Dear Member of Vauxhall Labour Party,
The Members of this Party are its lifeblood and so I wanted you to be the first to know that I have now agreed to be the Mayor of London's Commissioner for Sport.
I have been asked to develop the London legacy plan for sport arising from the unique opportunity that the 2012 Olympics gives us, and to help increase grass roots sport participation and access to sporting opportunities across London.
As you may know, for my whole political life I have been passionate about seeing that the power of sport be used to change the lives of our young people. Sport crosses all political divides and just as the Prime Minister appointed non-Labour MPs to advise on issues such as housing, I too feel that on some issues the "big tent" approach to politics is in all our interests.
I will not, of course, be involved with any other aspect of the Mayor's administration and nor would I ever want to be. I do see substantial benefits for this and neighbouring constituencies and am confident that I can make a difference in this unpaid role.
Of course just like a Minister, my duties and responsibilities as a Labour MP will always come first. I look forward to explaining this in more detail either at a ward meeting or at the GC but as I said, I wanted you to be the first to hear the formal news today.
On a personal note, I would add that I am all too aware of how this news first came out and how upset some of you were and are. It is a matter of deep regret to me. I share your sorrow at the loss of the Mayoralty. In campaigning across the constituency I saw just how hard so many of you were working.
But we are now where we are and I know that the people who elected me to serve in Parliament are very supportive of politicians from different parties working together for the common good. Our challenge in Labour is to work together in the coming years to win for Labour in Europe, again in Lambeth in 2010, and after again in Parliament. I look forward to serving you, and working with you.
Best wishes & see you soon. Please do email me or call me if you would like to discuss this issue further - I would be delighted to hear from you.
Kate
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Kate Hoey's Letter to Vauxhall Labour Party
This is Kate Hoey's explanation to her local Labour members for her decision to join Boris Johnson's administration as Commissioner for Sport. They are not going to be pleased.
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Not sure why they would be so annoyed?
No problem with that whatsoever. Out in the real world beyond politics - people who know what they are talking about are able to reach agreement on the vast majority of things even when they have different views and values.
Perhaps if politicians took the same approach, and tried to agree where they can and avoided creating artifical differences, the civil servants and others responsible for implementation (an area where the UK has been awful for 50+ years) could get on with the job. In reality there are probably more areas of agreements between the major parties than there have been for many years.
Perhaps worth remembering that it was Mrs Thatcher who introduced the "is he one of us" test.
Many will say her surname is apt (Ho), in the way she has been bought by the tory to work for him. LOL.
Only joking she can do the job iof she wants ait isa free country.
I can't see that her local members are going to have a problem with this. I certainly wouldn't.
Can you explain why "they are not going to pleased"?
Is fox hunting an Olympic sport? If not, why not??
Can't see the problem, anything or anybody that encourages kids to do more exercise is ok with me.
If you don't they grow up to be fat unfit journalists: nudge nudge Iain
Just as important! Is Boris renaging on the, 'Routemaster'
The Evening Johnson seems to think so!
Does anyone know what punishment the judge gave Guido today for his drink driving / driving without insurance?
Like a minister . . .
Yeah, right! Being an unpaid advisor to the Mayor of London is just like being a minister!
ROFLMAO.
Don't bother to email her about this or anything else for that matter. I emailed; and challeneged her on CiF months ago about a contraversial hunting issue - another 'sport' that she's 'passionate' about - and she wouldn't answer.
The woman is a complete menace and embarrassment to the party. She should cross the floor to the Tories or do a Clare Short.
Btw, strange too that her defenders weren't as supportive of Bercow and Mercer.
It comes as no surprise to me. She has been preparing to jump ship for several years now and has distanced herself from Labour in many areas. If she thinks she is untouchable she may be surprised by the people of Lambeth at the next election.
Her party members are annoyed because they can see it all happening.
"I share your sorrow at the loss of the Mayoralty." Translation: "I am sorry my new boss is in this position. I'm sorry he won the democratic election. Anyhoo ...."
'It is one of us' argument has been practised by the trade unions and Labour left long before Thatcher was born. Why is the pharse 'he is working class' uttered by many Labour lefties when they elected '£4000 taxifare Michael Martin' or referring to 'two jags Prescott'? Labour boys don't grow up !! All the time they indulge in infantile arguments.
"She has been preparing to jump ship for several years now and has distanced herself from Labour in many areas"
Quite true. If only the Mayor would offer money....
The only reason they will be upset at that letter is if they are too partisan to see the logic behind it.
As she said, Labour invented 'big tent' politics, so they can hardly complain when Boris decidees to impliment a bit of his own big tentism! There are some issues where cross party working is essential!
And what better person is there than the quite brilliant and wonderful Kate Hoey, who has all her life been an advocate of sport!
Go Kate!
I think Iain might be alluding to the final sentence on where they are going to be winning and when. Only LAMBETH in 2010, PARLIAMENT afterwards. Even though you could read it as talking about Borough elections, you could infer that she has just said Labour aren't going to win govt.
Especially with the slightly artificial separation of Lambeth and Parliament- given that the elections are quite likely to be on the same day that year. I know they don't have to be, but it's difficult to see how Parliamentary elections could be "after"- before possibly, but not after.
Unless you take the view that she is indeed suggesting that it's all over for this government.
Brown is a'bunker'man. In a bunker there is not much room for many and hence those allowed in are hand-picked, like 'so what' Balls, bendy Wendy's wee brother plus a Miliband who Brown considers as 'us'. Brown's big tent and 'government of all talents' are for public consumption which gave him the 'bounce' last year for a few weeks. We all know what a fallacy Brown's big tent is now after he bottled the election.
Coming back to 'one of us' remark, I was once an independent school governor and used to meet the Labour Party apprachiks who reincarnated themselves as school governors after a life as councillors. They did not like me as independent governor and kep on pressing me to join the Labour so that they said 'you can be one of us'
Brown’s Labour were very keen to show off Sean Woodward on the front bench during PMQs and the PMs statement on Wednesday. Time for Boris to show off Kate. I suspect there will soon be a tide of careerist Blairites knocking on David Cameron’s door.
Does anyone know what punishment the judge gave Guido today for his drink driving / driving without insurance?
see here
Why would the Vauxhall Labour party be displeased? Kate Hoey is surely only emulating Gordon Brown's embracement of "the big tent". She has elected to operate within Boris's 'big tent', and good luck to her. She will be an asset.
Until recently I lived in Lambeth and amongst ordinary voters she is very popular. This will not bother them in the least.
How can she "share their sorrow" about the loss of the mayoralty yet have lined up this post before the election was held.
Vauxhall sounds like an ideal seat for George Galloway to stand in ;-)
I approve of Boris going for 'Big Tent' politics in London and Kate does have some experience to bring to the role.
BUT, her negotiation of a role while the election was still going on while not thinking her acceptance would be fair campaign fodder for Team Boris is at best extremely naive.
Many people reading these pages have been out night after night knocking on doors during campaigns and if any of us had been shafted in the way she did her local party I think it would only be reasonable to be bloody annoyed with her.
So a Governement of all the talents is OK. So whats wrong with tis.
For those who are 'Labour-bent of mind', just to remind the following:
1. Minister used mobile phone while driving
By Nick Britten
Last Updated: 2:46AM GMT 03/11/2007
Liam Byrne, the immigration minister, has been criticised by road safety campaigners after claiming he was taking an important work call when caught using his mobile phone while driving. Liam Byrne said he was taking an important call
The 37-year-old MP for Birmingham Hodge Hill was stopped on the Tyburn Road in Birmingham in July after being spotted talking on the phone while behind the wheel.
In a letter to magistrates he said that he was taking a call about deportation but accepted that he should have pulled over to do so.
Mr Byrne, a former police officer, was fined £100 with £35 costs and a £15 victim surcharge. (Daily Telegraph)
2.Former PM Blair caught riding without a ticket: report
Posted Thu Apr 24, 2008 9:21am AEST
Former British prime minister Tony Blair was left red-faced when he was caught travelling on a train without a ticket and said he had no cash to pay the fare, a report said.
Mr Blair, who has earned around 500,000 pounds ($1.04 million) on the speaking circuit since leaving office in June, was confronted by a ticket inspector as he travelled to Heathrow airport to catch a flight to the United States on Monday, the Daily Mail newspaper reported.(ABC News)
Sea Shanty Irish here:
Congratulations to Kate, she's a splendid choice for this important position for Londoners, the UK and the Olympics.
US perspective: number of presidential cabinet appointments (including a few of the best) have been from the opposition party.
For example, in 1940 FDR named two prominent Republicans to his cabinet: Secretary of War Henry Stimson (was Sec of State for Herbert Hoover) and Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox. Jimmy Carter made former Nixon/Ford Defense Sec. James Schlessinger his Energy Secretary. And Bill Clinton made GOP Sen. Bill Cohen his Defense Secretary.
On GOP side, Richard Nixon appointed Democrat & future NY Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan to cabinet-rank. And about the only competent member of W's first cabinet was Transportation Secretary Norm Mineta, former Carter Commerce Sec & Democratic congressman.
Clearly all of the above US precedents had a strong political as well as personal component. Certainly they were all very smart politics.
So is selection of Kate Hoey by Boris Johnson.
Now the question is, can she do the job? Methinks she can.
>Why would the Vauxhall Labour party be displeased?
Read it slowly - the - Vauxhall - LABOUR - party. They'll be displeased because they're Labour, and therefore undemocratic idiots.
Hoey is a sadistic,coawrdly, traitor.
So not only is Guido Fawkes a preposterous poseur and grande political player Manqué, it transpires he thinks he is above the law; not the actual law, that is, but the laws of common sense which dictate that you do not drink and drive or drive without insurance because you can actually do a fellow human being serious damage and not be able to pay them compensation. It's a pity they didn't check for traces of Charlie because that is certainly where he gets his mis-placed sense of self importance from.
The real problem with this is the scumbags who leaked the possibility of this pragmatic appointment ahead of the election result. That is what upset people. And of course you were one of those people were you not?
Vauxhall CLP will decide for themselves how they feel when the facts are before them. They might even get quite excited about a bit of extra agency on their account in City Hall and London 2012.
Labour have had Coe in from the get go. And Moynihan later. Were Tories upset at these betrayals?
Nice one Boris,; for an all round nice guy you are learning quickly.
Got a Labour stooly in for the sports job to take the flak when the Olympics go tits-up as a national humiliation.
They'll be displeased because they're Labour, and therefore undemocratic idiots
Labour lost and Boris is in power.
Contrast this to the GLC is the 80s, when the Tories lost and abolished the thing rather than let Labour run it.
So just who are the undemocratic idiots?
For what it's worth, as one of Ms Hoey´s constituents I would vote for her if she stood next time as an independent but not if she remains the Labour candidate. She is stifled by the red tent.
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