Friday, February 21, 2020

Paul Mason: I'll be supporting Keir Starmer in the Labour leadership election. Here's 10 reasons why:

1/ We need a leader from the left with the personal attributes of integrity, professionalism and leadership. If you think character doesn't matter, you weren't on the doorstep...

2/ Keir is firmly on the left - albeit a different left than the Corbyn/McDonnell tradition. He will stick by the economic radicalism of 2015-19 - above all Green New Deal - rejecting austerity and fighting for a new economic model...

3/ By the end, under Corbyn, LOTO was being run as a faction, operating against other factions, and excluding even loyal critics. Starmer wants to run the leadership as a leadership, not a faction - which will require persuasion not diktat...

4/ Starmer looks like he has a plan to win in 2024... some of the others, including RLB, don't.

5/ Starmer's name was continually thrown back at me on the doorstep by people who said they wouldn't vote for us under Corbyn. That kind of name recognition is powerful... (though the media will soon trash him, as they did Miliband and Brown...)

6/ Starmer has been clear: Brexit is done. We'll fight for close ties with Europe, but there'll be no rejoin project. Accepting the outcome of the election is key to Labour going forward...

7/ Starmer will not purge the left, and he won't allow others to purge the left. With the right gearing up to shut down Momentum, this is one of the big issues in the election...

8/ He will deal with any recommendations arising from the EHRC report into antisemitism quickly, professionally and decisively...

9/ Professionalism means understanding what you do not know. Listening to expertise. Employing people across the political divide who can actually do the job: it's a big change, but welcome...

10/ Starmer's politics are rooted in the real experience of the 21st century working class - from towns to cities - and he can win.

From his twitter

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