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Gordon Brown urges Labour not to be party of protest by electing Corbyn Gordon Brown urges Labour not to be party of protest by electing Corbyn
(about 5 hours later)
Gordon Brown has become the latest senior Labour figure to warn against choosing Jeremy Corbyn as the party’s next leader, arguing that he could damage international relations by allying with Hezbollah, Hamas, Venezuela and Russia. The former prime minister did not refer to any of the candidates by name, but his 50-minute speech was heavy with implicit warnings that Corbyn would make Labour a party of protest rather than of government. Gordon Brown has become the latest senior Labour figure to warn against choosing Jeremy Corbyn as the party’s next leader, suggesting that the MP for Islington North could damage international relations by allying with Hezbollah, Hamas, Venezuela and Russia. The former prime minister did not refer to any of the candidates by name, but his 50-minute speech was heavy with thinly veiled warnings that Corbyn would make Labour a party of protest rather than one of government.
Brown told party members and invited journalists at the Royal Festival Hall in London that Labour must be “credible, radical, sustainable and electable to help people out of poverty”, and that anger was not enough. In a clear reference to Corbyn, he said there was one camp whose own supporters even did not believe their candidate would win the next election. Related: Corbynomics must smash this cosy consensus on debt | Zoe Williams
Brown told party members and invited journalists at the Royal Festival Hall in London that Labour must be “credible, radical, sustainable and electable to help people out of poverty” and that anger was not enough. In a clear reference to Corbyn, he said there was one camp whose own supporters did not even believe their candidate would win the next election.
Brown said he was heartbroken and the party grieving after the general election defeat in May, but that it would be “even worse if we leave ourselves powerless to do anything about it”.Brown said he was heartbroken and the party grieving after the general election defeat in May, but that it would be “even worse if we leave ourselves powerless to do anything about it”.
In the most explicit warning so far about Corbyn’s foreign policy, 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, Chávez’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 said was a collective term rather than a sign that he agrees with their views. Corbyn has also hinted at being open to a closer relationship with Russia and wants to withdraw from Nato.
Related: Andy Burnham blasts 'Tory' labelling of anyone not backing Jeremy CorbynRelated: Andy Burnham blasts 'Tory' labelling of anyone not backing Jeremy Corbyn
Analysing some of the reasons people may have turned to Corbyn’s leftwing politics, he said people were feeling insecure about globalisation, which had left people “uncertain and unmoored” and embracing nationalism in countries from Greece to Scotland. But he said Labour must not turn its back on internationalism and should build progressive alliances, especially within Europe, against “illiberalism, totalitarianism, antisemitism, racism and the extremisms of prejudice”. Brown staged his intervention after Corbyn became the surprise frontrunner in the contest with the backing of the two bigggest trade unions, Unite and Unison. Until recently an obscure leftwing backbencher, Corbyn only managed to get on to the ballot after a number of Labour MPs lent him their nomination in order to encourage debate about the future of the party.
In the most explicit warning so far about Corbyn’s foreign policy, 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, Chávez’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 said was a collective term rather than a sign that he agrees with their views. He has also hinted at being open to a closer relationship with Russia and wants to withdraw from Nato. As the momentum behind his campaign has grown, a string of senior Labour figures – including Tony Blair, Alan Johnson, Jack Straw and Alastair Campbell – have warned that Corbyn would be electorally disastrous. None, however, has dented the leftwinger’s status as the favourite to win and pressure is now mounting on former leader Ed Miliband to make clear his views, given that they are more likely to be respected by the left of the party than those of politicians more closely associated with the Blair era.
Brown also said it was “not an abandonment of principles to seek power” and that Labour members should see their vote not as a protest but a “public duty and sacred trust”. “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. In the lengthy speech delivered from memory, Brown paced the room as he quoted a series of Labour politicians, including Aneurin Bevan, Keir Hardie, John Smith, Neil Kinnock and even his old rival Blair, to cement his argument that power is necessary to change lives. He even invoked Mahatma Gandhi, asking: “Is what I am about to do going to help?”, and Nelson Mandela, saying the yardstick by which he would be measured was the ability to better the lives of all people.
People must vote not for the candidate they “like” as they would on Facebook, but for the candidate who can make a difference, he added. Brown said it was “not an abandonment of principles to seek power” and that Labour members should see their vote not as a protest but a “public duty and sacred trust”. “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.
In the lengthy speech, delivered from memory, Brown paced the room as he quoted a series of Labour politicians, including Aneurin Bevan, Keir Hardie, John Smith, Neil Kinnock and even his old rival Tony Blair, to cement his argument that power is necessary to change lives. He even invoked Mahatma Gandhi, asking: “Is what I am about to do going to help?”, and Nelson Mandela, saying the yardstick by which he would be measured was the ability to better the lives of all people. Polls are divided as to whether the wider public likes Corbyn, with one by Survation suggesting he is the most popular candidate on a range of measures, and another by ComRes indicating that he was rated both most likely to improve Labour’s fortunes and most likely to damage them.
Responding to the speech, a spokesman from Corbyn’s campaign said it “highlighted the need for a Labour party that stands for hope, that is credible, radical and electable – on which basis the best candidate to vote for is Jeremy Corbyn. It is necessary to be credible, but credibility cannot mean an orthodoxy of austerity that chokes off recovery. Instead we need a Labour party that stands for growth, investment and innovation across the whole country,” he said. As ballot papers start to arrive on the doormats of party members, rival candidates Andy Burnham and Yvette Cooper are now engaged in a bitter fight to position themselves as the candidate who can beat Corbyn on second preference votes. Both are refusing to stand aside despite pressure from MPs for anti-Corbyn sentiment to converge behind a single candidate.
It was reported on Sunday night that Peter Mandelson tried unsuccessfully to get the three frontbench candidates to quit in an effort to force the party to suspend the election.
A campaign source has told the Guardian that people in Kendall’s camp tried to get both her and Cooper to withdraw and rally round Burnham. But Cooper refused and Kendall was not willing to drop out on her own. After a speech on Thursday, Cooper told the audience it would not have been right for the two women to give up, leaving a field of two men.
Burnham will on Monday claim that he is the only candidate who can beat Corbyn and unite the party. The campaign of the fourth candidate, Liz Kendall, agrees that Burnham is best placed to challenge the frontrunner. The shadow health secretary will also offer to work with Corbyn if he wins, promising to “involve Jeremy and his team in rebuilding our party from the bottom up”.
“I want to show how I can take the best ideas of the other candidates, where there is common ground between us, and use them to shape my radical vision. In that way, we will come out of this contest as a strong and united team ready to take the fight to the Tories,” he will say in a speech in Manchester.
However, Burnham’s claim to have the best chance of beating Corbyn has been challenged by Liam Byrne, the shadow universities minister and a Cooper supporter. He has written a blog saying Cooper’s internal phone banking data showed around 66% of Burnham second-preference votes would go to Cooper which, he argued, would be enough to push her into first place. He said just 13% of Burnham’s second preferences are going to Corbyn and Kendall. However, the data does not say whether more or less of Cooper’s second preferences are expected to go to Burnham or the precise percentage of Burnham’s second preferences that would go to Corbyn.
Cooper’s team had been hoping to win the endorsement of Brown, whose ex-adviser is her husband, Ed Balls, the former shadow chancellor, but the former prime minister chose not to back a single candidate.
Responding to the speech, a spokesman from Corbyn’s campaign said it “highlighted the need for a Labour party that stands for hope, that is credible, radical and electable – on which basis, the best candidate to vote for is Jeremy Corbyn”.
He added: “It is necessary to be credible, but credibility cannot mean an orthodoxy of austerity that chokes off recovery. Instead we need a Labour party that stands for growth, investment and innovation across the whole country.
“Jeremy Corbyn’s clear plans for growth-led recovery rather than austerity mark him out as the candidate offering hope and drawing in thousands of new people in the process. Polls vary, but most have shown that Jeremy Corbyn is the candidate most likely to engage with voters beyond Labour’s existing supporters.”“Jeremy Corbyn’s clear plans for growth-led recovery rather than austerity mark him out as the candidate offering hope and drawing in thousands of new people in the process. Polls vary, but most have shown that Jeremy Corbyn is the candidate most likely to engage with voters beyond Labour’s existing supporters.”
Brown’s intervention comes after warnings from senior figures including Tony Blair, Alan Johnson, Jack Straw and Alastair Campbell that Corbyn would be electorally disastrous. None, however, have dented the leftwinger’s status as the favourite to win. Brown’s decision to break his silence on the contest drew a divided reaction from his party. Clive Lewis, a new Labour MP and Corbyn supporter, tweeted that Brown was not qualified to lecture on economic credibility.
The former PM’s decision to break his silence on the contest drew a divided reaction from his party. Clive Lewis, a new Labour MP and Corbyn supporter, tweeted that Brown was not qualified to lecture on economic credibility.
Before Gordon Brown makes his speech today,read this.Then decide if hes qualified to lecture on 'economic credibility'http://t.co/5qokSITo2HBefore Gordon Brown makes his speech today,read this.Then decide if hes qualified to lecture on 'economic credibility'http://t.co/5qokSITo2H
This in turn drew criticism from other Labour MPs, with the shadow children and families minister, Alison McGovern, replying: “I’m a ‘play the ball, not the person’ sort. But this is a joke. [Gordon Brown] helped millions to better life. And this guy? Not.” This in turn drew fire from other Labour MPs, with the shadow Treasury minister, Alison McGovern, replying: “I’m a ‘play the ball, not the person’ sort. But this is a joke. [Gordon Brown] helped millions to better life. And this guy? Not.”
The other three leadership candidates initially held back from criticising Corbyn over fears it would look as if they were ganging up on the outsider, but they have now all suggested that he risks creating turmoil in party. The other three leadership candidates initially held back from criticising Corbyn over fears that they might be seen as ganging up on the outsider, but they have now all suggested that he risks creating turmoil in the party.
In an interview with the Sunday People, Andy Burnham claimed electing Corbyn 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.” In an interview with the Sunday People, Burnham claimed that electing Corbyn 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.”
Burnham’s claim that he is the “stop Corbyn” candidate was challenged by the shadow universities minister and Yvette Cooper supporter, Liam Byrne, on Sunday. He wrote a blog saying Cooper’s internal phonebanking data showed around 66% of Burnham and Liz Kendall’s second-preference votes going to Cooper, which he argued would be enough to push her into first place.
As Burnham and Cooper battle to be seen as the main challenger to Corbyn, a ComRes study of 2,035 adults for the Independent on Sunday and Sunday Mirror found that 31% of those polled thought the leftwinger would worsen Labour’s prospects of electoral success. Twenty-one per cent, however, thought Corbyn would improve the party’s prospects, putting him ahead of Burnham on 19%, Cooper on 15% and 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%, 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. 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.”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.”
Corbyn has dismissed all criticism of his suitability as a leader by saying he does not do personal attacks or respond to abuse. Corbyn has dismissed all criticism of his suitability as a leader by saying that he does not do personal attacks or respond to abuse.