The Labour Leadership Election

I find myself in a dilemma about the Labour leadership election. I voted for Jeremy last year, and I campaigned for the party in the Referendum campaign, in Broadland and Norwich. Like the large majority of members, I welcomed Jeremy’s new style of politics, and recognised his ability to inspire large numbers of people, both young and old (like me). I carried out the survey of members in Broadland last January which revealed overwhelming support for him (divided between those who were inspired by him, and those who believed in the importance of uniting behind the elected leader).
However, the Parliamentary Party’s vote of no confidence, and the leadership election leaves me, and I suspect many others, with a dilemma. I continue to believe in Jeremy’s values and policies, though I see little real difference with Owen Jones (as Jo Cox said “there is much more that unites than divides us”). I also believe that, as Bart Cammaerts has demonstrated,( http://www.lse.ac.uk/media@lse/research/Mainstream-Media-Representations-of-Jeremy-Corbyn.aspx )Jeremy has been subject to a systematic campaign of misrepresentation and abuse by much of the media. I can also believe that there is a small group of Labour MPs who have never accepted his election, and have worked to undermine him. However, I don’t believe the online claims of mass “Blairite” conspiracies.
What does concern me, is the issue of leadership and management. We have seen a series of worrying claims made by former members of the shadow cabinet about lack of communication and coordination. They all come from people who agreed to serve under him, who all claim to have supported him originally, and do not appear to be predisposed to oppose him. Among the claims that have come to my attention are: Lillian Greenwood’s transport strategy (undermined by the shadow cabinet reshuffle); Thangam Debbonaire’s appointment , (annnounced without consultation, then dismissed and reappointed); Alan Johnson (claims about difficulty in getting meetings and agreeing strategy during the Referendum campaign); and Angela Eagle (claims that regular weekly scheduled meetings with John McDonnell were repeatedly cancelled); and Sharon Hodgson (John McDonnell’s announcement of a Minister for Neurodiversity without consultation with the relevant shadow minister).
I find it difficult to believe that this is a conspiracy, and although there may be legitimate explanations for some of them, together they paint a worrying picture of an uncoordinated and poorly managed organisation, and a dysfunctional shadow cabinet. Some of this one can attribute to inexperience – the senior members of a shadow cabinet usually come with years of experience as shadow ministers, and often with managerial experience outside Parliament. Some of the problems may not lie directly at Jeremy’s door, and some have claimed that problems stem from the leader’s office, rather than the leader himself. However, dealing with them is clearly the leader’s responsibility, with the support of the shadow cabinet and the leader’s office.
Many Corbyn supporters are determined to see the whole story as a battle between the heroic leader and a right wing conspiracy. For me, and perhaps many other members, the issue is much more mundane, it is not a conflict between left and right, or between self-serving well paid MPs and the mass membership. It is an issue of competence to lead and manage.
My concern is, assuming that there is some truth in these stories, and that they are not part of a malicious conspiracy, is the leadership and the shadow cabinet aware of the risks which such confusion pose to the Opposition and to the party (leaving aside the public interest), and is anything being done to prevent this sort of confusion continuing?
An acknowledgement of the issue, and an explanation of how it is to be addressed, could do much to reassure those like me who would like to continue to support Jeremy.

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