Labour Outlook

“If Starmer really wants to win back the Red Belt, he should heed the advice Drakeford gave him as the incoming leader to 'retain the best ideas from the last two manifestos.' As Wales shows, elections can be won from the left.”

“ Electoral successes show there is a path forward that embraces Labour’s socialist traditions as well as engages the working class base that is fit to tackle the economic & social challenges of today - it must be embraced before it is too late.” - Ian Lavery MP.

“ The direction of travel doggedly pursued by Starmer & his allies is failing to build the necessary coalition to win, demoralising Party members & activists - & completely lacking any positive policy platform.”

“Upwards of 30 per cent of the population fall into the broad group of occupational backgrounds almost entirely missing from our Parliamentary Labour Party.”

“One of the reasons Labour has just lost elections in many parts of the country is that many people just didn’t know what we stood for.” - John McDonnell.

“This isn’t just a matter of opinion, or even moral judgement.  The voters don’t believe this approach is right either.”Diane Abbott MP Labour Outlook spoke to Diane Abbott MP on the election results since Thursday and the way forward for Labour. The election results we've seen so far have been bleak for Labour. You've also…

Continue reading ➞ Diane Abbott exclusive – It’s time to start fighting the Tories, not the Left

“We must fight for unity & integrity in our party by demanding the lifting of the remaining suspensions, by not ratifying the appointment of David Evans at conference & by standing up to defend Jeremy Corbyn & his right to sit with Labour MPs.”

“Thursday’s results dramatically demonstrate the need for a change in direction. Labour urgently needs to build on the coalition of 2017, bringing people together on the basis of progressive vision of the world. Without that vision, there’s a real danger more Hartlepools are on the horizon.”

" Keir Starmer needs to fulfill the promises they made when they won the leadership on a left-wing platform last year. This means bold policies, unity in the party &—above all—standing up for working-class people in the daily struggles they’re facing."

"We call on the British Government, public bodies, & civil society, to hold Israel accountable & take meaningful action to prevent the further ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from Jerusalem."

Thursday’s elections will be one of the biggest sets of elections ever to be held on a single day outside of a general election. With around 48m people able to cast a vote, it will be a big test of whether Labour is making the gains needed to form the next government. As well as…

Continue reading ➞ May 2021 Elections: What to look out for

“This is a government & Tory Party that has lurched so far to the right that it acts as if it could get away with murder. Looking at our death toll, you could argue that they have. "

“This crisis has shone a spotlight on the deep failings of 40-years dominated by neoliberalism, marketisation, deregulation & privatisation.”

“Our internationalism must also acknowledge the role of British colonial injustices & globalisation.”

"Let’s continue to fly the flag for socialism & for an internationalism that stands in solidarity with all those fighting for a world that puts people before profit."

"In February, the First Minister and senior members of her party, met with loyalist paramilitary groups. Eyebrows were raised over why the pair would meet with criminal organisations to discuss the impact of the NI Protocol."

"The very worst of employers have imposed fire & rehire on nearly 10% of the labour force, sacking workers & re-engaging on inferior terms."

"We believe that women have not achieved equality on any level. There is a pressing need for us to reconnect with one another & rebuild our solidarity to enable us to continue our struggle for women’s most basic & fundamental human rights."

“The proposed 1% pay rise is completely unacceptable and a slap-in-the-face to over a million hard working NHS staff members.” - Kate Osborne MP.

“The mainstream British media has mainly neglected the reality of how Palestinians have been largely excluded from the vaccination campaign.”

"Labour for a Green New Deal is not just interested in re-litigating the debates of two years ago. We are pushing to further develop the Green New Deal as our crises intensify."

"The report places the blame and responsibility of racism onto the communities experiencing it instead of the system & institutions that perpetrate it."

"We need a locally run & effective public sector system of Find, Test, Trace, Isolate & Support, to replace the absurdly inefficient & ineffective but highly profitable Serco operation."

"The government should be looking to fight the causes of wars." - Jeremy Corbyn MP.

“The rot runs much deeper. Cosy chats. Private text messages. Looking after your own. It’s how our system works, as this crisis shows.”

“The Tories have learnt nothing from failed interventions & instead are committed to an era of permanent war.”

“This means signing up for the US-led drive to isolate & contain China, whose rise to a position of great power in the world is more than official Washington, be it Democrat or Republican, can bear. To this end, one of the country’s two new aircraft carriers (albeit carrying only US-supplied aircraft) is to be deployed in the Far East, as an earnest of our commitment.”

“Private providers commissioning themselves? Forget the Serco Track & Trace scandal; we’re crossing the Rubicon.”

“When workers cannot negotiate their own contracts, hourly rates, or have any other recourse to set parameters of the job, they are not independent or free but are being exploited by companies who steal their labour in pursuit of profit.” By Amy Smith, Halifax CLP. In February 2021 the UK Supreme Court delivered a landmark…

Continue reading ➞ Uber ruling : now is the time to fight for gig workers’ rights

"We are living through history; this is the greatest economic crisis in more than a century. We should set our aspirations to meet it."

“The lives of asylum seekers remain secondary to many politicians who cynically use the issue for perceived political advantage.”

“ The fight for Labour is not only to bring unemployment down by making full employment the overriding priority, but to address the culture of the labour market and end wage exploitation by making work pay.”

"The Policing, Crime, Sentencing & Courts Bill, which has provoked protests across the country, not only criminalises our right to protest & express dissent, but also criminalises Gypsy & Traveller communities for their very way of life."

"With a left victory likely, there are growing concerns that elites in Ecuador & abroad are conspiring to sabotage the electoral process."

"The extent [of] institutionalised inequality & structural discrimination has been demonstrated by recent court rulings concluding that the police did not act unlawfully at the Sarah Everard vigil."

"The young people of this planet are not thirsting for war, they are thirsting for environmental sustainability, a good future and peace.” - Jeremy Corbyn

Keir Starmer you said that when you clapped for carers you meant it, now it’s time to prove that by listening to the workers and backing #NHSPay15.

"We continue to stand against all attacks on our hard-won democratic rights & freedoms. The Police, Crime, Sentencing & Courts Bill must be defeated & the government’s wider authoritarian drive must be ended."

The biggest Israeli human rights group B'Tselem has argued that Israel is creating "a Kafkaesque reality that leaves Palestinians almost no way to build legally".

“They didn’t trip, fall & land on another way to attack the party membership… this is part of their project.”

“The NHS should be returned to a publicly funded, publicly provided, comprehensive health care service, available to all & be free at the point of delivery.”

"In the context of 120,000 people dead from Covid-19, & the attacks on people’s jobs & living standards through renewed & harsher austerity imposed by the Tories, we are asking for much bolder opposition from the Labour frontbench."

"Several members have been ‘auto-excluded’ for social media posts that could not, by any rational person, be considered to indicate support for a political organisation other than Labour."

“The Tories are attacking people’s right to vote, protest & strike. Their aim is to weaken people’s ability to defeat the unjust & unpopular policies coming in response to the economic crisis." - Richard Burgon MP

"Sadly, clapping on our doorsteps does not put food on the table of those who have suffered 10 years of real pay cuts under Tory Governments."Kate Osborne MP By the Labour Assembly Against Austerity Team. Labour activists have launched a new drive to support NHS workers seeking a significant pay rise this year, with the…

Continue reading ➞ Labour Must Back the NHS Workers’ Pay Demands – Campaign Pack for CLP activists launched

“While ever the establishment attempt to exclude any form of dissent, we have all the more reason to protest.”

“From the outset of the pandemic, workplaces were recognised as significant locations for the transmission of the virus. Yet the risks were massively downplayed by the government.”

“Draconian legislation is needed only when the government feels threatened.”

"Through these omissions, British media coverage, like Brazilian mainstream coverage, did not just simplify & sensationalise what was happening in Brazil, it provided editorial cover for wrongdoings."

"Many Labour members also feel deeply alienatied from the Labour leadership, which has been keen to welcome the commissioners. Why punish the many for the failings of an unaccountable few?"

“Draconian legislation is needed when a Government feels threatened. This Government fears peaceful popular protest.” - Diane Abbott MP.

"The seriousness of the #PoliceCrackdownBill cannot be overstated. It is a deeply authoritarian & racist piece of legislation that would increase police powers, stifle dissent & further criminalise marginalised groups."

“Now is the time to build international solidarity, & demand that the Ecuadorian people must be allowed to determine their future through free & fair elections on 11 April without any external intervention.”

“Solidarity – collectivism - is central to the labour movement. The move to All Members Meetings reduces us to individuals.”

“Inside Turkey’s prisons the conditions for political prisoners are becoming increasingly barbaric.”

"At a time of enormous anxiety over jobs, joblessness can be a pivotal issue that unites millions in a fight to create & defend jobs that recreates a popular understanding that full employment is possible & desirable, good for your pay packet if you are in work & good for your small business."

We need to ‘mobilise unused resources as a country… to end the drudgery of insecure work and peoples’ worry about how to feed the kids.’Jon Trickett MP By Sam Browse, Arise Volunteer On Saturday, hundreds tuned into ‘A jobs-led recovery – the fight for full employment’, an event hosted by Arise Festival, the Morning Star…

Continue reading ➞ The fight for full employment

“Rather than cracking down on the genuine injustices raised by protesters – from gender-based violence to institutional racism and the climate emergency – this Government has shown time and again that they would rather crack down on the protestors themselves.”

"If Labour Mayors want to establish a real legacy of transforming their regions, bringing the buses into public control would be a good place to start."

" Labour can't win the argument if it accepts the Government's framework & attempts to criticise the Government from the right ."

"In Britain no police officer has ever been charged with the killing of any black person in police custody. This needs to change."

"We must be the generation that secured an era of peace, equality & a planet that was habitable for future generations, not one riddled with pandemics, conflict & climate catastrophe."

"This new ruling restores Lula’s political rights, enabling him to stand for president in the 2022 elections. He remains one of the most popular politicians in the country, with polls showing him well ahead of other possible candidates."

"The grassroots work has already begun." - Mish Rahman, Momentum.

“ It is clear that the rule book has been breached, but not by the CLP & BLP Officers who have been suspended. It is the General Secretary who has awarded himself powers that go way beyond the powers of the NEC as stipulated in the rulebook.”

“The Establishment has long undervalued women’s work, expected women to bear the brunt of work in the home & treated women’s safety as expendable.”

“It’s clear the violent Met police attacks on women attending the Sarah Everard vigil at Clapham Common on Saturday had nothing to do with concerns of spreading COVID & everything to do with violently crushing a new radical protest movement.”

“It’s always very easy to send other people’s children to war.”

" Feeding the expansion of NATO and rehashing the outdated “great power” bipolar politics of the 20th Century suits only the interests of a US-based ruling elite wishing to stall their relative decline."

"At over half a million people, Labour’s members are its greatest strength. But in the past year, their right to democratic debate has been curtailed & those who have questioned attempts to limit political discussion have faced disciplinary action."

"The big issues facing us now are the global pandemic & climate. Nuclear weapons aren't the answer to either of those.” - Diane Abbott MP.

"The party’s conduct of this selection is seen by many members as chaotic & demotivating ahead of crucial elections."

“Further to the failures to follow the correct process, it would be obvious to anyone that individuals who have been suspended from the party in such an inconsistent & opaque manner, in some cases learning of their suspension from the press before the party, would have questions on why they had been targeted so unfairly.”

"Those who think that an elimination strategy is no longer viable or necessary are being duped by a callous & cynical establishment. Allowing the virus to spread freely is a dangerous & irresponsible approach which increases the risk of mutations & therefore threatens to undermine the entire vaccination program."

“Despite the incredible efforts of workers during the pandemic, several big employers are attempting to use this crisis to line their own pockets & attack the working conditions of their staff by undertaking the tactic of fire & rehire.”

"They have no clear way out of the current crisis which is costing lives & livelihoods including half a million unemployed young people, & no clear way out of the impending climate crisis which could cost us the Earth."

"Should heroic NHS staff be forced to take strike action in order to defeat the government’s disgraceful proposal & secure the fair pay & decent treatment they deserve, then they will have our full support & solidarity."

“We are standing on the shoulders of giants. We all owe everything to the people who went before us, who were pioneers & who stood up to oppression.” - Kate Osborne MP.

“The focus on nurses’ pay is welcome because it spotlights just one of the ways in which the Covid pandemic has impacted disproportionately on women.”

“Women have borne the impact of austerity & unless action is taken, new generations of women will be held back.” - Ruth Hayes.

The Government’s disastrous handling of the virus has caused one of the world’s deepest economic collapses, yet they expect the vast majority to pay for it—including through further cuts to public services of £15 billion per year compared with last year’s plans.

When the Chancellor gets up and talks about ‘giveaways’, ultimately he’s talking about giveaways for the rich.

"Under Starmer we are seeing... unaccountable Labour Party staffers in league with right wing factions among Labour councillors & MPs... trying to stamp out members' involvement & democratic decision making in any way they can."

“They are still striking & fighting with everything that they have to win this dispute, not just for themselves, but for every worker up & down the country suffering at the hands of bad employers.”

"Inspired by Trump’s recent defeat in the US, the growing resistance in Brazil deserves massive international solidarity."

“There was little for those excluded for Government pandemic support schemes for so long, little to invest in crisis hit public services & little to support those in financial insecurity facing every increasing mountains of debt they may never escape from.” - Rebecca Long Bailey MP.

"In the deepest crisis in decades, Labour needs to be much bolder in offering an alternative… And we can’t just sidestep big debates when they happen. The tax debacle of the past few days shows that if we continue to do so, then our party will be outflanked by the Tories with their phoney rhetoric of levelling up." - Richard Burgon MP.

"Since 2008 the top 1000 earners have seen their wealth rise by £550 billion, yet workers wages have gone down by £440 billion. This is what austerity has left us with - a redistribution of wealth from the poorest to the richest."

“Our NHS needs not just a cash injection but a major cash transfusion – not just to survive Covid & repair the damage it has done by lengthening waiting lists, but to reverse a brutal decade of disinvestment since 2010.”John Lister By John Lister, editor Health Campaigns Together & co-editor The Lowdown. This is an…

Continue reading ➞ Tax the rich to rescue our NHS – John Lister, Health Campaigns Together, #Budget2021

“Throughout the last nine months, the Tories have been waging class war & there’s been no attempt to hold back in terms of the virulent attack on working people.” - John McDonnell MP

This week’s budget, however, is an opportunity to change this. The government should not only give a boost to the wages of NHS key workers, but also reject the privatisation of the NHS & an end to grotesque practices of dishing out NHS contracts to Tory cronies.

"It’s time to stop sacrificing people’s health, jobs & livelihoods at the altar of private profit." - Claudia Webbe MP.

“The coronavirus pandemic has already impacted millions more, over a longer period, than it should, due to the government’s refusal to offer sufficient financial support to isolate, including leaving an inadequate statutory sick pay rate in place which means many have continued to put themselves at risk.”

"From coronavirus to environmental destruction to economic inequality, we face threats that the war machine cannot fix, & can only worsen."

" Newspaper headlines have regurgitated the government line that somehow Matt Hancock’s latest disaster plan will lead to reductions in the involvement of the private sector in the health service. This couldn’t be further from the truth."

“The government is currently refusing to budge. But we know this is a government which can be forced to U-turn.” - DIane Abbott MP.

“I can say with certainty that ‘getting the band back together’ and trying to emulate New Labour simply will not work.”

"While Honduras’ powerful & corrupt US-backed elites benefit enormously from the rapacious development of the country’s natural resources, about 48% of the population lives below the poverty line, & over 60% in rural areas."

“While those on the Right use resort to divisive politics, I will always stand with my communities – diverse, dynamic, multicultural, multi-racial & with people of different faiths & none, & from all around the world.” - Apsana Begum MP

"We in the Zero Covid movement are often caricatured as advocating permanent lockdown. Nothing could be further from the truth. An effective lockdown would be a short lockdown. Then we could all have the social freedoms that have long been enjoyed in New Zealand, Vietnam, Taiwan & elsewhere. It is the failed containment strategy, & the associated reliance on vaccines as the silver bullet, that has delivered endless & repeated lockdowns & horrific death tolls."

“Delaying ballots & then removing candidates with no explanation smells like a stitch-up to keep left candidates off the ballot."

"We mustn’t let workers pay for this health crisis in the same way austerity was used to make us pay for the bankers crisis - we must fight every attempt to fire & rehire workers of course - but we must also demand more - we need to fight for better pay, terms & conditions, better employment rights & a better society."

“After a year of Covid Lockdowns we’ve seen & heard the impact of this government’s failure.”

“Turning to outdated unelected advisors associated with corruption and undermining the previous leadership is no way to retaining the passion of young people in the Labour party. The issues we face today are a world away from 1997 and those in denial of this risk further isolating an already wavering youth vote.” -

"While Ministers claim that the Bill simply formalises existing protocols for undercover police, it actually allows them to commit serious crimes with impunity – including murder, sexual assault & torture – & could effectively license them to act as agent provocateurs."

“Corbyn’s staunch anti-imperialist & anti-war campaigning was his quality which the hostile establishment liked least of all.”

“As the occupying power – under the Geneva convention – Israel is responsible for the health of the occupied Palestinian population. It has washed its hands of this responsibility – a direct, conscious, political decision not to make the vaccine available.“

“The demands of our movement are no longer just about fairness & equality - they are about life and death.”

“This decade & beyond will be defined by multiple crises facing our society. If Labour is to be relevant to the millions of working people that we want to vote for us, we must offer bold & serious solutions to these crises.”

"The return of Peter Mandelson reflects a course of direction at odds with Labour’s members & at odds with the platform Starmer was elected on." - Gemma Bolton, NEC member.

"First & foremost, sanctions are illegal coercive measures designed to bring about regime change, install US client governments, destroy progressive achievements & reinstate neoliberal policies."

“Despite the devastating impact, women have been neither seen nor heard by the government during the pandemic.”

“It’s shocking that so many Labour activists have been threatened with disciplinary action for upholding the right of their members to discuss issues of vital importance to the future direction of the Party. But it’s also inspiring so many individual members and CLPs refuse to be cowed into silence & continue to uphold values of solidarity & speaking truth to the powerful.”

“If there is one certainty in all this, it is that the Conservative government will be the last to recognise the collapse of a war it enthusiastically endorsed. Despite the steps taken by Biden, the Government, for the moment, is determined to assist the war's military prosecution to the bitterest of ends.”

"I am standing on a platform to unite our party in Liverpool and come together to rebuild post this global pandemic and take on this government. The communities we represent are poorly served if the Labour Party are fighting internally, but what unity can there be while our former leader who inspired so many is denied his rightful place in the PLP?" - Anna Rothery.

"Whilst our leadership struggle to articulate a basic left platform, the pandemic profiteers have been on a rampage... the Tories have used the crisis as an opportunity to gift huge PPE contracts to their billionaire mates while outsourcing the crucial track & system to a corporation that couldn’t track or trace."

“This leadership election is therefore about the future of the Scottish Labour Party, or more precisely, whether it has one. And it will have, if Monica Lennon wins.”

"Cuba is the antithesis of a state sponsor of terrorism. The popularity of the international campaign for their medical brigades to receive a Nobel Peace Prize, & the number of official nominations made on their behalf, illustrates the absurdity of such a claim."

“The common thread of these failings is the Tories’ decision to pursue the interests of big business rather than the interests of public health.”

"The government strategy of vaccinating the most vulnerable 13.5 million people and then fully opening up the economy is a policy that can only be described as criminal negligence."

"Outsourcing, privatisation & dodgy deals with the private sector have run through the government’s response to the pandemic like words through a stick of rock."

"Funding is falling woefully below that needed to keep people safe & defeat this dreadful disease. The need for adequate sick pay & a decent, fair system of support to help those isolating & to support local government in delivering this, could not be more urgent."

“With hundreds of thousands of Labour Party members opposed to the leadership’s attempt to pull the party dramatically to the right, the leadership will feel the need to once again attempt to neuter members’ influence.”

"The rulebook tells me it’s my job to circulate motions to members." The Diary of a CLP Secretary Dear Diary, Jeremy Corbyn was suspended and members are furious. Some are furious about what he said, even more are furious about his unfair suspension and the misuse of the disciplinary procedures...and the rest are furious that…

Continue reading ➞ Save Our Socialists : Suspended for writing the minutes – The diary of a CLP Secretary #StoptheLabourLockout #SaveOurSocialists

“With a Labour Party shifting rightwards, and not always in-step with the wants and needs of trade union members, it is up to us to use our collective strength to make sure our political demands are heard loud and clear.”

“Labour’s leadership seems to have decided that the key to winning back lost voters is simply to imitate the Last Night at the Proms.. Is this really the best the Labour leadership can do to win back lost support in the middle of the deepest public health & economic crisis in a century? For me, it shows a real paucity of vision.” - Richard Burgon MP.

“If the elections are free & fair all indications point to a victory for Andres Arauz. Very soon Ecuador, like Bolivia & Argentina, could give a further boost to the new red wave in Latin America.” Left-wing candidate Andres Arauz looks close to a first-round win in Sunday’s Presidential Election, but authorities are taking measures…

Continue reading ➞ Ecuador: Left Set for Election Victory as Red Wave Strengthens in Latin America

"What we’re seeing is the inability of the existing system to suppress the virus. Lives are being sacrificed to protect the status quo. The labour movement should unite to point to the way the pandemic has made the case for far reaching change. There must be no going back to normal."

“Labour more than ever must stand up for BAME communities & stand with our BAME members, many of whom are campaigning in their communities to support people through the pandemic & the hardship it brings.”

“Scotland & the Shrewsbury cases have shown that it is never too late for justice. The Orgreave Truth & Justice Campaign maintains it’s never too late for the ex-miners, their families, supporters & communities either.”

"The cuts in benefits, benefit cap, bedroom tax, brutal sanctions regime, housing crisis & pay freezes under the Tories have driven people into hardship & debt." - John McDonnell MP.

“The role of Labour in this crisis is not primarily to support the government – it is to support lives & livelihoods. The priority for the Labour Party must now be to step up the opposition to the government’s failed strategy & force it to change direction.”

“The movement inspired by Sanders has shifted the centre of political gravity leftwards & the COVID crisis has added urgency to the need for change.”

“In New Zealand they have had 25 deaths; if we had replicated their approach this would have been 340 deaths not 110,000.”

“We shouldn't be dividing our party with people in the leadership lapsing into authoritarian attacks our members, the very people who we need to campaign in every part of the country to put our communities back together again after the crisis.”

“Our members are our greatest asset – based in their communities & in touch with voters in their families, workplaces, educational institutions & voluntary groups.”

"The crisis has reinforced the rotten nature of our social system with its inequalities and corruption. Socialism means first of all replacing the power of the capitalists with the power of working people. Who can say this is not necessary today?"

“We must do more to ensure the Labour leadership stands up for our communities by ending its approach of falling in behind the government, & actually putting pressure on for the measures we need, including a strong & maintained lockdown & support for those who can’t work.“

"These failures go beyond Tory incompetence. They’re rooted in the class character of this Tory government." - Richard Burgon MP.

“The battle for that [better] world is now, it will be ferocious, & it will require a strength in all of us like never before.”

The message was loud and clear - the Labour left is here to stay, and will be at the forefront of both resisting the Tories' reactionary agenda, and standing for socialist solutions to the crisis and democracy in the Labour Party.

“The Tories need to be made accountable for the mainstreaming of school hunger in many schools.” - Jon Trickett MP

"At a time when some of Blair’s heirs are desperately trying to drive as many left-wingers as possible out of the Labour Party, it would simply play into their hands for people to abandon the struggle for socialist policies & party democracy."

"The Spy Cops Bill is one of the most terrifying pieces of legislation that even I have seen in my working life.” - Shami Chakrabarti.

"This assault is no accident and will continue unless we learn to fight back & resist." - Ian Lavery MP.

"Boris Johnson's Tory government is presiding over a health & economic disaster."

"We should learn from the government’s failure to upgrade the system, and from our experience of life under lockdown. Both have shown that free, public broadband isn’t just socialism, but – to paraphrase a Minister who knew all about technical innovation, Tony Benn – it’s also common sense."

"One of the main reasons the current “lockdown” is failing is because people are being forced into work. We have to address the reasons for that."

“In 2020 the people of Bolivia stood up against international pressure & elected a government determined to continue the process of democratisation, equality, peace & development.” - Jeremy Corbyn.

"BAME communities have suffered nearly a year of unimaginable tragedy, grief & trauma, which has been exacerbated by the Tory government’s abject failure to act swiftly to control the virus & protect the population." - Apsana Begum MP.

"As Nye Bevan said, the NHS will survive as long as there will be people there to fight for it. Now is the time to fight."

"We’ve tried 'living with the virus', & 10,000s have died of it. We're trapped in a cycle of rolling lockdowns. This can't go on. Fortunately it doesn't have to. There’s another way."

"The Tories are failing to do enough to save lives, stop job losses & prevent deepening poverty."

"The Johnson government’s mitigation strategy, of “learning to live with the virus”, has led us directly into the current catastrophe."

“In the Labour Party, we need to hold Keir to his election promises which have been so readily disregarded.” - Rachel Garnham.

"We must unite to demand a zero Covid strategy is implemented - it is the only way to minimise further loss of life & protect people from destitution."

“This virus feeds off inequality, targeting the poor & the vulnerable. But this Government is making deliberate choices - badly. Failure to provide adequate sick pay that people can live on & where all workers who need it can receive it is a political choice.” - Kate Osborne MP.

"As Brazil’s BLM & other progressive movements seek to put Bolsonaro alongside Trump in the dustbin of history, they deserve nothing less than our full international solidarity." - Claudia Webbe MP.

“There has been no Labour leadership against the Spy Cops Bill; nor against the immunity for prosecution for war crimes for members of the British armed forces, nor has Julian Assange been defended.”Steve Bell The new pamphlet "Open Labour & A Progressive Foreign Policy for New Times", (OL) represents the first salvo from Labour's new…

Continue reading ➞ The First Salvo from Labour’s New Cold War Warriors – Steve Bell, Stop the War Coalition.

"The banks were bailed out. We now need a People's Bailout," - Richard Burgon MP.

“No one wanted schools & colleges to be shut again but the evidence clearly pointed to the necessity for this to happen weeks ago... Government must take responsibility for this closure because it has allowed COVID-19 to become, again, out of control.” - Mary Bousted.

"Defending people's incomes needs to be a Labour priority right now - as making the poorest people poorer is the Tories agenda right now." Over 13,000 activists have signed our petition telling the Government 'Don’t Cut Universal Credit' write the Labour Assembly Against Austerity team. Over 13,000 Labour Party activists have warned Boris Johnson and…

Continue reading ➞ As Poverty Rises in Covid Crisis, Don’t Cut Universal Credit – 10,000+ back Labour Assembly Against Austerity petition

"Parents, children, teaching assistants, teachers, caretakers, lunchtime assistants, and office staff are looking to us, the Labour Party, to speak up for them."

“when the government should have been procuring quality PPE and ventilators, they first had to ensure that a few companies, with connections to the Conservative Party” “had access to a V.I.P lane” to give them an unfair advantage in the bidding process.”

"The Tories have spent 10 years prioritising wealth over health. Their austerity driven ideological assault on the state left in its wake a public sector woefully ill-equipped to deal with the crisis." - Jon Trickett MP.

"Neither sanctions nor blockades are the answer. There is no better path than democracy. There will be no better tool for solving problems than dialogue & coexistence." – José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, former Spanish Socialist Party PM

"We call on Labour's leadership to reinstate the whip to Jeremy.. end the attacks on party democracy, legitimate discussion & recent wave of suspensions & instead to focus on taking the fight to the Tories."

"Next time we would hope for actual engagement with the issues rather than nods to ‘important points’ followed by a platitudinous kick into the long grass."

“It's called the minimum wage for a reason - the Government needs to do the right thing and act to ensure nobody is paid less than it."

"A movement that aims to contribute to the revival of anti-imperialist struggles of workers against the neo-liberal project of globalization."

"Support for children with special educational needs & disabilities (SEND) is faltering. It is trapped in a vicious downward spiral, as Conservative cuts & increased demand have overburdened the system while thousands of children miss out on the assistance they need."

"The test of any country’s climate commitment will be if they are making the massive, urgent& sustained investment needed to tackle the climate emergency."

“The new leadership has promised unity & it has promised to focus on winning elections – neither is possible with this approach & therefore members must continue to resist these gagging orders through whatever channels we have available.”

"Whipping up racism in times of major crises is nothing new & just like Trump clamped down on the BLM movement, & Boris Johnson Stirs up hostility towards refugees, Macron’s chosen target of attack is the Muslim community."

"We urge you to withdraw the ‘guidance’ you have sent to our CLPs & halt any disciplinary action currently being taken against Party Officers for facilitating democratic discussion of party business."

"Would it not be fairer to impose a windfall tax on the wealth of the super-rich & those who have made super-profits out of the covid crisis?" - Richard Burgon MP.

"There’s always money for war but never for public services.” - Richard Burgon MP.

“This is not the consequence of any cartoonish buffoonery from Boris Johnson but the culmination of a decade of downgrading our NHS to justify bringing in the private sector.” – Sean Waters

“Only by having an effective vaccine & a zero covid strategy will we eliminate this virus and get out of this circuit of restrictions & lockdowns that are crippling our communities & businesses.”- Kate Osborne MP.

"In the face of millions losing their jobs & a disgraceful imposition by the government of a public sector pay freeze, we have been distracted by internal wrangling, which is causing deep division in our party & will not be understood or forgiven by the British public."

"Whenever there has been a struggle, no matter how difficult, & no matter how at times it has been politically dangerous to even be associated with it, if its right, Jeremy has been there." - John McDonnell MP.

"We have to fight tooth and nail for a proper people’s bailout. The banks were bailed out so why not our communities?" - Richard Burgon MP.

"The Windrush scandal and the hostile approach that it encompassed is still fresh in the minds of the public."

"The Government is levelling down, not levelling up." - John McDonnell MP.

No Labour Party meeting should take place at the moment without us making the demand for the reinstatement of Jeremy Corbyn

"100s of branches & CLPs across the country continue to pass motions – more often than not with large majorities & despite Party HQ's desperate attempts to stop them being discussed – calling for Corbyn’s readmittance to the PLP."

"We urge you to lead the Party in a way that will allow it to devote its entire energies & resources to attacking & defeating this corrupt and incompetent Tory administration & to render it fit for the task of winning power and providing the capable & forward looking government the country is crying out for."

“‘Devo Max,’ is based on a positive vision of democratic, cooperative, peaceful, sustainable coexistence with our neighbours on this island.” - Neil Findlay MSP.

"With the government’s spending review being concluded he took it upon himself to announce ludicrous increases in military expenditure whilst rumours of a pay freeze for frontline workers continue to swirl." - Murad Qureshi.

“Behind his shiny veneer and BBC superhero cartoons Sunak represents the same old Nasty Party.” - Sean Waters, Sussex Uni Labour Club.

"We clapped all frontline workers during lockdown who kept us going and they must not pay the price of the pandemic with more Tory austerity." - Ian Byrne MP

“Nothing we have heard so far will do anything to tackle the poverty, insecurity and grotesque levels of inequality that scar our society.” - John McDonnell.

“The fight to prevent soaring unemployment is paramount. We need to build a movement that demands the Government takes the action needed to create full-employment with well-paid secure jobs for all.“ - From the #PeoplesPlan

"The flawed, wretched & malignant logic of privatisation has infected every inch of the government’s response to this pandemic."

“The effects of sanctions have been devastating. The blockade has not only damaged the Venezuelan economy, it has obstructed the import of food & essential medical supplies, causing hardship to ordinary people, especially those on low incomes.”

“The decision of the Leader to withhold the whip from Jeremy Corbyn is an act of deliberate political interference in the handling of a complaint. It defies the decision of the NEC panel, is a matter of double jeopardy that flies in the face of natural justice, it undermines the Rule Book & it is precisely the type of action found to be unlawful indirect discrimination by the EHRC report.”

"The number of people in the UK earning less than the Government's official minimum wage rate has increased five times since the start of the coronavirus pandemic."

"The decision to not restore the whip to Jeremy Corbyn is wrong & damaging to the Labour Party."

"Jeremy Corbyn was reinstated as a member of the Labour Party on 17th November & we believe the Labour whip must also be restored."

"Jeremy should immediately have the whip restored. At a time of national crisis, division in the Labour party serves nobody but the Tory Government.” - Richard Burgon MP

"Saying a ruling is mistaken in some way isn't equivalent to disobeying it, & to prevent the expression of such opinions is contrary to democratic rights & will prevent proper political debate."

"Let’s get Jeremy reinstated in the party, because the common enemy is the Tories." - Ian Lavery MP.

"There is still a huge appetite in the party for an explicitly socialist politics that puts people before profit, tackles the climate emergency & has a serious plan for protecting public health & defending living standards in the wake of the covid pandemic."

"The way forward is clear: Re-admit Jeremy. Unite to take the fight to the Tories." - Richard Burgon MP

“The Tories have not changed. They are the political arm of the British Establishment - a small golden circle of privilege and wealth - who rule the country at the expense of everyone else.” – Jon Trickett MP.

"What is needed is a framework that can unite this diverse group of voters behind Labour. There needs to be a clear focus on policies that will save people’s lives & living standards in this pandemic & economic crisis – a real alternative to the Tories’ policies."

“I believe that we need a “zero covid” strategy, as countries such as New Zealand have successfully done.” – Apsana Begum MP

“Labour’s leadership must join the Socialist Campaign Group in calling for a zero-Covid approach - crucial to this is supporting the UCU & NEU by calling for the closure of schools, colleges & universities.”

"Now is the time to say lives and Livelihoods must come first.” - Apsana Begum MP.

"We oppose the suspension of former Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn and call for his suspension now to be quickly reversed."

"Regional Executive members who were supportive of the motion are horrified at this clear interference in the ability of the Regional Executive to operate democratically."

We have a moral obligation to support the next generation, the mishandling of the Covid crisis has meant that the next generation risk becoming a ‘lost generation’. - Kate Osborne MP

By the Labour Outlook Volunteer Team. Growing sections of the Labour Party and broader labour movement have called for Jeremy Corbyn's reinstatement after his suspension last Thursday. A Tweet from the Socialist Campaign Group of Labour MPs said ‘we firmly oppose the decision to suspend Jeremy Corbyn from the Labour Party. We will work tirelessly for his…

Continue reading ➞ Reinstate Jeremy Corbyn – support growing across the labour movement

"Ministers must do more to protect jobs and prevent poverty" - Frances O'Grady, TUC.

“It’s called the National Minimum Wage for a reason - the Government needs to act to ensure that nobody is paid less than it." - RIchard Burgon MP.

"Our party now needs to go beyond criticising the government’s incompetence – which it has done well & has won the public argument over – & lay out the policies needed to defend people hit hard by this unprecedented public health & jobs crisis." - Richard Burgon MP.

"Today we celebrate this victory of the Bolivian people, but over the coming weeks & months it is essential that we also continue to offer solidarity - just as they’ll continue to offer us hope!" - Richard Burgon MP.

“This situation has always been entirely avoidable, and it is the result of a broken system that values income over student and staff welfare.“

“The media attacks on us are huge and personally unpleasant, [but] are designed to distract away from the issues of unemployment, poverty and injustice in our society, especially at this time of crisis.” - Jeremy Corbyn.

The avoidable atrocity of the Grenfell Tower fire revealed the stark truth about Kensington and Chelsea to the world. How, in what one Councillor had called ‘the richest borough in the universe’, with £.3bn in Reserves, could 72 people burn to death in a fire which, even in the earliest days, was blamed on ‘cheap cladding’? - Emma Dent Coad

“This really is a government that acts for the few not the many and Labour must offer a genuine alternative.” - Rachel Garnham.

"Changing our party is part & parcel of changing our country, because we are the people who know our communities best." - Nadia Jama.

"It’s hard to convey at times the scale of human suffering caused by poverty in this the 6th richest country in the world in the twenty first century." - John McDonnell.

"I’m standing for the NEC to bring the disabled people’s movement into the Labour Party, & ensure our voices are never shut out again." - Ellen Morrison.

" The whipping up of racism by politicians is routinely met with racist attacks on the ground." - Barbara Ntumy, Stand up to Racism.

"This "SpyCops" Bill will give power and impunity to people who are spying on behalf of the British state. It will give these undercover agents permission to commit crimes such as murder, torture and sexual offences, in Britain and overseas."

"We can’t talk about Brazil’s crisis without mentioning the huge roll-back of workers’ rights, social programs, & access to healthcare & education that have all taken place since the far-right came to power."

"Despite the success of the #GrassrootsVoice slate in topping the nominations, there is a lot of work to do if the left is to be successful." By the Labour Assembly Against Austerity Team The left came out strongest as local constituency party nominations for candidates seeking to represent ordinary members on Labour's National Executive Committee…

Continue reading ➞ Left Leads on NEC elections nominations – now get out the vote! #GrassrootsVoice #GV6

“At our 2018 Conference, it was an inspiration to be in the hall and raise my hand to join the forest of outstretched hands all voting in support of the motion for Palestinian rights.” - Nadia Jama

"From the track & trace app to the recruitment of nurses, we are watching our health service be stripped of its ability to function properly. This is not because of efficiency or cost, nor is it solely down to incompetence. It is an ideological commitment to a system rigged to favour unaccountable private businesses over democratic public ownership." - Jon Trickett MP.

Jeremy Corbyn - “We’re not alone in this. There are millions around the world who wish to see different, better world for the future.”

“They attack us for a reason. The reason is that they are afraid of our message and the popularity of it.” - Jeremy Corbyn.

"This is a further serious threat to the civil liberties of people in Britain, extending powers to put citizens under surveillance, particularly those who are involved in campaigns against actions by the British state" - Kate Flannery, OTJC Secretary.

"History shows us that refugees are the victims of human rights abuse, war & environmental disasters. We surely all have a duty to support the victims, rather than blaming & punishing them for events not of their making." - Jeremy Corbyn MP.

“We are held back by emboldened landlords & greedy developers who are socially cleansing our city.” - Apsana Begum MP.

"We should not expect care workers to do the vital work of looking after our loved ones on the cheap." - Roger McKenzie.

"The pandemic has made us all think about what we value in life and to reassess how our society and our economy operates." - John McDonnell

"The response from the two neighbours to the coronavirus pandemic are in stark contrast to one another. At a time when Cuba sends healthcare workers to some of the worlds worst affected areas, Trump insists on pursuing a policy of blame & division."

- Hugh Lanning, Labour & Palestine

"By this summer, Bolivia found itself in a deepening political, economic, social and health crisis, & has now seen months of protest in what is nothing less than a national uprising."

“Billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money is being paid to companies to help them get through the pandemic, so it is not much to ask that these companies abide by very basic good business practices of treating their employees decently, not harming our environment and paying their fair share in taxes.” - John McDonnell.

"We know that this Government are no strangers to violating international law & the bill in its current form only seeks to further diminish our global reputation. " - Kate Osborne MP.

“when the Daily Mail and others have screaming headlines about refugees landing on the coast of Kent, they should spare a thought for a minute [and ask] why would somebody risk everything to get into a rubber dinghy, to cross the world's busiest shipping lanes, to try and get to a place of safety if they weren't totally desperate?” - Jeremy Corbyn

“The Government needs to recognise that having put money into local government and industry in order to keep jobs going… it has got to continue doing that as the economy begins to rebuild.”Jeremy Corbyn. In an exclusive interview with Labour Outlook to be published shortly, Jeremy Corbyn argues that if the Government doesn’t urgently u-turn…

Continue reading ➞ Jeremy Corbyn – Government Must U-Turn on Ending Furlough Scheme.

“Another world is possible, but it will be our national & global organisation that makes this happen.”

“The economic crisis we now face is set to be the worst any of us have experienced. We urgently need to transform our economy & society to ensure that people’s jobs, livelihoods & health come before private profit.”

"Some on the left are no doubt despondent at recent political events. I understand that, but I’m afraid we don’t have time for that. People need to dust themselves down & get ready for a huge fight over the coming months to force the government to change track on health & the economy. Many lives & millions of livelihoods depend on it." - Richard Burgon MP.

“Working class communities, already suffering the needless impact of austerity measures that have seen our hospitals and libraries closed, our school budgets decimated, our wages slashed and our workers’ protections and rights eroded, need the support and energy of their CLPs, not just at election time.” - Mish Rahman, #GrassrootsVoice.

" The idea that people’s health & lives could be put at risk in effort to get back to economic normality was always as misconceived as it was grotesque."

"Many people know that care homes struggled to access the PPE required to keep staff and service users safe. What people do not know is that many agency workers who knew they had potentially come into contact with COVID-19 still accepted shifts from other homes because they had no access to sick pay."

It was a privilege for me to be on the platform for the session of Annual Conference 2018 where our whole movement made a commitment to justice and human rights for the Palestinian people." - Yasmine Dar.

How can the Tories behave so callously towards the very people that have given their all to keep us safe - working round the clock in an underfunded, under prepared service with Government failures on PPE - yet unable to pay the bills or put food on the table?" - Roger McKenzie.

"Despite the overwhelming public pressure, the government is still sticking to its guns. In July, the House of Commons passed a Trade Bill which offers no protection for the NHS whatsoever." - Cat Hobbs, We Own It.

"Potentially we stand on the edge of a possible recession of a depth and scale not seen since the 1930s. The lack of preparation by the Tories to seek to prepare for this shock to the economy is criminally negligent." - John McDonnell MP looks ahead to TUC Congress.

"The coronavirus crisis has exposed the dreadful weaknesses in labour law in our country and clearly shown the need for a new framework of labour rights in Britain."

" Allende is remembered & revered for the decent visionary socialist he was. Pinochet & the Generals are detested for the violent thugs they were. " - Jeremy Corbyn.

I experienced first hand the dismissive contempt from some [Labour] HQ staff that was meted out to other colleagues in the LOTO (Leader of the Opposition's Office) campaign team throughout my time there.... We need to challenge and change this rigid control freakery that dominates much of the Party’s discourse and be honest about how it prevented us winning power in 2017 in its detail."

"Tory MP Craig Whittaker faced a fierce anti-racist backlash, after he wrongly suggested that BAME & Muslim communities were not taking the coronavirus pandemic seriously... Attention then shifted to attacking a more vulnerable target - refugees."

"Reducing the virus to minimal levels is not in contradiction to economic recovery. It is the precondition for economic recovery."Socialist Campaign Group. Socialist Campaign Group of Labour MPs Statement - For a Zero COVID Strategy: “Britain needs a zero Covid strategy which puts the health of the people first. And rising infection numbers mean that…

Continue reading ➞ The Government’s approach to fighting Coronavirus has been a disaster – Socialist Campaign Group of Labour MPs.

"The Irish people themselves have the right to protect the peace process, their freedoms & their well-being. Instead of ‘breaking international law’, the British government should live up to its commitments & not stand in their way." - Peter Leary.

“If Labour now came out and backed UCU’s call in full we could force this Government into another U turn and protect staff, students and the wider society in this public health crisis.”

" With domestic violence on the rise, racism on the increase, high unemployment, & the UK Government seeking to blame refugees for the pressure on essential services, never has the need for a radical response been greater. And women must be at its heart." - Ann Henderson

" Richard Leonard is committed to transforming the MSP group at Holyrood. And this week’s antics have shown he has good reason to."