The voices being raised against Ken Livingstone from within the left are growing louder and more numerous. At the weekend Nick Cohen called on Livingstone to come clean on tax and now added to that two more pieces have been published today piling the pressure on Livingstone.
It hardly needs to be said, but all of his problems are of his own making. His political missteps aside he has tried to have his cake and eat it. He has rightly attacked bankers, attacked Boris Johnson for having two jobs, and is a supporter of UK Uncut, but he appears hypocritical as he continues to refuse to come clean on h0w he has got around paying thousands in tax. Worse his supporters defend his indefensible behaviour.
In the New Statesman Mehdi Hasan asks Livingstone to own up or accept the consequences:
“I like Livingstone. But to pretend this isn’t tax avoidance is disingenuous. And his allies just don’t get it. I spoke to friends and colleagues of Livingstone’s who seem to be in total denial. “It’s a completely logical way of arranging your tax affairs if you have multiple incomes and expenses,” says a source close to the ex-mayor. I asked another ally how he could justify such tax-dodging behaviour. “Er . . . ah . . . um . . .” His voice trailed off. “It’s, er, normal.”
Nonetheless, if I were Livingstone, I’d write a cheque to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and deliver it to HMRC headquarters in person, with a camera crew in tow. Regardless of his allies’ protestations, or his pledges on pay, he has to kill this tax story. And fast.
This broadside from a “supporter” like Hasan (“I like Ken but…) is followed by an open letter to Livingstone from Jonathan Roberts Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Thirsk and Malton at the last election on Labour Uncut. He goes further than Hasan and says he will not be supporting Livingstone. I have a feeling that he is not alone.
“It bothers me that people think you are the last bastion of Labourness. It bothers me that you think you are the last bastion of Labourness. It bothers me that because I am a proud member of this party, I am expected to give up countless hours of my life to fight through the rain and cold to campaign for a man who has made so many anti-west comments that Iranian state television gave him his own TV show.
“Some in our society are untouchable as a result of their past contributions. I willingly forgive Sir Paul McCartney’s dismal modern-day efforts because in his day he was a genius. Some afford you that same forgiveness because of your hugely positive past contributions in fighting fascism and homophobia. But you are not untouchable Ken. You are a politician seeking election, and the rules still apply to you.”
“London is one of the greatest cities in the world. And maybe I’m still too young and optimistic, or maybe I’ve just watched too much West Wing, but I want to be inspired. I want to believe. I want to walk into that voting booth and know “this guy is the real deal”. I don’t feel that with you. On May 3rd I will get on a tube and go to the office. I’ll put in a decent day’s work and then go home in the evening. Whatever I do, I won’t be stopping off to vote. I won’t support any other candidate because they do not match my values. But I won’t be supporting you because yours don’t match them either. I love Labour, but more importantly I love London and my country. I do not think you are good for either.”
Even if Livingstone did come clean about tax as Hasan advises does anyone think it will make any difference?
I should maybe add that I will still vote for him as there isn’t an alternative, but his is an almightly disappointment.
