The Labour whips are looking stressed this morning. Can the anti-War Labour left muster the 40ish rebels they need to defeat the government. In the past the whips have managed to cajole the semi-awkward squad into abstentions by playing on their unwillingness to vote with the Tories. The Tories have put forward their own amendment which will fail and they will then fall in behind the SNP/Plaid Cymru motion. Strangely there is some concern that the LibDems might not back the motion for some slippery reason.
The government is spinning that to vote for democratic oversight of the Iraq decision-making process would undermine the brave boys fighting for democracy in Iraq. So democracy undermines the fight for democracy? Well Guido reckons that they would like to know why they are providing target practice for sectarian insurgents before they start the civil war that they clearly are keen on commencing. “Ours is not to reason why, ours is to do or die” is not as popular a mantra as it was…
If these Labour rebels back the motion, which is based on EDM 1088 which they backed before, the government will probably be defeated.Diane Abbott, John Austin, Lyn Brown, Ronnie Campbell, Martin Caton, Colin Challen, Michael Clapham, Harry Cohen, Jeremy Cohen, Jim Cousins, Ann Cryer, Jim Devine, Bill Etherington, Mark Fisher, Paul Flynn, Neil Gerrard, Ian Gibson, Kate Hoey, Kelvin Hopkins, Glenda Jackson, Lynne Jones, Peter Kilfoyle, Bob Marshall-Andrews, John McDonnell, Jim McGovern, Austin Mitchell, Linda Riordan, Alan Simpson, Peter Soulsby, Gavin Strang, Jon Trickett, Robert N Wareing, Mike Wood and Claire Short!
