Labour set for civil battle if Angela Rayner pressured to give up | Politics | News | EUROtoday

Labour is dealing with a vicious civil battle that would kill off Sir Keir Starmer’s hopes of a landslide election victory. Left-wingers are poised to launch a bid for the deputy management if Angela Rayner is pressured to give up over her property dealings.

It raises the prospect of a summer time of bitter infighting to cease a Corbynista successful a seat on the prime desk. MPs on the far Left of the social gathering have already began discussions over who they will unite behind for the elected submit.

In an extra blow to Labour chief Sir Keir, pro-Palestinian activists are to face in opposition to Labour candidates in no less than eight key seats on the subsequent election.

Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting and tradition spokeswoman Thangam Debbonaire are each high-risk targets.

A senior Labour supply warned it was “an extremely dangerous moment” for Sir Keir. The supply admitted Left-wingers have a “big chance” if the row over Ms Rayner’s council home sale results in her resignation.

Greater Manchester Police has launched an investigation into claims she broke electoral regulation over her former house.

She is assured she has finished nothing unsuitable however has pledged to face down if she has dedicated a legal offence.

A senior Labour MP mentioned: “Hard-Left activists are not stupid. They are already organising.

“It perhaps explains why Keir is so keen to keep Angela in place despite all the media attention. He can’t afford the risk of having a hard-Left deputy, or even the damage that a long-running deputy leadership contest will cause.”

The supply warned that Labour’s ballot lead is “extremely soft” and voiced concern that voters will likely be turned off by the spectacle of a Labour “civil war” and “blood-letting” with social gathering members “ripping each other apart”.

Sir Keir stripped former chief Jeremy Corbyn of the Labour whip, however the MP warned the laborious Left continues to be a strong power within the social gathering.

The MP mentioned: “They have never gone away. This is the big thing.

“Keir has told everybody for so long we’ve purged them, we’ve got rid of them. You go to any constituency Labour Party, they are still there.”

The MP added that Mr Corbyn’s supporters demonstrated their campaigning abilities within the 2015 and 2016 management elections, saying: “They do have some very talented IT people there and they are going to come back on board.”

A Labour Left insider predicted that if there’s a emptiness for the deputy management Zarah Sultana, co-chairwoman of the Socialist Campaign Group, could be a robust contender for the function. She has 444,000 followers on TikTok and 316,000 on Instagram.

“You’d see the Left coalesce around Zarah Sultana,” they mentioned.

However, Mr Corbyn’s former shadow chancellor John McDonnell has excessive title recognition and instructions respect.

An MP on the Right of Labour mentioned: “If I was in the Campaign Group I would be pushing for McDonnell because nobody else has got the reach he’s got.”

Sir Keir has angered the Left by not pushing more durable for Israel to halt its assaults on Hamas targets in Gaza – and pro-Palestinian campaigners are working to defeat Labour candidates.

Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting – one of many highest-profile MPs on the Right of the social gathering, who had a majority of simply 5,198 on the final election – faces a problem from Leanne Mohamad. She has raised greater than £25,500 by means of a crowd-funding marketing campaign.

In the West Midlands, Labour fears greater than 30,000 of its supporters may again pro-Gaza unbiased mayoral candidate Akhmed Yakoob – sufficient handy victory to Tory incumbent mayor Andy Street. Mr Yakoob’s mayoral bid will enhance his profile forward of the overall election, when he plans to face in opposition to Shadow Justice Secretary and key Sir Keir ally Shabana Mahmood.

In an extra problem, Left-winger Jamie Driscoll, who was elected as Labour mayor of Newcastle, North Tyneside and Northumberland in 2019, is now standing as an unbiased candidate for the brand new function of North East Mayor.

He and Ms Mohamad have acquired backing from the “We Deserve Better” funding marketing campaign spearheaded by Left-wing journalist Owen Jones, who give up Labour final month. It has additionally donated £5,000 to Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer, who plans to face in opposition to Shadow Culture Secretary Thangam Debbonaire in Bristol Central.

Tories say Sir Keir is determined to keep away from a deputy management contest – and a senior Labour supply mentioned it’s not sure one could be held earlier than the election if Ms Rayner steps down.

Conservative deputy chairman Jonathan Gullis mentioned: “After all Starmer’s claims about changing the Labour Party, nothing has changed. Far left extremism is still running rife in Labour, so much so that Sir Keir will do anything to avoid a deputy leadership election that would expose the splits in his Party over Gaza.”

According to Betfair, Ms Rayner was as soon as the three/1 favorite to succeed Sir Keir however her odds have dropped to 41/1 – far behind the likes of Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper (10/1), Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves (9/1) and Mayor Greater Manchester Andy Burnham (7/1).

Conservative MP Marco Longhi mentioned: “The hard Left continues to be a real danger to Britain. I shudder to think of what would have happened if Jeremy Corbyn was in Downing Street at a time when Russia is at war in Europe and the Middle East is in flames.”