Another one bites the dust
 

I read this morning that Malcolm Pritchard has quit the Labour Party. He remains a Councillor but is now an independent.

Which means that Labour have 14 seats, Conservatives 18 and three independents.

I don't know the ins and outs of this issue but it does indicate a deep seated problem in the Labour party if a dyed in the wool Labour supporter would rather stand alone than with the party. I do hope that someone can shed some light on this for us.

Re: Another one bites the dust
 

Maybe it was in protest at Maggie being invited into No.10 by a Labour PM! ;)

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The Observer says he has issues with Graham Jones. I find that hard to believe ;)

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If there was issues and conflict then he has done right to keep them within the party and with those he alegedly has issues with. He has first and foremost put his constituents first as it should be.

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The problem is though that if someone has a problem with leadership leaving the party is not necessarily the solution - in my opinion.

Malcolm's leaving now means that Labour only has 14 councillors compared to the Conservatives 18 - that in turn means that the chance of Labour becoming the leading party is greatly reduced - which in turn means that Labour will be the opposition party for some time to come - this in turn means that more Labour councillors will be disgruntled by the lack of power that they have.

By remaining in the party he could surely have influenced decisions more and if he felt really strongly opposed the current leadership of the party. Graham was elected by a democratic process. If you are in politics, particularly in a democratic system, then you have to accept that sometimes decisions don't always go your own way.

As someone who is on the outer perimeter of the party at the moment, I would love to hear from one of the councillors to explain the situation.

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I think it is morally wrong to leave the party that you were in when you were elected, especially mid-term.

Some people vote for the person, but others do vote for the party they want elected.

It's not just Cllr. Pritchard, two Conservative M.P.'s have crossed to Labour this year.

In my opinion if someone finds they no longer feel happy in the party in which they were elected, they should stand down, and there should be a by-election.

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I agree with you Garinda. If someone gets elected on the Labour ticket then it does seem strange that they can leave the Labour party and remain on the Council.

I know that legally it is the person that is elected to the Council and not technically the party but it will have been the party that paid for all his publicity and election material.

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Then they should be able to make them pay it back.

Nothing to do with party politics, I think it's wrong whenever it happens.

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It works the other way of course, as well. Someone could get elected as an independent and then immediately join a political party and add to their seats.

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They could indeed but when was the last time that it happened?

People may think that they vote for a person but in reality they are voting for the party that person represents.

However I agree with you garinda, if a politician leaves his/her political party s/he should stand for re-election. But they won’t because the pull of the gravy train is too strong.

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I also disagree with MP's etc switching from the parties..but it's happened quite often, the most celebrated of British PM's, Winston Churchill switched parties twice during his career.

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I think people think they are voting for the party but in fact they are voting for the individual.

Government of Birmingham - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

First example I could find of 'independents' joining the Liberal party - although they're not quite independents but I'm absolutely sure it's happened locally.

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I knew I'd find one

Yusuf Sidat in Blackburn was elected to Blackburn council in 2004 as an Independent candidate and he is now a LibDem.

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Although I agree that switching parties mid term is morally corrupt it is however a result of our outdated first past the post system. You do vote for the person and not the party.

This is another a reason I beleive we should change the electoral system to Propertional Representetation, the only problem I have with this is it would prevent individuals with regional concerns being elected, so unless it was done for the constituency (and again then it would allow people to flit across the floor of the house) it wouldn't be truly democratic. So I've probably argued myself into maintaining the status quo.

With respects to Gayle request for further information, I feel, if an individual feels strongly enough to revoke the party whip he or she must explain their actions to the party. It may be a perfectly understandable reason, however without this the individual members will always question their actions.

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He probably has explained his reasons to the party, just not to the general public.

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Malcolms reasons were nothing to do with the Party and nothing to do with myself. The remaining 13 Councillors were unanimous in the end in their support for the Group as a whole, freedom and fairness were being attacked and a line had to be drawn. We wish Malcolm all the best as a councillor in Milnshaw.

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Dear Accyweb,

Excuse my ignorance, but I am still puzzled as to the difference in 'party politics' which affect any decisions as to dustbins, name changes, flower towers, handles on public toilets, etc. Always been an enigma to me.

Can someone please explain what would be the difference for instance in a Labour/Consertive/Independent/Liberal/Screaming Accrington Stanley Fans Party in decisions of this nature ?

From:
Confused.:confused: ..No, very confused..:confused::confused:
Clayton-le-Moors.

Re: Another one bites the dust
 

So there's a bit more about his resignation in today's paper but it more or less says the same thing.

Still no real word on the subject on here though.

Just a question that perhaps someone more closely connected with politics can answer on a slightly unrelated subject - has an independent Councillor ever been made Mayor?

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The Observer reported that his reasons were everything to do with you and the party.:p

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Coun Mason accused Coun Britcliffe of 'double standards', saying: "When Labour councillors have left to stand independently, he says it's marvellous, but when it's one of their own, it's 'disgusting'.


http://www.blackburncitizen.co.uk/di...quit_group.php

Re: Another one bites the dust
 

Can't see your problem Rindi, It is and it is, simple:D

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Did I say I had a problem?

Just thought this local interest story might be of some err....interest.:)

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I certainly don't agree with people getting elected to serve on the council as a member of a political party and then, once they're in, deciding to leave the party and become independent.

I think that if they leave the party they should have to step down and stand again as an independent.

What do you think?

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I agree, most of their votes will have been as a member of the Party. Also often the party will have helped them with time and experience to get that person their seat

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Not just time and experience - money! When I stood for Council (sorry to keep going back to this but it's my only point of reference), the local Labour party funded my campaign. I don't think I would have had the gall to turn round and reject the party that got me in.

I agree that people should stand down if they've been elected on a party ticket then choose to go independent.

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Honourable yes, but would it be politically correct?

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I think the worst case I've heard with regards to this type of action was where the Lib/dems retained control of Liverpool this May, by one vote, due to a defection

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Why would you admit to being as member of a party that is ripping the back out of every member of the public, bet u daren't post your address !

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Who was that post for?

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It looks like we have got a newbie who is jumping in with both feet
eg - He told Jen that she shouldn't still be in bed at 7.30am :rolleyes:

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I wonder what he would think of me?

The only time that I get up before 9:00am is if I have an appointment somewhere. Otherwise it can be at any time up to noon. It all depends on when my body says that I have slept for long enough and that would depend on the previous day’s activities.

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Im lucky if i see mornings!!!!