Ex-Labour minister Kim Howells blasts 'Corbyn clique' over ‘disastrous’ Brecon by-election result
3 min read
Ex-Labour minister Kim Howells has taken aim at Jeremy Corbyn over the party's "disastrous" result in the Brecon and Radnorshire by-election.
The former Welsh MP said Labour's fourth place finish was “as bad a result as you could possibly imagine” as he accused the party's leadership of "incompetence and dithering".
The by-election, triggered by a recall petition against Tory MP Chris Davies following a conviction for expenses fraud, was won by Liberal Democrat Jane Dodds.
But a poor performance from Labour saw the party lose almost 13% of their vote share to come in fourth behind the Brexit Party.
Mr Howells, who held several government jobs under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, said the result was “disastrous” for the party.
Speaking to the BBC’s World At One programme, he said: “It is a disastrous result for Labour. Don’t forget that in the south of this constituency are former mining communities, and they voted solidly Labour in the past.
“Now Labour can barely scrape 1,500 votes, so it is as bad a result as it is possible to imagine.”
The ex-Pontypridd MP, who previously said it was “very doubtful” whether he would vote for the party under Jeremy Corbyn, urged the leadership to "get real" and move away from "coming up with slogans and demonstrating in the streets".
“I can’t remember a government that has been in as much trouble as this, and yet Labour trails the Conservatives,” he added.
“It is absolutely extraordinary, and it is a testament to just what an awful state the Labour party is in under Corbyn’s leadership.
“I mean I would love to see a change at the top but I fear that there won’t be because Corbyn’s clique has now captured the party machine,” he added. “It controls many aspects of it and the way it is administered and the direction it takes.”
Elsewhere, Welsh Labour MP Chris Bryant said the party’s "constructive ambiguity" on Brexit had damaged its chances in the constituency.
“Some of us have been saying for quite some time that one of the problems about trying to be all things to men and women is that nobody ends up liking what you’re offering”, he told the BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire programme.
“I think our constructive ambiguity hasn’t really helped us over the last two years. We have tried to say to Brexit voters ‘we are in favour of Brexit’ but to remain voters ‘we are in favour of remain’ and in the end you’re not."
The MP for the Rhondda added: “I am fundamentally a Remainer and I believe it is in the interests of Wales, and our country, that we should at the very least try and achieve as soft a Brexit as possible so that we can continue trading with Europe.”
The Labour Party have been approached for comment.
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