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The Weekly paper of the New Communist Party of Britain

Hobson’s choice

Covid, golden wall-paper, Partygate – the writing’s certainly on the wall for Boris Johnson. And also, so it seems, for the useless leader of the Labour Party. Whilst Johnson’s rivals plot his downfall in the shadows of the corridors of power, similar scenes are taking place in Labour’s committee rooms amidst talk that Starmer is finally going to throw in the towel – possibly even before Labour’s annual conference in September.

Although former Labour premier Gordon Brown is backing him, saying Starmer should “ignore” criticism “because what’s exciting about the possibility of Keir Starmer’s leadership is he will have a plan for Britain”, Brown’s support is usually the kiss of death for any ambitious Labour politician these days.

Starmer’s vendetta against the Corbynistas has driven hundreds of thousands of members out of the party. His poor personal ratings in the opinion polls and his dismal performance on the street show how hopeless he is at campaigning.

It’s said that Sir Keir Starmer has already told his followers to prepare the succession if he is forced to resign over claims that he, and deputy leader Angela Rayner, broke the Covid lock-down rules last year.

An alleged friend of Starmer’s told the media that the Labour leader reportedly told colleagues: “I will not let this party become a basket case again. I will not let our hard-won gains be squandered so we will need to be ready in the unlikely event that the worst comes to the worst.”

Starmer’s apparently told the Blairites to get ready for a new leadership contest to stop even the hint of a Corbynista comeback, and he’s apparently given his blessing to Lisa Nandy and Wes Streeting who, according to the Sunday Times, have been told to prepare bids for the top job. Both have dismissed these reports as nonsense – a wise move given that premature lobbying often proves fatal in the leadership stakes.

There are, of course, others who covet the Labour crown. Angela Rayner may step down over ‘Beergate’ but that doesn’t stop her from running for the leadership. Andy Burnham is equally ambitious, although he will need to get back into Parliament to enter the race. But clearly the worse is still to come if Remainers such as Streeting or Nandy get to lead Labour.