Unrepresentative Unions
The Sunday Times reports that the Labour Party is going to great lengths to make itself less reliant on trade union money, but the 'chairman' of the Unite group of Labour MPs is quoted as telling critics of the unions to "shut up".
No wonder because if there is any sensible public debate about Labour's links with the unions, even a fool would be able to see that the unions are unrepresentative and do not reflect the views, especially in Scotland where the Labour Party's standing is at an all time low.
And the fact that many more of Unite's members support the SNP rather than the Labour Party is not the fault of Tony Blair who stood down as Prime Minister in 2007 - it's down to Labour's current crop of MPs including Jim Sheridan.
Blair raises £1m to help Labour keep out unions
Alastair McCall, Tim Shipman and James Lyons - The Sunday Times
Ed Miliband was present at the dinner at Tony Blair's house where the money was pledged by Assem Allam
TONY BLAIR was engulfed in a Labour funding row last night after he helped to broker a secret £1m donation deal with the party’s biggest business backer in a move to weaken the influence of the trade unions over Ed Miliband.
The former prime minister used a dinner at his London home last week to drum up cash for Labour’s election war chest and freeze out Unite, the union that is the party’s biggest paymaster.
At the dinner Assem Allam, chairman of Hull City football club, told Miliband that he would give Labour £300,000 on top of the £200,000 he has already handed over this year.
He promised a further £500,000 if the Labour leader loses money by standing up to Unite’s general secretary, Len McCluskey.
McCluskey is demanding that Labour put his friend Karie Murphy, a Unite activist who became embroiled in a vote-rigging row in Falkirk in 2013, on the shortlist of Labour candidates for the Halifax constituency due to be unveiled this week.
Although she was cleared of wrongdoing, Miliband is determined to keep Murphy off the shortlist.
Blair’s involvement last night provoked a backlash, with MPs accusing him of “underhand” behaviour that would cost Labour seats.
The dinner came about after Allam complained that Labour was treating successful businessmen as though “they should go away and die”. He was visited by John Prescott, the former Hull MP, and then invited to Blair’s home in Connaught Square, central London.
Allam expressed concerns that an outstanding £1.5m donation from Unite could be withheld if Murphy does not make the shortlist — a notion that the union claims is “laughable”.
Allam said: “I want to see a strong Labour party less reliant on trade union money, so I have said if you have any problem with the Unite money I will make my donation £1m.”
He added: “As I have always said to our friends in the Labour party, Tony Blair and Ed Miliband, I would increase my political donations to gradually reduce the Labour party’s financial reliance on the trade unions.
“I hope I can inspire other like-minded business people to do the same so that the Labour party can stand on their own without having to satisfy one paymaster.”
Blair’s role in the fundraising dinner reveals that the former prime minister is more involved in Labour’s campaign than was previously thought.
Jim Sheridan, chairman of the Unite group of Labour MPs, condemned the “underhand tactic” and said critics of the unions should “shut up”.
“A lot of MPs are members of Unite,” he said. “Unite have just given £1.6m to the party to try to get Ed Miliband into power so if this guy [Allam] or Blair are working against the party, then I think people will be really angry and frustrated.”
Sheridan, the MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire North, warned that Blair would help the SNP take Labour seats in Scotland by undermining the link with the unions.
The former prime minister “is toxic in Scotland, absolutely toxic” he said. “If Blair is trying to undermine the support of the trade unions I think it will have a damaging effect in Scotland and I think people will see that.”
He said Blair may be guilty of a “plot to try and freeze out honest, hard-working trade unionists who have the best interests of the party at heart”.
Sheridan added: “If they cannot be helpful and positive and supportive I would rather they just shut up.”
If Allam gives the full £1m, it would make him Labour’s largest donor of this parliament with a total of more than £1.2m, all but £106,900 since last June.
Allam said he “was assured under no circumstances will” Miliband “give in” to McCluskey’s pressure. Miliband has appointed Harriet Harman, his deputy, to the three strong panel who will interview those seeking the Halifax seat on Tuesday to stop Murphy being selected.
“That panel is two to one in favour of the leader,” a source said. “I think that is it. It’s over.”
The row follows the donation of £106,000 of Blair’s personal fortune --£1,000 for each of Labour’s target seats – which led several MPs opposed to the Iraq War to reject the money.
Blair is now planning a campaign visit to Sedgefield, the co Durham seat he held between 1983 and 1997 and may also make a speech on Europe next month making the case that the Tories’ would wreck the economy by pushing Britain towards the EU exit door.
Mr Blair’s spokeswoman said: “It was a suggestion by Labour that Tony host a private dinner for Labour supporters to raise funds. We’ve had a lot of thank you letters for his donation.”
A Labour party spokesman said: “We never comment on private meetings.”
TONY BLAIR was engulfed in a Labour funding row last night after he helped to broker a secret £1m donation deal with the party’s biggest business backer in a move to weaken the influence of the trade unions over Ed Miliband.
The former prime minister used a dinner at his London home last week to drum up cash for Labour’s election war chest and freeze out Unite, the union that is the party’s biggest paymaster.
At the dinner Assem Allam, chairman of Hull City football club, told Miliband that he would give Labour £300,000 on top of the £200,000 he has already handed over this year.
He promised a further £500,000 if the Labour leader loses money by standing up to Unite’s general secretary, Len McCluskey.
McCluskey is demanding that Labour put his friend Karie Murphy, a Unite activist who became embroiled in a vote-rigging row in Falkirk in 2013, on the shortlist of Labour candidates for the Halifax constituency due to be unveiled this week.
Although she was cleared of wrongdoing, Miliband is determined to keep Murphy off the shortlist.
Blair’s involvement last night provoked a backlash, with MPs accusing him of “underhand” behaviour that would cost Labour seats.
The dinner came about after Allam complained that Labour was treating successful businessmen as though “they should go away and die”. He was visited by John Prescott, the former Hull MP, and then invited to Blair’s home in Connaught Square, central London.
Allam expressed concerns that an outstanding £1.5m donation from Unite could be withheld if Murphy does not make the shortlist — a notion that the union claims is “laughable”.
Allam said: “I want to see a strong Labour party less reliant on trade union money, so I have said if you have any problem with the Unite money I will make my donation £1m.”
He added: “As I have always said to our friends in the Labour party, Tony Blair and Ed Miliband, I would increase my political donations to gradually reduce the Labour party’s financial reliance on the trade unions.
“I hope I can inspire other like-minded business people to do the same so that the Labour party can stand on their own without having to satisfy one paymaster.”
Blair’s role in the fundraising dinner reveals that the former prime minister is more involved in Labour’s campaign than was previously thought.
Jim Sheridan, chairman of the Unite group of Labour MPs, condemned the “underhand tactic” and said critics of the unions should “shut up”.
“A lot of MPs are members of Unite,” he said. “Unite have just given £1.6m to the party to try to get Ed Miliband into power so if this guy [Allam] or Blair are working against the party, then I think people will be really angry and frustrated.”
Sheridan, the MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire North, warned that Blair would help the SNP take Labour seats in Scotland by undermining the link with the unions.
The former prime minister “is toxic in Scotland, absolutely toxic” he said. “If Blair is trying to undermine the support of the trade unions I think it will have a damaging effect in Scotland and I think people will see that.”
He said Blair may be guilty of a “plot to try and freeze out honest, hard-working trade unionists who have the best interests of the party at heart”.
Sheridan added: “If they cannot be helpful and positive and supportive I would rather they just shut up.”
If Allam gives the full £1m, it would make him Labour’s largest donor of this parliament with a total of more than £1.2m, all but £106,900 since last June.
Allam said he “was assured under no circumstances will” Miliband “give in” to McCluskey’s pressure. Miliband has appointed Harriet Harman, his deputy, to the three strong panel who will interview those seeking the Halifax seat on Tuesday to stop Murphy being selected.
“That panel is two to one in favour of the leader,” a source said. “I think that is it. It’s over.”
The row follows the donation of £106,000 of Blair’s personal fortune --£1,000 for each of Labour’s target seats – which led several MPs opposed to the Iraq War to reject the money.
Blair is now planning a campaign visit to Sedgefield, the co Durham seat he held between 1983 and 1997 and may also make a speech on Europe next month making the case that the Tories’ would wreck the economy by pushing Britain towards the EU exit door.
Mr Blair’s spokeswoman said: “It was a suggestion by Labour that Tony host a private dinner for Labour supporters to raise funds. We’ve had a lot of thank you letters for his donation.”
A Labour party spokesman said: “We never comment on private meetings.”
