Diane Abbott breaks cowl amid Labour chaos over election ‘ban’

Diane Abbott broke over today as Labour struggles to contain a row about her being blocked from standing as a candidate at the election.

Keir Starmer is facing a mounting backlash over the treatment of the veteran left-winger, who has been MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington since 1987.

Ms Abbott was suspended from Labour’s parliamentary party for more than a year, amid an investigation into her comments about Jewish people in a letter to the Observer newspaper in April last year. However, it has emerged that the race row probe ended months ago.

Ms Abbott had the Labour whip restored yesterday, but initially appeared to confirm this morning that she had been banned from standing.

But the situation descended into confusion again hours later when she posted on social media that she was ‘dismayed’ by ‘reports’ she would not be allowed to stand.

She remained tight-lipped when quizzed by reporters in London. Adding to the sense of chaos, a Labour source questioned whether Ms Abbott was indeed banned – insisting the NEC will not finalise candidate endorsements until Tuesday.

In a round of interviews, shadow health secretary Wes Streeting admitted that he was ‘not particularly comfortable’ with the way Ms Abbott has been treated.

He also had a tetchy exchange with Sky News‘ Kay Burley, suggesting she was spending too much time grilling him on the topic rather than Labour’s waiting lists policy. 

Not being endorsed as a candidate by Labour’s ruling National Executive Committee would be enough to end Ms Abbott’s 37-year spell as an MP. 

Ms Abbott told the BBC this morning: ‘Although the whip has been restored, I am banned from standing as a Labour candidate.’ 

Ms Abbott recently ‘liked’ a social media post by Mr Corbyn’s wife Laura Alvarez praising his decision to stand against Labour in his Islington North constituency.

It is unclear whether this might have been behind the decision, but endorsing anyone other than a Labour candidate in an election risks being a breach of party membership rules. 

Sir Keir is facing anger from even his allies at Labour’s treatment of Ms Abbott, who was the first female black MP in the House of Commons.

John McTernan, who was Tony Blair’s political secretary, said: ‘It’s not for the Labour Party to ban a woman with Diane Abbott’s record from standing for the Labour Party if that’s what she wishes to do.’

He added: ‘This kind of briefing is aimed at humiliating her and that is disgraceful, utterly disgraceful.

‘Whoever is responsible for this should hand their head in shame.’

Asked during a round of interviews whether he felt ‘comfortable about what’s happened here’, Mr Streeting said: ‘No, not particularly.’

He told Times Radio: ‘I know that Diane had the whip restored and her suspension lifted yesterday. This was following her suspension over remarks that she made, for which she later apologised. So I know at this stage, in terms of decisions about her candidature, as much as has been reported.’

He added: ‘I think this has gone on for a very long time. But I’m here this morning to talk about the NHS waiting lists and I say this with enormous respect for everything that Diane has achieved in politics.’

Asked if Ms Abbott was owed an apology Mr Streeting said: ‘Diane rightly apologised for the comments that she made that led to her suspension, as to the process, I think those questions are better directed to people responsible for the process.

‘I think it’s best that we wait for all other facts to emerge about the decision making in this case, which I’ve not been involved in, have no responsibility for and I’m here to talk about the seven and a half million people who are on NHS waiting lists.’

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who himself was banned for standing for the party at the general election and is now running as an independent candidate, claimed Ms Abbott had been ‘disgracefully treated’ by Labour bosses.

Mr Corbyn told the PoliticsJoe website: ‘Diane has been disgracefully treated by the Labour Party and by, particularly, the individual national officials of the party – all of them.’

He added: ‘If she’s reinstated, good. If not she’s got a choice of her own to make. But whatever she does, I’ll support her.’

Liverpool Riverside MP Kim Johnson said: ‘Solidarity with Diane, undeniably a trailblazer & a hero of our movement.

‘At a time when all our energy should be focussed on throwing the Tories out, this process looks nakedly factional.

‘Diane should have the whip restored now so she can stand as Labour’s candidate in the GE.’

Senior aides to Sir Keir were earlier said to be discussing returning the Labour whip to Ms Abbott before the election, if she does not run as a party candidate, to allow her to leave politics ‘with dignity’.

The possibility of a ban on Ms Abbott standing for Labour at the general election has sparked a fresh war between Sir Keir’s team and the party’s left-wing.

It also came amid a row over claims Sir Keir is lining up key allies to a string of safe seats after six current Labour MPs announced last-minute retirements.

A spokesman for the Momentum group said: ‘Restoring the whip only to block Diane would be outrageous.

‘Following a farcical, factional process, she has had the whip restored. Her local party reselected her unanimously. That should be the end of the matter.

‘Anything less is a slap in the face to Diane, her constituents and the millions inspired by her example as Britain’s first black woman MP.’

Ms Abbott issued a swift apology for her remarks in April last year, after she suggested Jewish, Irish and Traveller people experience ‘prejudice’ but are not ‘subject to racism’.

She was forced to sit as an independent MP in the House of Commons while a probe was launched into her remarks.

The BBC reported that Labour’s ruling National Executive Committee (NEC) wrote to Ms Abbott in December 2023 saying it had concluded its eight-month inquiry.

It issued her with a ‘formal warning’ for ‘engaging in conduct that was in the opinion of the NEC, prejudicial and grossly detrimental to the Labour Party’, it was claimed.

The NEC also reportedly said it expected Ms Abbott to undertake an ‘online, e-learning module’, described as an ‘antisemitism awareness course’, which she is said to have completed in February.

Sir Keir last week refused to be drawn on whether Ms Abbott would be allowed to stand as a Labour candidate in Hackney North and Stoke Newington.

‘The NEC will be coming to decisions on the final list of candidates in due course, so you’ll see that when the decisions are taken,’ the Labour leader said on Saturday.

Labour told BBC Newsnight that it does not comment on disciplinary cases.

Sir Keir told reporters on a general election campaign visit to Stevenage this afternoon: ‘Well, the process overall is obviously a little longer than the fact finding exercise.

‘But in the end, this is a matter that will have to be resolved by the National Executive Committee, and they will do that in due course.’

The revelation that the probe into Ms Abbott had actually concluded months ago sparked intense anger on Labour’s left-wing.

A Momentum spokesman said: ‘This is outrageous news which confirms the Starmer leadership is trying to force Britain’s first black woman MP out of Parliament.

‘For months we have been told by Keir Starmer that the process is independent and it’s nothing to do with him.

‘Today’s revelation confirms this is another brazen lie from Keir Starmer – the investigation was concluded months ago, Diane remains a Labour member and the whip should already have been restored as a result.

‘Starmer’s conduct has already been insulting and demeaning to a woman he rightly called a ‘trailblazer’ – the first step to making amends is to restore the whip and let Diane run as the Labour candidate, as local members wish.’

Meanwhile, the Guardian reported that key allies of Sir Keir are expected to be lined up as candidates in a string of safe seats.

There has been a last-minute spate of Labour MPs announcing they will stand down from the Commons ahead of the 4 July general election.

They include Barbara Keeley, John Cryer, John Spellar, Virendra Sharma, Kevin Brennan and Julie Elliott.

Senior Labour figures close to Sir Keir – including NEC members – are tipped to chosen as candidates in the now-vacant seats.