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You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/davehillblog/2015/aug/11/labours-london-mayoral-candidate-race-provides-reasons-to-be-cheerful
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| Labour's London mayoral candidate race provides reasons to be cheerful | Labour's London mayoral candidate race provides reasons to be cheerful |
| (about 11 hours later) | |
| For weeks it has been hinted that Labour’s process for selecting its candidate for next May’s mayoral election would be a union stitch up and that the “closed primary” option of signing up as a £3 registered supporter was being taken up by just the lady from the chip shop and her cat. But with Wednesday’s noon deadline for becoming eligible to vote looming, a breakdown of the London “selectorate” released by Labour’s London region takes much momentum out of such mutterings. | For weeks it has been hinted that Labour’s process for selecting its candidate for next May’s mayoral election would be a union stitch up and that the “closed primary” option of signing up as a £3 registered supporter was being taken up by just the lady from the chip shop and her cat. But with Wednesday’s noon deadline for becoming eligible to vote looming, a breakdown of the London “selectorate” released by Labour’s London region takes much momentum out of such mutterings. |
| About 84,000 people will take part in the mayoral ballot, comprising roughly 59,000 party members, 18,500 registered supporters and, bringing up the rear, 6,500 affiliated members, the majority from Labour-linked unions. Some 20,000 of those party members have joined since May’s general election, many perhaps preferring the full package to the £3 right to vote. Ballot papers will begin being sent out from Friday and the result of the vote, to be conducted under the alternative vote system, will now be announced on 11 September. | About 84,000 people will take part in the mayoral ballot, comprising roughly 59,000 party members, 18,500 registered supporters and, bringing up the rear, 6,500 affiliated members, the majority from Labour-linked unions. Some 20,000 of those party members have joined since May’s general election, many perhaps preferring the full package to the £3 right to vote. Ballot papers will begin being sent out from Friday and the result of the vote, to be conducted under the alternative vote system, will now be announced on 11 September. |
| The media herd’s moo du jour is of entryism by Greens, Outer Leftists and smartarse Conservatives, all hoping Islington’s own Jeremy Corbyn will become Labour’s new leader, albeit not all for the same reason. Labour is saying that nationally at least 1,200 members or supporters of other parties have been excluded from voting with another 800 being probed. About one fifth of that 1,200 are in London, I hear, which means round about 250 metropolitan duds so far. That’s not a lot out of some 84,000 (and rising) and they’ve been purged anyway. Checking will continue, but it all looks pretty healthy at this stage. | |
| Let’s be cheerful for a change. On Monday night in Croydon I had the privilege and joy of chairing the final hustings of the mayoral candidate race. A packed audience provided many stimulating questions which got some pretty good replies from Diane Abbott, Christian Wolmar, David Lammy, Sadiq Khan, Gareth Thomas and, standing in for Tessa Jowell who had prior engagements elsewhere, Andrew Dismore AM. | Let’s be cheerful for a change. On Monday night in Croydon I had the privilege and joy of chairing the final hustings of the mayoral candidate race. A packed audience provided many stimulating questions which got some pretty good replies from Diane Abbott, Christian Wolmar, David Lammy, Sadiq Khan, Gareth Thomas and, standing in for Tessa Jowell who had prior engagements elsewhere, Andrew Dismore AM. |
| I’ll share some of the detail in the coming days - it’s hard to take notes when you’re in the chair, and although I captured the entire thing on tape it may take me a while to find the courage to endure the living hell of listening to the sound of my own voice. For now, though I can report that the event confirmed for me that Labour’s mayoral candidate battle has made its leadership contest look tired and tame, at least until the Corbyn Factor proved to be something much more potent than an Olde Tyme novelty act. | I’ll share some of the detail in the coming days - it’s hard to take notes when you’re in the chair, and although I captured the entire thing on tape it may take me a while to find the courage to endure the living hell of listening to the sound of my own voice. For now, though I can report that the event confirmed for me that Labour’s mayoral candidate battle has made its leadership contest look tired and tame, at least until the Corbyn Factor proved to be something much more potent than an Olde Tyme novelty act. |
| True, some of the would-be candidates have had a lot to say about things they would campaign for or against as mayor but would not, alas, actually be able to do given the uneven package of powers and resources they would have at their disposal. But that is all part of the job, and as the weeks have gone by each of the six has succeeding in defining a distinctive programme despite the quite narrow policy options bossing City Hall provides. They all have things to recommend them. None of them has been dull. You can’t ask for too much more. | True, some of the would-be candidates have had a lot to say about things they would campaign for or against as mayor but would not, alas, actually be able to do given the uneven package of powers and resources they would have at their disposal. But that is all part of the job, and as the weeks have gone by each of the six has succeeding in defining a distinctive programme despite the quite narrow policy options bossing City Hall provides. They all have things to recommend them. None of them has been dull. You can’t ask for too much more. |