Keir Starmer has been accused of a “brutal” plot to oust Angela Rayner by axing her directly elected position as Labour’s deputy leader.
According to The Mail on Sunday, Sir Keir’s advisers have discussed abolishing Rayner’s post, amid reports the pair’s relationship is at “rock bottom” after the Labour leader “blindsided” his deputy with a surprise reshuffle last week.
Rayner’s advisers branded rumours of Starmer’s plan “brutal” and a “constitutional outrage”, with one left-wing MP claiming it showed he is “frightened” and “intimidate” by her.
The MP told the MoS: “To even talk about getting rid of his deputy’s post is an outrage and insult to party democracy.”
‘Proved impossible’
The idea has reportedly been “very seriously” considered, “because Keir would feel he had really tried to get on with Angie and it’s proved impossible”.
It emerged on Friday that Labour’s biggest union donor is set to cut funding for the party as its boss said more needed to be done for workers.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham told The Guardian that Unite would still pay £1 million in affiliation fees to Labour.
But Graham, who took over from Len McCluskey in August, said in an interview with the newspaper that “there’s a lot of other money that we use from our political fund where, actually, I’m not sure we’re getting the best value for it”.
When she took on the role Graham promised to “completely refocus” the union, and at the time said: “I will be a general secretary for the workers, for my members.”
And she declined to attend Labour’s annual conference in Brighton this year as she said current industrial disputes would have to take priority.
‘Labour needs to talk about workers’
The latest move threatens to deepen the divide between Unite and Starmer.
Although a Labour source said: “Relationships with the unions are good.
“Unions have always funded campaigns and causes for their memberships.”
Graham told The Guardian: “The fact that I am being quite robust is because Labour needs to talk about workers, needs to defend workers and needs to defend communities.”
And she said that money would instead be funnelled into projects which would “set the pace” for Labour to follow.
She did not reveal how much funding would be cut by.