Unite leadership hopeful pulls out in bid to find unity left-wing candidate to replace McCluskey
A leadership hopeful for one of Labour’s biggest union backers has pulled out of the race in a bid to find a unity left-wing candidate.
Howard Beckett, who had once been viewed as the heir apparent to Len McCluskey as Unite’s general secretary, is no longer seeking to lead the trade union.
Instead, Mr Beckett – who has recently stepped up his criticism of Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer – will now support Steve Turner in the race to replace Mr McCluskey.
Len McCluskey is standing down after 10 years at the head of Unite
It follows recent talks between Mr Beckett, Mr Turner and a third left-wing candidate, Sharon Graham, over finding a single candidate between them to take on a fourth leadership rival, Gerard Coyne.
Among the union’s left-wing, there had been concerns that a split among different candidates within their faction could hand victory to Mr Coyne, who is viewed as coming from the union’s right.
If elected, Mr Coyne has promised to bring “real change” to Unite and order an independent review of the union’s controversial £98m spend on a Birmingham hotel and conference centre.
Sources in Mr Beckett’s camp told Sky News that Ms Graham refused to stand aside.
A spokesperson for Ms Graham said: “100% Sharon Graham is standing. She has great support in the union’s industrial base and across the union in Ireland Scotland and Wales.
“She is the workers’ candidate and believes she has support in depth to carry the day.”
In a joint statement, Mr Beckett and Mr Turner said: “Throughout this contest we have both been committed to one thing above all – developing further the role our union has played since its foundation as a fighting back, progressive, campaigning force for working people throughout Britain and Ireland.
“It is clear that developing that unique role requires the unity of the left in our union, and of all these representatives and members in the workplaces and beyond who have made Unite a union to be proud of.”
Mr Beckett, who is currently a Unite assistant general secretary, was recently suspended from the Labour Party after suggesting Home Secretary Priti Patel and not refugees should be “deported”.
He had also been criticised after both Unite and a blogger lost a £1.3m battle over legal costs relating to a libel case won by a former MP.
Mr McCluskey, who was an ally of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, is standing down after more than 10 years in the role.
Unite are one of Labour’s largest donors.
Politics
Starmer and Zelenskyy discuss ending Russia’s ‘brutal war’ – as Putin says says he is open to bilateral talks on longer ceasefire
Sir Keir Starmer and Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke about ending Russia’s “brutal war” on Ukraine in their latest phone call on Easter Monday, as Vladimir Putin said he was open to bilateral talks.
The prime minister and Ukrainian president spoke on Monday afternoon, when Sir Keir “reiterated his iron-clad support for Ukraine“.
A Downing Street spokesperson added that the prime minister “said that the UK supports Ukraine’s calls for Russia to commit to a full ceasefire and that now is the time for Putin to show he is serious about ending his brutal war”.
“They discussed the latest developments on the Coalition of the Willing, and looked forward to further progress towards a just and lasting peace,” the spokesperson added.
Mr Zelenskyy later said on social media that he had a “good and detailed conversation” with the prime minister, and added Ukrainian officials will be in London for talks on ending the war with Russia on Wednesday.
“We are ready to move forward as constructively as possible, just as we have done before, to achieve an unconditional ceasefire, followed by the establishment of a real and lasting peace,” he added.
The Ukrainian president added that the 30-hour Easter truce, which both Kyiv and Moscow accuse the other of violating, showed that Russia “are prolonging the war”.
It comes as Mr Putin proposed bilateral talks with Ukraine on a longer ceasefire, which would mark the first time Russia held such talks since a failed peace deal soon after the invasion in 2022.
Speaking to a state TV reporter, the Russian president said: “We always have a positive attitude towards a truce, which is why we came up with such an initiative (the Easter truce), especially since we are talking about the bright Easter days.”
When asked about Mr Zelenskyy’s calls to extend the 30-hour ceasefire into a 30-day pause on civilian targets, he added: “This is all a subject for careful study, perhaps even bilaterally. We do not rule this out.”
The Ukrainian president said on Sunday evening that the Russian army had “violated Putin’s ceasefire more than 2,000 times” during the day, and accused Russia of “failing” to “uphold its own promise of a ceasefire”.
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From Saturday: Why Putin offered an Easter truce?
It also comes after Donald Trump has said he hopes Russia and Ukraine “will make a deal this week,” after he and his secretary of state Marco Rubio warned that the US will walk away from efforts to broker a peace deal unless there are clear signs of progress soon.
The US president said on his Truth Social platform that both countries would “start to do big business” with the US after ending the war.
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Last month, Ukraine accepted Mr Trump’s proposal for a 30-day truce, but Mr Putin refused to back a full 30-day ceasefire, saying crucial issues of verification had not been sorted out.
He then said he would agree not to target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. However, both sides have accused each other of breaking the moratorium on attacks on energy targets and at sea.
Paul Atkins has officially been sworn in as the 34th Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The April 21 announcement comes nearly two weeks after Atkins’ position was confirmed by the US Senate in a 52-44 vote on April 9.
“I am honored by the trust and confidence President Trump and the Senate have placed in me to lead the SEC,” Atkins said in a statement.
“As I return to the SEC, I am pleased to join with my fellow Commissioners and the agency’s dedicated professionals to advance its mission to facilitate capital formation; maintain fair, orderly, and efficient markets; and protect investors.”
Atkins is widely expected to lead a more crypto-friendly SEC than former chair Gary Gensler under the Biden administration.
He previously served as an SEC commissioner between 2002 and 2008.
This is a developing story, and further information will be added as it becomes available.
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