Owen Jones has been aggressively hounding Corbyn’s critics over the last few days, and touring the television studios professing his undying love for the dear leader. Superficially Corbynistas might smile when they meet Owen, they might welcome his support online. Privately they have never forgiven him for betraying the Corbyn project. As recently as last week Owen wanted Clive Lewis to replace Corbyn as leader after the election. The Leader’s Office and the Corbynite grassroots know the truth, they know his conversion back to their cause is about little more than his career, him staying relevant and keeping those TV appearances coming. This is what Owen Jones really thinks about Jeremy Corbyn…

1. “Jeremy Corbyn, a person who will never win a British general election… I know him personally and I know he never wanted to be leader; It was presented as a sense of obligation. He never anticipated this result and now leads the party without having any experience.” (Contexto y Accion, November 2016)
2. “The Left has failed badly. I’d find it hard to vote for Corbyn… They have made lots of bad mistakes. There’s been a lack of strategy, communication, vision.” (Evening Standard, February 2017)
3. “Since the by-election rout, [Corbyn] has made it clear he isn’t going anywhere without even offering the vaguest outlines about how to turn it around. That isn’t good enough: again, consider the stakes. Both he and his team have to think hard. If Corbyn decides he is unable to confront the multiple existential crises enveloping Labour, then an agreement should be struck where he can stand down…” (Guardian, March 2017)
4. “My passionate and sincere view is Jeremy Corbyn should stand down as soon as possible in exchange for another left-wing MP being allowed to stand on for leadership in his place: all to stop both Labour and the left imploding, which is what is currently on the cards.” (Medium, March 2017)
5. “Yes, it’s true that Labour has won all its by-elections since Jeremy Corbyn became leader, and increased majorities. But in his first year, the picture was the same with Ed Miliband. Neither did Corbyn do as badly in the local elections as was predicted. But Labour still lost seats — unprecedented for an the main opposition party for decades …” (Medium, July 2016)
6. “Corbyn’s acceptance speech — his first attempt to address the country — lacked coherence and had no core message to connect to people outside of the left’s bubble. He then disappeared for several days (with notable exceptions like walking in silence as a reporter followed him) while the press (inevitably) viciously attacked him, except to turn up to a war memorial and fail to sing the national anthem.” (Medium, March 2017)
7. “I’m somebody who campaigned for Corbyn, I’m a left-wing journalist. But I’m genuinely not clear on the policies being offered. It seems as though Ed Miliband presented his policies as less left-wing than they actually were, and now the current leadership presents them as more left-wing than they actually are.” (Medium, July 2016)
8. “When I asked Jeremy Corbyn in my recent interview what his strategy was, he came up with some sensible starting points… The problem is — that’s the first I’ve heard of it… There’s no point having a vision unless it is repeated ad infinitum, rather than being offered after being prompted: it will go over everyone’s head.“(Medium, July 2016)
9. “Most people don’t give a toss about politics on an every day basis. A bad image of a new politician at an early stage is tough to shift.” (Twitter, September 2015)
10. “As Jeremy Corbyn is surrounded by cheering crowds, Labour generally, and the left specifically, are teetering on the edge of looming calamity.” (Medium, July 2016)

Owen has issued a mea culpa to Corbyn, claiming that conversations with anti-Corbyn journalists and Labour members made him have a bit of a wobble. It was not just a wobble. Time and time again, throughout the whole duration of Corbyn’s leadership after Owen wasn’t brought into the inner circle in 2015, he has condemned Corbyn, argued for him to stand down, undermined him and helped those plotting against him. Corbynites know the truth about Owen, he isn’t really one of them…