Labour 'will contest NI polls'
It is inevitable that Labour Party members in Northern Ireland will field candidates in elections there, deputy leadership candidate of the British Labour Party Alan Johnson insisted tonight.
As he prepared to address a dinner in Belfast commemorating the 100th anniversary of the first ever Labour Party conference which took place in the city, Mr Johnson welcomed the setting up of a forum in the North to enable party members in Belfast and other areas to take part in decision-making bodies and conferences.
The Education Secretary said: “It is highly appropriate that on the 100th anniversary of the first ever Labour Party conference which was held in Belfast, we have seen moves to re-establish the link between Northern Ireland and the rest of the party.
“We had a ridiculous situation in the party where people in Northern Ireland could not even join Labour and if, as she was suggesting, Mo Mowlam retired to Northern Ireland, she would have had her membership card taken off her and no input at all.
“Thankfully the party has allowed Northern Ireland members to join and under this deal they can participate in conferences and decision-making bodies.
“However, I think an unstoppable momentum is building up which will see party members here, in the not too distant future, being able to contest elections.”
Earlier this week it emerged that the Labour Party had struck a deal with Belfast’s trade unionist Andy McGivern to allow members in the North to set up their own NI-wide forum once they passed the 200 members mark.
Currently there are around 130 members.
Under the deal Mr McGivern, a member of the GMB, agreed to drop a potentially embarrassing race discrimination case against the party for not allowing Northern Ireland members to set up constituency associations.
The trade unionist had argued that Northern Ireland members were being given a second-class status compared to their counterparts in England, Scotland and Wales and that the refusal to let them set up constituency associations meant they were unable to have any input into policy-making bodies like the National Executive Committee and party conference.
Mr McGivern, who will meet Labour officials at the GMB congress in Brighton following the deal, said there had been a positive response.
“People are showing an interest in joining following the deal we struck,” he said.
“The fact that Alan Johnson has said that it is inevitable the Northern Ireland Forum will develop to the point where we can contest elections is having an impact.
“I am of the view that once we get past the magic number of 200 members and the Forum is set up under this deal and gets operating, we will have enough people to form constituency associations in the 18 Northern Ireland constituencies.”
Mr McGivern also confirmed his support for Mr Johnson’s bid to become Labour deputy leader.
“With his trade union background and with his knowledge of what it was like at the very bottom of society, he is the ideal candidate,” the GMB member said.
“He is someone who stacked shelves in Tesco and worked his way up and brought his three kids up in an estate.
“In my view he is the best candidate for the working class in this contest.”
