LADYWOOD - THE PLOT THICKENS

17-02-2007

Blimey. The Stirrer certainly lived up to his name when he suggested that there were three female contenders to succeed Clare Short as Labour's parliamentary candidate in Ladywood. It turns out that there's even more intrigue than we thought.

If you're new to the story, you can catch up withit here.

In brief, we suggestedthere were movesafoot toforce Handsworth Wood councillor(and possible Ladywood contestant) Paulette Hamilton to face a re-selection battle ahead of May's council elections.

If Paulette hadlost a battle on home turf, it would hardly have improved her chances of standing asan MP in a high profile Westminster seat.

As it turns out, her friends in the upper echelons of the party ensured that the challenge was thrown out - leaving the way clear for her toretain Handsworth Wood and attempt towin the Ladywood selection.

Paulette isn'tactually on the party'slist from which futureparliamentary candidates arechosen,but of course that doesn't mean she won't be by the timethe vote is held - the same is also true, incidentally,of Elena Cohen the ambitious former Tory candidate from Rochdale.

Two members ofthe local party who are already on the list are Yvonne Mosquito, a councillor and vice-chair of the Police Committee and Penny Brook, deputy chair of the Birmingham Labour party, who unsuccessfully fought the South Staffordshire by-election in 2005.

This suits thatnational Labour party, who are apparently making it known that they would like an all-women short-list, but this has already caused consternation amongst local Muslim members who want one of their number to be chosen.

The two leading possibles are Tahir Ali, a former cabinet member when Labour ran Birmingham; and Ansar Ali Khan, a WashwoodHeath councillor. The latter has been heard to say that he stood aside in Hodge Hillto allow the selection of Downing Street favouritebut that he was promiseda winnable seat.

So itseems we can expect ructions if an all-women list is imposed - or indeed, if it isn't.

Only a cynic would suggest that allowing the local party to tear itself apart would play into the hands of the national party, who could then steal in at the last moment and appoint their own candidate.

Tee Hee. Doncha love politics.

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