“I want to be an MP as long as possible.”
Diane Abbott
Introduction
First elected as the Labour MP for Hackney and Stoke Newington in 1987, Diane Abbott broke down barriers by becoming the first black female to be elected to parliament. A politician whose politics lean heavily to the left, loved by her constituents and, a champion for racial equality, gay rights and outspoken on conflicts across the globe. Now 70 and with a general election just out of the starting blocks, Abbott has been in a precarious position and left out in the cold for a year for making an anti-semitic comment about Jewish people not facing racism and having to sit as an independent with the whip withdrawn. Diane has apologised for the comment, and yet the Labour Party disciplinary machine has dragged this one out, leaving it open to unanswered questions. A late-night communication from the shadow Chief Whip to say the whip has been restored but no confirmation that she can stand as an MP for her constituency is utterly wrong.
I don’t always agree with Diane, but it is essential to maintain our broad church in the Labour Party. We have prided ourselves on this since the party’s birth in 1900. The party’s two wings haven’t always seen eye to eye on many issues, but when it comes to an MP with such a length of service, this cloak-and-dagger is frankly wrong. The impression is that the Leader’s Office wants to purge the party of problematic individuals. Both Jeremy Corbyn and now Diane Abbott face the machinery guillotine. Starmer wants to stamp change on the party and irradicate the ghosts of the Corbyn era—a purge of the left.
A Critical Error
Neil Kinnock may have transformed the party in the 1980s, purging the militant tendency; Tony Blair tore up Clause 4 and moved the party to the left of centre-ground, but Keir Starmer’s approach of playing dumb and saying the process hasn’t been concluded for Diane doesn’t wash amongst colleagues and voters. Labour is riding high in the polls, and this issue will probably only sadly be a headline for a few days. Still, if Diane decides to make a point and not retire and instead stand independent, this could blow up into a political storm of their own making. An authoritarian leadership that is running scared of another voice and approach.
I say this as a loyal Labour Party member of thirty years—someone who wants to see a Labour victory but at no cost. The campaign has been going well up until this point, and this smear on the campaign is unnecessary. Diane has paid the price for her comments, and it is time to move on. Let her stand for the party in the constituency she loves and is proud to serve. Yes, suspend members for rule-breaking, but carry out the investigation process and disciplinary process in a fair, concise and timely manner. Never make it so secretive that even the person knows nothing about the outcome. Diane is a trailblazer and deserves better and democracy must always win the day.
