The Labour party’s new criteria for selecting candidates to stand for the London Assembly could inadvertently damage the diversity of the capital’s governing body.
Of the current 12 Labour members on the London Assembly — the body that holds the London mayor to account — six are women, five are black or Asian, and one is a gay man.
So far, those at risk of losing the Labour nomination include Florence Eshalomi, the only black woman seeking reelection, Labour’s only gay assembly member Tom Copley, and one of two Asian men who are standing for another term.
The concerns echo those raised by MPs who fear a similar change in reselection rules may harm the diversity of the parliamentary Labour party (PLP).
Sources told BuzzFeed News that Corbyn loyalists are behind the moves to oust those who are not seen as sympathetic to the Labour leadership.
Sitting assembly members now face a full selection contest if a third or more of Constituency Labour Parties (CLPs) and affiliates such as trade unions vote in favour of it — a drop from the previous threshold of 50%.
The rules have also been changed to mean that “list” members — those who represent the whole of London rather than a specific area — will have to face a full open selection process.
They will automatically be shortlisted but will have to go up against other candidates to secure a place on Labour’s list. This is a departure from Labour’s position for the European election candidates list, where incumbent MEPs were protected because of the tight timescale.
London mayor Sadiq Khan was reselected in 2018 before the new rules were approved at Labour conference.
Eshalomi, currently the London Assembly member for Lambeth and Southwark, has already lost the support of Streatham CLP by fewer than 10 votes.
Sources have claimed that the meeting was not conducted in accordance with Labour party rules. It has been alleged that the ballot paper used was not the one with neutral wording supplied by the party, and that those at the meeting were not asked to prove that they were members before voting.
The allegations are being investigated by Labour’s regional director in London, BuzzFeed News understands.
Eshalomi told BuzzFeed News that protecting diversity is paramount in ensuring all Londoners are properly represented by the Greater London Authority (GLA).
According to the 2011 Census, approximately 40% of the capital's residents are white British. The other 60% comprise residents from black, Asian, Arab, or other white backgrounds.
“It’s important for us to recognise that we mustn’t get complacent in terms of ensuring we have diverse representation,” she told BuzzFeed News. “We’ve got to be careful not to put barriers for BME [black and ethnic minority] women and men to stand.
“It’s equally important in a city like London, on a regional level, at the GLA, that we have diverse assembly members, because I think it’s better in terms of decision-making. A number of issues that we deal with at City Hall affect black Londoners; policing, affordable public transport, access to affordable housing. Disproportionately, black Londoners are affected in all those areas.”
Dr Onkar Sahota, the London Assembly member for Ealing and Hillingdon, has already lost the support of one CLP, with three yet to hold their meetings.
Sahota told BuzzFeed News that while he fully supported the idea that politicians should not have “a job for life”, his concern was that the process should ensure that talent and experience are retained.
“I fully defend the right of members to choose, but there are five members standing down, there’s plenty of opportunity for new members to come forward, for new blood to come into the assembly,” he said. “I don’t disagree with the idea of holding elected politicians to account, but the process should ensure that experience and good people are not lost.”
According to sources close to Sahota, he was unaware of when the Ealing Central and Acton CLP's meeting, where his nomination was to be discussed, was taking place, meaning he was unable to encourage his supporters to attend or provide a statement setting out his track record.
BuzzFeed News understands this was the result of an email miscommunication and confusion between the Ealing Central and Acton CLP and Ealing North.
Sahota also stressed the importance of maintaining the diversity of the current Labour group. “Whatever elected body should reflect the people it represents,” he told BuzzFeed News. “As the Labour party we have to make sure that good talent [from a range of backgrounds] comes forward, and we nurture that talent.”
Two of the London Assembly’s list members — both women — are standing down, leaving only Copley to contest his seat, and two slots open.
Under equality laws, political parties can only positively discriminate in favour of women, and not on the basis of other protected characteristics, such as ethnicity, disability, or sexuality.
Copley told BuzzFeed News that it would be “a shame” if Labour’s new assembly candidates did not match the diversity of the current group.
“The reason it’s important,” he told BuzzFeed News, “is because as much as we all like to think that as good socialists we can we can represent everyone equally well, people’s different experiences based on their characteristics mean they can bring a deeper understanding of the issues affecting the community.
“Obviously you can’t speak for everyone in that community, but it allows you to bring that perspective and understanding — a less diverse group makes that more difficult.
“It also can be easier for a person from a community to speak to an assembly member from that community, because you have that common understanding, it does help with that relationship. It would be a shame if we became a less diverse group than we are now and went backwards.”
A London Labour party spokesperson said: “The changes to Assembly Member candidate selection were made to bring them in line with MPs. We are aiming to improve accountability and increase member engagement with the process.
“We are looking forward to working with all our London Assembly Member candidates in the run up to May 2020 and we’ll be campaigning tirelessly to improve on our 2016 result and deliver more Labour Assembly Members for London.”
CORRECTION
Acton was misspelled in an earlier version of this post.