John McDonnell claims that Sir Keir Starmer allowed “the right-wing faction to get drunk on power”
John McDonnell blamed Sir Keira Starmer and his allies in conducting a “search and destroy” mission against the left in the Labor Party.
Mr McDonnell, who was Jeremy Corbyn's shadow chancellor between 2015 and 2020, came forward after a series of high-profile statements. -profile scandals that sparked claims of factionalism.
Beth Winter, a member of the Socialist Campaign Labor MPs group, has publicly criticized Sir Keir's leadership of the party for losing to Gerald Jones in a seat battle, a moderate shadow minister.
She claimed to have encountered “unacceptable obstacles” during the competition.
In March, Leigh Drennan, an ally of Angela Rayner who was backed by unions and the Corbynite group Momentum, was denied the party's nomination.
In an interview with Newsnight, Mr McDonnell said: “I think he [Sir Keir] let it happen that the right faction got drunk on power and used devices within the party to almost seek and destroy the left.
“They seem more interested in destroying the presence of the left in the party than in creating a Labor government.< /p>
“We all want a Labor government, we want a broad church party. We want to create enthusiasm before the elections, but we need commitment when we are in government, when times are hard, and that's when you bring in all the elements of the party. You cannot allow one faction to dominate in this way and alienate others. Mr. McDonnell said he wrote to Sir Keir several times to warn him that “this factionalism creates real problems for us in the future.”
“Previous leaders and prime ministers of the Labor Party have always had a broad ecclesiastical approach in their cabinet – left, right and centre. They tolerated different views within the party,” he added.
Sir Keir has long been accused by socialists in the party of carrying out a “purge” of the left since he became leader in April 2020.
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Despite serving as a shadow Brexit minister between 2016 and 2019, Sir Keir insisted he was “never friends” with Corbyn and stripped him of his whip during an argument over the extent of anti-Semitism in the party.
In February, he “categorically” promised to prevent him from running as a candidate for the Labor Party in the next election and called on the Corbinites to leave the party if they did not like its direction.
Last year, a dossier compiled by sources on the Labor Left claimed that a number of potential MPs were unable to run for office due to “due diligence” issues that resulted in two nominees being blocked due to “liked” tweets by Nicola Sturgeon and Caroline . Lucas, SNP and Green Party politicians.
Mr McDonnell criticized Sir Keir, saying he made Ms Rayner a “scapegoat” by trying to fire her as deputy leader in May 2021, and “overreacted” by suspending the whip. by Mr. Corbin.
In the Observer on Sunday, John Cruddas, Labor MP for Dagenham and Raynham, accused Sir Keir of organizing a “witch hunt” against Mr Corbyn's supporters and Labor Party members with independent votes.
“This unprecedented in the history of Labor, the most right-wing and illiberal faction in the party got the right to decide who is a member of the party and who is not,” he wrote.
“They settle scores. and clearly launched a witch hunt… This would never have happened under New Labor, who embraced the party's democratic pluralist character and whose first term saw significant constitutional and political changes.”
Labour Party spokesman said: “The public must know that if someone is a Labor candidate, it is a mark of quality they can rely on.
“It is absolutely correct that we have high standards for those who are going to represent the Labor Party during elections. It's a reformed Labor Party, back at the service of the working people so we can build a better Britain.”
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