Must watch to set context:
In this section the report covers opposition to the party campaigns and manifestos, starting with the 2015 manifesto of Ed Miliband and Andy Burnham who were also considered to be too far left and then goes on to cover what staff thought of the wider Labour membership.
15 September 2015
Dan Hogan commenting on the Labour campaign for the EU referendum
Dan Hogan: “makes a change from trident, rail renationalisation and landlord-bashing”
Dan Hogan: “brace yourself. McDonnell just called for corporation tax to go up”
Amy Fowler: “you’re kidding me..I can’t quite believe it”
27 April 2016
Collete Collins-Walsh, Education Policy Officer, and James McBride discuss a Conservative Party critique of left-wing economics
Colette Collins-Walsh: “Finally, higher tax rates do not necessarily yield more revenues because they reduce incentives to work. What Corbyn fails to understand is that the UK is actually becoming more equal.”
James McBride: “indeed, very true”
29 July 2016
Simon Jackson and Head of Policy Development Anouska Gregorek discuss their opposition to the policy platform of Owen Smith, the rival to Jeremy Corbyn in the 2016 leadership election:
Anouska Gregorek: “I’m hoping its a genius plan to pretend these are his policies and then when enough people have voted for him he just quietly sheds policies as they poll badly”
Simon Jackson: “well yes, the only thing that matters is winning BUT”
Anouska Gregorek: “I am holding on to this”
Simon Jackson: “the thing about Owen is, he thinks he should be PM, he really does, he doesn’t realise he’s shit, he’d be another Ed”
14 March 2017
Catherine Bramwell, Communications Officer for South East Region commenting on rail nationalisation, which she believes is unpopular..
Catherine Bramwell: “i hate the trots, i hate the trots, i hate them x a million… all it looks like is trots doing what trots do”
9 April 2017
General Secretary Iain McNicol and Tracey Allen (Manager, GSO) responding to the announcement of a policy of free school meals..
Iain McNicol: “I believe in this policy. Always have but for very different reasons. If you go to a private school. You get school meals. All the teacher’s have to sit with the pupils and they are taught how to eat. Etc etc.”
Tracey Allen: “We should get them all to do their BMI before they go around criticizing ‘poor people’!! I agree with policy but ‘poor kids’ are just as likely to be skinny from bad nutrition and don’t grow.”
Iain McNicol: “Next we will be saying most poor people are criminals. And the best way to reduce future offending is by forced castration.”Iain McNicol: “Simon M please don’t respond to that policy”
20 May 2017
Senior staff criticise the Leader’s office opposition to the Tories “dementia tax.”
Tracey Allen: “I know I am not a strategist or policy person but am I totally missing something here? Why aren’t the Trots in favour of rich people paying more towards social care and not getting winter fuel allowance?
Patrick Heneghan: “They normally are”
24 May 2017
James McBride, a staff member in Labour’s Policy Unit leading on economy and business policy, commenting after the Westminster Bridge attack. McBride had shared a clip of right-wing Islamophobic commentator Douglas Murray, speaking on BBC Daily Politics, saying that all political parties were refusing to confront the reality that terrorism “comes from the religion” of Islam.
James McBride: “find it difficult to disagree with this”:James McBride: “we can’t ignore the fact that while one might be more typically ‘terrorist’ behaviour they still derive from the same ideology and western liberal ideology is reluctant to take it on and expose its roots. Which inevitably involve hard questions- even for so-called moderate islam
The Muslim Council of Britain wrote to the BBC about platforming Murray, “a commentator known for his anti-Muslim and anti-Islamic views” and believes that the UK needs “less Islam” and that “conditions for Muslims in Europe must be made harder across the board”. The council points out that “even the Conservative front bench broke off relations with him many years ago”The report then goes on to explain how senior staff viewed Labour members and activists as “Trots” and appeared to take a factional approach to the disciplinary process, which nurtured a lot of distrust from the membership. It also shows how senior staff worked to block left wing candidates from being considered for senior roles.
3 November 2014
John Stolliday, later Director of GLU and Anna Wright discussed trying to stop “trots” from being selected as Labour’s candidate for a parliamentary seat in Scotland.
John Stolliday: “We’re in special selections period now, but they’re going to call a special org sub to pretend we’re doing this in a more open way … there is literally no candidate & while they need someone good to come forward they’re desperate to stop the Scotland trots from using it to increase power base… it’s up for grabs so if you have any friends who would be good get them to go for it”
Anna Wright: “And in Edinburgh, No one in the frame?”
Anna Wright: “Okay, I might subtly suggest to one person in particular”
John Stolliday: “Literally no one – they’re trying to stop some of Johann’s people by the sound of it & want someone good who can keep the seat for ages. Plus they’re all worried about Gordon’s seat – they want to do an AWS there but GB has apparently kicked off & told them they can’t – he must have someone in mind”Anna Wright: “Aye it’ll be some knobber like Alex Rowley, who I note has done some trot nominating”
18 May 2015
Cameron Scott, Scottish Labour’s Head of Campaigns and Communications and later Regional Director for Eastern Region, suggests “some raging trot” from “the unions” would probably become deputy leader in Scotland.
22 July 2015
Dan Hogan expressing his opinion about members who joined the party after the 2015 election defeat.
Dan Hogan: “what sort of person only becomes actively involved in politics after a general election? people who love losing!”
15 September 2015
Dan Hogan: “is Labour in the South East just full of trots?”…… “moderates on the [National Policy Forum] got pretty much wiped out in SE / elsewhere, that didn’t happen”.
In June 2016 Dan Hogan was looking for people who “use your Britain”, “and who aren’t mad trots”. Staff also discussed preventing “Trots” winning places on the NPF or on Regional Boards, as well as the Scottish and Welsh Executives. On 29 July 2015, staff said there would be “rampaging trots” at Labour annual conference, and “stewards [will] need pepper spray” or “body armour”.
18 August 2015
Conversation between Danny Adilypour, Campaigns Manager in the Contact Creator, Targeting & Analysis Team and Jim Harvey in which it’s suggested that Chuka Umuna should have run and they criticise non-Corbyn candidates’ campaigns as “crap”and “dreadful”.
Jim Harvey:“we’re totally fucked. the party is about to be taken over by complete nut-jobs”
Danny Adilypour: “yeah, all the people commenting on twitter, facebook and elsewhere are completely fucking mental. We’re so fucking screwed”
In March 2017, upset with the fact that over 250,000 people had voted for Jeremy Corbyn in 2015, the former GLU’s Director of Risk and Property, Mike Creighton, tweets that the ‘anti-Semitism issue’ in Labour was a “Direct consequence of [Ed Miliband’s] decision to allow the Labour Leader to be selected by Tories and Trots,”
8 October 2015
Director of Policy and Research Simon Jackson and Head of Planning Jo Green discuss the need for the PLP to “get rid of [Corbyn] in the next couple of months or the trots will embed themselves”:
Jo Green: “this is an entryist thing, it’s been set up by lansman and backed by corbyn to sign people up to CLP meetings, shameless”
Simon Jackson: “yep”Jo Green: “using all the membership records they got during the leadership campaign team fucking trots”
Simon Jackson: “Arseholes, no doubt we’ll stand by and let it happen”
Jo Green: “plp won’t be pleased but they’re totally useless, they should be creating a massive fuss about this”
Simon Jackson: “I’m fairly settled now on the view that they have to get rid of him in the next couple of months or the trots will embed themselves. That means someone sacrificing themselves”
Jo Green: “it has to be done by next summer at the latest. can’t see them doing it before May… yep, but they’re useless”
Simon Jackson: “they’ll have changed the rules to get him back on the ballot paper by then”
Jo Green: “Yep”
29 July 2016
Concerned that Corbyn, was expected to be returned as leader with an increased majority, Simon Jackson remarks “has to go, even if it must be forced”
3 May 2017
The Manager of the General Secretary’s Office, Tracey Allen, remarks on the extent of hate towards party members amongst her colleagues “Josh loves Tory bashing second only to Trot bashing”
10 April 2017
Laura Repton, Regional Administrator and Lee Gingell refer to a colleague as “a massive trot” because she and her mother had applied for tickets to hear Corbyn speaking.
Laura Repton: “omg, its solved, maria is a massive trot”
Lee Gingell: “really?! how do you know? what did you find out?.. Fuck sakes man get them out of my face”
Laura Repton: “she has applied for a ticket with her mum, we would love to hear JC speak, please put us down for the ballot”
Lee Gingell: “wtf, she hears members say all night that they don’t like JC how can she still support”
Laura Repton: “baffling”Abusive or inappropriate language was common place amongst Executive Directors, Directors, staff in GLU and staff in the General Secretary’s Office. Ironically, GLU staff would openly use language that they would accuse members of using in disciplinary cases.
15 September 2015
Despite the fact that Corbyn’s 2015 shadow cabinet was mostly women (for the first time in parliamentary history) people still found excuses to criticise the fact that the top four posts were still held by men. Greg Cook sent Jo Greening a spoof video of Jeremy Corbyn as Adolf Hitler being overtly sexist and homophobic when someone in the video comments “Dan Jarvis will save us”. A number of staff, including Dan Hogan, watched and shared the video while using party resources and during office hours. Jo Greenings response.. “Love this”
15 June 2015
Head of Press and Broadcasting Jo Green talking to Acting Director of Policy and Political Research Simon Jackson..
Jo Green: “anyone who nominates corbyn ‘to widen the debate’ deserves to be taken out and shot”.
Simon Jackson: “quite.”
15 September 2015
Dan Hogan remarks how staff who “whooped” at Corbyn’s speech “should be shot”
13 August 2015
Conversation between Ali Moussavi, Economic Advisor in the Leader’s Office and Sarah Brown (Press Officer) discussing taking out Corbyn…
Ali Moussavi: “Jeremy Corbyn could end up being like Savonarola. A fanatic priest who deposed the Medicis in a wave of theocratic populism who was then shortly after deposed himself for making Florence a boring place. Jeremy might last even fewer days than Savonarola did. Man Jez is savonarola in so many ways! But we need to finish him”
Sarah Brown: “hanging and burning does seem like overkill. I am going to go read about Savonarola”
Ali Moussavi: “we can figuratively do that but not literally.
Sarah Brown: “you don’t get my joke”Ali Moussavi: “I didn’t think it was a joke”
17 September 2015
Days after Corbyn was elected leader of the party, John Stolliday (who was then moving into a key role in GLU) remarked to Anna Wright how she hadn’t used the word “cunt more in the last 48hrs than you have in your life up until that point”. She responds.. “yesterday I called the Leader of the Labour Party a sexist cunt”. She then adds how that might have been “uncomradely”, to which Stolliday responds..
John Stolliday: “It’s not your job to be comradely to the leader, it’s your job to protect and present the ongoing functions of the Labour Party, which will exist long after any incumbant leader”
Anna Wright: “Yeah but I have slagged him too much”
John Stolliday: “That;s what Japes is for”
Anna Wright: “Yes. I think calling him a sexist fucking cunt was too much though”
Staff and even senior staff would freely use mental health slurs against members of the Leaders Office and Corbyn supporters in general. Stolliday referred to the Executive Director of Communications, Seumas Milne, as a “total mentalist” and “nutter” and had previously told him to “cock off”.
Simon Jackson, Head of Policy, would refer to Corbyn supporters as “nutters”who had “Invaded” the Party and Anouska Gregorek, Head of Policy Development, joked about them getting “F U JC” – “Fuck you Jeremy Corbyn”– tattoed on their foreheads.
10 April 2017
Conversation between Simon Mills (Executive Director – Finance) and Tracey Allen (Manager of Gen Sec Iain McNicol’s office).
Simon Mills: “Dropped 634 paying members last week. 392 joined. Who are these people…?”
Tracey Allen: “Mentalists?”
9 May 2017
Conversation between GLU’s Head of Disputes Sam Matthews and Teddy Ryan, Regional Organiser..
Sam Matthews: “Fuck ’em. Someone’s got to stand up to these progressive alliance wankers”
Teddy Ryan: “tell me about it… clive lewis is the biggest cunt out of the lot”
Sam Matthews: “it’s like outlook-whack-a-mole… yes. yes he is”
9 March 2017
A WhatsApp chat demeaning and mocking the appearance of female Political Advisors…
Sarah Mulholland: “Simon apparently the PADs have stopped wearing bras.”
Sarah Mulholland: “Hi Tom G! Sorry, this isn’t meant to be for chat about undies. But there are nipples out at the PADs meeting and not a single tie.”
Tracey Allen: “Even the female ones!! Very retrograde demonstration technique. Will they be burning them next ? ?”
Julie Lawrence: “Thank god this doesn’t happen in Southside”
Sarah Mulholland: “Sarah Vine is wearing a see through, flesh coloured, skin tight top and no bra. No wonder Trickett speaks so highly of her.”
Sarah Mulholland: “*Pine not Vine”
21 May 2017
Emilie Oldknow makes sexist and derogatory comments about Laura Murray, a young female member of staff working for the Leader’s office, after the Express Newspaper ran a story about
her inheriting a share in her mother’s home (which is by no means a unique event but presumably they chose to single out Murray as she worked for Corbyn).
Tracey Allen: http://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/807191/Corbyn-Labour-aide-children-save-money-inheritance-tax
Emilie Oldknow: “You’d think with all that money she could afford to buy a jacket and a bra”
8 March 2017
Ian McNicol, Simon Mills, Emilie Oldknow, Julie Lawrence and Tracey Allen talk about Karie Murphy, Chief of staff at the leader’s office…
Iain McNicol: “KM wants any savings from KROW to fund community organising. Does she not realise we haven’t even funded the campaigns.”
Simon Mills: “What a fuckwit. We don’t have the money to pay Krow so cutting it does not create cash for Cos”
Emilie Oldknow: “I got told today that when Karie found out about Gorton, she was throwing things round the office…”
Julie Lawrence: “Ha! Crazy woman.”Emilie Oldknow: “I laughed out loud”
Julie Lawrence: “Keep poking the bear ?”
Tracey Allen: “Definitely crazy snake head lady rather than plucky Scottish heroine”
Emilie Oldknow: <Media omitted>Patrick Heneghan: “Bitch face cow”
Julie Lawrence: “That would make a good dartboard”
Tracey Allen: “Medusa Monster”
22 November 2016
Emilie Oldknow and friends making derogatory and abusive comments about staff at the leaders office, namely the Chief of Staff, Karie Murphy and the Political Secretary, Katy Clark…
Emilie Oldknow: “Fuck off pube head”
Emilie Oldknow: “I’m too busy slagging you off”
Mike Creighton: “Can I just point out from my sick-bed there is too much disparaging talk about old folk on this timeline. Salt of the earth dontcherknow.”
Tracey Allen: “Who is pube head?”
Emilie Oldknow: “To talk to you about Jon Trickett’s diary”
Emilie Oldknow: “Katy”Emilie Oldknow: “Katy had the exact same clothes on yesterday”
Emilie Oldknow: “Smelly cow”Tracey Allen: “Didn’t she do that at conference too?”
Emilie Oldknow: “Yes. Same clothes. Four days”
Patrick Heneghan: “Probably slept in them”Patrick Heneghan: “Disgusting”
Emilie Oldknow: “Karie is actually fat too”
Emilie Oldknow: “There’s a good old role in that photo”Emilie Oldknow: “Roll”
27 February 2017
The language used in many of the above comments and insults coming from GLU staff and management are far more serious than many of the comments that Labour members were suspended for in the 2016 leadership election but senior staff, including Mike Creighton, took no action and even indulged in the shocking abuse…
Patrick Heneghan: “Take a look at @maxshanly’s Tweet..” (since taken down)
Patrick Heneghan: “Outrageous”Emilie Oldknow: “That’s funny”
Emilie Oldknow: “He’s got mental health issues”
Patrick Heneghan: “Still outrageous”Sarah Mulholland: “And ps. I hope Max Shanly dies in a fire.”
Julie Lawrence: ?
Mike Creighton: “That’s a very bad wish Sarah. But if he does I wouldn’t piss on him to put him out.”
Sarah Mulholland: “Wish there was a petrol can emoji”
Patrick Heneghan: “Take a look at @maxshanly’s Tweet..” (since taken down)Patrick Heneghan: “What a dick”
Tracey Allen: “Couldn’t find suitable emoji for him!”
