Dispatches and Panorama were dreadful for Labour. Does anyone care?

by Kevin Meagher

What will an average voter make of the Labour after watching tonight’s Dispatches on Channel Four or Panorama on BBC1, chronicling the party’s descent into internecine student-level factionalism and sloganizing?

That’s a question – perhaps the question everyone involved in democratic politics. need to constantly ask themselves: ‘What does the electorate think of you?’

Tonight’s programmes were an embarrassment for the Labour party.

The exact mirror opposite of a party political broadcast.

Here was Labour showing the electorate on prime time evening television why it isn’t fit to run the country.

Riven, incompetent and in the hands of either well-meaning fools or vicious entryists.

The only scintilla of dignity and poignancy on display was Neil Kinnock ruing that, at 74, he probably won’t live to see another Labour government in his lifetime, such is the state of the party.

Over in the Corbyn dreamscape, it was probably chalked up as a success because the word ‘socialism’ was mentioned on the telly.

Normal people aren’t bothered about how Labour chooses its shadow cabinet, or whether Momentum is packing the annual general meetings of constituency Labour parties.

But they do wonder why Labour seems to bang on about nothing else these days.

Neither are they bothered about socialism or any other ‘ism’.  Or discussions thereof.

They are not looking for a walk-on part in the people’s uprising.

And they’re certainly not bothered which nutty far-left sects a constituency Labour party official in Brighton is or is not a member of and whether they contravene Labour’s official policy on membership of nutty far-left sects.

They just want to hear people in Labour politics address their concerns realistically.

To come up with workable proposals to improve their lives.

Not a wish list of uncosted, impossible promises.

Or an invitation to the ramparts.

I was left with that uncomfortable, squirming feeling that you have when you watch The Office.

David Brent’s complete lack of self-awareness or understanding of how others perceive him translates perfectly to the modern Labour party.

At this rate, Jeremy Corbyn is going to emulate Brent’s infamous ‘There’s good news and bad news…’ speech.

The bad news will be Labour is trounced in 2020.

The good news is it will be eight million votes for socialism.

Kevin Meagher is associate editor of Uncut


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13 Responses to “Dispatches and Panorama were dreadful for Labour. Does anyone care?”

  1. Tafia says:

    What will an average voter make of the Labour after watching tonight’s Dispatches on Channel Four or Panorama on BBC1

    The average voter wouldn’t have made anything. The average voter doesn’t watch either programme – in fact the average voter has absolutely no interest in either programme. The average voter watches Corrie, Eastenders, Hollyoaks and stuff like that.

    Do you no longer know what the average voter is?

    As for Labour getting trounced in 2020 that has been a dead cert for 8 years and has nothing to do with Corbyn. They would be in exactly the same place no matter who was running Labour or what they said. The accusations regarding the 2007/8 crash have stuck and will take another couple of elections at least to fade in the electorate’s consciousness.

  2. Alf says:

    There aren’t any Trots in our CLP. There are lots of socialists these days, but no Trots. One or two Blairite hard-liners are still hanging about too. So, I think our Tory-lite MP will get deselected as soon as meetings start up again.

  3. Richard MacKinnon says:

    I think I can help you here Kevin,. When you say “The only scintilla of dignity and poignancy on display was Neil Kinnock ruing that, at 74………………,”
    Most people and I included Tories as well as Corbyn supporters see something completely different to you, when Kinnock comes on the telly; they see a hypocrite, may be that is a bit strong, I’m sure he is a decent guy, but it is accurate, Kinnock calls himself a socialist yet he sits in the House of Lords. Tories laugh at that when they see him bemoan the state of the party he holds so close to his heart, Corbyn supporters get angry. Others without strong affiliations watch history catch up with hypocrisy. Labour’s ex politicians and trade union baron’s wrapped in there ermine gowns are part of the story.

  4. Mark Livingston says:

    The problem is that the party became infested with Tories during the mid 90s. I think we should be banning Progress and other far-right groups within Labour.

  5. madasafish says:

    I tried to watch teh program but found it boredom interspaced with occasional bits of useful information. I switched over to something more interesting like Emmerdale or Casualty or a knitting programme. 🙂

    Nothing new there..I cease to be surprised at politics and politicians except for the naivety of those who herald Labour’s existing Leader as a “new beginning ” etc.. Some of them are older than me and must have lived through the same events and appear to have learned nothing from them!

    If it goes on like this – and I fully expect it will for at least a decade after 2020, then Labour are going to see a re-run of the Michael Foot episode….. 15 years after electing a credible Leader they eventually regained power.

    So 2035 it is then?

  6. Richard MacKinnon says:

    What is the point of commenting on Labour Uncut when posts are not published.

  7. Delta says:

    The most amusing part in this charade was that 10-7 years ago efforts were being made to prevent this from happening and were being prevented and stone walled by the very MPs and Blairites who complain today.
    Like little children incapable of processing cause and consequence…
    Today their conceit and arrogance replaced by stoney silence.
    They are truly authors of their current predicament. There is nowhere to look, nowhere to turn nowhere to lay blame except upon themselves.

    Lord Kinnock is effectively moaning about a broken window he himself threw stones against. Because it was his and his colleagues pig headed stupidity in the way they treat ordinary people without particular sympathies to the hard loony left that has caused this situation and so the Blairites are now as freakish and weird a choice as the very fruitcakes who are now laying claim to the dead party going nowhere.

  8. Anon says:

    Richard MacKinnon is absolutely correct – that Kevin Meagher sees Neil Kinnock as some sort of people’s champion is way off the mark.

    As a young man I hung on every word that Kinnock uttered, only to see those words turn to dust. Like all the rest – Mandelson, Prescott, etc – they have traded in their principles for ermine and riches; and been willing to dump whatever principles of democracy to enmesh us in the anti-democratic EU.

    Kinnock’s record as an EU commissioner is remembered for the shameful way in which he was part of the bullying of Marta Andreasen, the accountant who cast doubt on the EU’s budgetary shambles.

    Kinnock will also be remembered for his belief that if Labour could not persuade the people of the UK to vote for Labour’s policies, he would turn to the EU to undermine UK democracy. This was so obvious during the EU referendum where the European Union was seen as the ‘giver’ of workers’ rights – when, in reality, UK workers’ rights were hard fought for by previous generations.

    Kevin Meagher may feel that he has his finger on the pulse of the UK people – but the bringing of Kinnock into the argument proves beyond doubt that he doesn’t yet ‘get it’.

  9. Tony says:

    I cannot wait for a Channel 4 or Panorama programme exposing the coup and the likes of Saving Labour and Progress.

    Perhaps next week.

  10. Richard MacKinnon says:

    Anon 21/09 1159,
    Well said. It is an unpalatable truth never to be acknowledged by the likes of Kevin Meagher and many others. Labour sold its soul to the devil many years ago. Rather than reform the House of Lords, Labour fell in love with it.
    Labour’s downfall began in the 70s with Callaghan handing out Ks to sycophantic trade unionists. It has continued on through the decades with Kinnock, Blair, Brown and Miliband.
    Nothing surprises me with the Labour Party any longer. What are the chances of Lord McCluskey of Everton on the New Years Honours list?

  11. NickT says:

    @Richard MacKinnon

    “Kinnock calls himself a socialist yet he sits in the House of Lords.”

    Corbyn calls himself a working-class Socialist, but trousers a fat cat’s wage for doing nothing and lives in a house worth six hundred thousand quid. Plus, of course, the allotment. Mustn’t forget the allotment.

    Not very impressive – but then, that’s the whole story of Jezza’s political career for you.

    I wonder what’s going to happen to the already extremely unpopular Corbyn and Momentum when the Tories finally decide to saunter over and give them a kicking. There’s so much material for them to work with and no sign at all that the Jizz for Jezza revolutionary soviets have any idea what to say in response.

  12. Richard MacKinnon says:

    NickT,
    I know Corbyn is a fake. But my point is Labour’s predicament isnt his fault, infact he is a product of his unprincipled self serving predecessors. Corbyn has ended up in charge by default, because Labour’s past leaders have used the party for their own ends. Kinnock – to line his and his families pockets, Blair – to satisfy his lust for war. Brown – because of his paranoid schizophrenic delusions of leadersip.
    Don’t blame it on JC. Sit back and watch the best show in town.

  13. Landless Peasant says:

    At last, A response to a heavily biased BBC Panorama documentary that wrongly alleged that the Labour Party is institutionally antisemitic.

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=l10eckDFMso&feature=youtu.be

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