The branches on Jeremy Corbyn’s olive tree appear to be experiencing a case of stunted growth. The Labour leader had joked that he would grow one as part of his efforts to tempt moderates back and assemble a full frontbench team. However, since he unceremoniously sacked Rosie Winterton as Chief Whip in the first move of his reshuffle last week, relations between the Corbynites and the moderates are — once again — frosty.
Wounded by the departure of a popular colleague — along with a shadow cabinet which fails to have Labour’s only Scottish MP as the secretary for Scotland — a number of MPs no longer feel the need to put on a brave face over Corbyn’s re-election. Following John Cryer’s email to the PLP on Friday accusing Corbyn of being unconstructive on shadow Cabinet elections, two MPs — Conor McGinn and Holly Lynch — have today resigned as whips. Given that neither were known to be Corbynites, it’s not hugely surprising that with Winterton gone they would follow suit — or as one Labour figure puts it: if they hadn’t, they could have been pushed.
What it does tell us, however, is that neither side feels as though they should be the ones who have to compromise. At present, this is a bigger problem for the moderates than Corbyn who holds the power — emboldened by his re-election. However, Corbyn’s reign still presents challenges. This weekend he faced some of his most negative press yet among core supporters after he spoke at an event associated with the Socialist Workers Party — a group which has faced accusations in the past of failing to deal properly with claims of rape. If Corbyn wishes to retain his position, he ought to remind himself that — despite his increased mandate — he is not invincible.
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