James Osben, Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Newton Abbot in the 2017 and 2019 general elections, has resigned from Labour and is standing as a Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) candidate on 6 May. Below is his statement:

TUSC leaflets

TUSC leaflets   (Click to enlarge: opens in new window)

“I have resigned from the Labour Party. I can’t continue to support a political party that has moved away from its core values and principles, the values on which it was founded. The party, under the leadership of Keir Starmer, is trying hard to fit in with the neoliberal establishment, in a desperate attempt to win an election at any cost.

In the pursuit of power it has sold its soul and I won’t be a part of it. I will stick to my values and principles. I will campaign and fight against austerity. I will represent the people Labour was created to represent. I have not joined another party but I have applied to stand under the banner of the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) in the May Elections for the Kingsteignton and Teign Estuary Council seat.

I hope to stand as a Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Newton Abbot at the 2024 general election, and at the moment this would be in the capacity of an independent candidate. Thank you to each and every one of you for your support in the 2017 and 2019 general elections.

There are still some brilliant hard-working socialist MPs and many brilliant socialist members within the Labour Party. I wish them all well for the future and hope they are able to hold Keir Starmer to account for the damage he has caused to the Labour Party.”