With the crucial Brexit vote taking place tomorrow, some Labour MPs are buckling under pressure and offering support for May’s fated deal. Instead, they must fight for a general election.
Jim Fitzpatrick, Labour MP for Poplar and Limehouse, revealed in Parliament last Friday that he is likely to vote for Theresa May’s Brexit deal. The vote is taking place in the House of Commons tomorrow.
Fitzpatrick will be breaking the Labour whip in order to do so, coming to aid of the beleaguered Prime Minister at a time when members of her own party are deserting her in their dozens (if not hundreds).
Workers in Britain need a general election now. We need a socialist Labour government. This is the only way to resolve the Brexit debacle.
Rather than supporting a Tory Prime Minister, Fitzpatrick – and all Labour MPs – should do their job and join Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and grassroots members in campaigning for a general election.
Fitzpatrick had previously said that he would stand down at the next parliamentary election. But this did not stop Labour bureaucrats automatically selecting him as the candidate in the snap election of 2017.
Now, after over 20 years on an inflated MP’s salary, with all the perks and expenses associated with the job (and a generous pension to come), Fitzpatrick feels he no longer has to follow Labour Party policy and can ignore the wishes of rank-and-file members.
This betrayal by Fitzpatrick has angered those in the local Labour Party in Poplar and Limehouse, managing to unite the left and the right of the party against him. Remain and Leave supporters alike are opposed to him and his actions.
Party members are currently attempting to put pressure on Fitzpatrick and force him to change his mind in advance of tomorrow’s vote. We need to hold our MPs to account and make them responsible to the membership. This latest episode demonstrates – once again – the need for mandatory reselection.
