It’s time to report the Labour Party to Advertising Standards or something. They certainly shouldn’t be allowed to call themselves an opposition after they have spectacularly failed to provide any on the most crucial issue of our time.
The amazing Lib Dem Press Office has been providing some rather entertaining commentary as the country falls apart.
While they are on the exploratory, fact finding mission to god knows where, we will actually serve the function of being an opposition. https://t.co/QkavYYfkJS
— Lib Dem Press Office (@LibDemPress) March 13, 2017
.@UKLabour decide that far from being content with not being fit for government, they have to prove they are not fit for opposition either.
— Lib Dem Press Office (@LibDemPress) March 13, 2017
And Jeremy Corbyn’s diary has had a few alterations this evening. One to file under “You couldn’t make it up.”
This morning, LabourList reported that Corbyn and John McDonnell would speak at an NUS/Momentum Rally aimed at protecting the rights of EU citizens, in Parliament Square.
Jeremy Corbyn fails to turn up to his own "emergency" Brexit rally. https://t.co/Se9j9dxTcO pic.twitter.com/BVNz25SGYL
— Adam Bienkov (@AdamBienkov) March 13, 2017
Yep. Corbyn pulled out of addressing demo after pointed out he's whipping Lab MPs to vote for law failing to deliver what protest wants! https://t.co/SX8aXDspkT
— Kevin Maguire (@Kevin_Maguire) March 13, 2017
Good job it’s not about anything important….
* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings. You can find her on Bluesky at caronmlindsay.bsky.social
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13 Comments
Here in the Lords most of the Labour Party have gone home, and their spokesperson (Bness Hayman) attacked us for standing by the amendment she supported first time round.
Labour are a disgrace.
I’ve argued strongly against using the Lords before but this is about fundamental rights and hardly anyone in Britain wants to see EU migrants deported.
I’m surprised at the weakness of Labour’s decision to abandon seemingly all amendments after one round of parliamentary ping pong. What is the point in the Lords if it only delays things for a week. Fundamental democratic reform is needed.
The question is will Momentum realise that Jeremy Corbyn is just a bad messenger for their cause, (after all Owen Jones has), or will they carry on off the cliff he is taking the Labour Party?
This is what Lady Hayter, the shadow Brexit minister, said about the Lib Dems’ motives in pushing this amendment to a vote.
I’ll take no lessons from the Liberal Democrats who confessed to me outside the chamber that this is appealing to their core vote and they are piling on members because of it. So we are here to move an amendment to help them make members. Well, that may be suitable for them. That is not taking this House as a legislative body seriously.
Quite right Lady Hayter
The Commons and the Lords legislated for an in / out referendum
The country voted to leave the EU
The elected Commons legislated to trigger article 50 “unamended”
The Lords tried to insert some amendments that were rejected by the “elected” house of parliament.
Now it is entirely right that the lords back down and recognises the supremacy of the house of commons and the democratic will of the people.
The quicker Theresa May now triggers article 50 and gets round the negotiating table the better.
“I will forgive no one who does not respect the sovereign voice of the British people once it has spoken. Whether it is a majority of 1% of 20%, when the British people have spoken you do what they command. Either you believe in democracy or you do not.”
The words of Paddy Ashdown on brexit night when most people were predicting a remain win.
Quite a few Brexiteers on here tonight. This wasn’t about Brexit, it was about the right to remain and the HoC having a say on the final deal – I don’t recall that being on the ballot.
“Either you believe in democracy or you do not.”
Clearly the majority of Westminster MP’s don’t believe in democracy nor in the sovereignty of Parliament!
Whilst I can understand them not being too fussed about the first amendment concerning Non-UK EU citizens living in the UK, I find it absolutely astounding that they voted down the second amendment. Now they have no way to hold the government to account, so once again they show that the fundamental problem that resulted in the referendum, wasn’t power being exercised by Brussels but the Westminster Parliament not wanting to actually take responsibility, hold the executive to account and wield power.
The laugh is that – once the Lords rubber stamps the unamended bill, T.May will be free to reach any agreement she deems fit, including one that disregards the “wishes of the people” (ie. remain) and there isn’t anything Westminster can do about it, in fact through this vote they will be bound to accept whatever agreement she reaches…
Roland, it is a bit surprising, I have never been in favour of a referendum on the deal but would have expected parliament to support the Lords amendment for a meaningful vote on the terms of any deal or otherwise…interesting, are they just washing their hands of it and giving the Tories all the rope they think they need?
@Tony Greaves: It’s not like you to be this charitable:-).
Tony…………..While you are down here in London your colleagues in Pendle are working with a BNP Councillor to form an administration with Labour. Why are you talking to the BNP about a coalition informally or formally ?
“The most useful role in any society is not doctor or judge, merchant or monarch. It is the dissident. The person prepared to place themselves outside the concensus and articulate the case against the conventional wisdom is the true hero of history.” Michael Gove, the Times, 3/3/17.
@Phil Thomas. I don’t know who you are or where you come from but what you have written on here is not true. I repeat, it is utterly and completely not true. (I cannot write here what I mean because if I did the comment would be held for moderating!) If you want the truth you can start with the Face Book page “Focus on Pendle”.
There has not been any proper ping pong on this. That would require three or four pings and pongs and some genuine discussions and compromises. There are hundreds of examples for the time I have been in the Lords. I have personally ping-ponged a Bill for five or six times on two occasions in the days when I used to be in charge of some Bills for our lot. This is abject capitulation in the face of May’s bullying and Corbyn’s uselessness.
But there again, the whole point of the second amendment was about the democratic system in a liberal democracy and the accountability of the executive to parliament. If you don’t actually care about that, why use Parliament to try to achieve it? There was some logic in lying down under the bulldozer!