Hi all I've been out all day so just catching up.
About that Retrospective Bill, I too was livid at the time and wrote to EdM and my Local MP and threatened to leave Labour.
But the arguments about bill were not as straight forward as they seemed, and no matter what Labour did or did not do it would have passed anyway. Byrne, by not voting against it, secured 2 vital concessions from IDS, I remembered that but not what they were so I went to check it out, and turned up LB's piece on Labour List written at the time.
And here’s the choice I faced in the Commons. Do I do everything to foul up the timetable of the bill, safe in the knowledge that because we lack a majority, the Tories and Lib Dems would ultimately win any vote they liked, whenever they liked? At best this might have delayed the Bill a week or two. Or, do I let the Bill go through before Easter in return for two critical concessions which Labour MP’s actually can actually use in practice to help people over the next two years?
First, we had to make sure that people hit by sanctions have an iron-clad right of appeal against a sanction decision. That’s the right we’ve now ensured is written onto the face of the Bill; it’s the right to appeal on ‘good cause’ (for example, refusing to take a pointless course which is inappropriate) within a 13 month timetable
Second, there’s something else. I’ve heard too many stories – not least from my own constituents – about people being wrongly sanctioned. And that’s why I insisted – and won – an independent review of the sanctions regime with an urgent report to Parliament. We need to use this to ruthlessly expose bad behaviour. It is actually one of the practical things we can do to make a difference over the next year.
(I think IDS actually reneged on this second, or watered it down to be ineffective, but at the time Bryne did not know that)
In retrospect and reading what happened with a cool head, and taking the time to understand what a cock up IDS had made (that meant all right to appeal would be taken away) I think (now) Bryne got the best deal possible. Here's the link - I'd be interested in what others think after rereading the situation "cold" as it were.
http://labourlist.org/2013/03/the-jobse ... ight-call/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;