Councillor Wilhelmina Mitchell-Murray (Wembley Central ward) has joined the Conservative Party followed her resignation from Labour.
In a letter to Muhammed Butt, Leader of Brent Council, she said:
I am writing to you to tender my resignation from the Labour Party with immediate effect.
I have been concerned at times with the policies of the party nationally and I have been very unhappy with the direction the Brent CLPs have taken. I am particularly concerned with the way Momentum has been influencing and in some cases taking over the party.
Yours sincerely
Wilhelmina Mitchell-Murray
The Conservative Group on Brent Council confirmed that Cllr Mitchell-Murray had joined them and said:
Cllr Wilhelmina Mitchell Murray has resigned from the Labour Party citing her dissatisfaction with the direction that the party has taken.
It would appear that the Labour Momentum have an unhealthy influence in the selection of local candidates and many sitting Councillors and activists are unhappy with the situation.
Wilhelmina has joined the Conservative Group. Cllr’s Suresh Kansagra and Michael Maurice have warmly welcomed her saying that she will make an excellent Conservative Councillor and look forward to working with her.
Cllr Mitchell-Murray, asked to comment on her resignation by Wembley Matters, appeared to suggest she would be standing for the Conservatives in the May 5th Council Election. Asked to confirm that she was joining the Tories, she said:
Yes. I have joined the Conservative Party. Others must come to their own conclusions but, I came into politics to serve not to be self serving. I hope to continue to serve the residents of Wembley Central Ward. I hope everyone understand that at age 8 I skipped, to the polling station holding my daddy's hands to vote for the Labour Party. It's up to the residents of Wembley Central Ward to decide if my days in public service are numbered.
I have many friends in the Labour Party and we will remain friends regardless.
I have no further comment to make.
Brent Council leader, Muhammed Butt, told the Kiburn Times on Tuesday:
Wilhelmina’s friends in Brent Labour will be deeply disappointed to hear of her decision. While we respect her choice to leave, we must amicably disagree with her chosen means.
If the answer for Brent is Boris Johnson, then you are asking the wrong question.
Brent Labour is a broad church of beliefs, mirroring the range of thought and experience in our borough.
Notwithstanding, in the aftermath of the elections, I will be requesting to our coordinating bodies that a full review of our diversity monitoring procedures is undertaken.
The resignation appears to be fall out from the current selections for Labour candidates in the forthcoming local Council elections. With the number of seats reduced there has been more competition so in the game of political musical chairs several seats have been whipped away from sitting members.
I understand that Cllr Mitchell-Murray's son who is also a councillor is not standing in the May elections. As it is we now have a Conservative councillor and a Labur councillor from the same family:
The reference to Brent Momentum is particularly puzzling as they have been rather quiet recently and I have seen no evidence of organised slates. What may be the case is that rank and file members are exerting their democratic rights more forcefully and scrutinising candidates’ political credentials more thoroughly than hitherto. This may be upsetting to the more managerialist of the current leadership, including Muhammed Butt, and Momentum becomes an easy scapegoat for him to use. He may sense that in the current process some of his support is slipping away, although one of his greatest admirers, Cllr Krupa Sheth has now joined him in the two member Tokyngton ward.
Muhammed Butt is himself a member of Brent Momentum, or perhaps was, and he as well as some of his loyal supporters have attended their meetings.
Cllr Margaret McLennan, currently Deputy Leader, is not standing again so the post will have to be filled by a loyal female lieutenant. I wonder who that could be?
