The Islington Labour Party has some serious questions to answer

November 6 update: see the current response from Islington Labour

Following the suspension of Islington MP Jeremy Corbyn from the Labour Party, it is time for Labour leaders in Islington to answer some basic questions:

• Do they agree with the Equality and Human Rights Commission(EHRC) report’s findings into anti-Semitism in Labour?
• Do they agree with Labour Leader Keir Starmer’s message to those who think allegations of anti-Semitism are exaggerated or a factional attack: “Frankly, you are part of the problem too. And should be nowhere near the Labour Party”.
• Do they support the decision to suspend Jeremy Corbyn?

If the answer to any of the questions is not a resounding YES, will they please explain to the people of Islington what they do believe in? And how they can still remain members of Keir Starmer’s Labour Party?

Islington Liberal Democrat Victoria Collins has spoken passionately in support of Universal Basic Income (UBI) at the Liberal Democrats Autumn Conference 2020. Watch Victoria's speech below:

Islington Liberal Democrats question the lack of information from Islington Council following the take-over by Centrica.

In the on-line debate on 26 August about Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, Liberal Democrat Kate Pothalingam highlighted Labour’s lack of engagement with local people. She asked:

‘What lessons has the Labour Council learned from its Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN) rollouts so far?

Responding to reports that China has passed a sweeping national security law giving it new powers over Hong Kong, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Alistair Carmichael has called on the UK Government to act swiftly.

Islington Council leader, Richard Watts, admitted today that Islington has been ‘a bit slower’ than some neighbouring councils on producing detailed plans for low traffic neighbourhoods. 

Islington Liberal Democrats asked Richard Watts during a Facebook Live video session why Islington hadn’t received any funding from TFL for such schemes. Watts claimed that TFL had so far only provided cash for schemes that were ‘already agreed.’ (TFL’s first round of funding has allocated £6.3 million for 136 emergency cycling and walking schemes in London - and no cash went to Islington.)

Like so many people around the world we were horrified by the murder of George Floyd at the hands of a white police officer in Minneapolis last week.

His death has sparked international uproar and the rebirth of the Black Lives Matter movement. The reality is that this movement never went away because the injustices never went away for black people, whether in the US or across the world.

Time is running out. If the Government is to get an extension on Brexit, it needs to request it before the end of June 2020.

Low traffic neighbourhoods are key to a safer, cleaner Islington - and must be introduced immediately, insist local Liberal Democrats.

Listening to people across Islington, these are long term positives for us all that could come out of the awful COVID crisis - if we are determined to make change happen. 

This is why we put a series of questions to Labour Council leader Richard Watts in his Facebook Live broadcast (Friday May 22). He didn’t directly answer any of them! So we are repeating them in this article.