Labour Party has ‘lost its moral compass’ with defection of ‘hard-right’ MP – Liz Saville Roberts
Liz Saville Roberts says the Labour Party has ‘lost its moral compass’ under Keir Starmer’s leadership, following the defection of Conservative MP Natalie Elphicke yesterday.
Plaid Cymru’s Westminster leader, has today ( 9 May) described Ms Elphicke as a “hard-right, anti-trade union, anti-immigrant” MP and said her switch to Labour was a “slap in the face to progressive voters”.
Natalie Elphicke succeeded her husband, Charlie Elphicke as Member of Parliament for Dover and Deal in 2019, whom she continued to defend after he was charged with three counts of sexual assault.
In 2020, she mocked Marcus Rashford for campaigning for free school meals and was given a one-day suspension from Parliament for attempting to influence judges in her husband’s sentencing appeal after his conviction.
She also voted to make abortion a criminal offence in Northern Ireland and has previously criticised “militant” trade unions.
Just last year, she warned voters not to trust Labour on immigration as “they really want open borders”, referring to her now party leader as “Sir Softie”.
Labour chair Anneliese Dodds said this morning that the Dover MP was a “good, natural fit” for her party.
Slap in the face
Ms Saville Roberts said: “Keir Starmer’s embrace of a hard-right, anti-trade union, anti-immigrant MP is a slap in the face to progressive voters. To make matters worse, gone are the days of ‘clear red water’ distinguishing Welsh Labour with the wider UK party – Vaughan Gething has made clear that his main priority is making Starmer Prime Minister, not prioritising Wales’ interests.
“Natalie Elphicke’s record on abortion belongs to the fringes of the Conservative Party, if not Reform UK, while her attempts to discredit victims of sexual assault should shame her new party.
“Her attacks on those who support free school meals undermines the work achieved in Wales. it should concern us all that she can now find a haven in Keir Starmer’s Reform-ed Labour Party.
“It is evident now that the priority for Labour under Starmer’s rule is winning at any cost, even when the cost means trashing values we hold dear in Wales. It is a party that has truly lost its moral compass. Plaid Cymru’s doors are open to all those who believe in a fairer, greener, progressive Wales.”
Election promises
Speaking to reporters in Sir Keir’s parliamentary office after her defection, Ms Elphicke said: “In 2019, the Conservatives stood on a manifesto that was very much centre ground, but under Rishi Sunak they’ve abandoned the centre ground and broken many election promises.
“Meanwhile, under Keir Starmer, Labour have changed. And I think that change is going to bring a much better future for our country, and that’s why I was so keen to join the Labour Party and play my part in bringing that important future forward.”
Sir Keir Starmer said:“I’m delighted to welcome Natalie Elphicke to the Labour Party. She’s got a strong track record on issues such as housing, she’s on the frontline when it comes to the crisis of small boats.
“And the reason that she’s given for joining the Labour Party is very, very important because I think she speaks for very many Tory voters in saying that the Tory party has changed, it’s left the centre ground.
“But equally the Labour Party has changed and we are pretty clearly the party of the national interest, of country first, party second.
“And I look forward to working with her on the mission to deliver the real change that this country desperately needs.”
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Labour lost its moral compass when Corbyn was hounded out
Yep, imagine Banning him over virtually nothing while Their current leader was willing to starve children. Corbyn is directly opposite of that man!
You will find more decency in a single strand of Jeremy Corbyn’s hair than the entire body of Mr keir starmer!
With Jeremy and Diane Abbott out of the plp when starmer is accepting tory scum to join and with anneliese dodds saying that the elphicke woman was a “good, natural fit” for the labour party tells every decent person not to vote labour!
I expect the usual suspect Tory press has been on overtime last night to belittle this. No, disagree. KS just said to all the voters not sure, come and give labour a go. No matter how far right you are. She is not standing at the next election so Labour will be fighting to retain that seat rather than trying to win it. Funny how a party will accept votes no matter the previous of the voter (reality is no way of knowing unless they are open about it). But not accept a U turn MP. Next GE is a… Read more »
That sounds like the sort of thing a presenter of GBNews would say if GBNews were a cheerleader for the Labour Party or to be more accurate Starmerlabour.
In Cymru the GE is, as always a one horse race.
Starmerlabour or to be more accurate Continuity Tory.
Nah, it isn’t. FPTP means the UK, (Wales is part of it whether you like it or not), the controlling power is usually one or the other. In my area, Plaid will not get much, so I vote labour to lose the Tory MP that is useless. Not going to shoot myself in the foot and protest vote then have the Cons get back in. That wont be on me if it happens. You know, wake up the next day after the count and the cons are back in because protest vote. If Plaid were in with a chance where… Read more »
Your compromise choice has locked you into the choice you are making. It will never change until you are prepared to change. When enough people like you do so, we’ll get Plaid and Green MP’s elected. Yes that might land you with one term of Tory, but if you perpetually make it a two horse race, they’ll get in again eventually anyway. However, over the course of a decade, constituencies can be swung over as the SNP proved. In which case, play the long game and work towards getting a majority for progressive constitutional change. Can’t keep trying the same… Read more »
Numbers don’t stack up at the moment for the next GE for plaid in a FPTP system and unlikely to be a deciding factor when there is a landslide (TBC). No matter what you think. My game is removing the most corrupt and dangerous enemy to the UK. Then I see what happens.
Whatever you vote for, make sure you have ID that is correct in a GE.
“GE after this one, then I will spoil paper as a protest perhaps. Who knows.”
I think we both know you’ll vote Labour. After all not doing so will be shooting yourself in the foot and will let the Cons get back in.
I think you have absolutely no clue.
But make sure you have the correct ID to vote in whatever way you want.
A confused message from the Labour Party…
There will be a few Labour MPs in England wishing they could join Plaid alongside you Liz…
Starmer’s Labour is as bad as the Tories. Anything goes as long as he gets power. His u turns at the whiff of resistance from an other side proves this. His unprincipled, fickle politics will soon backfire on him in power and could help destroy the Labour Party. Support for a party that believes so little could evaporate when the going gets tough as it certainly will at some time.
You half hoped it was a deep fake , but no there he was big grin on his face shaking hands with a person who called him ‘Sir softie’. Didn’t Rachel Reeves also have some choice words to say about Mrs Elphicke? What does this mean now, that both women misspoke?
As for the losing its moral compass, that was completely lost after the infamous LBC interview Starmer had with Nick Ferrari, followed by him and his spokesman telling the public to disbelieve their own eyes and ears.
This doesn’t bode well for those of us desperate for far-right extremists to be cleansed from UK politics for ever.
So, DON’T VOTE LABOUR & DON’T VOTE CONSERVATIVE & DON’T VOTE REFORM.
Vote Plaid.
Forget scare stories about “splitting the vote”. Starmer is in the back pockets of private money to intentionally pull Labour over to the right so that we effectively have a one-party state masquerading as a “democracy” while imperial criminal enterprise always wins no matter who you vote for, blue tories or red tories.
And… they both are enthusiastically supporting genocide in Palestine.
Caption competition anybody? Keir Starmer meets a British Airways air hostess.
‘Did you fly to Poland for your Botox, or are you just glad to see me?’
“I’m Starmy fly me”
(apologies to 10cc)
She is dressed like Margaret Thatcher
Starmer has accepted this far right MP as it supposedly looks good for his party – Tory rats fleeing a sinking ship. He’s right it looks like she’s relinquished her views but really she’ll always be hard-line and is just trying to save her arse. As for a benefit to his party, I suspect some Labour voters would debate that.
Wait, Have Labour ever be Moral? Of course they were never as bad as the Tories, that’s changed massively in recent years, and are now arguably as bad. The moment Kid Starver claimed Isreal could starve the people of Gaza as a political weapon of War, he and his party lost the little moral edge they had over The conservatives. I will never vote for either Labour or the Tories.
Yn lygaid dy le Liz. We’ve already seen Labour’s Left vote drifting to the Greens in the English local elections. Starmer doesn’t care and he isn’t going to change a system that’s likely to make him PM. He’s shifted onto Tory territory to work the voting calculus. Wales’ electoral calculus is substantially different to England’s yet we are lumped with whatever England chooses even if it has no mandate from us.Again, Starmer doesn’t care. He just wants to be PM and to hell with his political principles. I challenge any progressive Welsh voter to look at that picture of the… Read more »
The Union Jack doesn’t represent “British” nationalism. It’s English cloaked in false representations of History! The Britons and by extension the term British only ever applied to the people they call Welsh. The biggest disaster for Wales was the adoption whole sale of the term Welsh by the people of the country. It gave the Anglo full license to adopt our terminology and in turn take over thousands of years of history associated with the term. For example – if a battle in the year 100 is in the record books between Britons and Romans, anyone with knowledge of Britain… Read more »
The term “British Nationalism” refers to those who view Britain as a singular, English speaking nation. I’m a British Pluralist – I view Britain as a island constituted of a number of nations with many languages and a common history. That’s what guides my constitutional politics – a confederation of independent states.
I’m aware, but these people are only interested in a whole singular Britain based on Anglo Culture! The native Culture in which put its name to Britain is not welcome in their version of The Island. Another words, they will only ever perceive Britain as a singular nation if the English control it. This is why Anglo doesn’t correct a Japanese person when they sue the same word for England and Britain. We see historical evidence for this outlook via calling Wales, incorrectly I might add, a Principality. Knowing full well it only ever was gwynedd. It’s designed to de-legitimise… Read more »
Oh btw, this is also why Wales is seen as being in England, it’s not that people have been taught directly “Wales is in England” it’s because they have been taught that England and Britain is the same thing. So if this incorrect framework is accepted, they natural come to the conclusion that Wales is in England. They are mistaking the island on a whole, not specifically Wales. The “British” embassy does nothing in Asian and Africa countries to correct this….i don’t like saying error because it isn’t. It’s done with malice in mind.
Proof that Labour wants the brexit voter and loons and takes its traditional voter for granted yet again.