Union boss Len McCluskey: Labour can’t win the election
Written by News on 17/05/2017
Jeremy Corbyn’s chief union cheerleader has dramatically admitted Labour cannot win the general election and claimed 200 seats would be a good result.
In comments that will incense and dismay many Labour MPs, Unite leader Len McCluskey spoke out just hours after the launch of the party’s election manifesto.
In a candid interview, Mr McCluskey said: "The scale of the task is immense. People like me are always optimistic … things can happen. But I don’t see Labour winning. I think it would be extraordinary."
And, in a comment that will infuriate many Labour activists and MPs, Mr McCluskey said: "I believe that if Labour can hold on to 200 seats or so it will be a successful campaign.
"It will mean that Theresa May will have had an election, will have increased her majority but not dramatically."
Mr McCluskey’s prediction of just 200 seats for Labour and a big win for Theresa May and the Conservatives will be interpreted in two ways inside the Labour Party and by political opponents.
Mr Corbyn’s critics will see it as a warning to resign if the party wins fewer than 200, but the Labour leader’s supporters will see it as a call for him to stay on if Labour tops 200.
Mr McCluskey’s remarks will also be seen by Mr Corbyn’s enemies in the party as evidence that the Labour leadership has all but given up hope of winning the election, despite claims that he is fighting to win.
Many in the Labour Party will also view Mr MCluskey’s gloomy forecast as a lowering of expectations so the Labour leader can cling to power after 8 June until a younger left-wing successor can be found.
When Parliament was dissolved at the end of April, Labour held 229 seats compared to the Tories’ 330. Some opinion polls suggest Theresa May and the Tories could win more than 400 on 8 June.
It has been suggested by some Corbyn allies that he should remain leader if he does better than the 30.4% of the vote Labour won at the last election under Ed Miliband.
The latest opinion polls have Labour around 30% or more with the Conservatives above 40%. Mr McCluskey’s prediction of 200 seats for Labour suggests a Tory majority of around 80.
In his interview with Politico, Mr McCluskey said working class voters who say they are going to vote Tory for the first time are doing so "because their mind is being turned by the constant attack of the media on Jeremy Corbyn and the image that they’ve pinned on Jeremy".
On the chances of a Labour victory, Mr McCluskey said: "In terms of the imagery of Jeremy, that’s a huge task. He’s got now just under four weeks to try to see if you can break through that image and it’s going to be a very, very difficult task.
"We are sending messages out to our members saying, this is a decent, honest man, who is on your side, what have you got to be afraid of, what have you go to lose?
"Labour’s policies will make Britain a better and more equal society so we’re trying to pump out that message.
"Whether that breakthrough can happen, we’ll wait and see. I’m not optimistic, but we’ll wait and see."
Mr McCluskey said it was difficult for the party to challenge now only two years after losing an election and one year after Labour MPs attempted to replace Mr Corbyn as leader, a move he said gave the impression of a divided party in the minds of many voters.
However, the Unite leader did not rule out victory completely, saying Labour was "fighting for every vote" and praising Mr Corbyn’s performance in the campaign.
"I think it’s going to be difficult because of the media bias to break that, but you never know," he said. "The truth is, wherever he goes … there are massive, massive crowds that turn out for him."
Mr McCluskey claimed he was not setting a benchmark on which his own support for Mr Corbyn rested.
Asked directly whether he had considered a threshold at which he would reconsider his backing, Mr McCluskey said: "No, we’re fighting for every seat."
He added: "Let’s wait and see what that turns itself into, in terms of percentage votes and seats."
(c) Sky News 2017: Union boss Len McCluskey: Labour can’t win the election
