Hatton’s back, so I’m out.

He’s a horrible bloke. I don’t want to be a member of a party he’s involved in.

As Derek Hatton returns to the Labour Party, here is Neil Kinnock taking on the Militant Tendency in Bournemouth, 1985

"I’ll tell you what happens with impossible promises…" pic.twitter.com/trW9ebG1o7

— Tides Of History (@labour_history) February 18, 2019

Ah – that’s better…

FFS… the return of Hatton…!!!

This just gets worse and worse.

…and now gorgeous George G wants to rejoin. Hey **** ho.

fwiw I’m not happy with the 7 leaving, or the manner of it – danger of antisemitism etc diluting engagement in this moment of national crisis. I just think it shows the level of frustration. We’re heading over the cliff steered by ERG. MPs need some leadership to stop this – which they mainly want to do. Nothing else matters a fraction.

I couldn’t do any better than link to this

“I’m not going anywhere” insists Jeremy Corbyn entirely accurately

“Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right…”

‘Come on Seumas, this is a joke. You let Ruth George become a Labour MP, why not me?’ pic.twitter.com/2K4cbc56Pf

— Mo' (@mocent0) February 19, 2019

Is this a bandwagon that needs jumping on, why yes, yes it is.

what a time to let these two jokers back in !

Very dark and depressing.

I’m sure the timing was a coincidence.

Right?

Is there an eighth*?

(*not a drugs reference)

There is now!

Isn’t Independent Group an oxymoron?

Crikey, only just been announced and the machine has been cranked up to the max already on #JC4PM #GTTO twitter.

The response on twitter to MP #8 might have changed my mind on one aspect of all this. If it is only “a tiny minority” of JC supporters who are antisemitic, as I was still thinking even as I read what was happening to some Labour MPs at their hands, they are now very very good at spreading their bile on social media. Very troubling. Or just well organised noise?

https://twitter.com/_SalmanAnwar/status/1097984791734034433

OBEY THE PARTY

https://news.sky.com/story/labour-to-consult-on-extending-voters-rights-to-force-out-quitting-mps-11642391

Well, I think MPs who resign from their party should be required to seek re-election.

They are. Oh, you mean immediately.

They are. Oh, you mean immediately.

Obviously.

Well, if we can’t get a general election, then the next option* is by-elections.

*All options “on the table”

@DD it’s amazing how polarising the Israel/Palestine conflict is given how little most people care about foreigners being killed all over the world.

I’ll say one thing for this split, it’s really highlighting how some MPs can stay completely under the radar.for decades whilst collecting a hefty salary. I’m a fairly close follower of politics and before this week had never heard of Joan Ryan, Angela Smith, Mike Gapes or Gavin Shuker.

Hmm… “fairly close”, huh – there are hundreds of MPs – don’t feel bad about your ignorance about a few of them. Most people only hear from front benchers and the most media savvy of stirrers – you are not alone.

dazh

I’m a fairly close follower of politics and before this week had never heard of Joan Ryan, Angela Smith, Mike Gapes or Gavin Shuker.

I’d heard of Angela Smith- she lost a vote of no confidence last year, partly over her support for fracking and support for privatisation, partly because of her constant criticism of the leadership, and declared that it was all just a cabal of hard left conspirators and ignored it. She was strongly defended by… oh yeah, Chris Leslie and Chukka Umanna. So I’m glad she’s come out so strongly about listening to members.

to be fair dazh, there are 262 of the , or is it 25@, or 248 or Jeez, I dunno, it just keeps going down. It’s hard to keep track. Anyway, centrist scumbag splitters the lot of them!

What do we want?
A GENERAL ELECTION!
When do we want it?
NOW!
What do we want?
BY-ELECTIONS!
When do we want them?
DOWSNT MATTER AS LONG AS WE CAN KEP ALL OPTIONS ON THE TABLE!

I’d heard of Angela Smith- she lost a vote of no confidence last year…

She also tried to deliver a petition to Labour HQ recently for a referendum, and was turned away as a security risk.

There is no doubt that the MPs leaving have all been pushed to leave… it’s not some selfless act… it is the act of people facing almost certain deselection. Much more of this to come from both of the main parties now… no one will jump without being pushed… but there is a lot of pushing going on.

Of course, when they are pushed out, the cries of “traitors” ring out… no, you told them to “go and join the Tories”, or called them “saboteurs”… eventually they’ll listen, and leave, as a last desperate resort.

kelvin

She also tried to deliver a petition to Labour HQ recently for a referendum, and was turned away as a security risk.

Nah. She was turned away as they don’t accept petitions in person at all, due to security concerns, not because she was seen as a security risk.

Please tell me Diane was one!

Well, I think MPs who resign from their party should be required to seek re-election.

Yep, they are resigning as an MP and resigning from the party they stood for as an MP.
From the minute they resign they should be the standing Labour MP for x days until their resignation is over or by election held

Could they have just said they were changing to Tory and Tories got an extra seat?

Joan Ryan – pillar of decency

Nobody will mourn Friend of Apartheid Israel @joanryanEnfield leaving Labour. Maybe ask why she wasn't sacked?
Here is the patriotic and loyal MP having £1m dangled in front of her by an expelled Israeli spy Shai Masot who talked of 'taking down MPs'pic.twitter.com/QekirLRyU0

— Bernie Won Iowa + New Hampshire + Nevada (@TheBirmingham6) February 19, 2019

Could they have just said they were changing to Tory and Tories got an extra seat?

I think so, yes.

I’m still waiting to see evidence of all this abuse and discrimination and whether it’s worse than that received by others in the public eye. If the LP was institutionally racist then how come there are so many LP and so few Tory MPs from minority backgrounds? Even so, 85% of the jewish vote goes to the Tories (source: YouGov). I’ve have never seen Tories out campaigning against racism. We need a bit more evidence and a bit less harrumph.

Ransos – Labour appeared quite happy for Quentin Davies to cross the floor from the tories to join them without immediately standing in a by-election.

I think so, yes.

Wow, I really didn’t realise that. So in theory I could stand as a Tory in a Tory safe seat and then switch to Labour the week after I was elected? That is just clearly wrong.

“Labour Friends of Israel chair Joan Ryan MP” is all you really need to know about her motives and her claims regarding antisemitism.

Kerley, The Absolute Boy* explains it here,

@Fleeper our electoral system u vote 4 ur MP rather than a party/leader & I hope that on that basis u can cast ur vote feelin comfortable

— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) April 7, 2010

*The value of nicknames can go up as well as down. Your party is at risk if you do not have competent leadership etc.