Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Call to Arms in Mile End (2008)

Today I received an email from my CLP secretary (a good UNISON member) about a future by-election in the Mile End East ward of Tower Hamlets, East London.

The Labour Councillor, Rupert Bawden had resigned for health reasons. So there will be a by-election in early November. The local ward will pick a candidate on Sunday.

Tonight at the West Ham EC we discussed what help we can offer our sister borough in “fighting the good fight”.

If you can help out call 020 7729 6682.

This should be a safe-ish Labour seat but with the ‘orrible George Galloway sniffing about, no-one should take anything for granted. A Respect Councillor was elected last time due to community links. This Councillor famously jumped ship from Respect to the Conservatives early this year. In the process ripping up his membership card of the SWP! The other two ward members elected were Labour.

I checked out the local newspaper ,The East End Advertiser and found out they were running by coincidence a feature (see here) on the “SIEGE OF SIDNEY ST—AMAZING STREET BATTLE IN MILE END”.

Now I think that the Mile End East campaign will not end up with a gun fight between foreign anarchists and the Irish Guards - see photo. (would the present day Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, borrow a rifle from one of the Guardsman to take pot shots at the SWP – whoops, I mean anarchists, like Churchill did in 1911? Who in return had a bullet go through his top hat – Churchill is highlighted in photo). Anyway the ward boundaries are nowadays different.

The 2008 Mile End East campaign will still be tough, as all Tower Hamlets elections are (and should be so)

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Churchill
Never forget or forgive Tonypandy

Robert said...

The photo, they are looking for one bloke the trouble maker, he is in the photo laughing above Churchill and the Police, good one.

John Gray said...

I did wonder

Anonymous said...

Churchill (who in many ways I admire)was of course much criticised for his gross overreaction to the siege. I rather hope such an event would be handled differently today...
Adrian

Robert said...

What you mean something like the miners strike.