Independent Media | Campaigning Journalism
Outrage as Labour North West bans candidates from Liverpool mayoral elections
Labour North West has barred all three shortlisted candidates for the Liverpool mayoral elections, leaving many voters confused and angry.
Shortlisted candidates acting mayor Wendy Simon, current lord mayor Anna Rothery, and former deputy mayor Ann O’Byrne were supposed to be competing for Joe Anderson’s vacated position from last week.
Instead, an email sent to Labour party members announced the application process would be reopened. According to the Liverpool Echo, no previous candidates are invited to apply.
So hang on @UKLabour NONE of the current candidates are eligible to run for the position of Mayor of Liverpool, yet one of them has been standing in & doing the job for some time now??? Just one of the many ‘doesn’t add up’ in today’s announcement
— Clare Maher 💙 (@LadyMaher) February 23, 2021
Read on...
Where is Labour's commitment to diversity?
Why has @LabourNorthWest reversed the decision to have an all-women shortlist for Liverpool Mayor?
If it's about having the best candidate then should all-women shortlists be stopped everywhere? @AngelaRayner @Keir_Starmer
— Labour Grassroots (@Standup4Labour) February 23, 2021
“The right candidate”
The email sent to voters said:
The role of Liverpool Mayor is a high profile and hugely important figure. The people of Liverpool deserve a Labour Mayor and the Labour Party needs to select the right candidate who can deliver an election win, stand up against the Conservatives, lead Liverpool out of the coronavirus crisis and fight for the regeneration and the resources that the city desperately needs.
After careful consideration, the Labour Party has determined that applications for the position should be re-opened in order to allow the Liverpool Labour membership to choose from an alternative shortlist of candidates.
The three original candidates were reportedly not informed of the decision before the email was sent.
Labour reopens applications for Liverpool Mayor nominations @CllrAnnaRothery has been banned from standing (no reason given, but she was backed by Jeremy Corbyn…)
Labour is an absolute joke of a partyhttps://t.co/rnq8VLEYGU
— troovus (@troovus) February 23, 2021
The decision has been met with disbelief by many people, particularly supporters of Anna Rothery. Rothery has received support from across the Labour party, including from MPs Jeremy Corbyn and Zarah Sultana, and from mayor of Bristol Marvin Rees.
I am stunned this blatant attempt to stop a Socialist becoming Mayor of Liverpool. Anna must stand as an Independent and @UKLabour need kicking into touch in Liverpool. My membership is getting lashed in the bin.
— Gary Jacko (@thegaryjacko) February 23, 2021
Wendy Simon has been serving as acting mayor of Liverpool since previous Labour mayor Joe Anderson stepped down in December 2020. Anderson stepped down after being arrested under suspicion of conspiring to commit bribery and witness intimidation.
Friggin livid.
Starmer has decided that the people of Liverpool can’t decide on who they want as Mayor.
Only non socialists need apply.
We need to do something about this.
We need a new leadership. This stinks. https://t.co/XvAyI303iV— Dazred (@DarrenMelia1) February 23, 2021
Many people have accused Labour North West of making the decision to remove left wing candidates.
Some centrist from Bedford in 2 days after receiving party establishment support for Liverpool Mayor pic.twitter.com/fKrva250DT
— Sam 🚩❄️ (@hopexha17) February 23, 2021
Unbelievable!
Solidarity with the 3 amazing women who were shortlisted for mayor. @CllrAnnaRothery @CllrWendySimon and @ann_obyrne
Is this what happens when Starmer's favourite candidate isn't shortlisted? Liverpool will not stand for this kind of corruption! https://t.co/9AJgzENd7E
— Chantelle Lunt (@chantellelunt) February 23, 2021
Featured image via Wikimedia Commons/Rwendland
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The Labour Party under the Starmenfuhrer seems intent on losing its one remaining stronghold in the North of England. The Blairites took the North East for granted, look what happened there (https://tribunemag.co.uk/2019/07/has-labour-lost-the-north). Now it seems the North West is set to follow. Goodbye local democracy, goodbye diverse political opinion, goodbye Labour, RIP.
I am no longer surprised by Tory Starmer’s behaviour. He was I believe put in this position as Labour leader to destroy the Party from the inside out. He has done a great job, backed no doubt by Blair, Mandelson et al. A cheap set of tawdry politicians hell bent on the destruction of the left. I left the party the day he was elected and will never on principle vote for Labour again.
We need a new left wing socialist party, Labour is no run on democratic lines and I fail to see how the left wing members now have any hope of any kind of ethics, decency or integrity in this now Tory light nonsense. Starmer’s lies, cowardice and clear pro hyper capitalism stance is outrageous in a country which is now turning into a banana republic for big business and systemic corruption, cronyism and the utter lack of transparency.
We need courage, fortitude and honesty to win this existential battle.
TUSC are standing candidates in the local elections again to oppose Labour cuts councillors. Hopefully they will put forward a candidate for Mayor of Liverpool too.
Time to ditch the Concentrists for good.
Who do those northern lefties think they are? In Liverpool, they don’t even talk proper. They should have lessons in RP from people from Reigate. Just because Liverpool produced the Beatles, just because they’ve got two great football teams, just because they stood up to Thatcher, just because they believe in the public sector and poke fun at cheap go-getters in fancy suits, doesn’t give them the right to upset poor little Keir. His mummy promised him he would be leader of the Party and PM and socialists aren’t going to stop him. And three women. Trust northerners to think women can do the job as well as men. They should come to Surrey and educate themselves. What the voters want is a nullity in a suit, who talks like a weighing machine, has all the passion of a tranquillised sloth and thinks Israel is a beautiful democracy at whose feet we should bow. Fancy, putting all that in jeopardy by putting forward northern women with funny accents who think capitalism stinks and the Palestinians should have equal rights. Don’ they understand you only get to run the country if you kiss Rupert Murdoch’s arse and promise never to criticise Netanyahu? Of course, scousers will never understand. They refuse to buy the Sun. They should be force fed the opinions of Trevor Kavanagh, then they’d know that Starmer is going to win by promising not to change anything. That’s the only way the Tories will vote for him. He doesn’t want socialists to vote for him. He wants them to evaporate. Otherwise he’ll just have to expel them all for anti-Semitism. Imagine thinking the ordinary folk of Liverpool can make choices for themselves. What would Lord Salisbury say? No, the oiks must be put in their place and northerners must understand that when we talk of a Powerhouse it doesn’t mean they’ll have any power, it means we’ll look good, cream off the profit, put it offshore and buy another house in the Cotswolds. Keir has proven democracy is dead. Long live Labour dictatorship. Now vote for the monkey and shut up.
Where you want to pick your fight is to campaign for local members to elect who they want as their democratic representitives rather than have one appointed by London.
Its called a cheeky.