Metro mayor on left of Labour barred from standing for new role

The Labour mayor for the North of Tyne region Jamie Driscoll has been blocked by the party from standing for a new mayoral role covering the north-east of England.

LabourList has seen a letter that appears to be from a party official to Driscoll, suggesting the selection panel’s decision was based on the need to “win elections”.

Driscoll, first elected in 2019, said on Twitter on Friday evening that he had been “barred” from running with “no explanation” given.

“I’m proud to have created thousands of jobs, fought child poverty, built affordable homes and delivered our Green New Deal. I believe in democracy,” he wrote, urging others to “share if you do too”.

The post had been shared more than 1,000 times and viewed more than a quarter of a million times within hours.

Ex-shadow chancellor John McDonnell called it “staggering news”, adding: “To refuse to allow a serving mayor onto even a selection long list demonstrates that factionalism in the party is completely out of control.

“Jamie Driscoll is widely credited with doing a great job. There can be no other motive for excluding him.”

A Momentum spokesperson also said it marked an “utterly outrageous attack on the democratic rights of Labour members and the people of the North East”, and noted Driscoll himself had helped secure a new north-east devolution deal.

A screenshot purportedly of the letter sent to Driscoll by a party official says that one of the party’s ruling national executive committee’s key functions “is to win elections”.

Having carefully considered his answers given as part of the selection and “in furtherance of that key function”, Driscoll would “regretfully” not be progresing as a candidate.

A Labour party spokesperson said: “The North East Mayoralty is a unique opportunity for the people of the North East to take more control over the way our region is governed, with powers over housing, education, skills, transport and so much more.

“The Labour Party holds its candidates to a very high standard. During this process, some applicants did not meet the threshold required to proceed to the longlist stage. We do not comment on individual applications.

“Local members now have a fantastic longlist of candidates from which they will choose the Labour Party’s candidate to be the very first North East Mayor.”

One source on pro-leadership wing of the Labour party said it was “astonishing” Driscoll had believed he may progress after his recent “provocative” decision to share a platform with filmmaker Ken Loach. That decision ran “contrary to all commitments Keir Starmer has made following the Equality and Human Rights Commission report on anti-Semitism”, the source added.

Loach has previously said he was kicked out of the party for supporting others expelled from Labour.

Meanwhile Driscoll’s policy programme “went out of the way to conflict with the party’s likely general election policy platform”, the pro-Starmer source added.

Driscoll recently told LabourList the decision to share a platform with Loach was because he had just finished filming in the north-east and both were invited to an event, adding that “the audience loved it”.

Some have called Driscoll “the last Corbynista in power”, though Driscoll has previously dubbed this “inaccurate”. He has called himself a “socialist since my teens” who has “proved socialist policies work” in office, but also highlighted his work encouraging big firms to come to the region.