Party Lines: November 9th

By Mark Ferguson / @markfergusonuk

Much of today’s media coverage revolved, once again, around Phil Woolas. This time there were whispers of discontent from the PLP, some of whom felt that Woolas has been treated unfairly by the leadership.

Whilst appearing on the Daily Politics this lunchtime Jack Dromey defended Harriet Harman and Ed Miliband over their handling of Phil Woolas, and the alleged “mutiny” in the PLP:

“I think Ed Miliband and Harriet have done absolutely the right thing. it is no part of our politics to tell lies, to fan prejudice, to win votes.”

“What happened was wrong and the action taken by the leadership…. I’ve always believed in what I’ve called standing on the moral high ground. How we conduct ourselves is of the upmost importance.”

One of those MPs said to be unhappy with Harman was David Watts, who spoke to Radio 4 at lunchtime, and said that this is a wider issue:

“I wouldn’t choose the word mutinous, I think there is grave concern within the parliamentary Labour party, first of all that courts are getting involved in such practices…a few months ago the Liberal Democrats were promising not to increase tuition fees yet that’s exactly what they did and there are many Liberal Democrat voters who feel as though they were lied to, now I don’t think that’s a matter for the courts.”

MP Michael Connarty, another potential dissenter, also spoke to Radio 4 in an attempt to clear up some of the rumours – and to deny that he had called for Harman’s resignation:

“One of the reasons I am doing these interviews is because people have said things were said by me that weren’t said. They may have been interpreted but they certainly were not meant.”

“I think I’m accused of calling for Harriet Harman to examine the position. Other people sort of imply that was me calling for her to resign. Neither of these things were true. I thought about it and it was a balanced request that she examine her conscience.”

Speaking to BBC News, George Howarth MP said that he and other MPs want to contribute to Woolas’s appeal in a financial way:

“This not a choice between the leadership of the Labour Party and Phil Woolas. Phil has a right to an appeal…we want to contribute toward that in a tangible financial way.”

In other news, Douglas Alexander said that the government was “running scared” over housing benefit proposals:

“The government seems to be running scared of their own MPs over their rushed Housing Benefit plans. They have so far been unable to get their own backbenchers to agree a position on Housing Benefit and have therefore been forced into the highly unusual position of not tabling an amendment that explicitly endorses their present proposals.”

“We are in favour of housing benefit reform but the government needs to think again before rushing through these changes in a way which could mean higher homelessness and increased costs.”

And Gordon Brown appeared before the International Development select committee today, and hit back at criticisms of his appearance record in the house since May:

“Let’s not get into this in any detail because it’s a diversion from what we’re doing, and I think it’s unfortunate that this is the sort of question that is the first question to this committee from a member. Let’s put it this way, most former prime ministers have rarely spoken in the house at all. I have decided obviously to concentrate on my constituency work and on some of the work that I’ve been doing internationally. But, at the same time, I have taken a very big interest in some of the questions that the government I led was involved in.”