A FORMER Labour MP has quit the party with a public blast at “authoritarian” leader Keir Starmer.

Beth Winter, who was the MP for the Welsh seat Cynon Valley from 2019 until the election, said Labour were “serving corporate interests and protecting the ruling class”.

She had previously criticised the party’s selection method for MPs as “undemocratic” after she was replaced as a Labour candidate by her local party.

Winter (below) said that Labour have strayed from what she said were their socialist principles under expelled former leader Jeremy Corbyn, adding: “Today’s Labour Party is unrecognisable. I cannot in all conscience remain in a political party that is pursuing an authoritarian political agenda whose primary objective is to retain the neoliberal status quo, serve corporate interests and protect the ruling class.

“My criticisms of the Labour Party are well-documented in my parliamentary voting record, speeches, and articles.”

Winter, who briefly worked under the now Chancellor Rachel Reeves, was one of a number of MPs who were threatened with expulsion from the parliamentary party after supporting a statement by Stop the War criticising Nato in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In a statement first reported by Nation.Cymru, Winter said: “This Labour government is squandering the opportunity to effect transformative change – it has refused to lift the two-child benefit cap; scrapped universal pensioners’ winter fuel payment; is failing to take the action required to avert climate catastrophe; supports the privatisation of our NHS; thought it acceptable to accept gifts from wealthy donors.

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“Last week’s Budget was a missed opportunity, including for Cymru, resulting in continued austerity, inequality, poverty, and hardship for millions of people and leaving our public services at breaking point.”

And she said that while the funding increase for Wales was “welcome” it “falls far short of what’s needed,” adding there was “no commitment to fair, needs-based funding or to increase Welsh Government borrowing powers; a shortfall of £575m needed to make our coal tips safe; silence on devolving the Crown Estate’s assets; no sign of the £1.1bn owed post-Brexit or the £4bn owed in HS2 consequentials”.

Elsewhere she blasted Labour for continuing to arm Israel in the face of the ongoing onslaught against Palestine.

Others have found their views incompatible with the Labour leadership since Starmer came to power in July. 

 

After a rebellion on scrapping the two-child benefit cap, seven Labour MPs, including Corbyn's shadow chancellor John McDonnell (above), were stripped of the party whip. 

And in September, Canterbury MP Rosie Duffield quit, accusing the party of "cruel and unnecessary policies" and "sleaze, nepotism and apparent avarice".

Labour were approached for comment.