Tony Blair warns Labour to avoid identity politics

[womaninblue]

I canvassed for Labour during the run-up to the election and I lost count of the number of former Labour voters who told me they'd consider returning when someone like Tony Blair, someone they deemed 'sensible' and not dogmatically ideological, was running the party. Blair does seem to understand people in a way that Corbyn and Momentum don't.

www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/feb/20/tony-blair-only-a-complete-renewal-of-labour-will-do

I can't imagine anything more likely to make Momentum candidates double down on identity politics than being told not to by Blair. Not only is being electable now unacceptable, it appears that being a credible opposition party is too.

I don't love Blair but someone of his calibre would seem like a godsend right now.

wellbehavedwoman agree wholeheartedly with your post.

I can't imagine anything more likely to make Momentum candidates double down on identity politics than being told not to by Blair.

I agree but that extreme wokeness will be their downfall. This whole pledge debacle is sunlighting the issue big time - even to the pledgers themselves which is comical to watch.

I like this headline
www.thetimes.co.uk/article/dont-allow-labour-become-trans-pressure-group-pleads-tony-blair-f8qsj3jtl

I agree Lady. I sometimes wonder whether the current Labour party have any appreciation of their responsibility of being opposition in our political system. I imagine not as they also seem to believe that voters need to earn the respect of their party and not the other way around.

God only knows how the fuck the Labour party are going to fix this in 4 years to become a credible option at the ballot box.

Probably worth remembering though that it was Blair's government that brought in the 2004 GRA despite some very prescient warnings about where it would lead.

I can see why he might not have perceived the current consequences as they thought they were 'only' accommodating a small number of transsexuals and that number would remain small. Although I don't personally think that's a good enough excuse.

I'd like to see him address his part in this.

They're not. My Labour MP talks about ten years in the wilderness and I think it may be 15, given how little seems to have been learned. If Corbyn had immediately resigned and there had been a 'we got it wrong' response from the LP we might have been talking 10 years, but now...

Probably worth remembering though that it was Blair's government that brought in the 2004 GRA despite some very prescient warnings about where it would lead.

Exactly.

I think Blair is saying that focusing on trans rights is a vote loser, not that women have a right be a separate class to men.

Probably worth remembering though that it was Blair's government that brought in the 2004 GRA despite some very prescient warnings about where it would lead.

In all fairness they only brought it in because the European Court of Human Rights made them

I thought it was in relation to the fact that same sex marriage was not legal?

It was more acceptable to change the definition of sex, than change the definition of marriage?

It's not just the Momentum types in Labour saying TWAW though, it's Keir Starmer, Lisa Nandy, Jess Philips, Angela Rayner, Sadiq Khan etc.

I think Blair is saying that focusing on trans rights is a vote loser, not that women have a right be a separate class to men

This with bells on. He isn’t to be trusted and is a proven liar which cost lives

He is just telling the labour MP to STFU and go quiet about it - but I’m glad they are revealing them self’s. Carry on labour MPs, show the public what’s really going on.

Thanks R0wan, that’s an excellent article by Mark Serwotka.

Blair isn't interested in women's right though. He talks about the folly of the Labour Party focusing on a fringe movement, Trans rights, whilst the right wing say 'okay then, we'll focus on immigration' (which will always, always, rightly or wrongly, appeal to the majority of voters)

If Blair wants to play the elder stateman then a bit of contrition for dismantling cabinet government, or indeed anything, would not go amiss.

I think Blair is saying that focusing on trans rights is a vote loser, not that women have a right be a separate class to men.

Yes that is true. But I bet he doesn't think TWAW and Keir Starmer doesn't either. What I see at the moment - just these last few weeks - is a number of politicians and media types treading very delicately towards the truth, being willing to open up the debate, to test the thin ice and see how far they can go. The more that happens, as with the Moral Maze debate for example, the more people will get to understand what's actually happening with things like women's prisons and women's sports, and the ramifications of this enormous policy error.

It just shows how far Labour have sunk that a lying, Bush-arse-kissing warmonger is now their lone voice of reason

And again yes Blair is absolutely not some kind of angelic deliverer. But just to not suck up to the trans dogma is, at this point, an important move.

Thing is I think there are probably plenty of GC labour MPs. A bunch of largely well-educated, supposedly socialist professionals cannot possibly, one and all, have swallowed that shite and have no awareness of the feminist GC arguments. It's just that any voices of reason within parliamentary labour ranks will be keeping quiet for now.

@SummerPavillion I love him too, the closest to him in terms of mass appeal and contender for the leadership I believe is Keir Starme.

I would also love Dan Jarvis to put himself forward more, great leadership potential.

Fact is that a lot more voters would have put their cross in the box for that "lying, Bush-arse-kissing warmonger" than were willing to for Corbyn. And I know Momentum consider it a badge of honour to lose rather than do anything 'Blairite' but that's what's put us into this mess of a Johnson government with a mandate to do what they want.

Up until John Smith/ Tony Blair, Labour were unelectable and the laughing stock due to be mired with Militant. Smith and then Blair removed tha trots and stalinists. SO won many victories.

Until Momentum and thier core followers are removed totally we can sit down with popcorn and watch the Tories win, win win.

This with bells on. He isn’t to be trusted and is a proven liar which cost lives

I don't get the hatred for Blair, myself..........even in spite of the Iraq War. I don't get hatred full stop. It seems like such a waste of time and energy.

Tony Blair has far too much common sense and awareness to believe that TWAW. I think you can at least give him that. A lot of what has happened to the Labour party ( Momentum etc) can probably be attributed to the heat, venom and polarisation that was fostered during the Iraq war........

Blair isn't interested in women's right though. He talks about the folly of the Labour Party focusing on a fringe movement, Trans rights, whilst the right wing say 'okay then, we'll focus on immigration' (which will always, always, rightly or wrongly, appeal to the majority of voters)

I do think his time away from the front-line gives him the benefit of perspective, though. He is saying what he is saying, and in the way he is saying it, in order to avoid even more polarisation and extremism.
I seriously cannot imagine him going for TWAW. He's a Catholic convert too.