In an interesting tactical move, Jeremy Corbyn has today appointed Tony Lloyd as his Shadow Scottish Secretary. Lloyd was born in Trafford, went to university in Nottingham, and currently represents Rochdale in Parliament. He has never lived in Scotland.
The appointment comes despite Lloyd simultaneously serving as Corbyn’s Shadow Northern Irish Secretary, and Labour’s Ian Murray clinging on to his Edinburgh South seat. Tony Lloyd is expected to work closely with the leader of Scottish Labour, Richard Leonard, who was born and raised in Yorkshire. Is it any wonder Labour’s former stronghold of Scotland now returns only one Labour MP?…
Labour’s Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary Tony Lloyd had an embarrassing appearance on Bloomberg TV this morning when he called the 29th March 2019 an “arbitrary” date, appearing not to understand that it is written into UK and EU law. Despite 498 MPs including the Labour leadership voting to set 29th March as exit day when they voted to trigger Article 50…
“I think if there is a good chance that today we will see the time frame begin to move away from that March 29th, very arbitrary deadline by the way there’s nothing in law, nothing anywhere else said March 29th had to be that date.”
If they can’t even get the basics right…
Scouser Andy Burnham running for Manchester mayor was always an odd one. The Everton fan’s Twitter stream is full of opposition from local Mancs who would rather have Stretford boy Tony Lloyd in the job. So it’s not surprising that Burnham’s campaign has bombed – he came last in the Co-Op Party hustings last week, and came last again in the Gorton CLP hustings last night. Lloyd won both by a landslide. Maybe Andy’s just too Westminster bubble…
