This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/aug/16/gordon-brown-warning-against-jeremy-corbyn-labour-leadership
The article has changed 12 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Gordon Brown urges Labour not to be party of protest by electing Corbyn | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Gordon Brown has urged Labour not to become a party of protest by electing Jeremy Corbyn, whom he suggested could damage international relations by allying with Hezbollah, Hamas, Hugo Chavez’s successor in Venezuela and Vladimir Putin’s Russia. | |
| The former prime minister did not refer to any of the candidates by name, but his entire 50-minute speech was shot through with implicit warning against choosing Corbyn as leader. | |
| Without endorsing any other candidate, he said Labour must be a party of government to help people out of poverty and that there was one camp whose own supporters did not believe their candidate would win the next election – a clear reference to Corbyn. | |
| Brown said he was heartbroken after the general election defeat in May, but it would be “even worse if we leave ourselves powerless to do anything about it”. | |
| In his most obvious warning against electing Corbyn, he said: “Don’t tell me that we can do much for the poor of the world if the alliances we favour most are with Hezbollah, Hamas, Chavez’s successor in Venezuela and Putin’s totalitarian Russia.” | |
| Corbyn has been criticised for describing representatives of Hamas and Hezbollah as “friends”, which he has excused by saying it was a collective term. He has also hinted at being open to a closer relationship with Russia. | |
| Brown also said it was “not an abandonment of principles to seek power”. | |
| “The best way of realising our high ideals is to show that we have an alternative in government that is credible, that is radical, and is electable – is neither a pale imitation of what the Tories offer nor is it the route to being a party of permanent protest, rather than a party of government,” he said. | |
| Brown’s intervention comes after warnings that Jeremy Corbyn would be electorally disastrous from senior figures including Tony Blair, Alan Johnson, Jack Straw, and Alastair Campbell, which have failed to dent the leftwinger’s status as the favourite to win. | |
| Andy Burnham has stepped up the assault on Corbyn in an interview with the Sunday People, claiming that electing the Islington MP would drag Labour back to the infighting of the 1980s. | Andy Burnham has stepped up the assault on Corbyn in an interview with the Sunday People, claiming that electing the Islington MP would drag Labour back to the infighting of the 1980s. |
| “I’m the only person in this race who can beat Jeremy,” he said. “In the 80s, we started fighting each other and left the way clear for Margaret Thatcher to bulldoze her way through Labour communities. I’m not going to let that happen this time.” | “I’m the only person in this race who can beat Jeremy,” he said. “In the 80s, we started fighting each other and left the way clear for Margaret Thatcher to bulldoze her way through Labour communities. I’m not going to let that happen this time.” |
| Burnham’s remarks came as a ComRes study of 2,035 adults in Britain, for the Independent on Sunday and Sunday Mirror, found 31% of those polled thought Corbyn would worsen Labour’s prospects of electoral success. | Burnham’s remarks came as a ComRes study of 2,035 adults in Britain, for the Independent on Sunday and Sunday Mirror, found 31% of those polled thought Corbyn would worsen Labour’s prospects of electoral success. |
| However, 21% of voters thought Corbyn would improve the party’s election prospects – putting him ahead of Burnham on 19%, Yvette Cooper on 15% and Liz Kendall on 11%. | However, 21% of voters thought Corbyn would improve the party’s election prospects – putting him ahead of Burnham on 19%, Yvette Cooper on 15% and Liz Kendall on 11%. |
| A Survation poll on Friday found that Corbyn ranked the highest of all the candidates on a range of questions about his personality and politics. Burnham had a narrow lead on who would be best as prime minister by 25% to 24% for Corbyn, but the two men tied at 26% on who would be most likely to win the 2020 election. | A Survation poll on Friday found that Corbyn ranked the highest of all the candidates on a range of questions about his personality and politics. Burnham had a narrow lead on who would be best as prime minister by 25% to 24% for Corbyn, but the two men tied at 26% on who would be most likely to win the 2020 election. |
| After a week of intense attacks from senior Labour figures about his credibility as a leader, Corbyn sought to calm fears that he would have an anti-business agenda by setting out plans to support entrepreneurs and small traders. | After a week of intense attacks from senior Labour figures about his credibility as a leader, Corbyn sought to calm fears that he would have an anti-business agenda by setting out plans to support entrepreneurs and small traders. |
| He told the Observer: “The current government seems to think ‘pro-business’ means giving a green light to corporate tax avoiders and private monopolies. I will stand up for small businesses, independent entrepreneurs, and the growing number of enterprises that want to cooperate and innovate for the public good. | He told the Observer: “The current government seems to think ‘pro-business’ means giving a green light to corporate tax avoiders and private monopolies. I will stand up for small businesses, independent entrepreneurs, and the growing number of enterprises that want to cooperate and innovate for the public good. |
| “My Better Business plan will level the playing field between small businesses and their workers who are being made to wait in the queue behind the big corporate welfare lobby the Tories are funded by and obsessed with.” | “My Better Business plan will level the playing field between small businesses and their workers who are being made to wait in the queue behind the big corporate welfare lobby the Tories are funded by and obsessed with.” |
| Labour frontbenchers concerned about Corbyn’s electability have been trying to mobilise in recent days to minimise his chances of victory. | Labour frontbenchers concerned about Corbyn’s electability have been trying to mobilise in recent days to minimise his chances of victory. |
| Kendall’s camp is understood to believe that only Burnham has a chance of winning. During behind-the-scenes negotiations on Wednesday, she said she was willing to stand aside but only if Cooper did so as well. | Kendall’s camp is understood to believe that only Burnham has a chance of winning. During behind-the-scenes negotiations on Wednesday, she said she was willing to stand aside but only if Cooper did so as well. |
| Cooper publicly rejected this after her speech on Thursday, saying she would not agree to a plan in which the two women gave way to the two male candidates. | Cooper publicly rejected this after her speech on Thursday, saying she would not agree to a plan in which the two women gave way to the two male candidates. |
| Speaking on BBC News, Kendall acknowledged Corbyn’s status as the frontrunner but said she would not quit the race. | Speaking on BBC News, Kendall acknowledged Corbyn’s status as the frontrunner but said she would not quit the race. |
| Given that the first batch of ballot papers have now been sent out, there is little point in any of the trailing candidates withdrawing, especially since the second and third preferences of their supporters would be redistributed among the other contenders in later rounds of voting. | Given that the first batch of ballot papers have now been sent out, there is little point in any of the trailing candidates withdrawing, especially since the second and third preferences of their supporters would be redistributed among the other contenders in later rounds of voting. |
| The procedure of the contest has also been under scrutiny over the last week. Some frontbenchers have been trying to persuade Harriet Harman, the acting leader, to hold a shadow cabinet meeting at which there would be calls to halt the contest because of worries about infiltration by non-Labour supporters, but this has been rebuffed. | The procedure of the contest has also been under scrutiny over the last week. Some frontbenchers have been trying to persuade Harriet Harman, the acting leader, to hold a shadow cabinet meeting at which there would be calls to halt the contest because of worries about infiltration by non-Labour supporters, but this has been rebuffed. |
| There is also a row going on in the party about a decision not to publish how MPs and MEPs have voted. The rules for the contest say they will be made public as soon as possible after the announcement of the results. This is now under review, according to a party spokesman. | There is also a row going on in the party about a decision not to publish how MPs and MEPs have voted. The rules for the contest say they will be made public as soon as possible after the announcement of the results. This is now under review, according to a party spokesman. |
| One MP supporting Cooper said it looked like a move to try to hide how little support Corbyn has among the parliamentary party in the event that he wins. | One MP supporting Cooper said it looked like a move to try to hide how little support Corbyn has among the parliamentary party in the event that he wins. |