John McDonnell has accused Labour’s general secretary, Iain McNicol, of directing a “rigged purge” of party members, aimed at weeding out Corbyn voters.
The shadow chancellor’s strongly worded statement, issued by Corbyn’s campaign, came after the party suspended a senior Corbyn-supporting trade unionist, Ronnie Draper.
Draper, the general secretary of the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU), which has nearly 20,000 members, tweeted:
Just been suspended from the Labour Party, a member most of my life. Democracy in action @jeremycorbyn @NSSN_AntiCuts @resistunite #bfawu
— Ronnie Draper (@Ronniebfawu) August 25, 2016
McDonnell said: “Labour party members will not accept what appears to be a rigged purge of Jeremy Corbyn supporters. The conduct of this election must be fair and even-handed.” He said he had written to McNicol “to demand that members and supporters who are suspended or lose their voting rights are given clear information about why action has been taken and a timely opportunity to challenge the decision.”
McDonnell claimed the party was exercising double standards in suspending Draper while allowing long-time party donor Lord Sainsbury to remain a member, despite having given more than £2m to the Liberal Democrats.
News of Sainsbury’s donation to the Lib Dems emerged on Thursday in official figures published by the Electoral Commission.
McDonnell’s intervention highlights the bitter nature of the party’s leadership contest, which has already been marred by a series of court battles over the rules.
Corbyn has repeatedly insisted he would work with Labour MPs if he wins in September; but McDonnell’s statement – which will be seen by some as an attack on party staff – underlines the divide in the party.
Corbyn’s team believe the party’s compliance committee makes arbitrary decisions, often on political grounds, some of which they believe could even breach members’ human rights.
Labour said the party did not discuss national executive committee decisions on individual members.
The compliance unit is working through applications to check whether the 180,000 new registered supporters who signed up to take part in the vote are eligible, or if some are members of, or public advocates for, other groups.
