Labour row over 'secret hard-left takeover plot'
Deputy leader Tom Watson warns Corbyn support group Momentum is attempting to taking control of party

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
Len McCluskey has dismissed as "ridiculous" claims his Unite union is plotting a hard-left takeover of the Labour Party.
He also poured scorn on deputy Labour leader Tom Watson's warning that supporters of Jeremy Corbyn were involved in a "secret plot" to destroy the party, saying it was "a complete fabrication".
He added: "Tom and the other right-wing Labour MPs would be best keeping their nose out of our business.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"The truth of the matter is, my members will reject any attempt from outside bodies to influence and to try to take over Unite."
McCluskey's denials come after Jon Lansman, founder of the Corbyn support group Momentum, was secretly recorded by The Observer saying that if McCluskey were re-elected as Unite general secretary, the union would affiliate to Momentum rather than to Labour.
This would give the group access to funding and institutional support and represent a major realignment in the balance of power on the left.
Watson yesterday called on Corbyn to "deal with" Momentum, which he accuses of colluding with Unite to gain control of the party.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme yesterday, he said it was his duty to "call out" what appeared to be a "secret plan" to take over Labour by "people who do not have our electoral interests at heart".
He added: "I regard this as a battle for the future existence of the Labour Party."
Shadow chancellor and Corbyn ally John McDonnell accused Watson of "interfering" in Unite's leadership contest.
The Daily Telegraph says Labour has now descended into a "state of war". The New Statesman quotes a Momentum spokesperson claiming Lansman's comments were merely "aspirational", while Unite has denied it has any formal plans to affiliate to the group.
However, friends of Watson believe there is an "orchestrated attempt" by the two organisations to "take control of the machinery of the Labour Party", BBC assistant political editor Norman Smith says.
According to Smith's sources, Momentum is pushing for mandatory reselection of MPs, the removal of critical councillors and the takeover of regional Labour parties.
Watson was "cheered to the rafters" at a meeting of Labour MPs last night, the BBC reports.
Lansman was also recorded saying it was "absolutely crucial" that activists secured a change to the party's rules to ensure that when Corbyn stands down, they are able to get a left-wing candidate to succeed him.
Under existing rules, a prospective candidate must win the support of 15 per cent of Labour MPs and MEPs in order to stand, "a threshold a new left-wing contender is unlikely to be able to meet", says the BBC.
A change in the party's charter - dubbed the "McDonnell amendment" - to reduce that threshold to five per cent will be debated at the conference in September. A stronger Momentum, backed by Unite, could prove decisive.
This is the issue – far more than Trident, or nationalisation, or tax, or trade union legislation – that will "decide the fate of the Labour Party", says the Daily Telegraph.
Only Watson stands between the hard left and this act of electoral suicide, it adds.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
6 hotels to visit this fall
The Explainer Celebrate the start of a new season with a stay at one of these relaxing properties
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 23 September 2023
The Week’s daily digest of the news agenda, published at 8am
By The Week Staff Published
-
Pinochet’s coup in Chile 50 years on
The Explainer Half a century on, the former leader still sharply divides opinion in his home country
By The Week Staff Published
-
Will Rishi Sunak's green wedge issue win over the public?
Today's Big Question The PM draws dividing line with Labour on net zero ahead of the next general election
By Sorcha Bradley Published
-
Industry backlash as Sunak set to water down green pledges
Speed Read Automotive and energy bosses look for clarity after PM backs away from UK net zero goal
By Arion McNicoll Published
-
October by-elections: what's at stake for Labour, Lib Dems and Tories
Parties will contest two former safe Tory seats on 19 October, putting pressure on Rishi Sunak
By Harriet Marsden Published
-
Jobs for the boys: does the UK need a minister for men?
Conservative MP calls for dedicated cabinet role to combat 'crisis' in men's mental health and education
By Harriet Marsden Published
-
The heir to Blair: does former Labour leader hold the answers for Keir Starmer?
Today's Big Question Recent ‘cosy chat’ seen as political redemption for the former PM and political positioning for the man tipped to be the next one
By Arion McNicoll Published
-
Is Europe’s radical left in permanent decline?
Today's Big Question Once-ascendant parties across the continent face an existential crisis amid internal divisions and the rise of the far-right
By Elliott Goat Published
-
Can Labour win over Scotland?
Talking Point Anas Sarwar forecast to ‘cannibalise’ SNP votes but can he shake the ‘puppet’ image?
By Chas Newkey-Burden Published
-
Has populism had its day in the UK?
Today's Big Question Trump-style politics may be on the wane in the UK but it has cast a long shadow over Westminster
By Sorcha Bradley Published