A key ally of Angela Rayner hinted that she could intervene in the workers’ rights row today in a fresh blow to Keir Starmer.
The former deputy PM has so far maintained a public silence after plans to give workers the rights to sue for unfair dismissal from ‘day one’ were abruptly ditched last week.
The move sparked an outcry from left-wingers – with anger fuelled by ministers’ attempts to argue that it had not been an explicit manifesto commitment.
They have tried to claim that the vow was only to ‘consult’ on the plans, and blamed opposition in the House of Lords for making them practically impossible to get on the statute book.
Ms Rayner has long championed the workers’ rights legislation, and there has been speculation at Westminster that she could use the row as the springboard for a return to the political frontline.
The MP was forced to resign in September after admitting underpaying tens of thousands of pounds of stamp duty.
Appearing on LBC today, Labour MP Justin Madders – Ms Rayner’s deputy until he was sacked by Sir Keir in the reshuffle sparked by her exit – condemned the resistance from ‘unelected peers’.
He also swiped at ministers, saying: ‘I think it would be better all round if members of the Cabinet made the argument why they’ve had to do it rather than pretend it is not a manifesto breach.’
Mr Madders said he was looking for guarantees from the government that they would not ‘capitulate on other things if we get too much resistance’.
Asked if he had spoken to Ms Rayner about the situation, Mr Madders said: ‘Yeah, and look I think we both understand the practicalities of why this has had to be done.
‘You know, it’s important to us that trade unions have bought into it but it does also mean that we need to have some serious commitments for the rest of the legislation, the rest of the Make Work Pay package, which we haven’t got at the moment.
‘Because we can’t keep coming back every time there’s a bit of opposition to things that we want to do.’
Pressed whether Ms Rayner was ‘unhappy’, Mr Madders replied: ‘Well, I think you’d have to ask her that.
‘But when we’ve all gone out and campaigned on something for a number of years, we’re committed to, we’ve promised we’d deliver it and we don’t, I think you can probably assume she isn’t doing cartwheels over this.’
