Did you vote tactically for labour in Battersea, as best chance to avert Brexit? Fancy meeting to pressure our MP? Post Reply

[GuyD73]

I expect there are quite a few people like me who might have voted Tory or Libdem in 2010 and 2015, think Corbyn with a majority in Parliament is a very worrying prospect, but decided our best chance to avert Brexit was to get Jane Ellison out and support the Labour candidate Marsha de Cordova.
Now Corbyn's lacklustre performance in the EU ref campaign and his euro-scepticism are well documented,but his view is not shared by a great many Labour MPs. Personally, I think Corbyn is waiting until the polls move a little bit further against Brexit and then he can reasonably suggest that the 'will of the people' may have changed and that it is only right that there is a vote on the deal, as well as a free vote in Parliament. The Labour leadership will also be trying to weigh up whether the millions of votes they'd win from remainers with such a policy would outweigh the votes they might lose in their leave voting northern constituencies.
I believe Brexit is far from a fait accompli. Tory MPs are going to rebel in significant numbers on the Repeal bill and tactical labour voters can take great heart from this article.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... t-decision
Almost everyone in politics seems to agree that Labour's current Brexit position is a dishonest fudge. Retaining all the benefits of the single market, but opting out of FOM is something the EU 27 has repeatedly said isn't possible, but it's easy to see why they are trying to hold this absurd 'jobs first' brexit position while the tories tear themselves to bits.
I think it's important now to put and keep pressure on our MPs to represent our views, so I'll be requesting a meeting with Marsha, as soon as she's opened her surgery in clapham junction in the next few weeks. If anyone would like to join m, then please get in touch, I would be really interested in others' views as to different ways in which we can support each other and campaign to stop Brexit.

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/how ... 00481.html

If you are a passionate remainer and have voted for Stephen Hammond in Wimbledon before, then tell him you might vote tactically for his Labour opponent unless he somewhere finds the political courage to vote according to the interests of the country, which is, after all, his primary Parliamentary responsibility.
Hope to hear from a few of you determined to #exitbrexit!

[atbattersea]

What polls are there to suggest that opinion has moved against leaving the EU since the referendum?

[GuyD73]

There's a link in the post to the recent You Gov poll

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/20 ... t-decision

But there also may be a shift towards support for a vote on the deal in the last few months
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/po ... 95591.html

Given the scary ONS figures today, not entirely surprising...

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/busin ... 02871.html

[Goldhawk]

Has anyone managed to engage our MP on any matters?

I have written to her twice (not about Brexit) but received no response

[juliantenniscoach]

Corbyn is a Brexiteer, of that there is no doubt.

[atbattersea]

I don't really have a lot of faith in polls, most of them said Brexit would never happen. I also don't think it's really possible to change people's minds about an issue that they will never be able to fully rationalise anyway. They will always fall for the spin of Nigel, Boris, Michael, Liam & co.

I'm not sure Corbyn's a Brexiteer. I think he is anti-EU for some of the right reasons, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he believes that leaving he EU is the best thing for the UK.

Whatever anyone thinks about Brexit, the Bombardier v Boeing fracas is illuminating: foreign courts will limit the sovereignty of the UK, even where there is no treaty in place.

Take control of that Boris!

[GuyD73]

Hi Goldhawk, yes, to be fair to her she has replied to emails before (though sadly with the same dishonest fudge) and it seems I have been put on some email and snail mail mailing list. Presume you have her email but you can chase up your correspondence on 0207 219 0209. It's worth tagging her on twitter too and asking why you haven't had a response - amazing how a public admonishment can produce a swift response!

[janee]

a) if you voted for Labour in the General Election just on the issue of Europe, then I am not sure you should have a vote!
b) Our new MP has seemed to me to be very approachable and I have had replies from her in response to things I have written to her about and her replies are certainly more helpful and politer than those I received from her predecessor.

Let's face it, the previous Government made a total mess of the referendum as a result of arrogance and the current one doesn't seem to be doing much better (if you really want to make party political points).

[GuyD73]

Janee, I'm not sure I understand point a, why should I have not had a vote?

I completely agree Marsha de Cordova is approachable and engages with her constituents, my point is that in adhering to the Labour leadership's (not majority of MPs or members mind) current position on their nonsense, 'jobs first' Brexit, perpetuates a dishonest fudge that doesn't represent her overwhelmingly remain voting constituents.

On your last point I'd agree. Last govt got us into this mess owing to internal squabbles in the tory party and current govt are an utter embarrassment. I am not seeking to make any party political points, as I think both major parties are failing the British people.

Best chance of avoiding Brexit is Corbyn in number 10 in coalition, reliant on LDs, greens and SNP. Then we'll get a vote on the deal and then, we can choose to remain. That's what I hope for at the next GE, which will hopefully be in the Spring when the current govt has crumbled.

[Scottov]

Corbyn is a Brexiteer, of that there is no doubt.

Correct

He has been a lifelong opponent of European Union believing free movement suppresses wages

There is no doubt, none, on his position

[janee]

GuyD73: my first point was simply that there were so many other issues which were also important in the election. If people voted merely on the one issue this could lead us into all sorts of problems - in fact we are seeing that. We have a mess with Brexit but we are also seeing increasing mess in the NHS, education and other public services.

[atbattersea]

GuyD73: my first point was simply that there were so many other issues which were also important in the election. If people voted merely on the one issue this could lead us into all sorts of problems - in fact we are seeing that. We have a mess with Brexit but we are also seeing increasing mess in the NHS, education and other public services.

But, but, the Conservatives are always a safe pair of hands!?

You have to wonder how much longer they will try to blame their incompetence on the previous Labour government. "Labour spent so much money!" Yes, baling out the banks in order to prevent the financial system from crashing - it's notable that the Conservatives opposed that injection of cash.

[atbattersea]

Anyway, Brexit is never really going to happen. As they go along they are watering it down more and more. The latest wheeze being that we can just be members of EFTA, and not be subject to the rulings of the ECJ, but we will be subject to the rules of the EFTA court, that follows all the decisions of the ECJ and all the EU legislation!

If the truth were told I think most of the Brexiteers didn't really want to leave the EU, they just liked having something to argue about.

[GuyD73]

Agree Janee, that there were many other issues to consider at the GE, but the problem for me is that all/any of Labour's plans for a fairer society, better public services etc, rely on a strong economy and workers from the EU (from being nurses/doctors to picking fruit) and Brexit will be catastrophic. Ergo, to my mind, Brexit's easily the biggest and most important issue for the country, all else relies on the outcome.

Agree too, Scottov and Julian that Corbyn has Brexit sympathies but that's not reflected by Labour MPs or members, so it's perhaps less important. If Lab leadership in govt can't get anything through the commons...
Also, and while I'm not a Corbyn fan in the slightest, I think he's played a shrewd (if somewhat dishonest) game so far. He has to, for the sake of his northern constituencies, claim to 'respect the ref' and maintain Brexit should be delivered, however, with some further movement in polls, I can easily see him switching to support a 'final say' in the next 6 months, if he thought it would give him a better shot at number 10 (more former tory, remain voters like me voting for them, perhaps they'll get Wimbledon and Putney next?).

AtBattersea, I do hope you're right and agree. I think there's a decent chance that both electoral fraud (the £650k via a student to Aggregate IQ for example)
and possibly Russian interference (interesting what happens with Manafort/Trump in the coming days) will be proven and then there will be unbelievable pressure for a 'vote on the deal'.

I expect a few of you are familiar with Carole Cadwalladr's brilliant work in this area https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfr ... are_btn_tw

and if you think there are some important questions to answer about our democracy being subverted, please sign and share this
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/200394

Onwards!