Sally Gimson: Bassetlaw Labour candidate deselected by NEC
- Published
Sally Gimson announced her selection as Labour's Bassetlaw candidate on 27 October
The Labour Party has removed a parliamentary candidate, less than two weeks after she received the endorsement of her local party.
Former journalist and campaigner Sally Gimson announced on 27 October that she was "delighted to have been selected" to represent Labour in Bassetlaw, Nottinghamshire.
But Labour's National Executive Committee (NEC) deselected her earlier.
The Remain supporter said she had been "condemned by a kangaroo court".
The Labour Party said it did not comment on its internal selection processes.
It comes on the same day that three former Labour MPs - including Jeremy Corbyn ally Chris Williamson - were barred from standing by the NEC.
Mrs Gimson, a former councillor in Camden, north London, told the BBC that on Friday she was informed of a complaint made against her from within her local party in Camden.
She said she had been "threatened not to tell anyone" about the complaint against her.
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The Local Democracy Reporting Service said it was understood that the deselection came after complaints relating to "very serious allegations" concerning "protected characteristics" - this can relate to issues surrounding race, disability, and sexuality.
Mrs Gimson said: "I am the democratically selected candidate by Bassetlaw Labour Party; I have the full backing of their executive and their anger is overwhelming."
Former Bassetlaw MP John Mann - who resigned last month to become a member of the House of Lords - called the removal of Mrs Gimson a "stitch-up" by Momentum, the grassroots movement that supports Jeremy Corbyn.
The Bassetlaw Labour Party executive said Mrs Gimson had "already been out on doorstep", adding that the deselection decision had been "widely and voraciously condemned".
BBC Radio Nottingham political reporter Hugh Casswell said local supporters were "incandescent with rage" at the deselection. The Labour Party has until 14 November to name its new candidate.
Labour won the seat in 2017 with a majority from the Conservatives of 4,852. More than two-thirds of voters in the constituency backed Leave in the referendum of 2016.
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- Published6 November 2019
