So Louise Haigh has resigned from the Government. I note that the offence which led to the resignation was spent, and she had previously disclosed it to the party. The fact that an offence can be spent, is designed to allow people to rehabilitate themselves. In any other organisation, punishing someone for a spent offence would be a crime, actually in the government and Labour Party it’s a crime. So much for “law makers can’t be law breakers”.
Also, while writing my incomplete review of the Forde Report, I uncovered the following quote,
We are also concerned that the provisions which allow for individuals to have membership removed or denied on the grounds they have committed prohibited acts could be exploited for factional purposes.
Haigh was probably pushed to go because she stood up for policies that Labour’s nomenklatura oppose, such as criticising and regulating private sector transport providers, renationalising the railways and further enabling municipal bus services. To me it is certainly evidence that Forde’s fears were justified and remain so.
The language used by Sky News, “Had Ms Haigh been an ally of the power brokers in Number 10, this row is arguably one she could have ridden out.” is almost certainly true and her treatment will come to be compared with others treated more leniently.
Image Credit CC 2024 DTP BY-NC-ND from flickr.