“It waved above our infant might/When all ahead seemed dark as night/it witnessed many a deed and vow/ we must not change its colour now.”
The second verse of the socialist anthem ‘The Red Flag’, the tune better known to our politically estranged generation as ‘Oh Christmas Tree’, is a powerful cry from the past not to compromise Socialist values. The majority of Corbyn supporters, (Tory infiltrators aside), believe that the Labour leader embodies this socialist tradition and expect radical changes to Labour Party policy.
For his supporters, the reaction of the Conservative government to Corbyn’s election was very encouraging. David Cameron’s tweet that the Labour Party is now “a threat to our national security, our economic security and your family’s security” was only one of a ‘the end is neigh’ backlash. The right wing press want the British public to believe that this sandal-wearing, four-times winner of the parliamentary ‘beard of the year’ award is the first horseman of the apocalypse.
Unfortunately the appointment of John McDonnell, Corbyn’s former campaign manager, as Shadow Chancellor has done nothing to challenge this narrative. McDonnell’s article in the Guardian seemed reasonable enough: he accepted that public sector cuts were needed, but that a Labour government wouldn’t target “middle and low income earners and certainly not the poor”, and argued for greater regulation of the banking sector. Most Labour party supporters and the wider public could get behind these policies.
However, McDonnell’s highly controversial show of support to the IRA in 2003 could continue to haunt his political career. The shadow chancellor argued that Britain should ‘honour’ IRA fighters, for “it was bombs and bullets and sacrifice…that brought Britain to the negotiating table.” This story has already gained traction, and could seize the imagination of the public. Ed Milliband was never able to shake the perception that he was untrustworthy after he ‘did the dirty’ on his own brother, and it remains to be seen whether this moment will taint McDonnel in the same way.
Can Corbyn possibly hold the Labour Party together in the long term? Already twelve shadow cabinet ministers – Yvette Cooper, Tristram Hunt, Emma Reynolds, Chris Leslie, Liz Kendall, Ed Miliband, Shabana Mahmood, John Woodcock, Jamie Reed and Rachel Reeves – all said that they do not want to be part of Corbyn’s shadow cabinet. His stances on Trident, NATO and the EU will be critical in these coming weeks. If he does not allow the centrists this ground, there is a risk that they will defect. Paddy Ashdown may not have been overly optimistic when he claimed that Corbyn’s win was “the Liberal Democrat’s Opportunity. If you want a modern centre-left part that is addressing the issues of today rather than those of the 1950s then there is an opportunity for us.”
There is a fundamental gap between the values of Corbyn’s supporters and Labour MPs. Only 6% of MPs backed Corbyn; his support comes overwhelmingly from the grass roots. The Labour leader was partly elected on his anti-EU, Trident and NATO stances, but if he wants support from his own party and from the public at large he will have to compromise on these issues. On the Andrew Marr show, deputy leader of the Labour Party Tom Watson vowed to “convince” Corbyn to renew Trident and stay in NATO. Whilst Hilary Benn claimed on the Today show that the Labour would campaign to keep Britain in the EU “in all circumstances”, to the sigh of relief of Liberals up and down the country, Umunna felt the need to resign over what he perceived to be Corbyn’s anti-European stance. This ambiguity will not fill the public with confidence. Whilst we can all appreciate Corbyn’s attempt to include politicians from several strands within the Labour Party, his attempt to unify the party will be to no avail if he doesn’t listen to the moderates.
It’s impossible not to respect Corbyn as a politician. His compassion and sincerity have reinvigorated the political scene, and engaged an alienated electorate. But if he is to have a prayer of coming into power and implementing any of his ideas, the red flag will need to be diluted to a tamer pink. Let’s keep the pink flag flying.
