by Paul Goodman
The Justice Secretary wasn't the only politician on Marr earlier today. And he wasn't the only one called Ken, either. Livingstone (as some of us are more used to calling him) was also wheeled on, to review the papers in his case.
Labour's London Mayoral candidate was presumably recovering from the "ProLondon Conference", at which his name tops the list of speakers. This Spartist event seems to have be laid on largely for the benefit of his campaign. ("Tory Mayor Boris Johnson is putting the interest of the wealthiest first…there is an alternative to this ideological attack", etc.) [See page 94].
At any rate, it was greatly enlivened by Len McCluskey, General Secretary of Unite. McLuskey was one of Ed Miliband's biggest backers and has given Livingstone £20,000 so far. I gather that McLuskey told the masses –
"I want to send a message to the Metropolitan Police. Keep your sleazy hands off our kids. They want to demonstrate on our streets – it's our streets".
Maybe McLuskey would like to join in himself next time – perhaps by hurling a fire extinguisher from the top of Millbank Tower or by attacking a passing car carrying a member of the Royal Family.
Also cheering up those present was Jenny Jones, the likely Green Mayoral candidate, who said –
"Under the Tories, the police get away with behaving like right-wing bastards."
Unlike McLuskey, Jenny Jones is actually a member of the Metropolitan Police Authority board. According to the MPAs own website, the MPA "scrutinises and supports [my italics] the work of the Metropolitan Police Service".
Livingstone will of course be disassociating himself from these remarks.
(Not.)