Labour’s campaign to win back parts of the red wall in May faltered this week, as their Teesside metro mayoral candidate told her trade union buddies that the Covid crisis will pale in comparison to that of the climate crisis… On Tuesday’s Covid Day of Reflection.

While the rest of the country spent the day reflecting on the year that had gone by since Boris announced lockdown the previous March 23rd, Labour’s Jessie Joe Jacobs told the Unite Union:

“There is no other issue bigger than [the environment]. If we think the Covid crisis hurt, the climate crisis is going to hurt much much deeper, much much wider.

Jacobs also revealed that if she wins the Tees Valley election, her first act will be to “call a climate emergency for the Tees Valley”. An interesting virtue signalling move given much the area’s industry is only just getting back on its feet…

Middlesbrough MP Simon Clarke responded to Jacobs’ alarmist comments by saying “These crass remarks would have been deeply insensitive at any time, but to issue them on the national day of reflection for Covid-19 shows a total lack of judgement.”

Ironically, if eco-Jessie were mayor of the Tees Valley, she’d have majorly scuppered the UK’s current climate fight: earlier this month GE Renewable Energy announced it will build the UK’s first factory to manufacture blades for offshore wind turbines – a move only taken thanks to Teesside becoming a freeport. Who took to Twitter the day of the freeport announcement to describe the plan as “basically a tax avoidance port”? None other than climate alarmist Jessie Joe Jacobs…

A Labour candidate has been caught out after claiming slogan-endorsed plates she delivered to the local MP’s office were from hungry children, when they were in fact created by her and fellow Labour activists. A few days ago, Redcar-based comedian Chris McGlade visited his MP’s office with “a box full of empty plates, with messages written on them from children all over Teesside”, in a stunt organised by local mayoral candidate Jessie Joe Jacobs. Jacobs now admits the plates were faked. At least Jessie won’t go hungry eating her own words…

McGlade – who is a long-time personal friend of the Labour candidate – has since said he was “horrified” to learn of the deceit:

“I was asked to help take these plates to the MPs office by the Labour Mayoral candidate who said this wasn’t party political. She said they’d been written on by children accross the area. I trusted her.

She came with me and said that it wasn’t party political to the MP’s secretary, while I was stood there. I feel I’ve been used terribly”

Responding, Jacobs confessed: “no, I didn’t tell [Chris] everyone who had signed the plates and I’m deeply regretful of that.” There’s blatant party political point-scoring and then there’s this…

A month after his suspension for sexual harassing a staffer, the BBC reported in October that the claims against Labour’s Hartlepool MP Mike Hill had been dropped. His subsequent reinstatement to the Labour Party conveniently allowed Hill to stand as a candidate in the December election. It was not dropped.

The complaint by Hill’s former staffer was “parked” pending the outcome of an investigation by Parliament’s independent complaints committee. They did not, however, withdraw their complaint – indeed they made a complaint to the police; and Guido now learns the employment dispute is heading for a hearing “later this year”. Why did Labour readmit Hill when they presumably knew he still has an active case against him?

In December, the Northern Echo also learned Hill tried to stop his name being revealed as part of legal proceedings being brought by his accuser. The whole thing smells like a cover-up the Labour Party are hoping will go away… 

Things are going from bad to worse for Labour’s Tees Valley Mayoral candidate Jessie Joe Jacobs. After refusing to answer questions about her party’s election performance, the beleaguered candidate has now claimed that it is a “smear” to imply she is supportive of her own party leader.

In a statement to the Northern Echo, Jacobs (who represented Len McCluskey’s left wing union Unite at Labour Party Conference) complained that “It’s a smear that I’m a Corbynista.” Jacobs, who was also the North East field director for the Remain campaign, further complained to the paper about being called “a remainiac.” Labour doesn’t look likely to win back the North East any time soon…

Over the last year, politics in Teesside has been completely uprooted. Labour has lost control of Darlington, Stockton and Hartlepool council, lost the Middlesbrough mayoralty, lost half their seats in Redcar and lost their majority on Middlesbrough council; in the General Election, the Tories beat Labour’s regional votes by over 10,000. Going well for Labour then…

Despite the regional wipeout, in a BBC interview yesterday Labour’s Tees Valley mayoral candidate failed to comprehend why being asked about Labour’s collapse was “relevant”. Candidate Jessie Joe Jacobs was asked why Labour has siphoned so many votes. She flatly refused to answer the question…

“I don’t want to answer that one.”

Current Tory mayor Ben Houchen responded with all guns blazing, saying

“This is what happens when Labour parachute in a Corbynista candidate who has no real world experience. Let’s not forget, local Labour members weren’t allowed to select their candidate and this is what they’ve been lumped with. A remainiac who can’t even answer the most basic of questions about the local area.”

Westminster politicos were worried things would get boring after the general election result – doesn’t seem that way out in the regions…