Why I can't trust Labour's calls to tactically vote to remove Owen Patterson
(The views expressed here are my view and not necessarily representative of the Green Party)
I wrote on this very blog about the time that Labour approached me to try and get us to stop targeting East Finchley. The electoral ward is home of some of Labour's worst and right-wing leaning councillors, and stands adjascent to Camden's only Green Party ward. He said we should target High Barnet instead. My party chose to follow his advice, after heavy pressure from our former election agent who joined Labour. At a subsequent Green party pub social we were told repeatedly that the long suffering agent joined because they had a crush on said Labour - a low and totally untrue slander against my friend. So after all this bullying from Labour to intimidate the Greens into changing strategy, Labour moved to target High Barnet, totally changing "Chipping Barnet Politics" except for what actually mattered. The MP was returned to her seat with the Tories in Parliament. The Greens came last at the next local election there.
What happened next. Luciana Berger formed a Unite to Remain alliance and stood as a Liberal Democrats against Jeremy Corbyn's Labour, coming second. Labour stood against her and campaigned against her. Think about that before you call for people to vote tactically for Labour against the Tories. By the way the sitting MP was a remainer. The greens yet again made the politically brave move to stand down in Berger's constituency, allowing her to come second, while Labour stood against one of their own MPs basically. All the while Labour were saying the message that a vote for Berger would hand the seat to the Tories, and only the Labour candidate could win in this marginal seat.
Meanwhile the same message here in Hendon constituency, that it's marginal, that only Labour can beat the Tories. Yet what really happened, 4 times, is Labour failing to do so and letting down exactly every single one of the voters angry about the Tories and angry about Brexit.
At a hustings in Hendon a Labour supporter said I would be thanking him after the election. An incorrect prediction.
That is why I don't have time for friends responding to the real corruption scandal with a fake call for so called tactical voting. The General election isn't for years and we can't go on like this. Not only is there no value in such posts in my social media timeline - but this tactical voting message which really harms the radical opposition, shows up how empty Labour's offer really is. Who is their candidate? no one knows or cares. What are their policies? Like whoever the Tories will select to replace Owen Patterson, no one knows or cares.
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