by Les May
NOW I don't know why I am asking this question but here
goes; 'Has Simon Danczuk no shame?'
In mid August he was telling anyone who would listen that
there would be a coup against Corbyn if he wins the Labour leadership. Asked on
LBC Radio about plotting against Corbyn he is reported to have said 'on day
one' and 'Yeah, if not before. As soon as the result comes out.' And 'Am I
going to put up with some crazy left wing policies that he is putting forward
and traipse through the voting lobby to support him? It's not going to happen
is it?'
Reporting these comments the Independent noted, 'Mr Corbyn’s
main policies include public control of the railways and utilities, a living
wage, and state action on housing.' Whatever else Corbyn is saying these do not
seem like crazy policies to me.
But when it looks as if it could be Simon who could be
facing a coup he gets all upset. An unnamed organiser for Unite has told
Channel 4 news that if Corbyn wins there are plans to deselect 'careerist' MPs
and Danczuk is one of the targets. This may well be just so much hot air and
wishful thinking as the union has said: ‘These comments were made in a personal
capacity. This individual does not speak for Unite, a point we wish to make
very clear.’
To which Simon responded;
‘I am disappointed that comrades should talk in such a
vicious way. After the leadership election – whoever wins – we will all have to
come together to take the fight to the Tories.’
He told LBC Radio:
‘I don’t understand why such violent
language needs to be used. It has caused me some distress.
‘The idea of me being a careerist is laughable. I'm more
working class and connected to ordinary people than Jeremy Corbyn.'
(No that's not a typo. He really did say 'comrades'.)
The evidence pointing to Danczuk being a careerist isn't
hard to find. In July 2013, it was reported that he had got himself a one day a
month job paying £12,000 a year. That caused a lot of unfavourable comments
which may be why it lasted just three months.
He has shamefully milked the publicity arising from his book
'Smile of the Camera' which claims to be an exposure of Cyril Smith's
activities after the closure of Cambridge House Hostel. So poorly researched is
this book that there is no clear chronology and no evidence of transcripts or
recordings of interviews having been made. Even though he has been asked
repeatedly to state how many men he interviewed who claim to have been
assaulted by Smith, he refuses to tell us.
On 24 July 2015, he received a payment of £10,000 from the
publishers of The Sun for an article he contributed to. He refuses to say
which article. However on 23 June he spoke about the failure of the DPP to
prosecute Lord Janner. As he spoke under parliamentary privilege he had
immunity from prosecution as did any newspaper which reported his speech. On 24
June The Sun carried an article headed 'Lord Janner “raped kids in
Parliament” claims Labour MP Simon Danczuk'.
Much as I dislike Mr Danczuk's behaviour and approach to
politics I hope we won't see an organised plot to deselect him because it would
only confirm the fears of those who want to paint Corbyn as an extremist. But
if Danczuk wants people like me to stop thinking of him as a careerist he could
make a start by telling us how many men he interviewed and which article he got
the £10,000 pounds for.
I'm not holding my breath while I wait for an answer.
Posts
2 comments:
Absolutely agree. However the members of Rochdale CLP have it in their own hands. IF they want rid of him, they could have had him deselected, but for many if not most of them they are more concerned that they hold the seat, and keep out the Lib Dems, it's win at any cost, despite knowing what he was/is like.
Lets not forget SD has undermined other Labour MPS,as well as Lab Council leaders,and Lab Councillors. So really he deserves to be shafted. When are we going to get a decent MP for this town, we have not had one in living memory.
Further to your blog posts on Danczuk and the prospect of deselection, have you seen this article indicating that Unite has distanced itself from the threat?
http://labourlist.org/2015/09/unite-make-clear-they-do-not-support-de-selecting-mps/
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