The next Labour leader would make a grave mistake avoiding Momentum
After the devastating election defeat of 2019, the Labour party has a lot to do to win back seats that it once considered safe. Once the exit polls were announced, a blame game ensued from pointing at Labour’s Brexit position to Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership being perceived as weak and unreliable with voters. On ITV News, once the election forecast was set, former home secretary Alan Johnson lamented the “cult” that was Corbynism and its grassroots affiliation, Momentum, and stated that “everyone knew he couldn’t lead the working class out of a paper bag”.
Johnson made this bold yet gross miscalculated statement whilst sat on the news panel alongside Momentum founder and chairman, Jon Lansman. After the victory of Corbyn’s leadership in 2015, lifelong and dedicated acolyte of the Labour left, Lansman, spearheaded an organisation that mobilised an electorate prepared for a socialist government. Today, Momentum has approximately 40,000 members in its wing and has a significant voice on the Labour party’s national executive committee (NEC). Labour leadership contenders, certainly the likes of Jess Phillips and Lisa Nandy, would face rebuttals from grassroots supporters if they attempted to dismantle Momentum’s prominence if they became the new leader post-Corbyn.
Momentum, labelled a hard-left cult with intent to rid Labour of its centrist free-market era, has faced consistent excoriation from the mainstream media since its foundation. What pundits fail to mention is the widespread influence the pressure group had on Corbyn’s success in 2017 amongst the fierce opposition he received from the Tory press. Momentum activists on the ground gauged the frustrations of voters and helped a Corbyn-led Labour gain 30 new seats in the snap election two years ago when the prediction looked bleak. They helped gain seats that have never been red before; such as Canterbury and Kensington. Although their performance didn’t enlighten voters this time round, it does not mean Momentum must now enter oblivion.
Lansman, a socialist ideologue who has fervently and continuously campaigned for further democratisation of the Labour party, has a lot of experience. A Labour activist who has never held elected office helped the popular group, Campaign for Labour Party Democracy (CLPD) achieve constitutional reform in the late 1970s. The CLPD called for further female representation in the party, resulting in all-women shortlists for candidates, as well as the party manifesto to have significant contribution from its membership. For all the Blairite MPs cynical of Corbynism who view Momentum as a stain in their party, they must shift their beliefs if they wish to seek the leadership.
It is looking increasingly likely that contenders who have vociferously opposed Corbyn during his tenure will not gain enough traction to succeed the leaders’ office. Phillips has urged voters to believe in her but continues to rebuke the party’s transformation post-2015. Meanwhile, her opponents who aren’t necessarily ardent Corbynites have expressed an acknowledgment of the party’s shift to the left. Keir Starmer and Emily Thornberry have asked for unity and cohesion rather than dramatic change so as not to alienate the resounding Momentum base the party now adheres to.
With the leadership race well underway and each MP voicing their approval for one of the six candidates in the running, the fight for support from the PLP and the rank-and-file is evident. The contenders’ opening pitches in the race have remained brief to avoid a harsh critique from Lansman and his organisation. For a Labour leader to have an iron-clad base in their quest for electoral success, they must recognise the popularity and success of Momentum whilst also affirming the party’ status as a broad-church. Without either, the party could face further turmoil and possible collapse if all sides are not listened to fairly.
