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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
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| Labour expels Alastair Campbell from party | Labour expels Alastair Campbell from party |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Alastair Campbell, the former communications chief to Tony Blair, has been expelled from the Labour party for saying he voted for the Liberal Democrats in the European elections because of their support for a second Brexit referendum. | Alastair Campbell, the former communications chief to Tony Blair, has been expelled from the Labour party for saying he voted for the Liberal Democrats in the European elections because of their support for a second Brexit referendum. |
| The People’s Vote campaigner said he was “sad and disappointed” at his expulsion, especially as he felt it had happened on the day the Labour leadership appeared to be moving in the direction of supporting another Brexit poll because of the exodus of remainers from the party. | The People’s Vote campaigner said he was “sad and disappointed” at his expulsion, especially as he felt it had happened on the day the Labour leadership appeared to be moving in the direction of supporting another Brexit poll because of the exodus of remainers from the party. |
| Campbell said that after taking advice from a lawyer he would appeal against the decision. | Campbell said that after taking advice from a lawyer he would appeal against the decision. |
| “I am and always will be Labour,” he said in a series of tweets. “I voted Lib Dem, without advance publicity, to try to persuade Labour to do right thing for country/party. In light of appeal, I won’t be doing media on this. But hard not to point out difference in the way antisemitism cases have been handled.” | “I am and always will be Labour,” he said in a series of tweets. “I voted Lib Dem, without advance publicity, to try to persuade Labour to do right thing for country/party. In light of appeal, I won’t be doing media on this. But hard not to point out difference in the way antisemitism cases have been handled.” |
| The expulsion of Alastair Campbell is a Spartacus moment for Labour members | Letters | The expulsion of Alastair Campbell is a Spartacus moment for Labour members | Letters |
| Campbell said there were plenty of previous cases where members had voted for other parties and causes, and some were now senior party staff members. He appeared to be alluding to Andrew Murray, who spent much of his life as a member of the Communist party before joining Labour in 2016 and entering the leader’s office as a part-time adviser to Jeremy Corbyn last year. | Campbell said there were plenty of previous cases where members had voted for other parties and causes, and some were now senior party staff members. He appeared to be alluding to Andrew Murray, who spent much of his life as a member of the Communist party before joining Labour in 2016 and entering the leader’s office as a part-time adviser to Jeremy Corbyn last year. |
| The former Downing Street director of communications also drew attention to Blair’s decision to allow Corbyn to stay in the Labour party in an era when the prime minister was being pressured to withdraw the whip from rebellious leftwingers. | The former Downing Street director of communications also drew attention to Blair’s decision to allow Corbyn to stay in the Labour party in an era when the prime minister was being pressured to withdraw the whip from rebellious leftwingers. |
| Later on Tuesday, speaking outside his home in north London, Campbell said he had voted in the “best interests” of the Labour party by supporting the Lib Dems at the European elections. “You can interpret the rules in all sorts of different ways, but one thing I know is I’m not going to leave the party just because some random email comes in telling me that I’ve been expelled,” he said. | |
| “So I will definitely appeal against it and we will see where that goes.” | |
| A Labour party spokeswoman said Campbell had been expelled because “support for another political party or candidate is incompatible with party membership”. She said: “The Lib Dems cannot and will not end austerity. They cannot bring our country together or be trusted to deliver on their promises. They propped up the Tories for five years and imposed the austerity that has devastated our communities.“Labour will do things very differently, and ensure our society is run for the benefit of the many, not just a privileged few.”Labour’s rulebook says that any party member who supports a political organisation other than Labour or supports any candidate who stands against an official Labour candidate, is ineligible to be or remain a party member and is therefore automatically excluded from membership. | |
| Michael Heseltine, the Conservative former deputy prime minister, was suspended from his party recently for saying he would vote for the Liberal Democrats in the European elections. | Michael Heseltine, the Conservative former deputy prime minister, was suspended from his party recently for saying he would vote for the Liberal Democrats in the European elections. |
| Andrew Cooper, the founder of the polling firm Populus and David Cameron’s director of strategy in Downing Street, was also suspended by the Tories for the same reason. | Andrew Cooper, the founder of the polling firm Populus and David Cameron’s director of strategy in Downing Street, was also suspended by the Tories for the same reason. |
| Alastair Campbell | Alastair Campbell |
| Labour | Labour |
| Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats |
| Brexit | Brexit |
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