Jo White, MP for Bassetlaw and convenor of the Red Wall Group, has just sent round a new batch of constituency newspaper-style pamphlets advertising her rebellions against the government. In a fake leader article titled “How I Won the Fight on Winter Fuel,” White writes:
“The decision to withdraw Winter Fuel Allowance from the vast majority of pensioners last year hung like a weight around the neck of the government… In May, I called on the Prime Minister to reflect, listen and issue an Executive Order to put right the wrong that had been caused. I was one of the first Labour MPs to speak out publicly and call for the threshold to be raised… I met with Rachel Reeves, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and she asked for my personal view on threshold. I told her straight: the £12,000 threshold is too ow, and it must be increased.”
White celebrates the U-turn and praises her ability to attack Reeves too:
“I have succeeded in reversing the Treasury bias towards London and the south. I have been recognised by the Chancellor for this whilst managing to annoy the -London Mayor in the process. I am not rude but I am y forceful and my Group intends to achieve much m more. Second best is no good for us, only the best will do.”
Curiously White’s selection of testimonials includes a supposed quote from Wes Streeting: “Jo White has the guts to say to the Prime Minister: you have got this wrong.” Labour MPs gaining currency by kicking Starmer while he’s down…