Labour conference: Frontbencher Andy McDonald quits in protest at Sir Keir Starmer

Shadow cabinet member Andy McDonald has quit Labour's front bench with a scathing attack on Sir Keir Starmer.

In his resignation letter - published in the middle of Labour's party conference in Brighton - the MP said his party leader had made Labour "more divided than ever".

Mr McDonald also accused him of not honouring his pledges to members.

Sir Keir thanked him for his service but said his own focus was on "winning the next general election".

Mr McDonald previously served as shadow transport secretary on Jeremy Corbyn's frontbench - but he became one of the few members to survive the handover of power to Sir Keir, and stayed in the top team as shadow secretary for employment rights and protections.

Andy McDonald claimed the leadership of Sir Keir Starmer had made Labour "more divided than ever".

In recent months, his focus had been on creating Labour's new programme of employment rights, which was unveiled at the conference on Saturday by deputy leader Angela Rayner.

'Closing the door'

But earlier this week, former shadow chancellor John McDonnell said the work had been overshadowed by Sir Keir's controversial party rule changes.

Mr McDonald said he had accepted the job "because I wanted to fight for the working people of this country", but, he wrote: "It has become clear to me that I cannot do this as a member of the shadow cabinet."

Sources close to Sir Keir told the BBC they were not unhappy at the departure, insisting this week was "all about change and closing the door on the Corbyn era".

Labour MP Barry Gardiner - who served alongside Mr McDonald in Mr Corbyn's shadow cabinet - told the BBC he was "extremely shocked" to hear of the resignation, saying he had been "a very powerful voice for workers in the country".

But the founder of left-wing Labour activist group Momentum, Jon Lansman, joined Mr McDonald's criticism of Sir Keir, telling BBC News: "He promised to unite the party and actually, unfortunately, he's driving wedges within the party."

Shadow work and pensions secretary Jonathan Reynolds said Mr McDonald "is a friend of mine" and he was "sad to see him go".

But he disagreed with the remarks about division in the party, adding: "We have seen this conference, frankly, Labour facing towards the general election in a way that is not just ambitious in terms of the pledges… but we have also tried to do that in a gain that gains credibility that is required to win power".

As news of the resignation broke in the conference hall, one delegate shouted, "Andy McDonald, solidarity!" to loud cheers from some parts of the crowd.

This is a zinger of a resignation letter, in its content and its timing.

Yes, a man you may not have heard of resigns from a job you probably didn't know he had.

But listen to what Andy McDonald, a man at Labour's top table until today, says about Labour's candidate for prime minister and the movement he leads.

He claims Labour is "more divided than ever" and Sir Keir has broken the promises he made to get elected as party leader, suggesting directly that he can't be trusted.

Political critiques within a political party are often articulated obliquely, with euphemism and understatement.

There is none of this here and it appears slap bang in the middle of the one week of the year where so many of Labour's faithful are in the same postcode.

It will demand an immediate response from Sir Keir Starmer.

In Mr McDonald's letter, the MP claimed his position was "untenable" after the leader's office instructed him go to a meeting at Labour's party conference and "argue against a national minimum wage of £15 an hour and against statutory sick pay at the living wage".

He said it was "something I could not do", adding: "After many months of a pandemic when we made commitments to stand by key workers, I cannot now look those same workers in the eye and tell them they are not worth a wage that is enough to live on, or that they don't deserve security when they are ill.

Mr McDonald said it was a "bitter blow" that Labour had not followed the country in its "renewed awareness of how important the work done by millions of low-paid workers truly is".

He added: "I joined your frontbench team on the basis of the pledges that you made in the leadership campaign to bring about unity within the party and maintain our commitment to socialist policies.

"After 18 months of your leadership, our movement is more divided than ever and the pledges that you made to the membership."

Responding to the letter, Sir Keir released a statement which said: "I want to thank Andy for his service in the shadow cabinet.

"Labour's comprehensive New Deal for Working People shows the scale of our ambition and where our priorities lie.

"My focus and that of the whole party is on winning the next general election so we can deliver for working people who need a Labour government."

Source: BBC | Picture: Getty Images

What happened during the fuel crisis of 2000 and why the shortages are very different this time

Memories of the dark days of the September 2000 fuel shortage is contributing to panic buying at the pumps. But today’s escalating fuel problems are happening for very different reasons.

It was petrol, not a pandemic, which dominated the headlines more than two decades ago when fuel price protests almost brought the country to a grinding halt.

With motorists already queuing to fill up their vehicles after some of the largest fuel operators said they would have to ration supplies over a HGV driver shortage, there are echoes of the September 2000 fuel crisis, which caused widespread disruption.

But although they seem similar, there are stark differences as the current crisis gripping the nation is down to a lack of HGV drivers getting petrol and diesel to stations, rather than a lack of fuel itself.

However, as places such as BP and Tesco have admitted being forced to close some pumps and stations due to the nationwide shortage of HGV drivers, for some drivers rushing to panic buy fuel, it is reminiscent of the Autumn 2000 shortage.

The 2000 fuel protests began in early September when the price of crude oil rose to £23 a barrel.

With campaigners warning that petrol could soon cost £4 a gallon and with Britain’s prices already being the highest in Europe, feelings of anger were unleashed and protests started after Downing Street ruled out a cut in fuel duties despite growing threats.

Truckers and farmers blockaded refineries and petrol stations ran dry and prices soared. The chaos culminated in panic buying, food shortages and 70 schools being closed around the country.

BP Petrol Station during the fuel crisis, displaying a sign stating ‘Sorry No Fuel’. (Photo by Photoshot/Getty Images)

The crisis caught everyone off guard and protests escalated over a one week period from 8 to 14 September 2000 leaving some people unable to commute to work, motorways were blocked by lorry “go slows” and fears grew that the NHS would be hit and the blood transfusion service experienced difficulties.

Panic buying spread to supermarkets with some stores rationing bread and milk while Royal Mail slashed its services, council rubbish collections came under threat and the Army was put on standby.

On 14 September 2000, the blockade at Shell’s Stanlow oil refinery near Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, where demonstrations began was lifted and protests at other sites followed suit and it all ended as suddenly as it began.

Fears of drivers panic-buying petrol might force ministers to fix the HGV lorry driver crisis

While increased home working in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic means the impact of a fresh fuel crisis is unlikely to affect as many commuters, it is a deeper problem with no quick-fix solution.

Transport secretary Grant Shapps has said he won’t rule out anything to resolve the issue – including deploying the army to drive petrol tankers.

Meanwhile, for those queuing at the pumps with the memory of the September 2000 crisis vivid in their minds, the government’s appeal for calm is not registering.

Liz Truss will replace Raab as the new foreign secretary.

Dominic Raab moved as Gavin Williamson sacked in Boris Johnson Cabinet reshuffle

Picture Credit: Downing Street

Gavin Williamson has been sacked as education secretary as Boris Johnson carried out a Cabinet reshuffle that has also brought about the exit of Robert Buckland, Robert Jenrick and Amanda Milling.

As movements continue within Mr Johnson's top team, Dominic Raab has also been removed from his role as foreign secretary and been replaced by Liz Truss, who had been secretary for international trade.

Mr Raab, now deputy prime minister, has instead been appointed as lord chancellor and justice secretary, taking over from Mr Buckland, while Priti Patel has remained home secretary despite speculation to the contrary.

Leaving the government altogether is Mr Williamson, who said it “has been a privilege to serve as education secretary” and he looks “forward to continuing to support the prime minister and the government.”

He has come in for widespread criticism over his handling of his departmental responsibilities during the coronavirus pandemic.

He was particularly criticised over the summer exams in 2020 when the government was forced into a U-turn following outrage at a marking algorithm that downgraded 40% of predicted A-Level grades by exams regulator Ofqual.

Mr Williamson's announcement was quickly followed by Mr Jenrick and Mr Buckland, who have both been dropped as secretary for housing and for justice respectively.

All three have left government, No 10 has confirmed, and returned to the backbenches.

Source: ITV