Despite the Labour Party’s efforts to ban Jeremy Corbyn from standing at the next general election, a motion was passed in his constituency, Islington North, backing him.
The vote
On Wednesday evening, a total of 60 members of the Islington North Constituency Labour Party backed the motion, with one abstaining and no votes against it. The motion stated “This CLP would like to thank our sitting MP Jeremy Corbyn for his commitment and service to the people, and want to express that it should be our democratic right to select our MP.”
In response, Corbyn has now promised to continue representing the communities within Islington North, as well as fighting for wider social justice.
Background into Corbyn’s ban
This move by Islington North comes after Labour’s National Executive Committee, backed a proposal from leader, Keir Starmer, to block Corbyn from being a Labour candidate at the next general election. The NEC voted 22 to 12 to approve the motion and there is no right of appeal. Corbyn criticised the move and said it was a “shameful attack on party democracy”. This outcome has since resulted in much contestation around his parliamentary seat, which he has held since 1983.
Corbyn originally had the whip removed and became an independent MP in 2020. Following a report from the Equality and Human Rights Commission in October that year, Keir Starmer condemned the findings and apologised to the Jewish community but did not initially take disciplinary action against Corbyn. Instead, Keir noted that the report indicated a “collective failure of leadership”.
In response to the report, Corbyn asserted that “One anti-semite is one too many, but the scale of the problem was also dramatically overstated for political reasons by our opponents inside and outside the party, as well as by much of the media.” Corbyn had the whip removed shortly after, with his supporters labelling this as an injustice against the long-standing MP.
However, Corbyn’s reinstatement without the whip came in November 2020, 19 days after his suspension after an NEC ruling. The Jewish Labour Movement (JVM) criticised the decision, saying a “factionally aligned political committee” was behind it. Starmer then announced he would set up a new independent disciplinary process and that he would not be restoring the whip to Corbyn while the Jewish community lacked “trust and confidence” in the party.
In January 2022, an attempt by the committee to reinstate him as a Labour MP was shut down.
Ever since, Islington North have been vocal in their support for Corbyn. From rallies, to petitions, to heckling Starmer at the Annual Labour Party Conference, those who back the former leader are determined to see him reinstated as a Labour MP.
Despite the outcome of the motion in Islington North however, based on updated Labour Party rules, the NEC’s decision can still override that of the CLP.
Final thought
Whether Corbyn will stand in the election as a Labour candidate or as an independent remains contested. But as ever, Corbyn is adamant to stand for the constituency he has represented for 40 years.