Leader of Burnley Council and 10 councillors quit Labour Party over Starmer’s Gaza ceasefire stance

Published

1 year ago

November 5, 2023

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The leader of Burnley Council and 10 other councillors have resigned from the Labour Party this evening over Sir Keir Starmer’s decision not to push for a ceasefire in Gaza, Sky News understands.

Afrasiab Anwar, who has been in the party for 10 years, was among those calling for the leader to step down on Thursday.

In a statement, they said: “It has become apparent that Keir Starmer and the leadership either cannot or will not heed our concerns or acknowledge the sentiments within our communities.”

It added: “In response to our calls for him to resign he responded that the individual concerns of members are not his focus, further illustrating that he does not value the voice of the grassroots of the party.”

Resignations pile pressure on Starmer

The pressure is really piling on Sir Keir Starmer. This latest set of resignations means Labour has lost at least 50 councillors over the party’s position on Palestine.

Losing overall control of Oxford and Burnley councils and the repeated refusal by Sir Keir to back a ceasefire has created immense discontent and division within the party.

What’s most worrying for the leader and the party, who remain ahead in the polls, is the frustration and anger within his front bench.

At least 10 members of his cabinet are unhappy with their boss’s position on the conflict in the Middle East and it will only take one of them to call for a ceasefire for them all to follow.

Alternatively, it would take just one of them to stand down from their post for the others to do the same.

If that happens, there will be questions about not only whether he’s to blame for creating the division, but also whether he should remain in post into the next general election.

The leader of Pendle Council, which is also in Lancashire, also called on Sir Keir to resign on Thursday.

It came after calls from senior Labour figures London Mayor Sadiq Khan, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar and Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, who broke ranks to also challenge Sir Keir’s stance.

Sir Keir has remained united with Rishi Sunak, the US, and most recently the EU in pushing for “humanitarian pauses” in the fighting, while supporting Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas.

Sir Keir has been holding meetings within his party to address concerns over his position and held talks with Muslim Labour MPs in parliament on 25 October, who urged him to back a ceasefire – believing the British public would back the move as well.

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Politics

Crypto scam launderer pleads guilty to role in $73M scheme

Published

5 hours ago

November 13, 2024

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Crypto scam launderer pleads guilty to role in M scheme

Daren Li is looking at a maximum of 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to his role in laundering crypto in a $73 million scam.

Politics

NHS league tables and cancelled pay rises for managers among government health reforms

Published

8 hours ago

November 13, 2024

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NHS league tables and cancelled pay rises for managers among government health reforms

NHS league tables revealing failing NHS trusts and cancelled pay rises or dismissal for managers who don’t turn things around are to form part of the government’s plans to improve the health service.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting is confirming new measures he hopes will boost failing hospital trusts and encourage successful ones.

The changes form part of the Labour government’s strategy to reduce waiting lists “from 18 months to 18 weeks”.

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Health and the state of the NHS were consistently among the most important issues for voters at this year’s general election – with Labour blaming the Conservatives for “breaking” it.

As health is a devolved area, any reforms proposed in Westminster would only apply to England.

Chief among Mr Streeting’s proposals is a “league table” for NHS trusts.

An announcement from the Department for Health and Social Care said: “NHS England will carry out a no-holds-barred sweeping review of NHS performance across the entire country, with providers to be placed into a league table.

“This will be made public and regularly updated to ensure leaders, policy-makers and patients know which improvements need to be prioritised.”

It also promises to replace “persistently failing managers” – with “turn around teams” being sent in to improve trusts running sizeable deficits or offering poor service to patients.

The government says “senior managers” who fail to make progress will not be eligible for pay rises.

There will be “financial implications” for more senior figures such as chief executives if their trust does not improve.

On the flip-side, those trusts that are deemed to be “high-performing” will get “greater freedom over funding and flexibility”.

Senior leaders at these trusts will also be “rewarded”.

The government says the current system is not incentivising trusts to run a budget surplus, as they cannot benefit from it.

Mr Streeting said: “The budget showed this government prioritises the NHS, providing the investment needed to rebuild the health service.

“Today we are announcing the reforms to make sure every penny of extra investment is well spent and cuts waiting times for patients.

“There’ll be no more turning a blind eye to failure. We will drive the health service to improve, so patients get more out of it for what taxpayers put in.

“Our health service must attract top talent, be far more transparent to the public who pay for it, and run as efficiently as global businesses.

“With the combination of investment and reform, we will turn the NHS around and cut waiting times from 18 months to 18 weeks.”

Concerns from health representatives

Amanda Pritchard, the chief executive of NHS England, said: “While NHS leaders welcome accountability, it is critical that responsibility comes with the necessary support and development.

“The extensive package of reforms, developed together with government, will empower all leaders working in the NHS and it will give them the tools they need to provide the best possible services for our patients.”

Further plans on how monitoring will be published by the start of the next financial year in April 2025, the government said.

Matthew Taylor, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation – a body that represents all NHS trusts – said healthcare leaders welcome the “government’s ambition”.

However, he said he was concerned league tables and reducing pay may “strip out” the nuance of what’s going on.

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Mr Taylor said: “NHS staff are doing their very best for patients under very challenging circumstances and we do not want them feeling like they are being named and shamed.

“League tables in themselves do not lead to improvement, trusts struggling with consistent performance issues – some of which reflect contextual issues such as underlying population heath and staff shortages – need to be identified and supported in order to recover.”