David Evans quizzed over “malicious undermining” of Bath CLP

JVL Introduction

Labour’s general secretary has failed to respond to a letter from Bath CLP member Ken Loach describing outrageous conduct by regional officers towards dedicated elected officials in the constituency.

Loach, director of films such as I, Daniel Blake and Sorry we missed you, gave David Evans chapter and verse about a “hostile campaign from the regional officers of non-co-operation, harassment and intimidation.”

Describing a situation which is becoming increasingly common across the country, he said, “I have watched good people coming into politics with enthusiasm and commitment, worn down and broken by this malicious undermining of their work.”

Receiving no reply from Evans, Loach offered his letter to Labour Briefing which has published it in its latest edition.

With his and their permission, we republish it in full below.

This article was originally published by Labour Briefing on Thu 13 May 2021. Read the original here.

A letter from Ken Loach

Dear General Secretary,

Bath CLP and the Regional Office

I am an ordinary member of Bath Labour Party. I attend most CLP and ward meetings. The events of recent months are unlike anything I have witnessed during many years in the Labour Party and in my trade union.

Bath CLP has a properly constituted Executive Committee and officers elected in accordance with party rules. The CLP has been subject to a hostile campaign from the regional officers of non-co-operation, harassment and intimidation that has made it impossible to maintain our premises safely or to pursue important political work, to the detriment of the party locally and nationally.

The most egregious examples of this destructive behaviour are as follows:

  1. Suspension of the AGM by the regional officers. This paralysed all activity and prevented our carrying out essential safety work to the offices, some of which was required by law. No reason was given. We were told our AGM would be held in February. We are still waiting. No explanation or apology.
  2. A Special General Meeting was scheduled by the CLP’s Executive Committee on 15th March to pass an emergency budget to deal with statutory obligations. On the day of the meeting, an instruction from the regional officers was received to say that the only decision the meeting could take was to provide funds for the mayoral election. The budget itself could not be passed.

This is plainly unacceptable. It would be irresponsible to allocate funds without an overall budget.

The reasons given for the cancellation refer darkly to “considerable correspondence…expressing strong concerns from other members.” This is not good enough. What concerns? Meetings have been held in an open and tolerant manner, even in the difficult conditions of the pandemic. No one has been prevented from speaking. The limits on what can be discussed have come from the regional officers. Can you imagine an NEC meeting being cancelled on such flimsy grounds?

The above quotation suggests some CLP members are colluding with regional officers to disrupt the activities of the entire CLP. As an ordinary member, I want to know who is doing this, on what grounds, and why do they have this privileged access?

  1. There is little or no communication from the regional officers to the Executive Committee or its officers. There is no assistance, support or any help whatsoever. Emails are not answered. No explanations, just occasional diktats.
  2. Motions for CLP meetings have been ruled out of order by regional officers with either inadequate or no reasons given. The content of these motions would always have been the common currency of party debate. One motion that was accepted noted Orwell’s contribution to our understanding of political struggle and the obstacles placed in the way of serious change. The irony presumably escaped the regional officers.
  3. At the time of writing, the Executive Committee has been prevented from communicating with party members. Regional officers have cut the link to ‘Organise’, the Labour Party’s computer facility for this purpose. Again, no discussion and no consultation. What is the authority for this intentional disruption?

General Points

In any competently managed organisation, this ludicrous behaviour would not have been allowed to continue. The inefficiency of the Labour Party is nothing new, it has regularly failed its members. but these actions suggest a conscious attempt to destroy a CLP leadership that was functioning well, carefully following rules, with a positive determination to attack the local Tory and Liberal establishment.

I have watched good people coming into politics with enthusiasm and commitment, worn down and broken by this malicious undermining of their work. Their time and energy, freely given, was wasted. Among members generally, there are feelings of disillusion and cynicism towards the party, both locally and nationally. If this is how we are treated, why bother? The Labour Party is seen as a useless, self-serving clique, a waste of time for those who really want to make a difference.

But some of us with a long experience of the party know what is happening. Regional officers could not behave in this way without approval from the top. There is a clear determination to drive out anyone who showed support for Corbyn and McDonnell’s programme of radical change. We know of other CLPs in our situation, unable to function, reduced to chaos because of bureaucratic intervention. How many have left the party, 60,000? If it’s not 70,000 yet, it soon will be. Imagine the outcry if Labour had lost so many members under Corbyn’s leadership.

The aim of the current leaders would seem to be to have a small, tightly disciplined party, with few troublesome activists where policy is endorsed by a docile conference – standing ovations and little discussion. Leaders are then not accountable to members, but speak to the voters directly through a media that welcomes a Labour Party that will make no substantial changes to the established order.

This may be your party, David Evans and Keir Starmer, it is not ours.

Ken Loach, 30th April 2021


Ken’s post-election addendum

These attacks on Labour members by the party bureaucrats are not news to most of us, yet ignored by the media, anxious as ever to protect Starmer.  But his inept failure in these elections puts him under scrutiny.  He must also be answerable for his brazen assault on party democracy.

 

Comments (12)

  • John Bowley says:

    Keir Starmer and David Evans should be suspended.

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  • Linda says:

    A splendid letter. Thanks, Ken Loach!

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  • Mary Davies says:

    Well done Ken Loach.

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  • Si Denbigh says:

    bang on, as ever, ta Ken.

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  • Sabine Ebert-Forbes says:

    Brilliant letter. Speaking from observation, no statement, response is likely to come forward. The arrogance and disrespect for members is disgusting to say the least.

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  • Doug says:

    Which part of no room for Red Tories in a socialist Labour party did the internal report not make clear
    There is only one game in town now and that is to force them out of our party once and for all
    And the only to do that is to get them up in front of the members and vote them out
    RRaV
    Rejoin, Recruit and Vote

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  • Ken maybe underestimates the number of members leaving. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it’s nearer 100,000, but of course the true number may be masked by leaving ‘lapsed’ members on the books. I’m currently working my way through Lewis Minkin’s “The Blair Supremacy: A study in the politics of Labour’s party management” (2014). Evans is still using the playbook he learnt under Blair all those years ago. The fact that even after all that party ‘management’ Corbyn could still be elected leader shows how in their own terms the Blair/Starmer approach is fragile and brittle. I’m not sure what they think the party’s members are for, and the public doesn’t know what the party is for.

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  • Emma Tait says:

    Wonder if a copy has gone to Keir Starmer and members of the NEC?

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  • Chris Proffitt says:

    Well said Ken, you speak for many CLP’s and members like ourselves who are hanging on to membership with a heavy hearts. Also by the deafening silence of Starmer on the Palestine situation we know where he stands on this.

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  • Graeme Atkinson says:

    Right on, Ken!

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  • Mary Rooney says:

    Brilliant piece. What the hell is going on upstairs in the labour party. Re-instate Jeremy Corbyn, get rid of all the rightwing infiltrators and start from scratch.

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  • Sylvia Redhead says:

    Thanks Ken for clearly stating facts on the organisation of the LP. Another point in question is why Gordon Brown is trying to impede Scotland’s independence.

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Comments are now closed.