Friday 11 September 2015

Labour to elect 2016 London mayoral candidate

Labour will elect its candidate to be the next mayor of London later, 24 hours before choosing a new leader and deputy leader.
Ex-minister Tessa Jowell is seen as the front runner in the contest.
She is up against former ministers Sadiq Khan, David Lammy and Gareth Thomas, veteran Labour MP Diane Abbott and transport expert Christian Wolmar.
The winner will represent Labour in next May's election. The Conservatives have yet to choose their candidate.
Friday's election begins a frantic 24 hours for Labour, with the future direction of the opposition uncertain ahead of the result on Saturday of the leadership contest.
Baroness Tessa Jowell
Tessa Jowell is facing five other candidates in the contest
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There have been warnings that a victory for left-wing MP Jeremy Corbyn could throw the party into turmoil, with many existing shadow cabinet members potentially refusing to serve under him.
Speaking at his final rally on Thursday, Mr Corbyn - who has gone from rank outsider to front runner during the three-month contest - promised to "change politics" if he triumphed.

Key test

Unite union boss Len McCluskey said the MP - who is up against Yvette Cooper, Andy Burnham and Liz Kendall - had "already won" in his eyes, as he had "lit up" the Labour movement.
The 2016 London mayoral election will be among the first key electoral tests for the new Labour leader.
The party is seeking to wrest back control of City Hall from the Conservatives after eight years under Boris Johnson.
Friday's result is expected to be announced at about 12:30 BST. Key issues in the campaign have included housing, pay differentials in the capital and the expansion of Heathrow airport.
Baroness Jowell, who held a range of Cabinet roles under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown and is seen as being on the right of the party, has been regarded as the favourite since entering the contest earlier this year.

Life peer

The former health and culture secretary was a key part of the team that brought the 2012 Olympics to London and served as shadow Olympics minister and shadow minister for London after Labour lost power in 2010.
She stood down as MP for Dulwich and West Norwood in May and was made a life peer last month.
Her principal opponent is seen as being former shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan, the MP for Tooting, who was a key ally of the former Labour leader Ed Miliband.
It has been reported that, if he does not win, Mr Khan could be asked to rejoin the shadow cabinet by whoever wins Saturday's leadership election.
Mr Lammy, the MP for Tottenham, and Mr Thomas, the MP for Harrow West, both held ministerial jobs under Gordon Brown while Diane Abbott, the MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington, was the UK's first black female MP when she was first elected to Parliament and ran for the leadership in 2010.
All of Labour's members, affiliated supporters and registered supporters in London were entitled to take part in the election, to be decided under the alternative vote system.