RMT’s Mick Lynch ‘doesn’t have confidence’ in Keir Starmer, says he has ‘let Peter Mandelson take over’ Labour

One of the UK’s most influential trade union bosses has said he has no confidence in Sir Keir Starmer, as he accused him of allowing a “purge” of left wing Labour party figures.

RMT General Secretary Mick Lynch claimed that Peter Mandelson, a former minister and close ally of Tony Blair, who now chairs the international lobbying firm Global Counsel, has “taken over the Labour Party”.

It comes after a number of Labour MPs raised concerns about the direction of the party under Starmer, and another senior figure in the trade union movement accused Starmer of being “afraid to upset his new wealthy donors”.

‘The left is being purged’

Asked by ITV about comments by former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell, that Keir Starmer had allowed a “right wing faction” to take over and force MPs on the left of the party out, Lynch agreed.

“Well he has, it’s Peter Mandelson isn’t it, that’s taken over the Labour Party?” Lynch said.

Mandelson has long been a controversial figure in the party, and has reportedly been advising Starmer since the Labour leader took the reins of the party in 2020.

Lynch said: “The left is being purged and we need a balance. We’ve got people in the centre, people on the traditional right have got their place, and the people on the left should be able to put their ideas forward.

The RMT boss said that many of the ideas advocated by John McDonnell and the Labour left have “come to fruition”, and that Keir Starmer “needs to be putting some of those ideas forward”.

Lynch went on to say that he doesn’t have confidence in Starmer, but would attempt to influence the party as part of the wider labour movement.

He said: “I don’t have confidence in him no, what I have confidence in is that we’re going to poke him and pressure him to make sure he delivers for working people in this country, rather than delivering the agenda of the Daily Mail or the Telegraph, or being a bland version of the Tory party.”

Lynch is not the only trade union figure who has expressed concerns about Starmer. A senior source in the labour movement told NationalWorld that Starmer is “too afraid to speak out in favour of a transformational politics we desperately need in case he upsets his new wealthy donors”.

Speaking to the BBC recently, McDonnell said Starmer has allowed a “right-wing faction…drunk with power” to “use devices within the party almost on a search and destroy of the left”.

He said: "They seem to be more interested in destroying the presence of the left in the party than getting a Labour government."

A number of aspiring MPs who were excluded from candidate selection lists drawn up by the party’s ruling executive have attributed their exclusion to factional reasons, while several sitting MPs facing selection battles have also alleged that the party has edged them out in favour of Starmer loyalists.

The central party blocked Jamie Driscoll, the incumbent Labour mayor of North of Tyne, from standing for reelection, in a move that was widely criticised by many within the party. Driscoll is perceived as a leftwing figure, but the party said the decision to block his candidacy related to the mayor’s decision to share a platform with filmmaker Ken Loach, who has been accused of making antisemitic comments in the past.

Starmer allies ‘embarked on a witch-hunt’

Neal Lawson, a longtime Labour member, director of campaign group Compass and stalwart of the party’s soft left, is facing an official investigation over Tweets calling for co-operation between progressive parties.

Senior Labour MP Jon Cruddas spoke out in favour of Lawson and criticised Starmer, saying the kind of factionalism being embarked upon “would never have happened under New Labour”.

He told the Observer that “the most rightwing, illiberal faction in the party has been handed control to decide who is and is not a member”.

“They are settling scores and are clearly embarked on a witch-hunt – not just of the Corbynite left but of mainstream democrats within the party such as Neal,” he added.

”This would never have happened under New Labour, who accepted the democratic, plural character of the party and whose first term saw significant constitutional and political change – the Human Rights Act, voting reform, devolution, the Freedom of Information Act – and who worked with the Lib Dems to maximise the anti-Tory vote.”

Writing in the Morning Star last month, Labour MP Jon Trickett expressed his concern that there has been “a reorientation away from working people… towards wealthy donors and the interests of business”.

He said: “A small group is attempting to change the character of the Labour Party. Moving it away from one traditionally rooted in local communities, workplaces and social justice.

“Recent news suggests the party is becoming increasingly reliant on big donors – such as the former Autoglass boss announcing he is giving £5 million in donations and Lord Sainsbury donating £2 million. These are huge contributions to the fighting fund, and no one argues that the party should lack money to fight this appalling Tory government. But history shows us what might happen when the party relies too heavily on wealthy individuals: the cash for honours scandal under Blair comes to mind.”