Two explosive reports into alleged corruption at Unite the Union – Labour’s biggest donor – have been handed to the police today, after both probes found evidence of “eye-watering” overcharging on contracts and “potential criminality”. Their HQ was already raided by police earlier this year…

The investigations were conducted by a KC and an accounting firm respectively, with a source telling Sky News today:

“There was pricing and overcharging that would make your eyes bleed […] There are such discrepancies in the money that the police may want to take things further.”

Unite boss Sharon Graham has now insisted the reports won’t be published until the police probe is over, although given McClusky’s Birmingham hotel complex – the one that was supposed to cost £7 million – somehow ended up costing nearly £100 million, it’s not hard to imagine why the KC has a few questions.

Of course, it was only yesterday when Lisa Nandy had this to say on Times Radio about the unions filling Labour’s coffers:

“I would far rather be taking money from ordinary working people, whether it’s our paramedics, or our postal workers, or our ambulance workers to support the labour movement […] This is the cleanest money in British politics.“

24 hours is obviously a long time in politics. Guido feels Rayner would have already published a screeching letter were this about a major Tory donor…

It seems like a distant memory now when Keir Starmer’s last reshuffle was being lauded by SW1 commentators as a shake-up that ‘exuded confidence’ and brought back ‘big beasts’. David Lammy has been working especially hard to undermine Starmer’s intended image of a top team with an eye on winning power. This weekend was no different…

On Times Radio David Lammy told Lucy Fisher that he doesn’t support these strikes:

“I don’t support strikes… It hurts working people… This is not a moment for posturing, standing on picket lines”

Which, regardless of backbenchers breaking Starmer’s no-striking edict, at the very least flies in the face of deputy leader Angela Rayner’s comments that the workers have been “left with no choice”.

Lammy’s comments on the rail strikes weren’t the only words out of his mouth yesterday to outrage unions. He also categorically opposed floated strikes by BA workers, leading to condemnation by Unite’s Sharon Graham who accused Labour of a “direct attack” on workers. There’s just one problem with this – it appears Lammy’s approach to strikes has changed someone since as recently as 2018…

This hard-line attitude from Lammy earned him a damning tweet from his own constituency Labour Party, which wrote “disappointed that our MP won’t stand side by side with his constituents on a picket line”

Disappointed that our MP won’t stand side by side with his constituents on a picket line. A serious MP joins the fight for the working class because that’s their role, to fight for the rights of their residents. #RMT #Strikes https://t.co/8PcwYIa6VL

— Tottenham Labour Party (@LabourTottenham) June 26, 2022

The revolution will eat its children, David…

Labour is on the brink of their second financial crash in 20 years: its biggest donor, Unite the Union, is threatening to pull all its “remaining financial support” to the cash-strapped party over a pay dispute between Coventry Council and its bin lorry drivers. Having already reduced its affiliation fee by 10% back in October 2020, Unite is now promising all-out war unless Labour acts like “the party for workers” again. New General Secretary Sharon Graham has warned, “if we have to escalate, we will escalate” and called Sir Keir’s party “bad employers”. Dear General Secretary, I’m afraid there is no money…

Since Starmer became leader, Labour’s finances have nosedived thanks to – in the words of party General Secretary David Evans – “lost members and dealing with antisemitism cases”. Back in the summer, they had just enough cash for one month’s payroll. Even last week, a Labour spokesperson said they were being “open about the challenges [they] faced”. Challenges, in this case, meaning they’ve already passed mass redundancies and offered a real-terms pay cut to those who stayed…

Despite a Unison source pointing out to The Times last night, “Who are they going to ask to pay for May’s elections? Other unions are skint,” a Labour spokesperson boldly shot back:

“We’re not going to get into the specifics of this dispute. Keir Starmer’s Labour Party will always act in the public interest. These sort of threats won’t work in Keir Starmer’s Labour Party. We would have hoped that Unite would have got the message that the Labour Party is under new management.”

It’s not all bad for the Labour Party coffers, however. As Guido pointed out yesterday, the BBC’s supposed Tory donor who slammed Boris hasn’t actually donated to the Conservatives since 2020, and last year gave £25,000 to Sir Keir’s party. Surely they can tap him up to plug the multi-million funding hole…

Earlier this month Unite announced it is to cut its funding to Labour due to believing money would be better spent on union campaigns. That was what their newly elected leader, Sharon Graham, claimed. Since 2017 Unite membership fees have been plunged into Len McCluskey’s hotel and conference centre vanity project in Birmingham. It was supposed to cost £7 million, however ballooned to an eye-watering £98 million…

Last night Sharon Graham confirmed there would be a transparent, QC-led inquiry into the building of it, which has also had questions surrounding the fact the development’s main construction contract – worth £95 million – was awarded to a mate of Len McCluskey.

Despite Len telling Sky News back in September that “it’s a fantastic investment and [Sky’s] the only one who is interested in that any more”, Graham’s admitted there are questions that “need to be answered in a timely fashion”.

“to ensure transparency the outcome of the inquiry will be made public.

“I will also be doing everything possible to recover all monies due back to the union.”

Last night he tweeted an inquiry was “sensible and will answer any questions”. Unfortunately for any Unite members hoping to hold McCluskey to account, he’s already checked out…