Labour leadership hustings - Webchat with Jeremy Corbyn and Liz Kendall, Tuesday 28 July 2015 at 12pm

[BojanaMumsnet]

Hello

Following on from Friday's webchat with Yvette Cooper, we’re pleased to announced the second of our Labour leadership hustings webchats with Jeremy Corbyn and Liz Kendall, tomorrow at 12 noon.

Jeremy Corbyn has been an MP for North Islington since 1983. In addition to his involvement with local organisations and community groups, he has a keen interest in international affairs and is the chair of the Stop the War coalition, which he helped establish in 2001. Jeremy’s candidacy for the Labour leadership has triggered a flurry of headlines and soundbites.

Liz Kendall was elected as Labour MP for Leicester West in 2010. She is the Shadow Minister for Care and Older People. Her focuses include improving public services and making society fairer, and she has previously been the Director of the Ambulance Service Network and of the Maternity Alliance charity. Liz has recently spoken out against sexism in politics, following a row about remarks made by a supporter of Andy Burnham’s candidacy.

Please join us for the webchat at 12pm tomorrow if you can, or post a question for Jeremy and Liz here in advance if you can’t.

Labour leadership voting is open until Thursday 10 September and the ballot results will be released on Saturday 12 September.

Thanks

MNHQ

I plan to vote for Jeremy. I am angry and upset at the name-calling from the rest of the Labour party / media / world about this choice.

I am not a moron, I do not need a heart transplant. I am not under-educated or naïve.

My question for Liz is - why do the rest of the Labour party seem to think it is acceptable to be so audaciously rude about Jeremy Corbyn's supporters? If he does not win, what would you do to ensure that those who supported him feel included and heard?

My question for Jeremy is - how do we help the rest of the Labour party realise that thinking people can be left wing and that being called left-wing is not an insult?

Jeremy,

You've defied the whip many many times. Would you expect loyalty from your parliamentary colleagues and do you think your history as a rebel would hinder this?

Jeremy, I (like most realistic thinking voters) would like to know how exactly you plan to convince the whole of Britain come 2020, that your idealism could be made into working politics. I am yet to be convinced of your overtly left wing views, and fear your brand of politics will only lead to another 5 years of Tory government. From what I understand of your views thus far, if you became leader of Labour, the party would certainly lose my vote, such unsustainable politics are just flights of fancy. Whilst I do not disagree with your sentiments, Labour needs to prove that it cannot and will not allow the economy to fall into recession again. How do you believe that your views on the living wage, welfare state and expanding the public sector would be supported?

I think Blair was speaking about himself.

I too am insulted at the names I as a supporter have been called by Labour MP's who are sore losers or feel their New Labour ideas have been rejected.

What will you do for students and their education debt, who will be finished or part way through university in 2020? Will you wipe out their debt or just help new students?

I would like to second damibasiamille's question. Would both of you aim to actively work with the SNP to form an effective opposition during this government?

Jeremy you have my vote.
Please explain though what you aim to do in regards to the billions pledged by David Cameron for foreign aid, surely charity starts at home , here in the UK.
So many people are in poverty in the UK, yet we manage to give 12 billion to other countries whilst in debt ourselves.

Jeremy, if all labour MPS had voted against the welfare cuts instead of abstaining, would the bill have even got through parliament? Save Labour, save the working poor! How can two people earning £15000.00 each a year be classed as high earners and have to pay more for their council home rent. Won't all working people leave the council estates and the estates will become ghettos for the poor, unemployed and immigrant populations. Working families used to aspire to a council house. How will you help people trying to work and raise disabled children who require constant care? Will you protect the NHS? If all of Labour with the SNP stand against this Government, can't you block the Conservative bills? I don't know much about politics but I have voted Labour all my life. I am proud to live in a council house! I have chosen not to buy it! I have worked all my adult life and lived in council housing all my life. Should I feel ashamed of this? Aren't the majority of people just one or two generations away from being proudly council housed. Get the party together please! Stop the destruction of our country and what it stands for.

Both of you: Scotland categorically ditched Labour in the last general election. Some Scots are attracted by independence and the chance to create a fairer society on our own. Some like the SNP's left wing policies eg getting rid of Trident, building more social/affordable housing, increasing the spend on welfare. For Labour to stand a chance of winning in 2020 they need to attract the Scottish vote. How would you each tackle this?

Jeremy,
What do you make of the ongoing 'war of words' between stay at home mothers and mothers who go out to work? Is it a false dichotomy? Are we all contributing to society in different ways? Would you agree that, as a society, we value paid work over all other forms (including voluntary work, caring responsibilities). If so, how do we address that? Does it even need addressing?
Thank you very much.
(You have my support by the way).

Hi Jeremy, i just wanted to say that you absolutely get my vote & I wish you the very best of luck. I feel as though you have given me something to believe in, an alternative to the bland, media savvy sound bites we've been assaulted with for too long now.

Liz, what does the word opposition mean to you? I asked Jeremy, if all of Labour had voted against the welfare bill, would have it got through parliament? I work full time, raise a disabled child alone and live in a council house. I pay full rent! Should I pay more? Oppose the cuts please!

stresshead the Tory majority of 12 is over all the rest put together. The only way a Tory bill can be defeated is if some of them abstain or vote against.

Jeremy, 2 points that the right-wing media have pounced on so far are the "friends in Hamas & Hezbollah" and, since the Andrew Marr programme, your failure to stand up & shout "I AM NOT A MARXIST!!!" I'm sure there will be other, increasingly desperate, smears as time goes on & especially if you do win (as so many of us profoundly hope )

You got a bit tetchy with Krishnan Guru-Murthy - unsurprisingly - but will you be able to deal calmly with all the smears in future?

Dear Jeremy, I'll be voting for you.

My right wing, daily mail reading, benefits bashing father has also joined the party in order to vote for you as he feels it will make Labour unelectable.

Anyway, it's the only time we will have ever voted for the same person so cheers for that! Let's hope you make people like him regret their decision, eh.

Hello Jeremy and Liz

I'll ask you the same question I asked Yvette (who didn't answer)
My Husband and I have worked since our teens, but have nothing to show for it. We are a typical example of 'generation rent'.
Everybody promises to build more 'affordable housing' but I believe even of you built 1 million more houses they would mostly be bought by 'buy to let Landlords' and foreign investors.
Do you have any real plans to give us back the hijacked first rung of the ladder and get families like mine into permanent homes?

P.s I am an NHS nurse and a member of Unison. Corbyn is getting my vote, Eagle for deputy. I actually find the way other party leaders behave towards Jeremy offensive and short sighted. I'm not 'loony left' and if I wanted a Tory I would vote for them, not an immitation red one.

Q for Jeremy - do you honestly believe you can win a general election as Leader of the Labour Party. I saw that in that recent poll it said that only 5% of people supporting you thought you could win a general election. I've been asking everyone I know who is supporting you, and not one of them will argue that you can. So, do you honestly believe you can?

Q for Liz - how do you respond to all of the people calling you a Tory? Can you tell us why you're in the Labour Party?

Question to both:-

Do you think that the reason Labour lost the recent election was because they were too far to the left?

Question for Liz-Why are you in the Labour party? What would be your aims as leader that are truly distinct from those of other parties?

These things are pointless. They already know what they want to say, regardless of the questions, and will have worked it all out with their strategy people. They come in and select the questions which are suitable for the answers they've already decided they're going to give. The rest is irrelevant.

Hi Jeremy
What is your opinion on proportional representation (and i dont mean AV only)?

Liz, i'll ask you what i asked Yvette.
Do you think the proposed coup if Jeremy wins is a demonstration of a good democratic process?

Okay, so I actually paid the full whack of £60 to vote in this leadership election getting inundated by all your emails.

Jeremy: I love your passion. But I can't stomach a return to no tuition fees, it feels very regressive to subsidise people who are already very clever and capable to get even more ahead; they should take more risk of what their education will be good for.

Liz: I applaud you for saying that you would NOT bring back no tuition fees, that you want to concentrate on early years funding instead. Can you elaborate?

Q for both: was it a mistake of Labour to allow the £3 membership that means some people may have joined only to try to sabotage the election-of-leaders result?

My other tuppence is that Prescott is right: the result is the will of the party and nobody should be ruling out working with whoever wins.

being called a Marxist is not a smear - when you are one and proud

Jeremy, as someone challenging power, as Labour leader the corporate media are certain to subject you to an unrelenting, aggressive, mendacious campaign to ridicule or demonise you. Foot's donkey jacket, Kinnock's 'It's The Sun Wot Won It' and Milliband's bacon sandwich are the kind of things waiting for you. My questions are: 1) Are you emotionally tough enough to handle this treatment and 2) What strategy do you have to neutralise its impact and prevent it from stopping Labour winning the general election.

Please can you come up with the economic sense behind your anti-austerity package? I'm convinced that the money stacks up if it's viewed medium to long term - but this needs to be expressed clearly to counteract the howling right wing media storm of 'the money isn't there/Labour doesn't look after the economy'

PS you wished my friend Jo a happy birthday - thank you!