There has been a painfully obvious concerted effort today from the Tories on Twitter to suggest Labour’s workers’ rights policy has been bought by the unions.
I see both Red Len and @ChukaUmunna are opposing employment tribunal measures that will help the job creators in small businesses
— Harriett Baldwin (@HBaldwinMP) July 29, 2013
.@ChukaUmunna purports to support small business but opposes our employment tribunal changes to ease burdens. Because RedLen won’t let him?
— Brandon Lewis MP (@BrandonLewis) July 29, 2013
We are reforming employment tribunals to help small businesses. What a surprise 2 see RedLen & his paid-up MP @ChukaUmunna opposing changes
— Julian Smith MP (@juliansmithmp) July 29, 2013
Worrying that @ChukaUmunna is taking his employment tribunals policy from union baron Len McCluskey #SameOldLabour. Change was essential
— Alun Cairns (@AlunCairns) July 29, 2013
Of course they have a point, though attacking Labour for having a donor involved in setting their workers’ rights policy without even a hint of irony is hardly the most honest attack line ever. Readers will remember Adrian Beecroft, in the “premier league” of Tory donors, who gave well over half a million to the Tories since 2006. Beecroft lobbied Cameron on workers’ rights and no-fault dismissal and even got to write a report on it. The unions buy policy from Labour every day, but the Tories making out they aren’t tainted by dodgy donor dealings is laughable.
UPDATE: Tory source stresses “we decided not to implement the Beecroft report because we didn’t agree with it.”