Labour’s Liberal Rebels
The thorns in New Labour’s side.
Convention on Modern Liberty Research Team paper 4
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The Convention on Modern Liberty has conducted a survey of Labour MPs’ voting records to find the most democratic members on the government benches. They are Mark Fisher, the member of Stoke on Trent for the last 26 years and leader of cross party the Parliament First group, and Jeremy Corbyn. the member for Islington North who also won his seat in 1983. Distained by Labour party whips as rebels, both voted against all seven of Labour‘s worst intrusions on rights and liberties. The convention is happy to offer the two MPs free tickets to the event at the Institute of Education in central London on February 28th and bottle of champagne.
The seven authoritarian measures that the CML used as a test were -
- The indefinite detention of foreign terror suspects n
- The power of the Home Secretary to create Control Orders
- Identity Cards Bill (3rd Reading)
- 90 day pre-charge detention for terror suspects
- 42 day pre-charge detention for terror suspects
- The removal of juries from some fraud trials
- Prohibiting protests outside parliament,
The following labour MPs rebelled and voted against four of these proposals:
Diane Abbott – Hackney North & Stoke Newington
Paul Flynn – Newport West
Glenda Jackson – Hampstead and Highgate
Lynne Jones – Birmingham, Selly Oak
Clare Short – Birmingham, Ladywood (Labour at the time)
Alan Simpson – Nottingham South
Dennis Skinner – Bolsover
The following MPs voted against five of the proposals:
Kate Hoey – Vauxhall
Kelvin Hopkins – Luton North
Robert Marshall-Andrews – Medway
The following MPs voted against six of the proposals:
James McDonnell – Hayes and Harlington
Robert Wareing – Liverpool, West Derby (whilst Labour)
Mike Wood – Batley and Spen
The following MPs voted against all seven proposals:
Jeremy Corbyn – Islington North
Mark Fisher – Stoke-on-Trent Central
