the European Parliament -Ken Coates, Hugh Kerr, Michael Hindley and Alex Falconer - have been suspended from the European Parliamentary Labour Party.
The Labour Party leadership demanded that all Euro-MPs sign an undertaking not to publicly discuss the system to be employed for the Euro-elections next year. The four refused and were subsequently suspended, although they are still expected to abide by the Labour whip!
Jack Straw has now produced the white paper proposing that the election takes place by the closed list' system. This gives the electorate no say in their preference within a Party list, and gives the party hierarchy absolute control not only over who is on the Party list, but what order they rank in.
This system has not been adopted openly by the Labour Party, nor has there been the promised 'national discussion' of voting systems.
Blair's hope is that if he can get this adopted Under the Millbank cosh: Ken Coates eliminating dissident MEPs like the four and others, it will be much easier for him to centrally determine candidates for the next British parliamentary elections, removing many Left MPs at a stroke. The four (apparently soon to be joined by several more) must be defended on the grounds of basic democratic rights. Party members at all levels must have the right to speak out against policy they disagree with. Blair's intolerance of any opposition must be fought even when we don't agree with the criticism being made, such as when Llew Smith opposed the campaign for a 'yes' vote in the Welsh referendum. There is an attempt across the labour movement (see elsewhere on UNISON) to silence critics, and socialists have to defend the right to speak out and to organise Trade union and LP bodies should pass resolutions condemning the suspension of the four.
cim is loo