Labour embroiled in Trade Union Scandal

The Labour party have this week been embroiled in a scandal which has resulted, in what has been a questionable issue for some time, a review into the relationship between the Labour Party and the Trade Union movement.

Falkirk MP, Eric Joyce is to step down at next election.

This has originated from the decision of the Falkirk MP, Eric Joyce, not to stand at the next election in 2015. As it stands at present, Falkirk is a very safe Labour seat and therefore, when it comes down to the local constituency Labour Party and their selection process, the successful candidate is almost guaranteed to become the next Member of Parliament for Falkirk. A big responsibility, you may think, but where there is opportunity on this scale, there is always room for skulduggery.

Unite is the biggest donor to Labour.

It has come to light this week that the General Secretary of the Unite Union, Len McCluskey very much has an agenda of his own. In a leaked statement, the Unite Union have been exposed as wishing to see more candidates, approved by the Union, to stand at the next general election and that furthermore, Labour Leader Ed Miliband should seek to lead a left wing general election campaign.

So what has this to do with Falkirk? The local Labour Party was actually swamped with Unite Union members who then sought to vote for the Prospective Parliamentary Candidate, and if you had not have guessed, the candidate approved by the Unite Union won the ballot. The vote in Falkirk was in effect rigged by the United Union. Although any talk of the incidents in Falkirk have not been able to be asked on the floor of the House of Commons due to the Speaker’s ruling that this is purely a party matter, it does raise an important issue in which a man such as Len McCluskey, who as the chief of the biggest donor to the Labour Party can exercise so much influence over the selection of candidates as well as raising the question of just how long such an arrangement has been going on for.

On the Andrew Marr show on Sunday 7^th July 2013, Harriet Harman, the Deputy Leader of the Labour Party denied that there was a ‘public spat’ between the Labour Leadership and the Unite Union, although from the exchanges that we have seen between the two, The Adjournment believe that this is a very ‘public spat’.

 

General Secretary, Len McCluskey.

In a statement, Len McCluskey wrote;

…“Simply a ‘stitch-up’ designed to produce some evidence, however threadbare, to justify pre-determined decisions taken in relation to Falkirk CLP.

“Even on the basis of this flimsy report, it is clear that these decisions cannot be justified. There is no emergency which would justify imposing these undemocratic restrictions, since any real problems could easily be addressed before embarking on a parliamentary selection process.

“The report has been used to smear Unite and its members. Even if the allegations of people being signed up to the Party without their knowledge were true, this had nothing whatsoever to do with my union.

“It is noteworthy that members of the shadow cabinet have been in the lead in initiating this attack upon Unite. Have they had sight of this report while I, the leader of the union put in the frame, has not had the courtesy of a copy?



Tom Watson MP stepped down as Labour election Chief.

“The mishandling of this investigation has been a disgrace. I, however, am obliged to uphold the integrity of Unite, and I can no longer do so on the basis of going along with the activities of a Labour Party administration in which I can place no trust.”

Notice at the end of his statement, he clearly states he has no trust in the administration of the Labour Party. Mr Miliband hit back, accusing Mr McCluskey of defending "malpractice" and demanding he "face up to his responsibilities" as he sought to counter Tory efforts to exploit the controversy. Leading, inevitably, to the resignation of the election coordinator of the Labour Parliamentary Party Tom Watson MP who had done so because he had ‘become the story’. His resignation came much to the delight of Jeremy Clarkson who wrote in The Sun that he had resigned in disgrace.


This will be a big test for Miliband's leadership.

An opposition party, however, which in the mid-term of a government, should be riding high in the opinion polls and exposing failures of ministers as well as proposing new and exciting policies to entice voters and hit the headlines are now stuck in what will be a very difficult time for the Labour Party. Unite Union give the Labour Party around £8 Million in donations and now, following this, will that be put at risk? This close to the next General Election?

There comes a time in the career of a leader of the Opposition where their leadership is tested, along with their ability to think quickly to deal with the internal issues of their party. I think this will be a true test to Ed Miliband’s leadership, if he fails, the chances of him becoming the next Prime Minister will diminish ever further.