The griping and plots need to stop so we can get on with being an opposition

The Conservatives are having a great time. Today, in their Spending Review they’ll outline their budget plans, which will include monumentally savage cuts. Deeper cuts than in any other major economy. Meanwhile, the Labour party is embroiled in internal battles, the kind of which shows little sign of abating. But it needs to, and soon.

Less than two weeks after Jeremy Corbyn’s landslide victory, talks of when and how to oust Labour’s newly elected leader made it into the papers. Simon Danczuk took this torch as his own, suggesting that he might offer himself up as a “stalking horse” to trigger a leadership contest.

Talks of coups have been kept company by a sizeable number of MPs stepping up to openly voice their discontent with Corbyn. This looks childish at best, undemocratic at worst; Corbyn’s huge popularity with party members and supporters doesn’t appear to have dipped since September, this week polling showed that 66% think he is doing “well” as leader. This means MPs eager to criticise Corbyn are mostly at odds with their Constituency Labour Party, a state of affairs that isn’t tenable in the long-term.

The days of biting your tongue if you disagree with a Labour leader are over – Corbyn’s style of leadership has done away with that kind of politics – but the almost visceral reaction to Corbyn’s views from some MPs doesn’t get the party or the policy very far. All it does is entrench divides and give the media ammunition; more stories to their anti-Corbyn pile. The external onslaught against Corbyn will continue, there’s nothing positive MPs can achieve by throwing fuel on the fire. If the party’s going to carry on together, unhappy MPs need to figure out how to work with the new leadership team that party members want representing them.

But unhappy MPs aren’t the only people responsible for the future of the Labour party. Corbyn and the shadow cabinet need to develop a narrative to convince the public of their vision for the future. Although not every situation warrants a slick soundbite, an overarching message is important. This has been stalled by internal Labour politics but there’s no time for this while the Tories ride roughshod over the poorest, most marginalised in society. Labour need clear messages to give to the public, sooner rather than later.

As this narrative develops, the job of Corbyn’s supporters – and this is where Momentum has to come in – is to persuade voters. It’s not to talk about deselection or throw insult at MPs who then use this as justification to criticise Corbyn.  To succeed the Labour party need to focus on a positive vision and deliver that at a grassroots level.

With the Oldham by-election just around the corner and the Tories’ set on implementing cuts that will change the face of this country for the worse, Labour need to be focussed. The griping and plots need to stop and Corbyn needs to be given a chance so the party can get on with being the opposition it should be.