The lights failed at the U.K. Labour leadership contest’s second debate, plunging party leader Jeremy Corbyn and challenger Owen Smith into darkness as they clashed over nuclear weapons and Britain’s strategy in negotiations to leave the European Union.
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Mr Smith is battling to dislodge Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader after the veteran left-winger lost the confidence of MPs despite mass support among party activists.
In the leadership contest, the Corbynistas seem to have found their Waco siege moment (albeit with their opponents very much lacking an equivalent to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and ATF’s muscle) – the rest of the country watching on in bemusement as the standoff shows no signs of ending.
The vote took place by secret ballot and members were given equal time to speak about the merits of their preferred candidate.
Ballot papers for the leadership election will be sent out in the post (Labour Party members only) and by email from the week starting Monday, August 22.
She added: ‘By delaying the special conference to Saturday 8 October 2016, our new leader will be able to have a united team in place ready to fight the Tories before Parliament returns’.
“Owen, our party is a strong party, our party is a big party, our campaigning abilities are huge if we work together on those campaigns”, said the Labour leader.
Five new members challenged the move and accused the NEC of unlawfully “freezing” them out of the leadership contest despite them having “paid their dues”. “(A) credible and radical Labour government-in-waiting”, said Smith.
The case will be heard by Lord Justice Beatson, sitting with Lady Justice Macur and Lord Justice Sales.
Since Corbyn’s ascent, however, the situation has only gotten worse for those who value civilised discourse over the idea that all disagreement is profane, both within and without the Party.
But Mr Corbyn insisted he was “shocked and disappointed” at June’s Brexit vote, hitting back: “Are you a mind reader?”
Mr Corbyn said Labour was ahead in the polls before the resignations of shadow cabinet members, including Mr Smith, and that it had won every by-election and increased majorities.
“All the methods of the right, it’s a bit like what Karl Marx said: sometimes the revolution needs the whip of the counter-revolution”, he said.
Mr Smith said he did want to continue his work, but did not want it to be “fruitless”.
He said: “They’re being defeated politically now and they’re using the same arguments they used against us of a party within a party against Momentum, against any left opposition that develops”.
“I have been loyal to our leader since his election previous year, and have seen how he leads up close”.
Party general-secretary Iain McNicol asked the Court of Appeal on Thursday to overturn the judgment, which affects nearly 130,000 new Labour members many of them thought to support Corbyn.
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A senior Labour source said: ‘If Labour loses the appeal, the position of Iain McNicol becomes untenable.
