Parliamentary Labour Party to elect new chair as Morden and Efford enter race

Labour’s newly swelled ranks of MPs are soon set to elect a new chair of the Parliamentary Labour Party, with Jess Morden and Clive Efford set to run.

It has been reported that Jess Morden – Keir Starmer’s parliamentary private secretary – is standing for the post, vacant after former chair John Cryer stood down at the election.

Tribune group chair Efford confirmed he would run. The Times’ Patrick Maguire reported that Morden will run yesterday, but she was not immediately available for comment when approached by LabourList.

Past PLP chair elections – such as the election of most recent chair Cryer in 2015 – have often been unopposed.

The Tribune group of Labour MPs is often seen as representing the soft left of the party. Starmer himself is listed as a member on the group’s website.

PLP meetings have sometimes proved a site of tension between party leaderships and MPs under various leaders.

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Former taxi driver Clive Efford has been an MP since 1997, serving the majority of that time on the backbenches.

Jess Morden has been an MP since 2005 and was appointed as Parliamentary Private Secretary to Starmer in February 2023. She was also appointed Shadow Minister for Wales in September 2023.

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