During last year’s Labour leadership campaign, the candidates involved agreed to carry out ‘positive campaigning’ – something which in reality meant not be overtly negative about other candidates. This turned out to be an enormous hindrance to the left and its candidate, Rebecca Long-Bailey, precisely because the left is a force aiming to transform the party and the society in which it exists, so the status quo must be criticised. To take part in these liberal processions of being kind to our opponents, proven to be of great cost to our movement, will never help the left.

Have Faith in our Politics 

Being ‘civil’ to those who don’t want to transform society in favour of the many will not advance our goals. To shy away from argument in order to play well in the media to win middle-class voters and the commentariat (who have no plans on voting for us ever) is a nonsense. Throughout the entire Corbyn period we saw Blairites and liberals attacking the left as “hard left bullies” and “union thugs” – bollocks. Believe it or not, young, working-class people are indeed angry about the lack of chances neoliberalism has dealt them and are passionate about change. As such, we should not shy away from attacking the architects of the corrupt and ruinous system in which we live. This refusal to accept “how things are now” is fundamental to any force for change in society and history teaches us this, stretching all the way back to the Diggers in 1649. They did not hide their passion and nor should we.

Nobody’s Fooled

To take on a mantle of ‘sensibility’ serves only to dilute our politics and alienate working-class people who are fed up with politics as usual and manufactured PoliticiansTM. It is only with honesty that we, as a movement, can win back the trust of so many who left us. If we really never want a repeat of PFI, illegal wars, and capitulation to neoliberalism, then we cannot engage in the politics of niceness and being friendly to those who want us marginalised and powerless.

Working people are not so blind as to be fooled by us speaking of radicalism and change one day and then to be pally with war criminals the next. Our vision for the future mustn’t be allowed to be clouded by the out-dated ideals to which Westminster clings; ‘gentlemen’s agreements’ and civility. A system which values ‘parliamentary language’ as a higher ideal than the feeding of starving children is not one to which socialists should subscribe.

There is nothing civil about voting for state murder, and nothing socialist about being a facilitator of the economic system that is so destroying the lives of ordinary people. The PLP must remember its loyalty to the party membership, and not be deluded into thinking the reverse. It is only by adhering to this that the party in general, and its representatives in particular, can be viewed as trustworthy once again.

If it wants to win again, Labour must offer a genuine alternative to what the Conservatives offer and reject the centrist false niceties of modern politics. 

Aaron Watling is co-chair of Manchester Labour Students