Cardiff West MP ‘worked with Mandelson to purge Labour of left-wing activists’
Martin Shipton
Cardiff West Labour MP Alex Barros-Curtis worked closely with the disgraced former Cabinet Minister and Ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson in seeking to remove left-wing activists from the party, it has been alleged.
A Labour insider told Nation.Cymru: “In the run-up to the 2024 general election, widespread allegations emerged regarding a coordinated effort to block left-wing incumbents and aspirants, while ‘parachuting’ Starmer loyalists and party insiders into safe seats.
“While the NEC (National Executive Committee) formally managed these processes, Lord Peter Mandelson is frequently cited by party insiders and media commentators as a key informal influence – a ‘fixer’ operating behind the scenes to reshape the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) in Starmer’s image.
“Key mechanisms included:
* ‘The Starchamber’. Selection panels were accused of using aggressive due diligence to block candidates on the left for minor historical social media infractions, clearing the path for preferred candidates.
* Late Selections. By delaying selections until the election was called, the NEC could impose shortlists or single candidates directly, bypassing local member votes.
Specific individuals and constituencies that were targeted for deselection or preferment included:
* Diane Abbott (Hackney North and Stoke Newington): The most high-profile case. After a long suspension, she was eventually monitored heavily. Briefings suggested she would be barred from standing, allegedly to replace her with a loyalist. After a significant public backlash and support from Angela Rayner, she was allowed to stand, but the attempt to remove her was widely seen as part of this broader ‘purge’.
* Luke Akehurst (North Durham). A member of the NEC and a self-described ‘Zionist sh*tlord’ (a prominent factional figure on the right of the party). He was ‘parachuted’ into the safe seat of North Durham at the last minute. As an NEC member, he was effectively one of the architects of the selection process that he then benefited from.
* Alex Barros-Curtis (Cardiff West). Keir Starmer’s Executive Director of Legal Affairs. He was parachuted into Kevin Brennan’s seat in Cardiff West. Local members in Cardiff were reportedly frustrated by the imposition of a London-based party official with no prior connection to the constituency.
* Torsten Bell (Swansea West): Chief Executive of the Resolution Foundation and a former Ed Miliband aide. He was selected for Geraint Davies’ former seat. Like Barros-Curtis, this was seen as a ‘soft landing’ for a high-profile Westminster figure, bypassing local Welsh talent.
“The core concern is that figures like Mandelson (informally) and Akehurst (formally) utilised the urgency of the snap election to bypass local democracy, systematically removing threats from the left (Abbott) and installing key allies (Barros-Curtis, Bell, Akehurst) into safe seats to future-proof the PLP against the left.
“Then there is Matthew Faulding, someone close to Barros-Curtis, Matthew Doyle, Morgan McSweeney and Mandleson. Matthew Faulding served as the Secretary to the PLP and was previously the Selections Manager for the Labour Party. He was widely known as the ‘fixer’ for the Labour right during the 2024 election cycle. He worked directly under Campaign Director Morgan McSweeney to manage candidate selections, often being the official who delivered the bad news to blocked left-wing candidates. There is strong evidence of a functional working relationship, with Mandelson acting as an informal senior advisor to the team Faulding executed orders for.
* The “Secret Spreadsheet”: Reports (including from iNews and The Times) revealed that Peter Mandelson was ‘directly involved’ in helping Morgan McSweeney vet parliamentary candidates. He was reportedly given a ‘secret spreadsheet’ to review, marking down candidates he disapproved of.
* The Execution: While Mandelson provided the high-level ‘steer’ and political cover, Matthew Faulding was the operational figure who managed the panels and shortlists to ensure these preferred outcomes were met.
‘Pincer movement’
The insider added: “There is extensive suggestion that Barros-Curtis and Faulding worked as a ‘pincer movement’ to control the party, though they operated in different lanes. Alex Barros-Curtis’s role was to use the rulebook, compliance checks, and ‘due diligence’ dossiers to block unwanted candidates on technical grounds (eg liking a tweet from 2019). “Once Barros-Curtis’s legal team had flagged or suspended a candidate, Matthew Faulding would manage the political process of installing the replacement (the ‘parachute’ candidate).
“They appear together in numerous Politico blogs as the key operators running the PLP. They were two of the most senior figures responsible for ‘Starmerising’ the party. They were professional allies with a shared objective: removing the Left. Barros-Curtis is often viewed as the ‘heir’ to the Mandelsonian style of party management—ruthless, legalistic, and focused on total control.
“Mandelson has been a key mentor to Starmer’s operation since 2020. Barros-Curtis was Starmer’s longest-serving aide (running his leadership campaign compliance). It is widely understood in Westminster that Barros-Curtis executed the strategy that Mandelson advocated for.”
We invited Mr Barros-Curtis to respond, but he did not do so.
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When you fight so hard against the left that you don’t recognise the monster you’ve become
Waw! Martin Shipton has covered this Labour whitchcraft so well, it frightening to see how manipulative the right wing of the Labour Party have been! Diolch Martin!
Let’s not forget what the Labour left did. They gave us Brexit, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. Because when those seeking power aren’t prepared to compromise to achieve power they gift power to those that are.
Hahahahaha Starmer was Brexit Shadow Secretary. He pushed for the second referendum.
Wouldn’t have needed a second if Corbyn had done his job right in 2016.
Why are you just blaming Corbyn? Cameron was campaigning for Remain as well. You know the bloke whose father and himself stood to loose a lot of money if we remained part of the EU. When its crack down in dodgy off shore investments kicked in. Or any of the current right wing cabinet who actively campaigned against Corbyn in 2 general elections. Or the false accusations of antisemitism raised against left wing Jewish party members by the Starmer regime? I could go on but you seem to support a wing of the Labour party that allowed Madleson to get… Read more »
Because Corbyn was the Leader of the Opposition. It was his job to win those two elections and that referendum.
So you forget how the entire right of the Labour Party actively sabotaged those 2 general elections.
The elections were “sabotaged” by the right taking the gloves off. You might be impressed by the half million who joined the Corbyn personality cult but there are 47.5m voters who didn’t.
If you aren’t prepared to do what’s necessary to win get out of the way of those that do want to keep the hard right out of government.
Ah yes, the Labour left is to blame for everything the Labour right does. Of course.
The Labour left is responsible for what happened on their watch under Corbyn. Two elections and a referendum lost.
Does Corbyn live rent free in that empty head of yours?
I get that you love Jezza but ask yourself this. If the lives and livelihoods of everyone in your village depended on winning a bare knuckle fight would Mr Corbyn be your pick or would you choose the biggest quickest meanest person you knew then, once the fight has been won, change the system so these fights were no longer needed.
And with that comment it proves that he does live rent free there.
This isn’t about the past now because in 2024 the fight was won by brutes on your own side. What’s baffling however is you seem intent on bringing forward the next bare knuckle fight with a “decent” volunteer that’s guaranteed to lose rather than using this hiatus to change the system so these fights don’t need to happen.
Why is that? Are you a secret Tory?
And yet you still don’t condemn Mandleson. Thats says all we need to know about you
Labour is now identical the Tory party.
Reject them both.
Vote Plaid, reject Reform
So we can have far right Reform, Right Wing Labour and ANOTHER right wing Labour .Tories in their droves are leaving Conservatives to become Reform ,Conservatives by another name! Does anyone else see the problem and lack of values here?
The problem is the 48m mainly conservative voters.
They missed our guy in Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr. Thankfully Steve Witherden was elected and is doing a great job.
If you look at the new intake, it’s not left wing backbenchers per se – as there are many from the left side of the party in the new intake. The only purge or candidate blocking was on Corbyn loyalists. But those lot had their chance and look what it created
It’s like the person who leaves the front door open but blames everyone else when the dogs escape.
I can’t see the issue with torsten bell and how he’s associated with madelson. One of the most respected leaders of resolute foundation, helping identify routes out of poverty. Ideal for a governmental role. And yes, candidates – and some of our most successful politicians – have been parachutes into safe seats