David Parr:
But I don't think we should be party political on this forum though?
You have missed the point. Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour Party are far from being synonymous with each other. The reality is that Jeremy Corbyn is a maverick who is not really in control of the Labour Party; is despised by most MPs, large numbers of councillors, and swathes of middle of the road and traditional blue collar Labour voters; and has a messianic cult following that is most acute amongst young hipster types and students from London and other trendy places.
Almost nobody who was going to vote Labour under previous leaders said that they were going to vote for Kinnock, Brown, or Milliband, and it was only marginally higher for Blair. They said that they were going to vote Labour. This time round anybody who supports Corbyn says that they are voting for Corbyn even though in reality (outside of Islington North) it's for some local MP that more often than not they know nothing about and can't even name!
I can't really say that I have met any engineers who think highly of Jeremy Corbyn. Even an older lifelong Labour voter is totally turned off by him despite being on the economic left and a deep critic of Tony Blair. He says it's something to do with Corbyn being unpatriotic, anti-British, and he is not another Clement Attlee or even Michael Foot.
David Parr:
We need a few more ex-engineers in harness; some people with a grasp of how the world works and the ability to make sensible decisions based on the requirements of industry and the needs of the general population.
Roy Bowdler:
We should seek therefore to build common cause with mainstream politicians of all flavours, just like other stakeholders including business, trade associations, trades unions and educators.
How is mainstream defined? Nigel Farage had a huge support base and superhero status despite him not being an MP. Did the IET consider him to be a mainstream politician? What about Caroline Lucas who is an MP? Is Jeremy Corbyn mainstream or is he just a maverick with a messianic cult following?
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