Hot on the heels of the red-tops digging out Mike Russell's 10-year old book, the Loon has scoured the parliamentary archives and unearthed an interesting Early Day Motion about one Jim Murphy...
MR JIM MURPHY AND THE NATIONAL UNION OF STUDENTS 12.06.1996
Livingstone, Ken
That this House condemns the intolerant and dictatorial behaviour of the President of the National Union of Students, Mr Jim Murphy, who has unconstitutionally suspended NUS Vice President, Clive Lewis, because he took part, in a personal capacity, in an open debate at Queen Mary and Westfield College on the issues raised by the Campaign for Free Education; further notes that along with President Elect, Douglas Trainer, both men have warned NUS Executive member, Rose Woods, that if she attends the Scottish launch of the Campaign for Free Education she too will be suspended from the NUS Executive; reminds Mr Murphy and Mr Trainer that freedom of speech is a right in the United Kingdom, that they have no power to overturn the results of elections that went against their preferred candidates and that, whilst these methods are a common practice in dictatorships around the world, they are not acceptable behaviour from someone such as Mr Murphy who is putting himself forward as suitable for election to the House of Commons.
Amongst the 17 MPs who signed Red Ken's motion were such luminaries as Dennis Skinner and Tony Benn.
All you Glenrothes conspiracy theorists out there might particularly enjoy the line: "they have no power to overturn the results of elections that went against their preferred candidates". Of course, hypothetically speaking, if a result is already in the (postal ballot) bag, then there would be no need to overturn it.
