By Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi

You may ask why the Labour Party’s internal elections matter. Why am I bothering to stand for the National Executive Committee at a time when ordinary people are facing desperate challenges in their daily lives, the international political scenario is terrifying and the planet that sustains us all is burning?

The UK government has already executed a lurch towards the far right that has alarmed even liberal commentators and peers of the realm. It is set to continue down that path whichever execrable prime minister the Tory party foists upon us.

This signals danger for us all and it’s my first reason for standing for the NEC. We need a Labour Party capable of forming an effective opposition, and ultimately a socialist government, inspired by the popular policies in the 2017 and 2019 manifestos.   

Labour is – now and for the foreseeable future – the only serious vehicle for ousting the Tories from power.  Keir Starmer says he is turning Labour “from a party of protest into a party that can win power.” But if ordinary people are going to vote Labour at any forthcoming general election, they will need to be assured that we intend to deliver a real alternative to what’s on offer from Johnson’s successors. They need to be persuaded that another world is indeed possible. Respected socialists like Jeremy Corbyn and Diane Abbott are supporting me and the other Grassroots 5 candidates for election to the NEC because they recognise the need for strong voices on Labour’s governing body, activists with a track record of standing up for radical policies that can transform society and change people’s lives for the better.

When workers rise up against attacks on living standards, employment conditions and trade union rights, they should be able to count on solidarity from a party rooted in the labour movement. Keir Starmer would do well to remember that Neil Kinnock’s failure to stand by striking miners in 1984-5 was followed by failure in the general elections of 1987 and 1992.

We need a party that is uncompromisingly for public ownership of utilities and services, for a just transition to a green economy and against militarism, racism and bigotry. A party that fearlessly defends civil liberties, freedom of speech, refugees and asylum seekers.

My track record shows that I have the capacity to promote these values on the NEC. I’ve been an active trade unionist in the NUJ and NUT (now NEU) all my adult life and an anti-racist campaigner for human rights and global justice since my teens. As vice-chair of Chingford and Woodford Green CLP 2017-20, I was part of the team that brought Faiza Shaheen within a whisker of unseating Tory MP Iain Duncan Smith in 2019. I’m proud to work with local comrades who have ensured her reselection as our parliamentary candidate and are busy laying the groundwork in our community and trade union movement for a Labour gain at the next general election.

We also need a party that respects its members. Otherwise, why would they put in all the campaigning effort required to win seats for Labour in local councils and in Parliament?

The Forde Inquiry has shown how far our party has fallen short in that regard.

There must be no more of “the hierarchy of racism” revealed by Martin Forde and his panel. They found (p.81) “racism, sexism and Islamophobia,” “bullying and threatening behaviour” and “complaints not treated with the urgency and sensitivity they deserved.” This was in contrast to “attention to the surge of cases related to antisemitism and the importance they appeared to play in the interfactional conflict.”

Staff meant to serve members were instead “engaged in ‘trot-hunting’” (pp.43-45), pursuing “factionally slanted…validation exercises” which had “the intention and effect … to remove ballots from individuals who would otherwise have voted for Jeremy Corbyn.” This kind of behaviour has to be atoned for and consigned to history. 

To move forward, Forde says, “further reform of the party’s disciplinary system is required” (p.92), particularly with regard to “the use of lengthy administrative suspensions, and sanctions on individual members deemed to have supported newly proscribed organisations.” There must be no more “interference with due process and the ‘fixing’ of that process for factional advantage based on the politics of the member accused (or the member initiating the complaint).”

This is my second reason for asking for your vote in the NEC election – so that I can help bring about those reforms, putting the interests of members at the heart of the party.

As an officer of Jewish Voice for Labour I’ve been fighting that fight for the last few years;

• defending freedom of speech and the right to campaign for justice for Palestinians,
• promoting and delivering education to build understanding about racism in general and antisemitism in particular, again something that Forde says is essential (p.111) ,
• fighting for a party that honours the sovereignty of Conference and in which political differences are resolved in a spirit of mutual respect and solidarity.

If elected I commit to open communication with members and to working collaboratively with like-minded NEC reps, in particular from the trade unions.

So, heartfelt thanks to those members who have already voted for me. We have just a few days of campaigning to get out the remaining votes for candidates who will speak up for transformative socialist policies and members’ democracy.

Please also vote for Jess Barnard, Gemma Bolton, Yasmine Dar and Mish Rahman.

Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi is a candidate in the NEC CLP section, membership no. L0089569. Email: Naomi4NEC@jvl.org.uk Twitter:@Naomi4LabNEC.