Jeremy Corbyn's time is up

[kabbes]

are they using balloons to swell their numbers?

Inflating their membership

 

[Doctor Carrot]

That name is way too long for a protest group and why is it even asking a question in the middle of it? Ridiculous.

 

[butchersapron]

Latest seems to be that someone tried to send the corbyn leadership campaign a cheque that they were unable to cash. Note calling the non-donation a donation.

Corbyn’s campaign said it did not declare the donation because its bank subsequently rejected the cheque, as it was made out to the wrong person. A spokesman for Corbyn was unable to explain on Saturday what then happened to the cash raised. A spokesman said: “I’m told a second cheque may have been sent, but this was not received by the campaign.”

Why should Corbyn have to explain what happened to someone else's cash? Or indeed, a phantom one.

 

[Vintage Paw]

Was at the local Red Labour meeting tonight. My first time meeting many of the people there, what with me being a new member and largely refusing to go along to any stuff when him indoors has asked me in the past

It felt nice and positive, lots of thinking about how to campaign in the future, to shore up support in the coming months, getting more people involved and so on.

And it looks like, barring last minute catastrophe, the Corbster is coming here in a couple of weeks. Official announcement due Monday if all goes to plan. The place booked only holds 1000, so if it goes like any of the others I expect there to be decent over spill.

Gonna try to get a selfie

 

[DotCommunist]

Was at the local Red Labour meeting tonight. My first time meeting many of the people there, what with me being a new member and largely refusing to go along to any stuff when him indoors has asked me in the past

It felt nice and positive, lots of thinking about how to campaign in the future, to shore up support in the coming months, getting more people involved and so on.

And it looks like, barring last minute catastrophe, the Corbster is coming here in a couple of weeks. Official announcement due Monday if all goes to plan. The place booked only holds 1000, so if it goes like any of the others I expect there to be decent over spill.

Gonna try to get a selfie

touch the hem of his robe

 

[coley]

These problems won't be magically solved by nationalisation though, and they could be solved by better regulation, more investment, and changes to transport policy, without nationalisation. I'm not necessarily against renationalising the railways but it's not the main thing that needs to change. An easy concept for people to attach their dissatisfaction to though, a bit like Brexit.

Get the trains to run on time and imprison Blair, don't really fancy the vision of him swinging from a lamppost.
21st century solutions to 21s century problems

 

[coley]

It’s more about ease and cost rather than priorities.

Trains were privatised under a franchise system so as each franchise period comes to an end (or the train operating company voluntary gives up the franchise) the Government can simply take it over, in effect nationalising it piecemeal.

Over time, all of the train operating companies would be taken out of private hands without having to pay any compensation to the operating company’s shareholders making it a relatively cheap, but drawn out, option.

To nationalise the utilities (not just water) would cost an absolute fortune, assuming you’d do it with compensation that is.

Deduct their profits since privatisation plus a deduction in the lack of improvements and service and they would probably end up owning the govt money for taking them back into public ownership!

 

[timeforanother]

Get the trains to run on time and imprison Blair, don't really fancy the vision of him swinging from a lamppost.
21st century solutions to 21s century problems

He would need to get a fasion designer for uniforms first.

 

[coley]

it matters not a jot to me whether he is strung up in oxford, in hackney or in timbuktu. it is the stringing which is the important aspect of the event, not the location.

No, got to be up here in the North, you lot have got more than your fair share of publicly funded entertainment

 

[coley]

He would need to get a fasion designer for uniforms first.

Seen wot you done there,I think

 

[nino_savatte]

Corbs takes the fight into enemy territory (sort of).
You don't need to settle for the future the Tories are creating

 

[two sheds]

Good article - I think he should have covered how it's going to be funded, though. I can imagine Telegraph readers asking him that all the way through it, and it's something he can answer.

As for the pledges themselves I think he needs to show he's serious - carve them into a stone plinth for all to see, for example.

 

[inva]

Corbs takes the fight into enemy territory (sort of).
You don't need to settle for the future the Tories are creating

And don’t doubt that Governments can’t run railways

 

[mauvais]

I agree it's a decent piece that knows the target market, largely appealing to self-interest with some typical hobby horses. I also think there's a missed opportunity of some sort - the Keynesian benefits of public spending and working infrastructure to all those entrepreneurs or at least entrepreneur sympathisers. Noone spends anything at your non-essential small business if there's no money to go around, or barriers to access etc.

The trouble with it all is, as two sheds points towards, how to shrug off the reputation of Labour as profligate overspenders, even if it was a given that an increase in spending is required. It's probably easier for the Tories to make concessions to spend more than it is for Labour to articulate a capacity for restraint.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

Was at the local Red Labour meeting tonight.

who they?

web search suggests they exist mainly on farcebook (which i don't do) and their website is kinda minimalist...

 

[Vintage Paw]

A relatively new-ish group within the LP, wanting to bring together people on the left of the party internally, rather than through something like Momentum, although there are Momentum members who are part of it -- and there are also people hostile to Momentum who are part of it. There's no formal membership, it's more a loose collective that aims to like I say bring people together, and help them organise, coordinate, get others involved etc. I don't know what I expected in terms of turnout, but considering it was just a facebook call-out for a meeting in an area where there's usually pretty low turnout at regular CLP meetings, there were about 25 people there from all of Stoke, Newcastle, and Staffs Moorlands. Organisers and people from the execs/officers of the various CLPs were there in their capacity as Red Labour members and union people. They're also the ones leading the organising for the Corbyn event.

I'm not on facebook either. They're looking at ways to better connect with new and old members alike.

It was a good discussion, anyway. Covered the local nomination meetings that have gone ahead so far (2 the night previous), the one that's happening next week (mine), and the one that isn't going ahead at all (Ruth Smeeth's), informal guestimates of how many will be there to vote for Corbs next week, planning for the future once he's won and there's continued pressure from the right when they start hunkering down worried about the potential for deselections, discussion about getting officers and execs to be left majorities, and stuff about logistics of the Corbyn event. They're trying to sort out meeting every month, and they've also been organising phone banking and that sort of thing too.

 

[ItWillNeverWork]

A relatively new-ish group within the LP, wanting to bring together people on the left of the party internally, rather than through something like Momentum, although there are Momentum members who are part of it -- and there are also people hostile to Momentum who are part of it. There's no formal membership, it's more a loose collective that aims to like I say bring people together, and help them organise, coordinate, get others involved etc. I don't know what I expected in terms of turnout, but considering it was just a facebook call-out for a meeting in an area where there's usually pretty low turnout at regular CLP meetings, there were about 25 people there from all of Stoke, Newcastle, and Staffs Moorlands. Organisers and people from the execs/officers of the various CLPs were there in their capacity as Red Labour members and union people. They're also the ones leading the organising for the Corbyn event.

I'm not on facebook either. They're looking at ways to better connect with new and old members alike.

It was a good discussion, anyway. Covered the local nomination meetings that have gone ahead so far (2 the night previous), the one that's happening next week (mine), and the one that isn't going ahead at all (Ruth Smeeth's), informal guestimates of how many will be there to vote for Corbs next week, planning for the future once he's won and there's continued pressure from the right when they start hunkering down worried about the potential for deselections, discussion about getting officers and execs to be left majorities, and stuff about logistics of the Corbyn event. They're trying to sort out meeting every month, and they've also been organising phone banking and that sort of thing too.

What do they stand for that Momentum don't? Are there other left grouplets within the LP aside from these two?

 

[crossthebreeze]

What do they stand for that Momentum don't? Are there other left grouplets within the LP aside from these two?

I know someone who was part of setting up Red Labour - i think 3 or 4 years ago, so they've been going before Jeremy Corbyn was elected. Around here it seems to be lots of older "Old Labour" types with some younger people joining more recently. Momentum is specifically about building and harnessing support for Corbyn, while most of Red Labour is supportive of Corbyn its not built around supporting one particular candidate. Another more formal left group within the Labour party is the Labour Representation Committee.

 

[Wilf]

Reports that the Friends of Al Aqsa raised and donated £10k for Corbyn. The agenda of the guardian and telegraph in linking it to the anti-Semitism stuff is obvious - though it hardly an illegitimate line of enquiry. Most of all the Corbyn lot sound like amateurs in terms of not being able to tell a clear tale as to what happened. I don't mean they are lying, just that they seemingly can't answer what was cashed and what happened to the money. This might have been acceptable amid a shoestring leadership bid they never expected to win, but not now.
‘There’s nothing dodgy’: Questions over Jeremy Corbyn donation

 

[free spirit]

Reports that the Friends of Al Aqsa raised and donated £10k for Corbyn. The agenda of the guardian and telegraph in linking it to the anti-Semitism stuff is obvious - though it hardly an illegitimate line of enquiry. Most of all the Corbyn lot sound like amateurs in terms of not being able to tell a clear tale as to what happened. I don't mean they are lying, just that they seemingly can't answer what was cashed and what happened to the money. This might have been acceptable amid a shoestring leadership bid they never expected to win, but not now.
‘There’s nothing dodgy’: Questions over Jeremy Corbyn donation

it sounds like the cheques were discretely filed in a drawer to avoid awkward questions while also not publicly offending the organisations involved.

But if a cheque isn't cashed then it won't appear on the accounts or be listed as a donation as no funds had been received, so there's nothing dodgy about that side of it.

 

[Wilf]

it sounds like the cheques were discretely filed in a drawer to avoid awkward questions while also not publicly offending the organisations involved.

But if a cheque isn't cashed then it won't appear on the accounts or be listed as a donation as no funds had been received, so there's nothing dodgy about that side of it.

Hard to tell, though it looks like 1 cheque did get cashed.

 

[nino_savatte]

Reports that the Friends of Al Aqsa raised and donated £10k for Corbyn. The agenda of the guardian and telegraph in linking it to the anti-Semitism stuff is obvious - though it hardly an illegitimate line of enquiry. Most of all the Corbyn lot sound like amateurs in terms of not being able to tell a clear tale as to what happened. I don't mean they are lying, just that they seemingly can't answer what was cashed and what happened to the money. This might have been acceptable amid a shoestring leadership bid they never expected to win, but not now.
‘There’s nothing dodgy’: Questions over Jeremy Corbyn donation

In 2012, Ian Austin accused the Friends of Al Aqsa, which is a human rights organisation, of being "Holocaust deniers". He was forced into making an apology. If the Labour Right and their media chums are trying to make an issue out of this, it's not a great line of attack. Corbs needs to stand firm and face them down.

 

[Wilf]

In 2012, Ian Austin accused the Friends of Al Aqsa, which is a human rights organisation, of being "Holocaust deniers". He was forced into making an apology. If the Labour Right and their media chums are trying to make an issue out of this, it's not a great line of attack. Corbs needs to stand firm and face them down.

I agree and suspect that guardian are trying to go down exactly that road. I've no objection to him taking their money, certainly when you compare it to the cash the tories received from Russian oligarchs. It just seems that in the game of parliamentary politics it isn't very sure footed, to say the least, to be coming out with the answers the Corbyn spokesperson was reported to have come out with in the story. Afaik there are supposed to be rules about taking money from overseas based groups, which I presume the Al Aqsa group is. The usual way to get round this is to have personal donations, which have to be made by someone on the electoral register. They say donations were rejected by the bank because they were made out to the wrong 'person' (curious in itself). I do wonder though if they were made out by the wrong person - somebody not on the UK register? I really don't think there's anything dodgy here, just that after the anti-Semitism row they should have been ready for this.

edit: though the other side of this is that if the guardian know that the other donations, beyond the one declared, really weren't ever cashed, they really playing a dirty game.

 

[mauvais]

Cheques to the wrong person/entity probably aren't uncommon. Since 'A/C payee only' got printed on all cheques, the name needs to match. I just had to return one as it was made out jointly and we don't have a joint account. In this case it probably needed to be the legal name or the treasurer and it's entirely possible someone addressed it to another person.

 

[free spirit]

I agree and suspect that guardian are trying to go down exactly that road. I've no objection to him taking their money, certainly when you compare it to the cash the tories received from Russian oligarchs. It just seems that in the game of parliamentary politics it isn't very sure footed, to say the least, to be coming out with the answers the Corbyn spokesperson was reported to have come out with in the story. Afaik there are supposed to be rules about taking money from overseas based groups, which I presume the Al Aqsa group is. The usual way to get round this is to have personal donations, which have to be made by someone on the electoral register. They say donations were rejected by the bank because they were made out to the wrong 'person' (curious in itself). I do wonder though if they were made out by the wrong person - somebody not on the UK register? I really don't think there's anything dodgy here, just that after the anti-Semitism row they should have been ready for this.

edit: though the other side of this is that if the guardian know that the other donations, beyond the one declared, really weren't ever cashed, they really playing a dirty game.

it's not an overseas group.

About Us
Friends of Al-Aqsa is a UK based non-profit making NGO concerned with defending the human rights of Palestinians and protecting the sacred al-Aqsa Sanctuary in Jerusalem. This vision is supported by various international groups and organisations. Friends of Al-Aqsa was first established in 1997 and now has an international support base.

Aims & Objectives
The following aims and objectives are being pursued using all the available peaceful, legal and democratic means:

(a) Highlighting Human Rights abuses suffered by the Palestinians
(b) Putting pressure on the British government to make Israel respect International Law and human rights
(c) Bringing the Palestinian issue to the attention of those concerned with International Law, human rights and UN Resolutions
(d) Mobilising international condemnation for Israel’s apartheid policies to be manifested through the boycott of Israel
(e) Educating people on the issue of Palestine through conferences, lectures and publications
(f) Emphasising the significance and the centrality of the al-Aqsa Mosque to the Islamic faith and the Muslim identity and re-affirming the Muslim historic and religious rights to the area
(h) Working in conjunction with international heritage, cultural and humanitarian organisations in joint ventures to advance these aims

Join us in opposing this brutal occupation and working to achieve a Free Palestine by getting involved with your local branch.

 

[William of Walworth]

Utter non-scandal IMO.

Should scarcely have appeared on page 33 of the Observer today let alone page 1 or even 13

(It was continued on page 13 from a very minor 3 paragraphs at the foot of page 1 in the paper edition. That probably tells you enough).

 

[timeforanother]

My daughter, who I hadn't seen in ages, is voting for the better candidates in the NEC, just before it's too late. Ballot closes tomorrow. Huge smiles from me. Her girlfriend is cool too, a proper leftie nerd.

 

[timeforanother]

Tom Watson seems to be in censureship mode on facebook. I didn't imagine facebook could be so good at spreading ideas.

 

[coley]

Corbs takes the fight into enemy territory (sort of).
You don't need to settle for the future the Tories are creating

Aye, read it earlier, he is so 'hard left' good that he mentioned publicly owned industries can make a profit for the public, interesting that he got space on the ST though!

 

[coley]

In 2012, Ian Austin accused the Friends of Al Aqsa, which is a human rights organisation, of being "Holocaust deniers". He was forced into making an apology. If the Labour Right and their media chums are trying to make an issue out of this, it's not a great line of attack. Corbs needs to stand firm and face them down.

It's the name innit, any organisation with the prefix 'Al' gets a negative response from your average mail/ sun reader.
And the likes of the Guardian know this full well, just by associating Corbyn with any organisation connected to Islam will ring alarm bells with this those who skip read the headlines on the way to the sports section.