Amid intense behind-the-scenes arm-twisting today, public services union Unison broke ranks to declared it will oppose the leader‘s Brexit fudge.
But the Momentum pressure group appears to have handed Mr Corbyn a lifeline by signalling its activists will be in his camp, rather than with the Remainers.
In a shock split, its founder Jon Lansman made clear he did not agree with the decision, tweeting that ‚members should feel free to vote with their conscience‘.
The revelations come a day after the Labour leader was forced to step in to save Tom Watson’s job, after Jon Lansman tried to scrap the post of Labour deputy leader.
The Momentum chief launched a shock attempt to remove Mr Watson – with the support of the Unite union – at a meeting of Labour‘s ruling national executive committee on Friday night.
(21.09.2019)
If you had a lie-in this morning you may have missed that Momentum’s attempt to purge Watson has failed. You may have missed it had even started last night. Jon Lansman, the multi-millionaire founder of Momentum proposed to the party’s governing NEC that the position of Deputy Leader be abolished. The headbanging outriders of Corbyn on Twitter were ecstatic, most Labour MPs were alarmed, it was reported that Gordon Brown had phoned Corbyn and McDonnell to lobby against the move, Tony Blair publicly backed the man who initiated the “curry plot” that led to his demise. Corbyn blinked.
(20.09.2019)
Momentum boss Jon Lansman has launched a bid to axe the post of Labour deputy leader because of Tom Watson‘s „disloyalty“ over Brexit.
In a shock move, he tabled an emergency motion at a meeting of Labour‘s ruling national executive committee on the eve of the party‘s annual conference in Brighton.
Mr Watson, who is a member of the NEC, could not attend the meeting for childcare reasons and was assured there was nothing „controversial“ on the agenda.