Jamie Driscoll speaks truth to Keir Starmer
JVL Introduction
A leftish-inclined loyal member of the Labour Party, and popular local mayor in Tyneside, Jamie Driscoll should have been treasured by the Party.
But the Party machine turned on him, barring him as a candidate for the mayoralty of the enlarged North of Tyne authority.
We can only hope they recognise the errors of their ways.
As we have reported before, Jamie is running as an independent candidate with massive popular local support. He clearly relishes the opportunity he has now to speak his mind against the control freakery he experienced within Labour. And to speak out against its abandonment of radical policies.
Here, in an openDemocracy exclusive, he rubs salt into the wounds of Labour’s failure to win at Uxbridge and South Ruislip.
Labour still has time to come to its senses but it seems increasingly implausible it will do so…
This article was originally published by OpenDemocracy on Mon 7 Aug 2023. Read the original here.
North-east mayor slams Starmer’s green rollback after quitting Labour
Exclusive: Jamie Driscoll says some voters think Starmer is ‘a liar’ and backing ULEZ would win votes
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The result of that by election came as quite a shock to Labour. However, the forthcoming contest in Rutherglen and Hamilton West might be another. If so, I wonder how Starmer will explain that one away.
Thanks for this.
Though not a Geordie any longer, I’ve volunteered to help out in Driscoll’s campaign. Sadly, they haven’t found anything for me to do yet …
More importantly, the NE Fire Brigade Union has told NE Labour that because of its unjustifiable attacks on a respected FBU member (who was
until recently / may still be a Labour party member) their section of the union will no longer support the Labour party by funding or campaigning for it. A coordinated mass withdrawal of funding by unions and Labour members may now be the only way there is to rescue Labour and restore it as an ethical, democratically managed left of centre political force. Please “think on” …
It is absolutely undeniable that Starmer lies and cannot be trusted. Harold Wilson was guilty of the odd Porky Pie – but he kept us out of Vietnam. I have no doubt that Starmer – just as the Tories have done – would have us fully committed to a hot war with with Russia over Ukraine, a conflict which has been so propagandised that the reality about it and its history has been obliterated. Starmer operates on the basis that Labour supporters have no-where to go, just as Blair did. I think people see through all this now. I won’t go out canvassing anymore – not for someone like Starmer.
Stopping Jamie from standing, just shows you where Starmer stands politically, Jamie has a cracking record for socialist principles and that alone was enough for Starmer to stop him standing. For us Socialists this could be a good thing, it is more likely that he will be a failure and either walks away or gets challenged and beaten for the Leadership. Unless he has been coached on what he needs to say or his speeches are written for him, he frequently makes statements that make him look politically naive, this is because he’s not a natural politician, someone who’s followed it closely, so that they can debate or discuss politics at even a basic level.
I really do hope that Jamie wins the Mayoral position, just because he deserves to.