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Militant councillor Derek Hatton rejoins the Labour Party

When Dawn Butler made eye-catching comments last week at Labour conference praising the Militant-led, hard-left Liverpool council of the 1980s, it was presumed she was either talking off script, or courting the Momentum vote for a potential deputy leadership bid. But could she have been indicating a change of direction for the Labour party instead?

It seemed to be confirmed last night, when Derek Hatton, the former deputy leader of the Militant council, announced that he had been readmitted to the Labour Party. The Liverpudlian Trotskyist has been banned from Labour for over thirty years, after Neil Kinnock purged his faction from the Party. Hatton was directly involved in the council’s decision to set an illegal budget, which resulted in redundancy notices being sent to thousands of the council’s own workers by taxi. Hatton has being trying, and failing, to get back into the Labour Party ever since.

It’s not the first time Hatton has announced his return to the Labour Party, but if true, it’s typical of the type of company Corbyn’s Labour likes to keep.

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Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike

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