Category Archives: Neil Kinnock

Neil Kinnock tells Labour MPs ‘tide is shifting’ towards closer ties with Europe

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Former leader rallies pro-EU MPs who German ambassador says now vastly outnumber ERG group of Eurosceptic Tories

Neil Kinnock has delivered a rallying cry to pro-EU Labour MPs, telling them that “fortune favours the brave” when it comes to forging closer ties with Europe.

The “tide is shifting”, the former party leader told a reception of the Labour Movement for Europe (LME), where there was applause when Germany’s ambassador told of his delight that the grouping’s more than 100 MPs now vastly outnumbered the Conservatives’ European Research Group of Eurosceptic MPs.

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‘Bigoted woman’ and fridge-hiding: a history of election gaffes after Sunak’s D-day disaster

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Prime minister is not first party leader to make bad decisions during heat of a general election campaign

When Rishi Sunak missed a key D-day event in favour of an ITV interview, it is unlikely he had considered what a political storm it would prompt.

But the prime minister is far from the first party leader to make ill-advised decisions in the heat of the campaign. In fact, Sunak’s early departure is just one of a long list of political gaffes made during a general election campaign.

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‘A tour de force’: tributes pour in for Margaret McDonagh, linchpin of Tony Blair’s New Labour

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Party’s first female general secretary, who has died aged 61, was essential part of team behind party’s 1997 landslide victory

Margaret McDonagh, Labour’s first female general secretary, has been hailed as a “tour de force” and an essential part of the team that secured the 1997 landslide election victory for the party, after it was announced that she had died at the age of 61.

Baroness McDonagh, who was elevated to the House of Lords in 2004, was, in effect, Peter Mandelson’s deputy during the 1997 election and went on to oversee a second dominant campaign in 2001. She became the party’s general secretary in 1998. She had been diagnosed with brain cancer in 2021.

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No kicks, coughs or slip-ups as party conferences go online

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Attendees of this year’s virtual gatherings may be spared any gaffes, but at what cost?

Utter the phrase “conference season” to a Westminster veteran and don’t be surprised if their initial reaction is a shudder. For regular attendees of the annual party gatherings, which kick off next weekend, they raise the prospect of lengthy policy sermons and curled cheese sandwiches by day, followed by sweaty bars and third-hand gossip by night.

Related: Keir Starmer's conference challenge is to avoid the shadow of past leaders | Zoe Williams

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