Another day’s Labour for the Government

By Caron Lindsay | Tue 29th January 2019 - 8:12 am

Hot on the heels of failing to kill the Government’s truly egregious Immigration Bill, which rolls out the Hostile Environment on an industrial scale, Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party approaches the Brexit votes tonight in disarray.

But first, a reminder of last night.

76 Labour MPs, including Tom Watson and Keir Starmer, just couldn't be bothered to show up tonight — more than enough to have defeated this Tory power-grab.

Britain deserves a better opposition, and we're proud that every single @LibDems
MP voted against this Bill. https://t.co/n9zQ4cw5Ln

— Young Liberals 🏳️‍⚧️ (@YoungLiberalsUK) January 28, 2019

I mean, really. A reminder of that happened. Labour were originally down to abstain but after cries of disbelief from senior Labour figures on Twitter, they decided to make it a one-line whip on Twitter. Hardly a face-saving exercise.

You might remember that Mr Corbyn has been loudly refusing to meet Theresa May unless she takes No Deal off the table.

So, when one of his own side comes up with an idea that would prevent us from leaving without a deal on 29th March, you would think he would support it. That was certainly the mood music over the weekend.

But no. The Guardian reports this morning that they are growing cold on that idea.

Opposition? Not so much.

Every day, Corbyn finds a way to enable the excesses of the worst, most dangerous Government of my lifetime.

May’s Government has thrown its support behind the amendment which does away with the backstop completely and puts us outside the EU with no guarantee we’ll be able to honour our treaty obligations over the Irish border. Do they expect that unicorns will just turn up to patrol it?

Tonight’s votes are unlikely to make the way ahead that much clearer. I suspect our People’s Vote one won’t even get voted on. That would be the sensible thing if we can’t get it through.

But then, Parliament hasn’t been known for being sensible. There is, however, a majority of sensible people in there. Will they make that break and put country before party and get control of this process before it’s too late? I’m not holding my breath.

* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings. You can find her on Bluesky at caronmlindsay.bsky.social

4 Comments

frankie 29th Jan '19 - 9:03am

Nonsense Caron, the mans a political genius, his apologists tell us that constantly. Why in an election his personality and backbone will shine through. I suspect they are wrong, his shiny newness is tarnished, his apologists are constantly on the back foot, twisting and turning to justify Labour’s last misstep under his leadership. Why even Owen Jones has chastised Labour

More
The abstention has been dropped, and the Labour leadership are voting against the Immigration Bill and are committed to amend BUT it’s still a 1 line Whip; it should be a 3 line Whip. Labour have to follow their instincts and more passionately fight for migrants.

Lord that must have hurt Jeremy and Co, tis the equivalent of being savaged by your pet gerbil.
Stimpson 29th Jan '19 - 9:58am

Labour are a protectionist party. The unions will never tolerate open borders or job offshoring. “British jobs for British workers” remember – and that was in the days of Brown, let alone Miliband or Corbyn.
Bernard Aris 29th Jan '19 - 11:04am

Labour is at the same time
1) showing its glaring difference with the continental socialdemocratic tradition (which evolved fom moderately Marxist to Progressive-pargmatic), where belief in and fidelity to the EU always was strong. The homespun Fabian ideology of Labour (Fabius was a general waiting and waiting until an opportunity arose, like Corbyn on Brexit) never fitted in that tradition.

2) but now Labour is, like its Danish counterpart (where Neil Kinnocks son and daughter-in-law are prominent) slipping into xenophobic populism with a leftist twist. Their (the Danes’) resistance to Nazi occupation a long forgotten memory.

I am deeply disappointed in Staerner, who I just had grown to admire as the least wacky Labour front-bencher.

Now give me Hillary Benn anytime!
Peter Martin 29th Jan '19 - 11:25am

@ Bernard Aris,

Why would you say the European Social Democrats are doing so badly?

Is it the fault of the Social Democrats for losing the confidence of their erstwhile supporters?

Or is it the fault of their former voters for not wanting what the Social Democrats say they should want?

https://www.newstatesman.com/world/europe/2018/05/collapse-europe-s-mainstream-centre-left