Moves to find a successor to Diane Abbott in the parliamentary seat she has represented since 1987 are under way, prompting concern that her fate has been decided before an investigation into her latest suspension has concluded.
Potential contenders have been spoken to by figures on the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC), teeing them up for a future contest in her constituency of Hackney North and Stoke Newington, and giving them informal advice on how to prepare, according to a party source.
Diane Abbott was suspended from the Labour party in July for repeating that Jewish people do not experience racism in the same way as Black people, a statement that had earned her a previous suspension in April 2023.
Labour said it was too early to discuss potential successors in Abbott’s seat while the investigation was ongoing. They said there had been no discussions about alternative candidates at any NEC meetings and no proposals put to NEC members about a selection process.
Abbott said: “It does seem to be rather pre-empting the results of the investigation.”
One figure on the left said talk of replacing Abbott risked inflaming tensions between the leadership and grassroots members. “There’s no appetite among members for a stitch-up, they would want this to be fair after everything that’s happened,” they said.
Abbott, who as the longest-serving female MP has the honorary title of mother of the house, lost the Labour whip in autumn 2023 after a letter she wrote to the Observer argued that Jewish, Irish and Traveller people do not experience racism in the same way as Black people and likened their experience to that of people with red hair.
Abbott said the published letter was a draft version, and argued that her comments had been taken out of context. She was readmitted to the party in time to win her Hackney North and Stoke Newington seat, but was suspended again last month after telling the BBC in an interview that she did not regret the remarks.
The Guardian understands that potential successors to Abbott include those in the frame to replace her ahead of the last general election, including Sem Moema, a London Assembly member, and the Hackney councillor Mete Coban.
Abbott’s latest suspension caused unease among some party insiders, including members of the NEC, but they said her decision to repeat her original comments, despite previously apologising, made it harder for them to defend her.
Labour sources have briefed that Abbott is unlikely to be readmitted to the parliamentary Labour party and it is thought that she plans to stand down at the next election, if not sooner. Sources close to the process said discussions about a potential successor are too important to be left to the last minute.
Under current party rules, any MP under suspension is barred from standing as a Labour candidate until their case is resolved. The NEC has the power to trigger a selection process if a sitting MP is not endorsed to stand again.
The row over Abbott’s future comes as Labour prepares for its autumn conference, where Shabana Mahmood, the justice secretary, is expected to take over as chair of the NEC.
If Abbott is replaced, it would trigger one of the most high-profile Labour selections of the next parliament. The seat is regarded as ultra-safe for Labour, even though her majority last year was halved to 15,000 amid a challenge from the Greens.
The disciplinary process over Abbott’s original Observer letter became one of the longest and most high-profile internal rows of Keir Starmer’s leadership so far. Allies accused the leadership of deliberately dragging its feet to prevent her re-selection, while Labour HQ insisted the investigation was handled according to the rules.
Comment ×