Tony Blair’s ex spin doctor Alastair Campbell expelled for voting Lib Dem

Senior Labour figures admit voting LibDem in the EU poll as Tony Blair’s former press secretary is expelled.

Alastair Campbell speaks to the media outside his home in north London after being expelled from the Labour Party Picture: AP.

Alastair Campbell, former press secretary of Tony Blair has been expelled from Britain’s Labour Party after admitting he voted for the Liberal Democrats in the European elections.

Mr Campbell, a Remainer and iconic party figure said he voted Lib Dem “to try to persuade Labour to do the right thing” and call for a second referendum, adding he was “sad and disappointed” by his expulsion.

“I have been advised by lawyers with expertise in this field I have grounds for appeal against expulsion and shall do so; I am and always will be Labour,” he said in a statement.

Among many many messages of support have been some from Corbyn’s office, shadow cabinet, MPs, union leaders and party staff including one telling me there is a mountain of emails from members who responded to mobilisation email by saying no to campaigning and not voting Labour.

— Alastair PEOPLE’S VOTE Campbell (@campbellclaret) May 28, 2019

He spoke a string of other senior Labour figures came forward to say they also voted for other parties in the EU poll, helping take the party to its worst electoral result in a century.

Among these rebels are Anji Hunter, Tony Blair’s former “gatekeeper and former Home Secretary Charles Clarke. Mr Clarke called for Mr Campbell’s reinstatment, calling it a “disgrace and only compounds Labour’s political difficulties.”

He added in a statement: “I also voted Liberal Democrat. This was a one-off decision because of the hopeless incoherence of Labour’s position, particularly that of Jeremy Corbyn.”

Daring Mr Corbyn to sack all those who, like her had voted for other parties Fiona McTaggart, former Home Office Minister, said it was “time for all of us to declare; I am Spartacus.”

“I’ll always be Labour” says @campbellclaret pic.twitter.com/QQ4H30GSQh

— Rupert Myers (@RupertMyers) May 28, 2019

Protesting his expulsion, Mr Campbell said there had been “plenty of precedent of members voting for other parties/causes” who were still in the party, including current leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Mr Campbell said the hardline approach towards him also contrasted with the treatment of past persistent Labour rebels, including Mr Corbyn, under Mr Blair.

Labour’s women and equalities secretary Dawn Butler defended the expulsion, saying members who voted for different parties were “automatically excluded”.

“It’s just part of the rule book. Everyone knows that,” she said.

Mr Campbell served as Mr Blair’s chief press secretary and was heavily involved in drawing up Britain’s Iraq War policy. His famous irascibility became the inspiration for the character of Malcolm Tucker, the foul mouthed spin-doctor-in-chief in the political parody The Thick of It.

He emerged back into the political arena following Britain’s 2016 decision to leave the EU, becoming a leading figure in the campaign to force another referendum.

Labour leader Mr Corbyn, a veteran eurosceptic, has been under pressure from members and MPs to call for another vote, but has so far resisted.

His party’s ambiguous approach to Brexit saw them get hammered at the ballot box during the EU elections, losing half of their 20 seats and finishing in third place behind the stridently anti-Brexit Lib Dems and the newly-formed Brexit Party.