What does Mainstream stand for? Its statement of values talks about protecting workers, long-term investments, defending liberties, democracy, and international law, and touts an open conception of a national community in which everyone has a stake. Shades of old friend One Nation Labour from the Ed Miliband era. On how Mainstream as a faction will work, there are commitments to pluralism, an openness to ideas, a commitment to defeat Faragism (or, borrowing from Stuart Hall, 'authoritarian populism'), and work to enhance democracy in the Labour Party. Looking through the signatories we find a mix of Jeremy Corbyn-associated figures, soft left MPs, and - fittingly enough - some from the mainstream of the parliamentary party.
This initiative will strike a chord with many members. Despite Labour's best efforts to to lose troublesome members, or as one Starmerite insider memorably put it, to "shake off the fleas", the much reduced rump left are likely to find plenty that's attractive about Mainstream. Not just because it contrasts with the Prime Minister's monochromatic managerialism, but the fact it speaks to their grievances. All across the party, including in the Labour machine, there are people weary of Morgan McSweeney's grip and are rightly concerned that he and Starmer are leading Labour over the cliff with their continued boosting of Reform and extreme right wing politics. Because of this and thanks to the accident of timing, the new faction could play a role in determining the outcome of the deputy leadership.
As argued here before, In theory Labour could bring it back and see off Reform because the party has the levers of government to do things. And pivoting toward popular policies instead of getting into a racist bidding war with Farage could undercut the extreme right's support. Racism doesn't drop from a clear blue sky - it is embedded in how economics and politics works, exacerbated by the choices made by governments. Assuming Labour does poorly at next year's local elections and Starmer is removed, a new leader with a Mainstream and a mainstream policy platform might be able to turn it around. But it would be far from easy, what with an eco-populist alternative and the menaces of a new viable left party.
Unfortunately for those involved and Labour as a whole, Mainstream is probably a couple of years or so too late. Had this coalition formalised itself to prevent Starmer's backsliding on his leadership pledges, it could have been a bulwark against his leadership's capitulations and stupidities and the fragmentation of the party base. The actions Labour really needed to take to arrest Reform and prevent it becoming a threat to democratic politics have had their moments in the recent past. The task now is much harder. And so in the spirit of comradeship, while I wish those on the Labour left involved with Mainstream well it does smack of being too little, too late.
They are not only 5 years too late. The only reason this bunch of lazy conformists have stirred themselves is because they fear the ‘Your Party’ movement will deprive a significant number of them of the comfortable perches they have established for themselves in public life.
ReplyDeleteAlmost three years of Starmer and company supporting genocide and violations of international law could not stir them. The bureaucratic and undemocratic parachuting of approved lickspittles into constituencies for the general election did not upset them, and they entirely and with eyes wide open went along with the purges and expulsions - not to speak of all the fake anti-semitism smears. They cowards. They are utterly compromised. They have nothing to offer.
Yes a bit late. But there is a space to exploit. Burnham is popular with members but of course it will be a long game if he wants to become leader not having a seat.
ReplyDeleteI hope there is room and time for this perspective to gain leverage. Going forward many members I think are looking for something like this.
ReplyDeleteThe Labour Party has lost it's voice. Perhaps this new group within the party will find it. Good luck to them.
ReplyDeleteHi - it’s Neal from Compass - thanks for thinking about this - the truth is it couldn’t have been done before now - the mood had to be right
ReplyDelete«it contrasts with the Prime Minister's monochromatic managerialism»
ReplyDeleteAh I remember when our blogger was writing “Starmer's project - authoritarian modernisation” and “his project is simple. The renovation of the British state, the restoration of the authority of its institutions” and I was objecting that transparently his *political* project was continuity of thatcherism, and those might have been part of the means to achieve that.
Same here with “monochromatic managerialism” (nice expression) which is still just one of the ways he pursues his political project of continuity of thatcherism.
Starmer is not best understood as a an authoritarian moderniser or a monochromatic managerialist, but as simply as a committed thatcherite, in particular because his core target constituency is the thatcherite mass rentiers of "Middle England".
Indeed- why speak up now?
ReplyDeleteYep, the appearance of this (faaaaaaar too late) Mainstream faction nonsense, of a Labour Party now long having burnt its political bridges and hurtled past its "PASOK Moment" into total collaboration with every worst aspect of imperialism, genocide assistance, and renewed austerity, plus extraordinary authoritarianism, and resulting electoral suicide, is part of a wider process. That process is the reaction of the capitalist puppet masters of our political circus to the collapse of credibility of the mainstream Westminster parties with the voters, by the sudden creation by the media at the behest of their oligarch masters of a raft of bogus "alternative radical " parties to try to mislead pissed off voters once more into a tame "alternative". This range of bogus creations ranges from the actually entirely tame Right Wing "alternative" of Farage's Reform con trick on the radical Right , to the entirely bogus supposed radical Left turn of the Green party under its blatantly bogus new leader, and now this pathetic Mainstream thing . And , sadly, under the close, manipulative, control of the same coterie of ex Momentum ditherers and collaborationists/Left Liberals, behind the "Your Party" fandango, no real alternative resides there either.
ReplyDeleteLastly, how have so many Lefties bought into this "Andy Burnham is the great Left hope" nonsense. Burnham is a Blairite , the early promoter of privatising hospitals as Health Minister. He is merely a slippery opportunist, currently posing Left, who is no sort of socialist at all. He recently co-wrote a trashy pseudo radical book about the way forward, which, amongst other nonsense described the imperialist mass murderer , direct intentional planner of the WW2 Bengal famine (aided by economist J M Keynes) , Winston Churchill, as the "father of the Nation " ! How often can the Left be fooled by glib poseurs I wonder ?
How many factions does the Labour Party have - Fabians, Progress, Blue, Momentum, Mainstream, Socialist Campaign, List,etc - and what does it indicate that it is so factionalised.
ReplyDelete