A number of trade union leaders have branded Jamie Driscoll’s exclusion from the North East mayoral selection contest a “monumental own goal” for the Labour Party.
In a letter to Sir Keir Starmer and Labour's National Executive Committee on Thursday morning, a number of top union officials demanded a U-turn in the party’s stance on the sitting North of Tyne mayor. Mr Driscoll has been the subject of a major row that has engulfed Labour for the past two weeks, since he was left off a longlist of candidates seeking the party’s selection for the North East mayoral election next year.
While the decision has been linked to an appearance he made on stage with filmmaker Ken Loach, who was expelled from the party in 2021, critics have accused Labour’s leadership of deliberately blocking left-wing candidates.
