united in supporting Luciana, not targeting her or trying to intimidate her,’ Miss Cooper said.
Last week, hard-Left activists in Miss Cooper’s local branch of the party in Liverpool threatened her with deselection unless she apologised for previous remarks about Mr Corbyn. After the speech, Miss Cooper highlighted some of the abuse directed at her because of her comments, including one tweet calling for a ‘final solution’ on ‘Blairite’ MPs.
Another also demanded that she be deselected as the Labour candidate for her seat. The online abuse of moderate Labour MPs comes as their Tory colleagues complain about how they were targeted during the election campaign.
Last week, Theresa May said she had been ‘absolutely shocked’ at the number of Tory MPs who had talked to her about intimidation, harassment and bullying, and promised that she was ‘determined to stamp it out’. Yesterday she added: ‘I call on all party leaders to condemn that. I am surprised at any party leader who is not willing to condemn that. Frankly, we should stand together on this – there is no place for this in our democracy.
‘People should be able to stand for election without people fearing what is going to happen as a result of that.’
Last month Mr Corbyn tweeted: ‘I completely condemn abuse of MPs of any kind. No abuse is carried out in my name. There is no place for this in society or in our politics.’
The PM has ordered a review of the law and action could include making political motivation an aggravating factor when judges are considering sentences for abuse. This would allow courts to punish offenders with longer sentences, as they can when factors such as a victim’s race or sexuality are involved.