Westminster insiders will be interested to learn that Labour is set to move out of their Southside Victoria Street offices, above House of Fraser, and move to a new HQ. While Labour hasn’t announced the new location, Guido understands the party is moving south of the river to Southwark for the first time since Neil Kinnock was leader. PAds still haven’t been told the location, with one saying the party’s claiming the new HQ landlord doesn’t want it to be released yet. “Near the station” is the most one Labour source has been told. Guido will be keeping an eye out for the tax situation of the landlord…
The Guardian’s Pippa Crerar is also reporting the departure of Sir Keir’s chief of staff, Sam White. Policy and communications will be moving into Party HQ, reporting to General Secretary David Evans rather than to LOTO. Liz’s conference speech insult about the North London anti-growth coalition clearly spooked Labour into moving south of the river…
Over the weekend Labour continued to blatantly take their lead from the Tony Blair playbook – though not quite as Skwawkbox believed. Their latest policy, from shadow justice secretary Steve Reed, is an attack on the limpwristed years under Corbyn during which Labour “cared more about criminals than victims”. To counteract this, their latest policy proposal involves “naming and shaming” recreational drug users…
Guido’s old enough to remember Shaun Bailey announcing a similar policy during his mayoral run, albeit less invasive without naming individuals. At the time Guido suggested Shaun should lead the way, testing all the boys and girls at Tory HQ first from Ben Elliot down to the interns – then publish the results. Labour is no different. If they want to target the public with new extra-harsh drug laws it’s time for some truth and reconciliation over at Southside…
Labour have today gone hard on freeholds owned in offshore tax havens today, press releasing that 50,000 across the UK are under such arrangements. They neglect however to mention that among those 50,000 is their own Victoria Street HQ…
Labour are thought to pay half a million pounds a year to rent their London headquarters. The money goes to a tax exempt property unit trust fund based offshore in Jersey. John McDonnell today said that “It’s disgraceful that so much control is being exercised over UK property by offshore companies based in tax havens.” When will he be making good on his 2017 pledge to ‘end dealings’ with Labour’s current landlord..?
