Watson quits Commons
Labour deputy leader’s resignation could trigger other moderate MPS to follow as Corbyn’s election campaign risks sliding into chaos
TOM WATSON, Labour’s deputy leader, unexpectedly stood down as an MP last night as the party’s civil war over Brexit and anti-semitism claimed its most high-profile casualty.
Mr Watson quit Parliament after telling friends he felt Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party was “no longer the party that he joined”.
His resignation, which will overshadow the opening days of Mr Corbyn’s election campaign, comes less than two months after members of the Labour leader’s inner circle staged a botched attempt to oust Mr Watson as deputy leader on the eve of the party’s annual conference.
He had also come under pressure in recent weeks over his interventions in the case of Carl Beech, the fantasist known as “Nick” who made up claims about a Westminster paedophile ring.
But his departure will be seen as a major scalp for the pro-corbyn wing of Labour in its battle to gain total control of the party by purging Blairite MPS.
There were reports last night that Mr Watson’s departure could be followed by the resignation of other moderate Labour MPS in a co-ordinated attempt to undermine Mr Corbyn’s electoral chances.
As the general election campaign began in earnest, it emerged Labour’s spending plans would be funded by £600billion of borrowing in a “wholly unprecedented” escalation of public debt. John Mcdonnell, the shadow chancellor, will today announce plans for £150billion of borrowing on top of the £250billion to which he was already committed, as well as Labour’s renationalisation programme that has been independently costed at £196 billion.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies said the spending spree – equivalent to £9,000 for every adult and child in the country – would take borrowing to levels not seen since the Sixties, when Britain was still paying off its war debt.
Sajid Javid, the Chancellor, will contrast Labour’s “reckless” profligacy with the Conservatives’ record of cutting debt, creating jobs and nine years of growth as he sets out the Government’s plan for the economy.
Boris Johnson had his own distrac- tions yesterday when Alun Cairns, the Welsh Secretary, became the first Cabinet minister to resign during an election campaign for more than a century.
Mr Cairns stood down over allegations surrounding what he knew about an accusation that a Tory candidate had sabotaged a rape trial. He insisted he would clear his name but told Mr Johnson he would stand down as a minister “in light of continued speculation”.
Mr Watson’s resignation highlighted deep divisions within Labour that are likely to surface repeatedly during the election campaign. In his letter to Mr Corbyn, Mr Watson referred to their disagreements, saying: “Now is the right time for me to stand down from national politics. The disagreements we have had inside the party are well known; now is not the time to rehearse them again.
“I might be leaving Westminster but I won’t be leaving politics altogether.
“I will continue to champion progressive social democracy and a political culture that is inclusive, diverse and respects the opinions of others. In recent years we’ve lost sight of that simple politeness which used to define us as a nation. We need to find it again.”
In reply, Mr Corbyn said: “I respect your conclusion that it is in the best interests of you and your family that you stand down.”
A close friend of the West Bromwich East MP told The Daily Telegraph that in recent months he had become increasingly disillusioned with Mr Corbyn’s refusal to adopt Remain as the party’s official Brexit policy, and over the party’s ongoing failure to tackle anti-semitism within its ranks.
The friend said: “Everybody knows what he thinks of Jeremy Corbyn. The Labour Party is no longer the party that we joined.”
It means Labour must now scramble to find a candidate to stand in the seat vacated by Mr Watson, where he had a majority of 7,713. His seat will now become a major Conservative target.
Labour sources said the party would elect a new deputy leader after the election. Asked about his plans for the future, Mr Watson, who has lost seven stone since going on a diet, said he was training to become a level 2 gym instructor and has a book on weight loss coming out in January.
The focus of the election campaign will turn to the economy today as Mr Mcdonnell sets out Labour’s spending plans at a speech in Liverpool, in which he will promise an “irreversible shift in the balance of power and wealth in favour of working people”. He will unveil plans for a £150billion social transformation fund for schools, hospitals, care homes and council houses, which will mean investment “on a scale never seen before”.
He said the money would be spent in the “first five years of our Labour government” with another borrowed £250 billion for a green transformation fund spent over 10 years, meaning £55billion of borrowing a year on top of the cost of renationalisation.
It means that a Labour government would increase the national debt by an amount equivalent to almost three quarters of annual public spending, which stands at £821billion. The national debt stands at £1.78 trillion, or 84 per cent of total gross domestic product. Economists said Labour’s plans could lead to borrowing surpassing GDP for the first time since 1961.
Paul Johnson, director of the independent Institute for Fiscal Studies, said Mr Mcdonnell’s borrowing plans
‘After a decade of recovery, we can’t let Labour turn back the clock and let spending get out of control’
were “wholly unprecedented by orders of magnitude”.
The Confederation of British Industry has estimated the cost of Labour’s plans to renationalise rail, mail, water and energy at £196billion, while the Centre for Policy Studies places the figure at £176billion. Labour has disputed these figures and argues that taxpayers would not be “left out of pocket”, as the purchase of valuable assets would raise “cash for the public purse”.
In a speech in Manchester, Mr Javid will promise “responsible and controlled” increases in public spending as he says only the Tories can be trusted with taxpayers’ money.
Mr Javid will say voters face a choice between Mr Corbyn’s “fantasy economics” and the Tories’ record of raising spending on schools, the NHS and policing while reducing the deficit by four fifths. The Tories were given a boost as the Resolution Foundation think tank said average weekly earnings would reach an all-time high by the end of this year, surpassing the peak of £513 (adjusted for inflation) that was reached in August 2007.
It would be the first time a general election had been held with workers earning record amounts in real terms since 2005.
Meanwhile the Tories said Labour’s plans to repeal trade union laws would cost up to £9.5billion in working days lost to strike action. Nadhim Zahawi, the business minister, said strikes announced by the RMT and CWU – both big backers of Labour – in the run-up to Christmas would be “a taste of things to come” if Mr Corbyn got into power.
Last night Derby North MP Chris Williamson said he had resigned from the Labour Party and will stand as an independent in the election.
The party’s National Executive Committee had earlier ruled yesterday that it would not endorse him.
He was suspended from the party in February after he claimed that Labour had been “too apologetic” in response to criticism of anti-semitism claims.
In his letter to Labour’s general secretary, Jenny Formby, Mr Williamson said: “I am dismayed that Labour Party officials have enabled and executed what I believe to be a witch hunt against hundreds of socialists loyal to Jeremy Corbyn and his transformative, socialist, anti-imperialist worldview.”